Inside the Mind of a Nathan

Any time I don't write for a few days, it feels like such a long time. My friends, fear is crippling. Have you read Dune by Frank Herbert? It was a great book turned into a great movie turned into a great computer game . Like every good story—especially science-fiction story—it has some trippy things going on, but, with every good story, there are some bold lessons to be drawn out.

Ah, science: such a beautiful method. I wonder when it became a religion. I was chatting with a fine gentleman who clarified for me that it is not as monolithic as a religion but rather just scattered emoters banding together to feel some kind of solidarity.

Have you ever been told (by an email or otherwise) to write a multi-column list or some such about strengths, weaknesses, etc.? Just now, I was directed to write a three-column list with Old Identity New Identity What would I believe differently about myself if I believed I really were this new person?" It actually turned out really well.

I am visiting a new library, and it is much quieter and cozier than the Southampton library. There is an older gentleman at a table to my left who is working on a 2000 piece jigsaw puzzle. He grabs a handful of pieces every so often to plop them on his table as he sorts them into categories. It feels a bit chilly. It seems unusual how often places are refrigerated — as opposed to air-conditioned.

It's a funny planet. Have you ever been caught between a rock and a hard place ? (The phrase is a bit quirky, but it gets the job done.) What do you do? My current strategy is to keep my head down and charge faster. I don't know how effective it will be, but—and I've thought pretty hard about it—I can't devise a better approach.

I am on the verge of making videos! I got some exceedingly great input from a fine, upstanding gentleman named Andrew. Thus, I have ordered the recommended equipment and will be exporting crazy stuff rather soon! Via the same man's input, I also discovered iMovie for free (since I purchased a slightly-new used Mac a little while ago). It's a wonderful program that is very, very approachable. I'm looking forward to beginning a number of projects: education videos, narrating one of my novels, recording my few songs, and a couple other ideas.

I got a binder for my student! I had been asking him forever to get a few items that would help him organize his life (a binder, dividers, and loose-leaf paper), but I can understand how intimidating it is to step through barriers like that. I can understand how daunting it is to go from disorganization to organization without any kind of hand-holding.

I have a subtle but great triumph! that I can't quite share in the public forum. For some reason, I feel more tired but definitely less squelched. I even finished a book and started a new one! Brave New World —I'm sorry to admit—was anticlimactic. It did an intriguing job of illuminating the traps we've created for ourselves, but it was hard (nearly impossible) to invest in any of the characters. Let me linger on its virtues, however: hypnopaedic learning, zygote manipulation, and the sexual revolution. (When I say virtues, I mean to say virtuous condemnation.)