May Madness
31/05/2016 11:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
izmeinaWell another month has come and almost gone. It's scary how they seem to get faster and faster.
It's also amusing to think that back in the bad old days with no laptop and certainly no Portkey in the Lair I was posting online snippets far more frequently than now. It's not like there's even an excuse for more posting and less lurking. No evil toxic toads to drain the serpent soul, no 30 hours per week devoted to a job and another 20 devoted to 3 units studying. But maybe it's simply old age. Cyberia is no longer the bright and shiny place full of tempting treats and toys that it used to be. I guess when you hit the half century it gets harder and harder to deny the inevitability of mortality and the ancient real world begins to look rather more interesting.
But in some strange ways it has been the adventures in Cyberia that added to the appreciation of the other world.
I finally seem to have under control a past addiction to online courses.
It was like being a kid in a candy store or a glutton at the buffet. Just pile the plates higher and higher and never ask if it is even possible to gobble so much stuff let alone take time to enjoy each tasty morsel. I have rationed myself to just one at a time and actually kept to it this month.
Like with most things, the first experiences are the most formative. One of the first courses I took and still one of the best was called "Introduction to mathematical thinking". As well as learning fascinating stuff like formal logic and the art of deciphering much of the arcane mathematical symbols of "Godel, Escher, Bach - an eternal golden braid" (a definite desert island book for this serpent) the other really important thing I learned was that persistence, practice and constant vigilance usually win in the long run over innate talent without such grit. That a lot of what looks like natural ability is so often simply the result of years and years of practice.
The relevance of this to reality is rather simple. I no longer expect to pick something up quickly or give up when it becomes a struggle because that surely is a sign of total unsuitability. If it is difficult then it means that the old grey cells are getting a good workout. Of course the stuff has to be interesting in the first place or else there would be no incentive to overcome the frustration of making such slow progress.
So this meant that the last four Monday evenings spent learning the dark art of book binding could be enjoyed as a learning experience and a useful chance to learn something practical rather than a never ending exercise in frustration because everything is going so slowly and my efforts are not looking as magnificent as the folks at the next table.
But it did become increasingly obvious that even with following the maxim of "Measure 5 times and cut once" was still producing some definitely dodgy edges. A millimeter or two out here or there does not sound like much but it all adds up and looks ever so wonky.
It turns out that the man teaching the course used to be a carpenter and had to give it up for IT when his eyes were no longer up to the perfection in measurements required. Ha added that if he had been doing roofs and not furniture he could have gotten away with it for a whole lot longer.
So it's no longer possible to pretend that the beady serpent eyes are perfectly fine thank you very much.
So in spite of some incredible wonkiness, it was still fun and I have already signed up for the intermediate class. Most of the enjoyment came in no small part to just going with the flow and not expecting perfection. Of course anything to do with books is always a very big plus.
Meanwhile will need to get some glasses and a whole pile of practice measuring and cutting so that it will almost be on autopilot by the time the next course comes around.
In the meantime, the weeds are thriving and there's garlic, sweet potatoes and nasturtiums growing like crazy. Been making the most of the gorgeous mild winter weather to experiment with seeds and to see what pops up.
Still searching for some grand project to ignite the long dormant serpent spark plugs. Here's hoping to find something suitable before the solstice.
It's also amusing to think that back in the bad old days with no laptop and certainly no Portkey in the Lair I was posting online snippets far more frequently than now. It's not like there's even an excuse for more posting and less lurking. No evil toxic toads to drain the serpent soul, no 30 hours per week devoted to a job and another 20 devoted to 3 units studying. But maybe it's simply old age. Cyberia is no longer the bright and shiny place full of tempting treats and toys that it used to be. I guess when you hit the half century it gets harder and harder to deny the inevitability of mortality and the ancient real world begins to look rather more interesting.
But in some strange ways it has been the adventures in Cyberia that added to the appreciation of the other world.
I finally seem to have under control a past addiction to online courses.
It was like being a kid in a candy store or a glutton at the buffet. Just pile the plates higher and higher and never ask if it is even possible to gobble so much stuff let alone take time to enjoy each tasty morsel. I have rationed myself to just one at a time and actually kept to it this month.
Like with most things, the first experiences are the most formative. One of the first courses I took and still one of the best was called "Introduction to mathematical thinking". As well as learning fascinating stuff like formal logic and the art of deciphering much of the arcane mathematical symbols of "Godel, Escher, Bach - an eternal golden braid" (a definite desert island book for this serpent) the other really important thing I learned was that persistence, practice and constant vigilance usually win in the long run over innate talent without such grit. That a lot of what looks like natural ability is so often simply the result of years and years of practice.
The relevance of this to reality is rather simple. I no longer expect to pick something up quickly or give up when it becomes a struggle because that surely is a sign of total unsuitability. If it is difficult then it means that the old grey cells are getting a good workout. Of course the stuff has to be interesting in the first place or else there would be no incentive to overcome the frustration of making such slow progress.
So this meant that the last four Monday evenings spent learning the dark art of book binding could be enjoyed as a learning experience and a useful chance to learn something practical rather than a never ending exercise in frustration because everything is going so slowly and my efforts are not looking as magnificent as the folks at the next table.
But it did become increasingly obvious that even with following the maxim of "Measure 5 times and cut once" was still producing some definitely dodgy edges. A millimeter or two out here or there does not sound like much but it all adds up and looks ever so wonky.
It turns out that the man teaching the course used to be a carpenter and had to give it up for IT when his eyes were no longer up to the perfection in measurements required. Ha added that if he had been doing roofs and not furniture he could have gotten away with it for a whole lot longer.
So it's no longer possible to pretend that the beady serpent eyes are perfectly fine thank you very much.
So in spite of some incredible wonkiness, it was still fun and I have already signed up for the intermediate class. Most of the enjoyment came in no small part to just going with the flow and not expecting perfection. Of course anything to do with books is always a very big plus.
Meanwhile will need to get some glasses and a whole pile of practice measuring and cutting so that it will almost be on autopilot by the time the next course comes around.
In the meantime, the weeds are thriving and there's garlic, sweet potatoes and nasturtiums growing like crazy. Been making the most of the gorgeous mild winter weather to experiment with seeds and to see what pops up.
Still searching for some grand project to ignite the long dormant serpent spark plugs. Here's hoping to find something suitable before the solstice.
