I ran a half marathon last weekend. It was the Cambridge Half Marathon and it was certainly Type 2 fun. It hurt in the moment, but I am very glad I did it. The weather was perfect and the crowd was energetic. When I run for a couple miles, I inevitably find myself breaking down the chunks of space and time into fractions - "I'm 1/5 of the way to the halfway point." or "There is one third to go, which means I need to repeat half of the effort that I have put in so far!"
I know this is a bit silly, the total distance can be represented by one scalar value, such as percent completed. I believe some part of my psyche has trouble pushing myself harder physically with this single scalar representation. What's special about being 13.5% done? Or 64.4% done with a chosen distance? For the first example, that is close to 1/8. I can easily imagine 1/8 in a pie graph even if those two quantities are nearly the same. I think part of my mental model wants to simplify the real number that represents this distance into a integer based value. I think this allows me to enjoy little victories throughout the race and mentally gear myself forward to the next little victory. Each mile marker becomes a tiny celebration.
The same thing happens in my formal studies and in the accumulation of capital. I celebrate the end and state of each semester or project. There is something garnered and something to come. In my search for meaning, this is something that yields higher complex pleasure and enjoyment in my life. Having something to look forward towards is crucial and a key part of desire. Maybe someday when I find it much harder to desire and obtain, I will turn towards a mental model that encourages the reduction of desire. Sattva is not so bad right?
The trees are sticks now and the winter is on the way. I worry about maybe different things for the next few years and the years after that. I want to see more powerful structures plan for the longer term. I want greater stability for longer times to come. This reflects my age is some ways. I am young and building experiences in my career and life. These will hopefully yield greater stability in my future. Although I am just one person and I have a small impact in the greater world, even if I were to accumulate some large degree of influence over others. The world will keep turning, the temperature will rise, calories will be burned.
The stink at the Boston Museum of Science is very long.
