2 ms·

"if you don't do anything concrete with your inspiration then you're simply sitting around on the phone waiting for the next dopamine hit from your 'next grea

"if you don't *do* anything concrete with your inspiration then you're simply sitting around on the phone waiting for the next dopamine hit from your 'next great insight' about [literally anything]." What do you do as a consequence of looking at a sunset or a great painting, listening to some amazing music, or having mind-blowing sex? Are such experiences to be devalued unless they lead to something productive? Maybe some great works of art do have influences on people, but they're not exactly as easy to trace as, say, being taught some useful skill. That doesn't mean that great works of art are valueless nor that we should only value what is useful. Also, what if your mood improves after taking psychedelics? Or if you enjoy life more, or you're less stressed out? You haven't necessarily done anything based on the experience, but it's easy to see that your life has improved. It's not all about useful messages or insights. I don't see what's wrong with simply getting more pleasure out of life.

natpalmer1776 5y ago
It is an individual thing is what I was trying to get at. One artist who paints sunsets will see many of them and paint a few in great detail while another may paint each one he sees, selecting the best for his galleries. If you want to talk on the phone with your pharmacist for 20 minutes after confirming your prescription will be ready at 2PM, thats great. For someone who values efficacy and the reduction of "unnecessary" expenditure of time this would however be unacceptable. I find myself struggling to let more of the former in my own life than the latter, but in this case I wanted to try and illustrate the *internal* dynamic I saw being expressed by the two viewpoints. My writing was colored by my own belief of what is best in life, so it leaned towards minimizing the value of leisure, but to be clear, that wasn't the message I was trying to convey.

"if you don't *do* anything concrete with your inspiration then you're simply sitting around on the phone waiting for the next dopamine hit from your 'next grea

natpalmer1776 5y ago

It is an individual thing is what I was trying to get at. One artist who paints sunsets will see many of them and paint a few in great detail while another may paint each one he sees, selecting the best for his galleries. If you want to talk on the phone with your pharmacist for 20 minutes after confirming your prescription will be ready at 2PM, thats great. For someone who values efficacy and the reduction of "unnecessary" expenditure of time this would however be unacceptable. I find myself struggling to let more of the former in my own life than the latter, but in this case I wanted to try and illustrate the *internal* dynamic I saw being expressed by the two viewpoints. My writing was colored by my own belief of what is best in life, so it leaned towards minimizing the value of leisure, but to be clear, that wasn't the message I was trying to convey.