4 ms·

Your old life reminded me of the Mexican fisherman story :) http://bemorewithless.com/the-story-of-the-mexican-fisherman/ http://bemorewithless.com/the-story-o

Your old life reminded me of the Mexican fisherman story :) http://bemorewithless.com/the-story-of-the-mexican-fisherman/ http://bemorewithless.com/the-story-of-the-mexican-fisherman...

verroq 12y ago
The difference is that you have to fish everyday, or you starve and you can't "play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos" any more. Where as in the 15 years later version, you don't need to fish at all.
- markyc 12y ago
  if he loves to fish that shouldn't be a problem though, thus giving him 15 extra years of peaceful life i know, he could get injured and not be able to fish, but on that note, in 15 years he could find out he has cancer and not be able to enjoy his money
  - icebraining 12y ago
    His kids would, though.
    - markyc 12y ago
      they may prefer 15 years of quality time with dad to a load of cash PS: I'd love to hear some arguments on this, not just simple downvotes. Is HN turning into a place like: "you don't think like me, so I'm downvoting you and moving along"?
      - deleted 12y ago
        [deleted]
      - thelogos 12y ago
        If you've ever fished for a living, the argument seems ludicrous. Fishing can be treacherous work. You might get rich with a big haul or die when the whether turns bad. There are many factors, enviromental pollution, ecosystem changing, etc. It's not unusual for these small local fishermen to have very very bad years. And it's not just small outfits that hit tough times, do some research on the tuna industry and decline in tuna population. Reality doesn't always go along with our cozy zen story. We haven't even mentioned the fact that turning your hobby into a job is quite often a very bad idea.
        smileysteve 12y ago
        In the case of the story of the fisherman in Mexico, he is not going on big hauls that pay big bucks. He is in a small one man boat in a bay. He is not catching thousands of pounds of fish, he is catching 2-5 fish a day.
        thelogos 12y ago
        You can't support a family catching 2-5 fishes a day. This is not prehistory. You need to catch extra to sell so you can afford to take your kid to the doctor and buy them medicine when they get sick. You need to buy clothes unless you plan on leaving yourself and your family naked. You need to buy school supplies for your kid. These things do not come for free my friend. The life of a fisherman is a harsh one and none, not even the poorest fisherman can live on 2-5 fish a day. You need money to buy a fridge to preserve your catch because some days or even weeks, you will catch absolutely nothing. There are fishing seasons. At the very least, you need to buy salt to dry and preserve the fish. Have you ever watched a family wept when the rain came down while they were laying out their fishes to dry? I think some people on HN have a tendency to romanticize poverty, and that might be because they've never been without money. Backpacking around India and SE Asia does not give you a true experience of poverty. Sure, you'll take some pictures to show off on Fb, instagram, twitter and then eventually hop back on a plane to fly home. Try living like those people for decades. Watch your wife die from childbirth. How are you going to afford a trip to the hospital on 2-5 fish a day? People routinely give birth without an ultrasound beforehand and they do it at home. Watch your precious kid die from malaria because you can't afford proper treatment. I speak from experience here. There is nothing, nothing noble about poverty.
  - Jun8 12y ago
    At a minimum you should listen to the song "Alexa" by Billy Joel to get a feel for what real deep sea fishermen have to endure. This sort of thing definitely is not a hobby that you love to indulge in.
thisjepisje 12y ago
Sounds like a rewrite of this 1963 German story. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anekdote_zur_Senkung_der_Arbeitsmoral http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anekdote_zur_Senkung_der_Arbeit... Well worth reading if you speak German: http://www.aloj.us.es/webdeutsch/s_3/transkriptionen/l_26_str10_trans.pdf http://www.aloj.us.es/webdeutsch/s_3/transkriptionen/l_26_st...

Your old life reminded me of the Mexican fisherman story :) http://bemorewithless.com/the-story-of-the-mexican-fisherman/ http://bemorewithless.com/the-story-of-the-mexican-fisherman...

verroq 12y ago

The difference is that you have to fish everyday, or you starve and you can't "play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos" any more. Where as in the 15 years later version, you don't need to fish at all.

markyc 12y ago
if he loves to fish that shouldn't be a problem though, thus giving him 15 extra years of peaceful life i know, he could get injured and not be able to fish, but on that note, in 15 years he could find out he has cancer and not be able to enjoy his money
- icebraining 12y ago
  His kids would, though.
  - markyc 12y ago
    they may prefer 15 years of quality time with dad to a load of cash PS: I'd love to hear some arguments on this, not just simple downvotes. Is HN turning into a place like: "you don't think like me, so I'm downvoting you and moving along"?
    - deleted 12y ago
      [deleted]
    - thelogos 12y ago
      If you've ever fished for a living, the argument seems ludicrous. Fishing can be treacherous work. You might get rich with a big haul or die when the whether turns bad. There are many factors, enviromental pollution, ecosystem changing, etc. It's not unusual for these small local fishermen to have very very bad years. And it's not just small outfits that hit tough times, do some research on the tuna industry and decline in tuna population. Reality doesn't always go along with our cozy zen story. We haven't even mentioned the fact that turning your hobby into a job is quite often a very bad idea.
      - smileysteve 12y ago
        In the case of the story of the fisherman in Mexico, he is not going on big hauls that pay big bucks. He is in a small one man boat in a bay. He is not catching thousands of pounds of fish, he is catching 2-5 fish a day.
        thelogos 12y ago
        You can't support a family catching 2-5 fishes a day. This is not prehistory. You need to catch extra to sell so you can afford to take your kid to the doctor and buy them medicine when they get sick. You need to buy clothes unless you plan on leaving yourself and your family naked. You need to buy school supplies for your kid. These things do not come for free my friend. The life of a fisherman is a harsh one and none, not even the poorest fisherman can live on 2-5 fish a day. You need money to buy a fridge to preserve your catch because some days or even weeks, you will catch absolutely nothing. There are fishing seasons. At the very least, you need to buy salt to dry and preserve the fish. Have you ever watched a family wept when the rain came down while they were laying out their fishes to dry? I think some people on HN have a tendency to romanticize poverty, and that might be because they've never been without money. Backpacking around India and SE Asia does not give you a true experience of poverty. Sure, you'll take some pictures to show off on Fb, instagram, twitter and then eventually hop back on a plane to fly home. Try living like those people for decades. Watch your wife die from childbirth. How are you going to afford a trip to the hospital on 2-5 fish a day? People routinely give birth without an ultrasound beforehand and they do it at home. Watch your precious kid die from malaria because you can't afford proper treatment. I speak from experience here. There is nothing, nothing noble about poverty.
- Jun8 12y ago
  At a minimum you should listen to the song "Alexa" by Billy Joel to get a feel for what real deep sea fishermen have to endure. This sort of thing definitely is not a hobby that you love to indulge in.

thisjepisje 12y ago

Sounds like a rewrite of this 1963 German story. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anekdote_zur_Senkung_der_Arbeitsmoral http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anekdote_zur_Senkung_der_Arbeit... Well worth reading if you speak German: http://www.aloj.us.es/webdeutsch/s_3/transkriptionen/l_26_str10_trans.pdf http://www.aloj.us.es/webdeutsch/s_3/transkriptionen/l_26_st...