So last week I found my self in a terrible mood / need for a fortune cookie.
Not sure why, have been pretty unstable lately, having trouble focusing, bit down… well you know, life has such moments too (for most of us – I imagine).
So anyway, I went to a place I knew they had (fortune cookies) and I also though I get a cup of tea at a tea-house here in Cluj. But they had no fortune cookies at the time…
Bummed, I went to another place where I like spending time, which I didn’t know if they had, but hopped they did have fortune cookies. They didn’t… Bummed yet again I decided there and then: no matter, I’ll write my own fortune cookies, well, they would not come with any cookies so I decided to call them fortune non-cookies so to not make any false advertisement. And here they are, for any needy soul that finds the usual provider un-ready for the clingy need that they might find them-selves with.
1. Yes you are in an ocean of irrationality, but keep swimming – you have just a bit more to the shore.
2. Feel like running on thin ice? Better slow down, there’s an iceberg ahead named recklessness.
3. Belle and Sebastian say ‘push barman to open old wounds” – that’s push, not punch!
4. Beyond every threshold there can be evolution… it’s up to you!
5. Other people’s foolish games might befuddle you and make you want to play your own… DON’T!
6. Steve is right “keep looking, don’t settle”* and incidentally double quote: “stay hungry, stay foolish!”
*Refers to stick to things that really bring passion and meaning in your life, not to being picky or following some perfection. It’s more than who you end up with, though that needs to resonate too.
7. They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Still, don’t mash your head into that wall…
8. Feel cluttered? Gather everything in one place > throw away the useless > organise.
9. Don’t understand something? There’s always the dictionary and/or Wikipedia. It’s often that easy.
10. The rabbit’s hole might go just as deep as you dig it… don’t you want to reach for the sky instead?
11. You may presume things about people or events, but remember: “presuming is the mother of all f@ck-ups”.
12. If you don’t have truth/honesty at the basis of your values, your other values might just be false.
13. One seams full of shit? Discreetly tell. It can be there where you thought or on your own lap. Awareness is good.
14. More then hearing, listen; more then seeing, observe; more then understanding what, understand why ~ Full-mindedly.
15. Trapped by dragon of own making? Set yourself free. Captain Planet said: “the power is yours”. Use courage to slay!
16. Enjoy NOW, you might not live in the future. But wisely as much as possible – remember moderation at least now and then. Future you will thank you in both cases*.
*Enjoy, but realize to stop/ change when you do it at the expense of more than just your own future. We’re so often trashing the ecosystem with our actions and ways. It’s rooted in our culture but that’s not an excuse.
17. Realize your thresholds, which are worth keeping, which are wiser to cool down and which you should probably surpass and leave behind.
18.Failing to unfold your feelings and actions in the right order your intentions might not be known or believed…
Added after 3 years (I have more scattered in notes, but this one is a must, one of my favorites).
19.Remember Gandhi, and align what you think with what you say and what you do. It’s confusing and quite unfair otherwise, specially for yourself.
Later, experimental addition:
20. “Do what you gotta do”, but investigate first to reduce your chances of being mislead about what it is that needs/has to be done.
Even later addition:
21. Let your prefrontal guide you. Do what ever your giant cerebral-cortex tells you it’s worth it. Try not to cheat on/lie to your hypothalamus.
22. Trying your best has momentary thresholds, it’s actually a very elastic capacity – expanding as you exercise it… you’d be surprised
23. They say, and I’ve seen, how the small things have the power to make something wonderful in most meaningful ways, I’m also understanding how small things can easily create great misunderstanding and confusion.
24. Time can make things sweeter or bitter, but we’re the cooks.
Even later addition:
25. It’s often important, before you dish someone or something, to be patient to “see how things unfold”, but that doesn’t mean being distant and not caring or continuing your part to the unfolding – it doesn’t mean that you’re not part of/ not affecting the unfolding. Though it’s not necessarily mandatory that you’re part of it, if it came to be said – you probably are.
Way later addition, not sure which one sounds right/better:
26. Unlocked potential with a redemption quest.
OR
Potential unlocked via a redemption quest.
OR
Untapped potential unlocked by a redemption quest.