The Mythos of Sophia

a Pagan tale of how things came to be

There was great rejoicing in the Pleroma, home to the high Gods and Goddesses, for Christos, the shining God of Light, had taken Sophia, the lovely Goddess of Wisdom, as his bride and partner for all eternity.

As the newly-wed couple lay side by side amongst the stars, they began to dream, and what they dreamed became manifest. Christos dreamed he was a star forming out of the gases of the galaxy, and he named his star-self Sol. In his dreaming, he invited his closest friends to join him, and gathered about himself Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. But none was as lovely as his bride, Sophia, who dreamed the planet, Gaia, and who placed at her planetary heart a piece of Sol himself, a molten core of fire and light.

As the newly dreamt Gaia took the dust of stars and molded it about her blood red heart, forming her planetary body, she was visited by each of the orbiting deities, all of whom paid their respects to the beautiful bride and bestowed upon her the most precious gifts they had to offer.

Neptune was the first to visit; he filled the deepest parts of the Goddess with salty seas, a primordial soup seething with the potential for life. From these seas, Sol lifted clouds to rain out the sweet waters of lake and stream and flow in rivers back to the oceans from which they came. Next was Uranus; he presented Gaia with the gift of air that she might bear living, breathing children. He charged the air with blue and called it Sky, stirring in the shifting shapes of cloud, the glorious pinks, purples and oranges of sunrise and sunset, the moody grays of rain and storm, the winter whites of snow and ice, and the electric streaks and booming voice of lightning and thunder. Luna, Sophia’s little sister, took it upon herself to reflect the light of Sol in Gaia’s nighttime skies, and to remain in close orbit about her beloved sister. And Venus, Sophia’s dearest friend, gifted Gaia with great beauty and the incomparable ability to love.

Christos saw that it was good. And so he planted his seed of life on the emerging planet, and it took root and began to grow in a myriad of fantastic shapes and forms, each more miraculous than the last. Sophia dreamed on and her dreams became the many children of Gaia, creatures of sea and land and sky. For his gift, Saturn clothed the dreaming Sophia with a cloak of living green that her animal children might have food and shelter, and Mercury brought flight to the creatures of air that her sky children might soar above it all.

Enthralled with the many wondrous children they had conceived, Christos formed an image of his god-self, naming the image Mesotes. He sent Mesotes to walk the surface of Gaia and to breathe spirit into each of her children, ensuring that none should ever die. And to them he whispered the Way to Be, each according to its kind.

For many eons, Sophia lay dreaming, content in the manifestations of Gaia. She dreamed colossal creatures whose footsteps were like thunder, and enormous plants that blanketed Gaia with astonishing forms. She took the energy of Sol, squeezed it into pure carbon, and stashed it in secret places deep within her. She formed new mountains from the depths of her heart, and broke apart continents to suit her whims. But there was in her a kernel of discontent, and this kernel began to grow. Gaia was lonely. Her children were magnificent, but they knew Her not. She longed for a child to share Her dreaming, a child who would know Her love and return it. And so She began a new dream, a dream of Anthropos. Of all Gaia’s children, Anthropos was unique, for he alone was gifted with nous, the divine knowing, the ability to imagine and create.

With the birth of Anthropos, Christos celebrated His newest child, sending Mesotes to give not only everlasting spirit, but to implant in each an immortal seed of light. And to Anthropos alone was the Way to Be left untold, for this newest child was gifted with free will and an inner compass to find his own Way.

The deities of the solar system likewise rejoiced in this birth and came with gifts of tribute. To Anthropos they pledged celestial guidance and promised to mark each birth with favors of their influence. Moreover, Mars gifted Anthropos with the ability to defend himself against the more fierce of the animal people. When the gift of Mars spiraled from defense to offense and from offense to war, Jupiter tempered it with gifts of his own -- a sense of justice that Gaia and her children might find their way back to harmony when conflicts arose, and the gift of laughter that all things might be kept in perspective.

In the beginning, all was well. Anthropos shared the earth with the plant and animal people and walked in harmony with Gaia, loving and being loved in return. But as Anthropos grew, he became rebellious and disdained the wisdom of his Mother. Alienated from his Mother and frightened by his own growing power, Anthropos began to dream dreams that bound him and made him feel secure. In this way, the Archons were born.

The Archons Anthropos created existed outside the harmony of Gaia and they were jealous. They envied Anthropos his nous, and they envied Gaia her dreams. And so they determined to destroy that which they could not share. They whispered in the ears of Anthropos and led him to believe great falsehoods. They told him that Yahweh, the Arch Deceiver, was the one Creator of All and that He demanded blind faith and absolute obedience. They told Anthropos that Yahweh had given him dominion over all creation and that Gaia belonged to him, not he to her. They admonished Anthropos that he was to be fruitful and multiply and at the same time warned him that mankind had been tainted with the sin of knowing and that only by grace could he be saved from his own corrupt nature.

Christos saw the troubled dreams of Anthropos and sent Mesotes to awaken his beloved child. Mesotes warned Anthropos against the false teachings of the Archons and admonished that 'by their fruits you shall know them.' He told Anthropos that the kingdom of heaven was within him and that life everlasting was his birthright. He reminded him of the brotherhood of Man and that what he did for the least of Gaia's children, he did for Gaia herself. But the Archons were clever and they distorted the words of Mesotes. These distorted words turned Anthropos from all the beauty and pleasures of Gaia and promised him an afterlife wherein his self-sacrifice would be vindicated. Then they taught him to be both victim and perpetrator and assured him that through suffering would he be redeemed.

Anthropos listened to the Archons and followed their teachings, which led him to commit unspeakable atrocities and which caused himself unbearable pain and sorrow. Estranged from his true relationship to the Mother, Anthropos ravaged his own home, murdering, plundering, and befouling all that which was pure. He was fruitful and multiplied until his numbers overran Gaia, annihilating many of the plant and animal tribes that shared Gaia’s dreaming. With the hubris of his adolescent rebellion inflamed by the false teachings of the Archons, Anthropos came close to destroying not only the abundance and beauty of Gaia, but his own existence as well. Yet never did Gaia stop loving him, and never did She turn away.

The ending of this story has yet to be told. Mother Gaia is getting restless and sends Her rumblings to warn Anthropos, for we are sleep-walking toward the edge of an unfathomable abyss. She calls to us all to leave off our adolescent rebellion and grow into the full power and wisdom of our adulthood.

Awake and rejoice, for you are a child of Gaia, gifted with nous and a seed of light. Awake and know your Mother -- know Her beauty, Her abundance, Her magnificent diversity of form, and the love with which She sustains all life incarnate. Awake and know the web which is life and recognize that what happens to one happens to all. Awake to live in reverence and gratitude, evolving with our planetary Mother to our proper place amongst the stars.

The Way to Be

It's been a while . . . I ran out of things to say and so I've let it ride. But about a year and a half ago, I became a first-time grandparent, and that has changed my perspective on things. Which is good. New perspective is always good.

I started thinking the other day about what I've learned over the past 60 years. If my granddaughter were to do something totally atypical of granddaughters and ask, "Gramma, tell me something true," what would I say? What advice would I offer? I decided to come up with a list of ten . . . er . . . not commandments . . . but suggestions . . . for the Way to Be.

Well, I've made my list. It is a lot longer than ten . . . and it keeps growing. None of these suggestions are original, but I like having them together in one place so that I can read through them on occasion; it is clear that these are lessons I have yet to learn myself. Maybe I should start by following my own advice. Or trying to.

The Way to Be
or the lessons I’m still trying to learn

• Be yourself fully and completely. This sounds easy, but it is not. It takes great strength, great courage, a sense of adventure, and awareness of the choices you are making. And never be less than you are -- especially not for the sake of others. Diminishing yourself does no one a favor.

• Pay attention. This one is especially difficult. It requires that you live a duality -- focusing on what is at hand while being aware of what is going on around you. First of all, pay attention to your senses -- what do you see? What do you smell? What do you hear? When you eat, focus on the taste and texture of your food. As for feeling, it seems to me that there are three levels. The first level is external -- what sensations is your skin registering? The second is internal and has to do with pressure, pain, temperature, comfort and discomfort. The third level is emotional. As observer, it is your task just to appreciate all three levels leaving aside any judgments. Then go beyond your senses and pay attention to the feelings and reactions of others. Pay attention to the choices you are making. Pay attention to your self-talk. And at the same time, pay attention to what you are doing, how you are doing it, and the possible consequences. I told you it was especially difficult!

• Be considerate. There are times when kindness is more important than truth. And there are times when truth is kindness. There are times when the needs of others will be more important than your own, and times when your own needs are more important than those of others. It will not always be easy to know the difference. So take time to consider. Be considerate.

• Be respectful. To respect is to see clearly and acknowledge true nature. To respect, one must not underestimate nor overestimate nor ascribe false characteristics. To respect a bear is to know the strengths, the weaknesses, and the wildness of bear, and to act accordingly. To respect another human is to know his strengths, weaknesses, and intentions, and to act accordingly.

• Be happy. The key to happiness is a loving, grateful heart. So be open to love -- not just human love and animal love, but love all the little things that make life a pleasure. Love the feel of wind on your cheek, the coo of the dove, the exhilaration of jumping into cold water, the taste of the first summer peach, the strength of your body. Love Mother Earth, and be grateful every day for the glorious gifts of life incarnate.

• Be the change you want in this world. I didn’t say this, Ghandi did. And it bears repeating. If you want a kinder, gentler world, then start by being kinder and gentler. If you want a more beautiful world, then start by creating and preserving beauty. Whatever you want for the future, begin by living it today.

• Do the right thing, not the easy thing. You will sleep better at night.

• Both give and receive with grace whether it be praise or help or gifts of the heart. Don’t be stingy with words of love and don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.

• Let yourself be wild and crazy. Be serious when serious is called for, but dance, laugh, sing and act silly every chance you get.

• Don’t worry. Worry poisons today with fears about tomorrow. Do what you need to do and let the future unfurl as it will. Have confidence that whatever happens, you will find a way to deal with it.

• Focus on the solution, not the problem. Don’t spend time banging your head against a wall -- it’s not only painful, it’s stupid. Find a way to live with the wall, or go over the wall, or around it, or under it, or turn and go in a whole different direction.

• Don’t take it personally. Life can be hard. People can be difficult. Circumstances can be challenging. For all of us. And remember that other people are going through their own stuff even though you might not see it.

• Do the best you can with what you have, right here, right now. Wishing things were different than they are is a recipe for unhappiness.

• Take responsibility. You are the star of your own life and responsible for the choices you make.

• Reserve the right to change your mind. Changing your mind is good. It means you have grown or seen things through new eyes or gotten new information or just . . . changed your mind.

• Know that life is both an adventure and an experiment. Don’t be afraid to try new things, and don’t be discouraged if you fail. Failure and mistakes are golden opportunities to learn something new, and learning new things is critical to the adventure.

• Know that nothing is easy. And nothing is more satisfying than a challenge well met or work well done.

• Know that everything is relative. Try thinking of ‘old-age,’ ‘hunger,’ ‘health,’ ‘poverty,’ or ‘a bad day’ from someone less fortunate’s perspective and you’ll see what I mean.

• Know when to fight, when to cede, when to walk away, and when to run. Don’t fight unless you have to, but if you must fight, fight to win.

• Know that change is inevitable. So be prepared and be flexible, and remember that this, too, shall pass.

• Know that nothing is 100% true, not even this. Question everything, including what is written here. Ask yourself, "Is this true? What are the underlying assumptions and are they true? Is there a better way of doing this or a different way of seeing this?" Learn to recognize wishful thinking for what it is. And take the time to separate the true things from the seemingly true. Remember that reality is not Tinker Bell; it does not require your belief.

• Know that death is inevitable. Life is not about preventing death, it is about living fully while you have the chance. And that chance is now. Go for it!

When Half is Worse Than Nothing at All

We’re going through a divorce. No, not my husband I, but the neighborhood. In most neighborhoods a divorce ‘down the street’ would create a few ripples at most. In our neighborhood, which is practically an extended family, it has created a tsunami.

Okay, so here’s the story. Wifey (we’ll call her Susie-Q) up and left Hubby (we’ll call him Sam). Sam, mournful and morose, spent the next few weeks crying in his beer at each and every home on the block. It seems Susie-Q done him wrong, big time. First of all, she’s been cheating on him. He has proof. He was driving through town one day around noon and saw her car in the parking lot of a local restaurant. Sure enough, she was having lunch with an old flame from some sixteen years ago. So he’s caught her red-handed, doncha know. And if that weren’t proof enough, there’s the steamy Valentine card Old Flame sent to Susie Q. (Pass the card around. Exhibit A). And now that she’s dumped him for another man, she’s playing dirty pool. She waited until he deposited his retirement check and then emptied out the joint account. She had the electricity, cable and telephone disconnected, leaving him in the dark with no means of communicating with the outside world. She filed a ridiculous restraining order against him, claiming that he was violent and she was afraid for her safety. And she’s been sleeping with a loaded gun under her pillow (which Sam has retrieved and gives to a neighbor for safe-keeping. Exhibit B).

The neighbors are properly horrified. How could she? How dare she!! Well, that tears it. We’re sending her to Coventry – if she walks by, don’t even acknowledge her existence. Don’t talk to her, don’t look at her, and don’t, for heaven’s sake, ask for her side of the story.

Well, I happen to like Susie Q. She’s been my friend for years and yes, she has a short fuse and can be a bit of a hot head. She also has a habit of being brutally honest and offending people at times. Some would call those faults, but those qualities are part of what I like about her. I always know where I stand with Susie Q – she’s a straight-shooter. So I went to Susie and asked for her side of the story.

First of all, why did she leave Sam? They seemed to have a good marriage. Why run out on the poor man?

Well, it seems that Sam has been convinced that Susie Q was going to cheat on him from the day they said, “I do.” After all, he and his first wife cheated on each other, so it only made sense that Susie Q would do the same thing sooner or later. But he wasn’t going to be fooled this time. This time, he would see it coming. So he tapped her phone, put GPS trackers on her car and boat, and ‘security cameras’ inside the house. When he used the GPS tracker to follow her to lunch with an old friend, it was just one straw too many. She didn’t want to fight anymore. She didn’t want to have to prove her innocence over and over. She just wanted out. So she packed up her belongings and moved onto her boat.

But what about the steamy Valentine card? Wasn’t there more to this ‘friendship’ than just an innocent lunch?

Well, it turns out the Valentine card was sixteen years old, a relic from a bygone era. Maybe the yellowed paper and $1.50 price would have been a giveaway had anybody bothered to look.

Then why did she keep the card all these years? Was she still pining for the one who got away?

The truth is that Susie Q is the sentimental type who keeps everything, including the gum wrapper chain she made back in fifth grade.

Okay, but how about the dirty pool? I mean, really, emptying out the man’s bank account, cutting off his utilities, and filing a restraining order for cripe’s sake!

Well, he was living in the house but he wasn’t paying the bills. He didn’t pay the mortgage; he didn’t pay the utilities; he didn’t pay the insurance. So she took the money out of the joint account and paid off the bills. No more, no less. Then she gave him notice that he had two weeks to switch the accounts to his name before she cancelled them out. The restraining order was filed because he was continuing to spy on her, following her and watching her through binoculars. She just wanted to be left alone!

Okay, well there was the gun under her pillow . . .

Look, he has two guns of his own (a detail he failed to mention) and one of them was unaccounted for. She assumed he had it with him. She just felt safer with protection of her own . . . .

So . . . it all boils down to ‘he said/she said.’ Personally, I find the brutally honest, straight-shooter more credible than the smooth talker, but I realize that everyone colors the story to put themselves in the best possible light. That’s human nature.

And I do know this, whether it is a neighborhood drama or climate change or health care legislation, half the story is often worse than nothing at all.

My Respects to Miss Pollyanna

“Betwixt the optimist and pessimist the difference is droll; the optimist the doughnut sees, the pessimist the hole.”

“The pessimist sees the glass as half empty, the optimist sees it as half full.”

Those are the definitions of optimism and pessimism I hear bandied about most often. And if you define optimists and pessimists that way, optimism looks like the superior option. The only problem is, neither definition is true. Optimism and pessimism aren’t about the ability to appreciate what you have, but about an expectation of where you are headed.

So if seeing the glass half full isn’t optimism, what is it? I nominate the term ‘Pollyannaism.’ If you’re not familiar with Eleanor Porter's story, Pollyanna was a young orphan who played ‘the glad game.’ She not only found something to be glad of in every circumstance, but she saw beyond human failings and brought out the best in people. We have come to use the term “Pollyanna” as a negative: “an excessively or blindly optimistic person; also unreasonably or illogically optimistic: some pollyanna notions about world peace,” but Miss Polly deserves better, and so do we -- the world needs more people like her. Moreover, one can be a pessimist and still be a Pollyanna.

So I’m going to rewrite our lexicon. A Pollyanna is a person who sees the doughnut, not the hole. An optimist is one who thinks that despite all evidence to the contrary, everything will work out just fine. And a pessimist is one who believes that even though things appear to be going well, sh*t is bound to hit the fan. I try to be a realist – one who looks at where we are now, what we are doing, and where that is likely to take us. There are times when I come to the conclusion that everything will work out just fine, and there are times when it appears shit is going to hit the fan. But either way, I hope to take lessons from Pollyanna and appreciate what I have while I have it.

Good Reads

Some good reads well worth the time:

An article on the Transition Initiative in the US which includes an intro to Peak Oil and opinions from several different sources. One of the best articles on the subject that I've read to date.

Sharon Astyk's ruminations on 'where we live' -- the global markets we rely upon and the consequences of long-distance living.

James Kunstler, in his weekly address "Clusterfuck Nation," explains with his typical acerbic wit why we the economy cannot return to 'normal.' We've been borrowing from tomorrow and tomorrow is finally here:

The US economic situation is going to get a lot worse. Many more people are going to lose incomes and chattels and will suffer, and the moment will arrive when they will direct their anger outward. They need to be told two things: that the borrowed-against future is now here, requiring very different behavior; and that those who received lavish payment for looting the American future unlawfully will be subject to due process of law. So far, nobody has even been fired, let alone officially investigated.

And a plug for Greg Craven's book, What's the Worst That Could Happen?, available now for pre-order! What makes Greg's book different from all others out there is that Greg doesn't try to tell you what to think. His book is about looking at the debate on global climate change from the perspective of risk management, and he offers guidelines on how to evaluate for yourself the information that bombards us from every angle. Plus, Greg is funny.:D He has written an easy-to-read alternative to the academic tomes that weigh down the bookstore shelves. Buy a copy for yourself and one for a friend! (Or buy one to donate to your local library . . . !)

Newsreel, June 2009

Some interesting stuff in the news these days.

The US Global Change Research Program has presented to Congress and the American President a 190 page paper entitled ‘Global Climate Change Impacts in The United States.‘ If you are still wondering whether or not global climate change is real, or whether or not it is anthropogenic, the answers are here. This paper includes the most up-to-date, most thorough answers science has to offer. And if you are wondering if and when and how that might affect you, this paper addresses that, too. Well worth a read. Or if you don’t have time to read the whole thing, you can browse the colorful graphics.

Of course, admitting there is a problem isn’t the same as solving it. Where to begin? Well, there’s the Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill. Hummmm. Seems Monsanto (one of my all-time favorite moustache-twirling villains) and Dow Chemical (okay, I have more than one favorite!) are pulling some behind the scene shenanigans to promote poisoning of the earth and cornering the entire world’s seed stock as carbon off-sets worthy of subsidies. Lex Luthor would be proud!

In the meantime, we’ve had another shooting in Pensacola. It seems a certain mobile home park got behind on its water bill and so the more than 100 residents (who have been paying their rent all along – which supposedly includes utilities) had their water cut off. No water for over a week and the sewers were beginning to back up. Well, a local church decided to help out. They came over with water, food, and giving hearts. In the midst of this community bonding, a 17-year old from a neighboring town showed up. He had a beef with one of the residents over a stolen wallet, so he shot him in the face. The victim has since died.

If that wasn’t bad enough, a few days later some deputies responded to a call for assistance with a young man who was having a seizure at this very same mobile home park. Somehow, someway, their K-9 dog got out of the sheriff’s car and attacked the patient’s mother, sending her to the hospital with multiple bite wounds. Police aren’t sure how the dog got out of the car, but suggest that the woman aggravated the situation by reacting inappropriately, “’It didn't help that she was hysterical,’ Roy said.”

Bottom line is that if your water is cut off, your sewer is backing up, your neighbor is shot and killed during a church cook-out, your son is having a seizure, and you are being attacked by a police dog, by all means don’t get hysterical!

I am struck by how readily a trigger gets pulled. I am struck by the callousness of the water company and how readily they turned the water off. I am struck by how easily things can go awry when deputies overreact. I am struck by the ‘blame the victim’ attitude of law enforcement. I am struck by the one ray of light in this story – the church members who showed up to offer relief.

I am concerned about the number of guns in this country. I am concerned that hardship brings out the worst in some people. I am concerned that this story is only the beginning . . .

Dear Abby

I’m still not a huge fan of Dimitry Orlov, although if Sharon Astyk were to market “I’d do Dimitry Orlov” bumper stickers, I might buy one just because it’s such a great insider joke.

Maybe part of the problem I have with Dimitry is his off-hand dismissal of efforts such as Transition initiatives. As I see it, any movement toward a more sustainable, more resilient tomorrow is better than sitting around waiting for the sky to fall. We need positive visions of what the world could be. We need more bicycles, more gardens, more community. Okay, maybe reality will fall short of the plans that were made, but a step in the right direction is still a step in the right direction.

Or maybe I have a problem with him because he seems so sure of himself. I like writers who admit they could be wrong. Or maybe because he seems so ‘out there’ – so far out on the fringe that he risks 'kook' status and I’m trying to convince others that doomsayers such as he are not kooks but intelligent, well-informed, rational people who just happen to be really good at reading the tea leaves.

All that said, Dimitry made some salient points that I’d like to share.

In answer to the concern how long before TEOTWAWKI?, Orlov offers the following:

Now: end of growth, onset of permanent crisis.
The next decade: steep declines in the availability of fossil fuels; some of the natural realm left intact; some ability to make alternative arrangements.
The following decade: collapse of fossil fuel industry; natural realm largely destroyed; no ability to make alternative arrangements.

A fast collapse is the optimistic scenario. The alternative is a nasty ‘slow burn.’

The biggest risk of all, as I see it, is that the industrial economy will blunder in for a few more years, perhaps even a decade or more, leaving environmental and social devastation in its wake. Once it finally gives up the ghost, hardly anything will be left with which to start over. To mitigate against this risk, we have to create alternatives, on a small scale, that do not perpetuate this system and that can function without it.

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It’s always personal. No one will inform you that collapse has happened; you will only know that it has happened to you.

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There are two components to human nature, the social and the solitary. The solitary is definitely the more highly evolved, and humanity has surged forward through the efforts of brilliant loners and eccentrics. Their names live on forever precisely because society was unable to extinguish their brilliance or to thwart their initiative. Our social instincts are atavistic and result far too reliably in mediocrity and conformism. We are evolved to live in small groups of a few families, and our recent experiments that have gone beyond that seem to have relied on herd instincts that may not even be specifically human. When confronted with the unfamiliar, we have a tendency to panic and stampede, and on such occasions people regularly get trampled and crushed underfoot: a pinnacle of evolution indeed! And so, in fashioning a survivable future, where do we put our emphasis: on individuals and small groups, or on larger entities - regions, nations, humanity as a whole? I believe the answer to that is obvious.

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I think that what makes us likely to think that technology will save us is that we are addled by it. Efforts at creating intelligent machines have failed, because computers are far too difficult to program, but humans turn out to be easy for computers to program. Everywhere I go I see people poking away at their little mental support units. Many of them can no longer function without them: they wouldn't know where to go, who to talk to, or even where to get lunch without a little electronic box telling what to do. . . .

There are people who believe in the emergent intelligence of the networked realm - a sort of artificial intelligence utopia, where networked machines become hyperintelligent and solve all of our problems. And so our best hope is that in our hour of need machines will be nice to us and show us kindness? If that's the case, what reason would they find to respect us? Why wouldn't they just kill us instead? Or enslave us. Oh, wait, maybe they already have!

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Now, supposing all goes well, and we have a swift and decisive collapse, what should follow is an equally swift rebirth of viable localised communities and ecosystems. One concern is that the effort will be short of qualified staff.

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We have a huge surplus of “factory-farmed humans” and a shortage of “free-range humans.”

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It is an unfortunate fact that the recent centuries of settled life, and especially the last century or so of easy living based on the industrial model, has made many people too soft to endure the hardships and privations that self-sufficient living often involves. It seems quite likely that those groups that are currently marginalised, would do better, especially the ones that are found in economically underdeveloped areas and have never lost contact with nature.

But the best part of the whole article is Orlov’s ardent advice (this aside from his admonition to invest in land and bronze nails):

Conserve energy: get plenty of rest and sleep a lot. Sleeping burns ten times less energy than hard physical labor.

Save time: avoid living by a schedule. Choose the best time to do each thing. Work with the weather and the seasons, not against them.

Pick and choose: always have more to do than you ever plan to get done.

Have plenty of options: You don’t know what the future holds, so (don’t) plan accordingly.

Think for yourself: the popularity of a stupid idea doesn’t make it any less stupid.

Laugh at the world: make sure to maintain a healthy sense of humor.

Now that is much-needed advice -- advice I can even live with!