Overdose on Some Great Philosophy

This six part series on philosophy is presented by popular British philosopher Alain de Botton, featuring six thinkers who have influenced history, and their ideas about the pursuit of the happy life.




[6 Episodes/24min. Each]

Episode 1: Socrates on Self-Confidence - Why do so many people go along with the crowd and fail to stand up for what they truly believe? Partly because they are too easily swayed by other people's opinions and partly because they don't know when to have confidence in their own.







http://video. google. com/videoplay?docid=-2808374571100926940



Episode 2: Epicurus on Happiness - British philosopher Alain De Botton discusses the personal implications of the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus (341-270BCE) who was no epicurean glutton or wanton consumerist,but an advocate of "friends, freedom and thought" as the path to happiness.







http://video. google. com/videoplay?docid=-3535764476733084568



Episode 3: Seneca on Anger - Roman philosopher Lucious Annaeus Seneca (4BCE-65CE), the
famous and popular philosopher of his day, took the subject of anger seriously enough to dedicate a whole book to the subject. Seneca refused to see anger as an irrational outburst over which we have no control. Instead he saw it as a philosophical problem and amenable to treatment by philosophical argument. He thought anger arose from certain rationally held ideas about the world, and the problem with these ideas is that they are far too optimistic. Certain things are a predictable feature of life, and to get angry about them is to have unrealistic expectations.







http://video. google. com/videoplay?docid=6877249402964035542



Episode 4: Montaigne on Self-Esteem looks at the problem of self-esteem from the perspective
Michel de Montaigne (16th Century), the French philosopher who singled out three main reasons for feeling bad about oneself - sexual inadequecy, failure to live up to social norms, and intellectual inferiority - and then offered practical solutions for overcoming them.







http://video. google. com/videoplay?docid=6436583611449448580



Episode 5: Schopenhauer on Love - Alain De Botton surveys the 19th Century German thinker
Schopenhauer (1788-1860) who believed that love was the most important thing in life because of its powerful impulse towards ..'the will-to-life..'



http://video. google. com/videoplay?docid=8358646220672429933



Episode 6: Nietzsche on Hardship - British philosopher Alain De Botton explores Friedrich Nietzsche's (1844-1900) dictum that any worthwhile achievements in life come from the experience of overcoming hardship. For him, any existence that is too comfortable is worthless, as are the twin refugees of drink or religion.







http://video. google. com/videoplay?docid=2975222748330605245

Rambling 041808

I've been really tired this week and get this feeling that I don't really want to do websites for too much longer. There have been certain situations and a deep profound feeling in my heart that keeps tapping on my shoulder. That's the only way I can explain this, I can't put my finger on it exactly. I feel peaceful with this though, everything I've done is leading me into another adventure in life.

I can say with so much gratefulness that the 12 step program has saved my life and changed me as a human being. Finding out what a screwed up individual I had become was so painful but it's showing me depths of my character that I didn't even know were there. I feel like a child when I wake up to a new day, the tainted girl inside of me is fading away.

I played chess with a male friend of mine last night. The last time I managed to play an honest game of chess was around 1988. I grew up with that game around me but had totally forgotten how to enjoy it. It was great, even though he beat me. It was just great being normal with an intelligent man and playing chess. Talking about nicotine receptors in our brains and how they multiply is also very intriguing.

The simplest things are what make this life perfect, I had totally lost connection with that secret :-)

Rambling 041308

I haven't been able to sleep, my rhythm is all messed up from being sick for 4 days. I watched a DVD about the Ramones for the 3rd time and saw Joey in another deeper light. I'm grateful that I was a part of the NY scene back then and have 2 Ramone tickets that prove that I've seen them. Anyone can claim to have seen them after the fact. nanananana :0

It's snowing out and my cat is sitting next to me as I type this. He's been following me around in my sickness and just kind of annoying me or making me laugh at his cat behavior. Right now he's trying to capture my apple; he truly believes it's a living thing, he keeps smacking it with his paw. This sickness did me some good, I managed to crash after working too much and I want to set my priorities straight again. My family and loved ones come first, the rest is just stuff that can be replaced or can wait if it costs too much right now. I have nothing in me that gives me a good future as a rat in the big race, nothing except madness.

I heard that there's an artist that starved a dog in his art gallery, are we really becoming this twisted? I also ran across that documentary about Tibet and it broke my heart. There are a few documentaries that have done that to me recently and I feel true shame for mankind. There is nothing that can justify what is being done to those people, it's just as bad as trying to justify Stalin or Hitler. I've always felt a connection to their art and way of life, I can't believe that China might succeed in wiping them out.

Anyway, there are a few birds outside my window singing and I need to try to catch some sleep. It's good to fall asleep to their song, it brings back memories of all nighters where I couldn't stop with a painting I had started. I hope that magic comes back, I want that feeling again.

Rambling 040808

I had such a sane and peaceful day. I didn’t really feel creative but I just felt happy. I had seriously forgotten what that feels like and it seems like such a big deal for me now, just to be happy about nothing in particular.

My son is on his learners permit thingy now and he drove me around in rush hour. It was very comical; the poor boy drove around Reykjavik in circles because his mom kept forgetting stuff or giving totally messed up directions. It was so much fun and we laughed alot.

I’m getting rid of my car next week since a gallon of gas here is around $10. It’s not worth it and I live close to everything anyway. I’m going to try it and see how it goes; I managed to live without a car until I was 29, I should do OK. I also miss the way my legs looked; walking makes them nicer. I swear it does, I’m not kidding.

Dope-Sick Love

This is a HBO documentary about 4 drug addicts in NYC. They’re followed around for 18 months and I have to say that this is the saddest and most realistic documentary I’ve seen on this subject.

Click on link to go to the site:
http://www.infocellar.com/Video/Dope-Sick-Love.htm