The Work is All That Matters

Seek praise and it will always elude you.

Feign expertise and you’ll appear ignorant.

Deflect blame and it will land squarely on your shoulders.

Be everyone’s friend and you will be alienated.

Avoid labor and suffer twice the hardship.

Tinker with everything and you will accomplish nothing.

…

The work is all that matters. Do your work and rewards will follow. Humble yourself and you will be elevated. Accept blame and you will be admired. Be true to yourself and you will attract others. Confront your duties now and avoid suffering later.

Focus on your task and achieve greatness.

“Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity.”

Selling the Ice Rings

Sometimes when I’m half asleep I speak in tongues. Does this ever happen to you? They call it “somniloquy“. With me it often happens when I’m on the verge of passing out after a night of drinking with my brother, and he always tries to maximize the experience by egging me on. One night he transcribed our conversation. I offer that transcript here for your entertainment:

Mattdude: Shit is fucked up is what it is… selling the ice rings.

Voidious: What’s fucked up about selling the ice rings?

Mattdude: You don’t have to spend anything.

Voidious: Why would I care about spending anything?

Mattdude: ‘Cuz… it’s expenditures yo.

Voidious: So what you’re saying is that I need to buy some ice rings.

Mattdude: No… I’m just saying that…

Voidious: That what?

Mattdude: That Google needs to fucking kiss my ass.

Voidious: Why do you say that?

Mattdude: Dude, don’t toy with me dude… Do not be toying with me yo. I can tell, yo, when I’m being toyed with yo.

Voidious: Dude I thought we were talking about ice rings.

Mattdude: Dude, I got my special no-fuck-with-me glasses on dude. I think there’s something Rachel wants to say to me yo.

Voidious: Well, I dunno dude.

On another occasion he recorded a video of my half-conscious ramblings, but I’ll save that for a future post.