This Isn't Going to Work
The bagel place underneath me made an unfortunate change to their operating procedure.
You used to go up to the counter and select your bagel, and then you could walk through everything you wanted to put on it.
Then they would take that bagel and ring it in for payment based on what happened.
Of course, with everything involving capitalism, this was unsatisfactory and destined to be optimized. Maybe a few bagels slipped through the register or they simply weren’t moving the people through fast enough which was creating more leaks in revenue?
So now, you go up to the cash register and you have to select everything up front, and then sit around waiting for them to magically put everything together just as you had imagined it.
And if you can tell anything about me by now, this is not going work and I knew that before I put the god damned order in.
Let’s start with bagel selection alone. I need to see what’s going on there. How fresh is the merchandise we’re looking at? Are the seeds even still on before the cut happens?
Salt and pepper. Everyone has a wildly different idea of how much of that belongs on a sandwich. When I say a light amount of both, I want to see that wrist move very carefully and not too many flicks should be taking place.
Tomatoes - are those properly cut or are they mushy and are better suited for a soup?
Pickles - do you know how to handle a vegetable that’s sitting in water all day long? One failed attempt to let the water run off before placement and you’re giving me a sandwich just as mushy as the tomatoes that I already rejected.
As you can see, making me a sandwich is not a simple matter, and you might write me off as being a picky bastard, but I bet deep down inside you agree with me.
You say that you don’t care what goes into the sandwich, you’re just grateful that the food is available and that someone put it together for you.
But on that first bite, you know damn well what I’m talking about.
This isn’t going to work.
The moral of the story: It’s better to buy your own bagels and just put whatever you want on them at home. And this is a far better deal too.
Three Ideas from My Notebooks
Use the phrase, “So what?” to challenge your resistance. I don’t feel like writing today or practising my instrument: So what? You might notice that your stubbornness and aversion to exercise or cooking whole foods can slowly go away as you start to take action.
Start your day by tapping into the feeling of being connected. This means something different for each person. I sometimes like to imagine that I’m plugging into a massive computer network located above Planet Earth.
Ask yourself who or what you would be without the voice in your head. When you try to stop yourself from doing the things that are important to you, remember this question and the effect of having a voice in your head.
All of the ideas going back to May 2023 are now located in The Ideas Index:
Based on #3 above, I remembered this movie from my childhood called Drop Dead Fred. It certainly deals with the idea of the voice in your head and what it’s message is for better or for worse.
I found a longer analysis of this movie and its relation to mental health. The movie flopped with the critics when it was first released, as Gene Siskel called it one of the worst movies he’d ever seen.
Listen To Campolina
This is a longer soundscape that slowly evolves and morphs over time. A little bit of electric piano is there to ground the piece. It’s a deep one for sure. For fans of Dune 2.
Last week’s release was a four-track EP called The Offering. It is available on Spotify now:
Enjoy the rest of your holiday weekend, and make sure to put some egg on your bagel today 😀
Elliott