Alex | Mystic Chimp

In 2 weeks, I drink ayahuasca for the first time. Here’s why I’m going and what I hope to learn from one of the most intense experiences life can offer: 🧵

I turned 30 last week, and retreated from social media to spend more time reflecting. My mind felt lighter without Twitter/X. I felt happier. For months I've been stuck in the loop of short-form, when I'm a long-form guy. I'm smart enough to have recognised it a long time ago, but apparently cowardly enough to have repeatedly ignored my instincts. Over time, that gap widens into an itchy, irrepressible void somewhere in your mind. Like a prolapsed anus with a smattering of bee stings on it. Unpleasant. I don't know what the next few years will look like. But I want to love life, and being bombarded with hundreds of opinions in 5 minutes doesn't feel like the way. You might say it's sour grapes or a skill issue. Maybe you're right. But consider this: When's the last time a tweet changed your life in any meaningful way? And when's the last time you lost too much time in a haze of oversimplified ragebait and threads which treat you like an imbecile? This place is ephemeral. Most things you read are farts in a hurricane. Most of the writers I enjoy here are also on Substack or Medium. Writing glorious long-form posts at their own pace. Many of my heroes (who aren't dead yet) avoid social media entirely. Many would probably be better off if they followed suit. I wonder how many people who play the audience game here actually enjoy themselves? Not many seem to, outwardly. But they're locked into it anyway. So what am I doing? You must choose the games you want to play, and I don't know how I want to play this one (if at all). My heresy will get hammered by the Almighty Algorithm, but why not take a time-out to ask yourself an important question: What are you optimising for? And, if your core needs are already met, why wouldn't you optimise for fun? Fun means you're flowing with your nature, and joy follows. Joy improves literally all aspects of your life. Especially your creative pursuits. I'm having a joyful time working on an upcoming piece for my Substack at the moment, after months of neglecting it harder than a Victorian orphan. It's about doom, exponential progress, and thriving in the face of apocalyptic culture. You can sign up through my bio if you're not already there. Take it easy my friend, forever or not 🐒

@jackmoses0 Looks great man, I'll give it a look! ⚡

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@ericasmyname I would, especially if you could share ways to help editing feel more fun and natural! I love freewheeling but I feel I associate editing with the relentlessly critical side of my mind.

I'm thinking of starting a newsletter called "Cut the Fluff". It'd be about the art of editing, how to figure out what to cut, how to add value, and how to find your authentic voice in online writing. (Which helps you become more confident in general.) Would you read that?

Banger paragraphs from the Doomsday Clock statement in 1953. At 2 minutes to midnight, it held the record of "closest to global catastrophe" for nearly 70 yrs. Today, we're judged to be at 90 seconds. "History never repeats itself, but it does often rhyme." — Mark Twain

The copywritification of the Internet is so fucking BORING. When I read Lolita last week, I didn't once think, “Wow, I wish he'd make this super clear and easy so I don't have to think as hard!” You don't need to write for idiots and dopamine addicts to love what you do.

I read the paper out of curiosity too and I agree with you here. I don't like attempts to redefine consent using detached intellectualism. It seems irresponsible to degrade the idea that consent can't be given in highly unequal power dynamics. Brain development & consciousness are so important here too, but I'm not sure how they against important social rules like age of consent. (Even though they have to be somewhat arbitrary)

@armaanajoomal For sure Armaan. I think this actually moves the superpowers from base literacy to: 1. Critical thinking 2. Honesty / courage 3. Anti-dogmatism Many educated people hold onto bad ideas for too long, because they're captured by dogma and can't evaluate or change their views.

@AlexCookThinks Literacy is a superpower in the modern age. the ability to discern quality vs shit info is essential with so much info at our fingertips, those who can parse through it are the ones who win

Writing is humanity's greatest technology, and the past 200 years have brought it to more people than ever. Remember, it's only by pure luck your consciousness isn't trapped inside an illiterate, unwashed, 16th-century peasant. Now go read a book and take a shower.

@thejoshuageelen Interesting. Taking the red pill on free will made me far more compassionate and forgiving, of myself and others. I see myself as continually open to influence. What I consume changes the range of possible thoughts my mind can produce. Less ego. It's made my life far happier.

@timpjohansson That's a juicy boi! I'm balls-deep in this essay I've been chipping away at for a while for my Substack. Much like how I'd treat that steak, I've probably bitten off more than I can chew. Take it easy Tim 👍

What saturdays are for: Family, fitness & health. How are you spending yours?

Love it. Haha I was very science-brained too man - wouldn't change my physics degree for anything though 😁 I love the way Terence McKenna talks about concepts like this. Reality is made of language and we've used myth to compress timeless truths. But to me it's just one tool — in excess it leads to religious fundamentalism and repression of speech. Nobody has the Truth!

@getpaidwrite @AlexCookThinks yeah I was totally wrong about this. I spent most of my life science brain, but the real lessons of life, the eternal secrets of the life and love, can only be communicated through story. I no longer beleive that there is such a thing as fiction.

Unpopular opinion: Non-fiction is for lazy people. People who can't be bothered to learn the lessons of great fiction. If you want to change your life, bin the non-fiction. Read great literature daily instead.

@getpaidwrite Man, this is something I was so wrong about. Excellent non-fiction is still powerful but many books should have stayed as blog posts. I'm trying to read more timeless fiction now. Never read prose as beautiful as Nabokov and my life is richer for it. Excellence, above all.

@timpjohansson Big Walker Energy. 7am or 4am, the calves are screaming and the brow is warming.

The biggest sign you’ll never make it: You stand still in escalators.

Human nature hasn't changed, I agree. But our species' moral frameworks have. Is that what you mean by "better"? The lithium & cobalt mines are a good and tragic point, but again when you look at humanity as a whole, we've made huge progress in child welfare. My premise wasn't that we're perfect, or that we are no longer humans. The point is that epistemological and moral progress are possible and have happened. Early chapters of The Beginning of Infinity make it clear what better explanations can do for humanity. That we have a term for "cruel and unusual punishment" and have an international legal system is an incredible achievement. Idealists like Ted forget there are no solutions, only trade-offs. If you're looking for a world without suffering, you will die in torment.

@AlexCookThinks @oldbooksguy We shoot people on the wrong side of imaginary lines, still send children into mines for the battery you are holding, drug children who act like children , and sacrifice chunks of entire generations for extra income. You’re no better than your ancestors.

I agree and hope enough people use it to broaden their minds. The key is "different enough". Most people, unfortunately, don't want different enough. They want reinforcement of their flimsy beliefs and to outsource their thinking to other people and algorithms. How many people read more than one religion's texts, despite them forming a web of different-enough insights?

@elonmusk Normies will cry "echo chamber" but it'll actually be interesting to see related ideas one after the other. Like a web of insights, all united somehow, but different enough to weave a striking fabric

AI-based “See similar” posts feature is rolling out now

@luke_brocks I can see why! It still feels like magic that you can record a song onto a vinyl disc, let alone beam some richly lored hentai to my friend's pocket from space

@AlexCookThinks Well said. At the time, the idea of voice transmitting over wire was unfathomable and met with skepticism. It took years for people to appreciate Bell’s invention. That’s where we’re at with Starlink.

Only 147 years ago, Alexander Graham Bell made the first telephone call. Today, a carpet of satellites provides internet coverage to millions. The exponential march of humanity since the Industrial Revolution is fucking incredible... And how much of it do we take for granted?

Self-flagellation for past mistakes is a colossal waste of time. You made EXACTLY those choices. No more, no less. There was no other way. Life's too short to keep reaching backwards and, deep down, you know the lessons of your past. Old Man Time is deaf to your regrets.

Remember: the Universe runs on cause & effect, and so do your energy levels. Protect your sleep tonight to feel alert tomorrow. Excellent morning nutrition helps you avoid afternoon lethargy. Solid posture, breathing, and exercise oxygenate your brain and blood.