The only people I would care to be with now are artists and people who have suffered: those who know what beauty is, and those who know what sorrow is: nobody else interests me.
– Oscar Wilde
I have a theory that every living being is designed to cope with a certain level of stress in their lives, that if our lives are somehow free of stress, we will invent new ways to meet our mind’s infinite capacity to worry about things it can’t control; I call this phenomenon the Suck Equilibrium.
The ability to cope with stress is what makes a person great; in Einstein’s case it was the stress caused by a desire to discover the Unified Theory, in other cases it might be to balance the checkbook. The driver isn’t important; that it pushes us to do more in life is what matters.
The Suck Equilibrium dictates that we adapt to the amount of stress we carry; no one is free of this burden – the hungry seek a meal, the homeless a home, the bike-less a bike, and the millionaire more millions. There is no cure, there is no remedy; no matter the level we reach, our natural inclination is to seek more from ourselves. In the end, there is only Rule #5.
The Cyclist is a unique character among the others. While the artist suffers because they must; the Cyclist suffers because they choose. To me, the greatest artist is that who choses to suffer, and who discovers the beauty in that choice. I am proud to call myself a Cyclist.
Vive la Vie Velominatus.
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@Chuck
Nice @Meursault will appreciate that.
We had record rainfall in PDX last weekend. Made for some fun spectating for 'cross. The course was more suited for kayaking than cycling:
@Pedale.Forchetta
Pedale - All of us are just happy that you speak to us with your photographs!
And, communicating on the 'net is hard enough as it is, I applaud you and others who contribute and share with those of us who only speak English. That takes skill, and courage!
@frank
Thanks for your serious (if slightly patronizing) reply - but I'm not buying it, I'm afraid. First of all: if the Oscar Wilde quote is "independent" of the rest of the article, as you say, why does the rest of the article borrow so heavily from the terminology and general tone of the quote? Or, conversely, if the two were indeed unrelated, why is the quote there in the first place? Your average reader will naturally associate what is written in the opening quote or "header" of an article, with the rest of that article.
Secondly: if, as you say, the quote is there to "get me thinking", but then immediately after state that I should not confuse "thinking", as such, with all those connections and inferences I am making in response to the article, then I'm really curious to find out what your definition of "thinking" actually is. As I see it, there is little else to thinking, than making connections and inferences in response to information and input - and yes, you can bet your ass that these connections are 'my own'. Who else's should they have been?
Thirdly: I still consider the statement "artists suffer because they must" somewhat inaccurate: I'm by no means an artist and never will be, but I'm fortunate enough to have known a lot of artists - even a few seriously professional ones - and to the best of my knowledge, they don't suffer because they must. If anything, they create because they must. If they subsequently find out that they cannot support themselves by being creative, suffering usually ensues, yes. And as a consequence, a lot of artists actually do suffer, yes.
Finally (and I cannot stress this enough): let me state for the record that I am in deep awe of all the work you and the other Keepers are doing to keep this site going, and add that I enjoy practically all of your posts tremendously. You write well - and quite often brilliantly - and your posts have had me laughing out loud at times, and deeply moved at others. I just found this particular one somewhat erratic, and I happen to think(!) that you have, on numerous occasions, done better. No offense intended.
PS: yes, please do continue generalizing things and painting in the broadest brush you can find - I wouldn't have it any other way.
@Pedale.Forchetta
One man's slight discomfort is another man's V. Love this shot!
@ErikdR
I realize I'm arriving late, but mind if I hop on? I've been following for a while, but don't want to be a wheelsucker.
This post, indeed the way of the Velominati, encapsulates what I have attempted to convey to family, friends and co-workers for decades. I have often said, whenever we employ a labor-saving or time-saving device, our minds and bodies find a way to compensate. As @Buck Rogers alluded, with that extra time and energy we can CHOOSE to do things, or we can CHOOSE to be a couch potato. But if we choose the latter, we will be REQUIRED to spend that extra time and energy hauling our fat arse around.
At times, when I'm exploring the Pain Cave, a thought will creep in saying "you know you could slow down." Instinctively, my response is "why would I want to do that?"
@Optimiste
Yes, well put. As I hope I have made clear, I absolutely agree with the 'gist', the message, of the post. Absolutely..Physical exertion does make us healthier, more focused persons.
All I was trying to say (clumsily, perhaps), is that as much as I agree with the ideas behind this particular post, I have often seen @Frank make his point in a more concise, clear manner - but that doesn't detract from the point itself. And as mentioned, no offense intended - just an opinion (a grumpy one, perhaps...)
@Mike_P puts it into words very well too, in fact - in post nr. 69 - and @Frank himself tops it off with a very memorable line of prose: "On the bicycle, I have only myself in the way. It is a beautiful thing to realize that you can indeed put work in at one end of the box and a better person comes out the other" Unquote. I agree fully with the sentiment, and I find that this one sentence (well, two, actually) really says it all - and beautifully, at that. I wish I could be that much 'to the point', sometimes.
@Optimiste
Thought - "You should take the next turn and head back"
Response - "Why would I do that?"
@DeKerr La gloriosa strada
@DeKerr
Thought - "You should take the next turn and head back"
Response - "Why would I do that?"
Stunning shot. I have a similar climb but maybe not quite on that scale but the same principle in that at first it does not look like a climb but it gradually winds up on you until you start to wonder where the ammo went for the old guns. Someone named it as a segment on that Staravara thingy "Bastard Climb" and I used to think that but by working at the above this summer I now actually enjoy it. Particularly getting to the top and waiting for my buddies - of course making sure I focus on breathing normally and also being fully Rule 80 compliant when they arrive.