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Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces

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On 6/1/2016 12:13 PM, ClutterFreak wrote:
> On Wed, 1 Jun 2016 09:36:10 -0500, Odd Bodkin wrote:
>
>> Yes. There are many kooks who have posted here who have self-published a
>> book. Keep in mind that this is an expense that, for someone who is
>> unemployed, is a substantial investment. And now those books are sitting
>> in a closet somewhere, or a small quantity available in a warehouse,
>> gathering dust, and the revenue is pitiful. But to chalk that up as
>> simply a waste of time, effort, and money is too painful.
>
> This thought can apply to other cases as well, BodBod.
> I have a feeling that for you, if you don't mind, the
> years you spent in university too closely resemble "a
> waste of time, effort, and money" and is "too
> painful."

Um, no. My college years were terrific and I learned a ton, including 
how to learn about things on my own. My focus was on mathematics and 
philosophy, and both departments are fond of advising students that the 
job opportunities in academia for both were extremely limited, and that 
an applied or "tangential" career pursuit would be more fruitful. I knew 
that going in. When I graduated, I took a job doing mathematical 
modeling, which was very lucrative at the time. But as happens 
sometimes, I decided to turn an avocation into a vocation. A friend of 
mine graduated summa cum laude in political science, but loved playing 
guitar so much (he practiced with Leo Kottke songs) that he ended up 
working for Martin guitars as a craftsman like me. As you may know, Ed 
Witten, the theoretical physicist, graduated with a degree in history 
and linguistics, was a published author in political science and was 
pursuing a career in politics, went back to graduate school to study 
economics, then shifted first to applied mathematics and finally to 
theoretical physics. For myself and my friend, we have no doubt about 
the positive value of our educations, and I would be greatly surprised 
if Witten thought it a waste.

> I think part of the reason you inseccantly
> run after people in this lounge to _expose_ them is
> the fact that you're trying to make all those years
> meaningful in your own mind.

I fully confess to being of rather strong opinion that one should know 
something about a subject before talking about it, even on an informal 
forum like this one. You, I take it, have a more relaxed and laissez 
faire attitude about that, thinking that this group should be a safe 
place for people to "think aloud" about physics for fun, even if they 
are coming from a place of deep ignorance. OK, so we have different 
opinions on that subject. I've always felt this way.

>
> I'm not being sarcastic or spiteful at all Bod. Think
> about it.
> --
>      "Adam che dir mifahmad. man che dir fahmidam ke
>      ensAn ya'ni ejAlatan."
>
>                         - Sohrab Sepehri
>
> ---
> This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
> https://www.avast.com/antivirus
>


-- 
Odd Bodkin --- maker of fine toys, tools, tables

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Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Mikkel Haaheim <mikkelhaaheim@gmail.com> - 2016-05-26 10:17 -0700
  Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Sergio <invalid@invalid.com> - 2016-05-26 12:27 -0500
    Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-05-26 16:18 -0700
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Mikkel Haaheim <mikkelhaaheim@gmail.com> - 2016-05-27 09:55 -0700
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces edprochak@gmail.com - 2016-05-31 22:32 -0700
  Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-05-26 13:26 -0500
    Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Mikkel Haaheim <mikkelhaaheim@gmail.com> - 2016-05-26 12:55 -0700
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-05-26 16:01 -0500
    Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces edprochak@gmail.com - 2016-05-31 22:25 -0700
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces benj <nobodyxx@gmail> - 2016-06-01 03:00 -0400
        Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-04 09:33 -0700
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Mikkel Haaheim <mikkelhaaheim@gmail.com> - 2016-06-01 02:14 -0700
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-01 09:36 -0500
        Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces ClutterFreak <ClutterFreak@FakeAddress.com> - 2016-06-01 12:13 -0500
          Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-01 14:04 -0500
            Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces ClutterFreak <ClutterFreak@FakeAddress.com> - 2016-06-01 15:10 -0500
              Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-01 16:46 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces ClutterFreak <ClutterFreak@FakeAddress.com> - 2016-06-01 18:37 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-01 20:08 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces ClutterFreak <ClutterFreak@FakeAddress.com> - 2016-06-02 00:07 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-02 10:38 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces ClutterFreak <ClutterFreak@FakeAddress.com> - 2016-06-02 12:22 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-02 13:34 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces ClutterFreak <ClutterFreak@FakeAddress.com> - 2016-06-02 22:52 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-03 07:11 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces ClutterFreak <ClutterFreak@FakeAddress.com> - 2016-06-03 12:07 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-03 12:20 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces ClutterFreak <ClutterFreak@FakeAddress.com> - 2016-06-03 13:04 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Odd Bodkin <bodkinodd@gmail.com> - 2016-06-03 13:19 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-03 12:31 -0700
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-03 12:24 -0700
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Sergio <invalid@invalid.com> - 2016-06-03 20:22 -0500
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces edprochak@gmail.com - 2016-06-03 12:11 -0700
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Sergio <invalid@invalid.com> - 2016-06-03 20:58 -0500
  Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-05-26 16:17 -0700
    Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Mikkel Haaheim <mikkelhaaheim@gmail.com> - 2016-05-27 09:52 -0700
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-05-27 11:14 -0700
        Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Mikkel Haaheim <mikkelhaaheim@gmail.com> - 2016-06-01 02:13 -0700
          Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-01 11:45 -0700
            Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-04 09:39 -0700
          Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-04 09:30 -0700
            Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-12 09:40 -0700
          Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-12 09:44 -0700
          Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-21 06:18 -0700
            Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Mikkel Haaheim <mikkelhaaheim@gmail.com> - 2016-06-21 08:01 -0700
              Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-21 08:29 -0700
              Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Sergio <invalid@invalid.com> - 2016-06-21 10:56 -0500
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Sergio <invalid@invalid.com> - 2016-05-28 07:27 -0500
        Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-05-28 10:50 -0700
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-04 10:31 -0700
        Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-18 20:06 -0700
          Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces john <johnsefton288@gmail.com> - 2016-06-20 18:18 -0700
            Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Sergio <invalid@invalid.com> - 2016-06-21 10:57 -0500
              Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces pnalsing@gmail.com - 2016-06-21 10:58 -0700
                Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces Sergio <invalid@invalid.com> - 2016-06-21 13:15 -0500
      Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-05 09:51 -0700
        Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-05 20:04 -0700
          Re: A lot of mud on a lot of faces James McGinn <jimmcginn9@gmail.com> - 2016-06-12 09:35 -0700

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