Tim Ferriss - 6-Bullet Saturday — January 16, 2021

5-Bullet Friday

Hi All!

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Bullet Friday,” a list of what I’m pondering and exploring.

This edition is more accurately a “6-Bullet Saturday,” due to a wild week and some delays in Timmy Land...

Short clip I’m enjoying —
“When a Costumed Person Destroys The Drums At Children’s Music Concert - NyangoStar.” As the description says, “This video has been clinically proven to help with depression.”

What I’m using —
Thermapen Mk4 thermometer. From the description: “With full readings in only 2 to 3 seconds, the Super-Fast® Thermapen is the world’s best in speed and accuracy. Advanced technology makes Thermapen Mk4 even more intuitive than previous models. Hold it in any direction and the display automatically rotates right-side-up so you can read it in any position—in either hand, straight up or down; read temperatures without cocking your head. A great tool for achieving that perfect meat temperature for a medium rare steak on your grill.” Thermapen was my go-to thermometer for The 4-Hour Chef, and I continue to use and love this device.

Toy I’m enjoying —
Balancing Blocks (Fort Standard/Areaware). I have a set in varied “ocean” colors. These are surprisingly fun and good for letting go of the nonsense of the day. Simple and perrrrrty. See a countertop stack on my Instagram.

Daily reminder I’m thinking more about —
“This is a real 100-TRILLION-dollar bill. I had it framed years ago to remind me of how quickly ‘money’ can change in value. Zimbabwean dollars in 2008 = US dollars in 2040? Probably not, but looking at examples of ultra-inflation, the position of ‘that can’t happen to a reserve currency’ is wishful thinking. Reserve currencies have changed throughout history and will continue to change. Hell hath no fury like holders of a debased currency….”

What I’m celebrating —
Johns Hopkins’ psilocybin depression study is the most talked about JAMA Psychiatry article of 2020. Dr. Roland Griffiths from the Center for Psychedelic & Consciousness Research sent me the following: “I am pleased to report that JAMA Psychiatry (@JAMAPsych), often considered to be the most prestigious psychiatry journal in the United States, just released the notice below showing that our psilocybin depression study ranked #1 on their quantitative assessment of attention each scholarly article received in traditional and social media (Altmetric methodology). The relative score of 2416 is substantially greater than the other high impact articles. This is even more impressive given that our study was published in November while other articles were published earlier in the year so had a longer time to get attention.” Click here to see the ranking.

Passage I’m pondering —
“If you pass on through the meadows with their thousand flowers of every color imaginable, from bright red to yellow and purple, and their bright green grass washed clean by last night’s rain, rich and verdant—again without a single movement of the machinery of thought—then you will know what love is. To look at the blue sky, the high full-blown clouds, the green hills with their clear lines against the sky, the rich grass and the fading flower—to look without a word of yesterday; then, when the mind is completely quiet, silent, undisturbed by any thought, when the observer is completely absent—then there is unity. Not that you are united with the flower, or with the cloud, or with those sweeping hills; rather there is a feeling of complete non-being in which the division between you and another ceases.

The woman carrying those provisions which she bought in the market, the big black Alsatian dog, the two children playing with the ball—if you can look at all these without a word, without a measure, without any association, then the quarrel between you and another ceases. This state, without the word, without thought, is the expanse of mind that has no boundaries, no frontiers within which the I and the not-I can exist.

Don’t think this is imagination, or some flight of fancy, or some desired mystical experience; it is not. It is as actual as the bee on that flower or the little girl on her bicycle or the man going up a ladder to paint the house—the whole conflict of the mind in its separation has come to an end. You look without the look of the observer, you look without the value of the word and the measurement of yesterday. The look of love is different from the look of thought. The one leads in a direction where thought cannot follow, and the other leads to separation, conflict, and sorrow. From this sorrow, you cannot go to the other. The distance between the two is made by thought, and thought cannot by any stride reach the other.

As you walk back by the little farmhouses, the meadows, and the railway line, you will see that yesterday has come to an end: life begins where thought ends.”
— Jiddu Krishnamurti
Excerpt taken from The Only Revolution
(Many thanks to JZ for sending this to me.)

And, as always, please give me feedback on Twitter. Which bullet above is your favorite? What do you want more or less of? Other suggestions? Please let me know. Just send a tweet to @tferriss and put #5BulletFriday at the end so I can find it.

Have a wonderful weekend, all.

Much love to you and yours,

Tim

P.S. Deal of the Week — Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could only use one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I focus on nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health, energy, and the immune system. With added pre- and probiotics, digestive enzymes, adaptogens, and more, Athletic Greens is one of the most comprehensive formulas on the market. They heavily invest in ingredient sourcing, finding the most bioavailable forms for optimal absorption so you can have peace of mind alongside a premium supplement. And rather than try to sell you other products, they stay focused on refining this one formula. With 52 improvements over the last 10 years (and counting), Athletic Greens is on a mission to deliver the most optimal, nutrient-dense formula possible. Athletic Greens now has an exclusive offer for my readers—get added immune system support with a FREE 1-Year Supply of Liquid Vitamin D + 5 Travel Packs with your subscription purchase.

P.P.S. Want to see my favorite books, essays, articles, and more from 2020? Click here for the full list.

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