The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - An 8th Grade Book Report

I first read The Hitchhiker's Guide To the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams, when I was in my early teens. I can't tell you how many times I've read or listened to it since, but I know that it has to be far and away the book I've read the most. A short passage hit my brain so hard that I read it aloud amongst family and friends at an event my mom called "Sacred Circle," in which everyone shared something important or meaningful to them. Later, the same passage inspired my first tattoo. This oh so meaningful passage? The creation and death of a sperm whale, with a moment-to-moment cataloguing of all its thoughts. Sounds profound, right?

It occurred to me recently that, though I've shared my love of this book in many audiences and many formats over the years, I've never really gone in depth as to why. So, for this month's installment of "good things I think you should know about," I'm writing a book report that I hope would be good enough to pass my 8th grade Language Arts class. Here goes.

On its face, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is about a guy who almost simultaneously has to come to grips with humanity not being alone in the universe and then come to grips with being the only human left in the universe. Things that, were any of us really faced with them, we likely could not comprehend the cognitive, emotional, and physical ramifications. So Adams largely skips over this and gets on with the story. 

What follows instead are themes that I'm pleased to report still resonate today. This most prominently includes how power is amassed, deployed, and distracted from, and how people can and should and do behave when they are outsmarted by technology. In fact, the things I appreciated the most in my recent re-read of this book were not the fanciful things Adams invented, but the fact that he could imagine and deploy things like e-books and AI powered robots and shipboard computers that could respond in real time. All that, and he managed to capture some of the conflict that comes when sentient beings interact with these super smart, non-organic sources of information and knowledge. The fact that I'm reading a science fiction comedy book first published in 1979 and applying "lessons" to my frustration with AI in real time is a testament to Adams's creativity. Or maybe to the power of very heavy drinking. Either way.

A central (a term I must use loosely) theme of this book is the quest for the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything. Right now, you either know the book and know the answer, or you don't know the book and you are deeply curious. So I'm not going to tell you. But the conflict set up here is essentially between organic life forms and computers. Computers are deployed to give a definitive answer, while philosophers and free thinkers come in to protest that if the answer is known, they'll have nothing to do. They demand "rigidly defined areas of doubt and uncertainty!" To me, this maps on to a lot of the fears that many people (myself included) currently feel about AI and how it is not only being used, but is being thrust on us at every turn. In particular, the notion that AI is replacing human thought begins to bring into question what we're actually for. If a computer can do it better, faster, and cheaper, what's to be left for us? The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy answers that question quite ably, with the Earth being destroyed entirely within the first 30 pages or so. I'm afraid we're going to be left to our own devices on this one.

A brief aside on this sperm whale mini-story. The first time I read these few paragraphs, I remember laughing out loud in my room. It was absurd, creative, and above all else, hilarious. It was one of the first times, if not the very first, that the written word had brought out such a strong feeling. Over years of reading and re-reading, I found the passage to be deeper and more impactful than I first realized. In a few short paragraphs, Adams managed to convey a philosophy of life that I find extremely helpful. Be curious. Ask probing questions. Be optimistic and hopeful. Thrash your tail around and have a good time. Life ends when it ends, and you may not get a warning. Make the best of it. 

Shrinking (Mostly Harrison Ford)

I feel like I really let you guys down last month, so this time around I'm going to talk about something unambiguously good: Parkinson's Disease! Shit. OK, what I'm really going to talk about is the television show Shrinking, and even more specifically the role played by Harrison Ford, who, spoiler alert, does get diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. Good news, though. It's pretend! Well, not Parkinson's on the whole, but in this one instance. 

Let me back up. Shrinking is a show (on Apple TV) that centers around a therapy practice run by Harrison Ford, Jason Segel, and Jessica Williams, three actors that I have enjoyed across multiple roles. The show was created by Bill Lawrence, the guy behind my favorite show of all time (Scrubs) and the also very good Ted Lasso. The additional bonus for this show is that it is about my profession, which is typically a big no from me unless, 1) the work they are doing is completely divorced what my actual job looks like (check) and , 2) it's exceptionally good (check). 

So, I expected to like this show from the jump, and I expected Harrison Ford to be good. He's been in my life since my first watching of Star Wars and Indiana Jones, and has been in so many good movies over the years that it feels silly that I'm coming here to tell you how good he is. But I'm here to tell you, in Season 1 I said out loud, "I didn't think I could love Harrison Ford more, but I do." 

As a psychologist, the problem I have with a lot of shows about mental health is that they lack creativity and depth. All the therapists are warm, touchy-feely people who want to help their patients get better, and end up crossing some professional boundary to make that happen. Jason Segel's character gets that trope in this show, and he plays it beautifully. The contrast with Harrison Ford's character is, well, he's kind of a dick. To put it slightly more charitably, he represents a more realistic example of a real, seasoned clinician, specifically in that he is neither over-involved, nor is he interested in sugar-coating things for his patients, his colleagues, or his friends. He is present as multiple characters are experiencing real, life-changing events, and he's hitting them with more than just empathy and positive affirmations that things will get better. And then he has to deal with his own tragedy and put all his tough talk into action.

In the course of writing this, I've spontaneously encountered several other interviews of people talking about Harrison Ford. One person referred to this show specifically and said, "Harrison Ford is a national treasure." Another actor talked about working with him, saying, "He's not like us. He's a different kind of person." This reinforces what I'm seeing. This is a guy who is professionally still taking on difficult things, perhaps grappling with his own aging and mortality, while absolutely nailing the role and helping me not hate all TV therapists. So that's this month's good. Harrison Ford is a damn fine actor. A national treasure, in fact. And Shrinking is worth your time. Enjoy!

Spreading Good News?

I started this year with a plan to share something cool I think you should know about at least one time per month. And right out of the gate I'm wondering, is this actually good? 

See, my suggestion this month is Behind the Bastards, a podcast dedicated to highlighting the worst people in human history. Cheery, right? So, here's why I think this still qualifies. It's a really good podcast. Case closed. 

Fine, here's a little more depth. The host, Robert Evans, has been an imbedded journalist in some of the gnarliest conflict areas in the world. So the man not only knows his bastards, but he has seen the real life consequences of bastardly behavior. And the podcast format is perfect for a guy like me, who knows a little about a lot of things, but not very much about any one thing. Robert does a massive, heavily-researched deep dive into a figure from human history (or present day), and then presents it to his relatively ignorant guest. The guest serves as an admirable stand-in for chumps like me who would like to think they know about things, but haven't quite gotten around to it yet. 

Some of the figures are exactly who you'd expect them to be. Prominent members of the Nazi party, dictators of various regimes who imprisoned and killed their political opponents, cult leaders, etc. Others I promise you have literally never heard of and hope to never hear of again. And that's where I think the podcast actually does its best work. One of my takeaways from the drama and intrigue around the Epstein Files (which this podcast 1000% did a 4-parter on recently), is that there is so much we don't know about bad actors in the world. But it's not always because the information is unavailable. Sometimes it's just because no one is dedicated enough to compiling the information and presenting it to the general public. Robert is that person, and he presents information in ways that are both digestible and often entertaining. Though "entertaining" also depends a bit on your ability to wade into some of the darkest humor imaginable...they are right bastards, after all. 

The episode that fully sold me on this podcast is the one I linked to above. Here, Robert and his guest tackle not an individual bastard, but the most devastating industrial disaster in American history. Imagine my surprise that it occurred right up the road from me, at a location that is now a State Park, and I had never, ever in my life heard about it. The Hawks Nest Tunnel project led to the premature deaths of so many predominantly Black and immigrant workers due to poor working conditions and failure to adhere to known safety standards. But nowhere in my education (which included mandated WV History in the 8th grade AND a WV history course in college) did this come up. These are the Bastards that need to be talked about. We cannot allow the awful parts of our history to be whisked away because they are uncomfortable, and that's why I think this show is not only good, but genuinely important. 

But fear not, despite our best efforts at times, the USA does not have a monopoly on bastardry. There are bastards throughout the world, and throughout human history, and they each deserve the level of scrutiny and vitriol that this podcast provides. 10/10. Highly recommend. Maybe pet a dog or take a walk afterwards.

Birthday Resolutions

Hi! Today is my 46th birthday. It is not a particularly interesting number worthy of any special commemoration. And yet, this is the year that I decided I would make my Birthday Resolutions public.

First, a little history. About 9 years ago (another irrelevant anniversary), I got in a spirited online debate about how annoying it is that everyone joins the gym at the beginning of January and throws the regulars off their (our) schedule. I'm sympathetic to anyone taking steps towards self-improvement, but could you please take them a little further away from the triceps press? Anyway, the conversation led me to the notion of creating personal resolutions on birthdays, rather than everyone doing it all at once. My rationale (based firmly in self-interest) is that people are more likely to follow through on resolutions that have a more personal connection. What better way to start improving yourself than on the anniversary of your arrival on the Earth? And guess what?! I bought my own bullshit! That very year, I set goals for myself on February 11th. Did I hit those goals with any more consistency than ones I previously set on January 1st? I'm scientifically-minded enough to know I can't answer that question...but I kinda think I did. And what I know for certain is that the ones I hit, I tracked, and was very proud of!

A few examples. The very first year, I decided I needed to read more. So I set a modest goal of 12 real, physical books to be read. I read about 5 in the first 2 months, then slowed the pace down considerably. But I read my 12th book (The Bell Jar) on my birthday, in my bed, on a rainy day in Huntington and It. Was. Glorious. Another year, I decided to write one letter a month to an unsuspecting important person in my life. I received a few letters and messages back, and these little bits of correspondence brightened up my own life, in addition to the recipients. 

And not ALL of my health-related goals have been a wash. While I did not lose weight this year, I did (eventually) get to the point where I am regularly hitting 8,000 steps at least 4 days a week, doing formal exercise at least 3 days a week, and I have eliminated candy from my diet entirely (until today!). 

So, that brings me to this year. One of the things I've been gradually realizing about myself is that my evangelical upbringing did not leave me when I stopped attending a church. It turns out that one of my core beliefs is that if you know good news, you should be sharing it with people you care about. As a result, one of my resolutions this year is to write on this page once a month (I'm going to try to stick to the 11th) about something I think is really cool that you should be aware of. It might be a book or album review, maybe a restaurant or cool destination to visit, or some as yet undetermined thing that hits my brain that month. The one thing I can promise, is that almost certainly will NOT be timely. I have no idea if the new Taylor Swift album is any good, but you absolutely must listen to Bill Withers Greatest Hits from beginning to end! Banger after banger!

And to get this year started off right, this is my first recommendation. Start doing Birthday Resolutions! Yes, I still want the gym to be less crowded in January. But I have also been doing this long enough to really appreciate the approach, and I think it might be worth trying. Especially if you make New Years Resolutions and struggle to keep them, or even if you think all resolutions are stupid and you just go about your regular life being awesome. It has been a rewarding exercise that started with a snarky Facebook post, and I think that alone is noteworthy (shoutout Brandy Hamrick, my foil in this and many other online discussions). 

Oh, one other thing. When I'm setting goals, I keep in mind my favorite criteria, set forth by Wes Bullock in my graduate training. Do not set a goal that could be accomplished by a potted plant. Let's say, for example, you want to quit smoking. You do not set as a goal, "I will not smoke a cigarette," because the plant will also not smoke a cigarette. Instead, you try something like, "When I want to smoke a cigarette, I will go outside and take deep breaths for 5 minutes instead." The plant is just sitting inside, dumbfounded at your ability to accomplish such an admirable goal!

So here's my plan for this year. 

Daily: 1) I'm going to eat one piece of fresh produce. I'm not going to try to cut out snacking, but I'm going to make sure that at least one of my snack choices is healthy. Today was a serving of grapes. 2) I'm going to drink 64 ounces of water. This is a failed resolution from last year, but one that I believe in enough to put it back on the board and start again. My kidneys will thank me. 3) I will eat homemade dessert, or none at all. No store-made processed cakes or snack cakes or anything of that sort. I'll either become a good baker, be exceedingly fortunate in stumbling upon homemade goodies, or maybe I'll finally get to some of that weight loss that's been so elusive. 4) I'm going to stretch for at least 10 consecutive minutes, and not at the gym. 

Weekly: 1) I'm going to run the equivalent of a 5K every week, with the eventual goal of doing it all in one day and doing the rest of my workouts as I have been this year. I did about 7/10ths of a mile today, and clearly need to break the new running shoes in a little bit. 2) I'm going to listen to an album, start to finish, that I've never heard before. It might be something from an artist I know a little, or it might be brand new to me. In honor of his recent Super Bowl performance, I'm going to start with Bad Bunny's YHLQMDLG. Feel free to send me your suggestions. 

Monthly: 1) I'm going to write my one review of something good that I think everyone should know about. 2) I'm going to revisit the monthly letter-writing campaign. I've realized over the last 2+ years that I do not necessarily want a bigger social group, but I don't want to lose contact with the one I have either. So, check your mailboxes.