Books who can't make it into a post makes it here. We can call this, if you like, Socialism with a Human Face.
Category: General Reflections
“To Live,” by Yu Hua. Review
"One lives for the sake of life itself."
What I Did This My Harvard Freshman Fall, Where I Plan to Go Next, and Why
Reflecting on my experience first semester at Harvard. Thinking about everything that went wrong and went right, and what to do next.
Harvard Freshman Fall, In Retrospect
General Stuff That I Learned Operational Advice- For essay classes, discuss your essay ideas with your TAs. Schedule extra Office Hours with them if there is a conflict in schedule. You save time because the best way to think is to talk with someone about it, and you do so whilst boosting your grade—since TAs, … Continue reading Harvard Freshman Fall, In Retrospect
That’s Valid
I don't know whether it's Americans, Math people, or my suite mates, but people around me say "That's Valid" all the time. —Me disassembling my laptop after working on the same Pset question for 3 hours. "That's Valid." —Me feeling depressed and wanting to jump off my dorm naked. "That's pretty Valid." —My talking about … Continue reading That’s Valid
Romance
Love doesn't just happen. At first sight, it's at most an idealization. Idealizations are not false. They're just not true. They're like the Constitution without the constituents. Love is more the generation and preservation of attraction through reciprocal effort towards enlarging, strengthening, and losing the self. It's about the hard and beautiful work into maintaining … Continue reading Romance
Attractiveness
There are two types of attractiveness. This will have direct bearing on how we should mate. There are people who are universally attractive. Pretty features. Good build. Etc.. But there are also people who we find uniquely attractive. Perhaps because of their hobbies, personality, or the specific type of beauty they embody. We may find … Continue reading Attractiveness
Making Good Conversation
Ask questions. Anything that comes to your mind. It can be interesting, it can be stupid, it can be about politics, or it can just be about their favorite bubble tea. Just make sure you're actually curious. This is where smalltalk, like "the weather is really good today," fails. Engage in smalltalk so you don't … Continue reading Making Good Conversation
Writing Well
A desperate attempt to justify the existence of college writing classes by articulating the importance of writing well, in order to make me feel better about how I'm forced to take them instead of the other 3700 courses offered at Harvard. Why Learn Writing? The Short Answer So we can articulate, communicate, and think with … Continue reading Writing Well
Dealing with Privilege
We’re almost all privileged. I certainly am. With privilege accompanies a certain guilt. The guilt that comes from the realization that I did nothing to earn what I have. I did not choose my parents, my times, my body. I didn’t even choose to be born. Why do I deserve such a good deal? What … Continue reading Dealing with Privilege