WOLFISM XLIV from Wolfie's blog

There are four features of the face of BAST that I haven’t really discussed. All I’ve done is name them. Time to rectify that omission.

“Blessed are they who love food, for the world is their oyster.”

Fixation on the quantity of food can potentially lead to an eating disorder, and is therefore not to be recommended. Fixation on the quality of food is better overall for one’s health. I have a bit of the former and therefore I wrestle constantly with my weight. My best solutions so far have been Weight Watchers and a quote from the novel Shibumi by Trevanian, regarding fine wine: “I do not consider two sips to be more delicious than one.” That said, I heartily recommend exploring all the delicacies of all the regions of the world, from the simple to the complex, the intense to the subtle, the silly to the sublime. Try it all. Be adventurous. Whatever delights you, come back to, again and again.   

“Blessed are they who work smarter, not harder, for by sloth they conquer.”

Smart sloth is the best impulse of the engineer. The refusal to stupidly waste time and energy has spawned more innovation than any other human impulse. “This laborious process is how it’s always been done? What the fuck! Who came up with this? There are at least three different ways we could do this quicker and easier. I’ll pick one and give you a strawman to pick apart by tomorrow morning.” And so is born yet another creative transformation of tools and techniques. Whatever company can best harness this impulse will inevitably pull ahead in the race to be first to market.      

“Blessed are the vain, for they adorn the best subject.”

The best subject is of course the self. The vain love clothing, shoes, jewelry, and accessories. They love hairstyles, cosmetics, and fragrances. They love excellent physiques, be they slim, voluptuous, or muscular. They love teeth that are white and straight. Some of them love tattoos, and some, piercings. Adorning oneself is an art form, one that I personally only dabble in, minimally, but which I admire in others, for the better they look, the more they demonstrate the esteem in which they hold their own bodies. Simultaneously carnal and materialistic, the vain are edifying muses for us all.  

“Blessed are they whose envy elevates their ambitions, for they will have the last laugh.”

Most people don’t realize this, but ambition rests on envy. We compare ourselves to others, note the discrepancy, and if it isn’t in our favor, the best of us set ourselves the objective of redressing that imbalance by doing the work, learning the skills, developing the strategies and tactics, and facing the challenges that will get us from where we are to where those other people are. All of this begins in earliest childhood. We envy the autonomy of our parents and we set ourselves the objective of growing up so we too can be autonomous. Later we envy our teachers and our more accomplished classmates. Still later we envy the rich, the famous, and the triumphant in any field. All of this fuels our ambitions.

Life-enhancing virtues, all four above, and the furthest things from deadly sins. ISCHYROS DIAVOLOS!