iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 5h

Related: start noticing the people in your world who try to motivate you with fear. It's often because they don't have anything more appealing to offer, and, they know it.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 11h

Don't say you've lost something if you've merely *mislaid* it. "Lost" is a really special word, best reserved for describing a precious thing you've accepted you'll never see again.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 17h

Never argue on the internet. No one will remember whether you won or lost the argument; they'll just remember that you are the sort of person who argues on the internet.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 23h

Related: if you don't think you sometimes have *big* feelings about how you feel, please permit me to gently recommend your looking into mindfulness.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 09/10/2026

Thoughts and feelings are real, but they do not have to define you. Remember that you are the sky—*not the weather*. (Thanks, Pema C.)

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 08/10/2026

Almost every task in life benefits from the addition of a nearby trash bag.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 08/10/2026

Related: This also goes for almost everything else.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 08/10/2026

Like it or not, you're always practicing *something*. Put another way, whichever muscle you exercise the most can't help but strengthen. Often to the detriment of others.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/10/2026

Always have a twelve-pack of Diet Coke and a good quantity of unflavored fizzy water. A lot of people love one (or both), and most of the people who do drink a lot of it.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/10/2026

Related: this also goes for most other scary personal anecdotes.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/10/2026

Related: if you *are* commenting on how someone looks, only ever compliment them on a thing that they have chosen.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/10/2026

We don't get to pick what we love or what makes us cry. Seek relationships with people who support the things that make you weepy or horny.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 06/10/2026

In the world of independently making stuff, success with an audience can be thought of as a slice of cake that is impossibly slim but improbably deep. Stay focused on delighting the right tiny wedge of the best baked good you can make and there's potentially no limit to how tall it can get.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 06/10/2026

Be mindful about giving gifts. A gift you give with *any* expectation is a burden, and people rarely enjoy being given a burden.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 06/10/2026

To clean out a junky drawer, remove the contents and put it in a box. Only when you've used one of the items in the box *twice* is it allowed to live in the drawer again. After a month, pitch or donate the remaining contents—or move the precious or useful stuff to deeper storage. But, yeah, you […]

mastodon.social

Original post on mastodon.social

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 06/10/2026

Until you learn the distinction between an adversary and an enemy, you're likely to accumulate quite a few of the latter.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 05/10/2026

Give each of your houseplants a funny name. Then, *use* it. If you have one plant and have no ideas, you may choose to call your friend, "Planty." That's what I do.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 05/10/2026

Don't call it a "warning" if it's really a *threat*. "Be careful walking to school" is a warning; "I am going to bomb your school" is a threat.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 05/10/2026

Learn about Chesterton's Fence. Then, actively resist altering a given situation before you understand the reasons why it's remained unchanged for so long. (Thanks, G. K. C.)

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 05/10/2026

If there's a book that means a lot to you, buy five print copies. It helps the author, plus now you can give a free copy to a friend whom you think would love it.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Reading Shakespeare is all about finding the right velocity. Read it too fast, and it won't make any sense. Read it too slow, and it'll make even less sense.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Being on time for things is a sign of character and respect. Adults who are pathologically late for things are unconsciously telling the world that other people's time is worthless to them.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Whatever your problem is, remember that before you can get better, you have to stop getting worse. Try first to stop getting worse.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Unless you *really* know what you’re doing, never give anyone underwear as a gift.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

Related: if it's useful, you might want to think about meditation as regular office hours with yourself.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

Generally avoid clothing that's more interesting than you are.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

Every project is a triangle made of time, money, and quality; shortening the length of one side necessarily lengthens one or—more often—*both* of the other sides.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

Sometimes, your brain decides it’s time to play tennis. So, it starts serving ideas and images at you, each of which seems to require immediate, urgent, and committed volleys in return. Just remember: *it’s your damned head*, and it’s fine if you just want to go sit in the bleachers and watch […]

mastodon.social

Original post on mastodon.social

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

Most parents understand it's their job to keep their child from dying. But, as the kid gets older, it also becomes increasingly vital not to prevent them from living. This is very difficult.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

Alternatively: leave your spare coins in a tidy little stack right outside the store you just exited. I'll bet you a chicken dinner the person who finds them could use them a lot more than you.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

Whoever wants the meeting most usually holds the least power.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 01/10/2026

When you first try to meditate, it'll feel like you're doing it wrong and are terrible at it. Eventually, you'll figure out that being terrible at meditation and feeling like you're doing it wrong is kind of the whole point of meditation. In truth, as long as you keep getting back to your […]

mastodon.social

Original post on mastodon.social

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 01/10/2026

Give each of your houseplants a funny name. Then, *use* it. If you have one plant and have no ideas, you may choose to call your friend, "Planty." That's what I do.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 01/10/2026

Related corollary: navigate an urban sidewalk by *avoiding* eye contact. Not because you're anti-social, but because eyes tell you little about where your fellow pedestrians are headed. Monitor feet and footsteps for imminent direction; unfix your gaze ~two head-heights above the crowd to detect […]

mastodon.social

Original post on mastodon.social

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 01/10/2026

If you're not sure what you want, it's almost definitely more sleep.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 30/09/2026

Order more appetizers and fewer daily specials.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 30/09/2026

Thoughts and feelings are real, but they do not have to define you. Remember that you are the sky—*not the weather*. (Thanks, Pema C.)

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 30/09/2026

When estimating the time it will take to do anything involving a child, add at least ten minutes per child. Make that 30 minutes for kids under five or over twelve.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 30/09/2026

Related: Just because an area temporarily has nothing in it does not mean it can be instantly reclaimed for other things. Especially if it's the area in the fridge where only Daddy's seltzer goes. Because nothing else *ever* goes there even when there's "nothing" there.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

If you feel uncomfortable in small talk situations, first ensure you're doing a *really* good job of listening. No, like: actually listening instead of thinking about how uncomfortable you are about being in the conversation.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

If you want to know what someone really thinks, ask them what they think other people really think. Then, ask how they know what other people really think.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

Piles can be a quick and dirty way to tidy an area or organize a bunch of stuff. But, temporary piles tend to devolve into permanent piles, and permanent piles are struggling to warn that you are becoming neither tidy nor organized.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

Most anecdotes that begin with the word "Apparently…" do not end well.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

Every few months, take at least one panorama photo of your kid's room. At least annually, secretly record your kid talking for at least ten minutes. I promise you'll treasure both, and then you will curse yourself for not having done each way more often.

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

Related: some of the best traditions are silly or weird or trivial traditions. Traditions related to repeating events like holidays can be a lot of fun and even very moving. But, you may discover that your new favorite traditions are just the dumb group rituals that arise amongst people who like […]

mastodon.social

Original post on mastodon.social

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Merlin's Wisdom Project @merlinwisdom.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

In life, you *are* your options. (Thanks, Dan I.)

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