Find Your Meanings
You generally get what you put into things, and so cultivate the meanings that matter to you.
For those new to this blog, each title of each post is a piece of unsolicited advice, so you’ll notice they all begin with a verb, or a call to action. I try to make sure the story inside reflects the advice I give. When I’m posting specific updates, I still try to stay in theme, just for aesthetic preferences.
As of my writing this, it’s the day after Christmas. It was a nice day off from work responsibilities and I decided to spend much of it wrapping up my edits to the LP National photo album while eating the best latkes I’ve ever had.
So yes, for those of you patiently awaiting that, I’ll be posting/publishing it here within 48 hours (I’m guessing tonight). If you follow me on Facebook you’ll see it when it’s up, but subscribing here gets you an email.
I’ll be putting sneak peeks into this article as I go.
But it’s the holidays and I didn’t make a holiday post, so I’d like to get into some updates for all my readers - I think even the newbies will find some of this interesting.
Holiday Cards
So my annual tradition is that I send out holiday cards in mid-December, but I’ve been too busy. I’m about to finish them up this week now that I’ve finished the album, so I wanted to invite any of my blog-followers to sign up for a late card, if they’re so inclined. I send cards to friends and strangers alike. Just fill out this form here.
Mycology Business
One of the reasons I’ve been too busy to edit photos or write articles is because business has taken over my life. I’m really happy about it, but work-life balance has gone out the window.
In July, our company launched our Shrüm All in One Mushroom Grow Kit. It allows you to grow mushrooms (of any kind, but optimized for psilocybin) in the comfort and privacy of your home. It’s like a chia pet - inject your preferred culture (sold separately), wait 6-8 weeks, harvest your mushrooms. I wanted to let you know it’s available in stores all over the country (we sold over 10,000 units this year) but also you can buy it direct from the website.
Click here to do so. Use “Avens” as a coupon code for a discount as well.
(If you’ve got a website or podcast and want to become an affiliate with your own code & commission, message me directly, we’ll be starting that in January). (If you’re interested in wholesale purchasing, message me directly as well).
The culture is sold separately by another company I co-founded with Judd & our business partner. You’ll find descriptions of the varietals you can purchase by clicking this link here, and you can go to Coast 2 Coast Mycology to purchase - use password “magic” to access all varietals. My name “Avens” is a coupon code for discounts on that website too. There’s additional discounts currently running on that site as well, you can use my coupon code for even more!
We’re catching up from Shrüm orders made over the Christmas season, but if you order this week you’ll have it by early January.
Obligatory Tie-In To The Blog Title
It’s funny, right now on social media there’s all sorts of discussion about “the reason for the season” and like the individualist pluralist I am, my answer is “none of these are true because all of them are”. I grew up neo-pagan, and Winter Solstice was a very special event in my home. Some of my friends are celebrating the birth of the savior in their faith. Some of my friends are celebrating rising up against oppressors, in Chanukah.
Some of us (even some of the above) love the image of Santa Claus as a secular figure representing a time of year in which generosity and kindness prevail. I like to be generous and kind all year round, but the reason I’m a sucker for Miracle of 34th Street is because Santa represents good customer service by a business, and how bad businesses use the oppressive apparatus of the state to shut down competition. It’s a beautifully libertarian & pro-capitalism message wrapped up in Santa and I’m totally here for it.
My upcoming blogs tie further into this. My speech about my optimism about liberty, and how the arc of humanity is towards individualism & liberty, if you look at our whole history instead of myopically staring at a short span of time. That things are getting better, not worse, that there is more power for each individual than ever before, and more transparency through democratized mediums of communication than ever before.
I am profoundly hopeful and I believe I have evidence and cause for this, and one of my January pieces will be about that.
I also want to share more about criticism through creation, and embracing systems that don’t have zero sum games - why creating positive change is better than merely destroying what we don’t like. My devotion to my business is part of that, but so is my devotion to liberty, regardless of who is in charge of whatever organization I’m involved in. I don’t take my marbles and go home, and I don’t wish for others’ failure. I find things to invest in, things to be proud of, things to work on that inspire me, and I just work from that.
I’ve always been a deeply self-motivated person with a strong internal compass about my direction, so the state of things around me isn’t strongly influential, and I have a tendency to focus on what I like and disregard everything I don’t - my attention is valuable, and I try not to give it to things I don’t value. I wish people would adopt that particular habit themselves, but we all have our own journeys in life. Explaining this is another piece I’d like to tackle in January.
I know a portion of my subscribers will likely remove themselves immediately following the publication of a photo album they’ve been waiting for, but if they want to stick around to see if there’s anything more of value, I’m grateful for the opportunity to share things I know you value (like photos) and hope that inspires more interest in the other things I wish to share. I’m deeply purpose-driven, and what I do in one part of my life tends to fit with other parts of my life, because I’m here to live the values I hold. I’m here to highlight that which inspires me. I’m here to be a light.
I recently read an article on Substack that thrilled me to see someone else articulate. It’ll inspire another article here, as will this tweet I share. I’m so tired of the culture war.
I’m ready for the culture peace. See this article. Watch Kmele Foster’s fantastic commentary at the Atlas Shrugged Gala on this topic of culture war here.
I appreciate AntiWar News retweeting this Tweet:
Anyway, that’s my update at 2am the day after Christmas.
I look forward to sharing my album with you. I hope your holidays have been filled with love, laughter and light. Sending you some warmth from sunny Southern California.