On nature, puzzles and the duality of human thought


I went for another walk around that same long trail today....It is really, really long, let me tell you. Incidentally, hiking in cowboy boots is not a particularly bright idea. in my defense, I was only planning on a short walk when I left. My plans expanded without consulting me.

I only have one encounter I want to report, then I'm getting philosophical, I'm afraid. I've mentioned the migrating geese before, and today was no exception. I was passing behind a farm when a flock of them went overhead, honking. Apparently that farm keeps some poultry, because a rooster crowed at them as they did so....a stirring example of interspecies communication if ever there was one.

Now, I went along the same trail as I walked on thursday. This time, though, I went along it in the opposite direction....one of the advantages of taking a trail that is, essentially, a big loop. However, from that angle, it seemed like a completely new, and different trail. I discovered this as I missed a particular turn off that I would almost certainly have seen had I come round the other way. It occured to me that this strongly resembles a problem solving technique that people really ought to use more often.....if you approach a problem from a different angle it seems new, entirely different, and is probably more easily solved. I am now faced with a question....does this count as pathetic fallacy? I just don't know/