Randy's metaphorical shoes are too big to fill

In August 2009 I wrote that ‘I live my life almost if not totally within my comfort zone. I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing…(but it’s)…one way of minimising stress [1]’. Staying in my comfort zone maximises my life’s predictability. An example? Every Saturday (Tasmanian time), like clockwork, The Ethicist podcast’s arrived in my iTunes’ Podcasts folder. I’ve adored this podcast. Not least due to Randy Cohen – who I think’s terrific [2]. The Ethicist podcasts – which were readings of Cohen’s weekly New York Times column – were only a few minutes each. But their pithy succinctness defined them. As if the ethical solutions to the conundrums Cohen dealt with came readily to him. An astute reader of this post will’ve perceived I’ve been writing in the past tense. Alas, the final episode of The Ethicist – with Cohen at the helm – was last week’s. It’s his 614th. Here it is [3 ,4]. It seems his parting of the ways with the NYT wasn’t initiated by him [5, 6]. I hope the NYT’s decision comes back to bite it. Apparently they’ve engaged a replacement ethicist. But I doubt anyone could replace Cohen. For his metaphorical shoes are too big to fill. However I’m delighted he and his work won’t be lost to his loyal followers – including me. He has a new programme – A Question of Ethics – in development for public radio [7, 8]. I hope it starts soon. And that it appears regularly. Because my comfort zone’s important to me.

farmdoc's blog post number 477

Wikipedia defines the comfort zone as a neutral anxiety behavioural state resulting in a steady level of performance, usually without a sense of risk. I live my life almost if not totally within my comfort zone. I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing. I suspect the latter – at least from the viewpoint of maximising brain function and plasticity. But I know from long experience I don’t handle stress well. Staying in my comfort zone’s one way of minimising stress. Maybe because – or in spite – of this, I’m fascinated by those who live well outside their comfort zone. And so to the latest film I’ve seen and the latest book I’ve read. The book is Dead Lucky – Life After Death on Mount Everest. It’s a true account by Australian mountaineer Lincoln Hall (pictured) of his 1996 Everest climb. A short time into his descent after summiting, he developed cerebral oedema and was given up for dead. After a night at 8,600 metres without oxygen, he was found alive the next morning. He’s the first person to survive a night in the open in Everest’s ‘death zone’. The film is The Devil at Your Heels – a 1981 documentary chronicling the 1976-9 attempt of daredevil stuntman Ken Carter to jump a rocket-powered car over the Saint-Laurence Seaway – a distance of one mile. In the end, he doesn’t do it – seemingly because he lost his nerve. I was enthralled by both book and film. I envy Hall and Carter their bravery – from well inside my comfort zone. Ho hum.