Brain: an apparatus with which we think we think.

Ambrose Bierce

Before getting to its majesty, not-entirely-useless, brain itself, let’s scan some more important organs responsible for most of our senses, which, with the exception of the tactile sense, are exclusively located in the head.

As could be deduced from the photo in my previous post, (aside from the apparent deep intelligence and stunningly charismatic nature), my originally almost perfect vision has lost its former glory and now requires some assistance in the form of reading glasses. I wear +1.75 glasses, though now, I probably need +2 or +2.5 glasses. Yet, I stubbornly don’t upgrade (or, rather: downgrade) with the believe that my current glasses are pushing my eyes out of their comfort zone and making them do some work, in the hopes that it will slow down further deterioration; which is why I also have been doing eye exercises for over 10 years now. But despite all the promises by the “best-kept secret” experts, that didn’t save or restore my vision to its former pristine condition. Did any of this help to slow down this process? There is no way to tell.

I think I really started feeling the need for glasses around 7-8 years ago. The deterioration slowed down some 4-5 years ago, and, like I said before, I still wear the same kind of glasses. However, recently, I started to notice that the distance at which I see better with than without glasses is gradually increasing. This tells me that my vision continues to get worse, though at a slower pace. Anyway, enough on sight; I will report any serious changes as they happen (that is, if I still can see the screen).

Not much to tell about the hearing, smell and taste; all are more or less in a satisfactory state, slightly deteriorated from their prime time but not causing serious problems, yet.

Okey, let’s talk a bit about the pinnacle of existence, the ultimate triumph of the universe, (also, sometimes, the source of mortifying embarrassments) the one and only, the most exquisite brain of mine.

It may not be obvious from all this rambling I subjected you to, but I’m still capable of speech and logical thought, or, at least I believe so. Having said that, there is no doubt that my brain is slower than in its prime time, not as sharp and it is more difficult to stay focused for extended periods of time. My short-term memory is definitely worse. All of this may have caused certain difficulty when facing complex problems, but surprisingly, I’m still doing satisfactory job in most such cases. I suspect that experience and intuition are covering for the lack of brute analytical force.

A brief digression here: I believe that, with age, our intelligence, the sharpness of our mind deteriorates, in simpler words: we get more stupid. However, our wisdom continues to increase, albeit with the slowing rate up to the point when our brains starts loosing some of their basic functions, meaning: when we’re starting to go senile. Thus, for non-mental elderly, whenever facing a problem that requires sharp mind capable of quick or deep analysis, the brain finds some shortcuts we call intuition to deal with the problem.

Intuition is just an acquired pattern of thought as a result of experience, and wisdom is the entire set of those patterns. Hmm… this definition is so good, I’m going to also post it separately in my “random thoughts” category.

Anyway, I feel that analyzing my brain, by using my brain, is not a creditworthy exercise; though, I suspect, I’ll have to do it from time to time as part of this series. Whether these evaluations hold any merit is for the reader to decide. But for now, I think this will do. Adios.