I believe joy is natural. I searched nature for its cause. Nature showed me the way it gives us to reverse the cause of our suffering and problems.
I slowly developed a model of it. It is called hygienic darkroom retreating. It is subtle, its effects rapid. It reliably leads to miracles.
These include:
relief, rest, and recovery from distress, exhaustion, and illness
natural healing from trauma, the cause of suffering
restoration of the personal power necessary for freedom
return of the lost self
My readers and I tasted these benefits in trial retreats. Now, with a complete model, everyone can benefit fully. This requires a self-supporting, organized team. Thus...
startup
I am starting a business. We will do everything related to hygienic darkroom retreating:
writing, speaking, teaching, interviews, and media production
consultation, retreat support
research and development
manufacturing, marketing, distribution, and installation
sales of related products from other companies, including humane technology
The business has unlimited potential. The model has implications for every field. It will not merely transform an industry. It will redefine the world's economy and our entire way of life. To begin funding it, I am:
initiating the start-up process to form the business and attract capital. Credits purchased now will be redeemable for future investment offerings at a bonus rate.
The vision of Human Conditions is to restore humanity to the original human condition of joy, health, and freedom. Our mission is to make darkness approachable by ordinary people on normal terms. This means making it a turn-key, franchise operation. Click, and it just works. I mean perfectly, beautifully, in every way, for everyone involved.
Human Conditions will be the first darkroom operation to meet this world-class standard. Most people have no time for anything less. There is no reason they should.
This remains true even now, when the world so needs a sane vision of life and a way to bring it about. The soul maintains its composure at all costs. Awaiting nature's solution, it endures all.
~~
The presale's unusual terms reward past supporters. The catalog lists offerings with delivery dates, prices, and drop-down descriptions. It is also the order form, with fields for quantities and options . The goal of the presale is $11,400. The plan tells how we will start up.
terms
prices in $USD
$B : base
$G : with gift certificates
shipping added at checkout
gift certificates
surprise bonus!: you have a gift certificate if you ever gave me material support:
donations
contributions to my 2016 crowdfund
leanpub purchases @70%; forward receipt or mention order # or date and amount paid
other contributions. Mention them with a record (eg, an email, SMS, etc). If you lost it, say so. I might have it or remember. Claims gladly honored from anyone who helped me in any way since my research and development began 33 years ago.
features: tradable for credit, non-expiring, transferable
limitations: limited amount usable per item; non-appreciating; non-commodity-backed, non-applicable to shipping (credit hasn't these limitations)
catalog
click item name for brief description and link to full description in my book with context and images
catalog is also the order form: enter quantities and options directly
click Check Out at bottom of catalog to place order
Delivery
Item
$B
QtyB
$G
QtyG
Total
Options
2020 Sep
consultation, 1 hour
20
2
10
0
40
credit
commodity-backed. Value is pegged to startup prices of offerings. Eg, 20 credits will always buy a paper book, regardless of future dollar book price.
appreciates 10%/year for 4 years, 6% thereafter. Eg, 20 credits will increase to 22 after a year.
redeemable for any future investment options at further 10% bonus rate
applicable to shipping of future orders
| 1 | | 0.40 | | |
Jan | book, paper
perl -p -i -e 's,(?<=())\n+(?=()),,g' startup.hmtl
Return of the Lost Self the hygienic use of darkness
This is the complete manual of hygienic darkroom retreating. It describes the way nature gives us to reverse the cause of our suffering and problems: unhealed major trauma. Both theory and practice As organisms, we are self-healing, provided the proper conditions. The primary condition of healing is profound rest. The most profound rest occurs in an extended stay in total darkness. See blurb for full description and to begin reading. 200p.
Available in PDF, EPUB, and MOBI formats for desktop, mobile, and Kindle
| 15 | | 8 | | |
| | helix vent
Standard lightproof vent for darkrooms. Multiple orientations, highly adaptable. air > helix vent
| 35 | | 20 | | |
| | helix vent-z
Shortened helix vent for inside enclosures like silencer. air > helix vent-z
| 25 | | 15 | | |
| | door seal
Fleece strips with tape are a simple way to lightproof the edges of virtually any door or casement window. Enough for large door, including darkness > door seal
| 25 | | 20 | | |
| | fan mount
Eliminates vibration from fan. (Usually combined with silencer, which eliminates sound of fan.) Includes 120mm 12VDC case fan fan & AC-DC12V adapter.
| 35 | | 25 | | |
| 2021 Apr | lecture
20-90 minute presentation of the outline and essence of hygienic darkroom retreating. Up to two hours total, including Q & A. Expenses not included.
| 200 | | 120 | | |
| | hygienic computer
e-paper tablet, 10.3” ReMarkable 2, Linux OS, upgraded for USB external keyboard, loaded with recommended books
| 600 | | 550 | | |
| | hygienic computer monitor
e-paper, 13.3” Dasung Paperlike, highest possible speed, professional-grade, common connections (HDMI, power supply)
in cm, to nearest tenth of cm, eg, 86.4 x 52.3 (1" = 2.54cm)
width and height of window
for wall attachment: measure window recess or, if trimmed, from outside of trim
for frame attachment: measure from outside of frame (for panel, inside of sash)
to order
enter measurements in Options. Multiple windows = multiple measurements, with a name for each set
quantity = widthheight0.0001. For multiple blinds, enter total.
photos
take 5-10 photos of each window style from inside, from 3-4 angles. Get closeups of hinge, latch, frame, trim. Take one photo of each window of the same style to capture any differences.
label photos clearly to correspond with measurements
click attach button to upload photos with order form
| | | | |
| | — plastic
extra-thick black plastic sheeting, 0.3mm, used in commercial construction
white lining, non-woven, for heat control and normal exterior appearance.
edge
folded to seal out light
pre-taped for instant installation. Extra tape included.
darkness > plastic
| 0.003 | | 0.0025 | | |
| | — velcro
blackout fabric: polyester with odorless acrylic coating
self-adhesive velcro at edges with tabs for reusable seal. Hook side adheres to wall.
| 60 | | 45 | | |
| 2023 Feb | *darkroom hygienic house
off-grid prefab, for living and retreating (5% deposit)design
| 30000 | | 25000 | | |
| Nov | *neighborhood
shelters, infrastructure, common building (12-50 people, ~35k each, 5% deposit)
| 420000+ | | 360000+ | | |
| TBA | *microfactory
tooling kits to produce components at home
| | | | |
*designs are conceived but not yet prototyped or illustrated in my book
all components subject to improvement by superior design or process, earlier shipping, and lowered prices
many more goods and services for a hygienic lifeway to come
goal: $11,400
The amount of the goal will cover new equipment, legal counsel, services, and costs (materials, tooling, services). The purchase schedule is staged. Once sales reach $3000, the presale will have momentum and I will have enough to pay for a new computer. With this, I can begin work on the book while maintaining the presale's momentum.
I will make up any shortfall through the startup process (see plan). This would not delay book production. It might delay assembly drawings and book redesign wait till next edition.
A third of the income from each stage will pay for items listed. Two-thirds will pay business costs: manufacturing, expenses, and debts. Shipping is not included.
Stage
Item
Amount
Goal
1
hygienic computer
3000
3000
2
legal counsel for forming business
3000
6000
3
assembly drawings for book
3000
9000
4
copy editing, proofreading, book design
2400
11400
plan
Steps are roughly in order. Some will happen concurrently.
pre-launch
design presale
set up website for presale
find members of my network to share presale with their networks
create incentive for everyone who does
presale
reach first stage of goal
pay for new computer
update and expand promotion of presale
edit book
integrate final pieces of model
refine organization of book content
simplify sentence structure for clarity, easier reading, and better machine translation
hire draftsman to make assembly drawings
get book copyedited, proofread, and designed
print and ship on schedule
develop business
study the startup process
create pitch deck, investment plan, and other standard documents
use documents to present the business to attract further funding and team members
begin organizing work together
produce components:
develop production processes and tooling
refine prototypes
produce and ship components on schedule
misc
lecture:
refine existing talk according to model
begin speaking in public
produce microfactory kits, prototype darkroom, design neighborhood
seminar: plan and organize
expand catalog with related products from others
qualifications and risks
I could print the current edition of the book right now and ship it. Over the years, I have done so many times. Basically, it is good. Readers find it substantive, clear, and well-written. It contains a thousand times more information than I had when I first retreated. Its theme, the restful use of darkness, remains constant.
The book has 98% of the content I want it to have when it ships in five months. From tests, I know how long my intended method of revision takes. Making theoretical breakthroughs as I work and managing the pre-sale will take more time. It is all built into the schedule to ensure timely delivery.
I have produced or prototyped everything in the list except where noted. I have experience shipping things internationally from both America and Europe.
I grew up around small business. My father, his business partners, extended family, and friends always whisked me behind the scenes to see how things worked. I have worked closely with entrepreneurs in both publishing and manufacturing, read business books my whole life, and have done business consulting. I know double-entry accounting, spreadsheets, simple programming, basic law, history, philosophy. I have recovered enough personal power to succeed in a rough and tumble world.
Through rehydration, a hygienic practice, I have recently found a simple way to reverse the worst of my crippling health issues. Day by day, I am restored to function. This is another example, in 32 years of relentless, uncompromising effort, of my resourcefulness and diligence in finding ways to continue. After nine months of gestating my completed model, I am clear about what I am doing and how to proceed.
Socially, a stable web of relationships with my neighbors and international collaborators holds me. Politically and economically, I am still vulnerable. This presale is designed to amend that. The legal help I will retain will help me deal with the strange political changes occurring globally.
Inaction is the biggest risk we face. If no one tries to realize this idea, if its influence never bears on world conditions, we will lack the most powerful possible means of dealing with the nonsense that confronts us today. The Adversary has lately increased his destabilizing pressure. I have studied his ways for the last three years and minimized my exposure. I'm a survivor with a unique set of skills. I'll find a way to fill your order and execute my plan.
conclusion
"Give me a lever long enough, and I will move the world," said Archimedes. A corollary is to find the small lever at the world's center that activates all its processes.
Nature has revealed that lever to me as the hygienic use of darkness. It widens the baffling bottleneck we are stuck in. It enables the human soul to rapidly restore itself and then the world. It is the most crucial thing I could find to do. The task has stretched me to the breaking point several times. Somehow, it keeps easing me back. So far, so good.
Thank you for your ongoing interest, consideration, and support. Today, we begin again.