#61 - Enchiridion Ch 2: How Not to be Miserable - Mastering Desire, Disaster, and the Coldplay Kiss Cam

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When Chris Martin paused a Coldplay concert to comment on a kiss-cam couple—“Either they’re having an affair, or they’re just very shy”—he unintentionally exposed more than just awkward chemistry. Days later, both people were out of their jobs and their private lives had become public scandal. But the real story isn’t just the moment it’s what it reveals about desire, aversion, and what happens when we’re forced into the spotlight unprepared.

This week, we unpack:

• The viral kiss-cam moment that spiraled into corporate resignations and meme fodder
• Thomas Edison watching his lab burn to the ground and saying, “Go get your mother—they’ll never see a fire like this again”
• What Epictetus meant by aversion—and why most of our misery comes from trying to avoid things we can’t control
• How one email triggered Justin’s entire discomfort cycle… and how he reprogrammed it with Stoic habit design
• And a birthday shoutout to Modern Medicine

Whether it’s a camera at a concert or a fire at your feet, Chapter 2 of The Enchiridion offers one clear rule: You suffer less when you stop running from what you fear.