Journal – Page 128 – Trance Blackman

Here you’ll find my philosophical meanderings in the form of articles, essays, and occasional poetry. My interests and curiosities are broad, but the central focus remains the pursuit of what is authentic, real, and true.

Lux et veritas

Living Systems, Extractive Systems: Beyond the Next Promise

01 August 2026 ~ 24 minute read

There comes a point, after enough observation and enough inward wrestling, when the appetite for grand explanations begins to soften. Not because the questions no longer matter, but because life has a way of revealing that many of our most pressing troubles do not yield to scale, speed, or certainty. They ask something quieter of us. They ask us to look more closely at the conditions we are creating, the assumptions we’ve inherited, and the kinds of systems — inwardly and outwardly — to which we’ve given our allegiance.

The Industrial Devolution

07 July 2026 (rev. 09 July 2026) ~ 9 minute read

Every era tells itself a story about progress. We inherit those stories long before we possess the discernment to question them, and, more often than not, spend much of our lives defending assumptions we never consciously chose. But every so often, something begins to unravel. A contradiction becomes too obvious to ignore, and the narratives that once seemed self-evident begin to reveal themselves as carefully maintained illusions.

Fire and Death

17 June 2026 ~ 5 minute read

Some ideas linger at the edge of awareness until circumstances drag them into the foreground. A distant column of smoke on the horizon. A phone call in the middle of the evening. A conversation that suddenly turns reflective. Certain realities have a way of interrupting our routines and reminding us of things we spend most of our lives trying not to think about. Fire is one of them. Death is another.

Suno Sessions

12 June 2026 (rev. 02 July 2026) ~ 5 minute read

Say what you want about AI-generated music, but I haven’t had this much fun, motivation, and inspiration making music in over a decade.

Creating Meaningful Art

11 June 2026 ~ 7 minute read

Some creations seem to arrive through us rather than from us. We labor over them, shape them, refine them, and eventually release them into the world, yet their true significance remains unknown. A story, a song, a film, a conversation — each may carry something far greater than its creator intended. Meaning, after all, is not manufactured. It is discovered in the meeting place between what is offered and what is received.

A Wider Field

10 June 2026 ~ 3 minute read

There is a difference between paying attention and becoming consumed by what is directly in front of us. One sharpens our awareness; the other narrows it. Somewhere between distraction and fixation lies a quieter state of presence, one that allows us to remain grounded in the moment while still remembering to look toward the horizon.