"To start with he treated the thought as a joke, but he could not get it out of his head," said Nigel Sweeney QC. "The thought became stronger.
And, presto change-o, the thought became the deed and here I am bedecked with the GoPro Hero3 wearable camera, ready to join the extreme-sports community that has so enthusiastically embraced it: But that suit was sooooo uncomfortable.
So the thought became, why not crowdsource it?
Instead of trying not to think about Christmas (which will only make the thought become front and center in your mind) just remind yourself that the sooner you fall asleep the sooner morning will come, the sooner you get to open presents and the sooner you get to see what St.Nick left you.
Of course, the more a ballplayer -- or a golfer or a football player or anyone else abruptly thrust into obsession -- tries to stop thinking, the more stubborn the thoughts become.
New age, positive thinking and other modern "spiritual" movements have captured the meditations of many who have read and now practice the "thoughts become things" principles of The Secret and other recent works.
After the first month, and maybe for the rest of your life, you might still think of how nice a cigarette could be after a good meal, but the thoughts become more easy to repress over time.
Gradually, as the thoughts become less severe and you feel you're safe for now, look for ways to reduce the burden of pain you've been carrying around.
We create these belief systems and initially they are transgressive and radical, and a few hundred or thousand years into them the new thought becomes something unmovable, something we use to to oppress each other in cruel ways.
It deals with the ease with which thought becomes accustomed to the immediate seductive power of technology without realizing what it is losing.
