February 2022
Fuck Putin and fuck his war. I feel ashamed and disgusted by his actions. The iron curtain is back in a different shape: people from Russia can't use their Visa and Mastercard outside of the country, most flights are sold out or canceled. A few friends are leaving the country just to leave anywhere, with no long-term plans in mind. I am horrified by stories about parents fighting with their children on the subject of war.
No amount of donations and protesting will fix the situation, but those are the only things I can do. On the last Sunday of the month, there was a protest on a Dam square and it was filled with people with no end in sight.
Given Durov's attempt to block Telegram channels in Russia and Ukraine, I am switching to Signal for personal and group chats. End-to-end encryption by default and making money from donations feels right.
It feels surreal that just a week before it all started, we were collecting oysters on the sandy beach near Goes.
Two great and surprisingly similar movies: The Worst Person in the World and Licorice Pizza. Two weird in a good way books: Crisis Zone by Simon Hanselmann and Doctor Garin by Vladimir Sorokin.
To stop myself from reading the news 24/7, I'm trying to make a habit of always putting the phone and the laptop in the storage room, unless I need them for something specific, like writing this text. Repurposed an old iPhone 6 just for the podcast listening (Huberman Lab is a nice one). I take it with me when going for a walk, instead of the usual phone.
I've asked my guitar teacher Jan how to become better with barre chords. Here is his advice. Go to the Texel island in the north part of the Netherlands, board the horse wagon that goes around the island, take your guitar and one book. Keep practicing the chord change and read the book if you're tired. By the end of the trip, you'll start to get that chord.
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