commit 0e62fc0cd74a0fb471b97802ccb87e49bc4e6b89 from: Alexander Arkhipov date: Sat Dec 30 11:00:49 2023 UTC add the first blog entry in "thoughts" commit - 221c2e17132eb26d7f94a57841f5a3367c5747ea commit + 0e62fc0cd74a0fb471b97802ccb87e49bc4e6b89 blob - 585ee4e009ebc979067b46f9b3b93972c1fb5b0e blob + c64c3dcf1d358b2d6e0b6798002ddb4e41829575 --- index.gmi +++ index.gmi @@ -14,5 +14,6 @@ GCS d+@ s+:- a-- C++ UB+++(L++$) P+ L+(++$) E--- W- !N => hacks/ hacks => art/ articles +=> thoughts/ thoughts => ln.gmi links blob - 66b05e76702ac7a60f4ab736c7c68387b0da0e56 blob + 32c693213862d7ccf0e43713d2639f6e2c047a55 --- index.gph +++ index.gph @@ -12,5 +12,6 @@ GCS d+@ s+:- a-- C++ UB+++(L++$) P+ L+(++$) E--- W- !N [1|hacks|hacks/|server|port] [1|articles|art/|server|port] +[1|thoughts|thoughts/|server|port] [1|links|ln.gph|server|port] blob - 24c2b2dfdfc6a047e8e9b504c1eeb4a2aaa7fe60 blob + cf94c639d376decf6da307c086e061925e46d5db --- index.html +++ index.html @@ -16,6 +16,7 @@ GCS d+@ s+:- a-- C++ UB+++(L++$) P+ L+(++$) E--- W- !N
blob - /dev/null blob + 091353daab1c20f6bafef91421d7d1ecac78ced0 (mode 644) --- /dev/null +++ thoughts/000000.intro.txt @@ -0,0 +1,13 @@ +2023-12-30 + +Originally, I created this site with a "blogs are kind of stupid" +mindset. So instead I decided to publish "articles" in the art +directory. That has worked pretty well, especially because I only had +little time to maintain any of it. + +Things are different now. Firstly, I have some thoughts that I'd like to +share, which I can't really put into an "article". More importantly, I +expect to finally have time to do that, and other things I always wanted +to do. + +In short, thoughts is the "blog" part of this site. blob - /dev/null blob + f7e178e36f2688af6851472866af5211de719b7a (mode 644) --- /dev/null +++ thoughts/231230.leaving_russia.txt @@ -0,0 +1,60 @@ +Russia is one of those states that maintain the feudal ritual of +forcing the unwilling young men into its army. Russia is also well-known +for being corrupt to the bones. A common result is that conscripts +return with nothing but horror stories. Another common result is that +they don't return at all. + +Even at school I was terrified of that. I frequently thought about +emigration (not just to avoid this "service", but to live a better life +generally), but I also realised that before I am able to do that, I need +some short-term survival plan. So I went to university. I didn't care +much about getting a bachelor's in Russia, but I didn't think of it much +either: students are exempt from conscription, and that's most of what I +cared about. + +There was another side effect of this lack of thinking: I used to have +silly ideas about employment. Only by observing other students, did I +learn that it is actually possible to be employed, even at a relatively +well-paying job, before graduating. (Seems obvious now...) Of course, +when I tried to get myself employed, I failed, but that led me to +investigate this "Linux" thing. With no exaggeration, installing Arch +(and I don't even like the distro anymore) on my machine has improved my +entire life! I finally learned that autodidactism is better than the +best teachers in the world, people who give advice usually don't know +much themselves, and people who tell that something is impossible are +not to be trusted. + +That was summer of 2021, a year before my graduation. February 2022 +seemed quite normal, until it didn't. Shortly afterwards lots of Russian +IT and CS specialists have left the country. In response the government +issued a decree exempting such professionals from conscription. I jumped +at the opportunity, and instead of going to a master's programme (I +*hated* education in Russia at that point), got myself employed +full-time at a (well-known within Russia) company called "InfoTeCS" +(I'll just call it "infotecs"). + +Even before the interview at infotecs, however, I knew that I was likely +to dislike working there. (I was right.) Mostly I just wanted: + +1. not to get conscripted; +2. to have my resume say "have been employed at a well-known company + for a year-or-so"; + +Of course, by the time I had reached point 2. (August 2023), the new +conscription campaign was dangerously close, so I decided to wait until +January 2024. Towards November I realised that I have almost enough +money, and almost enough information to finally leave Russia! I was also +influenced by being "invited" to the military commissariat in spite of +my exemption, and by the many horror stories of people who acted upon +these "invitations". So in December I began preparing documents and +things, and contacting people I know who live outside of Russia. I knew +there was going to be a bonus at the end of December, so I only actually +filed my resignation letter on 29th (that's yesterday), and will stay +employed until January 12 (as required by law). + +If all goes right I'll soon be moving to Georgia for a year. The reasons +are that it's relatively cheap, and Russians are allowed to stay in +Georgia for a year without a residence permit. I am thinking of trying +to find new employment after that, not before. So, hopefully, I'll be +able to spend a large portion of January learning new things and writing +software.