commit 5fc344277e2508a1bb385f5e5a7785fe64865444 from: Alex Arch date: Sat Oct 24 11:40:48 2026 UTC post-Bremen update commit - d37829ea128f9ea61b400362c2fdf42a6ebea7ab commit + 5fc344277e2508a1bb385f5e5a7785fe64865444 blob - a8a3d7a295d8b318ee3c0c6bd068eda91278163c (mode 644) blob + /dev/null --- about.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,114 +0,0 @@ -This is some info about myself, that I didn't feel like putting into my -~/.project. A mini-autobiography of sorts. If you want things like my -contact info, please finger(1) aa at this server, or see project.txt on -the web/gopher/gemini. - - -TIMELINE - -My memories of what has happened before 2014 are a bit foggy, so that may -be not entirely accurate. - -2000: get born in Moscow -2005: finally manage to pronounce the Russian rhotic sound! still hate - it after, though -2007: first year at school; am hated by peers for being smart, short - and girly -2008: the teacher tells us to be quiet; other children violate that - order immediately; I don't join; am punished along with the rest - anyway; begin internalising a disdain for authority -2009: probably the first time I am told that I am just "not a language - learner" -2010: teacher tells me to promise that I'll receive a 5 (i.e. the - highest mark) for the upcoming test; I am confused -- isn't she - the one who decides? -2011: we move to a different apartment, I lose all of my pre-school - friends -2012: mum hires a private English tutor, and I switch Minecraft to - English; most other programs on my computer are soon to follow -2013: learn a bit of HTML; love it, but don't know what to do with it -2014: Putin annexes Crimea; the ruble plummets, and everyone starts - hating Ukrainians; I begin googling "how to emigrate" -2015: move to a school for the mathematically inclined, get familiar - with Pascal; have some friends again, but don't trust them -2016: switch to Python -2017: teacher tells me to leave the school, and go back to one for - non-mathematically-inclined after I fail a test I didn't care - about; I proceed to pass most other tests as usual -2018: graduate from school only to immediately get into a cybersecurity - bachelor program to avoid army conscription; make some pretty bad - friends there -2019: conclude that the only thing way in which the university is better - than school is that they don't care if I show up or not; proceed - to stay at home and play video games all day -- just in time for - COVID! -2020: install Linux for the first time (later switch to OpenBSD), begin - reading lots of nonfiction, and actually doing stuff besides - playing video games; university "friends" do not approve -2021: fire my toxic "friends" -2022: Putin invades Ukraine, and I get my bachelor's diploma; instead of - going for a master's, I go for a job, because the IT and CS - workers are now exempt from conscription; coworkers turn out to be - pigs, and money to be the only redeeming thing about it all (the - military commisar doesn't seem to care for my exemption) -2023: notice that I have "just about enough" money; terrified of further - inaction, secretly prepare the documents, and, on the last work - day of the year, tell the boss I'm leaving -2024: I arrive to Kutaisi, my new home town. A few months in, I still - struggle with my mental state, and decide to go to an expat event. - Eventually, I discover that when you choose the people you spend - time with, human beings are actually worth being liked. For a very - long initial time, however, the reason why I am now experiencing - positive social interactions escapes me. -2025: Wow, it's almost been two years already! I think I managed to do a - lot more this year, than the last one. Immigration looks very - possible now. - - -A LITTLE ABOUT ME - -My name is Alexander. I am a free software developer and a cosmopolite. -I love learning, but hate bigotry and hypocrisy. I grew up in the -gulag-land, but now I am free, and will not exchange that for anything -in the world. - -I do most of my computing on an old ThinkPad, running OpenBSD. I try to -avoid social media as much as possible, and I keep my Android phone in -the cupboard most of the time. I don't read news, don't watch TV, and -at most play a film, or a video game once in a moth, or two. - -I used to read lots of fiction when I was younger, but now I read -non-fiction almost exclusively. I still like getting through a couple of -chapters of a novel before I go to sleep. - -I used to be very "busy" all the time, mostly due to spending an -enormous amount of time at school/university/office. I am not anymore. -I am in control of my time. Now that I am a free man, and don't have to -do what someone else tells me to, I try to find an effective approach to -most things, and end up doing them faster and better. - - -LESSONS LEARNED - -When I was about 21, it dawned upon me that a lot of the things I used -to believe were false, and a lot of the rules I used to live by had a -negative influence on me. Here are a few things I learned from my -mistakes (and successes) so far: - -- Disregard unsolicited advice, specifically: - + Never believe absolute statements. (Even this one ;) - + Never believe people who say that something is impossible. -- Believe in yourself. No one else will. But if you do you'll be able - to achieve anything you want. - + But don't confuse belief with wishful thinking. These are completely - different things. -- Freedom is the best. -- If you are in a bad environment, change it. -- Raw intellect might get you through the basics, but it's never enough - for important things. When you set your mind to something, spend your - time preparing, or you'll miss all the opportunities. -- Take walks. -- Read books. -- There's nothing like having friends. But assholes are not worth your - time. Which ones you get largely depends on your environment. Seek - better environment. blob - dac0bfbeadfb4e261d676c1f4cb06230ad74f95d blob + 5266508ac20c88370e31d41832e6d80bb82486d0 --- index.gmi +++ index.gmi @@ -14,7 +14,6 @@ Content under CC-BY-4.0. => project.txt project => plan.txt plan => plan/ plan archive -=> about.txt about => hacks/ hacks => art/ articles blob - 5fcd43302260e05d254277286afa3edf94a4bad8 blob + 346c3a519de7bd1abb3d1e29baad8b0d951b1916 --- index.gph +++ index.gph @@ -12,7 +12,6 @@ Content under CC-BY-4.0. [0|project|project.txt|server|port] [0|plan|plan.txt|server|port] [0|plan archive|plan/|server|port] -[0|about|about.txt|server|port] [1|hacks|hacks/|server|port] [1|articles|art/|server|port] blob - 0f09092163548384799455c35e94873ae4678e67 blob + 3086a960d522d4cc89468438ae28f2367161b204 --- index.html +++ index.html @@ -15,7 +15,6 @@ GCS d+@ s+:- a-- C++ UB+++(L++$) P+ L+(++$) E--- W- !N
  • project
  • plan
  • plan archive
    • -
  • about