Sunday Links: Hamilton, a wrangler's philosophy, and a beverage can design

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Second day in Baku: I have a cold and a terrible look

Hey!

I keep moving around the Caucasus, and currently, I’m in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. I’ve been here for two weeks now. It’s a very energetic and, at the same time, peaceful city with warm-hearted, caring people.

Even though my first days here were challenging, I love the local vibe and will share more about it in the following editions. By now, I’ve found an apartment and gone shopping for different stuff to make it feel more like home.

Today I brought you some good links and findings I’ve discovered recently. Some of the findings took me some time to process and deconstruct them. But it was worth it, every minute of it.

Findings I’ve enjoyed this week

Hamilton. The musical about Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers of the USA, is definitely the most exciting and significant discovery of the year. It impressed me so much that I buzzed all my friends’ ears off about the show.

The story of Hamilton is a great example of how a man from the grassroots can make himself, change his country and the world. Here are three things I’ve learned from Hamilton’s story:

1. Nothing is impossible. Alexander’s story proves to us that self-education is an underestimated approach to making your way to the top in life. So many people ignore this option and keep waiting for opportunities while they are right here under their noses. The only thing you have to do is to crave knowledge and be persistent as well as Alexander Hamilton:

   I'm just like my country
   I'm young scrappy and hungry

2. Bravery and forthrightness are qualities we lack today. Alexander was a real patriot of his country who acted in favor of the nation’s interests, not his own. He had his inner doubts, but when he felt he was right he stood his ground till the end and fought with passion everywhere: at war, at the debates in the Senate, and at the duel with Aaron Burr.

   For some reasons people like Hamilton are considered to be radicals today. They simply have a vision and follow it. Instead of asking for permissions, they act and take responsibility for the consequences and outcomes.

   This is my favorite part of the musical. Even now when I listen to it for the five hundredth time, it gives me shivers:

3. Writing is a powerful tool that can change your life. Alexander’s writing genius made him the man we know: brave, witty, initiative, and very prolific. His vision and ideas of the US economy, Constitution, and tax system were too progressive for his time, but later descendants confirmed he was right. It wouldn’t have been possible if it weren’t for Alexander’s notes and writing.

   Here’s an excerpt from the musical on that part:

   Alexander joins forces with James Madison
   And John Jay to write a series of essays
   Defending the new United States Constitution
   Entitled The Federalist Papers
   The plan was to write a total of 25 essays
   The work divided evenly among the three men
   In the end, they wrote 85 essays
   In the span of six months
   John Jay got sick after writing five
   James Madison wrote 29
   Hamilton wrote the other 51

   There are lots of talks that in the future all information will be either audible or visual, and in a few decades writing won’t be around. But if we look closely this is not going to happen. Reading still is the fastest way to receive new information and turn it into practical skills. It’s possible because we can scan texts within milliseconds, but we can’t do it with podcasts, Tiktok, and Youtube videos. It’s physically impossible.

   Television didn’t kill theatre, the internet didn’t kill television and radio, instead, they’ve become interconnected and transformed into new formats. Writing is coming through the same process right now. But it won’t go away, not in our lifetime.

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When You Just Ain’t Got it All Together. The man with a good-looking bushy beard and a pipe at the thumbnail is Dewayne. He owns breeds horses and, in his spare time, shares wisdom from his lifetime of experience.

In this video, Dewayne talks about young men lamenting that they ain’t got it all together. He shares that he had this problem, too, even past his 30s. So, it’s OK not to get it all together sometimes if you’re 18 or 25. There’s nothing wrong with it.

I love the way Dewayne speaks and the timber of his voice. It feels like I’m sitting next to him at his ranch, and he shares this wisdom directly with me. Every video has a calming and sobering effect as a morning shower to drive away sleepiness.

The channel’s description disclaimer is amazing:

It is not the purpose of this channel to present "the" way to do anything, but rather to use simple logic and experience to try to help others who might be looking for answers. It does not always offer direct answers to certain questions, but instead humbly seeks to show a road one might go down to find the answers they need for themselves.

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The Ingenious Design of the Aluminum Beverage Can. The last finding is a succinct video about one of the most iconic design solutions we run into daily while buying a can of Coke or Sprite. I’ve always wondered why the beverage can has a cylindrical shape and how the stay-on tab was designed. With this video, I found the answers.

Afterword

Hope you’ve found this email thought-provoking. If you have, share it with your friends and people who may like it. I’ll appreciate your support and feedback.

See you next week! Get ready for another edition of “Russian Rules”.

Take care!
Evgeny

Baku, 18 December 2022

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Ask me anything via email: evgeny@lepekhin.me

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