I once was at a resort where they gave each guest a free token to go to the resort casino. I don’t get gambling but it was free, so I went. Put the token into a slot machine and pulled a lever. Suddenly, an avalanche of tokens started falling out. People who were nearby began to clap.

“Shit, I broke the damn thing,” I thought. “And now everybody is clapping to mock me.” I had self-esteem issues back then.

Of course, it turned out I had actually hit the jackpot and won. Beginner’s luck they call it. Bought a really pretty necklace at the resort gift store with the money.

It works like this with children, and that’s what makes child-rearing so enjoyable. For every tiny bit of love, caring and sweetness you put in, an avalanche of pleasure falls out into your life. It doesn’t work like this in any other aspect of life. In friendship, work, love, etc, you get what you put in. But with children you get a thousandfold return constantly. The only secret is that you need to start the whole process by putting in the token.

I was at the 🎓 ceremony yesterday, and my negative feelings towards the new neoliberal administrator somewhat softened. Everything has negative and positive qualities, and this event reminded me of the positive side of neoliberalism.

The ceremony was done with a military precision. Everything not completely necessary was trimmed away. The speeches were extremely short. There were very few of them. The whole thing took half the time it normally does. For the first time, the attendees were allowed to scream freely in support of the graduates. Neoliberalism is less disciplinarian, so everybody had a lot more freedom to act as they wished.

The experience was more jubilant than usual because it wasn’t drawn out in time. And, of course, it employed fewer people.

Last year’s commencement was downright funereal. No music, no handshakes, no cheering (because cheering spreads COVID). Endless speeches by masked people who couldn’t make themselves heard. The joy is definitely back in the new, efficient and productive ceremony.

Klara created a poem:

Baby-bel cheeses are yummy
But nothing's as sweet as my Mommy.

Another funny, if a tad disturbing, story about Klara:

Klara asks, “Did God put me in your tummy because he wanted me to have a really wonderful mommy? Because God loves me and wants me to be happy?”

“Of course, sweetie.”

“Then why did he put you into grandma’s tummy?”

My mother says it’s insensitive to wear a fur coat to the zoo. I guess it’s like eating a chicken sandwich while visiting a chicken farm. Or reading a book in a forest.

Everything I wear looks like I ate a gigantic, sloppy meal in it. Even my professor regalia look that way, even though I never had a chance to eat anything in them.

The bookstore is filled to the brim with customers hauling out stacks of books with such grim determination you’d think books are about to be banned. Normally, my father would be here with me, and he’d say, as usual, “Ah, so these are the stupid, soulless Americans who don’t read that propaganda always tells us about!”

This year we are starting with Soviet-era decorated salads early in the season. This one is called “Snow mounds”. Boiled potatoes, beef, mushrooms, boiled carrots, garlic and herb stuffed eggs, shaved parmesan, and the substance for the ingestion of which all Soviet recipes existed. (Whoever knows what substance I mean wins).

I wanted to browse some news in a free moment but it turns out there’s yet another round of Elon drama, so it’s impossible to weed through the madness to get to actual news.

On the positive side, I’m taking a really great course on conservatism vs leftism in my Ukrainian philosophy school. Nobody there has any politically correct speech constraints, it’s an absolute joy. Experiencing how free people can be in thinking and speaking is magical.

At this point, all of my colleagues except one (who has a reason to want to live far away) have agreed that remote teaching has been an unqualified disaster for foreign languages. Students simply didn’t learn enough to pass to the next stage. Most of the learning in language courses happens through small group conversation practice in class, and there’s no way to make that happen on Zoom.

At least, people are not denying it now that it’s become obvious.

Students figured it out earlier, and in-person enrollments have been unusually high while Zoom enrollments are in the toilet.

Short-term, easy pleasure leads to long-term, deep suffering while short-term suffering leads to long-term pleasure.

For the examples of the former, think smoking a cigarette or taking a hit of cocaine.

For the latter, think being pregnant and giving birth that leads to the most intense pleasure in life which is having children. Or something simpler, such as working out or learning another language.