Channel Update: i'm unretiring. It's NOT over

If you want to be happy, be

My first 50-mile race in 2023. I ate 9 slices of 🍉, a jar of pickle juice, and 8 pills of Advil. Probably needed my stomach pumped.

I love Tolstoy's War and Peace for the way it portrays the struggle of mankind.

It’s not an easy read. The length is anathema for many.

Woody Allen once claimed to have speed-read War and Peace, saying it had something to do with Russia. Quite true. But pouring through the pages reveals an epic, once-in-a-lifetime adventure young men take.

The adventure they never return from.

Andrei's character embodies this sentiment, heading off to a justified war against Napoleon.

He is a young man who despises the monotony of his life, and is willing to die rather than engage in mindless activities with friends and family.

The same shit day after day. You know he's conflicted.

Andrei's life is my life.

I was leaving for the military because I was in a downward spiral.

I didn't know what to write about anymore.

As Jack Kerouac wrote in On the Road, every writer wants to experience something serious before they begin writing. That was me.

My writing started to feel painfully awkward.

It wasn't pulling from experience; I began feeling like one of those ivory tower elites or MLM YouTube channels pontificating how to live your life.

But reading War and Peace two months ago changed that for me.

I'm not joining the military.

I'm staying.

I believe this to be true: "The magic you're looking for is in the work you're avoiding."

I used to think I had nothing left to write about. After five years in the professional writing game, I felt like I had exhausted all my life experiences. Ultramarathons? Been there, done that. Russian literature? Check. My investing experience? Done and done.

Like Andrei, I felt trapped in the monotonous cycle of life and craved a drastic transformation to break free from it all.

But deep down I knew that joining the army would only divert me from my true calling: writing.

Writing works parallel with life; it's not always “write what you know” or “write from experience”- which is often taken too far. A better approach is "write honestly,” and that’s what I’ll do.

What’s Next for This Channel

I've stumbled upon something that will bring me fresh experiences —a job.

I have become an editor for a new publication called the MoneyTimes in New York. It may not be as prestigious as the WSJ or CNBC, but it's a welcome change. Feel free to check out my periodic writings on their platform.

I think the way to do it is to have a steady income so I can say what I want and not worry about censorship like what I faced on Medium.

I like what Jordan Peterson says about this:

“If you’re in a job where you don’t have freedom of expression maybe you work real hard to put some ground under your feet so you won’t be taken out so easily. When I opposed the language bill in Canada I had three streams of income… it’s morally incumbent on all of us to set up our lives so we can afford to tell the truth.”

I've also landed a gig as a scriptwriter for a prominent YouTuber. This person is a heavyweight in covering dark politics, conspiracy theories, and global affairs. I wish I could drop their name, but for now, it's a secret.

Stay tuned for 2024. Some great work should be coming from my end.

And if you’re ever in a similar situation as me remember to keep your options open. Don't stubbornly feel the need to dogmatically prove yourself just because you feel it’s the only path.

When I started seriously job searching and not half-assing it I felt like a crackhead chasing the dragon. That’s the energy you need.

So here we go.

Have a great holiday guys. Talk soon.

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