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I always thought the reason my birthdays tend to be boring, disappointing, or upsetting was my fault. That I didn’t value my friends enough or invest enough in them. So this year, months before my birthday, I decided to make my friends' birthdays as important and meaningful as possible to me. I spen... Read all
I work 5 days a week for 9 hours. After 7 hours of sleep, the rest of my time is mostly spent thinking. And if I don’t, I at least make thinking my primary activity during those hours. The things I ponder range across all sorts of human and non-human issues, to the point that my brain locks up and I... Read all
Years ago, when I went to a fast-food place with my mom, I noticed a board in the corner covered with stickers. Many people had written related and unrelated messages on them and stuck them on the board. Following their lead, I grabbed a sticker to write something, but not a single word came out. Th... Read all
Preface: The previous version of this post was written during a mentally tense moment, and neither its tone nor its message was right. I disabled it to later rewrite it in peace. This is the rewritten version. For me, gaining control over my thoughts and assembling them into a coherent piece is s... Read all
December 3, 2018, Ankara Tonight I went to the barber, and while getting my hair cut, I noticed a familiar banknote on the counter. It took me a few seconds to realize it was that same 20-toman bill. The barber said one of his Iranian friends had given it to him as a keepsake. When I told him I w... Read all
1. If you want to be famous, don't try to be famous.Why: Because everyone can tell when you're trying, and they'll push back.So what should I do: Instead, create value, make something or do something, so that fame becomes a side effect. 2. If you want to be rich, don't try to be rich.Why: Money i... Read all
After losing my job in Istanbul, I started applying for several positions again. Even though there were more opportunities in Istanbul and the chances of getting hired were higher, I preferred to focus on openings in Izmir and Ankara. I wanted to spend some time away from Istanbul, gain new experien... Read all
A bridge consists of bottlenecks you can cross to move your life “forward” or “backward.” It’s a passage that takes you from position A to B, or if you’re at B, to C or back to A. Bridges are of two types: a) Bridges Behind A bridge behind is generally known as a way to go back. You can do tw... Read all
The number of disasters hitting you every second exceeds your heartbeat. Your coworker, against the weather forecast, insists it will snow today because “they” can make anything happen. Instead of working with Laravel 5.7, you’re stuck using Symfony 2.6. The project owner, living in Paris and o... Read all
After the stressful and difficult times in Istanbul and my first days in Ankara, I’m slowly finding some stability. Over the past two months, the skyrocketing costs of moving to Ankara, the new apartment lease, utilities, food, and everything else were all being covered by savings that were nearly d... Read all
Love is a phenomenon with two continuous outcomes: reaching and not reaching. Since I’ve never experienced reaching, I won’t talk about it. That leaves not reaching. Based on my many experiences, I have a lot to say about it. While many have discussed the downsides and negative results of not reachi... Read all
For a long time, I thought talking was just a tool to empty your mind, something that lets you pour out your thoughts and relieve the pressure in your brain. After years of tracing the shadow that affected all my relationships and was slowly destroying them, I realized this: talking to empty your... Read all