Erotapokriseis II
EN: Hello my dear readers, I have been slowly making my way through your emails, and as always, your questions made me smile, pause, and think. I wanted to answer a few of them here as well, since some questions deserve to be shared beyond a single inbox. Thank you for reading me so generously.
TR: Merhaba sevgili okurlarım, E-postalarınıza yavaş yavaş dönüş yapıyorum; sorularınız beni hem gülümsetti hem de düşündürdü. Bazılarını burada da yanıtlamak istedim, çünkü kimi sorular tek bir gelen kutusunda kalmayacak kadar güzel! Yazılarımı böylesine içtenlikle okuduğunuz için çok teşekkür ederim. Çok kalp!
1) Q: I think you praised Plato in your essay on him. Where does your sympathy for him come from?
A: Don’t assume I admire Plato. I’m going to drag him through the mud in my essay on nepotism, ahaha. Wait for it!
2) Q: How’s Dallas been treating you? Do you have any favorite restaurants there?
A: Dallas is treating me… warmly. Maybe a little too warmly. :)
I’m originally from İzmir, so I still miss the sea, Urla, and that feeling of being close to the water. Dallas is very different from that, and the heat can be a bit much for me. But I’m slowly making peace with it. My weekdays are usually very busy with school and work, so I don’t always get to enjoy the city as much as I’d like.
Weekends are better. I try to spend time with people I love and go out to places that make me happy. I don’t know if I have one single favorite restaurant, but I usually enjoy Japanese ( Kura Sushi, Coco Ichibanya), Korean (Manna BBQ, bb.q Chicken (I’m in love with their Gangnam and Cheesling wings)), and some Mediterranean places and also mainstream American places like Roadhouse, Rudy’s BBQ, Torchy’s Tacos, Red Lobster bla bla :)
P.S. I forgot Rodeo Goat, I tried all of the burgers in their menu! Yes :)
3) Q: In your essay on What is the measurement problem? here, you wrote about decoherence as though it were something mystical. Why?
A: The title of that essay is not “What is the measurement problem?” It is “What does it mean to measure something?” I’d suggest reading it again, I promise, answer is there :)
This question came in Turkish.
4) Q: Cengiz Aytmatov’un Cengiz Han’a Küsen Bulut kitabını okudunuz mu? Okumadıysanız kesin tavsiye.
A: Ah, elbette okudum! Yazımda sadece birkaç eserinden bahsetmek zorunda kaldım çok uzun olmaması adına. Mesela Selvi Boylum Al Yazmalım bile bir blog yazısı hak ediyor kendi başına. Çok sevgiler.
This question came in Turkish.
5) Q: Hayat nasıl gidiyor?
A: Teşekkür ederim. Yuvarlanıyoruz diyelim. :)
6) Q: Coffee or tea?
A: Tea! :))
7) Q: How did your fountain pen collection begin?
A: I have a blog post about this on Medium. I had been writing there since 2019. I just checked it so I could share it, but it is in Turkish. :)
Maybe I can write a post about it here too!
8) Q: What fountain pen brand would you recommend for a beginner?
A: Thank you for this question.
My first fountain pen was a Pelikan, and I still have many Pelikan pens in my collection. They write beautifully, but I usually find them a little too light. I think I prefer heavier pens, though not Waterman-heavy. :) For a beginner, I would highly recommend the LAMY AL-star. It has a very nice weight in the hand, and I love its simple Bauhaus-inspired design. The body is made of anodized aluminum, so it feels a little more substantial than the plastic LAMY Safari, while still being light enough for everyday writing. It is also very beginner-friendly. You can use LAMY T10 cartridges, which is the easiest option, or you can buy a LAMY Z28 converter and fill it with bottled ink. If you want to make the experience more personal and beautiful, I would suggest trying a Pilot Iroshizuku ink in a color you love. That is one of the pleasures of fountain pens: the pen is only half of the experience; the ink is the other half. Another nice thing about the AL-star is that it has a transparent ergonomic grip, an ink window so you can see when you are running low, and interchangeable steel nibs. You can start with a Fine or Medium nib, and later try Extra Fine, Broad, or even calligraphy nibs without buying a whole new pen.
Just don’t forget to clean your pen with lukewarm water from time to time, especially when changing ink colors. Fountain pens are not difficult to use, but they do like a little care. :)
8) Q: Hayatınızda en çok hangi konuda “aşırı seçici”siniz?
A: Ay ben çok seçici birisiyim o kadar çok şey var ki :)
Sanırım hayatıma kimi aldığıma. Arkadaş, partner, akraba fark etmez; yakınlık benim için kan bağıyla ya da tesadüfle değil, güvenle, incelikle ve sahicilikle kurulur.
Enjoy Reading This Article?
Here are some more articles you might like to read next: