history
August 29 2023
You go Ro coco
Stuck in a standoff - Redis on one side, Supabase on the other. Honestly? Not thrilled to tango with either. Conjuring up user-friendly solutions that can expand at will – it's a mountain I'd rather not climb. I'll stay in my tent at base camp, thank you very much. And then there's authentication - oof.
New Discord workflow coming along!
SAMUEL F.B. MORSE was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, in 1791, the year of Chappe’s first demonstration of an optical telegraph. He was a johnny-come-lately to the field of electric telegraphy. Had he started building an electric telegraph a little earlier, he might have got home in time for his wife’s funeral. Morse’s wife, Lucretia, died suddenly at their home in New Haven, Connecticut, on the afternoon of February 7, 1825, while her husband was away. He was starting to make progress in his chosen career as a painter and had gone to Washington to try to break into the lucrative society portrait business. He had just been commissioned to paint a full-length portrait of the marquis de Lafayette, a military hero, and his career finally seemed to be taking off. ‘‘I long to hear from you,’’ he wrote in a letter to his wife on February 10, unaware that she was already dead. Washington was four days’ travel from New Haven, so Morse received the letter from his father telling him of Lucretia’s death on February 11, the day before her funeral. Traveling as fast as he could, he arrived home the following week. His wife was already buried. In the United States in 1825, messages could still only be conveyed as fast as a messenger could carry them.
-- The Victorian Internet: The Remarkable Story of the Telegraph and the Nineteenth Century's On-line Pioneers
Cousins or Dating
haha, everyone says we look alike but i dont see it
Audio Companion
Written Piece
In The King's Man (2021), Tom Hollander plays King George, Kaiser Willhelm and Tsar Nicolas II.
I thought that this was just a comedic choice until I saw this real picture of King George and Tsar Nicolas II.
Like, lmao wut? Talk about nepotism!
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The Cardinal Rule of Rome
In languor, potentia.
Audio Companion
Never Forget the Cardinal Rule of Rome
Don't. Fuck. With. Octavian.
Multiple examples from the same video of why you should reconsider messing with Augustus!
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Octavian Was Sickly
In the course of his life he suffered from several severe and dangerous illnesses, especially after the subjugation of Cantabria, when he was in such a desperate plight from abscesses of the liver, that he was forced to submit to an unprecedented and hazardous course of treatment. Since hot fomentations gave him no relief, he was led by the advice of his physician Antonius Musa to try cold ones. (View Highlight)
It is said that his body was covered with spots and that he had birthmarks scattered over his breast and belly, corresponding in form, order and number with the stars of the Bear in the heavens; also numerous callous places resembling ringworm, caused by a constant itching of his body and a vigorous use of the strigil. He was not very strong in his left hip, thigh, and leg, and even limped slightly at times; but he strengthened them by treatment with sand and reeds.He sometimes found the forefinger of his right hand so weak, when it was numb and shrunken with the cold, that he could hardly use it for writing even with the aid of a finger-stall of horn. He complained of his bladder too, and was relieved of the pain only after passing stones in his urine. (View Highlight)
In winter he protected himself with four tunics and a heavy toga, besides an undershirt, a woollen chest-protector and wraps for his thighs and shins, while in summer he slept with the doors of his bed-room open, oftentimes in the open court near a fountain, besides having someone to fan him. Yet he could not endure the sun even in winter, and never walked in the open air without wearing a broad-brimmed hat, even at home. He travelled in a litter, usually at night, and by such slow and easy stages that he took two days to go to Praeneste or Tibur; and if he could reach his destination by sea, he preferred to sail. Yet in spite of all he made good his weakness by great care, especially by moderation in bathing; for as a rule he was anointed or took sweat by a fire, after which he was doused with water either lukewarm or tepid from long exposure to the sun. When however he had to use hot salt water and sulphur baths for rheumatism, he contented himself with sitting on a wooden bath-seat, which he called by the Spanish name dureta, and plunging his hands and feet in the water one after the other. (View Highlight)
Badass Dying Words
I hope to say something similar, or at least something more epic than: "Like, you should all totally download Obsidian."
Augustus Caesar died in A.D. 14, his empire secured and at peace. His reported last words were twofold: to his subjects he said, “I found Rome of clay; I leave it to you of marble,” but to the friends who had stayed with him in his rise to power he added, “Have I played the part well? Then applaud me as I exit.” (View Highlight)
Augustus was a true student of stoicism[1]
Alexander the Great MOC
A Map of Content on the life of Alexander the Great.
In Actuality, Alexander Only Had Two Sons
Alexander had a complicated love life, ranging from a possible relationship with Hephaestion to a relationship with a Thessalian courtesan to impregnating multiple women.
“I wonder how Alexander the Great was with women,” Eliza said. She opened the Server and zoomed in on ancient Macedonia. “I don’t see why that’s relevant,” Craig said. “I’m just curious.” On the screen, Alexander sat on his throne, idly sipping wine from a silver jug. A row of women stood before him, each one of a different ethnicity. A few weary soldiers knelt by Alex’s feet, anxiously awaiting his command. Eliza clicked the translate icon so they could watch the clip with subtitles. “These females are mine by right,” the ruler said. “For I am a living god.” His men nodded fearfully. Alex scratched his chin and then pointed casually at one of the women, an Asian beauty with slender hips and large black eyes. When he snapped his fingers, she took off her clothes and gracefully spun in a circle. “Your body pleases me,” Alex said. “I will soon impregnate you.” Craig laughed. “Can you believe this guy?” Eliza shrugged. “I think he’s kind of sexy.” Craig knew it was crazy to envy a dead Macedonian, but he couldn’t stop his face from flushing. He forced a laugh to mask his jealousy. “What’s sexy about him?” Eliza shrugged. “There’s just something about the way he carries himself.” He watched in pained silence as Eliza zoomed in on the tyrant’s rugged face. “My power mocks Zeus,” Alexander was saying. “And when he sees my feats he is afraid.” He gestured at the row of women. “I will impregnate all of you. One after the other. And you will give birth to a race of living gods.” A little sigh escaped from Eliza’s lips. “Okay,” Craig said. “This is a lot of fun. But can we maybe get back to Sam now?” “Sure,” Eliza said, clearing her throat. “Just a second…” Craig watched with annoyance as she tagged the Alexander clip as a favorite. Eventually, she closed the Server and typed in a search for Sam. (Location 1348)
Alexander would've killed it on dating apps.
Real Historical Facts About Alexander's Love Life
According to Plutarch, the only woman with whom Alexander had sex before his first marriage was Barsine, daughter of Artabazos II of Phrygia but of Greek education (View Highlight)
Barsine was a noble Persian, daughter of Artabazus, and wife of Memnon. After Memnon's death, several ancient historians have written of a love affair between her and Alexander. Plutarch writes, "At any rate Alexander, so it seems, thought it more worthy of a king to subdue his own passions than to conquer his enemies, and so he never came near these women, nor did he associate with any other before his marriage, with the exception only of Barsine (View Highlight)
According to Robin Lane Fox, Alexander and Hephaestion were possible lovers. After Hephaestion's death in Oct 324 BC, Alexander mourned him greatly and did not eat for days. Alexander held an elaborate funeral for Hephaestion at Babylon, and sent a note to the shrine of Ammon, which had previously acknowledged Alexander as a god, asking them to grant Hephaestion divine honours. The priests declined, but did offer him the status of divine hero. Alexander died soon after receiving this letter; Mary Renault suggests that his grief over Hephaestion's death had led him to be careless with his health. (View Highlight)
Alexander was overwhelmed by his grief for Hephaestion, so much that Arrian records that Alexander "flung himself on the body of his friend and lay there nearly all day long in tears, and refused to be parted from him until he was dragged away by force by his Companions". Some have suggested that they shared a homosexual relationship together, however historians have challenged that claim, stating instead that Hephaestion was “his closest and dearest friend”. (View Highlight)
As soon as Alexander died in 323 BC, Roxana murdered Alexander's two other wives. Roxana wished to cement her own position and that of her son, unborn at that time, by ridding herself of a rival who could be—or claim to be—pregnant. (View Highlight)
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"He scorned sensual pleasures to such an extent that his mother was anxious lest he be unable to beget offspring." To encourage a relationship with a woman, King Philip and Olympias were said to have brought in a high-priced Thessalian courtesan named Callixena. According to Athenaeus, Callixena was employed by Olympias out of fear that Alexander was "womanish" (γύννις), and his mother used to beg him to sleep with the courtesan, apparently to no success. Some modern historians, such as James Davidson, see this as evidence of Alexander's homosexuality. However, the ancient sources report Alexander as sexually active with women throughout his life and how in adulthood he brought concubines to bed every night. One instance tells of him spending thirteen days making love with a tribe-leader of woman-warriors hailing from the Caucasus mountains. (View Highlight)
A Mistranslation of a Very Popular Quote From Alexander
Alexander's insatiable longing for glory and how an Englishman, John Miner, created something worthy of a book of memorable sayings and coined one of the few classical tags still recognized today.
But you see what’s happening here. I’m setting out on the table all the ingredients for Gruber’s quote. In no case does Alexander weep because he’s accidentally put himself out of business by making himself king of the world. And it makes sense that he would not weep about such, because in point of fact he did not take over the world. He hits a wall in India, see. His men are tired, the river is deep, he can’t swim. Across the river: some vast Indian army, refreshed and ready. Alexander’s guys beg him to call it a day. “Call it a day, call it a campaign, call it an empire. Anyhow let’s go home.” And for once, Mr. Won’t-Listen-to-Anybody says okay. It’s all in the Life of Alexander. Read it sometime. Seventy pages of modern English, it’s not gonna kill ya (View Source)
Nam Alexandri pectus insatiabile laudis, qui Anaxarcho comiti suo ex auctoritate Democriti praeceptoris innumerabiles mundos esse referenti “heu me” inquit “miserum, quod ne uno quidem adhuc sum potitus!” angusta homini possessio [gloriae] fuit, quae deorum omnium domicilio sufficit. —Valerius Maximus, LIB. VIII, Cap. xiiii, Ext. §2 Alexander’s heart had an insatiable longing for glory. When his friend Anaxarchus told him, following the authority of his teacher Democritus, that there were innumerable worlds, Alexander said, “Alas, poor me, because so far I have not even gained possession of one!” To possess the world was too inglorious for this man, though the world is great enough to serve as the home of all the gods. —from Book 8, Chapter 14 “The Desire for Glory,” Foreign Stories: section 2. [Translation Henry John Walker, 2004.] (View Source)
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Okay, but then why do all these Gruber versions suddenly pop up in early seventeenth-century English, hmmm? I’m tellin’ ya: some Englishman started this. Some English Gruber. We’ll call him “John Miner.” Like Gruber, our Miner was pretending to have a classical education. Like Gruber, Miner had eloquence. But unlike Gruber, Miner actually created something worthy of a book of memorable sayings. He coined one of the very few classical tags that people still recognize on sight. (View Source)
A man of limitless ambition, and a complex lover 202302111323
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Diogenes and Alexander
A funny exchange between Alexander the Great and Diogenes, and how Alexander was tutored by Aristotle and learned about Persian customs and traditions.
As Alexander the Great was passing through Corinth, he sought out Diogenes and finally found him sitting under a tree, dressed in rags, with not a drachma to his name. When the most powerful man in the world asked the philosopher if he could do anything to help him, Diogenes replied, “Yes, if you could step out of the way. You are blocking the sun.” Alexander’s soldiers were horrified and steeled themselves for the inevitable outburst of their commander’s famous anger. But he only laughed and remarked that if he were not Alexander, he would certainly like to be Diogenes. (Location 1174)
Homeless society in John Wick gives off a Diogenes vibe.[1]
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Alexander's Tutelage
Before Alexander was a conquerer 202302191528, he was a student:
Aristotle was the head of the royal academy of Macedon and, in 343 BC, Philip II of Macedon invited him to serve as the tutor for the prince, Alexander. Alexander received inspiration for his eastward conquests, as Aristotle was encouraged to become: "a leader to the Greeks and a despot to the barbarians, to look after the former as after friends and relatives, and to deal with the latter as with beasts or plants". Aristotle held ethnocentric views against Persia, which estranged him and Alexander as the latter adopted a few of the Persian royal customs and clothing. This tension led to ancient rumors that painted Aristotle as a suspect for Alexander’s death, but this rumor spread based on a single claim made six years after Alexander’s passing. (View Highlight)
Alexander also received his primary education on the Persian customs and traditions through Aristotle. Aristotle’s tutelage is also attributed as the reason why Alexander brought an entourage of zoologists, botanists, philosophers, and other researchers on his expeditions deep into the east. Through those expeditions Alexander discovered that much of the geography he learned from Aristotle was plainly wrong. Upon Aristotle’s publication of his geographic work, Alexander lamented… (View Highlight)
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Notes on The History of Menswear
All about the history of menswear, from the Chinese ruling class wearing nail polish to the introduction of modern streetwear.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BF-fI28KHIM
00:09
nail polish was worn by the ruling class, and pink was a derivative of red
01:09
clothes = protection and status
01:37
Pharaohs be dressin', upper class people tried to dress to match Pharaoh, lower class tried to match upper class
02:19
Frock coats most comfortable for horse riding in 1700s France
02:46
Lower class had yellow tinge to clothes
02:44
Beau Brummel was the first stylist -- wore clothes that fit him well
03:32
Menswear became minimal in 1900s to show that they worked in fields like banking, or something respectable and high status
04:07
young people introduce new style -> wear it till they die, new young people introduce new style cycle
04:44
- King Edward the 8th was a status icon
- 1930s (great depression) menswear code of conduct for tailored clothing (traditionalist)
05:07
mass production of clothing in WW2
05:20
men's fashion industry in ww2 took advertising tips from the auto industry
05:45
- the 60s saw rebellion in the youth
- Michael Fish made first genderbending clothing inspired by 1800s dandy clothes
06:40
Jean Paul Gotye SS85 show rebelled against standards used all sizes genders etc
07:23
Paris collections and Tokyo (Yamamoto) collections
08:20
realistic range of men on the runway, sparking intrigue instead of idealism
09:25
Gucci FW95 shiny suits, the expressive man with subtle sex appeal
10:29
helmut lang SS98 minimalism plus a strong statement piece -- brought males distressed denim
11:41
Raf Simmons SS98 angsty youth collection, graphics on hoodies were new in that era, normal today
12:34
a floating down the river model show -- flowing towards nothingness of mainstream seasonal clothing
13:17
rick owens sent models on stage with their penises out
13:44
celebrate the freak, create the creature
14:09
Watanabe SS06 heralded the start of streetwear, a collab of designer brands with cheap brands like Diekies
15:23
Kanye got a ton of young men into men's streetwear fashion
16:03
virgil abloh SS 2019 we are the world fashion show for inclusion -- full circle to dandy's of the 1800s + streetwear
16:40
fashion is too expensive and predatory; LV is at the head of the predation on status for men
bramadams.dev is a reader-supported published Zettelkasten. Both free and paid subscriptions are available. If you want to support my work, the best way is by taking out a paid subscription.