Xmmm's Log ...

[Xmmm]

I said Ezel (Turkish) was good but over-hyped. That was back when I was on episode 4 or 5. Now that I'm on episode 12 or 13 ... no, it really is good.

The plot is basically The Count of Monte Cristo (greatest plot ever). But it's transposed to modern Turkey and small changes are made in the story line that have interesting effects. For example, the original Count was absolutely coldblooded and ruthless in destroying his enemies, but also cut the people who betrayed him out of human weakness a lot of slack.

Ezel, on the other hand, is something of a basket case. He wants revenge, but is really torn and confused and -- although good-hearted -- doesn't have a really rock solid sense of the morality of revenge. Some of his revenge angles are unsavory ... and he realizes this at the last minute and has to cancel his plans and go back to the drawing board. And so on. I guess this is how they spin it out to 72 episodes.

But what's nice about having this one overarching master plot, is that there's no need to disgress into stupid subplots like "the dark secrets of Ezel's father" which shows up in seemingly half the series I watch. It's not necessary! We already know who the bad guys are, and we know what Ezel needs to do. It's just the suspense of is he going to pull it off, and how, and what obstacles are going to be thrown in his way.

My comprehension without subtitles (no Turkish subtitles available) is about 20%. I deal with this by rolling back critical scenes and rewatching with English subtitles. Only critical scenes, and only after watching in pure Turkish the first time.

[Xmmm]

This Principles book by Ray Dalio is really awful.

It doesn't have enough confessions and soul-searching to be a worthwhile autobiography. It's fairly minimalistic and whitewashed.

It doesn't have enough war stories to be a good history of building a company, or enough practical advice to be a how-to-build-your-own-financial-empire book.

The philosophy dispensed by philosopher-king Ray is either so old and common it's a platitude, or super unrealistic unless you're running a company of 40 high paid Ivy League grads (example: always, at all times, say what you really think -- haa).

It stinks! And I'm only 20% of the way through it ... maybe it gets better, I hope.

Nassim Taleb is a bit crazy, but he's an infinitely better writer with much more interesting things to say and -- somehow -- much more useful practical advice. Not necessarily on finance -- he gives advice on diet and and exercises, what books you should read, career, and living in general. All pretty good, although grains of salt are required. Fooled by Randomness, The Black Swan, Antifragile -- good stuff.

Otherwise, for people who want to learn what not to do -- books like The Smartest Guys in the Room, or When Genius Failed, are also highly entertaining and show the dangers of group-think, greed, sweeping problems under the table and so on.

If you really want to understand what risk parity is and what a more 'efficient' portfolio looks like, you're actually better off with Harry Browne's books that cover the "permanent portfolio" than with Dalio, who I get the feeling is always going to stay fuzzy on the details and indulge in some mystification.

And if you're interested about reading about a real financial genius, there's a couple books about Ed Thorp and a couple of books by Ed Thorp out there. Not that any of that genius will rub off on you.

But Principles is just a total waste of time ...

[kaktus]

Can I suggest a game show for Turkish? It's called "Kelime Oyunu" I really like it myself and I think it can be really helpful.

[Xmmm]

Can I suggest a game show for Turkish? It's called "Kelime Oyunu" I really like it myself and I think it can be really helpful.

Thank you for the suggestion. That show does seem to be a hit with viewers. It's the only game show that shows up on imdb lists of best Turkish TV shows.

The problem I have is not having enough time to watch everything that's already on my list. I have another 40 episodes of Ezel at 45 minutes each, another 50+ episodes of Behzat Ç. at 90+ minutes each, plus I need to go back and watch Vatanım Sensin from scratch at some point.

Then, there's the fact that it's beneficial for learners to listen to the same thing more than once. So I have to watch all of 46 Yok Olan again, and all of Oyunbozan again ... plus rewatching all the shows listed above.

Then, there's the fact that there are several shows in the top twenty of which I haven't even watched one episode. And several shows that are not quite so highly rated but might be interesting for me anyway. For example, I noticed that the same actor who plays Cengiz in Ezel is in The End. He's obviously quite good at playing despicable characters, so it may be worth it to me to check that show out.

So "Kelime Oyunu" is on my list now, but given that it doesn't seem to have English or Turkish subtitles and given the fact that I'm already tied up for the next two years, I'll probably have to save it for working on broadening out my listening skills once I already have a base.

[kaktus]

Can I suggest a game show for Turkish? It's called "Kelime Oyunu" I really like it myself and I think it can be really helpful.

Thank you for the suggestion. That show does seem to be a hit with viewers. It's the only game show that shows up on imdb lists of best Turkish TV shows.

The problem I have is not having enough time to watch everything that's already on my list. I have another 40 episodes of Ezel at 45 minutes each, another 50+ episodes of Behzat Ç. at 90+ minutes each, plus I need to go back and watch Vatanım Sensin from scratch at some point.

Then, there's the fact that it's beneficial for learners to listen to the same thing more than once. So I have to watch all of 46 Yok Olan again, and all of Oyunbozan again ... plus rewatching all the shows listed above.

Then, there's the fact that there are several shows in the top twenty of which I haven't even watched one episode. And several shows that are not quite so highly rated but might be interesting for me anyway. For example, I noticed that the same actor who plays Cengiz in Ezel is in The End. He's obviously quite good at playing despicable characters, so it may be worth it to me to check that show out.

So "Kelime Oyunu" is on my list now, but given that it doesn't seem to have English or Turkish subtitles and given the fact that I'm already tied up for the next two years, I'll probably have to save it for working on broadening out my listening skills once I already have a base.

Oh you have a full plan. It's nice that you enjoy them, sometimes it can be hard to find something to stick with. For example I don't really like German TV and it is a problem.

[Xmmm]

I'm 40 episodes into Ezel and I'm turning into a huge Barış Falay fan.

He doesn't play the main character in Ezel. Instead, he's "Kerpeten" Ali ("Pliers" Ali), one of the conspirators and a fellow generally given to violence and dirty deeds. Also, strangely pathetic. He has a doomed, unrequited love for Bahar. And his best friend, his sidekick Tefo, is not what he seems -- so that's going to end up a doomed friendship sooner or later.

I don't know if Barış Falay is just a brilliant actor, or whether this role was the role of a lifetime ... but the performance is amazing. Overwhelming, even. The pathos ... sometimes it's unbearable. I do think the script, particularly in this area, is top notch and gives him plenty to work with. The whole "Kerpeten" Ali subplot feels like it wants to take over the show.

kerpeten_ali.jpg

Kerpeten Ali on the left, with his unreliable sidekick, Tefo.

kerpeten_ali_joke.jpg

Kerpeten Ali cracking jokes, but Tefo is not amused.

bad_day_kerpeten_ali.jpg

Another bad day for Kerpeten Ali

[Xmmm]

I finished Ezel -- all 72 episodes. Vay be!

It's definitely a telenovela, with plenty of soap opera elements. There's also plenty of guns and fist fights, so what is that -- an action telenovela? Hugely entertaining, I thought. And just the right kind of thing for language learners. I didn't have access to Turkish subtitles, so I would watch with no subtitles and occasionally roll back and watch with English subtitles. But there are so many short scenes with I love you, I hate you, I'm going to kill you, where's the money, there is no money, I'm sad, why are you sad, don't talk nonsense, are you crazy, who are you, why do you want revenge -- I was understanding those scenes 100%, even if I was drowning in the more complex scenes.

I'm switching to Masum, a newer (2017) production. It's an attempt at Turkish noir. I see the noir, but it feels very Scandinavian. Not getting much of a Turkish vibe. Also, the language is much less formulaic than in Ezel so I'm struggling with comprehension, even with the subtitles on. People are not just spitting out stock soap opera lines of raw human emotion. Honestly, it's probably too advanced but there are only eight episodes so I might as well finish it.

With regarding to Russian reading, I'm about to give up on the Ray Dalio book. I hit a section today where he's talking about Joseph Campbell and "The Hero with a Thousand Faces." And he says something like "not to suggest I'm a hero or anything, but I just see so many incredible parallels with my own life." Okay ... There's also a lot of things that are just disturbing. Like, he thinks it's a great idea to make employees undergo personality and other psychological tests and then print all the results on "baseball cards" and pass them around to the other workers. That way people can make snap judgments about you -- even faster! What a horrible idea ...

My Russian feels a bit adrift at the moment. Audio books in the car don't feel super productive (unlike Italian audio books). I'm frequently too tired to read, especially if it's Ray Dalio. And the Turkish TV I can find is better and has more choices so Russian is losing the competition there. Russian does win on music. Аигел's second album is as good as the first. I need a reboot here.