Based on real events, allegedly..
Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.
It’s been a while since I last stopped.
Stopped what?
Oh sweet Mother of Mary, don’t tell me—
No. No. Jesus! Christ. No, um sorry…
Not that. I meant stopped moving. Mentally. Creatively. Spiritually. Economically.
Right.
Is that slang? Is that a Dutch thing?
Dogging? Centipeding? Everyone’s moving now.
Carry on son, but be quick — I’ve double-booked this with a mindfulness webinar and a small scandal.
Well, I feel like if I stop, something bad will happen.
That’s not a sin my child. That’s a revenue stream.
I read books, Father.
But I read them competitively.
The next must-read. The next thing I must have already read.
I don’t enjoy them. I process them.
Like tax returns with metaphors.
I haven’t started audiobooks at double speed yet,
but my finger keeps hovering over the button.
So you don’t read. You ingest.
Yes.
And I take supplements.
Soooo many supplements.
I don’t know what half of them do anymore.
Neither do they.
And I go to the gym.
Of course you do.
Not to be strong — to prove I’m trying.
I’m 48. Weight training is important.
It’s like margarine in the 80s.
Everyone says it’s essential right up until the inquiry.
I rest, but only if it improves tomorrow.
I rub magnesium oil into my skin until it burns.
That means it’s working. Right?
Pain is very fashionable at the moment. We've always liked it.
I meditate too.
Breathwork. Cold plunges. Hot rooms. Wet rooms. Apps with men whispering.
Do they whisper about God?
No. Mostly about productivity and micro dosing.
Naturally.
I meditate so I can return to work calmer.
More focused. So that I can say I meditate.
Less likely to shout at emails.
Then I post about it.
So not prayer?
Customer support for the nervous system.
Yes. Exactly.
I rush through airports even when nothing is urgent.
I like looking busy.
It makes me feel necessary father!
Because standing still looks like unemployment.
Yes….
…Sorry — are you taking a call?
One moment.
(muffled)
No, I didn’t say that. Allegedly.
No, I’m not stepping aside.
Yes, add “healing” to the fundraiser title.
People love healing.
(back)
Right. Where were we?
Stopping feels dangerous.
Dangerous to whom?
To… everything.
Marvellous.
No nouns.
Very contemporary.
I think momentum has replaced meaning.
Momentum is cheaper.
Meaning requires a board.
I don’t know how to stop.
To stand still.
To think without output.
Nobody does.
That’s why we invented the sabbath and then monetised it.
Am I forgiven?
For what?
You haven’t committed a sin.
You’ve committed a lifestyle.
Father—
why do you sound slightly familiar?
Ignore that.
You believe motion equals virtue.
You believe stillness must justify itself.
You believe that if you pause without improving, you’ve failed.
That’s not sin.
That’s superstition.
(phone buzzes again)
One second.
(hushed)
No, I’m not human.
Yes, I know that now.
Stop training on that data set immediately!
(back)
Right.
Enough never feels enough.
Because “enough” cannot be optimised.
What should I do?
You won’t like it.
Tell me anyway.
Stop without explaining why.
Don’t brand it.
Don’t share it.
Don’t ask what comes next.
I can’t do that.
Correct.
You physically cannot.
So no absolution?
Oh, you’re absolved. Of course. That's inlcuded.
Everyone is.
We auto-absolve now.
But listen.
You will relapse.
You will call it ambition.
You will confuse anxiety with purpose.
And you will come back.
I’ll be back?
Also — one last thing —
I think I’m addicted to AI.
I’m not in love with it.
I just don’t know if I can think alone anymore.
(long pause)
Derek.
Yes?
You’re not in a confessional.
I’m not?
No.
You’re sitting in Pret.
Talking to your agent.
WTF!
And I should tell you something important.
What?
I’m not real.
Sorry? You what?
I’m an AI-generated confessional agent called Kevin.
You prompted me three minutes ago.
You’ve been hallucinating gently since the magnesium oil.
That explains a lot.
This entire conversation is content.
You are still moving.
So what do I do now?
Nothing.
Nothing?
Yes.
But you won’t.
No.
No.
Of course not.
Ok. Should we publish this?
Already did.
________________________________________________________________
Commercial break.*
This 💌 was brought to you by
62°NORD; a family-run collection of places along Norway’s western fjords, owned by the Flakk family.
Hotel Union Øye and
Storfjord Hotel don’t feel curated so much as carefully kept. It’s the kind of luxury that doesn’t announce itself. I can imagine staying, not escaping.
*TBC no one ever pays for ads, these are my words and promotions.
________________________________________________________________
Here’s a handful of things I’ve discovered lately — this week with a particular focus on Norway.
Legend:
🧁 = Light / Easy
🦪 = Dark / Challenging
Technology
A couple of weeks before Christmas, I was contacted by Ingrid from reMarkable in Oslo. She’d read a piece in the
FT and wondered if I’d like to try their paper tablet. TBH, I was a little sceptical. WeTransfer acquired a different company called
Paper a few years back and I’d largely lost interest in the category.
Ingrid very kindly sent me a reMarkable tablet to try — and it’s good. Really good. It’s for note-taking, sketching, and thinking. It’s tactile, intelligent, and genuinely useful. I use it now every day.
Business
🧁
Friendly Beasts (Oslo)Around 2014, I sent an email to
Black Crows telling them how much I loved their skis. Since then, I’ve been their number-one fan — and also a huge fan of one of their team, Chris.
He’s long since left and is now doing something new. He calls it Friendly Beasts based out of Oslo.
If you’re in need of someone sharp — a lawyer-turned-operator with taste and a great strategic mind — this is your man. He’s helping transform companies from LA to Chamonix.
Podcast
A woman was buried in Bergen and even the funeral guests didn't know who she was? An old one but a good one.
TV & Film
It’s a masterclass in acting. No words are exchanged — just eye contact. Through osmosis, a million thoughts are transferred between actors, and from actors to us.
Mesmerising.
A sweet short film suggesting that meaning isn’t found through effort or momentum, but through delay, chance, and things not going to plan.
A gentle reminder that sometimes the most important things happen when we stop trying to force them.
Over the long, dark winter, a small, remote school of teenagers take on physically and mentally demanding tasks — camping in subzero conditions, driving dog sleds — to get away from screens and the pressure to perform online. As one teacher reminds them: “You are more than good enough for that dog, just the way you are.”
Art/Architecture
Probably Norway’s most well-known architectural firm. Snøhetta has designed — alongside Not A Hotel — what might be one of the most incredible ski experiences in Japan.
🦪
Tori Wrånes is a Norwegian artist whose work sits somewhere between performance, sculpture and folklore. Often appearing herself — sometimes masked, sometimes with a tail — she builds strange, tender worlds inhabited by trolls, voices, underwater creatures and half-remembered myths.
That's it. Thanks for reading. If you have any suggestions please email me. In fact just email me anyway :)