Latitude 59

JFR
  • 0.0 (0)
  • Philosophy
  • Semiweekly

I'm a southerner who has lived in Sweden for over a decade, and at some point that stopped being a problem. This podcast is all about my thoughts and experiences since I started living in this Nordic country. You'll hear a lot about philosophy, Swedish culture and my own interests, which I hope you will enjoy too. I have low expectations of this podcast. I may do it as a form of escapism and for fun, but I hope it will somehow be useful to you, my unknown listener. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. Oct 11

    On Meditation

    Three years ago, I experienced one of the most difficult periods of my life. I wasn't sleeping. I'd wake up at 3 am with my mind racing, the same thoughts looping endlessly. I discovered that meditation was not a spiritual practice for me, but rather the only tool that actually worked. In this episode, I discuss what meditation really is and isn't, how it works, and why I believe it's one of the most important things you can do for yourself right now. #Meditation #MentalHealth #Mindfulness #Philosophy #Stoicism #PersonalGrowth #Latitude59 If you want to support this podcast: ko-fi.com/latitude59 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  2. Sep 15

    Unemployed in Sweden: My Experience

    More than 400 days. That is how long it took me to find work after losing my job in Sweden. In this episode I talk honestly about what unemployment looks like here: the A-kassan system, the compulsory outplacement programme that barely helps if you are qualified, the CV engineering I developed, using AI as an interview coach, and the 50-plus interviews that led to exactly one offer. What the market does to your ego, and what Seneca had to say about it. #Unemployment #Sweden #JobSearch #SwedishLife #ExpatLife #ITMarket #Reflection #Latitude59 If you want to support this podcast: ko-fi.com/latitude59 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  3. Sep 6

    How I Keep Trying to Learn Swedish: The Greatest Intellectual Challenge of My Life

    In 2003, while I was a student at a university in Madrid, I had a Swedish friend who was there on an exchange program. Before that, my knowledge of Sweden was practically nonexistent. Twenty years later, I'm a Swedish citizen, but I'm still struggling with the language, though the biggest challenge isn't the grammar. It's overcoming the fear of speaking and realizing that my limitations are more in my mind than in reality. #Swedish #LanguageLearning #Immigrant #Sverige #SpanSwede #EnglishPodcast #Expat #SwedishLanguage #Meditation If you want to support this podcast: ko-fi.com/latitude59 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  4. Aug 30

    Spain, the Country Where Everything Is Banned

    This summer I arrived in Spain for the solar eclipse and ran into a national state of alarm, the first in Spanish history triggered by a forest fire. Not a war, not an earthquake. Fire. In this episode I talk about something I feel every time I return to Spain from Sweden: the weight of a country where everything seems forbidden, controlled, or regulated. Police checkpoints, iron grilles on every window, neighbours reporting each other. And the strange paradox of a place I love that somehow no longer lets me unwind. #Spain #Sweden #Expat #GuardiaCivil #Wildfires #Freedom #SwedishLife #ExpatLife #Latitude59 If you want to support this podcast: ko-fi.com/latitude59 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  5. Jun 21

    Midsommar: When Sweden Celebrates the Light

    Every year, on the first Friday between June 19 and 25, Sweden stops. People leave the cities, head to the countryside, decorate a flower-covered pole, crouch down in public parks singing songs about tailless frogs, and stay outside until the sun finally gives up and sets — sometime around eleven at night. This is Midsommar. I've lived through eleven of them. This year we celebrated at Skansen, the world's oldest open-air museum, in the heart of Stockholm. In this episode I talk about where the tradition comes from, what it looks like from the outside, and why — after more than a decade — I finally understand why Swedes celebrate summer the way they do. #Midsommar #Sweden #Stockholm #Skansen #SwedishCulture #Summer #Pagan #ExpatLife #NordicLife #SpanSwede If you want to support this podcast: ko-fi.com/latitude59 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  6. Jun 14

    The Fakir: The Book That Taught Me to Walk the Wire of Life

    Some books find you when you're ready. This one found me during one of the hardest stretches of my life. The Fakir is a novel based on the life of yoga master Ramiro Calle — a man I had the chance to meet in Madrid. It's not a self-help book. It's a story about a tightrope walker, an ancient tradition, and a four-word instruction a father left his son: "Attain yourself." In this episode, I talk about why that hit differently — and what it still means to me. #TheFakir #RamiroCalle #Yoga #InnerLife #Philosophy #Stoicism #PersonalGrowth #SpanSwede #Wisdom #Consciousness If you want to support this podcast: ko-fi.com/latitude59 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  7. Jun 7

    Slavery in Sweden: the past nobody talks about

    Sweden is famous for human rights, equality, and social progress. What's less known: for nearly 200 years, the Swedish crown financed slave expeditions, built a fort on the West African coast, administered a Caribbean colony with its own slavery code, and when it finally abolished the institution, compensated the slaveholders — not the enslaved. This isn't about guilt. It's about knowing the full story of the country you live in. #Sweden #History #Slavery #Colonialism #SaintBarthélemy #NordicHistory #Reflection #SpanSwede #HumanRights #TheFullStory If you want to support this podcast: ko-fi.com/latitude59 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  8. May 24

    10 Things Sweden Changed in Me

    I didn't choose most of these changes. They just arrived — quietly, over a decade of living somewhere that isn't your own country. I eat dinner at six. I plan everything. I get anxious in loud places. I have Swedish words my brain refuses to translate. In this episode, ten things Sweden did to me without asking permission — and what that says about what it actually means to adopt a country, not just live in it. #Sweden #Expat #Immigration #LifeInSweden #SwedishCulture #PersonalGrowth #Habits #SpanSwede #Reflection #NordicLife If you want to support this podcast: ko-fi.com/latitude59 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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About

I'm a southerner who has lived in Sweden for over a decade, and at some point that stopped being a problem. This podcast is all about my thoughts and experiences since I started living in this Nordic country. You'll hear a lot about philosophy, Swedish culture and my own interests, which I hope you will enjoy too. I have low expectations of this podcast. I may do it as a form of escapism and for fun, but I hope it will somehow be useful to you, my unknown listener. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    JFR
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    33
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © JFR
  • Show Website
    Latitude 59