Latitude 59

JFR
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  • Philosophy
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I've been living in Sweden for years and at some point stopped being sure exactly where I'm from. That stopped being a problem a while ago. This podcast is about what it means to adopt a country and let it slowly adopt you back. Stoic philosophy applied to real life. Swedish history and culture. The things that make me stop and think. No self-help scripts, no easy answers, no AI (well, a little, just to fix the grammar). Honest reflections from somewhere between the Mediterranean and the Arctic. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 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 Stoic philosophy, life in Sweden, culture, history, and everything worth thinking about. YouTube: youtube.com/@latitude59p Free bilingual transcripts + support: ko-fi.com/latitude59 If this added something to your day, a rating helps more than you'd think. Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  2. 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 Stoic philosophy, life in Sweden, culture, history, and everything worth thinking about. YouTube: youtube.com/@latitude59p Free bilingual transcripts + support: ko-fi.com/latitude59 If this added something to your day, a rating helps more than you'd think. Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  3. 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 Stoic philosophy, life in Sweden, culture, history, and everything worth thinking about. YouTube: youtube.com/@latitude59p Free bilingual transcripts + support: ko-fi.com/latitude59 If this added something to your day, a rating helps more than you'd think. Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  4. 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 Stoic philosophy, life in Sweden, culture, history, and everything worth thinking about. YouTube: youtube.com/@latitude59p Free bilingual transcripts + support: ko-fi.com/latitude59 If this added something to your day, a rating helps more than you'd think. Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  5. May 3

    Valborg: The Fire That Renews Everything

    Every year on April 30th, Sweden lights massive bonfires. It's called Valborg. It started as a pagan ritual to mark the end of winter, later blended with the feast of Saint Walburga, and somehow survived centuries intact. In this episode, I reflect on what it feels like to watch that fire after eight months of cold and darkness — and why humans still need rituals that mark endings. Because without marking the end of something, it's hard to feel like anything new has truly begun. #Valborg #Sweden #SwedishCulture #Traditions #Spring #Expat #Pagan #Renewal #SpanSwede #NordicLife Stoic philosophy, life in Sweden, culture, history, and everything worth thinking about. YouTube: youtube.com/@latitude59p Free bilingual transcripts + support: ko-fi.com/latitude59 If this added something to your day, a rating helps more than you'd think. Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  6. Apr 26

    Modern Work: Between Detachment and Dehumanization

    Something broke in the world of work after 2020. Companies got leaner, colder, and more ruthless. Employees got tired, detached, and quietly stopped believing. In this episode, I explore that silent tension: mass layoffs from profitable companies, the collapse of loyalty between employer and employee, and the deeper trap of building your identity around a job that can drop you overnight. Heraclitus saw it coming. Best regards, and until next time. #ModernWork #WorkCulture #Burnout #GreatDetachment #Stoicism #Society #Pandemic #WorkLifeBalance #CriticalThinking #SpanSwede Stoic philosophy, life in Sweden, culture, history, and everything worth thinking about. YouTube: youtube.com/@latitude59p Free bilingual transcripts + support: ko-fi.com/latitude59 If this added something to your day, a rating helps more than you'd think. Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  7. Apr 19

    Who Speaks for Earth?

    In the final chapter of *Cosmos*, Carl Sagan describes a world where nuclear weapons hold billions hostage, where military secrecy shields decision-makers from accountability, and where no one has been elected to speak on behalf of the human species. He wrote it in the Cold War. It reads like today's headlines. In this episode, we sit with that question — and ask ourselves why, forty years later, we still don't have an answer. #CarlSagan #Cosmos #NuclearWeapons #Philosophy #CriticalThinking #HumanNature #SpanSwede #WarAndPeace #Existential #Science Stoic philosophy, life in Sweden, culture, history, and everything worth thinking about. YouTube: youtube.com/@latitude59p Free bilingual transcripts + support: ko-fi.com/latitude59 If this added something to your day, a rating helps more than you'd think. Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  8. Apr 5

    AI Is Just a Tool — The Problem Is How We Use It

    Artificial intelligence is already part of how most of us work, learn, and create. In this episode I reflect on how I use AI to optimize tasks and move faster — and where I've started to worry about what gets lost in the process. What happens to your own voice when a tool can generate it for you? Where is the line between using AI as support and outsourcing your thinking entirely? I also look at the bigger picture: the lack of regulation, the speed of adoption, and why, as with every technology before it, we may be moving faster than we understand the consequences. #ArtificialIntelligence #AIEthics #Technology #FutureOfWork #AI #DigitalLife #Philosophy #CriticalThinking #Creativity #SpanSwede Stoic philosophy, life in Sweden, culture, history, and everything worth thinking about. YouTube: youtube.com/@latitude59p Free bilingual transcripts + support: ko-fi.com/latitude59 If this added something to your day, a rating helps more than you'd think. Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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About

I've been living in Sweden for years and at some point stopped being sure exactly where I'm from. That stopped being a problem a while ago. This podcast is about what it means to adopt a country and let it slowly adopt you back. Stoic philosophy applied to real life. Swedish history and culture. The things that make me stop and think. No self-help scripts, no easy answers, no AI (well, a little, just to fix the grammar). Honest reflections from somewhere between the Mediterranean and the Arctic. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    JFR
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    29
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © JFR
  • Show Website
    Latitude 59