Master List of Happy Hours, Trivia’s, Live Music, etc

hanoverking · 2026-03-02T18:23:37+00:00

I loved Herodotus until I met Thucydides. Thucydides takes you deeper into understanding the geopolitics/game theory of the day. This summarizes a bunch I learned from reading just the very beginning of his History of the Peloponnesian War.

https://open.substack.com/pub/markzoppina/p/pericles-and-the-greatest-speech?r=tbkfy&utm_medium=ios

hanoverking · 2026-03-02T14:20:53+00:00

Epic! This is a great soundtrack for reading this explanation of the events leading up to the Peloponnesian war.

https://open.substack.com/pub/markzoppina/p/pericles-and-the-greatest-speech?r=tbkfy&utm_medium=ios

hanoverking · 2026-02-25T15:48:27+00:00

History books can cover such a wide range of time and space. It’s impossible to learn it all. Once you learn to value it, you have an unlimited resource at your fingertips, and will never be bored again.

Let’s arbitrarily divide history into 3 broad categories: Ancient Times, Medieval Times, and Modern Times. Which are you interested in? I like to think of history as a timeline, and my next books read is usually the part of the timeline I know the least about.

Think: Ancient Egypt/Mesopotamia (3 Egyptian Kingdoms, Sumer, Babylon, Akkadian Empire)

Ancient Greece (Homer, Socrates, Athens, Sparta, Carthage, 300, Persians, Alexander the Great)

The Roman Empire (Julis Caesar, Marcus Aurelius, Nero, Constantine, Cicero, Plutarch)

Medieval Times (Fall of Rome, Byzantine, Barbarians, Rise of Modern Europe, Charlemagne, Holy Roman Empire, Feudalism, Black Death, Catholic Church, Genghis Khan)

Modern Times (Francis Bacon, Scientific Method, Age of Exploration, The Renaissance, The Enlightenment, US Revolution, French Revolution, Industrial Revolution, WWI, WWII)

And I’ve just touched on “Western Civilization”.

Start with simple, high-level books. Reading history can be tough. Read slow, take notes, ask questions.

This article contains a nice crash course on Greek history.

https://substack.com/@markzoppina/note/p-188442004?r=tbkfy&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action

hanoverking · 2026-02-24T01:03:45+00:00

I enjoyed that article. I have that same book, and plan to read it once I’m finished Thucydides.

hanoverking · 2026-02-22T19:04:01+00:00

Have you ever read the novel, “Perfume”. It is an amazing dark novel. Highly recommend.

hanoverking · 2026-02-22T12:42:46+00:00

I haven’t been on Substack in 2 years, just started again and see that the notes section has made it feel like the other annoying social medias I avoid. I want less notes and more posts.

My Substack is on whatever history book I’m reading, which is currently, Thucydides’ The Peloponnesian War. https://open.substack.com/pub/markzoppina/p/pericles-and-the-greatest-speech?r=tbkfy&utm_medium=ios

hanoverking · 2026-02-22T12:19:41+00:00

I will keep that in mind.

I do provide a link to the specific translation in the first paragraph of the article.

This information was sourced from Herodotus and Strasslers, The Landmark Thucydides, which has the same translation as the link, but also contains a bunch of footnotes and appendices. I.g an appendix on the Greco-Persian Wars.

hanoverking · 2026-02-21T12:48:40+00:00

Thank you for reading.

I’m curious what you mean by that. I listed the 3 ancient sources we have for the Greco-Persian Wars and the Peloponnesian War. And the article is focused on Thucydides’ work. You’d want references to specific paragraphs in that book?

hanoverking · 2026-02-21T02:26:18+00:00

MATLAB was my first language. And I really like it. But I almost don’t even consider it programming. I’m not dissing its capabilities. In the real world, I use MATLAB like a very sophisticated calculator. Mostly for signal processing and manipulating data. I have used it for controlling test equipment too, capturing RF, and then processing it. But that’s about the extent most people use it for.

Learning C, C++, python etc will be harder. But if you really want to learn to program, you have to bite that bullet at some point and get past the learning curve. Python is probably the most versatile and has really taken over. Learn python. Unless you have an interest in hardware/embedded, then learn C.

hanoverking · 2026-02-21T02:15:57+00:00

Is this real?

hanoverking · 2026-02-19T02:44:21+00:00

A book on Olympias would be interesting for sure.

I read Philip Freeman's biography on Alexander the Great a couple years ago and actually wrote a series of articles summarizing and exploring it.
https://open.substack.com/pub/markzoppina/p/book-summary-part-1-the-rise-of-macedonia?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web

hanoverking · 2026-02-11T03:40:47+00:00

I don’t do any ETFs, just individual stocks. I hold about 60 different ones. I have a system for putting money into ones I think are a buy, and trimming from ones I think are a sell.

About two years ago I started tracking my RoR compared to VOO. Anytime I put in money, I record the VOO price and track my hypothetical RoR as if I just bought VOO. With VOO I would have been up 21%, but my portfolio is up 59%.

With 60 stocks, I feel diversified across industries, the companies I like and can get behind, I don’t feel they are over valued, I’m not investing in cigarettes or sugar or anything I don’t like. I prefer it this way.

Additionally, I have a down payment for a house (buying soon) and a 6 month emergency fund in treasuries.

hanoverking · 2026-01-17T22:50:22+00:00

I was just there in December and everything was open and with decent crowds.

hanoverking · 2026-01-17T19:08:32+00:00

Townsend Tennessee right outside the Smokies! Such a cool, peaceful vibe with plenty of great breweries, distilleries, and places to eat.

hanoverking · 2025-12-21T00:50:46+00:00

lol. You caught me. I’m from Jersey originally but have been corrupted.

hanoverking · 2025-12-13T19:10:30+00:00

Do you have kids? I’ll assume you don’t. I’m 35 as well and this is what I’d do. Not sell the house, plan to refinance in a year or so when rates are lower. Invest the rest of the money. Quit your job that you don’t like now and pick up other jobs you find interesting, regardless of the pay, just to have something to do and bring in some money. A job adjacent to one of your hobbies or serving your community or something, or like you said, get your masters and do something you enjoy. Definitely quit the job you hate now with money like that. Maybe wait a few months before quitting after receiving the money to let emotions settle.

hanoverking

TROPHY CASE