Happy Easter!

I’m watching — for the umpteenth time — Jesus of Nazareth, the old masterpiece by Italian director Franco Zeffirelli. It’s a film that, through today’s eyes, feels quite heavy, but still very profound — certainly much more so than all the more recent remakes. Robert Powell carries 70% of the film.

Today is Easter, a day we celebrate in Italy with our loved ones, although, unlike Christmas, it’s acceptable to spend it with friends as well, not just with family. My way of celebrating was to attend Mass this morning at the Franciscan Chapel in Roppongi. A beautiful celebration, with lots of people and a wonderful choir.

There are a few thoughts intertwined in my mind on this day, connected to spirituality.

Clearly, the deep meaning of the Resurrection — which I think is worth reflecting on, whether you’re Catholic or not, believer or not. A message of hope, which is desperately needed in this particular historical moment. A message that tells us we are not slaves to evil, to earthly things, to our past actions — but that there’s always the possibility to change everything, to change ourselves. It’s a powerful message that, in my opinion, is worth knowing and internalizing as human beings, regardless of one’s religious faith.

The other two thoughts are linked to each other. Lately I’ve been reading — with difficulty, I must say — the latest book by Federico Faggin, the Italian physicist/inventor/entrepreneur, father of microprocessors, CMOS technology, and essentially all the technology that surrounds our lives today. It’s an interesting book because it talks about the second intellectual phase Faggin is facing — spirituality. More specifically, the nature of consciousness. It’s interesting because he approaches it from the perspective of a physicist-engineer, which resonates with me in a special way.

But Faggin also talks about the specific moment when he had this “enlightenment,” let’s call it that, during a vacation, at night:

I suddenly felt a powerful rush of energy emerge from my chest like nothing I had ever experienced before and could not even imagine possible.
This alive energy was love, yet a love so intense and so incredibly fulfilling that it surpassed any other notion I had previously had about love.
Even more surprising was the fact that the source of this love was me. […] I knew then without a shadow of a doubt that this was the substance
out of which everything that exists is made. This is what created the universe out of itself. (p. 10)

That reminded me of the strange experience I had a few years ago, when I was still living in France. It was this experience that brought me back to Faith.
Faith in God has always been something forced for me. In Italy, you become Catholic automatically: we are all baptized at birth, immediately encouraged to go to Mass, we all go to Catechism classes as kids, etc. The Church is part of our lives, inseparable from our culture.
Which usually leads to people distancing themselves from it as soon as Catechism ends and they have the freedom to stop going. Some remain stuck in the motions, and others, like me, walk away completely.

Well, fast-forward 20 years. We decide to get married, in France. I don’t know how it works in other countries, but in Italy and France, getting married in Church requires a premarital course. The priest suggested a special course (called the Alpha Course), which involved a series of weekly evening meetings where we discussed spiritual topics with other people, over dinner.
I never spoke. And at a certain point, I remember getting annoyed because I didn’t see the point of those meetings. I wanted to stop. I also remember the heated discussion with my wife, who on the other hand liked them and wanted me to continue.
At a certain point, the course included spending an entire Saturday together. My wife asked me to go, and said I could decide afterwards whether or not to keep going.

Saturday went very well — we had a lovely day. Breakfast together, chats with calm and kind people, walks in nature — all very pleasant.
We went home, but I still thought I wanted to stop going to the evening sessions. And we went to sleep.

I don’t think I’ve ever told too many people what happened when I woke up. And even now as I write this post, I feel a bit embarrassed, and I can imagine the feeling you might have when you read what I’m about to write. But that’s how it went, and I can’t lie.

When I woke up, my wife was still sleeping. The sun was shining outside. I got out of bed and immediately felt a kind of warmth in my chest.
I felt completely overwhelmed by an intense mix of sensations — peace, joy, and, I believe, love.
I remember it so well because it was so strange that in that moment I was also a bit in shock, truly surprised.
I had never felt that sensation in my entire life, and it was incredibly strong.
It was as if a powerful energy was completely filling my body and pouring out of me to flood all the space around me.
I can’t explain what happened. But it happened.

Reading about Faggin’s experience brought me back to that moment. And for me, everything changed then.
It’s as if I had proof that spirituality is something yours and yours alone.
Some call it Faith, Faggin attributes it to quantum physics. I don’t know what it is, but it changed not only my life, but also my relationship with my wife — because after that day, it’s as if we were bonded on an even deeper level than before.

Happy Easter!

ギリギリ sub-2

So, I’ve decided to run another half-marathon at the end of May, because apparently I enjoy pain. The goal? Finish in under two hours. The plan? A mix of optimism, denial, and banana-fueled determination.

Here are some semi-random thoughts from the battlefield known as “training”:

It’s 90% mental.

When I ran the half in January, I was trained for a solid 10K. That’s it. From kilometer 16 onward, I felt like I had been dropped into a new dimension. Think: Frodo entering Mordor with no map and a questionable snack supply.

Spoiler alert: pain. Everywhere.

From the neck down, my body filed a group complaint. You don’t “run through the pain”—you negotiate with it. You need to train like Harry Potter pulling up a happy memory to fight off Dementors. Except your Dementors are cramps and your happy memory is whatever helps you pass “the wall”.

Pre-run psychology: Jedi mind tricks.

 Every week I up the distance, and I must believe: “N km? Easy—I did N-1 last week.”. If that internal voice says anything else, I know I’m in trouble. So far, Jedi mind tricks are holding up. But there’s still a month to screw it up.

Running form: chasing the inner gazelle.

Whether I’m on a long easy run or doing intervals, I’m low-key obsessed with running like a biomechanical poem. I want my limbs to swing like a pendulum, my feet to push like a springboard, and my vibe to scream “majestic gazelle”—not “guy dragging invisible luggage through molasses.”

Food mistakes were made.

I learned the hard way that edamame the night before a long run is a catastrophical idea. Shoutout to Japan’s heroic public toilet system—you truly saved a life that day. Currently, a banana and coffee get me to 14K without gastrointestinal drama. But I still don’t know when to pop an energy gel. I need to find my gel o’clock.

Music: the betrayal.

Last race, my earphones died one second before the start. I ran 21K with nothing but my thoughts. Not bad, and I wrote about this too. But this time, I will have music. Even if I have to duct-tape solar panels to my ears.

Lifting things = running better? Apparently, yes.

This time around, I’m hitting the weights too. Squats, lunges, balance stuff—basically anything that screams “functional” and makes me walk like a crab the next day. But hey, my legs are less spaghetti and more linguine now. 

Stiffness: good for breadsticks and running.

I’ve noticed that early in my runs, I’ve got this springy bounce thing going. Later? Not so much. So now I’m working on keeping my legs just stiff enough to bounce like a trampoline, not stiff enough to walk like a haunted marionette.

Pacing: welcome to the edge.

Right now, I can hold a 5’20”/km pace for 30 minutes. That’s it. Which means for a sub-2-hour half-marathon, I’m ギリギリ—the Japanese word for “barely hanging on, like a cat clinging to a curtain.”

Anyway, that’s where I’m at. A little stronger, a little faster, and definitely a little more afraid of edamame. We’ll see how it all pans out in May.

Send good vibes. And bananas.

Integrity

Today, while glancing through the bleeding red lines of the global stock market, I found myself reflecting on the companies I choose to invest in.

For me, investing isn’t just about chasing profits. It’s about alignment. I want my money to support companies that not only show potential for growth, but also resonate with my personal ethics and worldview. Companies that are building something meaningful, not just monetizable.

This is why I stay away from Tesla, tobacco giants, and certain tech firms that have histories of enabling authoritarian regimes or striking opaque, lucrative deals with morally questionable business partners. Profit at any cost isn’t my mantra. It never has been.

In a way, this investing philosophy mirrors other conscious choices I’ve made over the last few years. I removed myself from platforms like Facebook and Twitter long ago, disillusioned by their manipulative algorithms and the toxic culture they fuel. I avoid Google services where I can, and more broadly, I’ve been minimizing my reliance on US-based digital services—opting instead for tools and platforms based in EU that prioritize privacy, transparency, and decentralization.

It’s not always easy. These choices can be inconvenient. But they feel necessary.

Why It Matters

Every dollar we spend—or invest—is a vote. It’s an endorsement, a small but meaningful show of support. I believe that the companies we back should reflect the world we want to live in, not just the one we’re stuck with.

Ethical investing is about asking difficult questions. Who profits? Who suffers? What values are baked into the business model? Is growth coming at the cost of human rights, labor standards, or environmental sanity?

These aren’t abstract issues. They’re deeply personal. And they’re becoming more urgent as the lines between tech, power, and politics blur further.

Conclusion

I’m not claiming moral superiority—far from it. But I believe we all need to start being a little more intentional with our financial influence. Ethical investing isn’t just possible; it’s necessary if we want to reshape the incentives driving our global economy.

It carries the same moral urgency as removing yourself from toxic social networks. Just as we choose to disengage from platforms that profit off polarization, misinformation, and surveillance capitalism, we can choose to not invest in companies which business practices undermine human dignity or environmental sustainability. In both cases, the personal decision may seem small, even symbolic—but multiplied, it becomes powerful.

Yes, it might mean slower returns or passing on “hot” opportunities. But in the long run, I’d rather sleep well than grow a portfolio built on exploitation or deception.

The market may be down. The future may feel uncertain. But our values can be a compass. And in a world driven by capital, choosing where we put ours might just be one of the most powerful acts of resistance left.

I don’t push it

I’m not a professional athlete. I run simply because I enjoy it—it’s become a source of pleasure and wellbeing for me. Given this, I approach running entirely on my own terms: I don’t run in the rain or when it’s overly cold or windy. I’ve tried pushing myself through bad weather in the past, but each time it ended with me getting sick. Eventually, I realized it wasn’t worth it, and I stopped forcing myself into unfavorable conditions.

This morning, I didn’t wake up feeling my best. It wasn’t yesterday’s long run that bothered me; it was because I went biking last evening wearing only a spring jacket, immensely underestimating the chilly temperatures. The cold left me drained, dizzy, and irritable, until much of the morning.

Although my training schedule called for a challenging running workout today, I chose to listen to my body and postpone it until tomorrow. Still, I wanted to move, so I opted for the gym instead. I completed a gentle but energizing strength workout, just enough to shake off the sluggishness. Afterward, a refreshing hot shower was all I needed—now I feel rejuvenated and great.

Training plans have their place, but I’ve learned the importance of trusting my own instincts and feelings.

14km Progressive Long Run: pace analysis

Overview

The plan

  1. 4km at a conversational pace
  2. 4.5km at 5:45/km
  3. 4km at 5:25/km
  4. 1.5km at a conversational pace

Key insights

Overall, it was a tough session, but these insights will help me plan for future long runs and improve my pacing strategy.

The two important intervals where the 2nd and 3rd where I managed to stay more or less in the planned ranges, though there were a few unavoidable stops due to traffic lights, which caused sudden downward spikes in my performance.

The second interval was significantly easier. I felt great, and I didn’t do much effort, which suggests that I’m getting closer to finding my next endurance pace. I stayed comfortably within the planned pace range throughout, and the pace chart below shows a steady effort without any major deviations.

In contrast, the third interval was a real challenge. The chart reflects the struggle: aside from the unavoidable traffic light stops, I found myself frequently stepping out of the planned pace range. I wasn’t comfortable at all, and I had to constantly adjust my speed, either speeding up or slowing down, all while checking my watch to monitor my pace. It felt terrible. By the end, I had to stop a few times, even during the last easy interval, as the effort drained my energy.

My current threshold pace is between 5:25 and 5:30 per km, but maintaining that for long remains tough. My Coros watch data also confirms this, showing that I was spending most of the time in Zone 4, which aligns with the difficulty I felt during that third interval.

Pace chart by Coros

Confirmation that comes also from Runalyze, which call it Critical Pace (CP).

CP usually describes a concept first: namely the hyperbolic relationship between power output and the time that the power output can be sustained. […]in fact, exhaustion occurs after about 30 to 60 minutes of exercise at CP

Looking at the chart below, I can maintain a pace of 5:30/km for around 20 minutes (CP20), which corresponds to the ~4 km I ran during the second interval. By the end, I was completely exhausted, as expected.

Last interesting piece of data from Runalyze is the Aerobic Efficiency:

Aerobic Efficiency measures the ratio of intensity to effort, using pace or power as intensity and heart rate as effort. With an increase in performance, higher efficiency values are expected over the long term, since a higher power/pace is achieved at the same heart rate.
AE (Pace) = 47 * Speed [m/s] / Heart rate [bpm]

In this long run it was 0,95, which means that my heart rate is still slightly too elevated. I expect this to become >1 in the future.

Conclusion

A tough session in the second part, but I now feel comfortable running at 5:45 / km. I felt my running form was good, I was balanced and I felt the right stiffness in the legs. I think the specific exercises I am doing at the gym are helping.

I need to keep doing the interval and fartlek workouts as in my plan, to improve my speed and I also think I need to introduce some more regular cardio trainings to improve the heart rate.

But I think I am in the good track to be able to finish the half marathon in May 31 in less than 2 hours.

Running Without Music: An Unexpected Win

A couple of weeks ago, my earphones mysteriously stopped working. No clue why — they just gave up on me. Since they were still under warranty, I sent them back for a replacement. Two weeks later… still waiting.

While hoping for the best, I’ve been running without music. At first, I was nervous. I thought hearing my own breathing and footsteps under increasing effort would make my runs feel harder. But to my surprise… I’m kind of loving it.

I expected to struggle — to feel overwhelmed by the rhythm of my breathing under pressure, to lose motivation without a beat pushing me forward. But the opposite happened. Without the music, I’ve become hyper-aware of my body. I can sense when my heart rate is climbing too quickly and adjust my pace. I’m more aware of my breathing rhythm and running form, which actually makes my stride more efficient. Without music, I’m more in tune with my body.

For the first time yesterday since I got back into running last year, I truly felt my pace. No need to glance at my Coros watch — I could just tell. I adjusted my cadence, tweaked my posture, and naturally shifted from a 6’10”/km pace to 5’36”/km. I didn’t overthink it. I just knew what to do.

It took a full year of consistent running to get here. A year of showing up, even when it felt slow or hard or messy. And now, running 10K without music — something that would’ve been a total sufferfest at the beginning of 2024 — feels like a normal, easy session. I’m more in control than ever.

If I were to list my running goals, it’d look something like this:

✅ Lose weight

✅ Build a sustainable routine that fits with my life

✅ Improve efficiency

✅ Learn to run by feel ← just unlocked this one

[  ]  Run faster (aiming for ~5’30”/km as my endurance pace — currently 6’10”/km)

I’ve still got work to do, but this small, unexpected shift — running without music — has made me realize how far I’ve come. And maybe… how much further I can go.

日本語勉強 – Personal recommendations for Japanese learners

This is a list of resources that is working well for my Japanese studies.

Reading

You need to read until you destroy the visual and mental barrier of kanji. Until you don’t reach that point, your eyes will naturally tend to skip the entire content to pass to something else you can read without effort. So, force your mind to stop and read it all until your brain will stop making antibodies for kanji.

The problem, as always, is to find the right content for your level because you also don’t want to spend 25 minutes to read two lines.

So, along with the usual suspect, already known by everybody studying Japanese, i.e. (NHK Easy News or NHK News Web Easier)

this is also very useful:

  • LingQ. Not only it’s full of content for every level, but most importantly you can also import in it whatever the content in Japanese you are reading/watching. It will analyze the text and allow you to save words and sentences in an internal SRS, with automatic translation (made by dictionaries and contributors). Advantage compared to Anki = you can import videos from YouTube (it basically imports its subtitles from it), so you can analyze all its transcript and study those sentences you are interested to analyze and learn. Basically, LingQ allows to conveniently automate something that you can do manually with effort with Anki (and lots of time. Time that I do not have).

Reading stuff for the context you need

  • Twitter/X. 280 characters are shorter than an article. Follow people in the context you’re interested to and do the effort to read what they write without clicking on “translate this tweet“. Use browsers plugins to translate the kanji you don’t know or imprort them into LingQ. (Update 2025 – I don’t endorse this, but if you still have an account in that shitty platform, this can be the only reason to keep it).
  • Online magazines. If you want to build up vocabulary that is specific to a particular context, you can’t avoid reading more complicated stuff. I work with software engineering and blockchain, so for me Coinpost.jp or neweconomy.jp are the must-read to stay up-to-date with what happens in JP. Again, browser plugins or import into LingQ. Yes, there’s a lot of katakana in technology, but surely not enough for my JLPT N4.

Listening

This is the most interesting part that I’m personally very happy about. There’s a huge amount of content on YouTube for Japanese listening, for all levels.

There are two kind of videos available:

  1. grammar short lessons videos (5 minutes)
  2. real Japanese conversations (30 – 50 mins)

Grammar short videos

This is my personal workflow with this type of videos:

Listening real Japanese conversations

The above video are great to learn grammar, but they have the same problem you find in formal language courses = they are structured.

Real life conversation is unstructured, so you need this type of content too. Few years ago I could only find Benjiro – Beginner Japanese, I guess he was the one who started with this brilliant idea of creating content where people just freely discuss in Japanese in an unstructured way. His channel is not updated anymore, but the videos are there available for all and they are just gems.

Now there are many more on the same line. My favorite ones on YouTube:

There are few podcast I also listen (I use Google Podcast):

Shadowing

Worth mentioning this too. If you don’t have too many occasions to practice Japanese speaking, you can try with “shadowing” = listen and repeat out loud.

While it’s true that you can do this with whatever the content (just stop the video/podcast and repeat what you just listened), there are few that are focused on this only:

Volunteers Japanese classes (for Japan residents)

If you live in Japan most cities organize local Japanese classes managed by volunteers, typically Japanese elderly people who want to help foreigners with their studies. They are free (or extremely cheap, mostly a symbolic cost, really) and sometimes they also provide some study material. There are two things I like of these classes

  • they are totally unstructured. It’s rare to find volunteers who have a background of language teaching, most of them are just nice people who want to help. They speak a lot, they are very curious people and, in most cases, they have no idea how to interact precisely with your level of Japanese. This is great because it stretches your comprehension abilities;
  • you can review what you have studied on your own. This is what I do = I study some grammar at home and I prepare few sentences and questions for them, so we can speak about them, make more examples and basically build up the topic of the lesson each time we meet.

These classes are up to you, really. The volunteers are the best resource you can find, but you need to understand how to take advantage of them properly and not waste your time.

Worth mentioning resources

Funny and useful:

  • Game Gengo ゲーム言語, study Japanese sentences and patterns from videogames. Fantastic!
  • Hiro JP Academy. Study Japanese sentences and patterns through videos from anime.
  • Dogen. Definitely NOT for Japanese beginners, but super funny. A hint of your future life as a Japanese proficent person.
  • maydaysan. Super short videos (and also kanji lessons, but I don’t watch them) to die laughing.