Journal 75 Old Couch, New Couch, Finished The Karamazov Brothers

Hey girls.

How was your week? How have you been faring in these crazy times?

I have a happy thing to report: I got a couch! It is the Ikea Kivik. Our old couch was a lifesaver when we got it around 2015. Before that, we could only sit on the floor in our apartment. I spent a good part of my life trying to find a mattress and furniture that was not treated with flame retardant chemicals. The California law was finally amended, and furniture without this chemical became available.

But even after legalization, it was still hard to find. One day, my partner’s mother called and said she found one at Costco. It was a firm leather couch that looked very neat and modern compared to their other furniture. There it was: “NOT TREATED WITH FLAME RETARDANT CHEMICALS” on the label. I couldn’t believe my eyes.

That couch got us through a lot. Now it needs some serious care. I don’t know much about leather care, and soapy wipe-downs aren’t enough anymore. It needs a deep cleaning. There are leather cleaning brushes, but I worry if they are treated with chemicals. So I got a synthetic shaving brush from the brand Perfecto. I think it will get into the leather but be gentle enough not to damage it. The couch creaks when you sit on it and the cushions are squished, but with some care, we will have two couches to sit on! It will be very convenient if someone needs some space.

And my cat has officially christened the new Kivik! No human was allowed to sit on it until the feline butt had made full touchdown. She has not wanted to leave it since. No one has wanted to leave it. The assembly was very simple. It just took me a while to wash all the fabric covers, check for loose strings, vacuum the naked frame and the cushions, put the covers on, then vacuum it again. The cushions produced lots of lint in the washer; I wish I had used a lint catcher in there. I also find that a delicates mesh bag collects and wads up lint very well. Maybe you could also try one of those cooking satchels for spices.

Having a soft couch has been... whatever is the opposite of demoralizing. I feel more like a person. Modern stress requires modern comfort. The furniture situation in this house.... regarding my partner’s parents’ furniture... has been difficult. That is the mildest I can put it.

I am also happy to report that I have finished The Karamazov Brothers! I took a long pause a few months ago. The reason is because my partner and I did not have big fights for a while. We were too busy surviving the heat. It usually takes a really good fight, lasting three days or so, for me to get some good reading in hahahaha!

I want to share some quotes and thoughts about it with you. I’ll do it at the bottom so you can avoid spoilers.

And I am also super crazy happy to report that a new batch of my cat’s food came out, and it looks so much better! I am still finding a few flaws in it, and I throw those cans out, but overall the quality is almost back to normal! What a difference and such a relief.

Thank you for reading. I wish you a great week ahead.

Asya

The version of The Karamazov Brothers by Fyodor Dostoevsky I am quoting from was translated by Ignat Avsey.

Phew! What a read.

These movements and trends that were happening at the time have had such a massive effect on us to this day. It’s crazy. The late nineteenth century was so screwy. For example, the field of psychology. It has been misused over and over again.

On isolation:

For everyone nowadays strives to dissociate himself as much as possible from others, everyone wants to savour the fullness of life for himself ... For everyone has dissociated himself from everyone else in our age, everyone has disappeared into his own burrow, distanced himself from the next man, hidden himself and his possessions ... He piles up riches in solitude and thinks: ‘How powerful I am now, and how secure,’ ... For man has become used to relying on himself alone ... he trembles only at the thought of losing his money* and the privileges he has acquired.

Wow, people were talking about isolation and materialism at a time when it was normal to go call on your neighbors every night and rush over to each other’s houses and emotionally express your deep feelings.

It is scary. What horrible state of loneliness must we be in now, in 2025?

On doctors:

I tell you, the old-style doctor who used to cure one of all manner of diseases has completely, totally disappeared, and now we only have specialists who advertise in the papers.

Another trend that has only gotten worse. I can’t believe this was happening in the late 1800s.

On psychology:

Gentlemen of the jury, I am deliberately resorting to psychology myself in order to demonstrate that one can make of it anything one wants. It all depends on who is using it. Psychology lures even the most serious people into realms of fantasy, and quite without their realizing it.

There you have it!