Julia - "If Bitcoin is a scam, then it is an old scam!"

Julia: 00:00:00

Saving money has become possible again.

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If it wasn't for Bitcoin, we would

be spending the money as it comes

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in because of that lingering feel

that if you don't spend it now, it

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will be worth less in the future.

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Tali: Hey, everybody.

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Welcome to Orange Hatter.

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Julia.

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Welcome to Orange Hatter.

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I'm so excited to have you on the show.

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And I can't wait to dive

into your Bitcoin story.

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Would you start by telling us

a little bit about yourself?

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Julia: Sure.

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, first of all, thanks for having me.

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It's a pleasure to meet

you and to be here.

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And let's hope that we can inspire some

other people or women to go a little

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bit further towards Bitcoin world.

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Hey, so what do you want to

know about me, my background?

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So I was born in Germany.

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Thank you.

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Uh, 1970s.

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And that seems like a

awfully long time ago.

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And then when I was, uh, about

20, I settled over to Portugal.

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where I live since then.

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So I've been here a long time and my

whole adult life is in Portugal.

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Now I am completely settled in.

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I've got a Portuguese husband, two

children, and I have no intentions

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of leaving this place again.

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So I really, really enjoy being here.

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Very little connections to Germany,

but , my close family, my parents

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and my brother, they did settle

over to Portugal after me as well.

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So that's very nice having them here.

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Um, and quite close by.

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My parents are literally five

minutes down the road and my

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brother's half an hour drive.

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So , that's excellent.

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And, yeah, I would say the red

line of my life seems to be horses.

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Um, so I've always been a horse fanatic

since I was a small child and, , That's

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definitely not a part of the family

because , my family, they come from

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Berlin, where I was born as well.

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Um, so I was always a horse fanatic

and then started riding lessons and,

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uh, got my own horse when I was 13.

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And.

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The whole, all the way through settling

to Portugal, I moved here with the horse.

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I've always done horse jobs until

really 10 years ago when I got

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pregnant with my first child.

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It kind of came to an end because

also the job where I was working at

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the place was falling apart a bit.

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And, you know, it was, it felt

like a natural and to the whole

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chapter of horses, basically.

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And I decided to completely focus my

life on family and homesteading and

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raising the children by now I've got two.

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And so I kind of moved the animal

side of my life away from horses, more

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towards goats, dairy goats, and, and.

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chickens and pigs and, you know, that

side of farming, raising animals mostly.

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Um, and, but recently my children have

both decided that they've got the horse

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buck too, and they have started taking

riding lessons in a very nice local

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, school here and , I'm drawn back into this

world and I'm now thinking of probably

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going back professionally as well.

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So, but that's, that's very early days.

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So I don't really know yet

if and how, but . It's there.

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The idea is there.

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Um, I did have other jobs in between.

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, I worked in a bakery and I was,

I am a yoga teacher, even though

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I'm not practicing at the moment

or not teaching at the moment.

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And you know, the young people's

jobs like waitressing and stuff.

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, so I've done many things, but like

I said, the horses are the red line.

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yeah.

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So here we are in the year 2023.

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Tali: I love that background just

because I'm always fascinated by horses.

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So I would love to ask you a few more

questions about that side of your life.

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So what did you do with horses

that brought you to Portugal?

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Julia: It was simply, I mean, I was 19.

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So it was simply the, the thing when 19

year olds are not skilled in many things.

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So I, you know, applying for jobs is

hard, but I was skilled with horses.

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So I applied for horse jobs and

that's how I came over, , because

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there was work available.

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, So yeah, that's a skill question.

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Tali: So after you moved to Portugal

and you can continue to work

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with horses, were you a trainer?

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Were you competing?

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What were you doing?

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Julia: So competing, I was in

Germany in my teenage years.

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, I, I started off being a classic English

rider in the school and then it was in

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the 80s, 90s, that the first Western

riding wave came from the United States.

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And I was there with somebody

who had picked it up and created

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his riding school and riding

stable, but in the Western style.

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And so this is where I competed,

uh, in, in my younger years.

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And, and then I came to Portugal

and was mostly tracking, , uh, Out

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in the countryside many times with

tourists, obviously, because it's

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very pretty and , it's a great way

to enjoy this beautiful scenery here.

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So yeah, and then, and then I got my other

big job was a yard management job, which

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is the one that eventually fell apart.

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And there we were focusing

on classic dressage.

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I had a trainer there

and she taught us a lot.

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and now it's the, for me, the ideal,

I really, I think it's a little bit

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of a mixture of Western and dressage.

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So I think the working horse

equitation kind of stuff is where I

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feel probably most comfortable at.

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Tali: I love that.

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, I live in Kentucky the Kentucky

Derby takes place here and

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there's just a lot of horses.

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I live on a street with eight houses and

we first moved in three out of the eight

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horses in their yard and my daughter just

started taking horseback riding lessons.

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And she's trying out for

the vault team in college.

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So I mean, we just we love horses.

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So I love that aspect.

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so what was it like moving

from Germany to Portugal?

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Julia: People now or ever since have

always said to me, Oh, you were so brave.

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I'm like, no, I wasn't really brave.

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It's more on the side of stupid because

you don't really know what you're doing.

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Uh, and really the idea was to only stay.

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Three months and then go to another

country and work there for three months.

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The initial idea was to travel the world

by doing horse jobs, but as it happened,

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um, and as it happened, Portugal was

the one that was free immediately.

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So I went to Portugal first.

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It was not a decision that I

planned on or thought a lot about.

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In fact, when I got the replies from

the people saying you can come and

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work, , the first thing I did, I was, I

checked on the map where Portugal was,

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is how, how prepared you are at this age.

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Um, and then it was really not the

idea to stay, but then life happens.

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And, um, one thing led to the next.

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And here I am, 25 years later or whatever.

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Tali: Well, you know, I think

I feel like Young people being

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ignorant is also a blessing.

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Now.

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I feel like we know maybe too much So I

want to ask you about your yoga background

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as well because I'm fascinated by that

aspect and actually learning some yoga

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breathing exercises Just this week.

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My husband and I were talking about that.

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So tell us how you got into

yoga from your horse work

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Julia: Hmm.

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Um, how did I.

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end up with the yoga idea.

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Maybe it was, you know, honestly, I can't

remember, um, maybe it was even because

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of the riding because, or maybe it was

more of a spiritual idea at the time.

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I really don't remember what

was the trigger to get me to, to

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do yoga, but I started it off.

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I think what it was, if I remember

clearly, a friend of mine said,

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I'm going to yoga every week.

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And I was like, okay.

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I'll try it.

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And I, and I stepped into this

class and I physically fit obviously

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from working outside all my life.

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And there was this 50 year old

woman and she, she made us do these

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things and I couldn't do them.

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And she was just like at ease with

her body in a way that I just couldn't

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comprehend much and that kicked me, huh?

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Um, I thought, okay.

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I think I've got some work to do here.

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I think this is what it was, yes.

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When I think back.

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And then I, uh, obviously, uh,

by understanding your body, you

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also discover that it really

helps along your riding practice.

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And then I did for a while,

specialized yoga, equestrian yoga.

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And I'm thinking now of offering that

at the local stables, which, you know,

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it's, it's yoga, but it specializes in

the body parts that you need for riding.

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Tali: That is so cool because my daughter

who's crazy about horses, she also

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trained as a yoga teacher and she's in

college right now and she's trying to

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figure out what to do with her life.

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So I'm going to have to tell

her about what you're doing.

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That's so cool.

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I don't have a lot of experience with

horses, but I've seen horse shows and

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I hear people talking about how horses

are very, very intuitive to how you feel.

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Do you feel that, maybe the yoga

training also in your connection

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with the horse that you're working

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Julia: I think, I think it

helps in connection to yourself.

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I mean, yes, horses are

great therapy animals.

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Um, yes, they have this special

emotional, I don't know if it's bond,

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but they, they, they can really, through

their presence, they can really help

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people come to terms with themselves.

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the breathing helps a lot.

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Obviously it helps with everything, hey?

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I'm not sure.

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Tali: okay.

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So let's, let's jump into what you're

doing now because you're working

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more with, , homestead animals.

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Right.

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Tell us about that transition.

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What was that like?

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Julia: So, that started, so, um,

already in my early twenties,

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I, Had great interest in the

connection between health and food.

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Huh?

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That's always been something that I was

fascinated about because the quote, you

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are what you eat is really, it always rang

true to me and really resonated with me.

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So, uh, I was a vegetarian

for many years in my twenties.

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You know, that seems to be the

first go to when people start

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thinking about healthy food.

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And then that didn't really.

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I mean, that was good,

but it was unsustainable.

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If you want to go traveling, you

just can't, you know, you want to be.

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Truly open minded and you can't

just walk into people's homes who

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offering you some place to stay and

then say, Oh, no, but I don't eat

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that if they want to offer you food.

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I think that's rude, personally.

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And so there the journey started there.

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And then I became aware of the Western

A Price Foundation, the American

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Foundation may have heard about

through another horse woman actually

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who I'm still in touch with it was

probably Oh yeah, I did a little bit.

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Monty Roberts training together

with her many, many years ago.

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And she said, you would really like.

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Western a price and she talked a little

bit about it and something sparked

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interest and I went into this thing.

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And since then I'm chapter

leader for the Western a price

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foundation here in Portugal South.

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And so there came the whole

chapter of traditional foods.

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And with it came the realization

that what you can get in the

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supermarket is really suboptimal.

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And so I thought, okay,

so I want good food.

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So I have to do it myself.

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There we go.

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So I started and it really, , came

more pronounced when I thought about

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getting pregnant and having children.

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I really wanted my children to

have raw milk and fresh eggs.

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And then eventually also the meat.

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And so I started keeping chickens

first, obviously, and then that was

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still with the horses, intermingled,

and then I kind of stopped the horses,

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but I replaced them with goats.

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And then I got into the swing of things

of having my little homestead running

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and eventually also got pigs on the go,

so yeah, it's very, very satisfying,

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huh, to be able to raise your own food.

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Especially animal foods.

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Tali: It's a lot of work though.

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I mean, I tried some of those

things and failed miserably.

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Let's talk about, , the first

time you heard about Bitcoin.

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Julia: Yeah.

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So from it really, the connection

was again, funny enough

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through the, the food, huh?

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Because COVID started and

everything went upside down.

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and strangely enough, I remember

quite vividly that on New Year's Eve,

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2000, 2001, Somebody asked me, what's

your New Year's Eve, , , resolution.

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And I said, Oh, I think I said, , I

want to learn about Bitcoin and,

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uh, one, uh, and also the, the

ice bath thing from Wim Hof.

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So this is the two things I

really wanted to get into.

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and then.

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A month later a friend gives me

an email and says, Oh look, we've

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got, they're vegan, Uh, we've got

somebody visiting here and he's a

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carnivore and he wants to meet you.

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Because, oh yes, I remember at

the time I was full on carnivore.

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So I've come all the way from

vegetarian to traditional.

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And then what happened is I learned

about Jordan Peterson and how

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the carnivore diet really, really

turned around his health and his

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daughter's health to a massive degree.

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And I got curious again, huh?

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It's curiosity.

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And pulls me into these things.

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And.

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I listened to him and I thought,

dang, I'm going to try this because

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I'm not unhealthy, but I really want

to know it's so counterintuitive.

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I really want to try.

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And so I went on to this carnivore

journey for a few months of

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taking out plants completely.

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And I never felt better.

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Hey, it's a mind blowing what

It does to you this resetting.

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So yes, yes to carnivore.

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Anyway, she said, here's this carnivore.

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He wants to meet you.

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And so I was like, send him over.

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Um, so he rocked up, uh, the doorstep

and was wearing a Bitcoin t shirt.

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And I was like, Hey,

this is so interesting.

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I'd really like to know

more about Bitcoin.

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As it turns out, he's a proper.

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Um, and really, really, you know,

opened the door to this world.

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So because of him, I was incredibly

lucky not to have to wade through all

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this shit coin casino stuff going on.

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So I went straight to the top,

straight to the best educators.

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And since then, really, I'm, you

know, going down that rabbit hole.

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It continues to be very fascinating.

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So, yeah.

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Tali: I think it's so cool that, that you

have, uh, looked into Wim Hof because I

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tried his breathing technique for a while.

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And the Jordan Peterson, uh, the, ruminant

animal only diet is so interesting.

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And my husband and I try that

it's really hard to sustain,

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but we, while we were on it,

like you said, you just feel

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different and you feel better.

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Okay.

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Okay.

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So.

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This guy comes up to your door.

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He's wearing a Bitcoin t shirt.

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Was there any point when you

were talking to him where you

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thought, No, this can't be real.

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Julia: No, because I

trusted him immediately.

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There was immediately, I, I

didn't have any doubts really.

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What that what you just said was before,

you know, obviously, um, I had heard about

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Bitcoin every now and then in the years

before, but you know, you put it away.

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You just think nah, this cannot be true.

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And it's a digital thing.

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Come on, you know, how could it be safe?

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How could it be capped?

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I mean, I don't even think I It was, it

just seemed ludicrous before the idea

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that this could be something, something

and something so important even, huh?

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Tali: So what did this guy tell you

that made you feel more comfortable

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beyond the fact that you kind of, you

trusted him, but what did he say about

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Bitcoin that made you feel comfortable

with it to keep learning about it?

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Julia: Well, he just, you know, I

don't know what it was, not something

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specific that he said it was just

his, uh, His being, I guess, you know,

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that installed the, the, the trust.

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I mean, he, he pointed me towards

some of the educators, maybe.

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And he helped me set up wallet

and explained everything.

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And was always there when I

needed help with the technological

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side of things, which is.

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my weakest point and, and it

just kind of flowed from there.

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You know, we did a few Bitcoin

workshops at my place and there was

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never any question after that point.

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There was never really,

Oh, do I really trust him?

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Nah, you know, it just never came to mind.

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Tali: What about your husband?

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Um, did he hop on board

as easily as you did?

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Julia: Um, no, he's um, He's just there.

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I said, no, he's not.

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So he didn't jump into

the rabbit hole yet.

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Really.

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: 00:18:13

He just lets me, you know, he's

hanging around on the fence, basically.

314

: 00:18:20

I mean, he put some, you know,

he knows what they were putting

315

: 00:18:23

money in and all that, but it's

not, he's never really studied it.

316

: 00:18:27

And, um, Yeah, that's, uh, sometimes

that's a bit difficult because you

317

: 00:18:31

just want to exchange your, you know,

your passion about it, but that's okay.

318

: 00:18:36

It's okay.

319

: 00:18:37

You know, we're in this together

and he lets me be the Bitcoin

320

: 00:18:42

person of the relationship.

321

: 00:18:45

Tali: That's unusual because

usually it's the other way around.

322

: 00:18:48

So what is his biggest

hesitation about Bitcoin?

323

: 00:18:52

Julia: Why not ask him yourself?

324

: 00:18:54

No, I'm joking.

325

: 00:18:55

I don't really know because

it's really something.

326

: 00:18:58

We don't really talk about it much.

327

: 00:19:00

It's just completely my thing.

328

: 00:19:02

Like the chickens are completely my thing.

329

: 00:19:04

You know, I'm the homestead

of Bitcoiner and he's the tree

330

: 00:19:09

surgery, whatever he does guy.

331

: 00:19:10

And it's, it's, you know, we have our

fields of expertise and that's what we do.

332

: 00:19:16

There it's, sometimes I get a little

bit stressed about it, but that's okay.

333

: 00:19:20

You know, we've been together for

a very long time and it's okay.

334

: 00:19:24

We don't have to.

335

: 00:19:25

Both do the same things and, you

know, share the same opinions.

336

: 00:19:30

So I don't really know.

337

: 00:19:32

I think it's, he's still, he's

not sure about it simply because

338

: 00:19:36

he hasn't studied it yet.

339

: 00:19:38

Tali: What about sharing

it with your children?

340

: 00:19:40

Julia: Um, they have their little wallets.

341

: 00:19:42

They know about it.

342

: 00:19:45

I have just ordered a couple of

children's education books from the

343

: 00:19:49

United States, which I'm waiting for

them to come through the customs.

344

: 00:19:53

so my children are six and ten.

345

: 00:19:55

So yes, there is the conversation

sometimes goes there, but I'm not giving

346

: 00:20:00

them the deep down only to the point

where they ask or they want to know.

347

: 00:20:05

Thank But yes, I, what, what,

what did my daughter say?

348

: 00:20:08

So yeah, so they asked the other

day, where does money come from?

349

: 00:20:13

And I said, this is such an

interesting question, huh?

350

: 00:20:16

And so I explained to her that

it gets printed by somebody.

351

: 00:20:20

And she said like, okay, but

that person could just print

352

: 00:20:24

money for themselves, right?

353

: 00:20:25

And I'm like, yeah, in, in a way

that's a little bit what it is.

354

: 00:20:30

Which it is.

355

: 00:20:31

So it's starting, you know,

it's going with the flow.

356

: 00:20:35

Tali: So what is life like in Portugal

in terms of, , your local currency?

357

: 00:20:41

, are you experiencing the same

level of inflation that we are?

358

: 00:20:44

, well, at least in the United States over

the last two years, because of COVID,

359

: 00:20:48

there was a lot of money printing.

360

: 00:20:49

And everybody's noticing that they're

at least grocery bill has just.

361

: 00:20:54

skyrocketed.

362

: 00:20:55

What is it like in Portugal?

363

: 00:20:57

Julia: So we've got the, the Euro,

, there's the European currency now, huh?

364

: 00:21:01

And, um, it's It's skyrocketing.

365

: 00:21:05

Well, skyrocketing.

366

: 00:21:07

Uh, you notice a huge difference.

367

: 00:21:09

Yes.

368

: 00:21:09

So I'm, when I'm going shopping, I

intuitively make up my accounts and

369

: 00:21:14

it usually always works out well.

370

: 00:21:16

I recently, I find that without

actually putting the numbers in the

371

: 00:21:20

calculator, I've got a feeling of

how much money I've got in my pocket

372

: 00:21:23

and how much I can put in my basket.

373

: 00:21:25

Recently, it hasn't worked so well

because The prices have gone up.

374

: 00:21:30

Yes, especially for products like

animal products, butter, meat, milk,

375

: 00:21:36

you know, the, the precious stuff,

the nutrient dense products, they have

376

: 00:21:41

gone up a lot, including animal feed.

377

: 00:21:43

This is where I notice it the most.

378

: 00:21:45

So animal feed has almost doubled.

379

: 00:21:49

Grains for the chickens and the pigs.

380

: 00:21:52

There's been a huge increase.

381

: 00:21:53

Tali: So how do you cope with

that, that huge increase in

382

: 00:21:57

the running of your homestead?

383

: 00:21:59

Julia: I made the price.

384

: 00:22:01

So I'm selling products.

385

: 00:22:03

Um, when I, I produce a little bit

more than what we need and then

386

: 00:22:07

the excess gets sold and I have

increased the prices a little bit.

387

: 00:22:11

Yes.

388

: 00:22:11

That's how it is.

389

: 00:22:13

Tali: So do you accept

Bitcoin at your farm?

390

: 00:22:15

Julia: Yes, we do.

391

: 00:22:16

I have had several people

already pay me on lightning.

392

: 00:22:19

Yes.

393

: 00:22:20

Tali: That's exciting.

394

: 00:22:22

Okay, so how has entering the Bitcoin

space participating in that sort of

395

: 00:22:27

ecosystem changed how you operate

your life or your farm, either one?

396

: 00:22:35

Julia: Um,

397

: 00:22:36

I think saving money has become, Possible

again, if it wasn't for Bitcoin, we

398

: 00:22:42

would be spending the money as it

comes in because of that lingering

399

: 00:22:47

feel that if you don't spend it now,

it will be worth less in the future.

400

: 00:22:52

Now Bitcoin has given me that

tool of saving money, which I

401

: 00:22:57

remember from my childhood, we

had these little saving booklets.

402

: 00:23:01

Yeah.

403

: 00:23:02

And that you would put

little bits of money in.

404

: 00:23:04

And then when you were like

16 or whatever, you could

405

: 00:23:07

have a bigger lump of money.

406

: 00:23:09

Never really worked that way,

but it was still in people's

407

: 00:23:13

minds that you could save money.

408

: 00:23:15

And I think that's gone lost

over the last 20 years of a lot.

409

: 00:23:19

People have.

410

: 00:23:21

Especially, you know, especially the

lower income classes, you know, of

411

: 00:23:26

course, if you have huge income,

you can always save some money, but

412

: 00:23:29

even in the bigger income money and,

you know, it becomes more and more

413

: 00:23:33

challenging to preserve your wealth.

414

: 00:23:35

And, um, Bitcoin has given us this

tool , to put money away for our

415

: 00:23:40

future and for the children's future.

416

: 00:23:43

Tali: Yeah, for sure.

417

: 00:23:44

, I was talking to my son and his fiance

last night and we're talking about them

418

: 00:23:49

planning their future going forward.

419

: 00:23:51

And I said to them, , you

can't save fast enough to beat

420

: 00:23:55

inflation with your salary jobs.

421

: 00:23:58

It's just, especially because they're

in their early twenties, , it

422

: 00:24:01

used to be that you could.

423

: 00:24:02

But not anymore.

424

: 00:24:04

Okay, so you did mention that Your

parents and your brother also moved

425

: 00:24:08

from germany to portugal Would you

mind sharing the reason for their move?

426

: 00:24:12

Did they come to be with you?

427

: 00:24:14

Or was there something happening

in germany that prompted them

428

: 00:24:16

to want to go to portugal?

429

: 00:24:18

Julia: So through my teenage years, my

parents have kind of played with the

430

: 00:24:22

idea of leaving Germany because they've

always been, um, the odd ones out more

431

: 00:24:29

alternative minded than the The people

around them and it's always been there

432

: 00:24:35

somewhere, but never anything concrete.

433

: 00:24:37

Really.

434

: 00:24:38

Now me going away and saying,

I'm coming back just to pack

435

: 00:24:41

my bags, to get my horse.

436

: 00:24:43

And then I'm out again.

437

: 00:24:44

Um, that was the trigger.

438

: 00:24:46

And they initially, they just said,

okay, , we're gonna, while you're back

439

: 00:24:51

here, packing your things, getting

ready for your move, we're going to

440

: 00:24:54

go on holiday to Portugal and see.

441

: 00:24:57

where you are going to live, just so we

have an idea of What's happening with you?

442

: 00:25:02

Because, you know, I was 19.

443

: 00:25:03

So that's still very young.

444

: 00:25:05

And, um, off they went.

445

: 00:25:07

I stayed with my brother,

who's 12 years younger.

446

: 00:25:09

So he was in school.

447

: 00:25:11

And so I had to take him to school there.

448

: 00:25:13

And they came back after two years

and had bought a house in Portugal.

449

: 00:25:19

And that was that.

450

: 00:25:20

So, they were coming over to, they fell

in love with the place, just like I did,

451

: 00:25:26

and that's that, and they came over,

and my brother went to school here,

452

: 00:25:30

and nobody ever regretted the move.

453

: 00:25:33

Tali: Okay, this is a really

ignorant question, but was

454

: 00:25:37

there a language barrier?

455

: 00:25:38

I mean in portugal they speak a

different language than what you speak

456

: 00:25:42

in germany, so Did it just decide that

they were going to learn a new language?

457

: 00:25:47

And it just, just like that?

458

: 00:25:49

Julia: Just like that.

459

: 00:25:51

Yeah, just like that.

460

: 00:25:52

It was, um, in Germany they

speak German, and in Portugal

461

: 00:25:57

they speak Portuguese, right?

462

: 00:25:59

So yes, we all had to learn the language.

463

: 00:26:01

Tali: So no struggles there, because

like, to me, that's a challenge.

464

: 00:26:04

Julia: It's a massive challenge and

I'm still, uh, I can speak Portuguese,

465

: 00:26:10

yes, but I'm nowhere near as

confident with my Portuguese speaking

466

: 00:26:15

as I am with my English speaking.

467

: 00:26:17

It's no comparison.

468

: 00:26:18

Now my parents, they get by, but you know,

they were already a little bit older and

469

: 00:26:24

my dad never really picked it up much.

470

: 00:26:26

Only, you know, the words he needed.

471

: 00:26:30

My mom gets by.

472

: 00:26:31

My brother obviously is fluent

cause he went to school.

473

: 00:26:35

Um, But yeah, you have

to learn the language.

474

: 00:26:39

Tali: Okay, so, I'm just gonna try to

think this through, so, there must be

475

: 00:26:44

something very special in Portugal for

them to be willing to put up with the

476

: 00:26:49

inconvenience of having to learn a new

language and then having to, , live

477

: 00:26:53

in a culture where, for your dad at

least, He's limited in his ability to

478

: 00:26:58

communicate with the people, locally.

479

: 00:27:00

So what was it about Portugal

that drew them so much?

480

: 00:27:04

Julia: I believe it was

the, the climate, huh?

481

: 00:27:06

Germany has this Northern climate

with deep cold winters and yeah,

482

: 00:27:13

we have summer, um, but it's

relatively short and Portugal is.

483

: 00:27:18

South is Mediterranean.

484

: 00:27:20

So you have zero snow to start with

temperatures do not drop on the zero.

485

: 00:27:26

I mean, there might be the odd peak

downwards in a very cold winter's

486

: 00:27:31

night, but it's just not a thing.

487

: 00:27:32

Huh?

488

: 00:27:33

And, uh, it makes life so much

easier, the huge amounts of sunshine.

489

: 00:27:40

So it's, it's warm.

490

: 00:27:41

It's sunny most year round.

491

: 00:27:43

You don't have to, worry

about the cold winters.

492

: 00:27:48

It's life's easier in that sense.

493

: 00:27:50

Tali: Yeah, I'm really jealous actually.

494

: 00:27:55

Okay, um, also you had mentioned that,

when your parents were in Germany,

495

: 00:28:00

they felt a little bit out of place.

496

: 00:28:02

What is it about Portugal that

makes them feel more at home?

497

: 00:28:06

In that sense.

498

: 00:28:07

Julia: Now I don't think they feel more

integrated here than they did in Germany.

499

: 00:28:11

Um, at all.

500

: 00:28:12

But all the other things about Portugal

are just weighing in the scales.

501

: 00:28:17

it's a holiday country so that

the vibe is completely different.

502

: 00:28:22

especially for them because they

never had to go to work here.

503

: 00:28:25

So they're already in their retirement

years and didn't have to worry

504

: 00:28:31

about finding jobs and making money.

505

: 00:28:33

So that was already ticked.

506

: 00:28:35

So it's just a beautiful

place to, to, to retire in.

507

: 00:28:39

Tali: What about Bitcoin?

508

: 00:28:40

Are they open to Bitcoin?

509

: 00:28:42

Do they care about Bitcoin?

510

: 00:28:45

Julia: They, yes, I have

managed to orange pill them all.

511

: 00:28:51

But none of them is as passionate

or as educated about it as I am.

512

: 00:28:56

So.

513

: 00:28:57

I tried, I gave my mom, I bought

her the Bitcoin standard in

514

: 00:29:01

German, but she's like, ah, you

know, it's difficult to read.

515

: 00:29:05

I'll just trust you.

516

: 00:29:07

Okay.

517

: 00:29:08

Okay.

518

: 00:29:09

Okay.

519

: 00:29:11

But, um, they are, yeah, I'm

the most passionate about

520

: 00:29:14

it, but they are all in it.

521

: 00:29:16

They all got some sats stacked away

522

: 00:29:18

Tali: What about your younger brother?

523

: 00:29:20

Julia: also.

524

: 00:29:21

Tali: How does he feel about it?

525

: 00:29:22

Like is he just going along because you

said it's a thing and you should, okay.

526

: 00:29:27

Julia: That's right.

527

: 00:29:31

I say do and they do.

528

: 00:29:34

Tali: that's very lucky.

529

: 00:29:36

. What is the Bitcoin community

like where you live?

530

: 00:29:39

Julia: I'm very friendly.

531

: 00:29:40

Uh, we sometimes have some meetups.

532

: 00:29:43

It's developing.

533

: 00:29:45

People are starting to, especially

where Holly is in the Western Algarve.

534

: 00:29:50

So people are starting to really

integrate shop owners into the network.

535

: 00:29:55

And that's great.

536

: 00:29:56

Um, so it's The seed is

germinating, so to say.

537

: 00:30:01

Other than that, I sometimes

meet, I, so I run playdates

538

: 00:30:05

here every Wednesday afternoon.

539

: 00:30:07

I run playdates for, because my children

are homeschooled and I run homeschooler

540

: 00:30:12

meetups once a week and strangely

enough, a lot of Bitcoiners show up, huh?

541

: 00:30:16

Because a lot of Bitcoin's

children seem to be homeschooled.

542

: 00:30:20

Well, that's nice.

543

: 00:30:21

Tali: Yeah.

544

: 00:30:21

Tell us about that.

545

: 00:30:22

Why did you decide to homeschool?

546

: 00:30:24

Julia: Um, because of COVID, uh,

um, so we, we sent, we initially we

547

: 00:30:29

thought, okay, none of us has done

alternative schooling, neither my

548

: 00:30:33

husband nor me, we were just normally

schooled in the public schools.

549

: 00:30:37

And we thought, okay, um, how about

we alternatively school our child?

550

: 00:30:43

And then we decided against it

because we don't have the experience.

551

: 00:30:49

And the local school has

got a very good reputation.

552

: 00:30:51

It's very small.

553

: 00:30:52

It's very local.

554

: 00:30:53

And so we sent her to the local

school and then COVID started and.

555

: 00:30:58

The mania started with the masks

and the fear and the testing and the

556

: 00:31:05

vaccination and the, you know, it all.

557

: 00:31:09

And we thought, no, we don't really

want our child exposed to all of this.

558

: 00:31:13

So we took her out quickly and

started our homeschooling journey and

559

: 00:31:19

have no intentions of ever sending

a child back into public school.

560

: 00:31:23

Tali: So in the beginning, , how

did you prepare for it?

561

: 00:31:26

Julia: I didn't, I just

jumped in the deep end.

562

: 00:31:29

I had, uh, a good, um, I have, we have

a good umbrella school who kind of

563

: 00:31:34

led us into it a little bit, but in

the end, it's just you and your child.

564

: 00:31:38

You have to just find your way with it.

565

: 00:31:40

Tali: You seem so easy with new

challenges and new projects.

566

: 00:31:45

, what would you say to a Bitcoiner who's

thinking about homeschooling possibly?

567

: 00:31:50

Julia: Oh, a hundred

percent, a hundred percent.

568

: 00:31:53

It's just, it's been

such an eyeopening thing.

569

: 00:31:56

Again, you only realize when you do it,

how much Time these children spend in

570

: 00:32:02

school doing nothing or stupid things.

571

: 00:32:06

It's just like this massive

babysitting service and the

572

: 00:32:09

stuff that they learn there.

573

: 00:32:11

I can teach my children

at home in an hour a day.

574

: 00:32:14

And the rest of the time, they are out

there playing with the neighbor's kids

575

: 00:32:19

who are also homeschooled, doing creative

things from morning till night, being

576

: 00:32:24

with the animals, and just living their

children's lives as they should be.

577

: 00:32:30

And it's just the thought of putting

them into a classroom and sit them down.

578

: 00:32:36

Nah, not anymore.

579

: 00:32:37

Those days are over for me.

580

: 00:32:39

Totally.

581

: 00:32:41

Tali: I also homeschooled.

582

: 00:32:42

, I have four kids and

they've all graduated.

583

: 00:32:45

So I've gone from one end to the other.

584

: 00:32:48

And what I loved about homeschooling

was the fact that my boys,

585

: 00:32:51

especially very, very active.

586

: 00:32:53

I love that they could learn while

they're being physically active.

587

: 00:32:58

So for example, when they were memorizing

the multiplication table, I had them

588

: 00:33:03

jumping on our sofa while they were

reciting and you couldn't do that.

589

: 00:33:09

In school, you know, and even like my

in laws will come over to my house and

590

: 00:33:14

go, no, no, no, you can't stand up on

the furniture and I'm thinking, why not?

591

: 00:33:18

That's why it's there.

592

: 00:33:18

You I'm like probably too, free about

that, but I'm like, jump on the bed.

593

: 00:33:23

I don't care.

594

: 00:33:23

Jump on the furniture.

595

: 00:33:24

That's what it's there for, you

know, get your hands dirty, , go

596

: 00:33:27

outside, roll around in the mud.

597

: 00:33:29

It's all good.

598

: 00:33:29

It's all part of growing up.

599

: 00:33:31

I don't believe that kids have to

sit still and be clean all the time.

600

: 00:33:35

Julia: Mine are rarely clean, only

in summer when they go in the pool.

601

: 00:33:41

No, just joking, but you know what I mean.

602

: 00:33:43

They are out there always.

603

: 00:33:45

Tali: As they should

be, as they should be.

604

: 00:33:48

It's, it's such a, , more healthy

lifestyle and, , you get to teach

605

: 00:33:53

them according to their needs,?

606

: 00:33:54

So share maybe some challenges

that you've had to overcome.

607

: 00:33:58

when you started

homeschooling up until now.

608

: 00:34:01

Julia: So the biggest challenge was

dealing with the, with the system here.

609

: 00:34:05

So getting her out and everybody off our

backs was a very, very, uh, stressful.

610

: 00:34:14

Cause we, uh, so there's different

ways of doing this, but we

611

: 00:34:19

were in a awkward situation.

612

: 00:34:22

So.

613

: 00:34:22

By law, we couldn't do what we

do, but by constitution we can.

614

: 00:34:28

So the constitution of Portugal says

that the parent has the the right to

615

: 00:34:33

choose the education for their child,

but the law says the child has to go

616

: 00:34:37

to a publicly, registered school.

617

: 00:34:41

So there's this gray area, huh?

618

: 00:34:43

And while the, while the law said

no, and they sent, uh, from social

619

: 00:34:49

services to youth protection people,

it was awful, very, very stressful.

620

: 00:34:55

But then we had a very good

constitutional lawyer through our

621

: 00:34:59

school, which is actually an American

school as well, who operates here.

622

: 00:35:02

And, We were always very transparent, but

they really helped us close that case.

623

: 00:35:09

in the eyes of big brother, so to say.

624

: 00:35:12

So that's, and then since then

we're through and nobody's

625

: 00:35:15

knocking on our door again.

626

: 00:35:16

It's all good.

627

: 00:35:18

Um, but yeah, it was, it wasn't

an easy journey because we already

628

: 00:35:21

had her in the public school.

629

: 00:35:23

Now, my second one, I don't think

I will ever hear anything from

630

: 00:35:26

anybody because he's, uh, he's

never stepped into the system.

631

: 00:35:30

But with her, it was difficult

because we were in the spotlight.

632

: 00:35:35

Tali: I'm glad you got that sorted out.

633

: 00:35:37

What about on the academic side?

634

: 00:35:38

Was there any part of homeschooling

that was particularly challenging?

635

: 00:35:43

Julia: well, we are now

going into fifth grade.

636

: 00:35:46

I always said that the primary school,

elementary school, whatever you call

637

: 00:35:50

it, uh, is the easy bit because,

you know, that's, that's the basic.

638

: 00:35:55

I can do this.

639

: 00:35:56

Now going into fifth, et cetera,

grade, I think I'm going to rely

640

: 00:36:01

more on what's offered online.

641

: 00:36:03

I'm gonna, use more courses and

resources, which I find, and I'm hoping

642

: 00:36:08

that that will be our path forward.

643

: 00:36:12

, Tali: there are so many

resources nowadays.

644

: 00:36:14

It's, it's actually quite easy for

parents to almost, there's almost too

645

: 00:36:19

much information, you know, but there's,

there's so many places you can get help.

646

: 00:36:25

You don't have to do it yourself.

647

: 00:36:26

I think that's what a lot of people

misunderstand about homeschooling is

648

: 00:36:29

that you have to do everything yourself.

649

: 00:36:31

And that's just not true.

650

: 00:36:33

Okay.

651

: 00:36:34

So you mentioned that you had ordered some

books to teach your kids about Bitcoin.

652

: 00:36:39

What did you order?

653

: 00:36:40

What are these books?

654

: 00:36:41

Julia: I can't even remember the title.

655

: 00:36:42

And oh, I can hold on a something with

monster that this, uh, I would have

656

: 00:36:50

to look it up because it's ages ago.

657

: 00:36:51

And then the stuff got held up

in the customs and I've only now.

658

: 00:36:55

Um, You know, filled in all the

forms and sent him the extra

659

: 00:36:59

payment and all that kind of stuff,

which is always a problem getting

660

: 00:37:02

things from America, unfortunately.

661

: 00:37:04

wait, Chamori.

662

: 00:37:05

Chamori is the name of the editor.

663

: 00:37:07

Uh, you heard about it?

664

: 00:37:10

Yeah.

665

: 00:37:11

Tali: a

666

: 00:37:12

Julia: Yes,

667

: 00:37:12

Tali: I think is

668

: 00:37:12

Julia: that's right.

669

: 00:37:13

Yes, yes, yes.

670

: 00:37:14

I think that's two of those books.

671

: 00:37:16

Tali: Got it.

672

: 00:37:17

Oh yeah.

673

: 00:37:18

, we know , the Couple who produces them.

674

: 00:37:21

Scott is great.

675

: 00:37:22

His name is Scott.

676

: 00:37:23

My husband's name is Scott My husband

actually designed a board game to

677

: 00:37:28

teach me about Bitcoin a couple

years ago And it was the way that

678

: 00:37:33

I had to Interact with Bitcoin to

understand it enough to go forward.

679

: 00:37:38

So it's actually become a tool that

we're sharing with All the Bitcoiners

680

: 00:37:42

were willing to listen to us.

681

: 00:37:43

It's a board game.

682

: 00:37:45

And, uh, we actually created it for

middle schoolers and up to learn about

683

: 00:37:50

Bitcoin mining, but we've had a lot of

customers who wrote us and said, you

684

: 00:37:54

know what, I played the game with my

five year old and they catch on so quick.

685

: 00:38:01

Don't you don't think that they would

think that way, but you know, they

686

: 00:38:04

have nothing to unlearn and so it's

just it's just been a Fascinating

687

: 00:38:09

journey, but yeah, there are more

and more resources coming online.

688

: 00:38:13

There's something else you can use as

well has an app that rolled out a few

689

: 00:38:19

months ago And as long as you have access

to an internet you can access their

690

: 00:38:23

material Me premiere is another one.

691

: 00:38:27

There was another guest who used

their material to have a Bitcoin

692

: 00:38:32

camp for her daughter and her

friends who are in elementary school.

693

: 00:38:36

So, lots of resources.

694

: 00:38:38

Julia: I would love to get in

touch with you after and then

695

: 00:38:41

maybe you can send me some stuff.

696

: 00:38:43

I'm always very grateful for people

sending me in the right direction.

697

: 00:38:46

So that'd be awesome.

698

: 00:38:48

Tali: Yeah, no problem at all.

699

: 00:38:49

Um, okay.

700

: 00:38:50

So, last question.

701

: 00:38:52

What would you suggest to women Bitcoin?

702

: 00:38:56

Julia: So I think the first thing I

would recommend is to put an amount in

703

: 00:39:02

that you feel comfortable uh, losing.

704

: 00:39:05

Um, so to get off zero, yeah,

that's the big motto here.

705

: 00:39:11

And then after that, I

think then educate yourself.

706

: 00:39:16

But educate yourself, because there is

like a handful of top educators out there,

707

: 00:39:21

and these are brilliant people producing

amazing educational material through

708

: 00:39:27

their interviews, podcasts, you name it.

709

: 00:39:30

Find the one that resonates with

you, and then go from there.

710

: 00:39:36

You will find one that resonates

with you, I promise you that.

711

: 00:39:39

There's going to be somebody out

there who will grab your fascination.

712

: 00:39:44

But another thing I would also say to

them is why are you sitting on the fence?

713

: 00:39:49

Do you think it's a scam?

714

: 00:39:51

It's an old scam then.

715

: 00:39:53

Hey, I mean, haven't worked that out.

716

: 00:39:54

So do you think it's a scam?

717

: 00:39:56

Ask that question or do

you think you're too late?

718

: 00:40:00

Is that why you're sitting on the

fence or do you have no money?

719

: 00:40:04

Do you feel like you can put nothing in?

720

: 00:40:07

So on that one, I would say if you're

really poor and you really can't

721

: 00:40:11

afford to put anything in, there is.

722

: 00:40:15

websites where you can stack free sets.

723

: 00:40:17

You can find them and you can

actually get sets for free.

724

: 00:40:22

It's trickle stuff, but

it's there and it works.

725

: 00:40:26

And so if you really feel you

have zero amount to spend,

726

: 00:40:30

then start stacking free sets.

727

: 00:40:33

And then about the other two,

I think we also have to ask

728

: 00:40:36

yourself, what's the worst outcome?

729

: 00:40:38

So what's the worst outcome?

730

: 00:40:41

If you put a hundred dollars

in and it's a scam and then you

731

: 00:40:47

lose a hundred dollars, okay.

732

: 00:40:50

What's the worst outcome if you

don't put the hundred euros in and

733

: 00:40:55

or dollars and it's not a scam,

then we're going to be in 10 years.

734

: 00:41:00

So really, you know, always

ask what's the worst outcome.

735

: 00:41:04

And then think again.

736

: 00:41:06

I think that's what I

would say to everybody.

737

: 00:41:11

Tali: I love that advice about if

you don't have money to buy Bitcoin,

738

: 00:41:15

then start earning free sats.

739

: 00:41:17

That is so true.

740

: 00:41:18

I never thought of it that

way, but it is so true.

741

: 00:41:21

And there are apps that would give

you, like you said, trickle amounts

742

: 00:41:25

of sats, and you're already off zero

if you just do that one simple thing.

743

: 00:41:30

Wonderful.

744

: 00:41:31

Thank you so much, Julia.

745

: 00:41:33

I so appreciate you talking with us today.

746

: 00:41:37

Thanks for joining us today . If the

discussion with our guests resonated

747

: 00:41:41

with you and you would like to dive

deeper into the world of Bitcoin,

748

: 00:41:45

don't miss out on joining the

Orange Hatter Women's Reading Club.

749

: 00:41:49

The meetup link is in the show notes.

750

: 00:41:51

Also, if there are women in your life

whom you think would both enjoy and

751

: 00:41:55

benefit from learning more about Bitcoin,

please share Orange Hatter with them.

752

: 00:42:00

Until next time, bye!