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How a #normie who hasn't been on any social media in nearly a decade ended up on #Nostr.

4 years ago, I was diagnosed with cancer. It took almost 3 years to recover enough to feel somewhat normal again. Before the diagnosis, I was self-employed, single, with a child and absolutely no support system. All of my family is still in Russia, and because of the sanctions, every avenue for helping us financially was closed.

During one of our video calls, my brother suggested I look into getting a #Bitcoin wallet. We made eye contact, and I said, “I’ll look into it,” and we both knew perfectly well that wasn't going to happen.

I did, though, watch a bunch of YouTube videos (“Bitcoin for Dummies”) while I was cooking, and that's where I first heard about Nostr.

I also occasionally read WGSN's trend forecasts, and Nostr was mentioned there as well (decentralized social media).

Last month I thought it would be a terrible shame if the world never knows about the #GrimReapersYoungerHotterBrother So I started wondering where I could publish my writing with the best chance of it surviving, and Nostr came up again.

I thought Nostr was half a Reddit Bitcoin discussion forum and half a free Dropbox (with complicated instructions). Instead, I found people.

It's lovely here. I think I'll stay. #GrowNostr

P.S. It's weird, but after just a few weeks on Nostr, I've realized that I actually want to meet more people in real life and be more socially engaged outside the digital world. Historically, regular social media has had the exact opposite effect on me.

Dear #Nostr ! You’ve spent the last week showing one curious #normie your strange little world; here’s a doorway into mine. If you have 10–15 minutes to spend inside someone else’s life, I hope mine is an interesting place to visit. Let me know if you’d like more.

#NostrReads #GrowNostr

P.S. Sorry for the spam. Your resident normie is learning.

#Normie on #Nostr, Day 7. A week ago when I joined, I didn’t really think of becoming part of the community. I figured I’d just upload my manuscripts and hope they outlive me on relays. Free perpetual-ish online storage.

Then I got here, looked around, and I liked it! I like all of the non-normie sass, and I hope to learn from you guys!

I am genuinely confused though whether the non-normie locals want more people to join Nostr, or would rather keep it the small, highly technical, self-selecting community it already is. From what I’ve seen so far, I certainly don’t get the overwhelming impression that making Nostr more appealing or intelligible to normies is a priority.

#GrowNostr