50. A tense few hours at the Apple Store
I.
Leidseplein in Amsterdam, normally teeming with people, was suddenly deserted two years ago. Apart from dozens of police specialists, who were keeping a close watch on the Apple Store. Inside, a man was brandishing a weapon. And a Bulgarian man who happened to be in the shop just before closing time became his hostage. An Apple Store employee had slipped unseen into a locked cupboard with three other customers and was hiding there. It was a tense few hours in the capital.
You can now see how the evening unfolded in the AT5/Videoland report The Hostage Situation at the Apple Store. You can follow the hostage situation minute by minute, from the perspective of various people involved. Even from the perspective of the hostage-taker, Abdel A., who was wearing a bodycam whose footage has been released. Why he recorded the hostage situation is unknown, but it is certainly bizarre. You wouldn’t want to get any closer to a hostage situation than this.
Abdel A. calls the police himself and asks for a mediator. He demands 200 million euros in cryptocurrency, threatening to blow the place up if his demands aren’t met. He is wearing a bomb vest and holds a weapon in his hand, which he fires at random intervals. In the background, the ‘business-as-usual’ pop music from the Apple Store plays over the speakers. I found that to be one of those details that made the situation even more absurd.
In the two-part documentary, you hear the hostage-taker talking to a mediator. Gradually, a picture of this man emerges. He was known to the police as nothing more than a petty criminal. The man was in debt and struggling with addictions. He felt let down by government agencies.
The hostage-taking seemed like a desperate move, an impulsive act. Those around him would never have expected this of him. But he had prepared it well. Although, in hindsight, no one still understands his exact motives. If he had problems with the authorities, why the Apple Store? It will remain a mystery, because Abdel A. became the only victim that evening. When his hostage-taker took to his heels, he was fatally struck by an armoured car.
“I hope for a long and happy life and a happy ending for everyone,” he had said earlier that evening. With 200 million euros, he would help people who had been through the same as him. This was supposed to be a sort of Robin Hood story. Taking from the elite, giving to the poor. And then perhaps getting on with a normal life. “A house, a garden, a pet,” he muses. “Perhaps once this is over. Then we can look to the future again.”
Did he ever really believe in that?
---II.
The second season of The Bear took a while to win me over, but eventually I was won over. In this season, every effort is made to get the new restaurant, The Bear, ready for opening. The first few episodes seem a bit disjointed and the new storylines take a bit of getting used to. But in the second half of the season, everything comes together and you realise once again why this is such a strong series. In the pressure cooker of restaurant life, every little gesture takes on enormous emotional weight.
This was the season in which the surly, foul-mouthed Richie blossoms. He’s not having an easy time of it. His best friend is dead, his own life is a mess. He takes it out on those around him. Then, in episode 7, The Bear’s owner Carmen sends him on a work placement at a top restaurant. It’s as if he’s been sent to the army to learn discipline. At first, Richie considers himself too good to polish forks, but gradually he finds his feet in the kitchen.
Richie also learns an important life lesson there. Make good use of your time, because every second counts. It’s never too late to start afresh and give your life meaning again. But don’t get stuck in negativity. Because the seconds are ticking away and before you know it, the hourglass will be empty.
In season 2, everyone struggles with those priorities. There’s constant time pressure, because The Bear has to open on time and it’s a complete shambles. The dishes still need to be devised. Carmen keeps forgetting to call the fridge repairman; his mind is a whirlwind. Until he’s forced to come to a standstill (perhaps too late).
It’s not hard to see from whom he’s inherited his chaotic nature. His mother Donna is so tangled up in her own thoughts that she, too, fails to realise that every second counts. Hopefully she’ll get a chance to recover in the third season, which is scheduled for June this year. And if you haven’t started watching The Bear yet, do so. It’s perhaps the most human series out there; it won’t leave you unmoved.
---Thanks for reading this newsletter! Why not treat yourself to a subscription? You’ll then receive future editions in your inbox every Sunday, free of charge.
---PS.
Whenever I see those New York Yankees caps (with the crossed letters N and Y), I always think of Limp Bizkit singer Fred Durst. The red cap he wore became part of his identity. But apart from Mr Durst, the caps have a very rich history anyway, as described in this in-depth report by NRC.
Netflix has made the animated film Nimona available in its entirety on Netflix. The film is in the running for an Oscar, so the company must be thinking: the more people who see it, the better. Nimona is about a girl with magical powers who befriends the knight who is actually supposed to be her enemy. On the official Rutger Otto Movie Meter, the film scores 3.5/5.
---This week I enjoyed an open secret that Fortune wrote about. It turns out that the American airline Delta has been producing trading cards for twenty years. Those in the know can ask for them for free during their journey. The cards feature images of aeroplanes with all sorts of information about the aircraft. They are gradually becoming valuable to collectors. On eBay, someone is asking $3,000 for a complete set of 62 cards. Later this year, the collection will be expanded with new designs.
Hooray! After six years, there’s a new album from the psychedelic band MGMT: Loss of Life. I’ve already become completely hooked on it this weekend. A few highlights are Bubblegum Dog, Nothing Changes, People in the Streets and the album’s first single: Dancing In Babylon (featuring Christine and the Queens).
---“Diane, 11:30 a.m., 24 February,” says FBI agent Dale Cooper into his tape recorder from his car. “Entering the town of Twin Peaks.”
That’s why 24 February is Twin Peaks Day. And every year, people mark the occasion on social media and websites. This year, The Verge published two articles that touched on my favourite TV series. For example, this one, featuring input from Twin Peaks co-creator Mark Frost, about how the TV series inspired the game The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening influenced. In any case, the echo of director David Lynch has been reverberating through the gaming world for years.
Incidentally, on Saturday there were dozens of people lining the road in the real-life town of Twin Peaks. And at 11.30 am, Agent Cooper actor Kyle MacLachlan drove past, waving briefly. What a treat.
---The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has switched on the first webcams in the nests of various birds again. Soon you’ll be able to watch 24 nests live; for now, you can already follow the tawny owl, the white-tailed eagle and the little owl, among others.
I hope you enjoyed reading this newsletter. If so, please feel free to share it with others. I always enjoy hearing from you, so do leave a comment!