Grace and Truth

Confession... I find Lightning strangely confusing. I'm not sure if it's just me. The workaround wallets with liquid, cashu, or custodial lightning are very handy. I figured I'd sort out proper self-custody lightning when I set up a node. When I did, I explored the tools the implementations offer. Much of what's available for BTC nodes relates to lightning, and there's a lot available. I could enjoy getting good at managing channels and make that my next adventure, but I realized I don't have enough Bitcoin to do it well, or to be willing to risk putting so much in hot wallets. And being great at routing transactions through a public node isn't really my goal - I just wanted an actual lightning wallet with channels I can use. A good, blunt article from nostr:nprofile1qqs0nt9skq6vfsgh06v979rrnuchau87mmnk2lqxpv2xaeusqfp30mqpzemhxue69uhky6t5vdhkjmn9wgh8xmmrd9skcqgwwaehxw309ahx7uewd3hkctc95jngd helped clarify it all (Thank you!) and show me all I was really looking for was a wallet like Zeus or BlixtWallet that could run a private node on my phone, with channels in the background for my own transactions, not a public node trying to route everyone else's. I liked BitBanana, but I don't think it does this. That simplified the search and saved me from going too much further down that path, but still, each wallet seems to be missing something I had in mind: - private lightning node - self-custodial - no KYC or identity info/signup - no dependence on Google Play - working NWC (I imagine ones that offer the rest will soon add NWC) - open source, on Zapstore, ideally I'm sharing in case it saves others a little time... And in case I'm missing something obvious y'all have already figured out! #lightning #wallets #NWC

I saw a transaction on the blockchain last night. 4,014 BTC moved, for a fee of 169 sats. $340 million dollars moved for $0.14. We're so used to it now, but it blew my mind. No central authority to reject the transaction or charge a fortune, no bank to take weeks to send forms and make approvals. We've never had that ability before, and most people still have no idea it exists. And people whine about price! It's freedom money. It will go up, but I think the longer the price stays low, the better - let it get into the hands of the people, not the central banks and nation states. Let the big guys drop it as boring or risky, while the little people find this tool that releases control and lets them get established. People will wish they'd bought Bitcoin way back in 2026, back in the early days.

The friend who taught me about Bitcoin did well. Now, family members text me when the price drops, saying they want to buy. That's the way! The fear people are trying to talk themselves through just doesn't compute - I get excited!