Live data from Hacker News

The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

wsj.com

151–160 of 314 posts

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#151
post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Startups usually have fridge full of booze. We usually use it on fridays or during certain major milestones. Not a big deal

This was the case for most teams I worked on at Google too; I would have an afternoon beer and work from the couch near the mini-fridge at least once a week (I was in my early 20s, so this was less impairing than it probably would be now), and people would usually join me, though not everyone would drink. That being said, a mini-fridge of booze _per-employee_ is pretty unusual.

SRE was particularly notorious for this.

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#152
post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>>Tony Hsieh had a surprisingly large collection of half-empty liquor bottles at his desk. Not just Tony. My best friend used to work at Zappos. He used to brag to me that every employee/team gets their own mini-fridge, which is stocked with booze and liquor. He said that a common "bonding" experience for different teams in the company is to exchange different types of liquor. This was in early 2010s. He said drinkin…

Startups usually have fridge full of booze. We usually use it on fridays or during certain major milestones. Not a big deal

It's cool when you're in your 20s but not so much when you get older.

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#153

I am a recovering nitrous oxide addict who once set himself on fire, so I understand the terrible predicament he found himself in. Many people do nitrous recreationally as a party drug, but there's a reason they call it 'hippie crack.' Some become obsessed with it

The documentary of Steve-O's (from Jackass fame) descent into madness via nitrous oxide and other drugs was terrifying. The way he would convulse and then have conversations with his Mom and talk to the voices in his head? The whole thing left me speechless. Steve-O Demise & Rise [MTV Special]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1ulzP2XUOg

That doc was so dark to watch, he was just pure self-destructive.

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I forgot to mention, it's a rich man's drug, another way it's similar to cocaine. I probably spent $150,000 on cases of whippets (25 boxes x 24 whippets to a box.) My first reaction to Tony Hsieh and nitrous was "He had too much money for his own good." I ran out of money before I could kill myself with it.

here's a writeup that really stuck with me for the last decade about the surprising level of organized crime in selling nitrous at music festivals: https://www.villagevoice.com/2010/07/06/inside-the-nitrous-m...

It’s (comparatively) very cheap in bulk tank form.

But that’s much harder to come by for most people.

The small whippets cartridges... you’re paying for the steel, getting a gas in there and markups. If they filled it with room air, it would cost the same.

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think one "advantage" could be that it's an invisible drug. People don't know that you're doing it, unless of course you have neurological or organ damage, but even then it could be explained away.

You start getting incoherent after heavy use, even when not currently using. People who know you notice. Jewel said she left an event early because she was upset to see Tony was acting that way. It takes 4-6 days to recover from a heavy run, including getting feeling back in your nerve endings. Taking B vitamins help.

How much is a "heavy run"? Another commenter mentioned buying many cases.

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think one "advantage" could be that it's an invisible drug. People don't know that you're doing it, unless of course you have neurological or organ damage, but even then it could be explained away.

You start getting incoherent after heavy use, even when not currently using. People who know you notice. Jewel said she left an event early because she was upset to see Tony was acting that way. It takes 4-6 days to recover from a heavy run, including getting feeling back in your nerve endings. Taking B vitamins help.

I’d go further and say everyone taking nitrous oxide should be taking b12 supplements.

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#157
post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You buy shoes through amazon.com now (with fulfillment by Zappos). That's where all the development has gone. I get the feeling zappos.com is a dead end.

Yeah that makes sense, but then my question is why did Hsieh stay as CEO for that long in what was basically a dead end company within Amazon? It doesn’t seem like that is something someone like Hsieh would ever want to do, and yet he stayed there for a decade post acquisition.

Based on the accounts that are now coming out, the guy had been living in a fantasy world for some time.

He was probably happy to stay at Zappos as long as it made him feel good. He didn't actually need to be good at business anymore because Amazon was running the show. After leaving, he decamped to Park City and paid former colleagues to join him there, to continue the party, because that is what Zappos leadership had become by that point: a party free from the daily duties and concerns of running a company that needed to succeed in the market in order to survive.

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#158
post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nitrous in cars cools the chamber allowing you to add more fuel/oxygen. It’s also not for “super charged” engines specifically.

It is a nice complement, as compressed air from a turbo or super charger is very hot. The nitrous cools it down. People also use a water or alcohol spray for a similar reason.

While it will be cooler, it also reacts better than O2 from the air. Especially since you’re injecting 100% N2O instead of 79% inert atmospheric air.

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You start getting incoherent after heavy use, even when not currently using. People who know you notice. Jewel said she left an event early because she was upset to see Tony was acting that way. It takes 4-6 days to recover from a heavy run, including getting feeling back in your nerve endings. Taking B vitamins help.

How much is a "heavy run"? Another commenter mentioned buying many cases.

Some rather serious side effects have been described in a vegetarian (probably already b12 deficient) after just an hour of continuous exposure.

While that was in a clinical setting, it can be quick if you’re already at risk.

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6...

Re: The Death of Tony Hsieh: A Spiral of Alcohol, Drugs and Extreme Behavior

#160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no stigma in the pretty words from HR and massive stigma in the actions of HR

What does HR have to do with anything/?

They can tell us about their fruit baskets and flat hierarchies.

HR is often a great example of how fucked it all is. (Good humane HR is rare)

Post reply on HN