That I am getting old, I can take. That the people I love is getting old, that hurts. Both out of our control, I know. Still.
Message to child, regarding upcoming nourishment situation, and potential remediation.
Mamá just announced to me—because she is an actress, and likes to make an entrance—that she will not be cooking, nor helping to cook, tonight. I know it might be early, but start thinking what would you like for tonight. Providing some options (non-exhaustive):
- Publix sub
- Macaroni and cheese with bacon
- Spaghetti and meatballs
- Don Julio’s chicken fajitas
- Pizza Hut
I am good with anything. Let me know.
Not long ago I wrote about leaving LinkedIn for good. Truth be told, I created yet another account (so much for that “final time”, right?), because work based relations with LinkedIn, and the training they offer through it. I was, pretty much, forced to it, being part of work. That doesn’t make me despise it less.
After just a few months, I am now starting to receive UCE through it. Am I an arse if I just simply send those to junk?
Of course, Global Warming isn’t happening, it is all a myth invented “by the left”. Let us not care about the environment, cancel our participation on all accords, and live like we don’t care. Because it seems we don’t.
“Multiple natural disasters are occurring simultaneously across different parts of the world, resulting in hundreds of deaths and thousands of people being displaced. The World Meteorological Organization has declared this summer the hottest ever recorded, with August being the warmest month ever recorded.” — Paraphrased by AI.
Sony’s PlayStation Network is increasing the price of all their plans. The PlayStation Plus Essential (the least expensive plan, which I have because without it some online games cannot be played) will go from $60/year to $80/year. They are justifying it by saying that it “will enable us to continue bringing high-quality games and benefits to your PlayStation Plus subscription service.” I get absolutely nothing, just paying for the ability to use my Internet connectivity on the console. How ducked up is that?!
Suffice it to say, I will not be renewing my subscription. Duck Sony (yes, duck it)!
Here we go again. Hurricane Lee, forecasted to “rapidly intensify into a powerful Category 4 by this weekend”. Not even mid-September yet, and we are at L already. As in lovely.
This is a powerful documentary and article, about how a Sharia courtroom works. It really offers an incredible insight—at least for me—on how the system process claims, and imparts justice. It is backwards, yet fascinating.
“Our demand is that the world should let us live with our Sharia law.”
For me my child will always be my responsibility. That doesn’t mean they will not be responsible on their own, no. Yet, in my mind, it was my choice—well, a united, shared one—to have a child. It became my responsibility then, for life.
This guy, Linus, he is some sort of a genius. He truly is! No, he isn’t Torvalds—though that Linus is also a genius. I mean, look how prolific he is! And he sure does write, at length. But don’t take my word for it, just go check it out. Oh, and he composes music, and does art, I mean… is there something he doesn’t do?!
Now, what brought me here today was his “short” notes, which he describes as “brief memos on ideas, musings, inspirations”. Pfff, Linus, mate, I admire you a lot. You don’t know me, but I do. Now, let me tell you something: you can’t write “brief” anything. Well, almost.
Trying not to succumb to the temptation of buying yet more domains. Because I don’t need them. Because I will buy them, and a year later let them go. It is better tossing the coins in a fountain, right?
Maybe it is the fanatic in me, but Apple doesn’t need to run advertisements. This was prompted by this, which I found on Mastodon.
Via Dan Gillmor.
First day of back to doing some cardio—biking this time, because my running shoes suck, and I don’t want to buy new ones… yet. Did 2 miles, constant pedalling, which ought to be enough for a first day. Had noodle legs when I dismounted so, yeah. Slow and steady, that’s the plan.
Our engagement with Canonical to deploy and manage Ubuntu with MAAS and Landscape is over, and now the “fun” begins. So much to customise, and tune! I have spent the entire day tunning and rebuilding images, back and forth. I am hoping to work on post-install scripting tomorrow.
My closest work mate is on vacation this week. Though it is a short week—having had the day off yesterday for Labour Day, and all—it is going feel like a long one.
I am on the day before the last free day, before having to go back to the cyclic routine. Everything tells me that I must make the most of it, yet I fail to know what that is. I will peruse technical news, for now, whilst sipping a made-with-half-and-half hot chocolate.
Let the House Hunters International marathon start… now! 📺
The feeling I get when I pull out my identification in advance at Total Wine & More, when buying beer for mum, anticipating I will be asked for it, and when getting to the cashier she says “Oh, you are fine” after trying to show it to her. 😩
Kim laughed at me, of course.
I subscribe to the Areopagus, and if you like to learn about many different things, you should too. I have been meaning to mention their “Volume LIX”, and how much I liked it for some time and, well, here I am.
There is an old story about the King of Persia or, in some versions, the Sultan of Baghdad. In all cases it runs thusly; that this great lord, who was an enlightened ruler, wanted to know if there was anything he could say which would always be true, whenever and wherever it was spoken. So he gathered the wisest men in the land, calling poets and sages and philosophers from far and wide, to help him find an answer. They formed a great congregation and conferred for weeks on end until, eventually, they had agreed upon the solution to the king’s problem – they had a found a sentence which would always be true:
This too shall pass.
The entire volume is wholly filled with interesting stories revolving around that simple, yet everlasting, truth. It truly is worth reading.
You can tell I am feeling nostalgic. Maybe it is the rain, that falls constantly, and gently. Maybe it is the feeling that time is steadily slipping through my fingers.
My very first access to the Internet was via Prodigy. Then CompuServe, eWorld, and Holonet. Finally The Microsoft Network, AOL, and broadband providers (wich I use till today).
Went to mum’s to have coffee. I do this whenever I have time, because I like spending time with her, not so much for the coffee. That’s just a bonus. Of course, soon after I arrive I get this…
It never fails! Yes, I order it with extra whipped cream. And yes, it will never be enough of it. “Did you ask for extra whipped cream?” — “Yes, I did.” — “It doesn’t look like having anything extra at all!” 🤦♂️
“I can’t remember the name of the first girl I had a crush on in kindergarten. Can’t remember the name of my first love!”, I tell my partner. “Good, you should only remember me!”, she replies, half-kidding. “It’s not about the girl, silly Horse. It is about my memories fading away.”
Growing old isn’t fun. 😩
Where there is smoke, there is fire. Little sparks are starting to flare out on Clarence Thomas. There must be more transparency, Justices are not above the law.
“Justice Clarence Thomas disclosed Thursday that Republican megadonor Harlan Crow paid for private jet trips for Thomas in 2022 to attend a speech in Texas and a vacation at Crow’s luxurious New York estate, as ethics questions continue to rock the Supreme Court.”
But Clarence is not alone. Samuel Alito has also shed some light.
Having anyone from either side (Democrat, or Republican) covering expenses, or otherwise doing anything with the purpose of gaining favour, or swaying a Justice should be considered illegal, unethical, and disqualifying.
This dilemma came to mind. Should I enjoy an uninterrupted weekend (well, I still must fold clothes, but that’s unavoidable, unless I find a wish granting genie), or should I use tomorrow to mow the lawn, and forget about it for the entire next week?
If I were to find a wish granting genie, then I will ask more than having the clothes folded, but also to mow the lawn. If you are reading this, genie, don’t cross my path! You already know what awaits…
My weekend starts in around 45 minutes from now. Work closing for game day, taking tomorrow off, and then Saturday, Sunday, and Labour Day Monday! Ohhhh yeaaaah!
As someone with a few Indian friends, I have always been puzzled by the concept of caste that exists in India. My Indian friends, however, are not prone to talk about it. Yet, all of them are of a high caste, and none are Dalit or OBC. This prompted this note.
Via Hacker News.
Barely a little rain, brought to us compliments of Idalia, and power goes off. Granted, only for a few minutes, but why?! What kind of third world country—or Banana Republic—is this state?
Update: 11:04
As if it heard me, now Idalia’s outer edge is giving us quite a show, downpouring with winds. It is kind of odd to see and hear a storm without any lighting. Thunderstorms are a brand around here, but rains brought by hurricanes come with few lightings, and thunders. Just more wind.
Sooo sleepy! Alarm set to 12:55, will power nap during lunch because I don’t know if I will, otherwise, be able to make it. Mental note, do not take allergies medicines after 18:00, but at noon instead.
This is quasi-horror story of a spouse the got a medical bill for her deceased husband, a year after she had paid the final bill—or so she thought. The takeaway:
“In the United States, medical bills and insurance statements create a burdensome puzzle for patients to sort through to determine what is actually owed. The first rule of thumb is: “Don’t pay the bill before you’ve gotten the EOB,” which is the insurer’s accounting of what you owe and what the insurer will pay.”
I found this phrase from Frank Herbert’s “Dune” posted on the Fediverse by MrBadger42 to be, perhaps, perennially true.
“Once men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”
A co-worker of mine reply when I told him I disliked our current enterprise web font, Gotham (yes, I am into fonts this week; it won’t last, I promise!): “It is a matter of taste, and yours is undisputable.” 🤣
While on the topic of fonts, I have to say that the Open Sans Pro font is extremely legible. It truly makes it a pleasurable reading experience, on sites using it. It is also open sourced.
On iOS 17 Public Beta 5 right now. Each beta has been getting better, so I don’t expect this one to be any different. I am all for surprises, though! 😂
This world that we, the smartest animals in the kingdom, call ours will be inherited by all the lesser animals we mistreat (or, at the very least, ignore) today. Then, and only then, Earth will heal.
Avenir Next is such an easy to read font! I wish it was decently priced, available to use on the web, and not ridiculously expensive as it is today.
This blog post, “We’re All Just Temporarily Abled”, from Jim Nielsen, pairs suitably with my previous train of thought. The older I get, the more often I find myself philosophising.
From Thoughts Without a Thinker: Psychotherapy from a Buddhist Perspective:
“‘You see this goblet?’ asks Achaan Chaa, the Thai meditation master. ‘For me this glass is already broken. I enjoy it; I drink out of it. It holds my water admirably, sometimes even reflecting the sun in beautiful patterns. If I should tap it, it has a lovely ring to it. But when I put this glass on the shelf and the wind knocks it over or my elbow brushes it off the table and it falls to the ground and shatters, I say, ‘Of course.’ When I understand that the glass is already broken, every moment with it is precious.’”
Also, from The Wise Heart:
“One day Ajahn Chah held up a beautiful Chinese tea cup, ‘To me this cup is already broken. Because I know its fate, I can enjoy it fully here and now. And when it’s gone, it’s gone.’ When we understand the truth of uncertainty and relax, we become free.”
And, from Marcus Aurelius, Meditations:
“Think of yourself as dead. You have lived your life. Now take what’s left and live it properly.”
Naomi Wu is my new hero. This video converted me to her.
Life is a loop. The known universe is a loop. Everything is a do while loop. Thus, everything is a program in an enormously big computer.
We survived the weekend, alone, without the boy. Now onto the working week. Got to mow the wilderness that is our backyard, this week. Soon after I will have to do the same for the front. It never ends!
Chetan Kunte updated his page! Chetan’s site is one of the few I, almost religiously, check each day for new content.
This is the second, or third time I receive this email. It shows how to make it to my blocklist in one single step.
I’m afraid this is my last email to you about my suggestions for Data Flow (gasp!). I haven’t heard back from you yet and this must mean one of three things:
- You are happy with your current lead volume, CPL, and conversion rates.
- You’ve been too busy with deadlines/meetings/tap-dance classes but you’re interested (It’s not too late!)
- You’ve fallen and you can’t get up. Let me know if that’s the case, I’ll send help!
Please let me know - I’m worried!
Emails with a “friendly reminder” phrase in it irk me. Especially those requesting feedback—over, and over—for a service rendered. I know they are automated, but there is always a human behind them.
Boy is leaving for a week to the Keys before classes start again. Here comes a week of worries.
There has been eight 007s throughout the years. While going through my thoughts yesterday it struck weird that they all like it “shaken, not stirred”, are desired by women, are virtually un-killable, etc. Was that an MI6 requirement? 😂
The “Unknown unknowns”—things we don’t know we don’t know—have always fascinated me.
The former Attorney General is a discreet man.
“Discretion” is a complicated word. It can imply discernment, restraint and sober judgment, for example. It’s also a wonderful euphemism for covering up wrongdoing. And William Barr is a discreet man. — Bloomberg
After coming across “Vocal Fry: what it is, who does it, and why people hate it!” at Claud’s I cannot not notice it on just about any female newscaster.
Via @claudrod.
Conduit is the easiest, fastest, leanest way to run a Matrix server. A single binary, and a small configuration file. Can’t beat that!
Update: 17:33
Or, as George pointed out, docker compose up.
Feeling rather meh. One of those things that happen after taking a long break, or after taking a short one. Or just simply meh.
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has no problems selling you a Postal Money Order. It will take your cash—or debit card—gladly. Now, try cashing one in, and you will be stumped: they carry no money to exchange for the Money Order. To cash it in you will need to deposit it on your bank. In other words, avoid them. This isn’t fully accurate.
My four days long weekend is over. Where did the time go?! The relativity of time is truly annoying. 😩
My Personal Identifiable Information (PII) leaked (unauthorized third parties were likely able to access and download full names, Social Security numbers, policy/account numbers, dates of birth, and addresses, among other), again, compliments of SaaS. This time it was “MOVEit Transfer”, which Corebridge (one of my retirement accounts financial institutions) uses.
This CVE provides details of the vulnerability that was exploited. Links within that page explains it further.
Duuuuuuuck! 🤬 Initial fraud alert—1 year—placed on the three major credit bureaus.
Update: 11/08
Partner is also receiving the same notification I got, today. The impact of the breach goes beyond Corebridge. Maybe you are affected too!
“Well, birthdays are merely symbolic of how another year has gone by and how little we’ve grown. No matter how desperate we are that someday a better self will emerge, with each flicker of the candles on the cake, we know it’s not to be, that for the rest of our sad, wretched, pathetic lives, this is who we are to the bitter end. Inevitably, irrevocably; happy birthday? No such thing.”
Update: 08:52
The above from one of “Seinfeld” episodes.
Based on what I have seeing of the gameplay and the looks, I have absolutely no interest, nor desire to play, Baldur’s Gate 3. Almost died of boredom! I will pass, 100%.
The sentimental in me found this blog entry, and was touched. So many times I have thought about Netscape, and what will it be if it was still around. Right after Mosaic, Netscape Navigator was the web browser I used for a very long time.
I am just surprised this didn’t come along earlier, and that it took a pandemic event to make it a reality. Going to an office to sit all day, and then go home never made sense to me. When pushed for a change, all we got—begrudgingly—was one “telecommuting” day per week.
“If they were to say ’everyone back in the office’, I would probably be asking for a raise,” said Coomber, who still visits the office once or twice a week. “You get more family time. You can actually finish work at five, rather than finishing at five spending 45 minutes trying to get home.”
“Despite having lost, the defendant was determined to remain in power”, prosecutors wrote. The 6 January 2021 riot was “fueled by lies” — Mr. Trump’s lies. The gigantic ignoramus also known as Donald Trump has been indicted—yes, again!—on four criminal charges relating to his involvement on the 6 January 2021 revolt.
From The New York Times:
- Conspiracy to defraud the United States (1 count)
The charge against Mr. Trump details the various methods he and co-conspirators used to try to overturn the results of the 2020 election. - Related to efforts to obstruct the vote certification proceedings (2 counts)
Mr. Trump faces two charges involving the vote certification proceedings at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021: one of obstructing that process and one of conspiring to do so. - Conspiracy to violate civil rights (1 count)
Related to Mr. Trump’s attempts to reverse election results in states with close elections in 2020.
The wheels of justice move slow, but thank goodness they move. I also found interesting what Will Hurd (a Republican presidential candidate) said about Trump:
“Trump’s presidential bid is driven by an attempt to stay out of prison and scam his supporters into footing his legal bills…”
When the girl tells me she is stressed, and had a mental breakdown, it truly hurts my heart—that feeling one gets, as if someone was squeezing it. It upsets, worries me so much! Why will there be things for which we feel so impotent to do anything?
“🎶 Tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies…”
I don’t need, nor want, thinner bezels on an iPhone. I want to be able to comfortable hold it. What I want is an edge-to-edge screen which, sadly, will not come anytime soon. I am sure many are with me on this.
Oh, and keeping its pricing sensible. If it comes at $1,500, I would rather buy a laptop.
Watched a handful of football matches this weekend, as the FIFA Women World Cup is ongoing. Noticed that players didn’t get as upset as men do, nor did they get violent to each other, nor one ever yelled at the referee within millimetres of her face. Certainly refresing!
“I’ll leave tomorrow’s problems to tomorrow’s me.”
Re-watched season 1 of “One-Punch Man” with the kid this past weekend. Need to look for season 2—not available on Netflix, unlike season 1—to quench the thirst left by watching those few episodes.
Update: 04/08
My kid found season 2 online, watched first episode last night. So good!
Within my family (partner and I, both sides) there are only 4 people using a phone running god-knows-what version of Android. Everyone else is on iOS. Of all my friends there is only 1 on Android. So yeah, I believe this (that the iPhone market has increased, while Android based phone shipments have dwindled) to be true.
As of 9 June 2023 there were 37 charges against Trump; there have been some more since. How someone so criminally tarnished—to say the least—can even run for President of the United States? Then again, he “served” one term as one already.
Note: 13:03
I wrote this note with this today’s news in mind, which adds more charges to the born disgraced ignoramus.
Broccoli cheddar soup is my favourite soup. I like many soups, but no other brings more joy than the broccoli cheddar one. Having always had someone else’s, I am now ready to cook it on my own. I bet you can guess what’s on the menu this weekend.
I was skeptical, but thanks to George—and after watching the hearing—I am more willing to believe, and agree that there needs to be more transparency on the findings on UAP (formerly UFO) phenomena. Let’s hope something substancial comes out of this.
Update: 10:13
If you decide to watch the hearing video, be aware it is 2 hours 18 minutes long. I found that seeing/listening it at 1.5x, or 2x worked best for me.
Feeling a little bit nostalgic. I am sure it is part of things that happen “before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern”. That kind of thing.
The feeling I get when I visit my favourites GitHub repositories, and find new updates… That git pull sure is such an adrenaline rush!
Browsed to this website for the fun, stayed for the typography. Look at the legibility and beauty of that Garamond Premier Pro!
Pet peeve #19657: using relatives when referring to conclusives. “It looks like it is happening” rather than “It is happening”. “It looks like the firewall is allowing connections” rather than “The firewall allows connections”. It is not alledged when just is. Duck!
Well, now I know what I will be doing more often. I mean, it doesn’t take too long, and it comes with benefits I can sure use. I also mow the lawn once a week; believe me, that’s plenty of exercise.
It seems like Barbie and Oppenheimer are a total success, and a must see, as the worse have riled up against them.
Saw this on the Fediverse, from an automated account (bot) suitably named Picard Tips: “Don’t assume anything is possible or impossible until you’ve asked the people who will be doing the work.” Oh man… so true!
If only I had the state of mind that Hokusai had! For me these words come as the perfect example of optimism, and hope. Reading them makes me feel at ease.
“…until the age of 70, nothing I drew was worthy of notice. At 73 years I was somewhat able to fathom the growth of plants and trees, and the structure of birds, animals, insects and fish. Thus when I reach 80 years, I hope to have made increasing progress, and at 90 to see further into the underlying principles of things, so that at 100 years I will have achieved a divine state in my art, and at 110, every dot and every stroke will be as though alive. Those of you who live long enough, bear witness that these words of mine are not false.” — One Hundred Views of Mount Fuji.
Via The British Museum.
“It is in our power to have no opinion about a thing, and not to be disturbed in our soul; for things themselves have no natural power to form our judgements.” — Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book 6.
“What a horse wants, what a horse needs, is always having a patch of grass that’s ever green…” — Read/sing it with the music of “What a Girl Wants”, by Christina Aguilera. I sang it this morning to my partner. She is a Horse 😂.
This was not only a racist comment, but a stupid, uneducated one. The fact that he is still defending it makes it even worse.
“COVID-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese,” he added. “We don’t know whether it was deliberately targeted at that or not but there are papers out there that show the racial or ethnic differential of impact for that.”
While on video gaming topic, specifically Diablo IV, I have decided to play a druid on Season 1. Unlike previously anticipated, I am picking Radagast for his name. I think it is quite fitting, right? 🙈