Let me whine for a second

It might be looking up by now, more vaccine available. Biden has moved the needles in certan specific ways. And christ, every day I am saddened by the news of so many who have had it more worse than we have. But it’s been a fucking year. We can all say that. In my case: Just trying to be a first-time parent of an ~18mo Child care not stable (and no real rebound, backup) At least one close relative vax-hesitant Not getting to see family (or get their help) to the degree we would have with the kid if it weren’t a pandemic Being buzzed by Hueys on top of normal stupid helo traffic in this town Fences and razor wire cutting off main thoroughfares to rest of the city Most close friends have moved away Spouse doing double-time at her job, dictated by current events (and overwhelmed with the failure of policy to support a certain vulnerable population before COVID even became a thing) No time between anything, not if I’m going to keep (or set) pace at work and with the toddler.

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Optimism, vigilance and action over relief and amnesia

If there is a Biden win, how will you demonstrate against his platitudes and short-sells with regards to our future? How will you celebrate his inauguration by attending and not letting him off the hook? How will you insist that he face our existential challenges with the broadest inclusion and the maximum effort possible? One of the opportunities for Trump, besides giving space to the racists and mysgonists, and magnifying the likewise tendencies of those harboring fear, was the reality that so many folks were effectively written off cynically or by mealy-mouthed compromise-on-compromise by Democrats.

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Far milder corporate shills may be preferable.

I’m not sure why the existential threats actually bearing down on us aren’t somehow apart of a every day proactive effort. Instead, in my country, we are preoccupied still with the horce race of how fascists are getting away with things and how other far milder corporate shills, who speak more compassionately to peoples fears but won’t actually do anything about them, may be preferable.

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We get out and I am grateful that it isn’t as hard for us as it is for many.

But I could really use getting out.

Need a night or two on the AT by myself or something.


For too long this week I underestimated the power of a shower and some stretches. And breathing.


Side hustle

I would like standard keyboard shortcut conventions on macOS for showing sidebars and side panels and whatever. I’ve got to remember one for BBEdit (cmd-0), another set for different Ulysses modes (cmd-1,2,3,4), no option for Notes (yes, I write stuff in all of these apps, maybe that’s part of the problem), something else for Things (cmd-/). I understand the “side bar" experience is slightly more complicated in a couple of these cases, but I feel like there could be a default behavior apps could add subtlety on top of.

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I don’t appreciate notifications from apps that I actually want to use (for how long though, given this?) that are essentially coupons and marketing and not critical transactional updates, with no settings to “unsubscribe” from a type of notification. You know who…


Tooling around Heritage and Kingman Islands in DC today and trying to maintain distance … from other people and my house.


Crossing my fingers for John and Fiona Prine (and everyone else, and myself… but right now, John Prine and family).

“The lonesome friends of science say/ “The world will end most any day”/ Well, if it does, then that’s okay/ ‘Cause I don’t live here anyway/ I live down deep inside my head/ Where long ago I made my bed“


It's getting better?

The Internet is getting better (yes, parts of it, or the people and businesses behind it continue to be rubbish) with all this… enjoying catching-up with what Kottke.org and LaughingSquid.com (some old school aggregation and curation) have corralled over the past week. Digging Brian May’s Instagram posts. There are many little reasons to hope. For now I’m focusing on individual creativity and sharing. (Without devolving into a power politics analysis, we gotta do more than hope.

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