Happy 2026, all. What defaults will you reconfigure in the new year?

We’re trying something new this year at Arisia - a crafter/maker barter market. :)

Today was the first day that Google came up with an utterly useless set of answers for me. Not “I could done a better search”, not “had to click a couple of pages into the results.”, just this wall of AI-slop with accompanying links to AI-slop. This is an information Kessler Event and it sucks.

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The place I finally got to re: “AI imagery and video” is by asking myself “where is the craft?” ie. “What was actually created by the person, using the skills they have practiced and learned?” 1/

This is not a place of honor Fa la la la la, la la la la

“Antisemitism isn’t just prejudice. It’s a full-stack conspiracy system.” is *definitely* going into the rhetorical rotation.

My new post-interview instructions: “Thanks for taking the time to interview the candidate. Please send me two paragraphs along with a rating by EOD. Avoid using ChatGPT. You stand in judgement of another human. Respect your role, respect the candidate, and respect yourself.”

TIL that the Hebrew word “balagan” (“a mess”/“messed up”) is a direct copy from the Polish “bałagan”, with the exact same connotations.

בחוץ מינוס 11 מעלות ואני סוף סוף שותה קפה חם. אפילו לי יש גבולות.

The great thing about prediction markets is they’ll tell you the outcome the moment that it happens.

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My bipartisan IRS MATH Act with Senator Bill Cassidy is now law. Now, if you mess up your taxes, the IRS has to tell you where you made a mistake and how to fix it. No more spending a fortune on lawyers or hours to find errors. That means fewer headaches and more money in your pocket.

Should the Arisia convention take a one-year break in 2027? Arisia Corp members will vote to decide at the 12/9 Corp meeting (7pm, Zoom) what the con will do in 2027. Anyone who has attended at least one Arisia con will be able to attend and comment. For more info visit  buff.ly/4aMUB4l.

It is so important to not just know things but know them in relation to other things AND be able to express those connections to others. It’s a toughy sometimes.

The New England regionalism “all set” exists because “nay” is no longer in common use. It’s a negative answer to an affirmative question. Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

No one tell the GenAI “will replace ‘unskilled’ jobs” boosters that they’re speedrunning Taylorism. They want to find it out for themselves, and it would be rude to stand in the way.

יש 2 מעלות בבוסטון. יש לי קפה קר. הכל בסדר בעולם.

I would, in fact, watch this.

A stopped clock is correct exactly twice a day. No more, no less. Arguing that a stopped clock can never be right because you don’t like the clock, is a bit odd.

Influencers = Gen ZIRP

S-Tier reference. Pass, no edits.

The story is not that 8 Dem Senators caved. The story is that the Dems caved, and the 8* senators that could take it for the team voted “aye”. Yes, that’s even worse.

One of the lessons I’m taking from last night is that the psychological wage can’t be used to pay for for groceries.

Mt. Washington is a fun-sized K2 hit send

"Tzefardea Tzedek" (Frog of Righteousness) As soon as the Portland Frog became a meme, Jewish social media blew up with jokes about the 2nd Passover plague - tzefarde'a (frogs) - and the Rabbinical commentary around it. I knew I had to make a calligraphy piece encompassing all of it. (more in alt.)

it's a rahaeli list, so I assume it's good and have applied it

NO SUN ONLY BLOB.

Most recent block: The type of time-waster who demands hundreds of words in reply to their vague and open-ended five-word question.

A very quiet datacenter.

If at all possible, live your life in a way such that Aimee Mann never writes a casually devastating breakup song about you.

IT IS TIME.

This is not the way I expected the left to take back the concept of a cartoon frog, but here we are.

First frost in New England. That means that The New England “I’m not turning on the heat for as long as possible.” Games have begun.

I was today years old when my brain figured out “dreadnought” means “fears nothing”.

Bluesky clearly has the juice. The LinkedIn-style bro-poetry threads have arrived.

“Do you want to *really* give those people what they deserve?” -“Hell yes I do!” “Okay. We’ve got ya covered. Here’s your credentials and equipment… oh, and we’ll need your face.” -“I gave you my ID.” “No, your actual face.” -“What?!” “Ever wanted to be part of something bigger than yourself?” 1/

"We don’t need an abundance of information. We need the courage—indeed, the audacity—to know absolutely nothing at all."

Just got my flu, covid, pneumonia, and Hep B shots. I can smell 5G. It’s minty.

My letter to Disney. Feel free to borrow from it.

I do, in fact, know what whips the llama’s ass.

I remember that the weather was perfect that morning.

Change of view, change of scenery, sure… <puts on glasses, cinches apron> but never underestimate the value <picks up torch> of a change of phase.

This Is The Way. Thank you, Mayor Wu.

if the rage-bait works too well it might be fake ::clap clap:: if the rage-bait works too well it might be fake ::clap clap:: look, we’ve all been fooled before when a deep-fake makes us sore but kindly doublecheck your source, it might be fake ::clap clap::

Q: Why does a baker’s dozen mean ‘thirteen’? A: Because a yeasted batter is a differential equation.

<resets the “days since yeasted batter containment failure” counter to zero>

Folks, Charlie Kirk is doing propaganda. He knows perfectly well how safe NYC is: he wouldn't have visited or (as he claimed) brought his family if he didn't. "So many people who don't belong here" is the advance drumbeat for ICE raids. Get ready.

Any analysis of Columbia University’s behavior should include “Columbia University is the second largest landowner in NYC.”