First time #SecretSantaAoNZ… Very novel to think about what I might want, and a bit cringe saying it out loud? 2nd hand fine, especially if a wood or ceramic piece of something. Book: definitely fiction ideally a little pretentious but readable. I’m a bread baker. Not bling (if that’s ur thing).

Realising that old and new utilities providers are the same company

So many trouble shooting websites for bread are all “strictly follow the recipe”. If I was following a recipe I wouldn’t be searching.

Forget 6/7, apparently teens are unironically singing the opening song from cartoon Sophia the First?

Fuck those big ford rangers are terrifying. Just had one edge up me to getting to about 20cm away after I crossed on a blinking light. I’m over six foot, but felt like it would send me flying.

Trendy as it is to revisit China’s WTO accession, the rare earth export controls are what to expect when the global rules are chipped away. It’s near impossible for others to force Beijing’s policy decisions, but it absolutely makes those decisions based on its surroundings.

In hindsight, I handed my car keys to the guy kicking a football around outside the mechanics, rather than going into the shop. Should be fine.

Feels like only a few weeks back FT was arguing AI construction boom was low risk because funded by cash reserves. Total 180 here. on.ft.com/4nI2wJS Measuring risk in the AI financing boom

Ugh, ruined my day by opening the rangehood. Farewell Sunday morning.

I know it’s already well cliche to apply China watching to the US, but those “who actually commands the military” questions are surprisingly complicated for the US national guard.

Super excited, a serious of serendipitous events mean get to do the week’s shopping at the fancy Pak n Save.

Librarians proving once again they’re the bastion of democracy - found our household’s completed mail in ballots in between some returned books, and made sure they got lodged.

A great 18 minutes on China’s new economic model and challenges. Beijing deciding on tech hacks over consumption to square the circle of escaping the middle income trap despite and an aging population and to avoid debt. And common prosperity hasn’t gone away… youtu.be/Rbv_CDC1jJc?...

NZ Herald has okay coverage of new plans for denser housing near transport hubs, but bizarrely doesn’t consider it “property news”.

The carbon neutral way to survey all your offshore oilfields www.nzherald.co.nz/world/norway... Norway, the capital of electric cars, is turning to electric planes as it tries to reach net-zero

One of the many bullshit angles on this boat murder porn is that actual effective Coastguard interceptions of boats involved hair-raising moves that made all the “warriors” go quiet. on.ft.com/46A2a0N US military conducts third fatal strike on alleged drug smuggling vessel

Anyone know what people are actually using bitcoin ATMs for??? This article doesn’t even try to mention - I can only think of novelty and money laundering. on.ft.com/4nfLmCL Bitcoin ATMs reprise a painful history in finance

You can’t say you’ve got veges covered then bring a potato dish or pasta salad.

Catchy recruiting campaign by NZ Police, but gotta be triggering for anyone who’s lived where a marked bus means hundreds of cops in riot gear nearby.

Big purchase today on a new desk chair. Reading the reviews about warmth, breathability, scratchiness - most of you must work from home naked?

Very high correlation between helpdesks that completely misunderstand the problem and those that promptly ask for feedback on how they did.

Banning crypto ATMs seems to confirm that their main (only?) use was laundering? www.beehive.govt.nz/release/targ...

Stretching the term “dual use” here: military and law enforcement.

80y/o mum told a white lie about going to the mechanic so she could cancel with me and hang with her mates. She really shouldn’t worry, I’ve had 40+ years to get used to her superior social life.

This is a very misleading headline, my first thought was that they’re remaking “Big Gay Gore”. www.npr.org/2025/05/15/n...

Proud of figuring out a way to use expiring trip.com points, bought a tourist ticket to our local museum, as a donation.

Just tightened and aligned the cupboard doors in our hotel. A job I’ve been putting off at home for 18 months.

Turns out Denmark are the ones playing geopolitical 4D chess. on.ft.com/4cjF9S4 Denmark’s Maersk buys Panama Canal railway

When media has to refer to HS codes, stuff’s getting serious. When it has to report to the tenth digit, ouch. au.pcmag.com/computers-el...

The water and gas company are at war - one says let the garden die the other that brown plants indicate a gas leak.

My barber waived payment for a disabled customer, then mentioned he struggled to make rent despite what sounded like 70-80 hour weeks. Saint.

Fought a bureaucratic issue to the bitter end, as is my wont, and in the final wash up the agency said it was contacting previously declined applicants to see if our newly set precedent applied. Yay.

Lol, treaty principles bill got the Washington Post treatment. Lede: “NZ is deeply divided” Story: “overwhelmingly opposed to the bill” www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

Mass mental whiplash as the world collectively learned about the economics of tariffs. Now we’re onto rules of origin? Trade policy wonks, now is your time to shine.

Tried to use Copilot for work task for first time. Tone and language: spot on, concise and convincing. Content: 1/3 okay, 1/3 inaccurate, 1/3 hallucinated. No links to source data despite me specifically requesting.

Listening to Chinese experts is good. Not fact checking a single one of their talking points is negligence. thediplomat.com/2025/03/from...

Okay, they got me, I finally looked up Panama on a map. Crazy. If it was the map on the opening pages of a fantasy novel, I’d put the book down for being overwrought. Connects two continents and two oceans???

One of the reserve bank‘s published reasons for keeping cash alive - the tooth fairy. Love it.

Ah the art of the deal, giving away all the big asks before you get to the table. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

“155,000 accident-free flying hours” - okay, sounds impressive. But how many accident hours eh??? www.nzdf.mil.nz/media-centre...

Personal connections win again. Nature reports that cold call emails help get jobs, but a key factor is whether “The individual is known to a colleague or peer” www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Finally figured while I struggle with holidays - I’m an active rester, but also very lazy.

Rocked along to one of my favourite old songs from uni days when it came on today. But when I looked it up later for a relisten discovered I was totally deluded and it’s a 2024 release.

In hindsight, I should have told the family salt now filled the old sugar container.

My wife’s ability to attract charismatic megafauna kicked in again today - two dolphins frolicking metres away from us at Riverhead, an estuary miles from the sea.

Argh, the enshittification of basic internet tasks. Family portrait photographer is insisting on some pretty but functionally useless app called Snappr which apparently has no “download all” function. Can’t we all just go back to Dropbox?

Sheesh people are sensitive about their cars nearly being hit. What happened to no harm no foul?

Oshkosh, who seem competent at making a range of bespoke trucks and military vehicles, really struggling with EVs. Can’t they just recruit a few experienced Chinese executives and engineers? www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

Sceptics: Bitcoin is a bubble. Dictionary: Bubbles go up. <Bitcoin goes up.> Headline: newsroom.co.nz/2024/12/09/b...

Check out this ballsy little unit, running a blatant shakedown operation outside the local lunchbar.