Ok, it's the 3rd of January, lots of time for 2026 to shape up into something better than last year. Let's get some coffee and peruse the news. Oh no.

My New Year’s resolution is to continue fighting the outsourcing of intelligence to algorithmic machines and to treat generative AI use as cringe and embarrassing because it is.

Got an email for a webinar titled “AI Does Books: Creating Nonfiction & Creative Works With GenAI” and now I’m frothing at the mouth.

The new year should start around the spring equinox and not during the most bleak months of the year and I don’t care how irrational it is to want to change it all at this point.

Your local librarian here to say that it’s great if you read lots of books this year, alright if you read barely anything, that audiobooks, romance and graphic novels are all valid formats and genres, and that some authors suck but we’re still not stopping you from reading them.

I love making soup. Just throwing things in a pot with confidence, knowing it’ll turn out deliciously.

There’s not going to be any more emails finding me until the new year, let me tell you.

It is December 23rd, known as Tibb’s or Tip’s Eve in Newfoundland. Have you heard of this holiday?

“In the winter she curls up around a good book and dreams away the cold.” - Ben Aaronovitch

"There is an instinctive withdrawal for the sake of preservation, a closure that assumes the order of completion. Winter is a season unto itself.” - Haruki Murakami

Librarians across North America getting ready to put The Hunger Games on display first thing tomorrow morning.

December keeps happening and also tomorrow it is “dress like a snowman” day at my kids school so that’s my life right now.

As a Canadian, reading comments from people who are pro-gun feels like interacting with people from another planet. I can’t reach a place of understanding why you think that rights are more important that peoples lives. I’ve never even seen a gun that wasn’t for hunting or held by law enforcement!

If there’s a post about Tim Horton’s on Facebook, odds are you’re about to read the most racist comments you have ever seen.

Very alarming that environment Canada’s weather warning for my area is orange. Do not like.

I understand that a lot of folks have been misled by fear-mongering and powerful regressive voices but it’s still astonishing to me that so many have fallen for the idea that oppressively policing other people’s gender identity and expression could in any way be part of an enlightened future.

Big thanks to the OLA for getting the word out about proposed changes to the current budget bill (Bill C-15), that impact the library book rate here in Canada, affecting library systems and patrons country wide. Check out the link and contact you MP with your concerns. bit.ly/SaveInterlib...

Shovelling snow into the road has the same energy as abandoning your shopping cart in a parking lot without putting it away. I can’t explain this but it is correct.

Dunno how this hasn't been picked up by the media yet but #BillC15 would remove the provision allowing libraries to send books to and fro by Canada Post at a cheaper rate. In Newfoundland about a quarter of the physical items signed out of libraries use this service! librarianship.ca/news/bill-c1...

The Carney government is defunding free mail services for the blind, to save a whopping million dollars. A drop in the bucket compared to the billions that were squandered by Canada Post against the warnings of the union. They've disregarded all questions about it so far.

Some adults are really weird about Santa Claus and even saying that much would get me flamed on the parenting groups.

This month is so busy but at least my kid’s school is only doing one themed week of outfits instead of two this year

Since becoming a parent I have not, in fact, understood the parents who say “if you were a parent you’d understand” about vaccine hesitancy. Being in charge of this fragile little miracle has me saying things like “give her all the vaccines. Turn this baby into a pincushion” to doctors

Once again, the transition from one season to another in Canada’s eastern most province is ABRUPT.

This cannot be the same brain that once knew everyone’s phone number by heart and read multiple books a week.

Feeling weird that I told another parent that while I let my 10 year old have Messenger to talk to her friends, I wasn’t letting either of my children have social media until they are older teenagers and they looked at me like I said I was going to chain them up in a room until they are adults.

If you want people to spend more, pay them more.

‘You boy! How do I unsubscribe from all these Black Friday emails?’

I’ve gotta give it to Americans- you all go way harder about Thanksgiving than anyone else.

In my memories it is always nighttime in November.

Curious about the documented influenza (or Covid) situation in Newfoundland and Labrador, or our vaccination status? #RespiratoryIllness Click to see full images. Or you can find the info at this link: experience.arcgis.com/experience/3...

Up until two years ago I had an ad free Instagram account through some fluke of being overlooked and the day that changed was the day my Instagram experience went from positive to terrible. Overnight change from good to infuriating to spend time on.

I am so sick of the fact that there are ads everywhere all of the time now and that I’m old enough to remember how much better it was when there wasn’t.

A major healthcare policy paper commissioned by @govnl.bsky.social government from Deloitte at a cost of $1.6 million, cites research papers that don’t exist, making it the second major government policy paper called into question in as many months. #nlpoli #AI theindependent.ca/news/lji/maj...

Newspaper The Independent in Newfoundland and Labrador is reporting that another major government-commissioned policy report contains false citations likely generated by artificial intelligence. theindependent.ca/news/lji/maj...

I do love a Newfoundland term of endearment. Me ducky, old trout, my love.

A teen told me I am “pretty cool for a millennial” which is both nice and makes me feel old.

As long as there are powerful people whose money buys them access to power to advance their own business and personal interests, the interests of average people will always come second.

The most beautiful full double rainbow I’ve ever seen appeared outside my door.

I will not elaborate, but there are people who are like Disney adults, but for Christmas.

Every time I try to come up with a pithy post, I instead start ruminating on how many things that are happening are connected, how things like the pandemic, the widespread adoption of generative AI, loneliness, etc are all a part of the same problem, but it’s too big to even explain well.

hey i wrote an article about folk names for birds and you should check it out!!! open.substack.com/pub/weirdmed...

I’m going to go to so many craft fairs this month.

What a terrible, irresponsible headline. The answer is infection is *far* more of risk than vaccination. www.ctvnews.ca/health/artic...

In my small Newfoundland town growing up, Bonfire Night was always something I looked forward to. Brought over by settlers from England, hundreds of years later and hundreds of miles away, we still celebrate here with fires and effigies (unless it’s too windy).

I hate to break it to some of you but the way you talk about some women who are right wing is still misogynistic even if their politics are deplorable.

Imagine being wealthy and not building libraries. Embarrassing.

“Minds fed diverse knowledge become resilient and can recognize harmful ideas when they see them, because they’ve analyzed the varied ways they are presented. Book bans, if they are successful, will ultimately backfire, fostering a brittle and uninformed foundation for society.”