Apple has a huge undisclosed multilingual censorship list of words and phrases that its iOS keyboard will not autocomplete or swipe-type. It includes in English, ‘Auschwitz,’‘Sleepy Joe,’ ‘Tibetan independence’ and ‘United Ireland.’ https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/apples-predictive-text-restrictions-include-dictator-trump-sleepy-joe-researcher-2026-11-06/
Wring out your dead!
If you're into #weather models, check out satellitewx.com which was built by a meteorologist friend of mine.
It is a comprehensive website giving real-time satellite and radar observations along with a large amount of model data.
Alberta VIPs at an anti-abortion fundraiser this weekend, according to Luke LeBrun:
Wilberforce Project says money raised at annual event goes ‘directly’ to support their work pushing for laws restricting access to abortions in Alberta: #abpoli #abortion
• Alberta’s justice minister Mickey Amery
• Hospitals minister Adriana LaGrange
• Municipal affairs minister Dan Williams
• Tourism minister Andrew Boitchenko
• Conservative MP Arnold Viersen
• Conservative MP Garnett Genuis
• Jason Kenney
Toronto folk, the TTC is partnering with TMU to conduct a study about subway musicians. Among other things they want to hear from riders about how the presence of buskers affect feelings of comfort and safety. Do you love encountering musicians in the subway as much as I do? Be a citizen scientist and let the researchers know.
https://kobmbdisbyw.typeform.com/TMUTTC
The thing that I made. Yes, it's vibe coded for now but it's a concept and I would love it to not be. I would love to see this on phones as well as other operating systems. It's called Prompt Deck for now.
You draw prompt cards (one or three), write against a timer, then rehearse against a performance timer that starts when you start speaking. It’s designed with screen readers and accessibility in mind. You don't need to perform, you can just use this as a writing tool. Please be gentle I know this could be better it's a first attempt and it takes several ideas and puts them in one. THere are so many features I've not explained here. Please take a look and tell me what you think.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=12fTIcpQMhkLdsI5TQCdau7RM7McC6mvX&usp=drive_fs
On Halloween night my partner and I put candy where ghouls can get it, and retreat inside with the outside light on but the door locked, inviting a Darwinian Free-for-all. Here's a sign I post each year on our window. I don't know if anyone reads it, but it comforts me to put it there all the same.
A quiet world passes away,
We’re not answering the door today.
Take what’s here while it can still be given,
Seizing the night, we’re quietly hidden.
Leaves and trees go down into dust,
How will the world remember us?
I don't know a better way to mark and honour the turning of the year than offering this piece, Samhain Song, by Celestial Elf. It captures all the things, an incredible, evocative and haunting listen every single time. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXa5BMorxT0
Is it late enough to go to sleep yet? My work week has way more people, transit, and out of the house time than usual. Interesting work but a bit more stimulation than I'm used to.
I'm reading the Mammoth series by Steven Baxter. While not 5 out of 5 stars, It's a solid 4. I love these kind of speculative animal stories, really looking forward to book 3. And there's mastodons in book two, so of course I was continually thinking of all of you!
Reading the many farewells to Sir PatStew here, I'm reminded of a different side of his: like many men his age, he grew up with a violent man in his home. He saw it, he suffered from it – and most importantly, he very deliberately chose a different path for himself. He broke the cycle, and for me, that's much more impressive than the final frontier – even though I have the best memories watching ST:TNG with my dad as a kid.
May the star dust rest lightly on you.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2009/nov/27/patrick-stewart-domestic-violence
Perfect day to reshare this great Patrick Stewart bit titled "What Has the ECHR Ever Done for Us?", a brilliant parody of the iconic "What have the Romans ever done for us?" scene from Monty Python's Life of Brian movie.
Literally bumped in to Stewart in a game store in Gastown in Vancouver back in college.
It was setup like a library - stacks and stacks of games. Came around a corner and….<thump>…almost knocked him over!
I apologized profusely but he was as gracious as you’d imagine. He asked if I worked in the store as he needed help finding a game for someone.
The hell I was going to pass him off to someone else so I offered to help. We hung out talking games for about 30 minutes. :)
RIP, Captain. 😢
I saw Patrick Stewart live twice.
The first time was in a production of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf?” at the Guthrie. The moment he stepped on stage, I reflexively thought “Hey! It’s Captain Picard!” …and then, not 2 seconds later, before he’d even spoken a word: “No, no, it’s not, it just…kinda looks like him.”
Just his gate, the way he held himself, he’d become a completely different person. I’d imprinted on Picard in my formative years, and Stewart’s acting was so damn good that it took 2 wordless seconds to wipe Picard from my mind.
2/
There’s a scene where Macbeth is confronted by Banquo's ghost, and reacts in anger and horror. They ran that scene, then lights, a break — and then when the lights came up again, they ran the scene a •whole second time•, in its entirety…
…and there’s no ghost anymore, it’s just Macbeth raving and raging to no one as the crowd looks on, baffled, on stage it was Patrick Stewart talking to thin air…
…and that sort of thing is always a cute trick in theater, but it was no trick, I swear to god I felt that ghost still present in the room as keenly as Macbeth felt him. •That• is what kind of an actor Patrick Stewart was.
What a master of his craft. I wish him well on his way, with deepest respect and gratitude.
Thank you, Sir Patrick. Your hour upon the stage was a magnificent one.
/end
:boost_request:
I'm looking for fellow COVID-cautious folks in or near Wien to socialize with and hopefully befriend.
I'm autistic and socially anxious, so being around new people can initially be a little much, but I'm generally quite friendly and often talkative once I warm up. please bear with me.
I speak both English and German fluently. English is my preferred language, but I can accommodate you if you'd rather speak German. German is my first language, if you're learning and want to practice with me I'm up for that too!
Just voted, go me! And this time the automark machine actually worked, though I had to turn it way up to hear over a screaming baby. I think about the people who had to fight for a person like me to have this right, and I'm thankful to be able to do it independently.
Rest in peace.
I will miss your voice.
One thing I remember most strongly about Patrick Stewart was when I learned that, in preparation for a scene on TNG when his character was to undergo torture, he had intentional conversations with victems of torture, who he connected with through his work with Amnasty International, because he wanted to honour the terrible reality of what he was to enact. He insisted on having the scene filmed with him naked, because that is so often one of the tactics used to demoralize. A human of such integrity.