We've just had a pair of storms over the last few days, such that the air is very clear.
I'm sitting on a beach (Skala Beach, just south of Ammoudia) and I can see Kefalonia, 120km (75mi) away.
(Yes, the peaks are tall enough to be seen above the curvature of the earth).
Once Greece gave its youth an impression that they wouldn't have a future in Greece, they left as soon as they could. Greek population has shrunk by 12% over the last 15 years, and has aged through emigration of young people and the matching lack of births.
Please, France, trust me, option 1 is better. Don't fool yourself into believing that Greece was "saved" and that you can make the same mistakes and get "saved" the same way.
(3/3)
Greece went with option 2. It was forced to reduce its government spending, by 30% over 5 years, triggering a major recession. But, to keep taxes flowing in, it also had to increase the effective tax rate by 25% (10pp of GDP from about 40% to 50%). And it financed the rest by selling ports, airports, trains, roads.
GDP since the beginning of the crisis is down 23% in constant Euros.
(2/n)
Dear France,
About 20 years ago, the public debt of Greece was getting close to 120% of its GDP, and it was growing by 5-6% of GDP annually, at a time when the world economy was doing mostly OK.
If that rings a bell, that's because you're there now.
You have 2 options.
1) You get this under control under your own terms. Grow the tax base, increase taxes, decrease spending, a bit of all 3, you get to decide.
2) You let it slide, make others rescue you, and they'll dictate their terms.
(1/n)
In a first phase of world domination, Spain and Portugal shared the influence over the globe. Second phase, Britain, Netherlands, France. Third phase, USA and Russia.
As Putin and Trump are dismantling that world order, the fourth phase is coming. China is one of the leaders. The race is on whether India and/or the EU will rise to the occasion.
RE: https://timetheft.rip/@jazz/117292468996706242
The part about the GBA isn't a joke. Such machines (whether consoles or computers) had so many programs written against the very exact same set of characteristics that those characteristics are well documented and can therefore be maintained in a backward-compatible way.
Also, the GBA is a rare 32-bit console that relies solely on 2D graphics - most 32-bit consoles had moved to 3D graphics.
If you don't know how to code something, if you don't know where to start, try coding it while drunk. At least you'll know one way not to code it.
Me, after a few years without having time for photography: I wonder which camera I should use to get back up to speed. I have a range from entry-level DSLR to very good medium format.
Me, having just grabbed one of the medium-format lenses (65mm f/1.4), which weighs over a kilo: I'll go for ultra-light-weight for now, thank you very much.
I've technically lived in #Greece for more than 2 1/2 years now, and I'm still discovering new details that, as they get added together, make the place feel like home.
I'm spending the morning today on a West-North-West-facing beach at the foot of some steep cliffs... which means that it remains in the shade for a long time in the morning, and is therefore cooler. Even better, it's 10 minutes from home and easily accessible.
This might be my new favorite beach for summer mornings.
"no politics" is a political statement. It's the statement that says "I'm comfortable with the current political landscape and I don't feel like getting it changed".
For the first time since we finished construction of our arts and crafts studio in early July, the weather is cool enough in the evening that I can have the window open instead of relying on air conditioning. It's nice not to be stuck in stale air. It's also nice to be able to hear the sounds outside in the distance.
Little Mylo asked to be rescued by us, 10 days ago. She's not afraid of anyone. And she's now sleeping softly on top of a couch.
As I was writing that, she came to sleep against me, on top of my arms, purring loudly.
May 2023: I quit my full-time job to focus on moving from the US to Greece.
August 2026, 1200 days later: we're mostly moved in. We had to wait for a bit of construction, which took significantly longer than expected (2 years vs 6 months).
Those 3+ years have been quite rough at times, with a lot of work and a lot of frustration. Now that we're mostly done, things feel pretty good.
Hopefully, I'll get my EV this coming week, this'll be the cherry on top.
I'm trying to sort through the many reasons why I don't want to use generative systems (LLMs++) to write code or other things.
Personal: I like doing things myself, I enjoy learning. I hate working with idiots.
Others: I try to respect others' work, and I take pride in being the creator of what I sign my name on.
Social: Between the billionaire aspect, the environment aspect, the US aspect, no, thank you.
Yay, the updates I made on #OpenStreetMap a couple of weeks ago seem to be live!
As I'm getting closer to being done moving into our house (wishful thinking), I intend to get back to coding in the next few weeks.
I'm wondering whether some folks might be interested in some series of stream-of-consciousness posts about my reasoning for coding. I have a dormant mastodon account on another instance that would be perfect for that.
Many coders, when not working under a deadline, will spend more time writing their tools than writing actually production code.
Me, designing code that races the beam: "I don't like that I can't test that code other than running it and seeing whether it looks OK"
Me, 5 minutes later: what if I write my own Z80 emulator, so that I can emulate individual routines in context and measure their timing along the way?
Me: another 5 minutes later: "Hey, my program is only meant to use the first 64kB or RAM, but there are some 128kB machines, should I use the extra RAM for a built-in debugger?
#RetroComputing is fun
EV charging is not confusing at all. There are types, levels, and modes.
I used to have cables for type 1 level 1 mode 2, type 1 level 2 mode 2, type 1 level 2 mode 3. I will need cables for type 2 level 1 mode 2, type 2 level 2 mode 2, and type 2 level 2 mode 3.
Level can be 1, 2, 3.
Mode can be 2, 3, 4.
Type can be 1, 2, J1772-2001, CHAdeMO, CCS1, CCS2, NACS.
Not confusing at all.
The stork chicks from the nest in our village took their first flight today. In fact, as I was trying to photograph them resting on a roof, they took off for their second flight. Living in a village might mean that we're highly car-dependent, especially since there are no deliveries, but it gives us a very quiet life in the middle of nature.
