i don't post publicly often anymore, so here's a copy of my user bio to help you figure out who i am/why i'm interesting. i may not notice people friending me as quickly as i used to, so comment here if you want to draw my attention to something. if you need to contact me privately, please use the email given in my profile ( Read more... )

I am in Waterloo and Toronto, variously, through next weekend. What should I make sure to do while I am here? Recommendations for good vegetarian-friendly restaurants in TO and nice coffeeshops within walking distance of UW are particularly welcome.

*****

( I am at a crossroads. Want to help? )

I've hauled a lot of stuff to Goodwill (and metal recycling, and campus, and...) these past few weeks, but I've held on to some kids' toys and books I want to try disposing of more directly. (In the case of the books, I wasn't sure the more fragile ones would make it through the donation sorting process.) In the process, I wrote up some nearly- ( Read more... )

Argh, DW ate my carefully prepared draft. Anyway: if you are local, and want any of these books, speak up! You have the option of coming by our house to pick them up, or persuading me that you live near enough for delivery, or arrange to meet up sometime. Non-local people can offer to chip in for postage, or request a hard-to-find book, and I will ( Read more... )

bergey and I made a cider press*, which we're going to use for a 5gal batch of hard cider in the next week or so. If you would like to use our cider press to generate your own sweet or hard cider, read the fine print, and then let us know when you're free!

( fine print )

Ok, some of you have sold me on changing my name. So here's a poll on options ( Read more... )

Documenting a hack I just figured out, b/c lots of the internet seems like they don't know about it.

( background: removing cropped areas from PDF pages in Acrobat )

Once upon a time, I believed in Truth. It was out there, and I could find it, and when I did, I would Understand Everything. ( and then I got disillusioned. )

b/c invariably, at the moment a community can usefully be said to exist, it now has momentum, definition, an in and an out, cultural signifiers, and a drive for self-preservation. People are social, they like to have fun, and why fix it if it ain't broke ( Read more... )

So, while we were at mystery hunt*, the internet exploded, about race and literature and cultural appropriation. This discussion actually started early last week, and I'd been following it intermittently, but apparently in the last day or two it's taken rather a turn for the worse. I have some scattered thoughts.

( some of these words have been percolating for a year or more. long, obviously. )