Another recent culling decision was to move to a single reminder/to-do app, and the winner there ended up being Microsoft To Do. TickTick was a close second, and I could see myself possibly going back to it eventually.
The things I like about Microsoft To Do:
It’s free, with no limitations (free is good, no subscription was my real preference)
At first, the My Day feature bugged me, but I’ve come to embrace it. It’s basically a blank page for you to add things to and it’s easy to add daily stuff (which is also viewable elsewhere). It provides a way to focus, which I need.
The UI is unusually pleasant
Sync works fine, regardless of platform (PC, Mac, phone)
The thing I don’t like:
The name. Come on, they didn’t even try! And this replaced Wunderlist, which is an absolutely delightful name.
Today I yoinked another newsletter, BookBub. I did this despite BookBub doing exactly what it sets out to do: Highlight sales on books in genres I’m interested in.
I did this for a few reasons:
As a general part of this year’s culling, winnowing out inessential things and clutter from my life
My book reading has fallen off a cliff this year
I have a backlog of books to read for when I climb back to the top of the cliff
The majority of the BookBub recommendations are for unknown authors and my hit/miss ratio with them has left me increasingly risk-averse
A corollary to that: Established authors rarely show up in BookBub deals
My inbox has gone from being essentially unmanageable (so many newsletters coming in that I just plain didn’t read some of them) to so svelte I can breeze through it in a few minutes.
I asked the AI chat tool ChatGPT to write a blog post about cats. This is what it came up with. It seems very pro-cat.
A Blog Post About Cats
Cats are fascinating creatures that have been beloved by humans for thousands of years. From their playful personalities to their graceful movements, there is something captivating about these mysterious animals.
One of the most interesting things about cats is their unique ability to make themselves at home in any environment. Whether they are living in a cozy house with their human family or roaming the streets as a feral feline, cats are experts at adapting to their surroundings.
Another thing that makes cats special is their independent nature. Unlike dogs, which are known for their loyalty and eagerness to please their human companions, cats tend to be more self-sufficient and aloof. This can make them somewhat challenging to understand, but it also adds to their charm and allure.
Despite their independent nature, cats are also highly social animals. They are known for their strong bonds with other cats, and they can form close relationships with their human companions as well. Many cat owners describe their feline friends as being like family members, and there is something deeply satisfying about the special bond that can develop between a human and a cat.
In conclusion, cats are fascinating creatures that are full of surprises. From their adaptability to their independent nature, there is always something new and interesting to discover about these captivating animals. Whether you are a lifelong cat lover or just getting to know these mysterious creatures, there is no doubt that cats are truly one of a kind.
***
And here’s a picture of cat from DALL-E (prompt: house cat sunning itself indoors) to round off this AI edition of cats cats cats:
And a somewhat less successful (that “face”) “digital art” version:
The filter in our humidifier is not working optimally, so the humidity has been lower than we’d like (we’re replacing the filter soon). What this means is that the place is generally drier than it would normally be, and since it’s been quite cold and dry outside…twice, while on the treadmill for today’s workout, I got a nice static shock. Except not really nice.
The workout was the same speed/incline as yesterday, but only 30 minutes long (I walked to the store earlier in the day, so had less ground to make up). Somehow I managed to walk slower. How is that even possible? Science!
I missed runs on Wednesday and Friday due to all that dang snow and, as they say on the interweb, had a sad.
Today I was feeling lazy, but mid-afternoon I got on the treadmill, queued up some YouTube videos and did a not-overly strenuous walk until I hit my Exercise and Move goals.
It was kind of casual, but like I said, it was a lazy day.
Here is a depiction of how I felt, in convenient cat form:
A few days ago, Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac died, at the age of 79. This made me think back to the reunion of the classic Mac line-up that led to the live album The Dance, which I bought in the now quaint CD format. The concert, album and subsequent tour all happened in 1997–25 years ago as of this writing, yet when I think back to it, it feels like it happened far more recently, more like five or ten years ago. It’s weird. McVie was already 54 at the time. She rejoined Fleetwood Mac in 2014 at the age of 71, yet in my mind she seems to be eternally around 40 years old. This may admittedly be in part to how music videos “preserve” people as they were, but I think the time thing plays a big part, too.
I don’t have anything more profound to offer on this, only that it’s something that has become more obvious to me after I moved from my 40s and into my 50s. The death of McVie made me think again how my brain doesn’t easily wrap around how much time has passed on so many things.
Although it does feel like it’s been about a hundred years since I had a decent head of hair.
My original plan was to walk the 6 km to Piper spit and take pictures of the birds. About halfway there, the snow started coming down hard enough that I turned back (my camera equipment is not really snow-compatible). But I did get some shots of snowy scenery with my phone. Enjoy these over a nice mug of hot chocolate!
View of the Brunette River from the bridge on North Road.The number of trees that have collapsed across the river has tripled in the last year. To three! You can see two of them here.Close-up of the second fallen tree, with reflection.The cold way forward. The ruts made by service vehicles weren’t as slippery as I expected.
I use Twitter very little, so its possible demise is not something I would lament on a personal level, though I realize it has immense value for some communities.
Elon Musk’s so-far disastrous stewardship of the social media platform has produced many metaphors, but I think this one from the comments on an Ars Technica article might be my favourite because it encapsulates the absurdity of so much of what Musk has done, and his so-far unerring ability to then make tihngs even worse.
Having walked around the snow-festooned neighbourhood, I have realized there are three levels of snow shovelling on sidewalks (businesses and homes are required to keep their sidewalks clear after a snowfall and can be billed if a city crew has to do the work for them.
The levels are:
Snow King. These people shovel the entire width of the sidewalk and do such a thorough job that the sidewalk will actually dry out and just be a regular sidewalk surrounded by snow.
Snow Lord. These people will shovel most of the width of the sidewalk and only leave a few bits and pieces of snow behind, which can be relatively easily avoided.
Snow Peon. These underachievers will shovel to the width of the snow shovel, leaving a lot of snow on the sidewalk. The cleared parts will often have enough scraped snow that it freezes and becomes a slipping hazard. This is almost worse than not shovelling at all. Bonus falling-on-your-butt points if the sidewalk is on a hill and can have freezing runoff.
Not included:
Snow Wretches. They don’t shovel the sidewalk at all. Depending on conditions, this can be good or bad. If the snow is not overly crunchy, it can become packed, but still provide enough grip that it isn’t a slipping hazard. If the snow is crunchy, it can become craggy, slick and horrible to walk on.
Fortunately, most people around here are snow kings.
And here’s a photo I took of my foot in crunchy snow:
Because it’s cold out there today. It’s -6C as I type this and the expected high is -1C, which scientists refer to as BRR. At least it isn’t snowing anymore. Or raining, because that would be even more fun with everything covered in crunchy snow right now.
I must venture out at some point to get some foodstuffs, plus I also want to go to the lake to see how viable it might be for running tomorrow. I’m not super hopeful, but you never know!
Also, I was down this morning, woo. Weight-wise, I mean, not in terms of my spirits. I am officially 10.9 pounds from my weight goal of 150. Can I get to 150 pounds in the month that plies people relentlessly with candy, chocolate, eggnog and the horror known as fruitcake? Possibly!
