Bubbles
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A really fine book. 1992.The French forces that fought during the American War of Independence (1775-1783) were, to a large extent, a product of the disasters of the Seven Years' War (1756-1763). During that war the fleet had been swept...
At 10:15 this morning I added a small feature to my personal website. Visitors whose providers still cannot deliver IPv6 would get a toast in the lower-right corner: Legacy IP detected You reached this website on a legacy version of the...
A simple quesadilla with huitlacoche (corn mushrooms) is a contender for the best quesadilla I've had. It's also one of the most traditional recipes I know of for these special mushrooms and can be made with fresh mushrooms off the cobb,...
One of the meany problems with modern capitalism is not simply that some corporations are greedy. It is that we have built institutions around the assumption that people are greedy, and then wondered why they behave that way. Since the...
Guess who dropped a box of ceramic floor tiles on their finger. Looks like it's going to be vocals and editing next week!
Next to all the code samples on this blog is a little "copy" button. That makes it easier to grab any of the code I've shared. The HTML and JS is delightfully simple: <button onclick="navigator.clipboard.writeText(...
The Seven Sisters Saga credits What Works Well? What Works…Less Well? Opportunities What’s Adaptable? Six Years Hence: Virtuoso Coming Attractions This week, our Free Culture Book Club finishes listening to The Seven Sisters Saga, with...
Normal Rockwell’s Sunday Morning (1959) It’s felt like a long week for some reason. Maybe it’s the lunar eclipse, maybe it’s the end of a long oppressively hot summer. In any case I’m delighted to have a few days to reset under the rain....
Album of the Week, August 29, 2026 This week is another round of traditional qawwali music from Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and it has a complicated release history. Originally there were two records, released separately in 1986 for WOMAD...
On 27th August, SI 2026/848 came into effect, legalising plug-in solar in the UK. Shops like Argos now offer them (though rumour has it that Lidl will soon start stocking at about half the price). Earlier this year, we had plug-in solar...
Derek Thompson had a fascinating conversation with a University of Chicago Professor on “Uni-context.” Here’s a summary: “One of my favorite conversations on Plain English in the last few months was my talk with the University of Chicago...
I've never made a secret of the fact I want freedom, I suppose it's a bit cliche but I've had enough of the 9-5 rat race after having seen friends being made redundant and loyalty all but thrown out the window. I find writing to be equal...
The initial hand-carved rural diorama by Ben Dowell shows miniature figures performing farm chores. It was successful, so the maker added a whirling scare dance scene. There was also circus with ferris wheel,, several merry-go-rounds and...
By Joseph QuinnBirdEnuf Books & GamesOSELevel 1+ It began with a strange light in the sky. Now, an eerie glow emanates from the depths. Some creatures of the reef have grown disturbingly intelligent, while others attack with a maddened...
Balloons released at Conseil International Cross Country Championship in 1988 (photo from Wikimedia) 29 August 2026 This week Allegheny County announced that all balloons and all sky lanterns are now banned in Allegheny County Parks....