A quick search of my posts reveals that I am excited at this time every year when the tree frogs start their ruckus. Dear reader, it has begun.


Great segment from John Oliver on the continuing dangers of AI around mental health, suicide risk, and plain old delusion–and the absolutely sociopathic responses of the AI CEOs.


A really interested tidbit from Joel Salatin about how North America before the Europeans actually produced more food than it does today, even with the various chemicals.


CNBC newsletter:

Musk’s Tesla is beta testing an in-vehicle version of xAI’s Grok chatbot. First rolled out last year, it allows drivers to give voice commands to their car’s navigation system.

Meanwhile, my thirty-year old pickup truck has no power windows, locks, mirrors, or seat. The radio/cassette player doesn’t work–and I may not fix it. It doesn’t get in a hurry to go anywhere, which is increasingly to my taste.


The Louvin Brothers, “Dying from Home, and Lost.” The harmony on this one really reminds me of my childhood church, which I wrote about here. That album, by the way, is one banger after another.


It’s ridiculous, really, that I haven’t read any of the Foxfire books yet. I’ve checked out from the library an ebook edition of The Foxfire Book of Appalachian Cooking to get me started and I’m going to keep an eye out for used copies of the main series.


This might interest a cross-section of folks here: A Greek Orthodox priest has released “Paradise Metal.” From the review site: “microtonal Byzantine modes with DIY electronic modernism,” “sublime new age ambient to shoe-gazy basslines and mountaintop guitar shreds to techno incantations.” Bandcamp


“We do not easily remember peasants”

Patrick Joyce, Remembering Peasants: We do not easily remember peasants. The realities of their lives are a dim presence in the historical record. We catch only glimpses in the great obscurity that is the centuries-old peasant past of Europe. The first is from the Poland of a century ago: Every field knows its owner, the Earth is indignant at every crime committed on its face. The moon watches and prayers are still said to it.

Continue reading →


It’s clean sweep week here in town—the time of year when the city will, free of charge, pick up anything you put on the curb. Rachel said she’s already seen a couple of pickup trucks roaming the neighborhood trying to beat the city to some treasures. That will absolutely be me someday.


Thinking about Johnny Cash this morning brought to mind this from Over the Rhine: “Earthbound Love Song.” 🎵