We can freely walk around New York right now, the cold has retreated enough for much of the snow to melt. However there are still these really nasty piles of ice and trash on most street corners and edges. It reminds me, and has me appending to something I say regularly that cities aren't loud—cars are loud, with cities aren't dirty, cars are dirty.
I am continuing to question and wrestle with my personal and professional online presence in a very uncertain digital landscape. It has me reflectibg on just how much things have changed in two decades of being online, and how the World Wide Web didn’t really work out the way most of imagine it back at the turn of the century.
2006 - I recommend you maintain your blog, be on social media, and actively maintain an online presence.
2026 - I just can't recommend that anymore for the average person in my life--it has gotten too hostile out there.
I signed up for my friend’s newsletter centered social network. It is positioned as an alternative to Substack. Which I have managed to avoid altogether. I’ve abandoned Twitter and avoided Substack for same reasons, and while I am finding some light benefit from Bluesky and Mastodon, I am captivated by the power of the newsletter, so Commune has caught my attention for what might be “next”.
Audrey and I watched a documentary on the Jazz pianist Bill Evans. The filmmaking for the documentary left something to be desired, but the handling of Bill Evan’s story made it worthwhile. He clearly had tapped into something powerful, which included deals with some powerful demons. I love his piano playing so much, and am thankful he was able to make the art that he did.
When I ride around New York City on our bike, which isn’t very often lately, I find myself often wondering where the hell the bike lane went. I’ll be riding along and all of sudden there is no bike lane. I just figured it was me not paying attention, but I found some new Bluesky accounts that talk about what a problem this is in New York City, highlighting the many dead ends that exist.
Audrey and I finished listening to We Survived the Night by Julian Brave Noisecat, a beautifully written indigenous story of survival and I’d say generational renewal and discovery. I am adding it to my lis to books that have changed me for the way the book evolves my understanding of the indigenous state of being in North America—the coyote stories took me to new places.
I had a big old nap on Saturday. One of those four hour solid naps where you wake up rebooted. Different than sleeping at night. I knew I needed it. I knew it was coming. It was a beautiful nap and represents the things I am loving about being over 50. Sleep is good, and sleep in the sunshine on a winter afternoon on the couch has magical qualities to it.
Audrey had a great newsletter this week where she said, “You cannot build a home – physical or intellectual – that is safe and secure if the foundation is rotten. The foundation of these fields -- cognitive science, psychology, artificial intelligence, computing, educational technology -- is rotten.” Something that has stuck with me all week as I think about Internet technology.
The story of why ‘deleted’ doesn’t mean gone: How police recovered Nancy Guthrie’s doorbell footage is disturbing as all hell. The way that all our nightmares of digital technology seem to be coming true in such very dystopian ways should give us pause regarding any technology we let into our homes, schools, and places of business, making sure it truly benefits us.
I am getting more used to the noise of today’s market. When I first left Bloomberg I found it just annoyingly hostile and full of shit. It still is, but I am finding my own way of finding the signal in the noise, and tuning out the rest. I am find it easier to understand the emotional reasons people are buying into AI, and I realized that there is no signal without the noise.
The stories I read in the New York Almanack of industrial espionage between the American colonies and the UK were compelling this week. The way the Americas were setup as cotton producers and the producing of final product from cotton kept in the UK was a story I hadn’t heard before—keeping the colonies purchasing finished products with raw ingredients we produced.
We had Mido’s Halal Cart for Valentine’s Day. Nothing say’s I love you like lamb over rice with white and melt your face red sauce, and chicken over rice with just white sauce for the wimp who doesn’t like his face melted off. It truly is the best Halal cart in the city and I am thankful to be able to walk over there with my lovely wife and Rottweiler and indulge myself.
It got warm enough that Poppy and I were able to walk over Friday night and pick up Audrey from Ballet at the Alvin Ailey Dance Center in Hell’s Kitchen. It is something we did all summer, but it has just been too cold to do. We tend to watch documentaries while Audrey is at Ballet and then Poppy and I slowly make our way over, and enjoy sitting out front watching her dance—she has gotten really graceful at it.
We’ve managed a couple of morning walks in Central Park now. There is still ice everywhere, with some spots on the path downright dangerous. If you walk slowly and surely we are fine. Despite the danger, it is so nice to get back to our routine and the colors have been amazing, which always leaves you thankful for being alive and able to experience each day on this beautiful earth.
