Recently updated blogs

Well it didn't take quite as long as most of us would have imagined, but the inevitable has happened. Carsberg Marstons Brewing has decided, after announcing the closure of Banks's Brewery and saying that it would not result in a loss of brands - also known as someone's beloved beers - that they are discontinuing no less than eight cask beers and three others. As Pub Curmudgeon remarked, "it might …

Some bullshit Google app is now rewriting web pages and injecting links back to Google's own ad-stuffed pages.

Unwed women in China’s Canton Delta found autonomy and sisterhood in gupouks, innovative communal homes that emerged in tandem with the industrialization of silk-making. Read on Places Journal

Compiling Compile’s Creations Developer: Compile Publisher: Compile Release Date: May 5th, 1996 (via Disc Station Vol. 10) Available On: PC-98 Genre: Shoot ‘Em Up In the 80s and 90s, there was an ol’ proverb you’d hear every so often: “In life, three things are certain: death, taxes, and Compile putting out more shoot ‘em ups”. I just made that up, but it feels like something that should be true, both …

I’ve been playing a little guitar again, after not being inspired for a while. Jag har spelat lite gitarr igen, efter att jag inte blivit inspirerad på en tag.

Late last year I got back into miniature painting, something I hadn’t done since I was in college. I was living on my own in the middle of nowhere for most of 2024, and painting miniatures was a nice way to spend time, especially when I was snowed in. I even made a few YouTube videos about painting.Here’s everything I painted in 2024, along with a few notes on the …

Remember when Mistborn: House War made the uncomfortable decision to cast its players as the eugenicist oppressors of Brandon Sanderson’s much-loved fantasy series? Oh, you don’t. Well, I do, and that’s the first thing John D. Clair’s Mistborn: The Deckbuilding Game has going for it. This time around, you’re an actual mistborn, a metal-guzzling, glass-dagger-stabbing, high-flying superhero in a goofy tassled cape. That’s all good stuff, but the real draw …

I think the My New Character/Chill Guy meme is the fastest I’ve turned on a meme. Indifference to loathing in days flat.

In the past week I had two people separately tell me what they thought the PSF Conduct WG did and both were wrong (and incidentally in the same way). As such, I wanted to clarify what exactly the WG does for people in case others also misunderstand what the group does.⚠️I am a member of the PSF Conduct WG (whose membership you can see by checking the charter), and have …

I just spent four days in Kansas City with a Kia EV6 rental car. It's something I've always wanted to drive and frequently considered as my next daily driver someday.Upfront, I want to state that I don't have any reflexive disgust for Kia that a lot of people I know do. They remember early Kias that hit American shores in the early 2000s and how cheaply made and unreliable they …

Last week Alice Brock of Alice’s Restaurant made her exit from Earth. I wrote a post about her long ago, but thought I’d add a bit more about her life, including more of her colorful quotations. She didn’t find running restaurants easy and made that clear in interviews and in her 1975 book My Life As a Restaurant. [photos by Jane McWhorter, from Alice’s book] In addition to opening and …

A Pioneer Thanksgiving by Barbara Greenwood, illustrated by Heather Collins, 1999. This book is part story, part history, and part craft and activity book. It tells the story of a particular pioneer family’s Thanksgiving celebration in 1841 to explain the sort of Thanksgiving celebrations that pioneer families would have at the time, and there are related activities and recipes to accompany the story. Everyone in the Robertson family helps with …

By David Tuller, DrPH A group called Canadian Guidelines for Post COVID-19 Condition (CAN-PCC) has released a new set of draft recommendations related to preventing, diagnosing and treating what is commonly called Long Covid. The current list of nine draft recommendations includes exercise and cognitive behavior therapy, which has understandably raised concerns among advocates for … Trial By Error: Canadian Group Seeks Feedback on Recommendations for Exercise and CBT for …

Morning walk, Pōneke.

All Hallows by the Tower is a must-visit church for any London history fans, but something that often gets overlooked is its unique tower. It’s literally a jigsaw of London through the centuries! The first thing to mention is the name. Sometimes called All Hallows Barking (more on that connection to Barking later) the ‘Tower’ used in its name today is the Tower of London, denoting the church’s proximity to …