Hello again. If you are new here, I’m Christian Payne, autotelic and generalist. In this weekly dispatch I explore the relations between things, how we share, what we share and consume, plus where we might be going. Thanks for joining in.
#TheAction
I spent just as much time out and about as I have in front of a screen this week. Feels anomalous. A privilege even. Dog walking mostly. There’s also the danger I might turn into a birder.
This week, thanks to an update to the app (mentioned here more than once) Merlin Bird ID, I have spotted Wood Pigeon, Mute Swan, Blackbird, Sparrow, Wren, Greenfinch, Starling, Moorhen, Blackcap, Robin, Chiffchaff, Collard-Dove, Dunnock, Blue Tit, Warbler, Great Tit, Goldcrest, Rook, Chaffinch, Mallard, Song Thrush, Yellowhammer and a Skylark. And that’s just in and around the village.
As a small child I was a member of the Young Ornithologists Club (started by the RSPB and now called ‘Wildlife Explorers’) and had this badge sewn onto my Javelin jacket.
I’d once frowned at the (mostly) men standing on a woodland path staring up into the trees with a pair of binoculars that cost more than my pro-digital SLR. I wondered what they got out of it. But I got a taste of what it might be this week. Stood on a path by a pond, intently listening. Focusing my eyes towards the origin of the sound. Up into the branches of a tree. Hearing more, noticing more. And with my senses looking out, all other thoughts dissolved. Another chance to be present, to quiet the noise within and connect with the natural world.
As it was, it felt like time well spent. And the collector in me loved the fact I could open an app, confirm the bird, capture the sound and with a rewarding animation, add it to a list. I wonder what the younger me would’ve thought of this technology. An unnecessary distraction? More likely some kind of magic or a sci-fi super-power.
I noticed Bluesky implemented DM’s… I saw a couple of people wishing that they done it earlier so that it ‘took off’ faster than Threads.
All I need in a social network is for it to have is an intuitive UX, robust connectivity, diverse content, decent privacy & security measures, personalisation/filtering options, effective discovery & moderation, a sustainable business model, and the ability to innovate and adapt to changing user needs.
Looks like Bluesky does plan to have end to end encrypt DM’s but there is some work to do.
#ThePictures
I spent time on the website of Johan O E and his OCOLOY collective.
OCOLOY means one camera, one lens, one year project. Volume one and two linked at the bottom of this page. And here is the OCOLOY Collective on instagram
Sometimes the greed, corruption and mismanagement stares us squarely in the face. In regards to the state of the UK water companies this guy nails it.
I’ve not seen any pre-roll or embedded adverts on YouTube since dropping my links into the Brave Browser.
At a time when we can’t trust our tap water, here is another reminder that nature already has the answers.
#TheWords
3M and its continued contamination of human blood. Amongst other things. [Long read]
I read ‘Station Eleven’ during lockdown and the ebook is currently 99p.
#TheSound
‘Mountain’ is not only a podcast about adventure, it’s made by supporting subscriber Christopher Sleight.
I have enjoyed all 16 episodes of The Cluster F Theory. There has been something for me in every episode. I really hope there are more to come.
June is approaching and with it Audio-bloggers month (#Audiomo). I called up the originator Ernie aka Ernmander for chat.
In the audio he mentions a Mastodon app for posting audio but it looks like it might not do it any more. So should you wish to post audio into Mastodon go with Icecubes for iOS, Metatext, or the browser and attach your audio to your post with the #Audiomo hashtag.
#TheConsumed
It’s not at all responsible for me to fly all the way to Mexico for a Taco. But I have a yearning to do just that after reading about this taco stand getting a Michelin star. Any excuse to visit Mexico though. It’s been on the wish list for a while. As has Cuba.
Something weird was happening in my gut this week. I know very little about all this, but have a feeling last week’s whisky tasting/sleep deprivation and boozy get togethers took their toll on my gut flora. I was so bloated and gassy I struggled sleeping. So I decided to change my diet for a bit.
I started buy ditching bread and alcohol and opting for low carb foods. Fish based salad bowls went down well as did a weird pheasant soup my lad chose one night. With the addition of bloody expensive kimchi and live natural yoghurt I was right as rain in no time. I knew I was feeling better when I sampled half a Twix White. Meh. Bit sickly sweet for me.
My main take away (apart from the obvious in regards to drinking cask strength belly nuking whisky) is to eat more probiotics. I’m keen to make my own Kimchi and might have to bite the bullet on a kimchi jar so I can ferment safely.
#TheThings
Owning a lock picking kit or lock bypass tools is not illegal (in the UK), but I wouldn’t want to be stopped and searched while carrying bump keys or quick picks. Unless I was on the way to Lock Sport club. That might be enough ‘just cause’ to carry.
Red Team Tools offer all the kinds of lock bypassing kit that can help you win a lock sport competition or get you arrested. There is also a UK based company.
My lad appears to have hit the ceiling of what our old 2018 Mac mini can do. It’s fine for homework but as a fan of the software client Steam he’s struggling with some of the latest games like Baldur’s Gate 3 which need a higher spec graphics card. The Mac mini was a luxurious hand me down from me and he’s yet to realise the cost of building a decent gaming PC. Although that is a downside the upsides of a wider range of games, customisation, modding and keyboard and mouse controls are not lost on him. I suggested a stopgap of a Steamdeck but will need to take a look at how much modding and customisation he might miss out on. Years ago I used to build PC’s for a job and might find it fun having another go.
Looks like we’s need. Windows 10 64-bit / 64-bit processor / Processor: Intel i7 8700K / AMD r5 3600 / Memory: 32 GB RAM / Graphics: Nvidia 2060 Super VRAM) / DirectX: Version 11 / Storage: 150-500 GB SSD.
Linux will be another chunk of research. [Sigh]
#TheThanks
Thank you to Christopher (did you check out his podcast above?) and all the paying subscribers that support my time here. They keep this dispatch free for everyone. I appreciate your generosity.
#TheWeb
It wasn’t just Oliver Dowden telling us to stock up on emergency supplies. Another government website has popped up preparing us for something. It was featured in a prepping segment on Jeremy Vine’s radio show. As was this web shop featuring prepper gear. Let me know here if you are ready for anything?
It’s not just large companies and institutions getting targeted with real-time multi-model chatbots and AI Deep Fakes. But it’s certainly where the big money is. It won’t be long before more efficient off the shelf deepfake tools will be available for the aspiring mass scammer. Good job you click ‘NO’ to all the cookies and have protected your social and family graphs.
Some apps (like Bubbl) look like their sole job is to learn about your most intimate networks.
Microsoft’s recall is just scary. I’m glad other people feel the same way.
The Documentally community map helps me see where you all are in the hope that our paths might cross.
Quick trip around the stars?
Alternative.to helps you to find alternatives to things. Mostly online stuff as it crashed when I typed in ‘Tories’. Possibly lacked the computational ability to narrow down the options. Emigration… Punch in the face… Potato… [CRASH]
Some of my other places include Letterboxd, Discogs, GoodReads, Flickr, LinkedIn, YouTube, Mastodon, a ham radio newsletter or search ‘Documentally’ on Wire, Birdsite, Bluesky or Daft Social.
Mushroom hunters discover an ancient sculpture.
#TheEnd
As ever, thank you for reading this far and checking out some of the links. All spelling mistakes are intentional.
This time next week I’ll be at EMFcamp. Will I see you there?
Have a great weekend!
“Be curious. Read widely. Try new things. I think a lot of what people call intelligence boils down to curiosity.” ~ Aaron Swartz
Try new things.
See you out there.
Over…