Pathological short-termism [499]
Greetings from the shed...
Me again. Christian Payne, autotelic, photographer and writer. I’m in the shed with the heater on. Hope you are also cosy. Thanks for checking in.
#TheAction
Spent a lot of time on Bluesky this week. It suddenly got busy. In a good way.
Been wanting to get into the garden, but the cold confined me to the shed. I did stand there for a while today contemplating how the plants have slowed right down and how peaceful they look heading into winter. Meanwhile the world continues to fall apart and it feels like there is a storm coming.
Within 10 seconds of opening a news app in the warmth of the shed i’d read all I needed about overdue arrest warrants and the intimate workings of some shiny new killing machines. So I went back out to stare at the plants again.
I won’t bore you with the plumbing debacle that continues in my house. Ok, I will but in audio which only a few of you will dare to click.
…Am calmer now. Here is the photo I promised in the audio.
The capped off pipe is the hot water pipe. The weird copper sculpture is the cold water pipe. Not even pretty.
#ThePictures
I took the kids to see The Wild Robot.
This got me in the feels.
Beautiful art and great score. Plus so many decent characters.
I think my kids loved it as much as I did.
“Photography is at the very heart of understanding the velocity of deforestation.” A fantastic film highlighting the work of Richard Mosse: ‘What the Camera Cannot See’ documents his projects coving humanitarian crises and environmental catastrophes as he utilises surveillance imaging technology to make the unseen visible.
(Via FlakPhoto)
This is the ‘Doom Shroom’ of Bluesky. If you didn’t know, the mushroom in this adaptation of Twitter’s Fail Whale symbolises all the Bluesky servers that are named after… you guessed it—Mushrooms.
Made by dallasnagata.bsky.social
#TheWords
I might now have written and digitised over 2 million words. As far as I know AI can’t read them, but who knows what might have got into my backups. In my list of things I need to do before I tackle selecting 40 to 70,000 of those words and arranging them to fit into a papery book; is type up all my journals.
I know I’m dragging this out—not ideal for someone who absolutely needs a deadline. But as I sift through old notebooks and journals, typing them up, I realize this might be the most rewarding part of the process.
Perhaps it’s not just about cranking out a book and shaping the words into something I can be proud of. Maybe it’s about learning to be the wild, fearless soul who dares to tell this story. And the act of writing is transforming me into someone I can truly be proud of.
After hearing the news I thought I might need to brush up on what actually happens in a nuclear war. This book by Annie Jacobsen entitled Nuclear War seemed apt. It also had some decent reviews. Dark reading so far.
#TheSound
“In 15th and 16th century Scotland, in the highest courts of the land, you'd find esteemed poets hurling insults at each other. This was flyting, a sort of medieval equivalent of battle rap, and it was so popular at the time that the King himself wrote instructions for how to do it well.”
This episode of the Allusionist could have as easily have been slotted into ‘The words’ but i’ve dropped it here with a reminder that audio is a multitasking media and you can listen to this podcast while doing other things. ;-)
And another podcast that might keep you busy for a while with its nine seasons is Constant Wonder. Series one episode one is all about the soul of an Octopus.
#TheConsumed
There are more reports of backpacker deaths due to drinking bootleg spirits. This time in Laos. Tragic and you would think unavoidable. You might remember me writing about drinking a local herb infused fiery moonshine back in issue 382. (With photo of it) This was just over the river in Northern Thailand and I was there to get my visa before heading to Laos. I was in the place featured in the news, Vang Vieng. The tourism scene was a fraction of what it is now and with more opium dens than hostels it would be weird to be concerned more about what you might be drinking. Moonshine was popular but never called vodka.
You did hear about the occasional death. But that was drowning while drunk or some kind of overdose. Back then without social media and 24/7 rolling news you mostly relied on your instincts, word of mouth and an out of date guidebook. One expert said on the radio that all the tourists in the area will be on high alert right now. But in two weeks people would have forgotten about it.
#TheThings
I said i’d get one…
A compact and rugged selfie stick from Quadlock. Here’s a short video review.
In my mind the selfie stick conjures up images of the lone traveller standing in front of famous landmarks, extending the phone on a telescopic pole, smiling for a quick snap and then moving on to the next site.
This device feels like it could be capable of so much more. The key things for me are that it’s pocketable, robust and does not make a sound when extended. Even in motion. The sturdy connection is a big bonus especially for those who like to grab close-to-the-ground footage while riding a skateboard, or over the head shots in the middle of a surging riot. Combined with a compact wireless mic system or a simple wired lavaliere, pieces to camera while mobile could look amazing.
If I wasn’t addicted to the apple ecosystem I’d use this de-googled OS on my phone.
Wow. A 192-channel phased array microphone. Mind blowing.
#TheThanks
Thank you to all the paying subscribers that support my time here and keep this dispatch free for everyone. Please consider upgrading to become a paid supporter. Or if you prefer PayAsYouGo you can do that via Ko-Fi, PayPal and Monzo. If you would like full access but really can’t stretch to it let me know.
Either way… Thank you for reading, sharing and liking.
#TheWeb
Maybe this was what AI was invented for. Although so it will be AI on both sides of the call.
Looking at the Documentally community map i’ll be not far away from @mattalder next week.
The NYT on Substack. (via Caroline Phillips)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces arrest if he travels to the UK
I’d love to see a map that shows the global laws exploited by the super rich.
Some of my other places include Letterboxd, Discogs, GoodReads, Flickr, LinkedIn, Mastodon, a ham radio newsletter but i’ve been spending most of my time on Bluesky.
Lessons from the Zen of creativity.
#TheEnd
The next issue will be numbered 500, but we are beyond that with the specials and podcasts. Thank you for being here. There is a chance that I will be in Scotland on a secret mission. If that’s the case then issue 500 may just go just to supporting subscribers whom I trust not to share beyond our little circle. ;-)
Till then stay warm and dance in the storm.
“You can dance in the storm. Don't wait for the rain to be over before because it might take too long. You can can do it now. Wherever you are, right now, you can start, right now; this very moment.” ― Israelmore Ayivor
Now is now and not for ever.
See you out there.
Over…
I roared with laughter when you mentioned the chisel into the cold water. What a cluster fuck!
Tell me. Do you have no hot water in the household at the moment until the new year, only cold?