belwerks - Network

Events of the past couple of months have forced a lot of thinking about the future, my partner and I's careers, and how to balance those...

Events of the past couple of months have forced a lot of thinking about the future, my partner and I's careers, and how to balance those while raising good people. Wrote this in an optimistic fury a few nights ago and happy to have edited and posted it today:

https://belwerks.com/life/2023/12/24/surviving-the-era-of-ai.html

Been chipping away at archiving a communal podcast network (Station Zed) I co-ran from 2016-19. Original site still exists for now, but...

Been chipping away at archiving a communal podcast network (Station Zed) I co-ran from 2016-19. Original site still exists for now, but storage and hosting costs are adding up.

This version is running on GitHub Pages with links out to files in Google Drive. It's been a fun experiment, using Node to parse XML and feed the static front end with various JSON files.

Check out the 'Christmas Vacation' episode of our flagship show, The Dust Off, if you're feeling festive:

https://stephenbelyea.github.io/stationzed/show-the-dust-off.html#022-a-vcr-in-every-room

Anybody else interested in a shot-for-shot remake of 'The Darkest One' video form The Tragically Hip? I bet the Trailer Park Boys...

Anybody else interested in a shot-for-shot remake of 'The Darkest One' video form The Tragically Hip? I bet the Trailer Park Boys would still be down.

Though this video is too perfect a Canadian specimen to ever tamper with TBH.

https://youtu.be/gEJiZVj9yws?si=mgX9wPa4UasHIRpd

My daughter's been watching Ms Rachel some lately. I love her approach and use of ASL along with early word instruction. Did a little...

My daughter's been watching Ms Rachel some lately. I love her approach and use of ASL along with early word instruction.

Did a little bit of reading to double check if there are any issues or concerns with her content and found out the conservative Christian mom brigade apparently hates her. Turns out, as usual, that's a pretty strong indicator of something being good for kids to be exposed to 😂

https://www.yourtango.com/news/christian-mom-explains-why-she-will-no-longer-let-her-daughter-watch-ms-rachel

One of the strangest experiences when you have kids is introducing them to movies you loved when you were a kid and realizing the actors...

One of the strangest experiences when you have kids is introducing them to movies you loved when you were a kid and realizing the actors playing the parents were all around your current age.

Watching 'Home Alone' this evening with my boys and noticed Catherine O'Hara in it is the same age as my wife is now.

Pretty tough to still identify with the 8-year-old protagonist when you are more aligned with the stakes of the 36-year-old mother's side-plot of dealing with holiday travel logistics.

Nice short take on content warnings from Innuendo Studios. The bit about triggers meaning people around you having power over you resonated...

Nice short take on content warnings from Innuendo Studios. The bit about triggers meaning people around you having power over you resonated quite a bit. It's much more than "it's not so bad" (or Dido-ing, as he calls it) when you're trapped in a sudden trigger reaction or feeling suffocated from a panic attack.

https://youtu.be/2IrG68YTMjo

"But! There is meaning and value in helping the people around you - whether that's your immediate team or the friends and family...

"But! There is meaning and value in helping the people around you - whether that's your immediate team or the friends and family whose lives are better from knowing you. Don't let your personal value get bogged down by the meaningless job you too. Get in there day-to-day, carve open that tauntaun, crawl inside for warmth and shelter, and drag your desperate friend in with you. But you don't need to live in there. Tech may smell bad on the outside, but it's far stinkier once you're inside."

2/2

In a chat group with some folks who were laid off with me and a few are struggling to find career purpose, especially with how tough the job...

In a chat group with some folks who were laid off with me and a few are struggling to find career purpose, especially with how tough the job market is right now. I offered some thoughts and ended with this:

"Nothing we do in our careers sitting in front of screens is relevant. We aren't making the world better - our job is literally to make rich pricks richer..."

1/2

Watching Disney's Encanto again (my 5-year-old son loves it) and I enjoy how much the themes resonate. Yet another solid entry in the...

Watching Disney's Encanto again (my 5-year-old son loves it) and I enjoy how much the themes resonate. Yet another solid entry in the millennial sub-genre of animated movies about toxic family habits/customs and healing generational trauma (see also Turning Red, Luca, Mitchell's Vs. The Machines, etc.).

Pairs well with with the other big millennial sub-genre of sincere metamodern explorations of career expectations and life purpose (Everything Everywhere..., Barbie, The Lighthouse, etc.).

Today was a by-election for my provincial riding (Kitchener-Centre). The results are pouring in with a landslide for our Green Party...

Today was a by-election for my provincial riding (Kitchener-Centre). The results are pouring in with a landslide for our Green Party candidate. We may be the first riding in Canada to go both provincial and federal Green!

For anyone outside of Canada, our Greens used to be basically a single-issue environmental party, but have transformed over the past decade into a local-focused party pushing for affordable housing, childcare, disability rights, and (of course) climate action.

Seeing a few mentions of it and I have to agree: the memes, shit posting, and top shelf cuts tonight in celebration of Kissinger's...

Seeing a few mentions of it and I have to agree: the memes, shit posting, and top shelf cuts tonight in celebration of Kissinger's long-overdue death are giving nostalgic old-Twitter vibes and I'm absolutely here for it.

To be clear: this is absolutely nothing to do with Disney making the show ToO wOkE. If anything, Disney will water down all the best parts...

To be clear: this is absolutely nothing to do with Disney making the show ToO wOkE. If anything, Disney will water down all the best parts and make it bland and flavorless enough to not challenge the new larger American audience.

I can just imagine it now: "Our test audiences find the 'sonic screwdriver' too confusing, can he just use a power drill instead? If we use DeWalt, it will play better in the Midwest."

I don't know how I feel about this news. It will be nice to have some new Doctor Who for a while (hopefully more consistent releases,...

I don't know how I feel about this news. It will be nice to have some new Doctor Who for a while (hopefully more consistent releases, too), but Disney doesn't have the best track record for letting their creatives have control.

Also, the bit about having access to bigger budgets is kind of a bummer. Part of the charm of the show has always been the low budgets! Marvel-esque special effects will strip a lot of the character and style out of the show.

https://movieweb.com/doctor-who-bbc-disney-plus-partnership-not-sell-out/

Why does anyone like Tailwind CSS?? It's like all the complexity of learning a new language and set of naming conventions, with none of...

Why does anyone like Tailwind CSS?? It's like all the complexity of learning a new language and set of naming conventions, with none of the enjoyment of creative problem solving...

And wowzers is that DOM ever a mess!

"Unfortunately, some of the greatest minds of my generation are stuck at overstuffed companies, trying to make a few more dollars for...

"Unfortunately, some of the greatest minds of my generation are stuck at overstuffed companies, trying to make a few more dollars for their bosses at the expense of anything else."

The piece is framed as a profile of Signal, but winds up being more about what other tech companies are doing that's so exhausting and vile. Obviously, I'm on board with that.

Also, I've been using Signal for a few years and had no idea it has a "Stories" feature..

https://www.sfgate.com/tech/article/signal-meta-google-too-big-18496594.php

Two days into a new freelance gig and spent some time today researching accessible methods for implementing a quick access "exit this...

Two days into a new freelance gig and spent some time today researching accessible methods for implementing a quick access "exit this site" link for a womens' shelter client that's focused on addressing the dismal numbers of domestic violence victims with disabilities.

Have to say this feels like a much, much better use of my time, energy, and experience than any of the crap to boost shareholder values that I've been stuck doing in the VC-backed startup world the past few years.

Laid off today after my wife was laid off from a different company last month while still on mat leave. Tech certainly does suck. On one...

Laid off today after my wife was laid off from a different company last month while still on mat leave. Tech certainly does suck. On one hand, I like the chaos of seeing VC money and bullshit products starting to dry up. But on the other, I know it'll never be the scum in charge who actually suffer. Solidarity with all the fellow tech workers who are just trying to keep the bills paid.

If you ever find yourself frustrated that Google devices will never play the original version of a song when you request it using voice...

If you ever find yourself frustrated that Google devices will never play the original version of a song when you request it using voice assistant, know that I commented on a support thread nearly a year ago and still get notifications on it from other frustrated users at least twice a week.

So you absolutely aren't alone.

Otherwise, our next best bet is finding a way for these leeches to make a boatload of dirty money off of treating people and the environment...

Otherwise, our next best bet is finding a way for these leeches to make a boatload of dirty money off of treating people and the environment better. Unfortunately, it seems like only destruction and pillaging pays enough for these creatures.

Sorry leeches, you provide a valuable and non destructive role in your ecosystem.

CEOs, board members, lobbyists, and for-profit politicians are their own filthy, invasive species along with landlords, venture capitalists, and high interest money lenders.

Anyone else exhausted by all the "Steps YOU can take to fight climate change" breakdowns that all rely on buying things, paying...

Anyone else exhausted by all the "Steps YOU can take to fight climate change" breakdowns that all rely on buying things, paying for services, or otherwise feeding the for-profit system that's causing all the problems?

By and large, we regular people are not causing this. Spending extra time rinsing your containers won't stop the problem. Want to end continued climate damage for real? It'll only happen when we drag CEOs, board members, and lobbyists into the streets and show them we want change.