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August 7

On This Day

Travels & Check-ins

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2025
Note
It’s a shame that Neil Gaiman turned out to be a terrible person. I really enjoyed the final season of the Netflix series. The last episode, in particular, was beautiful.
Jonathan's location at time of posting
Stationary -3.6 km/h 80%
1
2023
Note
I suppose the ACC adding Cal & Stanford would give my teams more chances at wins against inferior programs. Not that they’ll take advantage 😝

It would allow for a contract renegotiation with ESPN, which is good. Teams would still be under the thumb of a dumb GOR tho.
Jonathan's location at time of posting
Stationary -3.6 km/h 62%
2022
Watching
The Sandman

The Sandman

S01E09 "Collectors"

Odd disturbances shake up The Dreaming, Rose sets out on a road trip with a new friend, and The Corinthian arrives with a guest at a creepy convention.

Watched on Trakt

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Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour stationary 66%
Watching
The Sandman

The Sandman

S01E08 "Playing House"

As Morpheus closes in on one of his missing creations, Rose ramps up efforts to locate her brother — and unwittingly makes a friend's dream come true.

Watched on Trakt

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Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour stationary -3.6 km/h 55%
Watching
The Sandman

The Sandman

S01E07 "The Doll's House"

Lucienne comes to Morpheus with disturbing news. Rose Walker goes in search of family. Admirers of the Corinthian's work scheme to get his attention.

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Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour stationary 59%
2021
Watching
Jungle Cruise (2021)

Jungle Cruise (2021)

Movie

Dr. Lily Houghton enlists the aid of wisecracking skipper Frank Wolff to take her down the Amazon in his dilapidated boat. Together, they search for an ancient tree that holds the power to heal – a discovery that will change the future of medicine.

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Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour Stationary 32%
Watching
Renovation Island

Renovation Island

S02E04 "The Final Suntier"

As the hotel reopens, the Baeumler family moves "back of house" to keep their personal lives and remodeling projects behind the scenes. Then, the ongoing solar panel installation and outdoor dining area construction disturbs the resort's first guests.

Watched on Trakt

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Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour stationary 36%
Watching
Renovation Island

Renovation Island

S02E05 "Back of House"

The Baeumlers balance construction on the villas and the watersports hut with creating an exceptional hotel guest experience. Then, giving up control proves to be an unexpected challenge for Sarah.

Watched on Trakt

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Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour stationary 36%
Watching
Renovation Island

Renovation Island

S02E06 "We Got Bills"

Bryan and Sarah face the reality of running a fully functioning resort with only limited guests permitted on site during the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, they continue their work on the property's boutique, the oceanfront deck and the new access road.

Watched on Trakt

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Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour stationary 36%
2020
Watching
Bake Off: The Professionals

Bake Off: The Professionals

S03E07 "Kouign-Amann, Soaked Babas and a Sugar Showpiece"

The three best teams from both heats join forces to face new rivals and more challenges. They make kouign-amann and soaked babas, before creating a skin-crawling sugar showpiece.

Watched on Trakt

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Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour Stationary 51%
2019
Note
It was finally time to upgrade my Synology NAS, a four bay DS415+. I just ordered a five bay DS1019+, which is faster, more expandable, and has hardware acceleration for h.264 and HEVC. Anyone want to buy my old unit? It’s great, I have just outgrown it!
Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour Stationary 39%
8
Note
Samsung beating Apple to market with an overpriced, easily breakable, questionably designed foldable phone isn’t worth celebrating. Beating Apple to market on an inexpensive, LTE-enabled, 23-hour battery life, ARM-powered laptop? That’s a different story.
Jonathan's location at time of posting
LaCour stationary 34%
1
2018
Note
I’ve suddenly got the urge to build a retro-gaming handheld. The only kit I’ve found that comes close to what I want is the Freeplay CM3, but it has no analog sticks. Hmm... what to do?
4
2017
nytimes.com What’s Next for Progressives? - The New York Times

Krugman does a good job reminding progressives that politically viable solutions are better than idealogically perfect ones, especially when it comes to large, polarizing issues like healthcare:

... some progressives — by and large people who supported Bernie Sanders in the primaries — are already trying to revive one of his signature proposals: expanding Medicare to cover everyone. Some even want to make support for single-payer a litmus test for Democratic candidates.

So it’s time for a little pushback. A commitment to universal health coverage — bringing in the people currently falling through Obamacare’s cracks — should definitely be a litmus test. But single-payer, while it has many virtues, isn’t the only way to get there; it would be much harder politically than its advocates acknowledge; and there are more important priorities.

The key point to understand about universal coverage is that we know a lot about what it takes, because every other wealthy country has it. How do they do it? Actually, lots of different ways.

Look at the latest report by the nonpartisan Commonwealth Fund, comparing health care performance among advanced nations. America is at the bottom; the top three performers are Britain, Australia, and the Netherlands. And the thing is, these three leaders have very different systems.

Krugman then goes on to point out that the Dutch system works quite well, and is quite similar to the Affordable Care Act, suggesting that improving the A.C.A. is the best path forward. I tend to agree, and hope that my Bernie-supporting friends won't be lured by the temptation of idealogical purity, and will instead embrace the rational, steady progress that comes with compromise and pragmatism. After all, its what made the Obama administration work!

I have nothing against single-payer; it’s what I’d support if we were starting fresh. But we aren’t: Getting there from here would be very hard, and might not accomplish much more than a more modest, incremental approach. Even idealists need to set priorities....

Well said. Well said, indeed.

Note
I'm starting to think that the biggest way to encourage engagement on Micro.blog would be to add `repost-of` support. On Twitter, I frequently discover new users/content to follow by seeing what is amplified by my current timeline. /cc @manton
11
2016
2015
economist.com The Economist on the Republican debate

Excellent post by The Economost on the first major Republican debate of the cycle. It points out the surprising amount of actual journalism on display by Fox News, who typically avoids such things.

My favorite bit was the summary of Donald Trump's performance:

Mr Trump has dominated the race in recent weeks by telling disaffected, angry voters that America could be magically stronger if only someone as smart and tough as Mr Trump sat in the Oval Office. But tonight he was exposed as an unelectable boor and narcissist. His poll numbers in coming days will reveal much about his backers to date.

Updated polls aren't out yet, but I'm willing to bet that the same narcissism, blustering, and shock value that makes Trump unelectable are what his current supporters – the most base of the Republican base – find appealing.

Time will tell.

3
2012