2026-03-23 02:09:00
A while back, I tried switching from Bear to Micro.blog. Even though I ended up going back to Bear for my everyday blogging, I kept birming.com as a Micro.blog hosted blog for shorter posts. I think it's a great combo.
I use it for sharing photos, logging books and movies, posting status updates, and other short-form content. It works really well for that, and with the $1 / month Micro.one plan, it's quite amazing how much you get.
It's also a solid platform if you want to fetch your content and display it somewhere else. With that in mind, I decided to create a separate Micro.blog Bear add-ons category. So far, these are the ones available:
I've also been playing around with making a postroll using the neat Micro.blog bookmarks feature, but that's still at the experiment stage right now.
If you're also using both Bear and Micro.blog, I hope you find something useful. And if you haven't tried Micro.blog yet, you might want to give it a try. It's a refreshing alternative to the usual social media platforms.
Happy blogging and microblogging.
2026-03-22 20:00:00
Earlier today, I read a post on another blog (hating on AI writing), and then the NYT article linked in that post. Both were interesting reads, and my reaction was something you'd call hagedō in slightly antiquated Japanese online slang: "Vehemently agreeing." They made me think about my own opinions and stance towards LLMs again.
I have an art hobby, and I write for fun on the internet, so naturally, I have a lot of thoughts about so-called "AI." Mostly negative thoughts. However, I tend to avoid writing about it because I feel it's one of those things that becomes more powerful the more time you devote to it (thinking, writing, getting angry). It sucks that auto-generated drivel is filling the world now, and that you run the risk of being mistaken for a robot if you use certain punctuation marks. Also, the thought that LLMs are shaping how I write and think, even if I go out of my way to not use them, just because they're now part of the environment and there's no easy filter to shut them out, is scary (a "creeping sense of dread" kind of scary, sometimes subtle, sometimes more pronounced).
But what can you do, really? The best "solution" I've found for myself so far is to be stoic about it. Acknowledge that the technology exists, deal with it when necessary (they basically force us to use Gemini at work...), and focus on what I can personally do to minimize the negatives.
If I see an image or piece of writing that's clearly auto-generated, I stop engaging with it (as much as the current situation allows for). If I can't tell right away, and somehow notice that was generated later on, I stop engaging with it then. On the "production" side, I simply have to decide to not worry too much about what people will think about my writing. There's always the possibility that something about it will set off people's "AI alarm bells", and that they'll stop reading because of it. But that's not really something I want to spend time worrying about. As long as I know that I'm writing this using my own fingers and brain, and that I'm enjoying the process, it's fine.
This is a pretty simplistic view that ignores a lot of edge cases. I do think that the technology has its useful sides, just not in the "creative" space. But instead of spending energy on mapping out all this stuff in writing, I'd rather not write about AI. So I want to make this my first and last post on this blog that puts this topic front and center.
2026-03-22 09:59:11
I've completed three full weeks of blogging. I'm not going to be doing it daily anymore, but it's the first time in YEARS i was able to stick to something daily for that long. 21 days. [clap emoji]
I've found enjoyment in reading other's blogs more than anything. Coming from Spacehey, it's nice to not read about high school bullshit that can be solved by a trusted adult. It's also a great break from Reddit's AI engagement bait.
There are always interesting posts in the discovery tab. Some very misinformed and shallow and others very well-written and funny; I read them all. I'm always looking at the Recent Posts and other people's blogrolls. I prefer candid posts where people just throw their thoughts onto the keyboard. Their inner monologue while doing something. Or those who use their blogs like a public diary. There is no such thing as "TMI" in my book. Yes, please tell me about your foot fungus or your weird pregnancy cravings in great detail!
I actually found a few cool blogs through those who email me. People who write or think similarly to me. I get nervous to reach out first because I'm a giant pussy, but receiving one is like getting my paycheck. That level of happiness. I don't have to put on a façade. They read all my weird bullshit and still want to interact.
I love non-english blogs as well, with the help of google translate. Bearblog is written and marketed in English, which makes that the dominant language. But once in a while, Spanish, Japanese and Mandarin blogs show up, along with some other languages. As a result, I have a very diverse feed in my RSS feed reader.
blah blah blah thats enough about that.
My favorite bear post this month so far is this one:
"It's terrible, and I love it."
This person brought to life what is a mediocre photo and made me see it as something more. A picture I would have just quickly scrolled past. I'm not sure if it's the writing, content, or the fact that it's the first blogger I've seen from my state, but it made me laugh.
2026-03-22 08:13:00
A couple of weeks ago I read this NYT article by Sam Kriss about the telltale signs of AI writing. Then I started seeing them everywhere. Most of the uses are innocuous. They annoy me, but I can manage my irritation in small doses. Today though, I came across a review of a bakery on Google Maps that really did me in.
If you’re searching for something real—something that tastes like tradition, like care, like Europe before it was rushed—this Polish bakery is where you’ll find it. Every bite feels like home, even if you’ve never stepped foot in Kraków or Warsaw.
"Like Europe before it was rushed?" Have you been to Europe? When, exactly, did Europe get rushed? And tell me, how can a bite "[feel] like home...if you've never stepped foot in Kraków or Warsaw"? How can a Polish bakery feel like home if you're not Polish?
(Kris: "A.I. is also extremely fixated on the rule of threes. Human writers have known for a long time that things sound more satisfying when you say them in triplets, but A.I.s have seized on it with a real mania." Here we have 'em again: (1) like tradition, (2) like care, (3) like Europe before it was rushed.)
The bread? Still warm, with a crust that sings when you tap it and a soft interior that humbles every supermarket loaf. The pastries are not just sweet—they’re stories folded in layers: buttery, flaky, filled with rich poppy seeds, fresh berries, or farmer’s cheese that melts like a memory.
The bread? This is a bakery. Yes, we want to know about the bread. No, you don't need to ask. (Kriss: "A.I. has a habit of stopping midway through a sentence to ask itself a question.")
"A crust that sings when you tap it"? Rich poppy seeds"? Have you tasted a poppy seed? I'm not sure anyone has ever had a poppy seed and thought of its flavor as "rich". And what is "cheese that melts like a memory"? How does a memory melt?
(Kriss: "But without any anchor in the real world, all of its sensory language ends up getting attached to the immaterial... This is a cheap literary effect when humans do it, but A.I.s can’t really write any other way. All they can do is pile concepts on top of one another until they collapse.")
There’s nothing artificial here. Nothing rushed. Just recipes handed down, probably whispered, and perfected by hands that remember how it was done before shortcuts existed. If you’ve ever had a grandmother who baked, you’ll understand. And if you haven’t—you’ll finally know what it’s supposed to taste like.
This is not just a bakery. It’s a quiet rebellion against bland. A little corner of Europe where time slows down, and flavor means something again.
"Nothing artificial here"? "Nothing rushed"? Do you work there by chance? AI or not, how would you know, unless you were on the premises all the time instead of making your sweeping banal claims?
There's the it's not X, it's Y and the random things being quiet for no reason. (Kriss: "You’ll notice, for instance, that A.I.s are absolutely obsessed with ghosts. In machine-written fiction, everything is spectral. Everything is a shadow, or a memory, or a whisper. They also love quietness. For no obvious reason, and often against the logic of a narrative, they will describe things as being quiet, or softly humming.")
The worst part is that the bakery responded — with an AI-generated statement of their own, complete with the telltale signs: triplets, em dashes, and clichés galore.
Thank you for your incredible words — we’re truly touched. Your description captured everything we strive for: tradition, care, and authenticity in every bite.
At [REDACTED] Bakery, we stick to what’s real — simple ingredients, time-tested methods, and a genuine love for what we do. No shortcuts, just honest baking done right.
We’re honored to be part of your day, and your words remind us why we do what we do. We hope to continue being that little corner of Europe for you — where the flavors are real, the recipes are timeless, and every visit feels a little like home.
Kriss warns us that "when you spend enough time around A.I.-generated text, you start to develop a novel form of paranoia." What is there to say, really, other than the obvious? Write it yourself or don't write at all. We deserve better than this. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some eyes I need to claw out.
2026-03-22 05:57:00
Today I finished reading a book, "The Book of Form and Emptiness" by Ruth Ozeki. Ruth Ozeki is a wondrous writer, and this book, much like her book "My Year of Meats" has left a profound impact on my being.
This book belongs to a boy named Benny. After his father's death, Benny starts to hear voices — and he takes us through the internal world of objects, their thoughts and feelings. The bat he is holding is aggressive, but that is not its fault; the bat simply wants to hit. The scissors, manufactured in China, ramble in a language he does not understand, but he knows they want to cut. The marble, round and smooth edged, simply says a pleasant weeee. The dolls in his psychiatrists office are sad and fearful from the stories they have heard. When a bird hit the glass window and died, it was Benny that felt its pain. Not of the bird, but that of the window — it never meant to hurt anyone.
Later in the book Benny is recognised by a Zen Buddhist Monk as the embodiment of what would be called Kannon, the Bodhisattva of compassion and mercy. We are all interconnected, beings of a bigger emptiness. My form morphs into the couch I am sitting on, the air I am breathing, the sweater I am wearing. There is no fixed edge to what I am — I am empty of a separate self. But all of us are as such. We share that boundlessness, and so we should show compassion to everything. If there is no wall between us, why would we ever choose to hurt what is also us? It takes Benny a while to get there though. Through various encounters, fights, trials, and mean, hurtful voices, Benny comes into contact with the one voice that was present all along, but merely was able to manifest through a series of unfortunate events — "The Book".
But what is most remarkable about Benny's book is that it is not simply a book about Benny's story. It is a being in its own right, a helping hand, a storyteller for Benny, his mother, and others who pass through its pages. It chose Benny as its keeper. It is an advocate for all books in libraries, the books at the bottom of your shelf covered in dust, the books that are bestsellers, but most importantly, it is a reminder of the book that is inside of all of us, our own book that has yet to be written.
Books are breathing beings, living through us humans as we read and retell their stories. Books are beautiful. Beings of words that first existed as mere vibrations of air that are then assimilated into these beautiful constructions. Written, printed, typed. First words, then from words to sentences, sentences to paragraphs, and from paragraphs to pages. It is through books that we are able to find ourselves, our souls, our livelihood. We exist in the stories we tell and that are told of us. We owe our lives to books, and books owe their lives to us. I recommend everyone to read this book, Benny's book, so that it may inspire you to find your own.
Send me an email!
2026-03-22 02:49:00
Bear, like any other blogging platform, offers the option to create posts and pages. With Bear, the only difference between a post and a page comes down to one single attribute: is_page: true
I think it's a great approach. With the majority of platforms out there, posts and pages are like two different worlds. And most of the time, with no benefits whatsoever.
For a reader visiting a Bear blog, the only difference is that a page, unlike a post, won't show a publish date. Which makes perfect sense.
Another thing that differs between these two is that a page won't show up in the RSS feed. Once again, it makes perfect sense.
No matter what kind of content you create, you always have the make_discoverable: false option. When included, the page or post won't show up in the discovery feed, and it lacks the toast button.
I always use that option if I create something like a contact page or a guestbook. It doesn't make much sense having an upvote button on pages like that. It doesn't add anything (other than a button).
If I create a page like the Bearming theme or Blog inspiration, on the other hand, I make it discoverable. Not hoping it will end up on Bear's trending page (it won't), but as a way to let people see it and, if they feel like it, show their appreciation.
Sometimes, when I think RSS subscribers might be interested, I create a post and later change it to a page. Content that doesn't necessarily need to be part of the blog archive in the long run (a month later or so). A new theme, for example, that still will be easily accessible even if it's not a blog post later on.
There you have it. That's my approach when it comes to Bear posts and pages. I have no idea if others find it weird or wrong, but I think it works fine.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend!