2026-03-23 04:59:30
When I was in my late teens, I considered myself an avid "reader". I put this in quotation marks, because I was reading, but with all the depth of a pool so shallow a puppy could drown in it.
I was someone who shared the sentiment "if I'm gonna read, I'm gonna read something practical". So, of course I started reading self-help books. The reasoning made sense, if you want to improve yourself, read something that's entire premise is about self-improvement, right?
I "read" a book per week, and by read it was more akin to skim reading than actually reading. Going through and trying to pick up the point quickly. I used to brag about reading a book a week, often to the amazement of my classmates. What an asshole.
This carried into my young adulthood. I had all the classics, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck, How to Win Friends and Influence People, The One Thing, on and on and on. I quickly started to realize that once you've read one, you've basically read several. TSAoNGaF (fuck trying to write that all out again) is just college bro's version of The Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins1, and both are just dumbed-down regurgitations of stoic and Buddhist philosophy. Atomic Habits is just a newer version of The Power of Habit.
All of these books, you basically get the gist within the 1st chapter. Which makes sense, because most of these books are extrapolations from blog posts or email newsletters.
Look I get the appeal, sometimes you need someone to say things in just the right voice for it to sink into your head. Sometimes you just wanna feel like you're improving. However, what you're essentially paying for is $20 worth of filler and a blog article that got stretched to reach a word count.
Let's be honest with ourselves here, these rarely stick with us. When was the last time a self-help book TRULY changed the way you look at the world? Odds are, probably never? Out of every self-help book I've read the only one I probably remember the most of was How to Win Friends, and mostly just that one Lincoln story.
Self-Help books to me are more akin to masturbation than anything. Yeah sure, you might feel better after doing it, but what are you gaining really?
I have since rid myself of all my self-help books. I donated them to a library. However, I found that I quickly stopped reading altogether. I'm not saying everyone needs to read for leisure, but damn we can do better than self-help slopping ourselves to death.
I started with going to the source of many of these self-help titles. Philosophy. Since a lot of them seem to rip off the Stoics, I started with Marcus Aurelius, then Epictitus, then Seneca. Honestly, can't blame people for wanting the spark notes on these as they can be a bit dry. Should be no surprise I later got into Camus.
I started to get more into fiction. I started with simpler writings from IPs I enjoy like Halo: The Fall of Reach & First Strike. I probably killed about 100 pages in a single day and I loved it. Then I read some of Cormac McCarthy, starting with The Road. Then moved to something a bit tougher like William Gibson's Neuromancer. Graphic novels like Scott Pilgrim and Bone. So on.
There are 2 books that made me realize the importance of reading something of actual substance. The Lord of the Rings, and The Catcher in the Rye. I started to get more into literary analysis to try and pick apart central themes and ideas being conveyed through the works. LotR is a masterclass in descriptive scene writing that can spark a certain level of whimsy to your every day life. Anaylizing Catcher in the Rye actually helped me see some parallels I saw in myself and Holden Caulfield.
I think the reason why reading fiction, philosophy, history/biography books is so impactful is the way we have to interact with them. When reading fiction, you're trying to figure out motivations of the characters, symbolism, themes, developing your sense of empathy, etc. With philosophy you are taking ideas and pondering them in your own head and questioning yourself and the world around you. History/Biography books are probably some of the most important books you can read as you'll see the patterns in real life.
I think reading is a lot more fulfilling when we are not consuming a mindless barrage of hustle slop.
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lazy sunday. It's been pretty nice out, so I spent some time with my wife and daughter outside enjoying the fresh air. Did a bit of reading, finishing up a chapter from Blood Meridian. Not sure what I'll do for the rest of the day.
I have a particular bone to pick with ol' Melvin (I know that's not her name) Robbins. I listened to the audiobook because my wife had bought it. The shit was so off-putting I never picked it up again. I didn't think it was possible for someone to be a bigger hack than Sheryl Sandberg, but here we are. She referred to herself as "your friend" so much I'm surprised my eyes didn't detach from my retinas from rolling them so hard. It just screams manipulation.↩
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 17:40:00
I’ve been noticing more disregard for a more respectful way to ask for help recently, both in private, at work, and between strangers online.
It seems like a growing group of people is comfortable with just barking words at other people to receive answers. No please, no thank you, no further explanations and no attempt to first solve it on their own. I don’t know if this is some sort of effect search engines and LLMs have, but either way: Here’s how you can do better.
You message your friend, a coworker or a stranger
“My printer won’t print.”
Now you have to wait until they see it and have time to respond. That could be hours or days. Then when they get back to you, they have to establish some context first.
“Okay. Have you tried turning it off and back on again? Are your drivers up to date?”
Now they have to wait for you to answer again. What usually happens now is further slowing down the actual resolution.
“Yes I already tried all that.”
This can go back and forth for ages, just dragging on about what you did or didn’t do, and wastes both your time and the other person’s time. It’s disrespectful to make the other person do all the work of getting the right info out of you, and put together a detailed guide, just to be shot down with “Already did that.”
So before you reach out to another person, use the tools available to you, depending on the problem.
If you have exhausted all options and tried all the suggestions, then reach out. You might not even need to do that, and solving it on your own this way was faster than just involving someone else from the getgo!
A respectful message would be:
“Hey, I’m having issues with my printer, can you help me? It’s a [model number] and I have consulted [resources] and tried [everything you actually tried], but still no luck. Do you have any other ideas? Thank you.”
This is polite, not commanding or imposing, and it gives the other person all relevant information that makes helping you easier and faster. Instead of dragging every piece of information out of you and each having to wait for a response, they can immediately research the model, and focus on the things you haven’t tried yet, and find other resources.
This is respectful of the other person’s time and efforts, and this way, they are more inclined to help you in the future.
It’s not only about tech support or a defective device; apply it to other situations as well.
It shouldn’t need to be said, but of course, it’s okay to ask “What’s dirtbiking?” when someone brought up they like to do dirtbiking in conversation, even if you could research it yourself. That’s normal bonding and socializing, and you wanna hear it from them and find out more about how they do it or why they like it.
It’s also okay to ask someone what their opinion or stance is on something, or whether they have recommendations for something. Of course you could also find opinions and recommendations online, but this is obviously about valuing this exact person’s opinion and insight, which you will not find online. I’m sure the other person is delighted to be asked and get to tell you something about that topic.
I hope this is a worthwhile reminder; send it to people who do this, hang up a version of this at your workplace, whatever.
It’s okay to need help, it’s okay to not know something, but you need to go about this the right way and remember some etiquette. Otherwise, people will think you are just too lazy, difficult to work with, and weaponize your incompetence just so someone else does it for you.
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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.