2025-12-19 02:48:26
I caught an advert for Google AI × Netflix × Stranger Things or something that said (paraphrasing)
"3000 minutes of Stranger Things between you and the finale? You can summarise each episode in a sentence with Google AI! 🎉"
And, like, what is the fucking point in that? Either watch the show or don't!
I presume it's for FOMO folks who slept on the show but it's not the win they think it is — "why watch when you can AI?!" kind of shits on every single person involved in making the show.
It really boils down to tech bros can't tell the difference between "art"1 and "content". Is TV for "enjoying" or to be "consumed" (around ads)?
When you devalue creativity, craft, and artform by lumping it all under the bland and soulless banner of "content" it becomes all too easy to forget the humanity at the core.
And that's how you get decisions to replace watching TV with reading a precis, reading books with a synthetic audio podcast, and humans with AI slop.
1: I'm not saying Stranger Things is like Fine Art but you get my point…
2025-12-18 19:23:43
"A Spaceman Came Travelling" by Chris de Burgh
This is my dad's favourite Christmas song. A gentle exploration of "God as Alien" that seems a strange choice of topic for a Christmas hit!
2025-12-17 14:09:20
"Stay Another Day" by East 17
You might think I shared East 17 on the 17th on purpose but you would be wrong, sadly. This is also not a Christmas song but about Tony Mortimer's brother death by suicide. Festive.
2025-12-16 20:35:07
"Step into Christmas" by Elton John
That iconic piano refrain that screams "Christmas" with Elton John's trademark camp swagger. An enduring classic for a reason.
2025-12-15 18:46:52
"Last Christmas" by Jimmy Eat World
The official rules of Whamageddon state that cover versions don't cause you to lose so fill your boots!
2025-12-15 02:34:02
Startled awake at 4am by who knows what. I hate 4am because it's too early for an early start but too late to go back to sleep.
As I mentioned last week, the work bedlam continues. I have three full-time projects that I have to get to a certain level of "done" before the Christmas break. It's doable but there's a fair bit of pressure on me. Usually I'd panic but I'm conducting myself pretty well — running point on client communications, writing code, defining strategy.
I have also put plans in place to step up in the role of our team's "AI Champ"; a group of employees championed with helping peers navigate the complicated and controversial world of AI1.
Regular readers aware of my position on artificial intelligence tools may be surprised by my decision. My argument goes; they're going to use it anyway, it's better they have a dissenting –and informed– voice at the table than a room full of fanboys!
Chris the handyman stopped by with a small handful of Alan Garner books for me to borrow so it looks like my "To Read" list just got bigger — physical books too, which will be novel. So lovely of him and made me feel part of a community.
The village Christmas Tree is up and sparkling in the evening gloom. Nearby, in the graveyard, tiny Christmas Trees adorned with lights are popping up on the newer graves; sad and heartwarming.
Speaking of evening gloom, I learned about the Equation of Time which says that we're into a period where the evenings are getting lighter (but the mornings are darker) because of a quirk of timekeeping. Science is so interesting!
1: Neither "artificial" nor "intelligence".