Me: Look! Here is a picture of me in 1995! 🎞️

My 16 year old daughter: OMG when you said that the first thing that popped into my mind was World War 1. 🪖

💀💀💀

Started Stillness Flowing: The Life and Teachings of Ajahn Chah by Ajahn Jayasaro 📚

#Buddhism

Currently reading: The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien 📚

Started the Andy Serkis narrated version. Already 10% in but is it only Ch2! There have already been about 8 prologues and prefaces and various philological treatises. I just wanted to get to the bloomin’ party! 🍖🎇

book cover

Going through some old photos. Here’s the Lions Gate Bridge in 1959

#vancouver #history

Chad holds up an old black and white photo showing the entrance of the bridge, probably from the overpass, looking straight across to north van. The north shore mountains are faint in the distance.

Sound on. Let’s chant together:

#jomo #jomo #jomo 🧘 😂

jomo.lol

Happy Diwali! 🪔

Last year it fell on Halloween which was lots of fun. All the kids would say “Trick-or-treat! Happy Diwali!” 🎃 🪔

This year it falls on the anniversary of us viewing and putting an offer on our house 🏡

And Bandi Chhor Divas is when the offer was accepted 🤝 🥰

Light to you all!

A slip of the tongue talking about social issues in Canada and USA gave me a particularly useful new word: 北米人 → 白米人 😜

The existence of hakubeijin implies the existence of 玄米人 🙃

Vancouver’s “Powerbroker” — a sort of review of “Becoming Vancouver”

Who is the Robert Moses of Vancouver?

Continue reading →

🌧️ Raining in Vancouver. Man comes out of a shop with a very large format book 📕 I watch aghast 😮 as he walks slowly towards his car 🚗 with the book open in both hands, reading 💦 📖

He gets to his vehicle and closes the book to get in and I catch a glimpse of the title:

Weather

SMDH ☠️

What is a “moment”?

What is it like to be in one? What are we experiencing when we realize we are having one?

Moments are periods of dis-alienation.

(I think this is from Henri Lefebvre 🤔)

Knowing this makes me want to experience even more moments. Let’s get together!

Re-framing Franz Fanon

Lewis Gordon on Frantz Fanon This is a beautiful interview with Lewis Gordon, scholar of the work of Franz Fanon. Gordon contends that many people mis-interpret Fanon, especially around his views of political violence. Gordon’s reframing of Fanon is succinct and captures a side I didn’t get before. Here are couple of choice quotes, but the episode is short and I encourage you to listen tot he whole thing. Dr Gordon is a great speaker.

Continue reading →

Went for a walk in the forest with one of my oldest friends and his dog. Very content. 📸

sun beams cut through the canopy to dapple a forest pathchad seflie with a big retreiver poodle crosschad stands in the hollowed out trunk of a large tree that looks scorched…  lightning?a still lake reflects the trees, sky, and clouds like a mirror

These leaves are sooooo red! 🍁🇨🇦📸

These and a few more fall photos uploaded to www.flickr.com/photos/sa…

very red leaves on a tree

Every year I post a list of cool conferences that I want to go to. I have already gotten started on my 2026 list. Take a look, let me know if I will see you somewhere, and if you know of anything else interested please suggest! (oh and also share me your list and I will link it)

Good morning.

Looking out the window.

Contemplating impermanence.

Trees with leaves changing to yellow orange and red

Generative AI and news report from Reuters Institute:

A significant ‘comfort gap’ exists between AI- and human-led news production, with only 12% of respondents comfortable with fully AI-generated news compared to 62% for entirely human-made content

#ProtocolsForPublishers

Started listening to The Hobbit as narrated by Andy Serkis 📚

After one chapter it is delightful.

I am going to do a reread of the main four books and then expand into the full Tolkienverse over the next few years.

Cover of the audio book released in 2020 depicting the party on a bluff backed by a large snowy mountain and an inset image of Gollum

Finished Becoming Vancouver by Daniel Francis 📚

Really useful book. 👍 Will write a bit of commentary later this week.

Finished A Little Hatred by Joe Abercrombie 📚

The last 20% of the book was basically setup for the next book. That said, he sure packed in a lot in those two closing chapters.

5th Abercrombie I have read this year. Sheesh! can I hold off for the last two of the series!?

The #polyglotunconf afterparty was held at the False Creek Yacht Club. The organizers did a great job at making the weather nice 😎 Had a good time connecting with some very interesting folks. This is a great conf for bringing together people from many different walks of computing life.

False Creek Yacht club building from water level. In the background is the marina and Burrard Bridge. The sky reflects in the calm water. High angle shot of the marina at the yacht clubChad selfie above the False Creek Yacht Club as the sun goes downUnder Granville bridge and the on ramp from Howe St lit up with a purple light