Laura "Tegan" Gjovaag ⛈ 🐸

Writer exiled in Eastern Washington state. Over-opinionated and often wrong. Trying to survive lupus.

I do NOT consent to any of my words being used to train AI. Don't run my writing through AI, don't summarize me with AI... just don't. No Plagiarism Bots.

Link Page: https://laura.gjovaag.com/
Pronouns: She/Her
Originally Joined: Oct 05, 2017

Public Key

npub1mnzsh4lhud28kzlf6g8246knhyxk9r8wgp67d5zz4vmqxmvtq6wsuhjcak

NIP-05 Address

[email protected]

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsde3gt6lm7x4rmp05ayr42atfmjrtz3nhyqa0x6pp2kdsrdk9sd8gpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsws6xx6

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub1mnzsh4lhud28kzlf6g8246knhyxk9r8wgp67d5zz4vmqxmvtq6wsuhjcak

Show more details

Last Notes

2026-09-10 05:09:15 UTC

- reply

Almost every moderate sized town has a dropbox, even in Eastern Washington. And there are drop points as well, where you can walk in to deliver your ballot in person. Every county has a list of spots.

2026-09-10 05:02:35 UTC

- reply

eek!

2026-09-09 19:30:25 UTC

I think we need to institute a new law.
Any time a corporation is found to have committed a crime, the CEO along with whoever is making the most money at the company at any given time will be the ones to shoulder the blame and take the punishment - including prison time if the usual punishment calls for it.
Any shareholders of a company convicted of a crime will be forced to pay the victims or survivors of the crime 100% of their income from the company for the past year.

2026-09-09 17:17:20 UTC

This is so wrong, so very wrong.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tBlFZsMuO8
IKEA has released a mod for Skyrim.
So very wrong on SO many levels.
So wrong.
I can't breathe I'm laughing so hard.
The last scene in the "trailer"... it's killing me. I'm ded.

2026-09-09 02:15:29 UTC

Tonight hubby and I watched my absolute favorite episode of Star Trek to celebrate the 60th anniversary of a show that has literally been part of my entire life.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds "Those Old Scientists" (Season 2, Episode 7) is a love letter to Star Trek and its fandom, and has so many references that it works as an anniversary special. And it's just a really fun and strong episode of Trek.
I live for Mariner talking about "Hot Spock".

2026-09-08 19:37:39 UTC

I suspect I will often fall victim to AI-generated images because I refuse to use AI to check whether or not something was made with AI.
So feel free to tell me if you see me repost any AI crap.
And if you willingly use plagiarism bots - "AI" - please don't bother following me. I'm not someone who will produce the kind of slop you like. My slop is hand-built.

2026-09-07 00:21:32 UTC

- reply

Dear lord I really love your posts. Thank you for this image. I don't know why, but seeing typewriter guts just feels RIGHT today.
I am so weird.
Anyway, carry on.

2026-09-06 18:40:18 UTC

- reply

My race is human.
My ethnicity is "mutt".

2026-09-06 18:33:57 UTC

It is Sunday, and I have blogged: https://www.patreon.com/tegan/posts/feed-me-168791291
This one is about RSS feeds.

2026-09-06 17:09:46 UTC

Okay, so... am I missing something?
The TV announcer dude who was just fired from a game show gig was fired because someone took photos of a chatroom he was in while he was on a plane. There was nothing explicit in the chat room. There were no images. The chat room was apparently for people trying to deal with "evil thoughts" and he claims he was directed there from a suicide prevention chat that he volunteers for.
Now his name is being smeared all over.
For a chat room?
What am I missing?

2026-09-06 06:03:14 UTC

Listening to an "expert" who lightly touches on a subject I know extremely well during his speech. He gets a very basic fact incorrect, and then follows up with more mistakes and a very slanted view of the topic before moving on.
I find I cannot believe any of the rest of his speech.
He may well be correct on the topic he's actually discussing, but I no longer trust his knowledge on anything, based on how badly he messed up the topic I know and understand.

2026-09-05 23:52:46 UTC

- reply

I just want to mention that when I worked at a newspaper, we were informed that if we so much as edited a speck out of a photo that ended up published we'd be fired because we were altering information.
The use of LLMs in news is flabbergasting to me... but then, journalism doesn't seem to exist in most places any more.

2026-09-05 03:54:20 UTC

- reply

awoo

2026-09-05 00:50:30 UTC

The thing that bothers me most about open source software projects allowing the use of "AI" is that "AI" is basically plagiarized material - so it makes the open source tainted and possibly illegal just by becoming part of it.
And yet the people in charge of these projects don't seem to recognize that this is a potential legal problem down the line.

2026-09-05 00:36:04 UTC

I haven't mailed back a ballot in ages. We get our ballots via mail, but drop them off at the local dropbox in town.
I'm far more worried about the USPS under fascism failing to deliver the blank ballot to me. Dropping it off isn't an issue.

2026-09-05 00:31:47 UTC

I think *knock wood* I'm nearly recovered from the flu/COVID vaccines I got a couple of days ago. Whew.

2026-09-04 15:50:52 UTC

https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/walla-walla-press-closes-production-moves-to-idaho/
When I was a reporter for the local newspaper, we had our own press. It was amazing to watch - very loud, but absolutely wonderful. It was also very old and we had a guy who spent almost all his time fixing it.
We're losing something valuable with the shutting down of newspaper presses. I understand we're moving into another era of tech, but this feels like a fundamental loss to our culture.

2026-09-04 15:21:38 UTC

RE: https://mastodon.social/@zackwhittaker/117212682169868635
Ah, this is the feel-good story of the day. More and more people rebelling against one form of surveillance. Now if we could just get more people to recognize all the OTHER ways we're being watched.

2026-09-04 04:27:39 UTC

- reply

Everything you want is yours. We know.

2026-09-02 23:10:01 UTC

I don't get out much, but I got out and got my flu and COVID shots today. I suspect I'm going to have a very sore arm in just a bit here.

2026-09-02 17:36:29 UTC

https://ysph.yale.edu/news-article/universal-health-coverage-could-save-one-trillion-dollars-and-114000-lives-every-year/
I suppose the problem with "saving" one trillion dollars is that those dollars wouldn't be funneled into the pockets of rich execs who otherwise would get paid for making sure people suffer and die.
Reading this makes me wish for more Luigi.

2026-09-02 15:48:38 UTC

- reply

I like what the neighbor did. Just document the crashes, and add a counter from the last incident. He may have saved a few lives.

2026-09-01 20:39:10 UTC

- reply

ooh, they found it again? Yay!

2026-09-01 20:37:48 UTC

- reply

I honestly can't think of *any* regular household appliance I want connected to the internet. I only have "smart" plugs because I have limited mobility, and I wish they were all on my LAN and not accessible from outside it.
Dishwasher, fridge, toaster on the internet? NO THANKS.

2026-09-01 18:58:27 UTC

- reply

He never made it about any moral, either. If asked, he'd just say, "racists are really stupid."

2026-09-01 18:51:54 UTC

- reply

As a young man my dad was working as a laborer. One man was black, the rest were white. They had a barrel of water and a shared scoop to drink from.
Dad noticed the black man was turning the scoop around to drink from the edge in a clumsy way. When he asked why, the man said "Some of these guys don't want to touch their lips where mine touch."
Later, dad noticed a white man doing the same thing - to avoid drinking where the black man drank from.
Dad loved telling us that story.

2026-09-01 18:29:20 UTC

- reply

Imagine millions of people having to do that just to vote.
In short, no. It's not practical, reasonable, or even realistically possible in the short amount of time until the election. Give them a few more months and they could solve the problem. But now? Ha.

2026-09-01 17:35:44 UTC

- reply

We cannot go to a voting location. We get our ballot through the mail.
Think about it.
Going to a drop-off location, which there are many, is pointless because THEY DON'T HAVE THE BALLOTS. We get those through the mail.
Do you see? This isn't just an obvious attempt, it makes it LITERALLY impossible to run the elections on the West Coast. And no, Arizona is not on the coast... yet.

2026-09-01 17:22:07 UTC

- reply

The west coast states have been voting by mail for DECADES now. There is NO INFRASTRUCTURE for in person voting. We get our ballots by mail. The system cannot adjust fast enough to make in person voting possible.
We CANNOT do what you are suggesting. It is actually impossible.
In short, this is a blatant attempt to prevent the west coast from being able to vote by illegal interference at the federal level in state-run voting.

2026-09-01 15:31:18 UTC

It is the first of the month, a day I use to back-up my accounts - including Mastodon - and to check that my voter registration is still valid and hasn't been removed by some fascist organization.
I encourage everyone else out there to do the same! Back up your important files to an offline media and check up on your voter registration.

2026-08-31 23:44:28 UTC

Yes, this.
Just like high taxes are the compromise for the rich, only I'm okay with *that* compromise as long as they don't weasel out of it.
https://mastodon.online/@billyjoebowers/117192428706707310
#note17rm…uzvr

2026-08-31 22:42:49 UTC

- reply

Also, you can add any Mastodon account as an RSS feed by copying the profile address and just adding .rss to the end.
I follow lots of folks this way.

2026-08-31 22:39:30 UTC

- reply

Yay! Just added you to my RSS reader (RSS Guard, locally run - Feedly was getting too pushy with the AI crap for me).
I absolutely prefer it when artists have their own website. It feels more real for some reason than an Instagram.

2026-08-31 21:05:47 UTC

Wow
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/this-principal-in-nepal-evacuated-900-students-before-flooding-swept-away-their-school
"This principal in Nepal evacuated 900 students before flooding swept away their school"

2026-08-31 20:20:31 UTC

- reply

How can people even live under that level of scrutiny? Are we no longer allowed to screw up?

2026-08-31 19:08:08 UTC

Wow. This is... obscene.
You literally cannot joke - at all - anymore. Your phone is listening to you and will report you. Admittedly, this was a Snapchat conversation, but we all know the phones are already listening. Won't be long now before someone says something in jest - privately - and ends up in prison.
https://mastodon.social/@poleguy/117191623122470342
#note185e…5uhz

2026-08-31 17:12:12 UTC

- reply

There are a number of open map projects, like https://www.openstreetmap.org
They don't have corporate bootlickers trying to appease braindead dictators.

2026-08-31 15:52:30 UTC

- reply

Google Maps are bootlickers and should not be used.
Do not trust Google. They have given up on "don't be evil" and have gone full in on being as evil as possible.

2026-08-31 15:51:20 UTC

- reply

It is a piece of theatrical stupidity by the orange coward to distract his followers from the fact that he's a pedophile and really, REALLY bad at his job.
No serious person in this country or Canada or any other country will call it anything other than Lake Ontario. People who call it by the orange coward's name are just licking his boots.

2026-08-31 06:00:57 UTC

The most interesting thing about the orange coward renaming lakes is that the Epstein files still haven't been released.

2026-08-31 02:49:01 UTC

- reply

My first thought, as well. Is there some way to put something in it that would make them not scrape my pathetic little site?

2026-08-31 01:35:09 UTC

I'm still of the opinion that, if we ever get out of this mess, we should link the number of Supreme Court justices to the number of appeals court - with an extra if there is an even number.
We should term limit supreme court justices (although terms could be long), and develop a robust and strongly enforced code of ethics.
Lastly, if a Supreme Court justice is determined to have lied during their confirmation hearing, they should get prison time - and it should be a retroactive rule.

2026-08-31 01:16:06 UTC

- reply

Didn't recognize all the words, but I got the gist of it.

2026-08-30 22:41:08 UTC

- reply

It was a job, and very stressful in many ways. But I got through it eventually.

2026-08-30 22:04:18 UTC

This This This This This.
The estate of the orange coward should be held responsible for ALL damage he's done.
https://mstdn.social/@Urban_Hermit/117186342719980763
#note128h…gxwr

2026-08-30 21:50:02 UTC

- reply

American cops aren't really law enforcement. A lot of them are more like the racist gangs that hunted down escaped slaves before the Civil War. Police in the United States are all about defending the rich folk's property - not the average citizen.
Such gangs attract people who are unfit for society. A great many police departments are made up of scumbags.

2026-08-30 20:22:51 UTC

Police officer stalks people with Flock cameras: https://www.easttexasbanner.com/angelina-county/lufkin/lufkin-officer-accused-of-searching-ex-girlfriend-s-license-plate-more-than-10-000-times/article_979e5653-9d42-45c9-a944-047564859316.html
"The largest number of searches involved a former girlfriend.
"According to the affidavit, Klein allegedly searched her license plate more than 10,000 times between June 2024 and December 2025. Investigators also identified searches involving people connected to the woman, including family members and past romantic interests, as well as people described as romantic interests of Klein."

2026-08-30 19:38:21 UTC

I'm not really sure what a Chiitan is, but I think I like it:
https://bsky.app/profile/chiitan.love/post/3mucia3nqic2h
(yeah, another post on Bluesky, sorry).

2026-08-30 19:30:25 UTC

https://myedmondsnews.com/2026/08/reader-view-sports-physicals-and-i-638/
"I-638 puts girls at risk by requiring any girl who wants to play sports to be medically sex certified. According to legal analysis and health professionals, this means girls would be put through invasive, medically unnecessary genital exams or genetic testing."
"I believe children should stay fully clothed during sports physicals, where doctors can focus on checking the child’s lungs, heart and bones."

2026-08-30 19:23:08 UTC

This is a thread (on Bluesky, sorry) worth reading.
https://bsky.app/profile/djrothkopf.bsky.social/post/3mubq37jyyc2e
"There are some who will advise against pursuing the investigations, impeachment, and prosecutions. That would be a fatal error for American democracy."
- David Rothkopf

2026-08-30 18:19:57 UTC

It is Sunday, and I have blogged: https://www.patreon.com/tegan/posts/attacked-168120265
This week's post is about my website being attacked as well as a summary of how crappy the past week has been. Because it has been one CRAPPY week.

2026-08-30 02:23:23 UTC

Hey everyone! I just wanted to update folks on the Star Trek comic book coming out from @npub1zq7…g2ym and how to order it.
The second issue has been solicited, so now is a good time to pop out to a local comic shop and say, "I want a copy of this book, can you make sure you order it?"
Star Trek: Zero Point #2
Final Order Cutoff for this one is Oct 19, and the book is due out Dec 2nd.
The alternate covers can be seen here (scroll down a bit):
https://leagueofcomicgeeks.com/solicitations/14798/idw-publishing-november-2026

2026-08-30 01:04:15 UTC

- reply

Oh, FFS.

2026-08-30 00:48:44 UTC

- reply

Mew! I love having a digital kitten in my timeline.

2026-08-30 00:18:01 UTC

A truck carrying IDW comic books crashed, delaying a number of titles for a week - including a Star Trek 60th Anniversary special that I have on order...
Fortunately, no one was injured in the crash.
https://stockroom.wandering.shop/media_attachments/files/117/181/567/163/838/645/original/abd83e047f08fd2a.webp

2026-08-29 21:12:01 UTC

There are days I definitely love The Onion:
https://theonion.com/sophie-cunningham-claims-any-woman-who-averages-more-than-8-points-per-game-should-not-be-allowed-to-play-in-wnba/

2026-08-29 15:16:59 UTC

RE: https://mastodon.social/@army_talk_fascism/117179390545620718
Sadly, a bit late on this...
#note1a6a…09g5

2026-08-27 19:08:14 UTC

- reply

Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft

2026-08-27 18:22:53 UTC

- reply

I am now busy deleting subdomains that I haven't played with for more than a decade.
This is a tech nightmare. Who knew online stuff could get so messy?

2026-08-27 17:39:53 UTC

- reply

I have no fucking idea how to set up Cloudflare on my subdomain that's been DDoSed. I genuinely cannot figure out the instructions.
This is not something I planned to deal with today.
*frustrated screaming*

2026-08-27 17:04:45 UTC

- reply

My website was hit with a ton of traffic from a lot of different IP addresses, and it appears to include some crawlers looking for vulnerabilities in the wikimedia installation I have there. My hosting service has suggested I use Cloudflare.
*sigh*
At least the support guy apologized for the first message's suggestion being useless.

2026-08-27 15:25:05 UTC

RE: https://newsie.social/@servelan/117165224191766668
Note to self - never go to Buc-ee's...
...and make sure that everyone knows it's a crappy company that tries to sue potential competition out of existence instead of winning by being better.
#note1m96…96yu

2026-08-27 14:58:15 UTC

Huh. Apparently one of my websites has suffered a DDoS attack. My hosting provider informed me they've taken down the site, then told me to go look at the traffic... which is disabled because they took down the site.
*headdesk*
Good thing I only run fan sites and not critical stuff.

2026-08-26 16:15:31 UTC

Please, let us all learn how to practice active kindness.
https://drchucktingle.tumblr.com/post/826019456080805888/dolly-and-active-kindness
https://stockroom.wandering.shop/media_attachments/files/117/162/688/978/772/018/original/bac4573cedd8c0fe.png

2026-08-26 15:29:24 UTC

So I'm hearing this morning that an anti-trans asshole - who claims to want to protect women in sports - threatened a WNBA player and even went so far as to step onto the court at a game.
Clearly a danger to her, the man was hauled off by security.
His actions completely undermined his own argument. He was far more a danger than the non-existent trans-woman who doesn't actually play in the WNBA.
I hope he gets a permanent ban from all WNBA games. Or any game involving women at all.

2026-08-26 15:18:31 UTC

RE: https://mastodon.social/@army_talk_fascism/117162403548601213
So much of this applies today.
#note1ejw…ua85

2026-08-26 01:23:52 UTC

Oh look, actual election fraud. And the guilty parties are... Republican and Green.
https://azmirror.com/2026/08/25/with-1000-certainty-voters-say-candidates-faked-their-donations-to-get-public-campaign-cash/

2026-08-25 19:33:26 UTC

Oooh, there's video of Spider-Man beating up fascists!
Eh, it's on Bluesky.
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:qrjcrjnkalchijnf6l3yz35p/post/3mtrpo25hyk2k

2026-08-25 18:54:35 UTC

This. All of this. This so much.
https://beige.party/@Lana/117157654330649658
#note1w4g…w2pz

2026-08-25 18:14:08 UTC

Dammit. Not Dolly.

2026-08-25 17:59:05 UTC

Update on the Colwash Fire, which is burning just south of where I live.
It was 48% contained by this morning, and it appears to have taken out at least four "structure"s, one of which was probably a house. No one has been injured.
People are being allowed to go home now, as well.
https://stockroom.wandering.shop/media_attachments/files/117/157/427/131/033/512/original/0f069e9a9c6e6abb.jpg

2026-08-25 17:21:50 UTC

RE: https://connectified.com/@masukomi/117150332573835763
I am a fan now. Never heard of her before this interview, but I am definitely a fan now.
#note1rtx…mvdf

2026-08-25 17:15:57 UTC

Seriously? How about we "compromise" by giving him life in prison for his role in contributing to our loss of privacy? Maybe "compromise" by making him pay the victims of every error his cameras have targeted?
https://futurism.com/future-society/flock-ceo-begs-compromise-backlash-spills-over
Embattled Flock CEO Begs for “Compromise” As Backlash Spills Over

2026-08-25 15:27:25 UTC

I have been voting by mail in Washington state since the state first allowed no-reason absentee ballots. More than 30 years now.
The orange coward and his fascist enablers are attempting to take that away from me. By violating federal law and preventing the US Postal Service from delivering valid mail.
Fuck anyone who still supports the fascist GOP.
If anyone tells me they are Republican nowadays, they are saying they support fascism and pedophilia.

2026-08-25 15:22:12 UTC

- reply

mew!

2026-08-25 15:07:35 UTC

- reply

Or the ones murdering innocent fishermen.
If we get through this, we need a thorough investigation of the military and charges filed for war crimes.

2026-08-25 15:05:41 UTC

This is why women always pick the bear.
https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/victims-of-quintuple-homicide-in-oregon-include-suspects-girlfriend-and-her-relatives
Victims of quintuple homicide in Oregon include suspect’s girlfriend and her relatives

2026-08-24 23:24:26 UTC

- reply

I need this right now. AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!
Now your turn again.

2026-08-24 22:46:10 UTC

- reply

Another murder by Elon.
He gets away with it constantly.
Too many innocents have died because he cuts corners and his cult members don't care.

2026-08-24 22:35:00 UTC

Fed-Ex: "We're unable to deliver your package since the recipient was unavailable."
The e-mail includes an apparently random photo of an empty lot next to a road.
Apparently the delivery driver couldn't find our address. But claimed we weren't there to take the package.
What the hell, Fed-Ex?

2026-08-24 18:32:30 UTC

- reply

As an American, please - express it loud and proud. We deserve every last bit of it.
Until we've cleaned house, please keep hounding us as you need. I didn't vote for it, don't want it... but because it is my country I am absolutely ashamed of it and won't blame anyone for being angry.

2026-08-24 16:20:10 UTC

The fire south of us is apparently 8% contained, and evacuation levels have been reduced. I've seen a couple of videos now - it's mostly just brush burning. No reports of structures burning yet, that I've seen.

2026-08-24 15:47:57 UTC

- reply

And this is why I'm hoping the next time I need to get a phone, I can afford one supported by GrapheneOS.
I don't need the security and privacy like some people, but I want to support the effort and get rid of the corporate garbage as much as possible.
More people using GrapheneOS = normalizing it, which throws a spanner in efforts to get it banned because just using it is suspicious activity.

2026-08-24 15:30:00 UTC

RE: https://mastodon.social/@KCDOZ/117145484640339755
The fascists are literally carrying a cross and holding the flag. Spider-Man is in the right, here. Punch away!
#note1e6c…5nhn

2026-08-24 01:30:30 UTC

It is Sunday, and I have blogged: https://www.patreon.com/tegan/posts/one-disaster-167508243
This one is about how close we are to not being able to survive.

2026-08-23 15:30:38 UTC

- reply

Cause of the fire is still under investigation, but since thunderstorms were in the area, lightning is the chief suspect at the moment.

2026-08-23 15:28:13 UTC

- reply

Looking at the maps I can find, it appears to have passed south of Mabton and climbed into the Horse Heaven Hills, which is a difficult area to fight fires - but also doesn't have much more than grass to burn.
As of this morning, it's very close to Prosser, but it's also got a hill between it and the town, so... maybe we'll get lucky?

2026-08-23 15:16:21 UTC

The Colwash fire spread east overnight - heading away from us specifically, but toward another larger town (Prosser, WA). It crossed the county line and left the Yakama nation. Level 3 evacuations of the town south of us are still in place, and more evacuations have started in Benton County.
Because the winds are blowing eastward, the smoke is almost completely moved on and today is a clear and bright day here.

2026-08-23 05:48:19 UTC

It appears that the people told to evacuate the nearby fire were directed to evacuate to my town - so the folks observing the fire don't think it's likely to reach us.
The smoke, however, is all around the town.

2026-08-23 05:37:29 UTC

- reply

This is the kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/joelcreates/oddcube-air-purifier-kit
It's too expensive for me, but not a bad idea. When I posted about it last time, someone directed me to another similar project, but I have mislaid the link.

2026-08-23 05:30:44 UTC

- reply

That's pretty much what I'm looking for... just a frame to drop clean filters into. I've already got a box fan sitting on some very dirty filters from the last horrible summer of wildfires. I just want to be able to switch filters more easily than having to pull all the tape off and reassemble the entire thing.

2026-08-22 23:57:06 UTC

I need a framework for a corsi-rosenthal box that's easy to set up and allows changing the filters for someone with limited manual dexterity.
I saw one on kickstarter, but although it looked neat, the price was WAY too high unless you just got the plans - which require a 3D printer, which I don't have.

2026-08-22 23:43:50 UTC

I can see the smoke on my security cams. It seems to be mostly moving east of us, headed north. The fire started near Toppenish, so it's south and west, but the evac alerts are for Mabton, which is directly south of us.

2026-08-22 23:40:14 UTC

- reply

Sky is filled with smoke, but I can't tell from the smoke where the fire is in relation to us. I just got an air quality warning, too. I probably should not go outside unless we have to evacuate.

2026-08-22 23:34:59 UTC

- reply

It's the Colwash fire, discovered today.
Both our phones had the evacuation alarm, but we're outside the affected area. If we look Southwest, we might see it. I haven't gotten up yet, but will in a moment.

2026-08-22 23:26:12 UTC

Ah... fire evac in our area. Just south of us. Keeping an eye on it now.

2026-08-22 20:31:44 UTC

RE: https://beige.party/@Lana/117140796119194973
Please read this thread.
I never realized there was a blackout flag, for instance. We need to be aware of these things. It will tell us who the fascists are.
#note1u4g…ewr0

2026-08-22 20:24:22 UTC

- reply

When hubby called to get the AC repaired, the person recognized the name... "Didn't your wife used to work at the newspaper?" (yes, I did) "Oh, and you taught at the high school with my husband!" (yes, he did).
But then, we *do* live in a small town.
Bonus, though. They got someone out to us as quick as they could.

2026-08-22 17:08:59 UTC

- reply

I had a friend who was interested in going into city planning, but after an internship he stopped and took his life in another direction.
He admitted he hadn't realized that traffic planning was about getting the most money out of citizens for violations instead of making the city nicer.
I suppose he might have ended up in an internship with an anomaly, but I suspect many traffic decisions are made with money in mind instead of safety.

2026-08-22 16:50:37 UTC

- reply

I think they handled it very well, in the end.
And it was just fun watching everyone as puppets. And Ethan playing opposite puppets. Truly hilarious at times.