Monthly Archives: March 2023

Friday Notes (Mar 24, 2023)

I don’t usually write two Friday Notes posts in one month, but I was dog-sitting my funny little “nephew” Bentley for a week, and every time I don’t post for a while it’s hard to get back into blogging mode. In fact, it’s harder each time. I increasingly find social media less and less interesting or rewarding.

Some of that is on me, but more of it is disappointment and disgust with social media and technology companies in general. A bit more on that below.

Mostly, though, I wanted to — at long last — get through the last two notes that have been lingering on my Apple Notes app for years (in one case, since 2018).

Continue reading


Ngaio Marsh

Back in February I posted about how I was starting to explore murder mystery author P.D. James (1920-2014). As it turned out, I decided she wasn’t really my cup of tea. I’ll say a bit more about that later in this Mystery Monday post, but the main topic today is Ngaio Marsh (1895-1982), a murder mystery author from New Zealand who definitely is my cup of tea.

She’s a close contemporary of Agatha Christie (1890-1976), born just five years later and dying just six years after Christie did. She lived 86 years compared to Christie’s 85.

More relevant to me, she’s a close contemporary in terms of her writing. I’ve read 15 of her novels so far and have thoroughly enjoyed each one.

Continue reading


Infinite Two Minutes

It’s not often that a modern movie really grabs me. Especially a modern science fiction movie. Extra especially any science fiction movie involving time travel (because time travel makes no sense at all). When that movie is a first-time directorial effort with almost zero budget and shot on iPhones, it’s really something very special.

And when the story, despite time travel making no sense at all, exudes a sense of sheer joy and fun to carry it along (despite time travel making no sense at all), and delights even on a second viewing — where one can pay attention to how it was shot to appear as one long 70-minute take — it gets an enthusiastic Wow! rating from me.

I’m talking about Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes (2020).

Continue reading


Friday Notes (Mar 10, 2023)

In the last edition of Friday Notes my long-winded story about a problem filing my state taxes and the unexpectedly (but very welcome) positive experience of dealing with support from H&R Block, my bank, and the Minnesota Department of Revenue used up the bulk of my word count. But, in contrast to the negative experiences with most tech companies (cough, Apple, cough), it was a good story to tell.

I didn’t have room for all the notes accumulated in my Apple Notes app. This time I’ll try to fit in the rest of them.

But I want to record a dream I had, so (once again) there might not be room.

Continue reading


Apple: Strike Three

Sour Apples!

Also, Fridays: Strike three! You’re out! I can only hope this Friday doesn’t bring another dark storm cloud. That would be four in a row, and the only hope would be to skip Fridays going forward. I’m retired (ten years this June), so it’s not like Fridays really mean that much anymore.

Realistically, of course, skipping Fridays is impossible (without a time machine), and at this point it would be almost as impossible to skip Apple Corporation — I’m too invested in my iPad and my iPhone (and my iPod). But most tech companies make me angry and depressed. Especially Apple tech support.

Warning: This is a rant, but I’ll throw in some winter wonderland pictures from our recent major snowstorm to lighten things up.

Continue reading