Feelin’ Good Friday, #6: I can’t wait for the day when I don’t have to clean exhaust residue from my window sills. I live along a busy-during-the-day road, and while heavy trucks aren’t supposed to use it, there are tons (literally) using it all day long.
Well, while I don’t really think I’ll live along enough for that to happen, perhaps that’s coming sooner rather than later: “The world has probably passed ‘peak air pollution’.”
I find it interesting that “everyone is welcome” is divisive. I mean, I know it’s because people want to be racist, but don’t want to have to say it out loud.
I can’t imagine being a public school teacher. I know folks who say, over and over again, “Pretty good pay, actually” when they themselves have never worn those shoes. Shoes that have to deal with constant budget cuts, be blamed for society’s ills, and are literally in the line of gunfire because our legislative body won’t do a single thing to reduce access to weapons made solely for killing others.
My personal klaxon is my knees popping when I squat down.
Thumbs up to the teams at Apple who make the Notes and Weather apps.
If you want good school lunches, the superintendent should be eating them. If you want good public transportation, the mayor and their entire department should be taking the bus and the train to work. If you want good, safe bike lanes, the head of the roads department should ride a bike to work.
For the vast, vast majority of those scenarios, they aren’t happening. Yet we subject our children to them. I’m amazed the kids haven’t risen up and ended all the people making these decisions.
Instead, we get: USDA cuts over $1 billion in funding for schools, local food purchases.
On Saturday, March 8, 2025, we attended Night in the Library at the Central Branch of the public library.
I love libraries and think they are one of the best ideas we’ve come up with, and boy do I love the Central Branch (and not just because it’s so close to me).
Despite all of that, I have very mixed feelings about this event. While I 100% believe it should be free, they need to limit the number of people attending. There is no way they can hold that many people safely. Basically, the event was oversold, and no one appeared to have experience managing crowds.
The main room (which used to be where the Circulation desks were) housed DJs and a small stage in addition to a pop-up bookstore. Now, I know I’m a cranky old fart, but if the music is so loud that the bookstore guy has to keep asking me what I said (at least, that’s what I think he said), then something’s not working.
Of course, the library rooms aren’t meant to be staged for lectures requiring a lot of seating. Sure, there are tables and chairs, but we’re talking about tables and chairs for 30 people, not the 2001 that were in the Society, Sciences & Technology room. Same for the 2002 in the History, Biography & Religion room. Folks were standing in the stacks, peering through openings, generally fussing about to be able to hear and get as comfortable as possible.
Media for Workers was the first event I attended. I was, as stated above, relegated to the stacks (along with lots of others), and it was a little hard to hear. And, of course, the room heated up pretty quickly with everyone in there. Summary: Support the media you want to keep enjoying. I’m all for that (see my Washington Post cancellation post), and I pay for as much as I can afford.
I wanted to stay in the room to hear the The Fire This Time: Baldwin & the Essay, but they had us all leave, and there was no way to get back in because the line for that talk was super, super long.
Next, I went to Podcasting & the Future of Democracy. Halima Gikandi was very charming, and I’d like to hear more about what she has to say as I found the talk a bit too light on what I expected her to talk about. I did love that she mentioned the library has resources to help folks out if they want to get started recording their own shows. I did have a seat at a table, although it was to her back, but the audio was generally fine.
I was able to stay in the room to listen to Win Working Class and didn’t even have to give up my seat. Bhaskar Sunkara was likewise charming and funny.
The one talk I am extra disappointed I couldn’t even get into the room for was Jacobin Magazine: Who Owns the Working Class? A Debate
Overall, the idea of event is a 10, but execution was a 6 at best. Look, I am fully aware libraries are always on the brink of being closed and by and large every single person involved did put forth an honest effort. But it was oversold which made it a less-than-fun experience.
What I think I’d do (I’m aware I’m spending money that isn’t mine and likely doesn’t even exist): Make it a weekend event.
Hold the event Friday night to Sunday afternoon. Use the Dweck Center for the talks over the three days. Figure out a better ticketing system and set up the little lobby down there for meet-and-greets and things. The featured speakers could then push folks to their own sites for more information, etc.
I also don’t know why the library itself didn’t have a booth to promote itself. There are so many damned cool things at the library that folks don’t know about3. And maybe this isn’t something that’s allowed4, but the library should make sure folks know who to write to to insist there is funding for the library.
I feel like I dropped a giant turd on this event and I so don’t mean to. The library is the best, the services that are offered there are great, and all of the staff I’ve ever interacted with have been wonderful and helpful.
And the good news is folks want more of this at the library. I hope the folks at the best library system in NYC figure out how to get more folks involved to make this run more smoothly.
This is a review of the Battle Hill Tavern1 restaurant in Brooklyn. I am of a mixed mind about this. If I write how I really feel about this restaurant, I fear I will no longer get a table, but if I don’t tell folks about it, I will feel like I’m letting my reader down.
We went to Battle Hill Tavern on Friday March 7, 2025, at about 6:50 p.m. Its little dining room was packed. Literally every table was full. And, wonderfully so, the dining room was packed with children (I’d say there were about 8 children when we got there). Some looking at screens, some drawing, toddling about. And some just fussing their little heads off. Since there were no tables, we sat at the bar waiting for a table to open up.
There is no vestibule when you walk in, so on a very cold day opening the door is likely to freeze the folks near the door and at least a few at the bar.
As I said, between the size of the room and the fact there is no vestibule, you feel like you are a part of the place as soon as you walk in.
At the far end of the room, opposite the front door, was a half-height brick wall to separate the pizza-making area from the rest of the room, but the heat from the pizza did help with the cold from the outside. It also was a bit like a fireplace (from the right angle you could see the fire), so it did add physical and visual warmth to the room.
I think the friendly staff and little kids made us both like being there. The bar stools, however, were pretty uncomfortable, and there was nowhere to hang our coats. I wished there were hooks under the bar.
At the bar, we each had a Guinness. Canned. I was disappointed to not have looked around more, because I would have gotten a draft of something. I really enjoy a Guinness, but I’d so much rather have it from the tap. I’m not a connoisseur, so maybe the can and tap taste the same here in the U.S., but still, I’d rather have it from the tap.
By 8pm the children were heading home, and tables were opening up.
OK, the food. We ordered a small arugula salad with sliced pears and goat cheese ($19), the meatballs ($15), and the sausage pizza ($22).2 Based just on prices, I thought it was maybe a little high, but it was a night out and so be it. Note: While there is table service, I had to go to the bar to order and to pay the bill. Of course, I don’t mind that, but I feel a little foolish for not understanding that. Maybe once you know, you know, and it’s fine. And now you know. Oh, maybe this isn’t the case, and they were just extra busy. In any event, I don’t ding them for that. They clearly weren’t rushing us out.
I didn’t like that they brought all our food at once, but in fairness, I didn’t say to wait for the pizza. Anyway, wow, did we like what they brought.
The salad was bigger than I expected, and so now I will go back and order the large salad just to see how big it is. It comes with almond slices, which we opted out of. We’re pretty good eaters, and yet we took the salad home for lunch. So the small salad gave us 4 side servings. I think the pear could have been sliced thinner (I’m aware of my food foibles), and maybe a crumble or two more of goat cheese, but it was a good salad that was not overly dressed. I worry that dressed salads don’t hold up well to the next day, but this was fine.
The meatballs come as a three-fer with a small baguette-shaped pre-cut loaf. The bread was still hot and easy to rip. I don’t know the mixture of the meat, so I’m not quite sure how they got the meatballs to be so soft yet not mushy, but they did. I don’t have a lot to say about the meatballs other than to get them. You will absolutely enjoy them. We each ate half a meatball and saved the rest for the next day. They also reheated up well.
The sausage pizza comes with red onions, but not too many. I thought maybe they were shy with their onioning, but they clearly know what they are doing because you could taste the crust, the cheese, the sauce, the onion, and the sausage. Nothing overwhelmed the other. Speaking of the sausage, what’s up with this sausage? One bite in and we were both “This is really good.” We each ate two slices and brought the other two slices home. If you reheat the slices properly (hot skillet or griddle), they are just about as good as from their oven (but not quite).
Simple rating: Thumbs up.
Not too simple rating: We’re going back and bringing our neighbors next time.
More detailed rating:
Atmosphere: 5 of 5
Seating: 4 of 5 (need better barstools somehow)
Staff: 4 of 5 (I can see if you go here often it would be a 5 of 5)
Food: 5 of 5 (but we need to try a lot more to really say for sure, but we’re up to the challenge).
If you are looking to find out if you should eat at Battle Hill Tavern, then wonder no more. You will like it. Go at 5:45-6 p.m. if you have little ones, else 7:45 -8 p.m. And not because you don’t want little kids around, but because there are likely to be more tables open by then.
Parenting I have this feeling that nags at me that I’ve been a less-than father despite having a two great kids (22 and 19 years old). You know, short on patience, long on sitting down and not spilling anything so I can eat in peace. It was wonderful to see (and, again, it filled me with regret or shame, not sure of the word I’m reaching for here) a dad holding a very fussy baby (crying, reaching for nothing, trying not to be held) while eating his slice of pizza. I would have been the frowny-faced dad, and I don’t like remembering that about me. This dad was just eating his pizza, wearing his hipster hat, and just holding the most important thing in the world without any look of annoyance on his face. Good job, Dad.
I’m still seeing so many articles about how expensive all Apple products are. I’m not saying they’re wrong, but it really does feel overblown.
Yes, you can spec up a Mac Studio to $14,000. There is no question it is a lot of money. But when the Mac Pro (Intel version) first came out in 2019, you could spec it up to $56,000 (around $69,000 in Jan 2025 dollars). And the M4 Ultra Mac Studio is faster. Heck, even the $599 M4 Mac mini is faster for many tasks (graphics aside).
When the pandemic hit and we stopped spending money, I got it into my head that I needed a 16” MacBook Pro, so I bought a refurbished (from Apple): i9, 32GB RAM, 2TB SSD. It was $3,339. Not brand new, mind you. It was refurbished. Today, an M4 MacBook Air with 32GB RAM and 2TB SSD is $2,400. About $1,000 cheaper. I’m aware the screen is likely better on the Pro.
So, yes, Macs can be very expensive. But these headlines about cost are just to have articles to throw ads around.
I hate corporate apps. Every time I read, “In this release, we’ve made some minor enhancements…” I just want to say, “No, you didn’t.”
Feelin’ Good Friday, #5
I am so glad what so many expected to happen is actually happening. I’ve only been to Manhattan a handful of times since Congestion Pricing has gone into effect, but it’s noticeable. There are fewer cars, and it really feels less dangerous.
Now, I know that it won’t seem that way to folks not familiar with the city because there are still a fuckton of cars in Midtown, but it’s noticeable to people who are there every day.
I’m not anti-car, but in cities? Come on! This country, overall, needs better public transportation, but when there’s a city with good public transportation, why do we have to mess it up with cars, cars, cars?
I was in an Apple Store recently (Apple Grand Central) and I was still quite taken with the Mac mini. It’s remarkable how small it is. And what’s even more remarkable is how comically large the Mac Studio looks. I remember when that first came out and everyone (myself included) was blown away by how small the Mac Studio was compared to the Mac Pro1.
Now, when I see the models next to each other, all I can think of is how ’roided out the Mac Studio looks2.
The what? ↩︎
Maybe a better way to explain it is it looks like Terence from Angry Birds. ↩︎
The M4 Airs seem like a great spec bump. Apple even lowered the price by $100 (despite the concern over tariffs).
I’ve already seen so many posts complaining about the upgrade pricing and while I agree the prices to upgrade are high, I fully spec’d MacBook Air is just north of $2,000.1
That’s the same as I paid 32 years ago for my first new Mac laptop (a PowerBook 1802, no color, that was too expensive) back in 1993. Of course, that’s around $4,400 with inflation. I don’t really remember the specs of that PowerBook at this point, but I don’t recall having it upgraded (I see on EveryMac I could have up’d the RAM and HD, but I bet I didn’t… I am pretty sure I bought a stock unit from MacWAREHOUSE—the catalog with the lady representative in the lower right corner).
Anyway, $2,200 doesn’t seem so bad to me. Plus the M4 MacBook Air will most surely have a longer useful life than the PowerBook 180 did.
Movin’ On Monday, #1. Gmail to Fastmail.
After some hemming and hawing, I finally made the switch from the Gmail Gsuite dealie to Fastmail.
I loved Gmail, but I just can’t support Google any longer. The switch was seamless and pretty easy. OK, it was a little sweaty as I had to change those nerd records (CName, etc.) and since I almost never dive into that stuff, it stresses me the heck out, but it worked without me having to get help. Truth be told, I did reach out for help, but it turns out I was just impatient and the settings I entered were correct, but they hadn’t propagated as fast as I had wanted them to.
It feels good to use a company you support.
On Friday, March 1, we went to see The Crankies. It was an evening of absolutely wonderful folks telling terrific stories, some of which included singing and dancing, but all included the art form of crankies. Think of a Crankie as a sideways scroll, but moved along by one or two large cranks. That Wikipedia link explains it all nicely.
Between each performance, we heard songs from the duo Charming Disaster. I had never heard of them before, but they were a blast. They were funny. They played well. And, yep, they were charming.
The show was held at Flushing Town Hall and hosted by Emily Schubert. I hadn’t even been to the Flushing section of Queens, and I gotta tell you, it was like being on a quick holiday.
There were so many shops, restaurants, and bakeries all written in Chinese(?) I couldn’t tell you if it was Simplified Chinese or Traditional Chinese, but wow was it something. Now, some of the stores and signs also had English, but not all of them (maybe half, if I’m generous). We even stopped in a grocery store, and there were all kinds of products I had never seen before. All only 10 miles from my home (and in the same city). It was so great.
We ate at Nan Xiang Soup Dumplings and it was quite tasty. We got the soup dumplings, and they were very good, but we also got Beef Udon, and wow was the Udon good! Big thumbs up.
We will definitely go to The Crankies next year when the show returns.
If I were buying an iPhone today, I would buy the 16e (in black). I would miss MagSafe, sure, but since MagSafe can be added via a case, it’s not really the end of the world.
I do like having the zoomy lenses, but for a savings of $400, I could just get away with not having them.
It all comes down to wanting a lighter phone, a longer battery life, and, yeah, a lower monthly cost.
Feelin’ Good Friday, #4: Nazi Salutes Get Mandatory Jail Time. In Australia, but still. That makes me feel good.
I am aware of the contrast between Australia and the U.S., where Nazi salutes are apparently mandatory at CPAC. It is curious that the AP didn’t use a picture of Bannon making the Nazi salute when it is readily available.
If the iPhone 16e wasn’t going to have MagSafe, I’d rather Apple had gotten rid of induction charging, too. If I understand it correctly, the “wireless charging” is what necessitates the heavy and fragile back glass.
At this point, induction charging and MagSafe go hand-in-hand to me, so if you are dumping one, you have (“have”) to dump the other.
And since the 16e has gotten rid of the usefulness of MagSafe anyway, then forget that kind of charging altogether and let me have the light aluminum back like the iPhone 5 models had.
In case you are wondering, it’s super, super easy to cancel your subscription to The Washington Post. Don’t worry, you won’t need to call or talk to anyone. It’s just a couple of clicks.
Also, when I think of The Washington Post, I am reminded of Veep (best show ever) and this little exchange:
That poor child. At least the parents chose freedom.
When my wife was pregnant with our first child, we went interviewing pediatricians. I am aware writing “interviewing pediatricians” makes it seem like I’m from some elitist society, but that’s what it was (is?) called.
Anyway, we knew the first doctor we met with, and that we stayed with, was the right one when he said, “We are a practice that uses vaccines, and if that isn’t something you agree to, we shouldn’t continue.”
I remember thinking how odd the statement was. It didn’t even occur to me that folks were shunning vaccines. Religious reasons? What does that even mean? That’s not how science works. And it’s most definitely not how viruses work. I’m not even a doctor.
I want to shout, “More of this!” in response to DOGE staffers resigning, but it’s not like many folks can quit their jobs and still survive. So I guess I just say, “I like this.”