Non Sequitur

The UK-based Bylines Network is a collection of online newspapers that supports citizen journalism. Their aim is to publish well-written, fact-based articles and opinion pieces on subjects that are of interest to people. They are a partner organisation to Byline Times. Although both organisations fully support each other and collaborate where possible, the companies are separate entities – legally, financially and editorially. The Bylines Network is funded entirely from reader donations.

Anyway, Bylines Network has taken on a new project to amplify (non-MAGA!) American voices at a time when there's so much damage to people's lives that the US media can't or won't keep up. They are looking for volunteer writers from the US. You can read more about it here: https://bylinesnetwork.co.uk/bylines-from-america/

Feel free to spread the word.

You should delete your account with them:

https://oag.ca.gov/news/press-releases/attorney-general-bonta-urgently-issues-consumer-alert-23andme-customers

Hi all,

Just to let you know that I will not be producing another 365 Day Questionnaire for 2024, so hopefully people who enjoy doing those can find another source for one.  And if you do, please let others know, or pass the info on to me and I'll PSA it, etc.

BOOKS

James S.A. Corey -- Leviathan Falls
McCartney -- The Lyrics (in progress)
Kate London -- Death Message
C.S. Robertson -- The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill
Valerie Keogh -- No Simple Death (Dublin Murders book 1)
Rod Reynolds -- Blood Red City
Tom Graham -- Life on Mars: Blood, Bullets and Blue Stratos
Martha Wells -- Fugitive Telemetry
Jane Casey -- Silent Kill
Jussi Adler-Olsen -- Victim 2117
Val McDermid -- 1979
A. Belsham and N. Higgins -- Death in Kabul (DNF)
Peter May - Extraordinary People
Andy Weir - Project Hail Mary
Hanna Bervoets -- We Had to Remove This Post
Brian McGilloway -- The Last Crossing
Kate Ellis -- The Merchant's House
Michael Connelly  -- The Lincoln Lawyer
Chuck Wendig -- The Book of Accidents
Pip Williams - The Dictionary of Lost Words


TV

Dexter New Blood - really enjoyed this -- if you liked the original series, I highly recommend. 4.5/5
Stay Close (Netflix) - 4/5
Archer s12 (Netflix)
Jimmy Carr: His Dark Materials (Netflix) -- if you like Jimmy Carr, it's good. He might not be everyone's cup of tea...
Star Trek Discovery s04
Outlander s05 (rewatch with Jon)
Transplant s02 (CTV)
FBI s04 (continuation from fall)
New Amsterdam s04 (continuation from fall)
Curse of Oak Island s09 (continuation from fall)
Home Economics (continuation from fall)
Coroner s04 (CBC)
Discovery of Witches s03 -- the whole series is pretty average -- 3/5
Station Eleven -- diverges a fair bit from the excellent novel, but really great in its own right -- 5/5
Annika -- loved this -- 4.5/5
Hidden Assets -- 4/5
The Expanse s6 5/5
Trigger Point 4/5
( Read more... )

With regards to my idea of doing a 365 questions meme based on those various national/international days, here is a small sample of what that might look like based on some of the options for various days in September:


September

1 - World Letter Writing Day: Do you still write actual letters to anyone (email doesn't count!)? Did you have penpals when you were young(er)? Do you miss receiving actual letters in the mail (or any mail other than junk/flyers)?

2 - Bring Your Manners to Work Day: Bring Your Manners To Work Day was created by The Protocol School of Washington to remind people of the importance of treating people with courtesy and respect in the workplace. How important is it to you to have fulfilling relationships both with colleagues and customers/clients? Have the challenges posed by COVID changed how you view the concepts of courtesy and respect in the workplace?

3 - World Beard Day: Beards -- yay or nay?

4 - National Spice Blend Day: National Spice Blend Day celebrates the unique combinations of flavors found in handpicked spice blends worldwide. Does a little smoky paprika, cumin, and rosemary tantalize your senses? Did you know there are four main types of cinnamon, each with different flavor profiles? Do you have a favourite spice blend?

5 - National Be Late For Something Day: Does the mere thought of "celebrating" this cause you anxiety? Should lateness ever be celebrated?

6 - Fight Procrastination Day: Procrastination can really be the bane of our existence, with another day coming around the corner, there’s no real reason that we can’t put it off till tomorrow is there? What are some of the things you do to fight putting off those things you keep putting off? To-do lists? Setting your alarm for earlier? Enlisting friends or family to give you a hand?


FYI -- it would still be nice to have some assistance with this, if this is an option that appeals to people. It's still a fair bit of work to sort through the various options for each day (most have at least 3), and then think of how to create a question around it. Some of the sites that list these days include explanations of how they came about/what they mean, and I've copied some of that text into questions 2, 4 and 6 above, and that text can help in formulating an actual question. But it's still work -- took me about a half hour to do these six.

Thoughts, comments, volunteers appreciated!

The question coming up on July 24 contains two links. Depending how you copied and saved the list of questions, you might have lost the formatting for the URLS. These are the two articles:

A robot wrote this entire article. Are you scared yet, human?

and

Robot artist to perform AI generated poetry in response to Dante

From Twitter:

For anyone interested in doing one of those "Question of the Day" memes next year, here you go! This post is unlocked, so if you know someone who likes doing these sorts of things, feel free to pass along the link to this post.

January
1. After roughly two years now of living with various changes and restrictions brought about by the Covid pandemic, which, if any, measures do you think you will continue to do all the time?
2. When you are old(er), what do you think children will ask you to tell stories about?
3. January 3 is Fruitcake Toss Day. Do you like fruitcake? Why does it get such a bad rap?
4. iOs or Android?
5. What do you do to get rid of stress?
6. How often do you binge-watch TV shows?
7. Have you ever saved an animal's life? How about a person's life?
8. Would you rather be able to see 10 minutes into your own future, or 10 minutes into the future of anyone but yourself?
9. Would you rather lose the ability to read, or the ability to speak?
10. What Olympic (or other) sport would be the funniest to add a mandatory amount of alcohol to?
11. What do you think are three things that are pretty great or interesting about you?
12. What's your favourite number? Why?
13. Would you rather have all illicit drugs be legalized, or duelling between consenting adults be legalized?
14. What movie would be greatly improved if made into a musical?
15. What social stigma does society need to get over?
16. What's the most creative use of emojis you've ever seen?
17. Where do you get most of your news?
18. In 40 years, what will people be nostalgic for?
19. Do you like reality/competition TV shows? Why or why not? If so, which ones?
20. How fast do you read?
21. Do you like classical music? If yes, name your favourite composer(s).
22. How often do you check your phone?
23. What is your favourite thing to eat or drink in winter?
24. If you could switch two movie/book/TV characters, what switch would lead to the most inappropriate movie/book/TV show?
25. How often do you stay up past 3:00 a.m.?
26. If you opened a business, what kind of business would it be?
27. Who was your worst teacher/professor? Why?
28. Who was your best teacher/professor? Why?
29. If you are an only child, do you wish you had siblings? If you have siblings, do you wish you were an only child?
30. Do you sleep with your sheets tucked in or out? If you don't use top sheets, if you stay somewhere that does, do you prefer your sheets tucked in or out?
31. Toilet paper: over or under?

( Read more... )