Contrariwise the Wizardly

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 08:35:59 -0500

Every game and sport occupies a position in two-dimensional silly–serious space: one axis encodes how serious the game is, the other how seriously its adherents take it.

Golf? Silly. Archery? Serious.

The least serious sport with the most serious adherents is, trivially, tennis.

In this essay…

Sun, 23 Aug 2026 13:15:46 -0500

The following is lifted directly from Zvi Mowshowitz with only light formatting changes because I think it’s Important, Valuable, and Good.

It is also buried deep in a blog post that many people would have neither the time nor inclination to read.

That Would Be Bad Therefore It Won’t Work

I strongly agree with Garrison Lovely that it is a big mistake, and one that both the left and right in America frequently make, to focus on whether you are ‘for or against’ something, in a way that conflates ‘that plan is trying to do something bad’ with ‘that plan will not work,’ and to treat those saying these two things as ‘on the same side.’

Garrison Lovely: When I wrote a post critical of Ed Zitron, one thrust of comments was, ‘i don’t get why you’re attacking a fellow critic,’ as if it didn’t matter if your analysis was correct, as long as it was negative on AI!

If you’re a union negotiating with management, you need to understand your power and your boss’s power to get the best deal. Pretending management is on the verge of going broke or has no idea what’s going on when they are actually flush and informed is malpractice for your members. We need to stop making this mistake with AI before it’s too late.

The historical example here: You could think, in 2022, any of the four combinations of Elon Musk’s remaking of Twitter is [good / bad] and it [will / will not] work. The plan of ‘create vibes of failure because the thing would be bad’ is not a good plan.

In AI, this is the left saying that AI is a stochastic parrot, that it will not work, or that the economics is all circular financing and will collapse Real Soon Now, that data centers are polluting the water, and so on, when the true objection is that they don’t like AI and don’t want it to work.

Or, in reverse and in AI from the right, we are constantly forced to hear about how open models ‘will win’ or are already winning, or cannot be stopped, and how soon the models will commoditize, by people who really mean that they would prefer this outcome and think you get there via vibes.

And of course, there’s the classic that cooperating to not die both cannot be done and also will not work, where if you are paying attention what they actually mean is that they don’t believe in superintelligence or don’t want to cooperate, or don’t want humans to not die.

The pure version of this is to say ‘your views are bad, therefore you are also stupid and ugly and unpopular and not funny’ and so on, especially when it escalates to talking about sexuality. This is super not cool. Intellectually I ‘get’ why it happens and is not only tolerated but celebrated on all sides, but in my gut I dunno if I ever will.

— AI #182: Pause For Reflection

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 12:50:39 -0500

Strive to be either fully invested or fully checked out. Never be the only person who cares.

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 20:48:31 -0500

I thought I was sad, but actually my music tanks were just low.

Thu, 16 Jul 2026 09:54:59 -0500

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 17:49:24 -0500

Am I deep-frying cubes of spam in a wok?

Technically? Yes.
Literally? Also yes.

Wed, 24 Jun 2026 09:56:39 -0500

Welcome to “how hot is it outside right now?” The only game show where everyone loses and nobody’s happy.

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 09:06:11 -0500

I could (and probably should,) write a whole dissertation on the mahjong scene in Crazy Rich Asians.

Fri, 22 May 2026 15:51:24 -0500

He who has a thousand friends has not a friend to spare.

Hi. Hello. How are you? Good? Fantastic.

Look. This is weird. Can I get weird? I’m going to get weird.

Welcome to my Want Ad For Friends.

You: A person on this bitch of an Earth.
Me: The weirdest person you’ll ever get to know. Probably.

The rest is details.

Who I Am

Game designer. Thousands of RPG books I swear I’ll get to. I invent problems so I can solve them and then build systems to create new ones. I’ve been wrong about everything at least once. Especially this. Big cryptid energy.

Game Designer

I own and run TomeSpire Games with my fiancé.
I’m obsessed with TTRPGs. Even the bad ones. Especially the bad ones.
But I never actually have time to play them.
But I will talk about them at length with you.
This is a threat.

Maker

I think I took a weekend off once. It was horrible.
I’m always doing something. There’s a better than even chance I would like to involve you in it.
100% chance I’m making something right now, and 0% chance I’ve seen that movie or show.

Being My Friend

I have exactly two modes of communication. Drive-by memes or links and whole-ass essays. There’s no middle ground. You’ll either receive the most unhinged image because it made me think about you or approximately seventeen paragraphs about a cool moth I saw. That’s it, those are the options. Gird your loins.

Memes, music links on Youtube, and things that made me think of you are my love language. They’re how I keep the heartbeat going when we don’t have anything to say to each other.

I am always interested in what’s going on in your life.

Positivity, Not Performance

I’m actually this upbeat. All the time. About everything.
It’s not about pretending things are great everywhere, it’s about choosing to face the horrors knowingly and with a smile.
The horrors hate it when you smile.

I’m A Creature

Absolutely zero interest in performative normativity.
Let your entire freak flag fly.
Enthusiasm uber alles.
You show me yours and I’ll show you mine.

Who You Are

Did you ever play a MUD? An MMO before the year 2005? D&D before they started numbering the editions? Why come we aren’t friends already?

Ever play Exalted? Shadowrun? Earthdawn? Same question.

Do you like going places? Doing things? Would you rather go places and do things than catch up on {insert Streaming network here}? Me too! Let’s do that. Let’s do that so hard.

Let’s go to estate sales and make a YouTube channel about going to estate sales and make a podcast about making a YouTube channel.

Do you have a clock guy? Are you a clock guy? Because you got clocks at the estate sales and now you need a clock guy? I’m personally offended you’ve made it this far and haven’t emailed me already.

Look I’m really busy. You cannot be the kind of person who’s going to take it personally if I respond to your message tomorrow because I was busy today.

I will see it, I will respond to it, and I will cherish you. As soon as I’m not juggling these eighteen other plates. And that really cool moth (aforementioned).

On Friendshapes

Are you ready to be in like with me?

I’ve got a range of intensity options to get you into this friendship today.

Once a month penpalships by email? Yes.
Occasional drive-by meming on Discord? 100%.
Micro.blog? BSky? Some other app you’re just now introducing me to? Why not!
Meeting up in strange and foreign lands to foment dissent among the populace? Sure.
Coffee? Always.

Right this moment I’m literally writing this from an airport on my way to visit friends across the country because someone invited me to their birthday party. Invite me to your thing. Who knows, I might show up.

I’m mostly not on the common messengers or social media places, and this is mostly an intentional decision. However, my blog’s federated, and you absolutely can find me. The place is lousy with links to the best ways to do that. You tell me what kind of friendship you’re looking for and I bet we can find a way to make it work.

This is not a joke. I want more friends. If anything here landed and made you think “wow, he seems kind of cool” or “wow, he seems kind of weird, but like in a cool way,” then you’re literally the person I’m attempting to reach.

Obligatory Call to Action

Email me. Email me right now. Don’t wait. You’ll forget.

Don’t want to email me? Then your next best bet is Micro.blog @Contrariwise or Bsky @thewizardly.com.

If you’re into Discord, probably the best way to find me is on the TomeSpire Games Discord.

Say hi. Do it. Do it now.

Sat, 09 May 2026 12:40:26 -0500

Take my wench… Please!

I get no fealty. No fealty at all.

Wed, 06 May 2026 17:53:11 -0500

Presented with the following choice:

My dream home and working for “the man” forever.
A trailer park and working for myself at my dream job.

I pick option #2.

Thu, 30 Apr 2026 08:54:49 -0500

Step three: vibe.

Sun, 05 Apr 2026 17:19:09 -0500

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 13:28:59 -0500

Contrariwise is Human and can make mistakes. Please double-check responses.

Some Thoughts on AI

Sun, 22 Mar 2026 10:19:34 -0500

This represents my thoughts today. They’re different from what I thought a year ago. They’re different from what I’ll think in a year. Let people change their minds.

AI water usage is overblown. If you think AI uses a lot of water, I encourage you to look into how much water Netflix uses. Or the California almond crop.
1. Lots of people really hate AI and they’re leaning into “but it’s using all the water” as a form of propaganda because the numbers sound really big if you don’t report them with context.
AI power usage is… Not overblown, exactly. Data centers use a lot of power. But again, compare it to something like YouTube. And if you’re still upset, realize this is a failing of our society to be able to build new power generation capacity, not a failing of the miracles of our modern world for needing power.
AI did steal basically all of the creative output of collective humanity. I agree. A better society would come up with a way to compensate the creators. This has happened before, and likely will happen again. That doesn’t make it right and I’m not going to defend it, but I think I can’t quite bring myself to be fully upset about it (even as I’m impacted by it) because we’re in good company.
1. I don’t have much say in what happens. I have near infinite say in how I choose to feel about it. Being angry has almost never been a useful state. Accepting that which I cannot change and learning to use the new tools has measurably and drastically improved my life. Your mileage may vary.
AI can, but that doesn’t mean you have to. Let it do the work in places where you’d rather not, so that you can spend more time where joy is sparked.
1. Do you like writing words? Then keep doing it. Find the parts of writing you didn’t like, and ask the AI to help you. AI is a better editor than I am. I still write all of my blog posts the human way, but I often ask Claude to take a look before I post them, and it finds all sorts of typos.
2. Do you like writing code? Great, lots of AI code lives in the realm of “good enough,” but there are places that need better than that. Write the fundamental primitives the AI will go on to orchestrate.
3. Do you like writing test coverage? I can’t imagine it myself, and I’ve never met the developer who thought this was the fun part of the job. Let the AI do it. Or, if you truly do find this part satisfying, write good, comprehensive, fast tests. There’s a place for this.

Some of the smartest people I know have proposed some potential outcomes for AI that sound like the wildest science fiction. I think the probability of those outcomes is not zero, but I don’t think they’re as inevitable as sometimes reported.

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. “So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

Fri, 13 Mar 2026 09:19:25 -0500

“Stick your chest out and go like — fuck it. Let’s try.”

— Bruce Straley, Co-Founder, Wildflower Interactive @ GDC 2026

Sat, 07 Mar 2026 13:55:20 -0500

Tired: Harry Potter houses.

Wired: Winnie the Pooh characters.

Tag yourself. I’m Owl.

Fri, 06 Mar 2026 13:28:53 -0500

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 19:34:35 -0500

Lyft died halfway between LAX and Anaheim. The driver only speaks Mandarin, I only speak English.

His phone is translating to English for me, my phone is translating to Mandarin for him.

He says it’s doing a pretty good job.

So anyway, we live in the future.

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 17:59:09 -0500

“why am i like this” Digital Art, 2026

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 11:45:41 -0500

Did I go to a book store in the gayborhood? Yes.
Did they have a Dune tarot deck? Yes.
Am I now in possession of a Dune tarot deck?

A lady never kwisatz and tells.

Sun, 15 Feb 2026 16:06:07 -0500

I’ve never been particularly interested in conforming to society’s expectations.

I learned to fake it, for the benefit of fitting in.

Now, with the benefit of some duly earned confidence, society is welcome to fit in Deez Nuts.

Sun, 15 Feb 2026 09:07:43 -0500

The thinnest naturally occurring material is Free Hotel Breakfast Bacon.

Much could be learned by studying the processes that lead to such delicate structures.

Fri, 13 Feb 2026 08:07:13 -0500

It’s an interesting conundrum. The person I actually am trying to build the person I’d like to be, using the constraints of my known behaviors to try to push on the rudder of the behaviors I’d like to change.

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 08:28:45 -0500

For reasons that defy explanation I’ve been watching a lot of Disney channel this week.

They happen to be running a Zombies marathon.

The cartoon is weirdly compelling. I may become the world’s foremost adult expert on the Zombies mythos.

There’s a giant grasshopper and its name is Mr Paddlesticks.