Observations on the state of things…

  • Space 2099 – The Reboot That Never Was

    Space 2099 – The Reboot That Never Was

    A few years ago, fans of Space: 1999 were given some hope that the show was getting revitalized when a sizzle reel appeared describing “Space: 2099”, a reintroduction of the series. Now, this was nothing like the Ron Moore reboot of Battlestar Galactica. Rather, it was more like George Lucas’ enhancement of the original Star…

  • How to Reboot Space: 1999

    How to Reboot Space: 1999

    Introduction – Why even reboot Space 1999? September 13, 1999, twenty-five years ago today, is a milestone date in the world of science fiction. It is the day that radioactive waste on the moon exploded, blowing the moon out of Earth’s orbit and into deep space, taking Moonbase Alpha and its 300 or so inhabitants…

  • Zwift Play and the Wahoo Kickr Bike

    Zwift Play and the Wahoo Kickr Bike

    (Originally posted June 18, 2023, with updates at the end) If you own the Wahoo Kickr bike, you already have handlebar-mounted buttons for things like using power-ups, turning left and right, making u-turns, etc., so you might be wondering how much value there might be to adding the new Zwift Play controllers to your system.…

  • Peloton Guide Review

    Peloton Guide Review

    The Peloton Guide is far cheaper than some other products in its category (for those with the “all-access” Peloton plan, at least) but it often feels like it’s still version 1.0. A few months ago I purchased the Peloton Guide. I had been taking some weight training classes, and was intrigued by some of the…

  • Madden and Chat GPT

    Madden and Chat GPT

    For something over ten years, I was something of a Madden fanatic. I eagerly awaited Maddenoliday every year, and even those years when my Eagles were not contenders, I rooted for them every week because I knew that if the IRL Eagles did well, the Madden Eagles eventually would, too. If you don’t know about…

  • Replacing Hydrow Seat Wheels

    Replacing Hydrow Seat Wheels

    This is my true story of replacing worn-out wheels on the seat of my Hydrow rower. I am not taking responsibility for any injuries or damage incurred by anyone who uses this information to attempt the same. What I needed: 5mm allen wrench (see note below about length) 10mm box-end or crescent wrench (monkey wrench…

  • Pennsylvania closer to statewide ban on declawing

    Pennsylvania closer to statewide ban on declawing

    Last week, state senator Carolyn Comitta issued a memorandum announcing that she was going to introduce a bill to ban declawing in Pennsylvania, as a companion bill to HB508 in the state house. Declawing is already illegal in some communities, including Allentown and Pittsburgh. Once considered standard practice for housepets, declawing has become steadily less…

  • Chat GPT: Sometimes wrong, but never in doubt

    Chat GPT: Sometimes wrong, but never in doubt

    I don’t use AI to create my blog posts. For one thing, the world scarcely needs more blog posts in the the first place, and if you’re going to throw one on the pile at the very least one should ensure that it’s not made up of 100% recycled thoughts. That said, I do use AI…

  • Alexandra Horowitz on “When We Talk About Animals”

    Alexandra Horowitz on “When We Talk About Animals”

    Alexandra Horowitz is one of my favorite authors, and I was disappointed when her Freakonomics podcast “Off Leash” did not survive beyond the first couple of episodes. However, you can catch her on a recent episode (#49) of the When We Talk About Animals podcast. This podcast describes itself as “A Yale University podcast devoted…