You guys wanna see an old quilt? (Everyone cheers) My great grandma sewed and quilted it, my grandma stitched the designs, and this summer mom and I finished it
Christen McCurdy
@christenmccurdy.bsky.social
Editor, reporter, cat fancier, plant parent, enthusiast. Currently: freelance. Past: Willamette Week, Oregon Business, UPI, The Skanner, The Lund Report. christenmccurdy.net, christenmccurdy at gmail.
THERE IS SOMEONE STUCK INSIDE A CLAW MACHINE AT LLYOD CENTER!!!
Meanwhile in sublime masculinity: football player Rosey Grier at work on a decorative panel in his 1973 book “Needlepoint for Men.” 🤌
Over the last couple years reading, and especially collective modes of reading, have come to mean ever more to me. @tressiemcphd.bsky.social’s challenge from earlier this week helped me see why. I’m going to double down on building community around books. I hope you will too.
Neuroplasticity As A Praxis
We Can Read Our Way Out Of Autocracy
theamericanvandal.com
it's also pretty interesting that "expose yourself to more intellectual diversity from the right" rarely means "hire more experts credulously studying the intellectual basis for Hindu nationalism, the gender politics of the Black Hebrew Isrealites, or the righteous teachings of al-salaf al-ṣāliḥ"
Karen K. Ho@karenho.bsky.social · 3d agoit's always odd when "you should expose yourself to more diverse ideas" always means a certain kind of conservatism instead of like, Indigenous art, new fusion foods, math paradoxes, or the Dvorak keyboard layout
I absolutely do not have the capacity for more orange cat chaos at this moment in my life or I’d be planning a road trip
derek guy@dieworkwear.bsky.social · 5d agoBay Area friends: would you consider opening your home to these two cuddly cats? A friend found them behind a gas station. Their sibling, a black cat, got adopted, but it appears no one likes orange cats. They are being kept in a bathroom for the time being and need a home.
In the spirit of Zeus’ law, I’m honored to welcome Emily Wilson to the land of film criticism. As she’s learned, it’s an adventure that sails smack into islands of musky internet trolls and clashes with cinematic and literary titans. I'm here to broker a truce. www.latimes.com/entertainmen...
Yes, Emily Wilson, Odysseus has been changed for the movie. Deal with it
Critical swords are clashing, but there's a way to cut through the debate and really talk about how we review art.
latimes.com
The “best” thing about genAI (the quotes are doing heavy work here) is that it’s really lowered the bar on getting into hand-made art. Literally anything you make is better than ai. There’s never been a better time to throw away your fear and start learning that craft you’ve always wanted to learn.
During the holiday season of 2007 I had a hellosh job selling ugly glass figurines at Lloyd Center. It was the first I’d worked in months but my life felt like it was coming off the rails. Every night on my way home from the bus stop I’d sing “No Children” at the top of my lungs
the Mountain Goats@themountaingoats.bsky.social · 6d agoI don't even know what to say. This is real, this is true, so, like, thank you all, from the bottom of my heart. This took over 25 years to happen so if there's any lesson here it's either "keep at it, who knows" or "many people are divorced"
The twenty-first century has provided me with a robot that can sweep my floor in three times the amount of time it would take for me to do it myself, and then spends 10 minutes trying to return to its docking station before I place it there
For those who’ve been looking for ways to help Spokane, a thread of donation opportunities👇
City of Spokane@spokanecity.org · last wk.As the Spokane community continues to face the devastating impacts of local wildfires, you can help your neighbors. We will continue to update this thread with more opportunities to help!
I don't even know what to say. This is real, this is true, so, like, thank you all, from the bottom of my heart. This took over 25 years to happen so if there's any lesson here it's either "keep at it, who knows" or "many people are divorced"
Like wasps and hornets, the Tiresome Literature Boy may be irritating on a one-on-one level, but they are crucial parts of the ecosystem.
Faine Greenwood@faineg.bsky.social · 6d agothey were very annoying and were also already a species in decline by my college years - but I mean, I never thought the Tiresome Literature Boy would ever really go *extinct*, and now we’re facing a truly catastrophic population decline.
The Spokane community is really stepping up to look after our friends and neighbors during these devastating fires. Here are just some of the resources available to help. Please share this information with anyone who might need it.
Not just shelter: Where to get free childcare, meals, showers and more as wildfires ravage Spokane
Many agencies and groups are offering free help for people affected by the wildfires raging throughout the Spokane area.
spokesman.com
I wrote a whole essay in some poor person’s replies again. This 🧵’s for teachers who deal with group projects and creative fields in the age of the capitalist plagiarism hagfish slime machines.
Captain Awkward@captainawkward.bsky.social · last wk.As a prof this is how I dealt with the person in the group project who everyone else complained privately about because they did no work come presentation time: “Nice work, everyone! For the Q& A, why don’t you start us off [Obvious Fuckup Name]! Can you tell us a little about [creative choice]?”
The front page of this morning’s Spokesman-Review, Aug. 2, 2026, the day after one of the worst wildfires in Washington state history. More than 600 structures, mostly homes, have been lost in the #OldTrailsFire. Read local news.
Discourse sickos go:
EMILY WILSON@emilyrcwilson.bsky.social · last wk.I cannot rest from discourse. I will see that film again tomorrow. I will drink life to the lees. Again I will enjoy greatly, will suffer greatly, both with those that love me, and in Pleasantville NY. I am become a meme. Film showing: burnsfilmcenter.org/booking/the-...
It would perhaps be warranted that we take a sociological, or even occupational ethnographical approach to the question: Why has reading been chosen as the first thing commercial AI developers will try to automate out of existence?
Just started The Devil Wears Prada 2 and jfc this one is going right for the jugular
thinking about one of the hardest Economist headlines of all time
what if we made an entire product out of the most abusive possible use case
Joseph Cox@josephcox.bsky.social · last wk.New from 404 Media: Google Earth has introduced an AI feature that lets anyone fabricate completely bullshit satellite images. In our own tests, we added a “bomb blast and crater” to an area of Los Angeles. This is a misinformation time bomb, will 100% be abused www.404media.co/google-earth...
the point of most conspiracism isn't the prescription, it's the diagnosis. it lets people feel like they are cutting through complex information and accessing a secret truth. lab leak itself isn't always conspiratorial but this fauci stuff gives people a little hit of that.
mtsw@mtsw.bsky.social · last wk.The thing I can't really figure out about Lab Leak Theory is like... so what if it were true? Like is the idea that we could sue China for damages? That's not gonna work. It wouldn't really change anything both to how we responded to Covid and how we act going forward.
anyway, the "male loneliness epidemic" is a skill issue. There are *so many* volunteer needs in every city, every community. It's staggering. Every park, trail, forest and pond has a "friends group" that needs labor and bodies. Every hospital and retirement home, every club and agency.
