Five Things: e/acc, Unwanted Stuff, Authority Gap, Handyman, Christmas Music
Happy Third Advent!
The last week before Christmas starts now. Business will be a bit slower, but in my head I’m already planning the menu for Christmas Day, which is essentially a classic American Thanksgiving menu with a little Christmas twist. I just like turkey much more than duck or goose, and of course I serve it with plenty of side dishes including my famous mashed potatoes with garlic and cream cheese. And other stuff I still haven’t decided yet. I usually plan too many side-dishes, but I think this is how it is supposed to be. We started this family tradition probably 15 years ago or so and I really like it. Maybe apart from the fact that I need to brine the bird on Christmas Eve and get up at 6 o’clock on Christmas Day to get the bird ready and into the oven so everything is done at noon when the mischpoke arrives. On Christmas Eve we do a very traditional meal: potato salad and wieners. My mom always did this when I was kid, because she didn’t want to cook on Christmas Eve and didn’t like the other traditional Christmas Eve meal in the 70s: trout blue, a whole boiled fish. No thanks.
If you are still looking for a nice present (that probably won’t arrive in time because it is printed on demand), then please consider buying my new book Künstliche Intelligenz kompakt: Grundlagen, Chancen und Perspektiven. I can highly recommend it!
This A.I. Subculture’s Motto: Go, Go, Go
While I’m very optimistic about technology as a force for good, I find it very troublesome that libertarian ideology has such deep roots in Silicon Valley thinking. This e/acc movement is just the latest iteration of this, which doesn’t make it any better.
This Is What Happens to All the Stuff You Don’t Want
This is a great reminder for you all before you do the last minute Christmas shopping spree: think about what you buy. :)
When men don’t listen to women
“The authority gap is an annoyance for women and holds them back in their careers. But in the case of Israel, the repercussions may have been deadly.” - this article hopefully leads to rethinking old behaviors.
Just Your Handyman
“Home repair helps pull me back to the primacy of human relationship. I begin with attention: I show up, attend, observe, and listen. Sometimes the customer needs someone to talk to as much as he needs his floor replaced. My work takes care, and when I do it well, love.” - As I have more than one left hand, I’m very thankful for the various people who show up in our house to fix, build or paint things.
The Economics of Christmas Music
The
has an interesting breakdown of the songs we hear around Christmas. I can freely admit that I’m a sucker for Silent Night, sung by a choir in church on Christmas Eve (and in German as Stille Nacht), and I’m not even religious. Also, A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector is my favorite Christmas album ever. I don’t mind Last Christmas, I can sing along to Mariah Carey quite loudly, but I absolutely don’t want to listen to Chris Rea.That’s it. Have an amazing third advent Sunday!
— Nico
Thanks for sharing my work and others that you've enjoyed. It's great to see what others find interesting.