The second of my 30 Artists in 30 Days will probably be the last one that I had heard about outside of Patreon and is the one and only Amanda Fucking Palmer. She’s an inspiring person and creative in so many ways. Her famous TED Talk on the Art of Asking (if you haven’t seen… Continue reading 30 Artists in 30 Days #2 – Amanda Palmer
30 Artists in 30 Days #1 – Nate Maingard
The first of my 30 Artists in 30 Days is the artist who introduced me to Patreon, Nate Maingard. He was one of their earlier adopters, getting involved in April 2014, and is currently one of their most well-supported, ranked 30th. I checked to see if he’s 30 years old as well, but I’m a… Continue reading 30 Artists in 30 Days #1 – Nate Maingard
30 Artists in 30 Days
Last night I was roaming the internet again, discovering new music. We live in a wonderful time where exposure to new music is not limited to the physical media that our friends or relatives own, or what the local record store stocks. But it’s a time of adjustment for artists, where the old model of… Continue reading 30 Artists in 30 Days
Preferred Mind States
I was meditating tonight, and going into the meditation was in a fantastic mood. I’m starting something new, which always excites me (it’s the persisting that’s the downer), and had been listening to Eddie Vedder’s Acoustic Songs. A common trap in meditation is to judge a session as “good” or “bad”, and usually it’s “good”… Continue reading Preferred Mind States
October 2014 African language Wikipedia and Wiktionary update
It’s only been a few months since my last update on the state of the Wikimedia projects in Africa, but seeing as the Wiki Indaba was held since then, and this weekend is Wikimedia South Africa’s AGM, it’s a good excuse to take another look. First, the Wiktionaries. Wiktionary is a much less well-known set… Continue reading October 2014 African language Wikipedia and Wiktionary update
Testing misleading organic and natural claims
I was excited this week to come across TOPIC, an organisation formed to test the authenticity of natural and organic product claims. I’ve had in mind forming an operation just like they have – there’s such a need for it – so I’m very happy someone else has done it and there’s no need for… Continue reading Testing misleading organic and natural claims
You’re fat, and the 7-minute workout
I paid a visit to the Ethical Co-op warehouse the other day, and Thembi, one of the warehouse staff who’s been there from the very early days, greeted me with a loud “You’re fat!” as I walked in. I was a little taken aback and didn’t have an immediate response, so she carried on “Yes!… Continue reading You’re fat, and the 7-minute workout
Leaving the Ethical Co-op
Way back in April, a lifetime ago that seems like yesterday, I stepped down from the Ethical Co-op, which I’d been involved with from the very beginning in 2005. There were about 10 founders, mostly drawn from two communities. Permacore, the Permaculture Foundation of South Africa, which is no longer running, and the Community Exchange… Continue reading Leaving the Ethical Co-op
Modern American Cryptographic Poetry
Having a little bit more free time these days, and suffering from an extreme compulsion to spend all this free time, I signed up for two Coursera courses at the same time. Both of them are lots of fun, but both are also a little more time-consuming than the ones I’ve done before, so I’ll… Continue reading Modern American Cryptographic Poetry
The Song of The Golden Dragon – Estas Tonne
I have a large collection of music that would probably take me many months to listen to from start to finish, but I find myself listening to it less and less, and discovering so much amazing new music. Today’s find, now on repeat, is the beautifully named Song of the Golden Dragon, by Estas Tonne.