Alex is Canadian now

Technical writer by day, novelist and yarn dragon by night. Spoonie knitter, hopepunk poet, queer Jew avoiding the news. Multiclassed into warlock for a living wage. Married to @Canageek. I am the hearth fire, not the Molotov cocktail. #nobot

Public Key

npub1d75g268nfjrrvkf73jcpetfdd4acz8wfj63vtcjrlvzvh64st04qhx3g3u

NIP-05 Address

WizardOfDocs@wandering-shop.mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsxl2y9dre5ep3ktylgevqu45kk67uprhyedgk9ufplkpxta2c9h6spz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerfw36x7tnsw43qzrmhwden5te0dehhxarj9ehx7ac680vlg

Publishing to

relay.ditto.pub

nostr.now

relay.primal.net

Author Public Key

npub1d75g268nfjrrvkf73jcpetfdd4acz8wfj63vtcjrlvzvh64st04qhx3g3u

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Last Notes

2026-10-25 01:23:17 UTC

Evangelicals: Jesus is my copilot
AI bros: Copilot is my jesus

2026-10-05 21:47:28 UTC

So I just got a new phone, and because I changed my number a few months ago, I now have to start fresh with #Signal.
On my laptop, Signal insists on staying connected to my old phone, and it keeps telling me the QR code I'm supposed to use to link it to the new phone isn't valid. Uninstalling and reinstalling Signal Desktop didn't fix it. What do I do?

2026-09-05 15:54:58 UTC

I would love to start supporting #MapQuest . Unfortunately, they don't have public transit directions.
They've listened to their users and refused to cave to US political bullshit. Maybe if we start asking for buses and trains in our app reviews, they'll actually do it.

2026-08-09 22:51:17 UTC

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@nprofile…0hde I'm a big fan of #TransJoy

2026-07-10 21:05:00 UTC

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@nprofile…awd8 do they support image spoilering? that's the one thing I need that Signal hasn't delivered.

2026-07-02 17:41:58 UTC

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@nprofile…awd8 I use Drop Feeds on Fire/Waterfox

2026-06-24 16:54:02 UTC

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@nprofile…yz28 what sort of unit of LLM use counts as a token?
I'm glad they're finally becoming a liability, but I'd like to understand what exactly I'm cheering against

2026-05-21 15:30:49 UTC

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@nprofile…uj37 @nprofile…r0qd I was briefly a contractor with Android Trust and Safety, and they had me edit the documentation for the new developer verification process.
The worst part is how many Googlers I had to deal with who truly believed this will protect users with no downside. Not being allowed to talk to anyone with decision-making power was a close second.

2026-05-20 16:03:12 UTC

honk honk honk honk HONK HONK HONK HONK
#BirdCallOut #CanadaGeese

2026-05-19 22:07:53 UTC

Interviewer: What would you say is your greatest weakness?
Me: My commitment to quality. I can't stop myself from making sure I understand what's expected of me, or that I get the job done right.
Interviewer: ...how is that a weakness
Me: have you *seen* the tech industry lately. In the age of AI, doing your best work and caring about your impact is a fireable offense. That's how I lost my last job.

2026-05-14 14:57:06 UTC

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@nprofile…ds0l I didn't realize he was brown! or is that the weird orange train lighting

2026-05-02 14:27:07 UTC

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@nprofile…wr0t go touch milkweed

2026-04-01 20:58:10 UTC

so I'm pretty sure I bought an Amtrak ticket this morning, but I haven't gotten a confirmation email yet.
Are they usually slow, or should I be worried?

2026-03-31 22:04:42 UTC

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@nprofile…4nnf which one

2026-03-31 14:22:02 UTC

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@nprofile…a6xq at least second sock syndrome isn't a problem!

2026-03-29 00:06:01 UTC

#Seattle folks:
I'm moving out soon, and looking to give away a bed and a couch to somebody/ies who can come pick them up the week of April 6. What are the generally accepted hashtags for #BuyNothing sorts of deals?
(adding them as I learn them) #FreeCycle

2026-03-26 01:05:06 UTC

so I got laid off again, for stupid AI-pilled reasons.
Anybody need a writer or editor with:
- 8+ years of technical writer/content strategist experience, mostly in software
- One published short fiction anthology (as editor)
- A master's degree in sociolinguistics
- A knack for learning new content management systems
- A love of working with invested SMEs
- A basic understanding of web dev
- Strong boundaries
- An aversion to generative AI?
Prioritizing remote work in Canada.
#GetFediHired

2026-02-24 16:50:30 UTC

https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=415
This is mid-2005. Doctor Who had just started up again. I think Marten would enjoy most of the stories from the 70s; I choose to believe Pintsize was only telling him about the worst of the 80s. Trial of a Time Lord is an entire season where nothing fucking happens. They can't even decide whether Peri is alive at the end.
#QuestionableContentReadalong

2026-02-12 16:14:53 UTC

@nprofile…fnxz , in the middle of an asthma attack:
"Making me laugh is bad right now, and you're very funny."
I'll take it.

2026-01-26 16:23:21 UTC

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@nprofile…6e37 @nprofile…j933 @nprofile…knfa @nprofile…5uqu I believe it was one of her students, but yeah, finding a grasshopper in your mainframe would be a hell of a bug

2026-01-23 18:21:58 UTC

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@nprofile…ds0l oh. Yikes.
This is still Microsoft's fault, right?

2026-01-23 18:17:18 UTC

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@nprofile…ds0l I used to think it was really petty of that guy on The IT Crowd to answer the phone with "hello, IT, have you tried turning it off and on again?"
You've demonstrated that turning it off and on again still works. And that Windows seems to be actively discouraging people from learning that fact. I'm on his side now.

2025-12-24 15:23:56 UTC

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@nprofile…zshf okay, what's the gift he thinks he's bringing to the world?
I've got a cult leader who wants the equivalent of the Rapture, an ancient wizard who thinks hoarding magic for himself will make artificers more creative (in doing what *he* wants, of course)...and the god manipulating both of them just wants control of the world back. Maybe as a god of stasis he claims he can prevent death and decay? Not sure.

2025-06-01 00:30:25 UTC

Unfriendly #Pride reminder that rainbow capitalism is better than openly bigoted capitalism.
We *want* them to value our money more than our enemies' money. We want them to be ashamed of their right-wing executives, and to support their queer employees' Pride initiatives.
It helps literally keep us alive. Now more than ever, with diversity and inclusion programs getting shut down all over the place.

2025-05-28 15:12:15 UTC

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@nprofile…009v @nprofile…h0jl happy birthday!

2025-04-03 15:27:28 UTC

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@nprofile…q5wq I'm having mixed feelings about the sample chapter, but I lost it at the Legally Distinct Tribble burrito
might back it anyway to get @nprofile…4ejq a copy

2025-02-11 16:00:15 UTC

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@nprofile…q6ft what is FSF?

2025-02-05 21:27:39 UTC

https://www.advocate.com/politics/michigan-lgbtq-hate-crime-law
Michigan has updated its hate crime laws to include sexual orientation and gender identity as protected categories.
#ShareGoodNewsToo

2025-02-05 01:56:42 UTC

I just blew somebody's mind by telling them I wash my #knitting with the same shampoo I use on my own hair
*happy dance*
I mean, wool is just somebody else's hair, right?

2025-01-27 16:47:47 UTC

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@nprofile…8t0c I don't have a whole lot of yarn storage space right now, so I'm sorting roughly by fiber type (animal content vs no animal content) and then by weight (DK or smaller vs worsted and larger)
And then within animal/small, which is where most of my stash is these days, I sort by solid/semisolid vs variegated/striped, and full skein vs partial vs leftovers

2025-01-27 06:03:16 UTC

I might have said here that my motto for this year was Joy in Spite of Everything.
That's not entirely true.
My motto for 2025, and as long thereafter as I need it, is Joy in Spite.
I don't just pursue joy because it keeps me sane and reminds the people around me what we're fighting for.
I also pursue joy to piss off anybody who wants me dead.

2025-01-04 17:04:40 UTC

The Right is a bucket of crabs: climbing over each other and pushing each other down for any tiny personal advantage, to the detriment of all involved
The Left is a big net full of fish: we can get out of this if we all swim down together

2024-12-30 18:47:26 UTC

The takeaway image from yesterday's D&D session: a six-foot-tall masc lizard person in a sleeveless crop top and leggings drinking a violently blue cocktail

2024-12-24 06:12:48 UTC

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@nprofile…fa4k are sl and cl pronounced sline and cosline? or sline and closine?

2024-12-19 02:04:34 UTC

...is that humans can choke on anything, even a lungful of air.
That's not even "catch this in QA" shit, this is something your basic unit tests can and should cover.
...though maybe I've just argued that G-d was rushing to push humanity to prod at 10 minutes to Friday sunset and just turned the linter off to make it easier...

2024-12-10 15:37:38 UTC

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@nprofile…c07s if I could choose the Christmas music, I'd pick non Christmas music

2024-07-26 15:42:06 UTC

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@npub13n4…3h2h as a writer, I'd like to put some constraints on that statement.
as an editor, I specifically want to blame programmers who think they can write documentation.

2024-07-26 15:40:33 UTC

me, editing a draft: good explanation of this concept. Let's move it up the page to where you first introduce the concept.
writer: Can we keep this explanation where it is? I've added one up top too.
me: the new explanation up top is confusing, and is making me question your entire taxonomy. The original explanation is much clearer and simpler, and has examples that make sense. Just move it up and link to it from where you originally put it so we're not repeating ourselves.

2024-07-18 19:16:53 UTC

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@npub1c57…awu5 majestic

2024-06-15 21:23:46 UTC

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@npub1vgs…4tgk ooo, I'm still waiting on mine

2024-06-02 00:03:05 UTC

Reminder that rainbow capitalism is immeasurably better than what came before it, and what I fear will come after it.
Which is the eldritch horrors that communicate only in money valuing our money less than money from people who want us dead.
Virtue signaling inspires actual virtue, and corporate Pride initiatives are usually led by queer employees who have fought tooth and nail to get their bosses to give a shit.
Vote with your wallet, and get things that bring you joy.

2023-11-28 16:17:34 UTC

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@npub1zt3…0v09 @npub1y9v…t45y color pooling is wonderful. I've never gotten quite such a sharp argyle out of it before.

2023-09-04 15:33:47 UTC

#FallFinishAlong update: Having discovered the benefits of blocking my shawls, I've dug out a whole pile of them that I never get to wear in California to see if I can do a little extra finishing there.
The stockinette ones, definitely. I've got an Age of Brass and Steam that really needs it. But most of them are garter, and I'm worried blocking them will make them less squishy and warm.
I'm testing it on a little one I made for a plush a while back, but does anyone here have an opinion?