https://vimeo.com/139407849 “Space is big. Really big. You just won’t believe how vastly hugely mindbogglingly big it is. I mean you may think it’s a long way down the road to the chemist’s, but that’s just peanuts to space.”

A guide to the terms of modern living: tab (n.): Something opened, then closed, then opened again, then closed again, for eternity. social (n.): An app or website that simulates what it might be like to interact with other people. Instagram (n.): A persistent reminder that people you know can afford more expensive restaurants and better vacations than you. So much to cringe and nod at.

Thirty years. That sounds like… a lot. It sure doesn’t feel like a lot - I guess? I dunno. It feels like time has passed, but it also doesn’t, in the sense that I still recall events from 20 years ago vividly should I choose to. But then I get a sense of perspective when talking to younger people, and I share experiences from my past, and realise - really - I’ve done a decent amount and achieved a decent bit… but then there’s so much I’ve still yet to do and still want to do, and it’s not as though I’m running out of time, but I wonder if I’m the only one that feels like the hundred things I’d to get done are just things you couldn’t ever hope to do, but things like movies and social media make it seem like you should be able to get everything done… but it’s just not reality. ...

Patrick Rothfuss writes on Terry Pratchett’s passing - and interestingly, he’s writing as a fan, not a “fellow writer”: Odds are, if you know much anything about me, you know I’ve been a fan of Pratchett for years. If you follow me on goodreads you’ve seen me write reviews so gushy that they border on the inarticulate. I didn’t know him. Honestly, I didn’t even know too much about him. I saw him speak once at a convention in Madison, and got to meet him very briefly. I wrote about it on the blog. ...

Yesterday, the NYSE went down for a couple of hours, and the fascinating thing was while it was out, stocks rallied… as soon as it came back, it plunged. Well, I guess “fascinating” is a word I can use because I’m not invested in the American market in any meaningful way, but for those involved, this kind of weird stock market behaviour makes for wondering as to what on earth is going on in the American market. ...