PaulWay

Lots of ads online in my feeds for some old fisherman who made Damascus steel knives in some imaginary spare time and is now having to shut his forge due to failing health. Has all the hallmarks of a scam. The guy seems to have been living on the Mornington Peninsula but also in Eden? And very hard to track his name down to anything other than their website.

Learning piano - as opposed to just mashing a few keys on it to make tunes with friends - again after probably forty years.

I fortuitously bought a Studio Ghibli book of beginner-grade pieces, which is good for my sight reading and my hand movement practice. Then I have chord and octave movement practice to improve my 'tunes with friends' accompaniment.

And tucked away there I have a book of Debussy's pieces, including The Engulfed Cathedral which is probably my favourite. If I can get to play something like that, in a year or two, then I'll be very happy.

I already feel like I'm playing better.

I heard a really great Planet Money bonus episode interview with a philosopher thinking about games and values.

Games, basically, set targets that are measurable and yet do not affect the real world. They epitomise the 'only what is measured is valued' theory of behaviour.

Compare this to "Effective Altruism", which seeks to place (somewhat arbitrary) metrics on what is considered 'doing good'. If they can't measure it - like 'wellbeing' - they ignore it and go for something they can measure - like 'number of deaths' or 'income'.

They then compared this to the current 'futures market / betting market' sites, which again put arbitrary metrics on things. They don't measure whether a politician lied or told the truth, whether they made sense or not - they measure whether they said certain words. And then the actual people betting on those things go and ask questions trying to prompt the politician to say that word, as if 'conflict of interest' is just a game mechanic now.

Lots to think about. Now going to have a shower, because that plus all the woodworking this morning make me happy.

The number, the sheer quantity of people sitting in cars with their engines idling... You'd think there wasn't a fuel 'crisis'.

You'd think every company would be looking at how their vehicle fleet fuel is used. You'd think every tradie would be trying to go as slow as possible to conserve fuel.

I think it shows that fuel is not expensive enough.

A while back I found a company that made a neat Home Assistant compatible ESPHome based sprinkler controller. And I filed that bookmark somewhere.

And now when I look for same I cannot find anything like it.

All my internet searches find are either 'wifi-enabled' systems that still require you to use their own app and UI, or hackaday-style 'cobble these sixteen bits of electronics together and you might have an irrigation controller, as long as you also have a weather-proof box and don't mind it looking like a permanent hobby electronics job' projects, which ... yes I do mind that.

Anyone got a good link for me?

I just watched a guy get onto a motorbike wearing a hoodie, shorts, slip on shoes, and an open face helmet. I really wanted to tell him that when he has his accident, to not blame anyone else for his injuries.

I'm thinking of switching from Optus to Felix mobile. Any opinions, Aus tech tooters?