All of the fun today with @adkclimb.club friends at Jewels & Gems! Dustin’ off the cobwebs for a glorious rock season. Come climb with us! (Link to book a trip in bio)

Three people wearing climbing gear ascend large rock faces in a wooded area. Each is engaged in a different angle climb with ropes attached navigating the rugged rocky surfaces surrounded by leafless trees. A black and white dog stands tied to a tree in a forest clearing with climbing gear and boots placed on the ground nearby.

It won’t be for a long while, but the Subaru Solterra EV will probably be my next vehicle.

Finished reading: My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George 📚

This book was formative for me back in my middle school years and is precisely why Peregrine Falcons are my favorite bird. A quick read, but certainly makes me want to run away to the woods. I’d forgotten the disappointing ending, though.

Pratik writing about a curiosity with his workplace’s X account:

Today, during our check-in, she mentioned a very curious thing about the site. Our account hardly follows anyone out there so the timeline when she logs in is all Musk. Naturally, she prefers not to read his tweets either so she muted him.

Curiously after that, she wasn’t able to post any tweets. No error but just that random “Something didn’t work. Please try again.” message. She tried logging out and logging back in, tried it from her phone and then from a private browser window but nothing worked.

She even thought, muting Musk wouldn’t be the issue, right? Right? But just to test it out, she umuted him and suddenly everything started working just fine and she was able to post.

Super duper gross.

Apple is making its trove of demo devices at its stores charge a little greener. Here’s Joe Rossignol:

In its 2025 Environmental Progress Report released today, Apple revealed that it plans to expand its Clean Energy Charging feature to iPhone and iPad demo units on display at Apple Stores and other retail stores across the United States.

This feature makes the device wait to charge until the time of day that the grid’s power is comparatively cleaner.

These little changes don’t make the biggest difference, but they do add up. I’m surprised it’s not already been on, but this is a good change.

Come on, U.K., not you too. 👎 People can be whoever they want to be, and it’s not up to anyone else to tell them otherwise. The world seems to have forgotten the golden rule, and — to vastly understate it — that’s a huge bummer. 🏳️‍⚧️

🚨 Merch Drop! Check out our wide selection of new shirts, hats, stickers, pins, drinkware, and more featuring our logo and the new ‘Clicky Clicky No Die’ design. Always double-check those carabiners! onwardguides.com/shop

Various merchandise items displayed on a grid including a sticker pack, button set, cap, tote, and can cooler all featuring “Clicky Clicky No Die” text and graphics. Prices vary from $4.00 to $30.00. Gray cap featuring embroidered text ONWARD MOUNTAIN GUIDES and an orange circle with a diamond inside on the front against a plain white background. A white hoodie with text reading ONWARD MOUNTAIN GUIDES Adirondack Park New York USA displayed on the front featuring bold black letters and two small icons resembling ice axes for climbing. A white enamel mug displaying the text ONWARD MOUNTAIN GUIDES in an orange circle rests on a wooden surface in a minimalist setting. A rectangular patch features embroidered letters spelling ONWARD MOUNTAIN GUIDES O in orange UIT in colors. Black border frames the white background creating a contrast. A person holds a beige tote bag displaying a graphic and the text “CLICKY CLICKY NO DIE” featuring a carabiner illustration in a casual indoor setting. A black baseball cap displays a patch featuring a carabiner with the words CLICKY CLICKY NO DIE. The cap has a white rope accent across the brim. A white can cooler with a carabiner design is standing upright alongside a flat one. The text reads CLICKY CLICKY NO DIE. Backpack adorned with five circular pins displaying various designs and text: one with a red bat another reads Clicky Clicky No Die one shows Onward others have icons resembling a blue hook and a green pickaxe. Five stickers arranged on a white sheet displaying various logos and texts Clicky Clicky No Die Onward Mountain Guides ONWARD. Each sticker has distinct designs featuring climbing and navigation themes.

I’m a big ol' fan of usernames that are actually website domains. It started with my Instagram and Bluesky profiles at heyjb.me, and now I’ve whipped up adkclimb.club for a new meetup group I started!

🆕📝 7 Things This Week [#174]

Come check out my linky wares!

A little solo hike up Saddleback from The Garden yesterday. Trailhead says spring, but the peak’s still in winter with fresh snow. 14.3 miles, 3157 ft elevation gain, 9.5 hours.

We’re psyched to support @vanhoevenberg’s bouldering comp today (2pm) with prizes in the pool for competitors. You could win 50% off a guided climbing experience with us! Hope to see you there climbing or cheering on! 🤘

A person climbs a bouldering wall indoors with colorful holds. Text reads Bouldering Competition Today April 12 2-4 pm Win 50 percent off guided climbing or instruction.

Finished reading: My Murder by Katie Williams 📚

Ooh this is a good one. An intriguing premise that morphs, twists and turns unexpectedly, and ultimately delivers.

Finished reading: Becoming Steve Jobs by Brent Schlender 📚

Goodness, what an extraordinary person. This recounting of his life is the best I’ve read, and certainly reveals more humanity than the rest.

Finished reading: Penric’s Demon by Lois McMaster Bujold 📚

A decent little tale, but I don’t think I’ll continue the series.

Finished reading: The Push: A Climber’s Search for the Path by Tommy Caldwell 📚

Fantastic story, expertly written. Tommy Caldwell’s desire for excellence and perseverance to get there is an inspiration!

🆕📝 7 Things This Week [#173]

Quite the variety this week!

A little personal trip down to the Gunks to get ready for rock season! Feels great to be pluggin’ cams and pulling on rock. Book a trip of your own! Single and multi pitch, learn to lead, anchoring clinics — we do it all.

Todd and I completed a mega day out in the High Peaks (18 miles, 6000 ft elevation gain, 13.5 hours) tagging his 20th-23rd winter summits. Our first truly warm hike together this winter, we battled steep ascents, deteriorating snow, and high winds. But it was all smiles all day with incredible views throughout the day. What a way to close out the winter hiking season!

March ended in a flurry! I scurried down to the Gunks for a few days of nice weather to climb with @coppertop217 (we stayed in a school bus AirBnB!), who then followed me back up north for a very successful @adkclimb.club and skiing at @whiteface_mt. I hunkered down for a couple days while an ice storm made everything slippery and then back to Whiteface for an open-to-close laps day with the man, the myth, the legend @willclimbz for his birthday. Great way to round out the month, and now I’m back to dreaming about rock climbing!

A person holds a climbing rope wrapped around a tree on a rocky ledge high above a forested valley with bare trees and distant hills visible in the background. A climber in a helmet sits on a rocky ledge holding a phone, surrounded by climbing ropes, overlooking a vast forested landscape extending to the horizon. A rock climber scales a vertical cliff face using safety gear in an outdoor setting under partially cloudy skies. Two climbers wearing helmets and jackets smiling while securing ropes on a rocky surface surrounded by bare trees. A parked yellow bus beside a small, black camping tent amidst tall trees. Nearby, a covered round table with four stacked chairs rests on dry, leaf-strewn ground. A person sips from a white mug while seated in a cozy vehicle interior. A package of OREO cookies and a Jetboil are on a patterned table nearby. Climber ascends vertical rock face using a rope and harness in a natural outdoor setting with trees at the top and a clear blue sky above. Climbing rope extends up a rocky cliff face under a clear blue sky with sparse trees at the top edge creating a rugged outdoor setting. A climber ascends a bouldering wall with colorful holds while several people observe in an indoor climbing gym featuring padded flooring and overhead lights. Two people wearing ski helmets and goggles are smiling, standing on a snowy mountain with a wooden railing and a distant view of mountains. On the jacket, text reads FISU University Winter Games 2023 KARBON. Two people wearing helmets and ski goggles smile while sitting on a ski lift surrounded by leafless trees, both wearing winter jackets, one in blue and the other in red.

Finding it hard to get motivated to tackle my work to-do list… Small goals, I guess. #1: Social post about climbing. #2: Blog post about a great podcast I heard. #3: Blog post about packing for winter hikes.

Jason Snell: ‘My unsuccessful journey into Netflix’s ad tier’

While the ads played on, I began creating a thought experiment: There’s a $10 difference between the ad and ad-free plans. If Mr. Netflix (he wears a top hat) came to my house and said, “Jason, I’ve got a great deal for you. I’m going to pay you $120 a year, and all you have to do is watch ads while you watch Netflix,” what would I do? When I started thinking about it, I thought it might be an interesting intellectual question. What would I accept in exchange for having Mean Mr. Netflix beam ads into every show I watch?

🤔

I’ve had my M4 MacBook Air for all of a couple of hours, and I already love it. Maybe it’s the fact that I’m setting up as new and haven’t loaded it down with years of data and apps yet, but it feels notably faster than my M1 Mac mini. 😍 (I have to say, though, I already wish they made a 12" version.)

Tried out an (unclimbed?) ice flow off of the Jay Mountain ridge today! T’was thin-but-in! The 3-mile uphill walk to get there was a bit of a bear, but nabbing an extra day of climbing was well-worth it. Thanks for the invitation, Jim!

Person wearing a helmet and goggles, smiling and dressed in winter gear, standing on a snowy slope. The background features trees and a partially frozen waterfall in a forested area. A frozen waterfall cascades down a rocky cliff, surrounded by snow-covered ground and leafless trees, under an overcast sky. Pine trees line the top of the cliff. Snowy mountain landscape showing dense forested hills extending into the distance under an overcast sky creating a tranquil and vast wilderness atmosphere. Mist-covered mountains with snowy patches rise in the foreground against a backdrop of overcast skies, creating a serene winter landscape in a forested area. A person climbs a large icy slope using ropes surrounded by snow-covered trees in a forested area on a cloudy day. Two people smiling in winter gear navigate through a snowy forest with bare branches and evergreen trees while carrying backpacks and wearing protective headgear.

Today was my final shift for the season as a Ski Instructor at @whiteface_mt. What a privilege to help people learn or progress in such an awesome sport — and get to free ski in the off times! Great crew working there, each talented instructors who made everything fun for our students. ⛷️

Blue snowsports jackets laid on a wooden surface with name tags reading JARROD Snowsports Whiteface. The jackets feature a triangular logo and lime green zippers, accompanied by matching blue helmets.

I played myself so well. At a local film festival last year, I arrived “on time” (late) and got a terrible seat at the back. This year, I was running late again and rushed in at 6:30pm to find a mostly empty theater. Thought the date change led to empty seats. Checked my ticket, it says 7pm. Thank you Past Me for putting it in my calendar 30 minutes early so I could get a good seat!

A large screen displays an image of a mountain landscape with vibrant lighting and the text “Banff Centre Mountain Film and Book Festival.” Below the screen, there are banners with logos and names, including Lowe Alpine, Rab, and Chestnut Mountain Productions. The seating area is empty, suggesting a theater or presentation setting.