Apple’s recent Newsroom post on how it’s now 3D-printing its titanium Apple Watch cases is fascinating. When it was announced during the September event, I wondered if I’d be able to discern any difference in quality. I absolutely cannot. It’s as precise and premium as any Apple Watch I’ve ever had.

Nicolas Magand noticed an odd phenomenon when reading his old blog posts:

First, that I seemingly forget about 85% of what I write. Reading these articles didn’t feel like reading something completely new — I remember the topic and the gist of what I said — but I was surprised at how much I forgot about these topics, rants, and comments. Writing makes me refine my thoughts, but I think publishing makes my brain click the “Move to bin” command for these now-safely-backed-up thoughts.

You and me both, brother.

Watched: Masters of the Air 📺

Much like Chernobyl, I think this is a series that everyone should see. 👍👍

Watched: La La Land 🍿

It may not be the world’s best musical movie, but gosh do I enjoy it. Both Stone and Gosling do so well. The ending is clever, if not totally satisfying. And the tunes are sure to be in my head for weeks. 👍👍

Watched: Masters of the Air S1E6, Part Six 📺

After some time away from this show, I binged a few episodes today. Truly gripping stuff that showcases the horrors of being on a fighter plane in WW2. Gonna need some time to process it for sure.

This comparison of iPhone models to car models by @joesteel@duck.haus is quite apt:

The image is a section of text comparing iPhones to cars in terms of features and marketing strategies. It describes the iPhone 16e as a basic model likened to an older, less equipped mid-size SUV with a poor backup camera. The iPhone 17 is likened to a mid-size SUV suitable for work and personal use, seen as a reliable choice. The iPhone Air is compared to a luxury compact electric car, which is stylish but less practical. Finally, the iPhone 17 Pro is described as a luxury full-size SUV, expensive and feature-rich, providing comfort in having extra capabilities available.

You’ve heard a lot about Tom from us over the last year. Let us just say that it was an honor to be trusted by him along his 46er journey, and we can’t wait for the next one. Thanks, Tom! 🙌

A person in outdoor gear smiles while standing in a snowy mountainous area. Beside them is text: “Jarrod guided me to 42 of the 46 ADK peaks. I felt so comfortable with Jarrod’s approach to hiking. He reviewed the trails with me before each hike, he provided a list of gear/attire for each weather condition, and always contacted me the morning of each hike. In addition to being an impeccable guide, he is a wonderful person. Along the trail, he pointed out the features of the hike and the history behind each peak. He spotted my hiking progress in precarious situations, especially on steep rock slabs and slides. If my gear failed during a hike, he would give me his gear. I plan to continue hiking in the Adirondacks with Jarrod. Many thanks” — Tom Sagers ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Started reading: Dirtbag Billionaire by David Gelles 📚

I’ve long been fascinated by Yvon Chouinard’s story from, well, dirtbag climber to luminary billionaire who started Patagonia and what would become Black Diamond.

No Bingo for me, but a fun trip down memory lane from BasicAppleGuy. Totally forgot about the iPod nano Tubes!

A bingo card titled “Obscure Apple Accessories Bingo” featuring various Apple accessories. Some items are crossed out with red X marks. Accessories include: iPod Socks, iPhone Pocket, iPod Radio Remote, Smart Battery Case, iPod Remote, iPhone Bluetooth Headset, Battery Charger, iPod Lanyard Headphones, AW Magnetic Charging Dock, iPhone Crossbody Strap, USB SuperDrive, Nike+iPod Sport Kit, iPod Armband, iSight, iPod Leather Case, iPod nano Tubes, iPod Belt Clip, iPod shuffle Sport Case, Apple Pencil Cap, iPhone TTY Adapter, Apple Pencil Kit, iPod mini Lanyard, iPod touch Loop, and Mac Pro Wheels. Some items have been marked with red Xs, indicating they have been “found” in the bingo game.

🆕📝 Grandma Beck

My maternal grandmother, Laureen Ann Beck, passed away recently. We had a memorial service for her yesterday, filled with family and friends. Here are the reflections of her that I shared at the service.

Well done to all the competitors at Mt. Van Hoevenberg’s boulder comp today! It was great to see all the stoke in the room! Big thanks to the staff who put it all together. 🙌

A person climbs an indoor bouldering wall using colorful holds wearing sporty attire in a climbing gym environment. Other people and climbing equipment are visible in the background. Two people climb an indoor bouldering wall with colorful handholds in a climbing gym outfitted with padded mats on the floor and a coiled rope hanging above. Three people holding mugs stand on podiums in front of a climbing wall during an indoor competition while being photographed Fall Bouldering Competition HiNotch Indoor Climbing Three people are standing on a podium holding prizes in a climbing gym with colorful climbing holds on the wall. Two individuals in front are organizing a framed sign. Text on sign: Fall Bouldering Competition Notch Indoor Climbing November 15 2:00pm - 5:00pm Person standing behind a table displaying Adirondack Climbers' Coalition materials in a hallway with pipes overhead Text includes adirondackclimberscoalition org Onward Mountain Guides Donations drop your info here

Robert Birming: ‘Your blog, your home’

Maybe you’ve thought about launching a blog. Maybe you’ve felt a bit overwhelmed when looking at other blogs.

Don’t be. We all start with an empty home. Then we add a little paint here, hang a picture there, and decorate it with things we like.

A blog becomes a home, that’s the beauty of it, and I’m looking forward to visiting yours.

I recently received compliments on my blog’s design. It gave me a sense of pride that eclipses compliments of my home — perhaps because my blog is all me. I’ve customized nearly every nook, and then filled it with my words.

What a gift, ice season has come early! We worked hard for those first swings, skinning 5 miles up the toll road and leading in gusty winds with sub-zero wind chill. But so worth it to get that good ice! Thanks to Corey for the company on this fun adventure. 🎿 🧊

A climber is ascending an icy cliff using ropes and ice-climbing gear in a snowy mountainous environment. The climber is wearing a red jacket and is secured with a red rope. A climber ascends a steep icy wall using ice axes and crampons. They wear a vibrant red jacket, surrounded by rugged ice formations. Climber ascends an ice-covered cliff using a red rope for support thick snow blankets the surrounding rocky landscape and evergreen trees creating a wintry alpine environment. Two people wearing winter gear smile at the camera amidst a snowy landscape. One person wears a blue jacket with OR logo and ski goggles. The other wears a black helmet and sunglasses. A skier gliding across a snow-covered landscape with a backpack traverses a path beside a frost-covered rocky embankment under an overcast sky.

McDonald’s isn’t wasting any time in phasing out the penny here in the U.S. I actually snapped this photo at the drive-through a couple days ago, before we stopped minting pennies:

The U.S. ended production of the penny Wednesday, abandoning the 1-cent coins that were embedded in American culture for more than 230 years but became nearly worthless.

A printed McDonald’s sign explains a nationwide penny shortage leading to cash change rounding to the nearest 5 cents. Menu prices stay unchanged; only change will be rounded. The sign concludes with, “We appreciate your understanding!” There is a decorative element with an orange and yellow design on the right.

The iPhone Pocket has already made it into the general zeitgeist. During today’s stop at a gas station, I heard a local radio host talking about it — well, chuckling at it for its outlandish price tag. I actually think it looks quite nice and could have had wide appeal, but not at $150/$230.

It’s when you’re least expecting it, that’s when they getcha! 😆 Glad to see it’s got some traction — hopefully leads to more folks taking control of their spot on the web.

Oh cool, Jarrod Blundy’s blog post about Micro.blog Studio made it on Hacker News.

A list of Hacker News articles features various tech-related headlines and community discussions, with a specific news item about Micro.blog’s new video hosting tier circled in orange.

Louie Mantia: ‘A Long Train of Abuses’

I can’t say I’m completely comfortable with all of Mantia’s argument, but it’s certainly got me thinking. A few bits that caught my attention:

In the Declaration of Independence, the founders wrote a long train of abuses by the King to justify their actions. Some may feel …unfortunately relevant today:

  • He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone […]
  • He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures
  • He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power
  • For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us […]
  • […] For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world

And

And so, believing that violence is never justified only makes you vulnerable to those who believe it is.

That’s how it’s always been. If the government successfully convinces civilians that violence is never justified, then it gets to maintain its own monopoly on violence, legalizing the atrocities it commits itself, while punishing everyone else for what civilians have always had the right to do.

It’s right there, in the founding document of the nation, that it is the right and duty of civilians to overthrow any government that systemically infringes on its rights.

By all rights, I’m a firmly non-violent person. I even sometimes bristle at the notion that the best thing to do with a Nazi is punch them. It seems so barbaric, sure to escalate, and unnecessary when words and logic exist. But I have to admit that when words, logic, and compassion fall on intentionally-deaf ears, other options start to look more reasonable.

John Voorhees has some great recommendations (🔒) for developers offering in-app subscriptions, such as using consumables rather than time to limit their free trials, as Notion does with their Notion AI trial:

As my setup grew, I started exploring more advanced features and asking Notion AI for help implementing my setup. The Notion AI trial didn’t begin until I was ready to try it, and the free query allotment was enough to convince me of the feature’s value. The experience felt so natural that by the time I’d run out of free Notion AI queries, I was happy to start paying.

🎿 Ski season has begun in the Adirondacks! Coverage is great on the @whiteface_mt Veterans’ Memorial Highway — it was a good way to spend some time on Veterans’ Day. Thanks to @bbrianandersonn for joining and helping to scope out some ice! 👀

🆕📝 Micro.blog offers an indie alternative to YouTube with its ‘Studio’ video hosting plan

What was at first going to be a quote post about the new feature turned into an essay about how this fits with Micro.blog’s ethos and why it’s good for the open web.

Rewatched: The Queen’s Gambit 📺

What a show! I had a hankering to watch this again after a few years, and so glad that I did. Marathoned it over two days. It’s a masterclass in growing empathy for nearly every character, and showing dull things dramatically. And a triumph in set and costume design.

He did it! In only 18 months, and just a few weeks shy of his 70th birthday, Tom Sagers became the newest Adirondack 46er by summiting Seymour Mountain! Tom and I hiked 42 of the 46 high peaks together, and in that time, I have come to know him as a capable, enthusiastic, and dedicated hiker — and as a friend. It’s been incredible to see his skills progress over that time, and we battled some pretty challenging conditions together. 🏔️

If I can still handle hiking these peaks in icy conditions at Tom’s age, I’ll consider myself quite fortunate indeed. 💪

A rough estimate of what it takes to become a 46er is 300+ miles and 70,000+ feet in elevation gain worth of hiking these unforgiving “trails”. Please join me in congratulating Tom on this monumental achievement! 👏

Until the next one… 🥾

Watched: Pluribus S1E1, We Is Us 📺

My wife and I watched the first two episodes yesterday and are hooked. We had to pause multiple times to debate the implications and moral quandaries of what was happening on-screen. The mark of a good show! (And Severance-esque 👍)

Ryan Christoffel: ‘iOS 26.1 lets you close Activity rings even if you forget to start a workout’

Inside the Fitness app, tap the Workout tab, then hit the icon in the top-right to add a new workout.

You’ll be able to choose from any workout type, then manually log several parameters:

  • Duration
  • Start Time
  • Active Calories
  • Effort

After you choose a workout type and duration, iOS 26.1 will automatically populate the ‘Active Calories’ field with an estimated number. This estimate takes into account your personal health details.

Very happy to see this after a decade of working out with Apple Watch!

Winter conditions on Colvin and Blake today for Tom’s 46/46! We did Colvin earlier this year, so that was a repeat peak, but Blake was new for him. Wind and snow made it feel very real up there, but trail conditions were much more forgiving than our last few hikes. 14 miles, 4000’ elevation gain, 11 hours. ONE PEAK LEFT!!