🎄Finally work is over for at least the coming week. Have a couple of emails to close out a couple of minor things, but then just total disconnect. It has been an incredibly challenging year but needless to say, a lot of life has happened in 2024. Looking forward to chilling with the kids and doing things that make me happy.

⚽️ What a shame man. 13 min is all he had in the tank for this game.

⚽️ Mason Mount is clearly a broken player. Made of fucking wheatabix.

⚽️ Pretty cagey game so far. Nothing serious been created. Just a lot of ball passing at the moment with plenty of errors from both sides.

Monument Valley is easily my favourite iOS game series (so much so I have a print above my desk). The third instalment of the series continues the fine tradition by adding a new way of moving around. The colours, design and music remain on point. If I had a ‘complaint’ it would be that there isn’t any merch I can get easily.

Tomorrow is Monument Valley III day. Something like 11 years after the first one was released.

I’m still not up to speed with what has happened in Syria. It feels like a civil war that started some 12 years ago. The rebels lost a few years ago, only they didn’t, rather they came back and managed to take over in a matter of a week? What the hell is going on here? Why now? Not that I feel anything but contempt for Bashar, but the whole thing has unfolded or unravelled during very curious timing…

⚽️ So many bodies in the middle of the park. Forest parking the bus here.

⚽️ I’m about to throw something at the TV.

⚽️ This team sucks so hard. Just shit.

⚽️ Slightly boring game. United has had a few good chances so can easily see this ending 3-1.

I missed posting one for 2024, but alas it was a bit of a strange year for the design of the website (went a little maximalist for a while there), back to clean lines that have defined this site for 7 years (?!) now.

❄️ First snowfalls in Toronto. One of my favourite scenes in Mad Men is of course the Carousel scene. Posting photos on my site allows me to briefly jump back and relive a year in seconds. It is one of the most powerful parts of any personal site (and probably the inherent power behind Instagram as well). So much life has happened. 2024 has been a wild ride.

🍁🍂 Do you know what is worse than garbage day? Garbage day when you have to collect all the leaves from around the house. On the bright side only have to deal with it once a year.

⚽️ Comfortable game in the end….first time in years? Now hate watching ManCity getting thumped. I’m all for it.

⚽️ Amad is having a bit of an off start to the game. Things are not connecting in the general manner we are used to him.

Got my winter tire on this weekend. Then somehow the battery in the car just stopped working. Have had to get a booster charger. Car problems have not been something I have had to deal with for years…

The ‘My Soundtrack’ feature on Amazon Music is easily one of my favourite finds related to music I’ve had in years. It’s like I’m listening to a radio station from my teens and twenties.

🍊 I got to say a big thank you ‘Merica for making everyone bend the knee to the tangerine. First up. Justin Trudeau. Feels more real this time that I am actually living in Canada.

For the last 5 weeks we have been hitting the Toronto pavements in search for a house. It’s been a brutal experience. What has surprised me sometimes is the level of mess that we have encountered in some of the homes we have visited. I mean in some cases it’s been really eye opening to see how some people choose to surround themselves with stuff. So. Much. Stuff.

I am a distance from being a true minimalist (or someone who has enough), but so many out there could really do with some Marie Kondo advice.

As I am getting older I am finding that I have increasingly become more and more sensitive to sound. Whether it’s the stuff blaring from the streets or my own kids going crazy while playing it all just impacts me, my thoughts and my mood. I have found that wearing my earphones increasingly more even if not listening to anything (or even not turned on) has helped me manage this a little.

⚽️ Hojlund and Zerkzee coming on at the same time? Love it.

⚽️ Rashfords link up play at the top is not going well. It’s like he’s doing this for the first time. Also the attack is just not getting it together for some reason.

⚽️ Luke Shaw first game since February. Wonder how long his current fitness streak will last.

⚽️ Not going to lie, I am pretty excited by the new formation. Never seen these players in this combination before so it’s going to be super interesting to see if this works. I’m all for it.

First hockey experience in Canada. I know long time coming but worth it.

Every once in a while I am reminded that I live in North America and that there are doofuses in power that have the ability to do things that contradict basic progress. Take Doug Ford’s war on bike lanes. What is this guy’s problem?

Actually liking Bluesky and the interactions/vibe of the place. Will still obviously be POSSE, but dipping in there and replying to things is a nice way to go (stuck a hell of a lot more than Threads).

America is a freedom to do something. While other developed countries are freedom from something.

☀️ Fresh Monday morning in Toronto. The world is a little better when the sun shines.

New York. New York.

I just got back from New York and still letting the whole experience unpack itself out of my brain. I’ve flown into Newark airport countless times but we would then head in the other direction towards Princeton. This time was different, we landed in Newark and headed east. As we approached the Manhattan Island, the landscape was a very familiar American highways construction. Looping freeways, lawyer billboards hugged the edges of the roads. The road twisted inbetween trees, that felt different to the ones we have in Canada, these were shorter in stature.

The first real signs of what was to come unveiled itself as we took the bend just before entering the Lincoln tunnel. I caught a glimpse of Bjarke Ingel’s VIA 57 West building (I had no idea what the thing was called but knew of the building). What I didn’t realise was that I was also looking at Hell’s Kitchen1. The view lasted a split second. I tried to grab my phone and take a pick, but the moment was over as we quickly turned into the Lincoln tunnel.

When we emerged on the other side, the transition to a startling density came almost instantly. Looking outside the car window it took my eyes a little while to fully grasp what we were driving through. A hyper dense city where every block is fully occupied by a building structure from edge to edge. In front of the buildings a slender pavement wraps around the structure. The biggest shock however was the limited space between the roads. The streets could barely fit one car down the centre, with another car width on either side for drop offs and pick ups - or as was exceedingly common, construction.

As we made our way through the chaos, the logistics of making this place function in a reasonable manner began to present themselves in real time. Life here would require an understanding of consequences and compromises. We were instantly given a demonstration. Traffic was bumper to bumper, blocked on all sides. And then an ambulance siren was heard behind us. There was literally nowhere to go. Intersection crossings had to be respected but there was no flexibility to allow emergency vehicles to pass.

The Grid

What totally captured my imagination was the grid. Not only the audacity to create something like this, but also the ability to implement and maintain this grid. It created a space unlike anything I have ever seen. My mind has accepted that cities were messy, organic constructions. Roads wind around as we built things sometimes around the natural world that existed. Sometimes we would tame the land to suit our very specific needs. The common element was that there was no consistent order within them.

Here however was an island that seemed completely flat and where there was a complete embodiment of a grid that was then turned up to the max by building straight up. I have lived in dense areas in my life, but this order to density to scale was a unique combination.

Someone had to wrangle this defining city element into existence. I had to find out more. Thankfully The Museum of the City of New York has collected all this information to celebrate and educate on this very unique city design aspect.

General Observations

  • Another defining element of what I imagined New York to be are all the elements that define a city. The yellow cabs were still there, but they did not occupy the same vibrancy I had previously imagined.
  • The entrances to the subway stations were inconspicuous, and was missing it’s own identity. Unlike the Metros in Europe there was no unifying sign that invited you in and announced itself. Rather New York has green railing with signs attached to the railings. To my mind this was a missed opportunity.
  • New York is a very live musical city. In the lobby of the hotel, on the short cruise boat that took us around, across Broadway avenue leading up to Time Square. Live music was everywhere.
  • It’s very difficult to truly appreciate massive structures from up close. So in NY your viewing angles are limited.
  • The body traffic was something I had not experienced since I was last in Asia.
  • Walking north/south (so crossing streets) became a little annoying. It felt like I was always walking and hitting a red light. Every. Single. Time. Maybe that’s just being in New York for the first time and it feels like that for everyone?
  • Its hard to explain, but this density and complete use of every portion of the available grid made it feel less real, made it feel like a theme park.
  • There was a little bit of self-importance on display by the locals. ‘Greatest City on Earth’. ‘Mega exclusive club’. ‘Insanely expensive apartment’. This is the kind of language that I have experienced in nearly every city I have been to (apart from the greatest city on earth moniker, that is reserved for American arrogance).

  1. A familiar name because of all the Daredevil comics I’ve read of the years. ↩︎

Ok I really hadn’t appreciated how tightly packed Manhattan actually is. It’s tiny and super densely packed…truly unlike any other place I have been to (and I’ve been to a lot of dense places).

⚽️ What a seriously painful miss. I mean that really should have gone in. Great cross from Fernandez.

⚽️ They just don’t play like a team. Just a bunch of individual moments and seriously bad passes.

Honestly I’m finding it hard to concentrate on my own passions and hobbies because they feel so trivial in comparison to what is going on in Gaza and Lebanon. A building next door to my cousins supermarket got bombed this week. My cousin was in the building at the time. Aside from the destruction one of the girls at the cashiers died. The utter randomness of hurt and destruction continues unchecked.

Aloo Gobi is the only way I will get excited about cauliflower.

The last time I bought Field Notes was 7 years ago. While I’ve been stocked up nicely, I have been hankering for a restock for a while. Should be good for another 2 years. See you in 2026.

The Future International Isolation of Israel

Seeing this monologue by Mehdi Hasan reminds me of what a shit choice people with a conscience have in the upcoming election in the US.

On the one hand you have a Democratic nominee that sees absolutely nothing wrong with what is going on in Gaza and Lebanon - and will continue to enable and support the genocide perpetrated by the 21st Century Nazis (that’s some fucking irony there). The colonialism and racism at play here is just astonishing. On the other hand you have a Republican, who also doesn’t see anything wrong with what is going on, but will likely ratchet up and expand the killing.

Both are distinctly odorous. Given the choice, which I obviously don’t have, I don’t know how I would use my vote. My view is that we collectively cannot stop the killing but what is happening right now, is inhumane and must never be forgotten, by myself or anyone with a moral fibre in their bodies.

The sooner work can be begin to isolate Israel from the world, in the same way the world did to South Africa during the apartheid, the better.

Screenshare 2024 - Zen Edition

A smartphone lock screen displays “Saturday, October 19” at 9:57. Top left shows “TELUS” and top right has icons for Wi-Fi, battery at 93%, and signal strength. The bottom features flashlight and camera shortcuts

I’m testing out a new ‘Zen’ mode for my mobile life. I’m trying to limit how long I spend on the phone and focus on things that matter a little more to me.

Reading has generally re-entered my life in a big way this year, which I am incredibly happy about. What I would like to do is create a little more space for writing and drawing again. I’ve taken nearly a year off.

A smartphone screen displaying the time (9:57) and battery percentage (93%). Below, there’s a list of apps: Drafts, iA Writer, Soulver, Notes, Camera, Safari, Photos, and GlobalTrader.

Easily one of my favourite ways to start the day. Fresh cup of coffee, a great book (currently reading John Bogle’s Enough) and a quiet house. Everyone else is asleep.

The video explaining what has been going on in Gaza is truly harrowing. I mean what the fuck is going on in the world where this type of behaviour is not cut outright. Just not right.

Mo Hamz is one angry Palestinian, but I love the fact that he’s not going quietly into the night. As long as there are people with this type of energy, Israel will ultimately not prevail. They will however continue to kill Palestinians, until a more active generation stops them.

🚚 Landlords informed us that they want the house back. After two years we’re going to be moving again. Thankfully it’s only within a city, rather than to another country. Silver linings.

I’ve spent the entire morning working through my Forever Note stack, and it really is a revelation. A few simple rules of organisation and all of a sudden my dumping ground has become incredibly organised. And fricton of maintenance is really low. Highly recommend you take a good look.

Forever Notes. Super interesting idea. I have tried multiple methods for my notes and none have stuck recently.

Amazing Comics Company. Joe Quesada has always been my favourite artist of all time. The last time he did this was for Event Comics and the main character Ash, which was great. Looking forward to seeing what he comes up with.

Holey money. First time I use the AI feature for text description (using the Mimi Beta), and it really is like magic. Great work @samgrover !

Two children walk down a sidewalk holding hands. Each carries a backpack and a blue lunchbox. The scene is lined with parked cars on one side and greenery on the other.

While the situation in the Middle East is absolutely deplorable and shows a chasm of epic proportions between the ruling elite and what they think is acceptable based on race.

It’s not ok if you’re Ukrainian. It’s totally fine and necessary if you’re Palestinian or Lebanese.

I am however heartened by the voices of people I genuinely look up to and listen to or watch. Journalists, writers, activists, helpers, volunteers, parents, mothers and fathers who are not going quietly and accepting this situation.

The latest being Ta Nehisi Coates and Trevor Noah. These people have huge platforms and bring with them a great deal of attention. My hope is that some of that attention is converted into meaningful change.

From a moral standpoint, this genocide will not be completed for as long as there is one Palestinian or Lebanese, then there will always be resistance to cowardice, brutality and inhumanity.

With everything going on in Lebanon, it’s super hard for me to get excited about everyday things that I would typically get excited about. Life’s mini milestones. They all seem super trivial now as I continue (like millions around the world) to watch disaster unfold and not a single powerful country out there to step in and do what’s right.

The world feels like it is completely morally bankrupt and the ruling elite across nations that sit idle or support can seriously go fuck themselves.

41,000
The number of Palestinian lives lost in the last year.

1139
The number of Israelis that lost their lives in the same amount of time.

The multiplier is 40 (as of October 2024). That is how much more expensive an Israeli life is compared to a Palestinian one. The racial supremacy at play here is simply astounding. This is not ok. This is not right. You cannot carry out or enable genocide and have any moral standing.

How anyone in power can be aware of these numbers and continue to support this deplorable government shows their moral corruptness and callousness.

Elected leaders who support this regime are devoid of any humanity. Don’t talk to me about Putin, anyone supporting Netanyahu is cut from the same blood drenched rag.

To Joe Biden,

Shame on you.
The world deserves a better world leader.

You’ve managed to make sure that Iran is the only power, in the entire world, that is willing to stand up to the morally deplorable and callous Israeli government. Even if it’s fruitless or for show at least someone is bothered to take action rather than ignore the genocide being committed.

Meanwhile you, the United State’s elected leader (which even with your stupid electoral college garbage still means the majority of Americans who bothered to vote), stand behind and support a regime that has only death on their minds. I cannot believe the majority of Americans believe that this genocide is just.

The Palestinians and Lebanese and Syrians and Yemenis and Iranians did not cause the holocaust, but critically they are paying for it in the same manner.

Back in the 1940s America stepped in to stop humanity’s madness. America has now switched roles and is the proxy enabler of the madness.

Politically you are retiring in 2 months, why wouldn’t you take a stand and do what’s right? You have nothing to loose. You’re nearly dead anyway. Before you have no power left, save some lives, even if they are filthy Arab and Persian ones.

— K

⚽️ Shit game but the boys are really trying even with 10 players!

I feel that politics have normalised terrible behaviour, which has then emboldened people in power that may have acted with more restraint to simply go unleashed, the consequences be damned. Regardless, world is only going to get much worse.

As the daily news from Lebanon trickles in, one devastating blow at a time, it’s a reminder that social orders don’t matter unless you have the muscle to enforce those orders.

Somehow we find ourselves back at the mercy of the laws of the jungle. Might beats right. Iran and the US are playing their proxy war while innocent people and futures are the collateral damage.

The Lebanese are descendants of the Phoenicians and a Phoenix never dies.

The Godfather is such a great movie. I can’t remember how many times I’ve seen it but every time I rewatch it I’m just totally sucked into the world.

🏃‍♂️ That. Was. Tough. First HIIT session in years and every muscle aches. The first 15min after are not great but feel more energised now. Missed this and actually think that my new app of choice (Freeletics) might keep me going. Let’s see.

⚽️ I dunno. I really hate this team. They just annoy me.

⚽️ Predicting a 2:1 to City. It’s going to be tight but I really hope it’s a good game.

⚽️ Generally pretty entertaining game so far. Just missing a few goals to really get things going. They’ve had so many chances I can totally see CP smash and grabbing this!

Every man has two deaths, when he is buried in the ground and the last time someone says his name. In some ways, men can be immortal.
— Ernest Hemingway.

🍃🍂 Autumn is definitely in the air and I’m all for it. Crispness in the air. The light is a little different, a little lower, less harsh.

Finished reading: The Algebra of Wealth by Scott Galloway 📚. This one was an extension of Scott’s previous book I just finished. However it does go deeper into many economic concepts (so at least you can’t claim ignorance). ETFs similar to mutual index funds are a major part of the answer, but equally there is a lot there about buying property and hopefully using wealth at different times of your life to help you lead a better life. It’s a great book and one I wish I had when I was starting my working life.

More over having someone guide me around these economic constructs (that I honestly have previously had little to no interest in) is another important element in this. I sadly did not have that growing up and until recently didn’t have the inclination to find out more. This is a good book to get you on this journey.

Today morning was a bike day. Went from sunny to gloomy and back to sunny again. Kids have Karate, so that’s the afternoon sorted. Might get a little reading done.

⚽️ Sweet we finally see Ugarte making an appearance. We’ve been waiting for this all summer.

⚽️ Not loving this ref at the moment. Just seems a little random.

⚽️ Rashford finally scoring a goal after like 100 games. Finally.

⚽️ Zirkzee is having a really good game connecting everyone. Really getting involved.