Taipei notes
Mar. 19th, 2026 08:08 pmGuess I haven't had a Major Outing since the museum visit of the 11th. Keep dithering and getting out late, or having an online social event in the morning, or (yesterday) actually waking up after noon because I guess my body needed it. I've been out, but it's been small things like reading in the nice park, or going out for sushi... actually, I guess the 16th did add up to an Outing; I went to the Sushiro east of me, then walked north through a wet market, then a not-yet-open night market, to the river. ( Read more... )
Transformative Works and Cultures Releases Issue No. 47
Mar. 19th, 2026 11:30 amTransformative Works and Cultures has released Issue No. 47, a special issue on Gaming Fandom guest edited by Hayley McCullough and Ashley P. Jones.
Essays in this issue explore fan creativity in gaming fandoms and discuss a number of fan-made works and productions, including fanfiction, fanart, cosplay, mods, and fan-made games.
Each issue includes articles representing theory, fannish meta, and book reviews, such as:
- Video game modifications as an extension of Jameson’s postmodernism: The case of Fallout: London
- The power of queer: Reimagining sexuality of female characters in “Genshin Impact”
- Slash fiction to mainstream: An analysis of strategies used for queering characters in League of Legends
We accept submissions for our general issues on a rolling basis. We particularly invite fans to submit Symposium articles.
TWC’s issues in progress include:
We accept submissions for our general issues on a rolling basis. The general issue is always released on September 15.
Interesting Links for 19-03-2026
Mar. 19th, 2026 12:00 pm- 1. Tech hobbyist makes shoulder-mounted guided missile prototype with $96 in parts and a 3D printer
- (tags:weaponry technology 3dprinting )
- 2. Kagi Translate's AI answers the question "What would horny Margaret Thatcher say?"
- (tags:language translation margaretthatcher wtf )
- 3. Ever wanted to be able to translate from English to LinkedIn? Now you can!
- (tags:language funny translation viaswampers )
- 4. Grok, explain Butlerian Jihad [ai]
- (tags:funny scifi )
- 5. Austin build new housing - rents came down
- (tags:economics housing usa )
Barbra Streisand doesn't have brain cancer, despite rumor claiming otherwise
Mar. 19th, 2026 11:00 am"Power tends to isolate those who hold too much of it."
Mar. 19th, 2026 02:29 am++ Felicia Day will crowdfund for a movie spin-off of her webseries, The Guild.
Again, a pleasantly unexpected surprise announcement that totally caught me off guard! The Guild remains one of my favorite first ever webseries that I watched, and I even have the DVDs that were later made available to purchase because I adored it so much. I know that there was a musical stage reading that was done of The Guild with Felicia recently, so naturally this would be the next step. I hope the crowdfunding will be successful so she can make this happen.
++ Girl From Nowhere is a Thai mystery thriller drama that I've recently gotten into. It's an anthology centering around a mysterious girl named Nanno who transfers to different private schools each episode to expose the lies and misdeeds of the students and faculty. It's utterly fascinating. Nanno, who is quickly revealed to the audience as a mysterious immortal entity, is delightfully unhinged, even more so in the second season, and I like that the acts of revenge are done as a way for characters to experience karma of their wrongdoings. Although the drama premiered in 2018 and has two seasons, Girl From Nowhere: The Reset just recently premiered as a re-imagined reboot of the franchise, theorized to be set in an alternate universe with another girl as Nanno, this time played by Becky Armstrong (known mostly from being paired with Freen Sarocha in various Thai GL dramas). I have only just discovered this drama franchise, so I like both actresses who play Nanno. In general, this drama is dark and twisted, but in a fascinating way that I do so enjoy.
Posts claim ICE agent asked woman he detained on a date. Here's what we know
Mar. 19th, 2026 10:00 amlittle help please?
Mar. 19th, 2026 10:42 amRunning from a wrongful accusation of murder? Wounded by your archenemy and looking for a place to hide? Need a pilot to go after those drug lords escaping across the border? Don't have time to go through the official channels? Find a hostage! And make them help you.
In this meme, one person desperately needs help. And, in order to get it, they grab another character. Off the street, out of their car, from a restaurant.
PROMPTS: (optional)
1 - MEDICAL ATTENTION.. You're bleeding, in pain and desperate, and you need medical attention. Right now. What will you do? Break into a private practice after hours? Find a darkened house or apartment with a convenient bathroom?
2 - SHELTER. The cops are after you. The temperature is dropping below -20. You're out in the middle of nowhere and you're starving. You don't have any options left - except for this.
3 - TRANSPORTATION. You need to get out of town. Fast. Can't buy a car, can't rent a car, can't take a bus - how do you leave?
4 - PROFESSIONAL SKILLS. You need a doctor. A lawyer. A pilot. A spy. And you know just the one. And you're going to get their help whether they want it or not.
5 - A HOSTAGE. You need a body to threaten. Maybe it's the President's daughter; maybe it's just someone off the street. Either way, it's leverage you're after. Maybe you'll turn them loose once you get to the border.
6 - FINISH THE CRIME. Get the manager who can open the bank vault. Or whatever else you need to commit your act of murder, sabotage and/or thievery.
7 - IT WAS AN ACCIDENT???? Fuck.
8 - CHOOSE YOUR OWN.
Thankful Thursday
Mar. 19th, 2026 11:00 amToday I am thankful for...
- Colleen, whose birthday was Monday. We had about fifty years together, and most of that time was good. Even the bad times taught me a lot.
- My kids, and a chance to sit down with them and eat ramen for lunch. NO thanks to the sushi place that was closed for the afternoon because of a little snow. In Seattle?! Come on!
- J, M, et. al., who gave me a place to stay last week. Also, being able to sleep in unfamiliar places. Also, CPAP.
- Whales.
- Translation software built into browsers and phones. And flashlights built into phones. One less thing to carry.
(no subject)
Mar. 19th, 2026 09:10 am90 discussion questions. 1. If you could travel anywhere, where would you go and why?
There are so many places! If I'm imagining myself being as physically limited as I am now - whereby I find walking difficult for more than about half an hour at best - then a cruise might be best.
I would like to cruise up the Danube and see the painted churches of Romania. But then again I would also like to cruise down the Nile and see Luxor. I could take a few lessons with Egyptian Raqs Sharqi teachers and get a new outfit while I was there.
If, on this imaginary trip, I'm also imagining myself as physically fit again, I'd like to go to Mexico and see what remains of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital. Or perhaps to Peru to visit Machu Picchu
Alternatively, my son would like to go to Japan, so perhaps I would use my imaginary trip to take him there.
ଧନ୍ୟବାଦ (19 March 2026)
Mar. 19th, 2026 06:02 pm· Photos are optional but encouraged.
· Check-ins remain open until the following week's post is shared.
· Do feel free to comment on others' check-ins but don't harsh anyone else's squee.
home and energy thoughts
Mar. 19th, 2026 07:49 pm( thinky thoughts )
The (ir)reality of the MingKwai typewriter, part 2
Mar. 19th, 2026 06:03 amIn part 1 of this post, "The (ir)reality of the MingKwai typewriter" (10/17/25) and many preceding, related posts (see "Selected readings" and the links to which they lead), we saw what a boondoggle and fiasco the Chinese typewriter (especially Lin Yutang's MingKwai) was. Yet people are still glorifying and extolling the clumsy, clunky, cumbersome Chinese typewriter as though it were leading the IT revolution (when the reality is quite the contrary). So much hype and sensationalism about the retrograde Chinese typewriter!
The following bilibili video, although in Chinese, will show how complicated and expensive to replicate such a device is:
Remarks by Xinyi Ye:
I just saw this behind-the-scenes video of HTX Studio's Chinese typewriter production. In another interview video, HTX said their studio was experiencing a financial deficit last year [when they made the video attempting to replicate Lin Yutang's MingKwai]. Probably not as bad as what happened to Lin Yutang [who went bankrupt building the MingKwai], but again shows how much investment goes into doing something like this!
It behooves all those who preach the gospel of the MingKwai and related Chinese typewriters to read and take to heart the scholarly critiques in the bibliography below.
Selected readings
- "The (ir)reality of the MingKwai typewriter" (10/17/25)
- "Chinese Typewriter" (6/30/09)
- "Chinese typewriter, part 2" (4/17/11) — with memorable photos
- "The many myths about the Chinese typewriter" (9/7/25)
- "Chinese typewriter redux" (11/5/16) — this and the preceding two posts all talk about my favorite M. C. Hammer performance, "Chinese Typewriter Dance" ("U Can't Touch This")
- "Another chapter in the history of the Chinese typewriter" (8/14/21)
- "The many myths about the Chinese typewriter" (9/7/25)
- "The impact of phonetic inputting on Chinese languages" (12/9/19)
- "The Chinese Computer: Competition or Cooperation?" (3/1/26) — David Moser's lengthy critique of hypography, QWERTY, and other mistaken notions related to Chinese typing.
- "Triple review of books on characters and computers" (8/23/24) — by J. Marshall Unger
Community Thursdays
Mar. 19th, 2026 12:13 am* Posted "Tutorials" on
* Posted "Gaming" on
* Posted "Ostara" on
Tutorials
Mar. 19th, 2026 12:15 amBenn Jordan plays the stock market [econ, tech, dataviz, music]
Mar. 19th, 2026 12:46 am(All about the sound, but visuals also nice.)
2026 Mar 18: Benn Jordan [BennJordan YT]: "I'm here to disrupt the finance synthesizer scene."