Stephen Gower

Writer/podcaster; fan of books, podcasts, hockey, baseball, curling & movies. Regional Traffic Manager for Rogers Radio in Ottawa. Views & opinions are my own.

I was also diagnosed with epilepsy at the age of 35. Sometimes I talk about that.

You can find links to my work at https://srgower.com

Public Key

npub1u5frqzjndqsxu469jvljy8flaakkw74lzcfcu7rjvusryhxk0s4qslyp8x

NIP-05 Address

srgower_at_ottawa.place@mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsw2y3spffksgrw2azex0ezr5l77mt802l3vyuw0pexwgpjtnt8c2spz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujumt0wd68ytnsw43qz9nhwden5te0wfjkccte9ehx7um5wghxyctwvsdecxhc

Publishing to

relay.mostr.pub

relay.nostr.band

Author Public Key

npub1u5frqzjndqsxu469jvljy8flaakkw74lzcfcu7rjvusryhxk0s4qslyp8x

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Last Notes

2024-11-03 22:50:57

Did some #baking tonight! Blueberry muffins. The blueberries are frozen from my father-in-law's freezer full of fresh picked berries.
https://assets.ottawa.place/media_attachments/files/113/421/468/012/707/782/original/a696eb121da9629b.jpg

2024-10-25 20:22:30

Why recommendations for a decent, free feed reader? I use feedly, but I find that it sometimes takes a long time for new posts to show up on feeds. Like I'll see someone share a post here and I don't see it in feedly for a while after. But other times it's super fast.
Also it's trying to push AI features now which I don't really want in my face.

2024-10-24 21:52:25

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@npub167c…824y ha, I messed something up with an extra quotation mark in my photo blog project. So easy to miss those little things!

2024-10-24 15:10:44

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@npub12ze…hunm The only "good" thing about the new Notepad in Windows 11 is that it has some spell check features if you want it. But I have that turned off. Writing without squiggly lines is quite nice; I wish I could turn off all that stuff in OneDrive's browser text editor, it's quite distracting.
Also I learned all my HTML in a DOS-based editor and notepad is usually where I do that. But Visual Studio Code is so great for building my 11ty site stuff haha

2024-10-24 14:40:59

I may write a blog post today but it's going to have to be in notepad first...working in an open office with little privacy. Can't have people looking at my screen

2024-10-23 17:56:23

@npub1ywn…dvh3 I started putting together a changelog for a website I'm building; it's a lot of fun just doing that! I feel like that might be a lot of the allure to working on that Bear theme for you haha

2024-10-22 17:24:22

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@npub12ze…hunm Is that a 5 o'clock shadow or is it 7 or 8 in that picture? Also - 💯

2024-10-21 18:15:06

Updated my post from this morning with a missing photo. Adds context that makes the post make a little more sense :) #blog #photography https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/forest-ipod/

2024-10-21 17:07:02

Decided to switch back to gboard (from Samsung keyboard). I prefer the special character layout for gboard, as well as the autocorrect settings. Could still be less aggressive with changes but it's easier to undo them.

2024-10-15 16:04:05

What's your favorite Halloween TV special? Bonus points to The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror run in the early-to-mid 90s, but I think my favourite would be the Garfield special. I'll need to track it down to watch this year. #Halloween

2024-10-09 16:54:26

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@npub12ze…hunm honestly I like Edge, but since I can't sync my profile at work I don't use it. Firefox has been a cat improvement though!

2024-10-08 17:58:44

"The Imaginary Things Holding You Back"
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/imaginary-things/
#creativity, #writing

2024-10-04 16:32:36

Currently wearing a $65 Nike t-shirt which I got for free. Currently wondering how a t-shirt can possibly cost $65.

2024-09-20 16:15:19

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@npub12ze…hunm I don't think I've seen any kind of cautionary tale about this, no-sirree.

2024-09-20 14:25:27

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@npub12ze…hunm that's great!! I've only converted my wife to enjoy a few of the things I like. Not everything yet lol

2024-09-20 14:15:08

I thought about it this week and I don't think I'm jumping to a decision at all here, but I don't think I'm going to do that newsletter thing. Happy to continue following other people's stuff about the #OttawaSenators and I don't want to give myself a job I don't get paid for.

2024-09-20 13:27:04

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@npub12ze…hunm Love those, especially the first one.

2024-09-18 16:52:14

New #blog post: On Writing For An Audience
I thought about a weird paradigm that exists in my own writing in my journal last night that relates to writing for an audience.
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/writing-audience/
#EchoFeed

2024-09-18 16:52:14

2024-09-18 16:40:43

Microsoft's spell-check suggests "LiveJournal" as a suitable replacement for "journalling" (two l's) 🤔

2024-09-17 18:46:23

Dang...Feedly appears to be down. And I don't have an up-to-date OPML file to hop to another reader.

2024-09-12 22:25:18

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@npub12ze…hunm haven't listened to Talib in a long time. I should take a peak through my college radio station music

2024-09-12 17:43:05

Walking during a road stop on our way north, got an idea for a newsletter/potential podcast. Going to keep it to myself for now. But it's something that doesn't fit on the blog and easier done as a newsletter.

2024-09-10 18:43:58

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@npub1faq…v8re I'm so out of touch with consoles. The PS5 is at the end of its lifespan?? My friend just bought one ffs. Whatever, I'm happy with my console set up (PS3, Wii, GameCube, N64, SNES, NES, plus a Nintendo DS).

2024-09-10 18:22:42

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@npub12ze…hunm I'd say this title makes no sense, but then I played the first Duke Nukem on a DOS machine so actually this makes perfect sense.

2024-09-10 14:42:05

At first I was a little miffed that notifications for Moshidon (Android) stopped working but maybe that's for the best. I'm trying to avoid too many social media notifications anyway.

2024-09-05 21:55:02

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@npub12ze…hunm was going to say "they're having bandcamp Friday when it's not Friday?" And then realization dawned

2024-09-05 16:48:43

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@npub1typ…c8hh That's pretty neat! Austin Kleon pops up on my radar every now and then for cool things.

2024-09-03 14:37:05

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@npub12ze…hunm I will share the listing, for sure - just want to put something together. I'll send you a pic that includes the track listing (part of it is obscured by the j-card though) via Mastodon DM.

2024-09-03 14:27:08

New #blog post: How About That August?
Reviewing things that happened for me in the month of August.
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/how-about-august/
#EchoFeed

2024-09-02 16:00:26

New #WeekNotes for August 26 - September 1, 2024. A lot of links but not many entries this time.
https://srgower.com/weeknotes-21/

2024-08-30 16:00:47

How's everyone's Friday going? Mine has been busy for sure. Taking a few minutes out of the house to pick up some lunch.

2024-08-29 16:43:58

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@npub12ze…hunm Don't get me started on copyright...I've been up in arms about copyright stuff since first year university (2003)

2024-08-29 14:45:34

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@npub12ze…hunm I mean, I'm not complaining, I'm happy to save money 😁

2024-08-29 14:22:26

Question about Amazon. Does Amazon reduce prices on items on an individual basis to try to entice people to buy? For example, I have an item on my wishlist that I've been sitting on and when I looked at it today, it went down by something like $6. If I sent the link to it to somebody else, would they see the same price, or the original? #musings

2024-08-28 13:10:24

I recently found out about the solo RPG game "Star Trek Adventures: Captain's Log". I read a review of it, which was somewhat negative (but based on experience with other RPGs). Anyway, it sounded interesting and fun. But now I can't find it available anywhere. Seems like it's out of print :(

2024-08-28 12:56:54

Another driving annoyance from this morning: drivers who drive halfway in the bike lane to avoid bumps on the road. Sorry but that's part of the driving experience. You wouldn't drive halfway on the other side of the road into oncoming traffic to avoid bumps - and you would 100% get pissed off at a cyclist taking the lane (which is LEGAL) if they had to avoid obstacles in the bike lane. I hate this behaviour. End of rant.

2024-08-27 17:27:12

New #blog post: Writing Excuses (podcast)
I'm a weekly listener of the Writing Excuses podcast, which focuses on writing fiction. Why do I listen to it?
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/writing-excuses-podcast/
#EchoFeed

2024-08-20 16:22:11

New Walkman: obtained. It's a Song Walkman WM-FX103. Unfortunately I don't have a tape with me to test it with.
https://assets.ottawa.place/media_attachments/files/112/995/262/074/958/230/original/346e820940e5c380.jpg

2024-08-16 17:57:18

New #blog post: Streaming Vs.
There's a growing desire for returning to physical media and getting away from streaming and the notion of not owning anything anymore.
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/streaming-vs/
#EchoFeed
https://assets.ottawa.place/media_attachments/files/112/972/990/907/746/686/original/40bde35205881560.jpg

2024-08-16 15:04:17

Working on a #playlist (it's currently in Spotify only because it's the easiest place to start it - I plan on recording to cassette, and I have some of these on physical sources) called "Dreamy Sounds". Any recommendations? This is all I got so far, maybe this will help give you an idea of the sounds I'm going for.
https://assets.ottawa.place/media_attachments/files/112/972/310/502/649/545/original/c8d62958126397a0.png

2024-08-16 02:32:43

"LINE UP STARTS HERE" #photography #signs
https://assets.ottawa.place/media_attachments/files/112/969/353/047/460/901/original/f894e1510f7258df.jpg

2024-08-15 21:26:04

Well, definitely made a mess of my shirt. Guess I'm changing before I go out. Gotta make sandwiches not so messy.

2024-08-15 15:10:17

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@npub1y9z…3ykm HA you're quicker than me. The feed is: https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/feed/

2024-08-15 15:06:47

Interesting...I just noticed that the last post #echofeed saw from my blog was re: Deleting my Now page. There should have been a post there about Google Gemini, and then there's one today as well. Wondering if there's something up with EchoFeed?

2024-08-13 21:47:42

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@npub12ze…hunm yep. All sorts of uncertainties when my company bought another huge company. So many changes.

2024-08-13 16:55:02

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@npub12ze…hunm nice. I think a good starting point for my list should be "movies I wanted to watch but couldn't find on streaming" but I usually forget about it :/

2024-08-13 15:43:20

I need to make a list of movies I'm looking for in thrift shops. I can't remember all of them right now. Children of Men was one of them, and I found it. Hot Fuzz is another, but I'm holding out for at least BluRay. #movies

2024-08-12 18:55:27

I enjoyed this one from @npub16pr…3x80. It Me. https://mikegrindle.com/posts/novelty

2024-08-10 19:33:51

Just found some free Lightroom presets - should have fun with these ones. #photography https://www.lukeptaylor.com/blog/fujifilm-pro-400h-film-free-lightroom-preset

2024-08-10 14:48:29

New #blog post: Boats and Landscapes
Various photos from the 2024 August Long Weekend in Northern Ontario
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/boats-and-landscapes/
#EchoFeed

2024-08-10 00:47:41

Updated my blog roll! Big thanks to @npub1d2u…xc8n for writing my a #Python script to convert my OPML file to markdown. https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/blogroll/

2024-08-08 14:24:19

New #blog post: Public Reminder
This is a public reminder to myself; please hold me accountable!
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/public-reminder/
#EchoFeed

2024-08-08 12:34:31

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@npub12ze…hunm I haven't but it also doesn't surprise me that such a thing exists 😄

2024-08-08 11:11:24

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@npub12ze…hunm Hmm, this seems somewhat familiar but I don't fully remember.

2024-08-06 12:57:45

Good morning! For me not so good, dealing with lower back pain two mornings in a row.

2024-08-06 12:57:45

Good morning! For me not so good, dealing with lower back pain two mornings in a row.

2024-08-02 01:37:18

Watching the 90s X-Men cartoon, Phoenix Saga. Love how they just casually hijack a space shuttle and know exactly how to fly it.

2024-08-01 20:05:31

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@npub12ze…hunm I think there was a short story and a movie about this 🤔

2024-07-31 14:01:19

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@npub12ze…hunm It's NEVER our own BS Jake 😅

2024-07-31 13:56:23

I'm feeling very frustrated and angry with co-workers, and have a distinct lack of patience for BS. I am thinking that it's both me that's the problem, but also some of it is justified from actual BS from some coworkers.

2024-07-30 17:33:50

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@npub12ze…hunm very odd. I can't find a trace of my reply either. Makes me now wonder if there's an issue with my instance. It won't help if this one disappears too!

2024-07-30 16:26:43

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@npub12ze…hunm Thanks! Incidentally I'm not sure why I don't have your blog in my RSS feed (well, now I do).

2024-07-30 15:43:22

New #blog post: Blogs as Creative Nonfiction
Creative Nonfiction has been on my mind again recently and in doing research it made me wonder: should we consider blogs to be a form of creative nonfiction?
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/blogs-as-creative-nonfiction/
#EchoFeed

2024-07-29 02:03:47

I wrote something a bit creative tonight (by hand). I think I'm going to type it up and post it. I usually am in the camp of "don't post things on the weekend, nobody will see it" but that's the "content creator" mindset talking. Screw that. #Writing

2024-07-24 13:49:07

Maybe it's not for me, but currently listening to Arcade Fire's Neon Bible and I only like one or two tracks from it. The rest seems...I don't know, self-indulgent? Probably not the right term, but I also think it kind of feels "fake". Like all these grand-sounding tracks to make them sound "artsy". The tracks I like are less "artsy" but still have a unique sound to them that sets them apart from your standard radio single. #Music

2024-07-22 12:40:50

Hey there. I'm not surprised by this, but I'm seeing a lot of US Politics posts that don't all have hashtags. Any recs for filters I can set up so I don't see so many? #Mastodon #Filters

2024-07-20 21:38:29

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Yeah I remember that being a complete surprise to me when it happened.

2024-07-20 19:34:52

On CHEZ 106 tonight at 5pm, 60 minutes of Chris Cornell for what would have been his 60th birthday. Will be recording it to tape to listen later. #Radio #Music

2024-07-17 20:10:29

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@npub12ze…hunm Turns out I did get that far, I'm still working away :P But "Leader", I like that it sort of has that 50s pop sound to it as the backbone.

2024-07-17 19:55:44

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@npub12ze…hunm Will do! I might not get there today before I leave for home but will tomorrow for sure.

2024-07-17 19:53:20

Going to try some nighttime photography with my smartphone tonight. The aim is to try and emulate a "film" look with an added challenge: night time, sports, under bright fluorescent lights. I set up the settings ahead of time and took a shot (indoors) - I don't know how well this will turn out. #photography
https://flic.kr/p/2q4Lf9P

2024-07-17 19:47:24

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@npub12ze…hunm Listening now. I like it! I'm only on track 2 though. But this is up my alley (though tbh many different kinds of music are up my alley).

2024-07-17 19:09:52

My work buddy showed up in style today. #photography #animals #nature
https://assets.ottawa.place/media_attachments/files/112/803/405/515/960/317/original/d2f23c9e356b0100.jpg

2024-07-12 15:51:24

New #blog post: Film Photography
Some further experiments with "film quality" photos resulted in a shocking revelation of my smartphone's photos in Auto mode.
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/film-photography/
#EchoFeed

2024-07-12 13:07:17

I'm probably going to expand on this in a blog post when I do some more experimenting, but here are a couple of photos I took this morning. The brighter one is with Sony's "Intelligent Auto" mode; the second one is "Program Auto" with on-camera adjustments to look closer to "Portra 400" film. #Photography
https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBzobT

2024-07-07 13:29:01

The Mastodon community is so good at solving niche problems. I have some instant replay videos I saved for NHL Legacy (PS3). Unfortunately, the game doesn't save them as any recognizable video file, so copying them to USB turns the files into proprietary PS3 save game data and basically useless. Does anyone have any tips on how I might attempt to convert this to an MP4? #Gaming #PS3 #RetroGaming #Technology

2024-07-05 18:34:10

Currently listening to: The Beatles - Revolver (1966) One of the CDs I recently re-ripped to lossless audio. Ofc I'm listening to it via my iPod over bluetooth 🙃

2024-07-05 13:53:04

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@npub1fm4…f7sx Yeah, /links is not bad. I don't mind "blogroll" as a name because for the most part these are blogs I follow anyway. The exception would be the CTV/CBC feeds.

2024-07-05 13:47:11

New #blog post: Re-thinking my Blogroll Position
After yesterday's reply post about blogrolls, I got to talking on Mastodon and now am on the fence about it.
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/blogroll-position/
#EchoFeed

2024-07-05 13:47:11

2024-07-04 13:02:33

New #blog post: Re: To Blogroll, or to not?
Responding to JCProbably's post about whether or not to keep a blogroll. An unofficial "July Reply".
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/re-blogroll-or-not/
#EchoFeed

2024-07-03 18:34:47

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@npub12ze…hunm Packaged Deli - Very Failed! <- don't eat it!

2024-07-02 00:59:39

It's that time of the year again when people are setting off firecrackers and stressing out my dog :(

2024-06-27 15:32:55

New #blog post: Tech Alternatives and Privacy
Thinking about the reality of hopping between software and operating system platforms and how places of privilege come into play.
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/tech-and-privacy/
#EchoFeed

2024-06-27 15:21:57

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@npub12ze…hunm Hmm, I'll have to look into that! To be honest though, I don't think I use the app often enough to even really bother. I don't look at a lot of people's posts :/

2024-06-27 13:09:17

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@npub12ze…hunm I'm not sure I ever used Instagram before FB bought it; I don't think it was on Android before then. I could be wrong though! But I definitely miss a chronological timeline.

2024-06-27 12:59:34

This #Junited2024 entry seems similar to what I added yesterday. "Meta holding me hostage" – The Wallflower Digest
https://thewallflowerdigest.co.uk/life/blog/meta-holding-me-hostage/
I understand the feeling. I don't feel so "tied up" with Meta, probably because I don't use it very often.

2024-06-26 14:12:02

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@npub12ze…hunm Thank you! :) As weird as it is to say, it's refreshing to hear other creative type people have the same self-doubt. It's more along the lines of - OK, I'm not alone, this is normal.

2024-06-26 13:16:30

New #blog post: Creative Process
A stream-of-consciousness post about creativity and what I'm working through right now.
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/creative-process/
#EchoFeed

2024-06-21 17:52:22

New #blog post: Updating my blogroll
This is how I'm going to keep my blogroll updated going forward until I find a more automated method
https://lwgrs.bearblog.dev/updating-blogroll/
#EchoFeed

2024-06-21 15:37:02

Has anyone tried automating their blogroll? I want to update mine but when I created it the first time, it was all manual. Anyone know if you can export a readable list from Feedly, for example? #RSS #Blogroll

2024-06-20 13:51:53

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@npub12ze…hunm I requested my archive from my old instance but it hasn't arrived yet. Might give it another prod but until you mentioned this I forgot about it lol.

2024-06-19 18:24:14

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@npub12ze…hunm ouch. We were standing out in the open sun for to bury my wife's uncle. Luckily we were able to retreat to some AC for a bit. Now back at her parents though, no AC here. The basement is cool, at least.

2024-06-19 18:16:39

It's too hot to function.

2024-06-14 17:51:45

Interesting. My account migration didn't follow *everyone* on my list. Still missing some.