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August 28
Humans have existed for tens of thousands of years, and have been able to count, at least to some extent, for (probably) most of that time. So with all that experience, particularly once writing was invented in various places and experiences could be widely shared, it’s natural to expect that people would gradually converge on… Continue reading
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Badgering
Hare was less than pleased to see Badger on his doorstep. Badger lived alone on the outskirts of the forest and only visited occasionally. Nearly everyone in the forest agreed that Badger really wasn’t very nice, and they were glad he preferred his own company. “Hello, Badger,” sighed Hare. “What brings you to the forest?”… Continue reading
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Pawn
Word of the day: pawn As his hogs were off in the woods munching on pawn, Farmer Smith decided he was tired of just being used as a pawn by the moneylenders in town, so he made sure his prize pawn with its lovely feathers was safely penned up, then walked into town. He visited… Continue reading
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Time
It’s time. No, it’s not time, it’s “time.” What I mean to say is that “time” is today’s word. “Time” comes from Old English, derived from the Germanic root word “timon” (to stretch or extend). The original meaning of “time” in English was what we today mean by “a long time.” It was such a… Continue reading
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Man Ray
If you peruse the art of Man Ray, who was born August 27, 1890, you’ll see things like sewing machines, flat irons, needles, pins, thread, and other thing having to do with sewing and tailoring. Man Ray was painter, photographer, collagist, and worked in some harder-to-define media as well. He worked in Paris, for the… Continue reading
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Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier
It’s well known nowadays that combustion — fire, for one — is a process requiring oxygen. It doesn’t need any phlogiston to work, although for a century before the 1770s, scientists thought “phlogiston” was some sort of substance, and if it was included in another substance (like wood), that’s what enabled burning. It’s thanks to… Continue reading
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August 27
It’s August 27, the anniversary of the first successful oil well (at least in the US), in Titusville, Pennsylvania. People knew about oil in the 1850s, of course. In some parts of the world you could get the stuff out of freestanding pools (like tar pits), and it had been used for thousands of years… Continue reading
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August 26
Today is the anniversary of the adoption of the nineteenth amendment to the US Constitution. It’s usually described as “granting women the right to vote,” but the language itself is slightly different; it prohibits federal and state governments from denying the right to vote on the basis of sex. The US Constitution is actually a… Continue reading
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Classes
Magpie had called a meeting in the little meadow next to Hare’s house. Everyone came, if only to see what sort of strange idea Magpie had this time. Magpie spent part of her day perched in the village near the woods, watching for shiny things to collect and listening to what the people were saying.… Continue reading
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Eponyms
Words in English that began as someone’s name are “eponyms.” Probably the most-used eponym in English is “sandwich,” which is named after the Earl of Sandwich (1718 to 1792). The Earl’s given name was John Montagu, and supposedly he invented the “slice of meat between two pieces of bread.” It’s probably not true, but he… Continue reading
About Me
I’m Pete Harbeson, a writer (among other things) located near Boston, Massachusetts. In addition to writing my own content, I’ve learned to translate for my loquacious and opinionated pup Chocolate Bossypaws. No surprise, she mostly speaks in doggerel. You can find her contributions tagged with Chocolatiana.
Check out my newsletter, Artisanal Scribbles, where I’m grappling with writing, authentic human authorship, integrity, and the craft of beauty in the AI age. You can also find some of my old software projects at GitHub. Nothing very impressive. I mostly wrote tiny utilities in Python and shell scripts. I’m mostly retired from coding nowadays.
I find myself suddenly de-corporatized (their choice, not mine). To help keep the lights on, buy me a coffee!
Recent Posts
- How much is that doggie in the window?
- Hang on, I’m busy
- Sometimes it’s not an improvement
- Do not call your friend…
- Once more, into the breach
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