After 20 years on LiveJournal, in 2022 I transitioned to another blogging platform.

Although you can still find my historical blog entries here, everything from 2022 forward will only appear on the new site.

To continue reading my journal, and see new posts as they are written, point your browser at the following URL:
https://ornoth.dreamwidth. ( Read more... )

Having just picked up the new Google Pixel 6 Pro, specifically for some of its photo capabilities, it's time for me to share my first look at the Pixel's camera features and performance.

My previous two cellphones were the HTC One 11 and the HTC One M8, both of which received high marks ( Read more... )

Today I won. I sold a stock for the same amount I originally paid for it, after having watched it lose 80% of its value. It took 4½ years, but I finally got out, and can happily proclaim that I didn’t lose a cent! What an emotional high!

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I haven’t posted anything about the Covid-19 pandemic other than one brief update at its onset. Now that our lockdown has spanned a full year, I should probably document how it’s been.

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After eight years of reliable service, it was time to replace my primary laptop, a 2012 MacBook Pro. It had been my first non-work Mac, and I gave it a lengthy review after buying it.

Back then, I luckily bought the last model before Apple made numerous user-hostile changes to their laptops, such as their unreliable butterfly keyboard, sub-par ( Read more... )

Today being Begemot’s fourth Gotcha Day, and it having been nearly three years since my last Bigi photo compilation, don’t you think it’s time for another?

I know: less talk, more photos! Here they are. Click for “Bigness”…

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Twenty-two years ago, I was just minding my own business.

At the consulting company where I worked, I had just finished developing BankBoston’s HomeLink & OfficeLink banking applications, and was about to roll onto a new project for a local startup.

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Well, that was curious...

Inna and I have a saying: “Nothing good can happen if you don’t leave the house.” Usually it’s a simple reminder to help motivate us to fight the inertia of rest and get outside. However, once in a while it also comes up when we go out and something unexpected, good, or interesting happens.

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“No matter how much I meditate, I’ll never become Enlightened, whatever that is.” So said an experienced practitioner during one of my meditation groups’ Q&A periods.

I had a strong and immediate reaction, because her understanding of Enlightenment is based on a frustratingly common misconception, and her despairing attitude is completely ( Read more... )

Meditation teachers will often refer to scientific studies on the effects of meditation, such as the Dalai Lama’s well-publicized cooperation with western neuroscientists, which goes back more than 30 years.

As a garden-variety practitioner, I never imagined my brainwaves would be of interest to the scientific community.

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