Tag: How We Live Now

Denver – Record Breaking Heat in 2026

As of May 13, 2026, Denver is experiencing its hottest start to a year on record, with the January-through-April period surpassing previous records by a wide margin. Driven by La Niña and a warming climate, 2026 has brought record-breaking temperatures, including a 130-year high-temperature record broken in March.  
2026 Record-Breaking Heat Highlights 
  • Hottest Start to Year: January–April 2026 was the warmest on record for Denver and Colorado, with average temperatures > 2 degrees F higher than previous records.
  • March Records: March 2026 was the warmest on record in Denver, with temperatures reaching 85 degrees F on March 19, breaking a 119-year-old daily record.
  • March 24th Heat: On March 24, 2026, the city reached 77 degrees F, breaking a daily record set back in 1896. 

via Google AI

Ryan Gosling – Gen Z Slang – Dialogue

@jeremylynch If Hollywood movies used Gen Z slang 😂 #ProjectHailMary ♬ original sound – JeremyLynch

Google AI:

“No cap” is a popular slang phrase meaning “no lie,” “for real,” or “truthfully,” used to emphasize that a statement is genuine or serious. Originating in Atlanta-based hip-hop and African American Vernacular English (AAVE), it spread to mainstream usage in the late 2010s to denote sincerity.Key Aspects of “No Cap”:Definition: “Cap” means a lie or exaggeration; therefore, “no cap” means the opposite—telling the truth.Usage: It is frequently added to the end of a statement for emphasis, e.g., “That food was great, no cap”.Origins: Rooted in early 2010s Southern hip-hop, often associated with rapper “NoCap” (Kobe Vidal Crawford Jr.), who is an American rapper known for his emotional style.

War Crimes in the News

DETROW: That’s what the press secretary says. The Pentagon has repeatedly said, the United States does not deliberately target civilians, and yet the president is talking about attacking a desalination plant. Would that be a war crime?

RONA: Absolutely, Scott, both under international law and U.S. law. We have a War Crimes Act that prohibits precisely this kind of thing. It would also be a violation of laws against terrorism. It’s prohibited to engage in attacks in armed conflict where the primary purpose is to spread terror among the civilian population. If you’re targeting a desalination plant, then that would be an act of terrorism.

DETROW: Help us understand a little bit more just ’cause I think you cannot overexplain this enough, right? Like, here’s an example. In the early days of the war, it seems like the United States accidentally bombed a girls school. What is the difference between something like that and deliberately attacking civilian infrastructure like a desalination plant?

RONA: So the difference is that even though one might have been mistaken and the other intentional, under U.S. law, both intentional and mistaken attacks that aren’t pursuant to due diligence can be war crimes.

https://www.npr.org/2026/04/01/nx-s1-5766235/who-is-held-accountable-if-a-war-crime-is-committed-in-iran

No Kings Protest – March 28, 2026

In big cities and small towns across the world, protesters gathered for thousands of rallies against President Trump and his policies and actions, with the self-stated goal of fighting dictatorship.
…

Chicagoans gathered at Grant Park, where Saira Bensett, 60, a retired zoological worker, described the turnout as cathartic.

“When I watch the news it’s often too much — the emotions I feel make me feel like I’m alone,” she said. “So I wanted to be here to feel like I’m not by myself.”

A Show of Defiance Across the Nation
It’s the third time that the coalition behind the “No Kings” movement has organized events to protest President Trump and his policies. In the United States, more than 3,000 demonstrations were planned.

Exceptionally High Temperatures – Denver – March 2026

DENVER (KDVR) — Denver weather broke the all-time record high temperature for March hitting 85 degrees on Thursday, and heat in the coming days is expected to shatter that record, too.

Before this week, the highest temperature ever recorded during March in Denver was 84 degrees, set on March 26, 1971, according to National Weather Service data.

Denver had it’s hottest March day ever recorded with Thursday’s record-breaking high temperature

Borg – The Drink – Defined, Usage of

@grok explains in detail the situation in that video
The video shows a chaotic St. Patrick’s Day weekend scene on a downtown Chicago sidewalk outside Amorino gelato. Revelers carrying “Borgs” (gallon milk jugs filled with vodka, Kool-Aid-style mixers, electrolytes, and green food dye) dumped or spilled dozens of them, creating a slippery mess of white/green liquid, empty jugs, and cans.

Chicago PD officers respond: one in a black jacket bends down repeatedly picking up jugs and cans while another in a neon vest joins to help contain the spill amid the crowd of green-clad partiers watching and filming. The original post humorously calls the soaked officer a ” rat” looking rough after a “weekend in the sewers” from the boozy cleanup. Classic Chicago chaos.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borg_(drink)

A borg (sometimes BORG, short for blackout rage gallon) is a mixed drink made in a plastic gallon jug, generally containing water, vodka, flavored drink mix such as MiO or Kool-Aid, and sometimes electrolyte mix such as Pedialyte. The drink gained popularity at universities in the United States in the early 2020s, spreading among members of Generation Z on TikTok in late 2022 and early 2023. A borg is designed to be held and consumed by one individual throughout a party, distinguishing it from older communally-served party drinks (which may have similar ingredients) such as jungle juice and punch. Drinkers typically label their borg jug with a nickname, often a pun on the word “borg.”
…
In popular culture
The 2024 Broadway adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, directed by Sam Gold, prominently featured a borg as a prop, held by Lord and Lady Capulet (portrayed by Sola Fadiran) throughout the play and used by Romeo (Kit Connor) to ingest the poison pill at the play’s climax. Described by Today as “Chekhov’s borg”, the jug was labeled with various Shakespearean puns at each performance, including “to borg or not to borg” and “William Shakesborg”.

Agentic vs Mimetic

The future will belong to people with a very specific combination of personality traits and psychosexual neuroses. An AI might be able to code faster than you, but there is one advantage that humans still have. It’s called agency, or being highly agentic. The highly agentic are people who just do things. They don’t timidly wait for permission or consensus; they drive like bulldozers through whatever’s in their way. When they see something that could be changed in the world, they don’t write a lengthy critique—they change it. AIs are not capable of accessing whatever unpleasant childhood experience it is that gives you this hunger. Agency is now the most valuable commodity in Silicon Valley. In tech interviews, it’s common for candidates to be asked whether they’re “mimetic” or “agentic.” You do not want to say mimetic. Once, San Francisco drew in runaway children, artists, and freaks; today it’s an enormous magnet for highly agentic young men. I set out to meet them.

Child’s Play
Tech’s new generation and the end of thinking
by Sam Kriss
Harper’s Magazine

Note – Interesting article on San Francisco’s tech culture

Somehow people manage to live here. But of all the strange and maddening messages posted around this city, there was one particular type of billboard that the people of San Francisco couldn’t bear. People shuddered at the sight of it, or groaned, or covered their eyes. The advertiser was the most utterly despised startup in the entire tech landscape. Weirdly, its ads were the only ones I saw that appeared to be written in anything like English:

hi my name is roy
i got kicked out of school for cheating.
buy my cheating tool
cluely.com

Colorado State University – Annoying Billboards and

After months of pressing forward with billboard installations around campus against the wishes of the city of Fort Collins and many residents, Colorado State University has paused installation of additional signage for the time being. CSU tells CBS Colorado they have elected to stop further installation of new signs until they can evaluate next steps.

https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/colorado-state-university-billboards-installations-backlash/

Mass Market Paperbacks – End of

Rest in peace, mass market paperbacks.

As reported by Publishers Weekly, book distributor ReaderLink will “stop distributing mass market paperback books at the end of 2025 … the latest blow to a format that has seen its popularity decline for years.”

There are several causes of death for the mass market paperback. One is the reduced cost of designing and producing books in the now ubiquitous trade market format. The cheaper price point for a mass market book is no advantage when it isn’t also cheaper to manufacture.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/27/biblioracle-mass-market-paperbacks/

ICE Killings in Minneapolis – Obama and Clinton on

Two Democratic former presidents on Sunday condemned the scenes in Minnesota after Alex Pretti was killed this weekend, framing the tragedy as a pivotal moment that calls Americans to “speak up” and take action.

Former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama called Pretti’s death a “heartbreaking tragedy” in a statement.

“It should also be a wake-up call to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault,” the Obamas wrote.

“Over the course of a lifetime, we face only a few moments where the decisions we make and the actions we take will shape our history for years to come. This is one of them,” he wrote.

Clinton said “the people in charge” are lying to the public and telling them “not to believe what we’ve seen with our own eyes.”

Clinton and Obama urge Americans to ‘speak out’ and take action after Minneapolis shootings
The statements from the Democratic former presidents said the shooting of Alex Pretti is “a wake-up call” and a moment that could shape “our history for years to come.”

Does Amazon Search Suck Now or What? – Google AI on

does amazon search suck now or what?
Google:

Yes, many users and reports suggest Amazon’s search quality has declined, becoming cluttered with irrelevant ads and sponsored products, making it harder to find specific items, with some blaming strategic choices to prioritize ad revenue. The shift prioritizes paid placements over organic, relevant results, leading to user frustration, while some find using advanced search filters or external search engines helps.
Common complaints about Amazon Search:
Ad Overload: The top results are often sponsored listings, even for exact product searches, pushing genuinely relevant organic results further down the page.
Irrelevant Results: Search terms can bring up a mix of unrelated items (e.g., Halloween decor when searching for Christmas lights), creating “noise”.
Algorithm Changes: The search engine sometimes alters search terms or hides well-selling products, frustrating sellers and buyers alike.
Decline in Quality Control: A focus on infrastructure and third-party sellers has led to a “disorienting mess” with less discernible quality.

Dive Bars – Origin of Term, Simpsons Reference

Do bars like Moe’s from the Simpsons exist where guys just go to get away from home?
Reddit

your_fave_redditor
It’s a thing in The Simpsons because it is a thing irl.

perfectdrug659
My favorite dive bar had $10 pitchers and free pool and they would stay open as late as people wanted to stay, as long as you were quiet about that last bit.

Appsoul
Oh, perfect time to ask this question. Why do they call them dive bars?

reclusive_ent
The less legit, but cheaper, drinking spots were in basements cellars and back rooms. So you usually had to duck or “dive” to get into them.

SkiyeBlueFox
According to Wikipedia, its because in the late 1800s establishments of poor reputation were often in basements, so you would “dive” down into the joint

Connermets25
Yes they still exist. It used to be more common place. I worked at several big companies and most of them had a bar where workers would often frequent nearby. The younger generation isn’t like that much anymore.