Too Cold for Man but not Beast

I would say that it is too cold for man or beast on this date, but I saw these two (actually three) out wandering around.  We are officially in the depths of the polar vortex.  

Ice Design

Ice always makes the most interesting art.

Just another Snow Day

The latest addition to the 500px collection displays a view of the snow-covered trees across the field. While I am not particularly fond of the cold, snow is always creates a beautiful scene.

Quality over Quantity

Accidentally read an article today that is one of the things that bothers me most about my alternative platform.

What Happened When I Wrote an Article Every Day for 300 Days Straight | by Nimish Jalan | Dec, 2023 | The Taoist Online

The story is like just about every other bit of click-bait out there, different only that it is singing the praises of another writer on Medium that offers nothing more than clickbait.

Initially, I replied, 

I am truly curious to know by what standard you are making this evaluation. What are your measures? Followers? The ridiculous "claps" count? Time Read? Engagement? Your essay fails to support your thesis. Indeed, I could find very little to support your thesis. 66K followers do not make one popular. 1000+ click-bait listicle articles do not make one popular. What is it exactly that you are using to measure this popularity? 

Indeed, I was truly curious.  I could find nothing indicating that Eve Arnold – Medium was anything more than a hack, churning out click-bait on a daily basis, regurgitating many of the same topics over and over again.  Her profile undoubtedly exemplifies that.

The writer later replied, 

I find her work and story interesting enough. I find her dedication to the craft impressive. I’ve laid out my reasons if you pay attention. I don’t know a lot of authors who’ve written 1000 plus pieces. To me this is dedication, hard work and intelligence.  She doesn’t have to be a part of any list.

I started to reply to that, but then remembered I was breaking my own rule about responding anything on the internet.  It is a lost cause after all, and mostly unproductive.  The internet is full of pointless nonsense and calling it out is equally pointless nonsense.  It will eventually wither away and die.  You just have to wait a little while.

I am no better a writer than those and do admire their efforts to write daily.  I try to do that myself, here, where very few can see the pointless nonsense and generally bad writing.  I am definitely not trying to sell it as worthy of the next Nobel Prize.

Folks should think more about this sort of thing before they offer their unnecessarily redundant opinion about the 3 Best Ways to Get Ahead of The Game.  It makes the internet bloated and unhealthy.  Not everyone is an expert.

Girls First Day Hike

After a good breakfast that included mini waffles, we took care of the popcorn disaster from the night before, then headed out onto our trail in the maple woods.  The usual leader blazed the path for us, while her colleague took up her position in the rear so as to keep an eye on the younger of the three.

Jumping over the fallen trees, stretching across bridges, climbing rocks, and filling the creek with rocks was more than the fourth, and youngest of all, could keep up with though. He still did not quite have the sea legs for all that.  He remained at the homestead enjoying an afternoon siesta, later celebrating our safe return with us and the hot chocolate.