Tom Vaughan

The Triumph of Europe's Social Democracy: "European countries have achieved unprecedented levels of prosperity and social well-being, largely due to collective investments in health, education and public infrastructure." [kottke.org]

Early this month, a wily coyote swam across San Francisco Bay to Alcatraz. He was in such rough shape, observers thought he’d probably die, but he’s been snacking on birds and rodents and was recently observed fat as a pickle. [sfstandard.com]

A data-driven mosaic of our warming planet - now updated through 2025 🥵 Download graphic at zacklabe.com/climate-chan...

Summer sucks

Vimeo was recently acquired by a private equity firm and you know what comes next: Vimeo Lays Off ‘Most’ of Its Staff, Allegedly Includes ‘the Entire Video Team’. [gizmodo.com]

Thing I did not know I was looking for (but totally was): a deep dive into ASCII rendering. Super interesting! [alexharri.com]

Sesame Street has uploaded a bunch of classic episodes to YouTube that are free to watch, including the very first episode from 1969, the one where Mister Rogers visits, and the episode where Mr. Snuffulupagus is finally revealed. [kottke.org]

From Taner’s Funk Kitchen, a 30-minute set of smooth/chill deep cuts from Daft Punk. “This mix is less of a club vibe and more of a chill listening party.” [kottke.org]

Pilot Captures Amazing Aurora Photos During Flight. “This was the most incredible display of aurora I’ve ever seen in my 20 years of flying!” [kottke.org]

Incredible drone footage of a pileup of 100+ cars, trucks, and semis in winter conditions in Michigan. [youtube.com]

that bus driver is *cooked* in the midterm elections; just let him drive until then

The world of sports is really heating up, and there’s one thing on everybody’s mind: It’s 23 days until pitchers and catchers report.

AI summaries are undefeated.

Happy Friday San Francisco. Enjoy your park.

At the Stone Skimming World Championships in Scotland (at an old slate quarry), it’s distance that counts, not the number of skips. “Anyone who is familiar with slate could instinctively tell you that it’s a particularly good rock for skimming.” [atlasobscura.com]

Somebody on this app shared what’s basically the kama sutra of shoelaces and I’m a bit obsessed

Rode my bike through the Panhandle, along JFK Promenade and through the park to Sunset Dunes at sunset. Gorgeous night. Skaters skating, a DJ spinning mellow sunset beats. So many people out in all the parks. A beautiful celebration of recent victories in the war on cars, SF front. 14 fun miles.

Forms are a persistent concern when static sites meet marketing teams and stakeholders. This seems great!

costco should be allowed to sell weed. i want the Kirkland Select Kush. a 300-count fish oil pill sized bottle of 5mg gummies would fix this country

Using lidar, scientists discovered a 400-foot-long wall composed of “60 massive granite monoliths, set directly onto the bedrock in pairs at regular intervals”. The wall is 30 feet underwater and was built 7000+ years ago. [bigthink.com]

Important update

ACAB

This is great: MTV Rewind allows you to watch music videos from the 70s to the 20s, organized by decade. There are also “channels” for 120 Minutes, MTV Unplugged, Yo! MTV Raps, etc. 33,000+ videos in all. Nostalgia bomb. [kottke.org]

Whoa! Someone recently uploaded some high-quality versions of unreleased Boards of Canada tracks from 1985-1996. This seems to be legit, judging from the excitement in the YT comments and on Reddit… [kottke.org]

The Detectorists — A Short Film About Otters and Detection Dogs. “Shot from a dog’s-eye view with immersive cinematography, the film offers a poetic glimpse into conservation through the nose and eyes of a canine detective.” [kottke.org]

Enigmatriz uses ASCII art to punch up and blow out public domain photos and illustrations — I love their style. [kottke.org]

Check out these lowrider stamps the USPS will be releasing in 2026. [kottke.org]

Put this playlist on your er... playlist

Any excuse to put more eyeballs on one of the best things on the internet. A 22 minute recut of Star Trek: The Motion Picture set to Daft Punk's Tron: Legacy soundtrack. 10/10 watch at least once a year.

“I am so bored by AI. One of the things I love about the theatre is AI can’t do it.” Ethan Hawke is a dude 👌🏻

Chile recupera su cetro y se corona por séptima vez como el “Mejor Destino de Turismo Aventura” del mundo en los World Travel Awards www.theclinic.cl/2025/12/07/c...

At a recent show in NYC, Weird Al Yankovic joined the band on stage for a cover of Killing In The Name, Rage Against the Machine’s anthem against police brutality. Weird Al, welcome to the resistance. (Full video!) [kottke.org]

I’m in Charge at This Hertz Location, and Buddy, You’re Not Getting a Car Today. “Tell me, honestly, when you reserved a rental car through Hertz, you thought… what? That we were going to set aside a special little car just for you? Seriously?” [mcsweeneys.net]

Agreed, why do people keep sharing bs from nobodies on twitter?

good bit from @sheehannewsletter.bsky.social's latest. You can read the full piece here: www.joesheehan.com/2025/11/joe-...

On living life at your own pace. “From then I thought, life is fast. Death comes so easily. If I just drift, in no time I’ll be an old man.” [kottke.org]

Iowa City Made Its Buses Free. Traffic Cleared, and So Did the Air. “The transit system is one of the greatest tools communities have to combat climate change and reduce emission. You can make a pretty immediate impact.” [nytimes.com]

BYTE was a treasure www.404media.co/byte-magazin...

Anyone else remember HotBot?

In a world full of terrible role models for young people, I’m so glad there are also smart, joyful and empathetic people like Ms Rachel and Mychal Threets.

#chile #jara

Mychal Threets and illustrator Lorraine Nam’s “affectionate picture book” I’M SO HAPPY YOU’RE HERE: A CELEBRATION OF LIBRARY JOY showcases “that among a library’s greatest treasures are the people who find their place within its walls”

Una reciente imagen satelital captó al extremo sur de Sudamérica libre de nubes (inusual), permitiendo apreciar a detalle los contrastes climáticos entre #Chile y #Argentina.

People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring. Rogers Hornsby

It was a magical ride with all of you. Our city, our home, our fans showed up on the grand stage...and we couldn't be prouder.