iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Benson @benson.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Spanish tortilla tonight. Ofc with onions, you base creatures.

Tortilla de España is a golden disk of egg, potato, and onion, not unlike a frittata. It rests on a rectangular cutting board, with rich browning from the pan.

Benson @benson.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

From Western Montana to Southwest Oregon, the entire PNW was cloudy and wet all weekend. I fled to east-central Idaho to meet a couple 12k mountains.

A rugged gray mountainside streaked with orange rock rises above a forested basin, with green farmland and distant ranges visible in the valley beyond.

Rolling golden hills glow in low sunlight beneath a dark stormy sky, their color reflected in calm water in the foreground. Like a velveteen rabbit. Photo credit: Nate A.

A gravel road lined with sagebrush leads toward a broad mountain range under a deep blue sky with puffy white clouds.

A bearded man reclines against gray boulders, wearing a hooded sun shirt over a cap and bright pink pixelated novelty sunglasses. He's trying to muster the energy to be enthusiastic about sitting on the summit, but he's looking tired and disconnected. Photo credit: Nate A.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

I don't even know what "older than bones" is supposed to mean and geologic time dunks have been passé since the Silurian. Anyway, here's a mountain photo from a few years ago.

A hiker in a red jacket with a large gray backpack and ice axe stands on a snowy ridgeline, looking back over his footprints toward a fog-shrouded summit. A corniced edge drops off to the right into a forested valley under heavy gray skies. He's thinking "The Adirondacks are small"

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

Cascades summit with kids

Three young men, resting and eating snacks on the top of a rocky mountain summit. They sit on big blocks of granite, wearing long sleeve sun shirts and climbing helmets. One man holds a bag of goldfish crackers. The other is eating pizza from a ziplock bag. These are both approved summit snacks.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 21/07/2026

A mountain of vaccine syringes. Nairobi, Kenya.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

Mobile immunization clinic at the national strategic cold store. Abuja, Nigeria.

A white box-truck labeled "MOBILE CLINIC" with a red cross and "END POLIO NOW" branding parked against a wall, bearing text noting it as a gift from The Rotary Foundation and Rotarians of Nigeria and India. Stacks of blue insulated vaccine cold boxes, some marked "National Strategic Cold Store," are piled to the left and in front, with a spare tire and wooden pallet leaning against the truck's rear. A wall-mounted air conditioner unit and a generator sit nearby on an interlocking-brick paved lot. Abuja, Nigeria

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

I spent Independence Day on the West Ridge of Mount Stuart in the Cascades Range. This one made me feel so small.

A climber wearing a bright orange backpack walks towards white granite ledges. In the background loom dark and sharp rock spires.

A climber wearing an orange shirt, white helmet, and blue backpack ascends a steep snowfield with ax and crampons. A wall of broken granite rises in the background.

Staring up the climbing route below the summit of Mount Stuart. A pink rope trails down from a climber high above. The climber is facing away from the camera, among docks of giant granite blocks, contemplating the next move.

Seen from high above, dying light of day illuminates two rugged mountain peaks. On the horizon, the sunset is brilliant, purple, blue, orange, and yellow. The silhouette of the massive Mount Stuart casts a shadow in the sky

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Father's Day: started / ended

A cluster of brightly colored tents sits on a peninsula of broken rock. A glaciated slope rises in the background towards a mountain peak. Blue sky and white clouds.

A white bowl holds strawberries, whipped cream, and an almond cake: an approximation of strawberry shortcake. A glass of water sits nearby.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Stymied. Rebuffed. Spurned. A little over 2000 feet of gain in 4 hours before a humbling retreat: the most unrelenting bushwhack and routefinding challenge (cliffs) I've ever experienced. Soaking wet. Wild Dare peak, Middle Fork Snoqualmie River Valley, Washington State.

A person is scrambling through a dense, misty evergreen forest. Viewed from above, looking down a steep slope, we see the person wearing a bright orange, long-sleeve shirt, a while helmet, tan leather gloves, and a gray backpack.

The terrain is rugged and overgrown, covered in lush green undergrowth, ferns, moss-covered logs, and forest debris. Tall conifers rise into a fog that softens the background, giving the scene a moody, atmospheric quality. The lighting is soft and overcast, suggesting damp, wet conditions typical of the temperate forests in the Pacific Northwest.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 23/05/2026

Had an "adventure" yesterday: three peaks, 20.3 miles, 5900 ft of elevation, hours spent following faint animal trails along overgrown ridge lines, and miles upon miles of unrelenting bushwhacking. My arms and legs are flayed, but I saw these bear tracks.

Tracks of a black bear in white snow. Beside the most recognizable bear print, a person is pressing their hand into the snow to show scale (approximate equal in size).

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

Best guess is that it's the flag for this real estate development company in Jacksonville, Florida.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

I've been soft this winter so 6000' of gain this weekend wasn't a stroll.

A man carries a yellow backpack across a high mountain bench. He is on the edge of a snow and rock transition. A blue helmet is strapped to his backpack, and he carries a trek pole in his right hand. In the distance above him is a rocky Summit block of a peak in Washington's Cascade mountains.

A photograph of rugged, snow covered mountains in Washington's Cascade range. From left to right: witches tower, dragontail, Colchuck.

A photo of rugged, snow-covered mountains in Washington's cascade range. From left to right: Colchuck glacier, Colchuck peak, argonaut peak.

A photo of rugged, snow covered mountains in Washington's cascade range. From left to right: Sherpa peak, Mount Stuart. This photo shows Stuart's formidable north face and its complete North Ridge climbing route.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

This is such a great distillation

The only people who seem to be getting everything they want out of their connection to Trump are deputy chief of staff and immigration policy advisor Stephen Miller and Office of Management and Budget director Russell Vought. The latter is devoted to destroying the functioning parts of the federal government; the former is devoted to destroying the functioning parts of American society.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

ORGANIZERS: *literally anything* BSKY:

Maritime flag comprising a black cross on a white background. Below, the text of flag's meaning, "stop carrying out your intentions".

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 18/10/2025

sorry your flag didn't work out. the message can't be stopped.

Black sign with white lettering: they do not break us. They break UPON us.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 18/10/2025

Tylenol did nothing wrong (custom t-shirt for our current moment)

Red shirt with white text: Tylenol did nothing wrong

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 16/10/2025

First rollout of my new stencil. Will clean up the g, but I'm pretty happy with it.

White T-shirt with red message: Tylenol did nothing wrong.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 07/10/2025

Weekend activities, NCNP

An expansive view of the North Cascades, taken from the saddle high above Wing Lake. In the foreground is tan dirt and scattered rock. At the edge of the saddle, a few feet away from the camera's perspective, the terrain falls into a wide gully of loose grey scree, running downhill to a clear mountain lake surrounded by green and gold larch trees. In the background, the immense terrain of the Cascade range, mottled with vegetation, massive talus fields, and patches of snow.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

Thinking about a new yard sign. First draft. Might delete later.

Yard sign in the form of the common "In this house we believe. . ." signs. Text: In this house, we cancel New York Times, Washington Post, Disney+, Cable Television, Facebook & Instagram, Twitter (a neo-nazi bar) and other billionaire-owned channels of fascist propaganda.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 16/09/2025

It really was. We climbed Slippery Slab Tower and then Nimbus. There was a small wildfire nearby that was producing a bit of smoke, but the helicopter couldn't find a good place to land.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 16/09/2025

A short scramble on Nimbus Mountain with friends. Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Washington State.

Beneath a deep blue sky, two climbers in yellow backpacks scramble up sun bleached granite blocks to a mountain summit.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 18/08/2025

Chikamin and Lemahs in the kingdom of rock. Washington State.

Mountains of sharp alpine rock surround a blue alpine lake. White talus and scree fields flow from the lower slopes into the lake. Low vegetation - mostly blueberry and mountain huckleberry - cling to the slopes where they can. Tall, thin conifers are scattered around the lake. No ICE chuds here.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 15/08/2025

In honor of the DC occupation

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 05/08/2025

I love Mosley's work. At times it's like peering through a screen, until it snaps into focus and knocks you down.

Cover of Nicholas Mosley's Hope Monsters

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 01/08/2025

It was 19 hours of continuous movement, 6000 feet of gain, five hours of alpine climbing on the East Ridge Direct route, and three hours on the hairy "east ledges" descent. This is a photo of my friend, looking back down the ridge as we neared the summit. A big day!

A climber stands on a rugged ridge of alpine rock, which falls away 1000 feet on either side to the glaciers below. He wears a slate blue sun shirt and a climbing helmet. Coils of a hot pink rope are carried over his shoulder.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

From yesterday, descending from Forbidden Peak in North Cascades National Park.

Two climbers descend lush green terrain at sunset, waking down a rise that is covered in lush grass. Their backs are to the camera. The imposing north face of a nearby peak rise with snow on its upper flanks. In the distance, the skyline of the Cascade mountains are a purple silhouette against the red, orange, and yellow sky. A crescent moon hangs above their head.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 23/07/2025

Here's a non-political picture of the Enchantments (WA) that could easily be made political due to massive funding cuts: we saw no rangers during 3 days in this acutely sensitive alpine environment.

Jagged granite peaks with snow-covered flanks rise sharply from an alpine bench. The large granite boulders on the foreground are bleached white.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 12/07/2025

More breadcrumbs for the trail

Two jawbreaker 7" records. First: "Busy" album cover is a grainy photograph, printed in monochromatic purple, of a weathered middle-age man with a cigarette hanging from his mouth; he is pouring liquor into an open soda bottle. "Busy" is a-side; "Equalized" on the b-side. Second record is "Old Glory". Cover image is red print of a man riding a chopper motorcycle from Easy Rider. A-side is "rich", b-side is "Caroline" and "Boxcar".

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 29/06/2025

Today's Yakima Herald-Republic editorial comes through with the latest example of projecting policy positions on Trump without paying attention to what he said (repeatedly). www.yakimaherald.com/opinion/opin...

It’s unclear who Trump is trying to appease with his deportation quotas, but you’d think he’d look a little kinder on Yakima Valley farmers, who’ve largely backed him for the better part of a decade.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 22/06/2025

LA and PDX never saw this innovative plan.

A southpark underwear gnome stands in front of a whiteboard with an giddy smile, presenting his three-part plan. Phase 1: permitted marches. Phase 2: question mark. Phase 3: regime change.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 19/06/2025

My copy has Colson Whitehead instead of Taibbi. This is first ed., second printing: Dec 2002.

Get Your War On paperback book, with black jacket and red letters. By David Rees with an introduction by Colson Whitehead.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 15/06/2025

After staring at it for a long time, I've just picked up Hopeful Monsters by Nicholas Mosley. The first sentence goes pretty hard.

First sentence:
If we are to survive in the environment we have made for ourselves, may we have to be monstrous enough to greet our predicament?

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

There is some reporting around this that suggests the vehicles were ignited with M80s. That's not what the photos show. I use these to light charcoal, not cars, but this is what the NYPD photos show on the tire.

Jealous Devil Boom fire starters are small, rough spheres of combustible material with a white fuse.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

Talia - these aren't cherry bombs. They are fire starters. Specifically, they are Jealous Devil Boom starters. You can't really light a tire on fire with an explosive. . . you would need something to burn for a while to catch the tire.

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Benson @benson.bsky.social · 08/06/2025