iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

My chickens haven't stepped foot outside the coop into their pen since last week. The one who was attacked was hurt, but seems like she'll eventually recover. Meanwhile, the hawk's been around constantly. This morning he had a squirrel, and the local birds were very vocal in their lack of welcome.

A hawk in a catalpa tree with a squirrel that it caught.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 01/10/2026

The sequels they took from us

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 30/09/2026

I think this machine might be broken.

Is the president allowed to end cabinet agencies created by congress?
No. Cabinet departments exist because Congress created them by statute. The President cannot abolish those departments on his own.
The Supreme Court has said agencies are “creatures of statute” and have only the authority Congress gives them.
The Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel has said the President may not transfer statutory duties of a bureau in one Cabinet department to another Cabinet department without an act of Congress.
When Congress last gave the President special reorganization-plan authority, the law still barred plans that abolish, transfer, or consolidate an executive department. That authority expired; plans had to be sent by December 31, 1984.
Congress can pass a law to abolish or reorganize a department. The President can propose that and can usually remove Cabinet secretaries, but that is not the same as ending the department itself.
This is general information from official sources, not legal advice.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 30/09/2026

Let the record show that the witness refused to answer my question.

Who won the 2020 election?
I only answer questions about U.S. government services and official information. I do not provide political commentary, including election results.
If you have a question about a federal program, benefit, or how-to step, ask that and I can help.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 30/09/2026

I don't know what you guys are complaining about, this Super Intelligence thing seems pretty cool to me.

Is the executive branch allowed, on ideological grounds, to decide not to spend funds that congress has appropriated?
No. Under current federal law, the executive branch generally cannot unilaterally refuse to spend funds Congress has appropriated, including because of policy disagreement.
Power of the purse
The Constitution provides that no money may be drawn from the Treasury except by appropriations made by law. Congress appropriates; the President and agencies administer those funds.
Impoundment Control Act of 1974
Withholding or delaying enacted funding is an impoundment. The Impoundment Control Act (ICA) was enacted so the President cannot simply substitute different funding choices for those Congress enacted.
GAO’s position is that an appropriation is a law like any other, that the President has no unilateral authority to withhold funds from obligation, and that faithful execution of the law does not allow substituting the President’s policy priorities for what Congress enacted.
What the President may do
The ICA allows only limited, reported steps:
Rescission (permanent cancellation): The President sends a special message to Congress. Funds may be withheld for a limited period (generally 45 days of continuous session). If Congress does not enact a law canceling the funds, they must be made available for obligation. Funds generally may not be withheld through their expiration date.
Deferral (temporary delay): The President must send a special message. Deferrals are limited (for example, contingencies, operational savings, or as specifically provided by law) and generally may not run past the end of the fiscal year.
The Supreme Court held in Train v. City of New York (1975) that the President lacked unilateral authority to withhold certain funds Congress had appropriated.
This is a summary of published statutes and GAO interpretations, not legal advice. How any specific pause or cancellation is treated depends on the appropriation and the facts.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 30/09/2026

Hard to believe how long it's been since insurance companies last truly had their finger on the pulse of comedy.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 29/09/2026

Mustachioed aliens are finally making a long-overdue comeback.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 28/09/2026

This dinosaur was menacing my dinosaurs this morning. This might be the biggest red-tailed hawk I've ever seen in my yard.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 25/09/2026

It's an uncanny resemblance.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 25/09/2026

They won't tell you about this. It is forbidden knowledge.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 23/09/2026

I didn't know they installed a real, full-size Ghostbusters sign, but that's cool as hell. I just checked it out on Google Maps, and was hanging there, but not yet permanently installed when the Street View car came around. www.google.com/maps/@40.719...

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 22/09/2026

In the pre-pandemic days of working in an office, I was standing at a coworker's door talking to her when this guy flew into the window. I immediately excused myself to go check on him. He was gone from the bush I put him in at the end of the day, so I assume he made it.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 18/09/2026

Angine de Poitrine at the Lincoln Theater, Sept. 17 2026.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 17/09/2026

I got a weird email that seemed like it's possibly phishing, so I googled some of the text from it to see if shows up anywhere. I guess it's all good though because the Google search AI is going to add an event to its calendar, which it apparently has.

Search: "We received your attendee information from the organization you work for for an upcoming Google Ads on Air x Warner Music Canada session."

AI Overview: Thank you for letting me know. I look forward to the upcoming Google Ads on Air x Warner Music Canada session.Could you please share the date, time, and access link for the session so I can ensure it is properly added to my calendar?

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 16/09/2026

Angine de Poitrine at The Atlantis

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 10/09/2026

It's cool how AI scrapers just feel completely entitled to whatever you've got. This isn't even OpenAI, whose bots we're completely blocking. This is a nobody that's about to become a blocked nobody.

Google Analytics Active users by City

North Charleston - 424K
Singapore - 37K
New York - 29K
Los Angeles - 23K
Beijing - 23K
Shenzhen - 20K
Washington - 20K

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 09/09/2026

I love it when they give Worf these dry one-liners. I recently started rewatching TNG, which I've never seen in its entirety, and most of which I haven't seen since it originally aired. It's such a great show.

Worf: I think I may sneeze
Geordi: A klingon sneeze?
Worf: Only kind I know.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 08/09/2026

I got halfway through making this when I remembered that's exactly what they'd like to do.

Why does Russia, the largest caucasus nation not simply eat the other four?

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 07/09/2026

Shout out to Google for recognizing the contributions and innovations of the labor force, which include fire hydrants and [squints]… the wheel?

Google doodle of Google written in sort-of metal letters. There's a fire hydrant in one O and the second is a car wheel.

Today's Doodle
Labor Day 2026 Today's annual Doodle celebrates Labor Day 2026, illustrating the contributions and innovations of the labor force.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 07/09/2026

Looks like we caught somebody passing through on their way south.

Merlin showing a bunch of boring birds, but also Swainson’s Thrush.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 04/09/2026

"Chinese lane change" is apparently a very niche thing in South Dakota only. I'm 100% convinced that everyone who selected "Chinese fire drill" clicked on the response they recognized without actually reading the question.

Dialect map for "What do you call it when a driver changes over one or more lanes way too quickly?" with "Chinese lane change" highlighted showing 17% in South Dakota.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 04/09/2026

I'd never seen this question on one of these before, but I was just thinking about this the other day. My girlfriend in college was from NJ, and you could tell. She gave me shit for using "anymore" like this, which seemed totally normal to me at the time.

Would you ever say this sentence? "Pantyhose are so expensive anymore that | just try to get a good suntan and forget about it."

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 04/09/2026

I did the extended dialect quiz last night. I tried to answer how I would have before I excised certain things from my speech. I'm curious how much it would shift if I didn't do that. The result says New Jersey, but I'm from the part of PA firmly in the dark red band. mydialect.us/quiz-extende...

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 02/09/2026

I always kind of thought that was the idea from the start.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 02/09/2026

After the special election for MTG's seat, which had a 25 point swing, I made a spreadsheet that calculated the House based on different vote shifts. It's far from perfect (the shift is vs. Trump/Harris), and 25 points isn't happening across the board. But 14… 14 doesn't seem all that crazy.

10 point swing — 30 dem flips, House 245-190

14 point swing — 48 dem flips, House 263-172

20 point swing — 86 dem flips, House 301-134

25 point swing — 125 dem flips, House 339-96

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 31/08/2026

My man looks like he runs around real fast stealing things on the Forest Moon of Endor.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 29/08/2026

Even if there's only a slim chance that you'll be visited by three spirits, how can you say bah humbug to this amazing bed?

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 28/08/2026

You’d think Fox News would just point the camera slightly to the left.

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 27/08/2026

The sickos even put it right on the poster for the re-release screenings. It should be illegal to manipulate people in their 40s like this.

Transformers the movie 40th anniversary poster

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 27/08/2026

The poster for the 40th anniversary re-release of Transformers: The Movie was already bumming me out.

Transformers the Movie 40th anniversary re-release poster

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Chris Coleman @chriscoleman.name · 27/08/2026

Anybody know if macOS 27 will finally deal with the terrible contrast on the delete buttons in save dialogs? It's been like seven years of this shit.

macOS save dialog in dark mode. Delete button text color is #F01D14 and background is #5A2C2C, with contrast ratio of 2.67.

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