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Erik Ostrom

@erikostrom.com
766 followers 234 following 2.4K posts

Musician, improviser, urban biker, web developer, Minneapolitan.

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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 1h
Glad this is happening.
sfstandard.com
Meet the Bay Area progressive group targeting tech-backed Democrats
The group is trying to make support from Silicon Valley a political liability for tech-friendly moderates running for the California State Legislature.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 5h
Maybe this is obvious. I’m just seeing a lot of cheery nihilism in the replies, and I’m not into it.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 5h
Yeah but the choices aren’t “I’m famous forever” or “nothing matters after I’m dead.” My best hope is that people who knew me have slightly better lives because they did. And maybe the people who knew them. And *maybe* someone who didn’t know me benefits from something I did. Ripples.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 6h
This year I fell in love with the E line, and lately I’ve noticed my preference sliding from bike toward bus (even regular bus), just because I can chill out and read a book.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 6h
The first time I went to Stockholm I had to train myself to gather my thoughts mid-block, because if I paused at the corner it started a traffic jam.
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Ian Coldwater 🧊🚫 @lookitup.baby · 16h
BREAKING NEWS: “Do geese see God” is a palindrome
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 29/09/2026
It might have been $20, also I had a job but a lot of us probably didn’t
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 29/09/2026
I mean maybe it would work at the Grand Avenue location, but I never bothered biking down Lyndale, I’m not gonna bus to Saint Paul
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 29/09/2026
Dang, guess I’m never gonna use the $10 gift card my landlord gave us all as a consolation prize for having to pay full rent when COVID shut things down and nobody had jobs
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 29/09/2026
It is, though It’s just the wrong word
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 29/09/2026
In the sequel it seemed like someone had advised him to tone it down because it was too confusing. I probably won’t finish the series.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 29/09/2026
I loved this about a crime novel called The Death of Lewis Winter, in which the technique meant you were always aware of what each character in the scene thought each other character was thinking, and how they were wrong. Made my brain buzz!
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Smörhuvud (he/surprise me) @guncelawits.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
“We as an industry are engaged in an intense debate about whether our industry should be shut down for product-liability reasons or for rights-violation reasons.”
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Emily St. James @emilystjams.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Today was the third day in a row I came within a yard of a car hitting me while I was walking in a crosswalk, and today was way too close. I realize we have some drivers out there, but I think we need to ban cars until we can figure out what's going on.
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Razanar the Jovial @razanarthejovial.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Me when I strap fireworks to a bike wheel and throw it in a food court: damn oh wow I can't believe that bike wheel shot off fireworks in the food court.
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DJ Boozy Brunch @griph.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
pervert glasses suffered branding collapse so instead we invented the blinking red weak point on the bad guy you’re supposed to attack to do damage
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 26/09/2026
Film you’ve watched more than six times with a GIF.
static.klipy.com
Philadelphia Story Katharine Hepburn
Alt: Katharine Hepburn in The Philadelphia Story walks outside, then grimaces as she throws her hand up to shield her eyes from the morning sun.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 26/09/2026
So is the other end of the gap more of 2nd St? Or 2nd Ave? Or something else
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Courtney Milan @courtneymilan.com · 24/09/2026
The best way to console ourselves about the international shit sandwich buffet that we will have to consume in the coming years is to build out a massive train network, provide health care to all, and take out our aggressions on the billionaires.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 25/09/2026
This is cinema
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 25/09/2026
Also the score
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 25/09/2026
This is a movie I love
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 25/09/2026
I mean I also remember the mirror and the shooting and the newspaper clippings, but “organizized” has probably had a bigger impact on my life
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 25/09/2026
On a recent Blank Check episode lthey said “what people remember” about Taxi Driver doesn’t start until 3/4 of the way in, and I wonder what most people remember, because for me it’s Travis Bickle saying “One of these days I’m gonna get organizized”
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 24/09/2026
I will not be replicating the details or his haunted look
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 24/09/2026
Transit security guy said “thank you for walking your bike” on the light rail platform, and then described, in unsolicited and horrifying detail, a recent incident involving a train and a cyclist so, friends, I pass this message on to you: thank you for walking your bike on the light rail platform.
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Leah McElrath @leahmcelrath.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
AP Stylebook warns against anthropomorphizing AI systems: “Avoid language that gives them human characteristics… Instead, explain what a system does, how well it performs, who built it and who could be affected by it.”
APStylebook @APStylebook
X.com
Artificial intelligence systems do not think, feel, want or understand. Avoid language that gives them human characteristics. This is called anthropomorphizing, when we ascribe human traits, emotions or behaviors to non-human things, such as animals or inanimate objects.
Instead, explain what a system does, how well it performs, who built it and who could be affected by it.
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Neighbors for More Neighbors (N4MN) @moreneighbors.org · 23/09/2026
Leah Hanson, House Candidate for District 18A, recently shared her stance on affordable housing. “We need to invest in housing volume,” she said. “That means we need to build homes without unnecessary bureaucracy getting in the way.” Read for full commentary: www.minnpost.com/elections/20...
minnpost.com
Cows, colleges and competitive districts: DFL, GOP eye key House seats covering Northfield and St. Peter
High voter turnout by students at Carleton, St. Olaf and Gustavus colleges adds a wrinkle to legislative races.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
This reminds me, every time I've biked past 19th and Nicollet since the Weekend of Three Shootings there's been a cop car at the corner with its lights on, but every time I've looked inside it's been empty.
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Wedge LIVE!™ @wedge.live · 23/09/2026
Turns out driving like an asshole is the most efficient way to do it, so the computer overlords will emulate it.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
Final review: funny and charming when it's not marred by casual mid-century racism (category: "shifty Arab," severity: "could have been worse"). Still a good read but watch out for Mark's chapter.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
How do you figure out that equivalence?
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
Oh, and here are some numbers about Minnesota electricity sources (from 2022, looks like): mn.gov/commerce-sta...
mn.gov
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
Anyway, maps are cool!
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
I Kagi'd it and found a Reddit thread where some people said the Mississippi is too muddy or too flat for hydro, but some other people pointed out we actually do have hydro plants, including one here in the Twin Cities. So I don't know.
reddit.com
From the StLouis community on Reddit
Explore this post and more from the StLouis community
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
Looking at all the Canadian regions that are bright green thanks to hydro, and my region that runs along America's great river, I couldn't help wondering why we're less than 1% hydro. We use mostly coal and gas, surprising no one. (A surprise to me: the middle of Montana is 100% hydro!)
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
Regions within countries don't necessarily correspond to states or provinces. I'm from Minnesota, so I want to see Minnesota's stats, but instead I can only get a discontinuous blob that stretches roughly from some Great Lakes down the Mississippi.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
This is cool. You can see what energy sources are being used in different regions, all over the world, right now. Like Botswana is running on 97% coal, while France is 98% carbon-free, largely due to nuclear. Eastern India is 90% coal, while next door Nepal is 100% carbon-free, renewable hydro.
app.electricitymaps.com
Map | Electricity Maps
Track real-time and historical electricity data worldwide — see production mix, CO2 emissions, prices, cross-border exports, and much more.
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Rob Tracinski @tracinski.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
This is something I've been focusing on. I want to do a series called "The Liberal Tradition," because modern conservatism is in no way more genuinely American than all of the deep American traditions liberalism is rooted in.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
I want to win
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Alex @mplsalex.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
This whole thing is worth your time to listen to.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
We’re not going to win with the coalition of everybody who was right about everything all along If that were a winning coalition, it would have won already We need people who were wrong, who are willing to admit it and try to make things better
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 23/09/2026
Seems a lot of Blueskyers are tripping over each other in a race to point out how wrong Renee Good’s mom was to vote for Trump And she was And yeah it’s infuriating when people can’t see cruelty until it’s happening to someone they love So feel your feelings But
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 22/09/2026
We'd love to see you at The Others (1729 N 2nd St), but it's also being livestreamed! And if you're willing to fill out an extremely short survey, you can watch for free – just type a 0 when it asks you to name your price.
crowdwork.com
Technically Funny Live • Technically Funny
Featuring: NEAT Here We Are Waxy Comedy At The Others Workshop Collective, 1729 N 2nd St, Minneapolis MN, Enter through door C in the lot on 18th Ave Online ticket holders will receive a link to th...
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 22/09/2026
One of these shows is tonight! It's my first show with Here We Are, a group that travels to a new place, learns a tiny bit about it, and improvises the definitive portrayal of what it's like to live there. Tonight we're going to... Minneapolis. Should be interesting! I hear great things!
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 22/09/2026
Also I just read Kill All Wizards, which was very fun. (I highly, highly recommend The Naming Song, but it's longer. Maybe for next year!) I am assuming novellas count, as long as they are book-shaped.
thirdarchive.net
Jedediah Berry
Author of Kill All Wizards, The Naming Song, The Family Arcana, and The Manual of Detection. Co-creator of the Wildendrem tabletop adventure game setting.
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 22/09/2026
Have you read everything by Naomi Kritzer yet? Me either, but the last four are great! And quick!
naomikritzer.com
Naomi Kritzer’s Books
My newest book (which is a novella, but is being published as a short book as opposed to the sort of novella that is published as a long short story) is Obstetrix, published in June 2026 by Tordotc…
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 22/09/2026
And all this other stuff! Paid family leave! The trans refuge law! Marijuana legalization! Carbon-free electricity by 2040! Like I don't expect Klobuchar to be a progressive champion. But I don't think she'll veto great legislation the DFL sends to her desk, either.
dflhouse.com
HuffPost: How Minnesota Democrats Passed A Raft of Progressive Legislation With A 1-Seat Majority — Minnesota House DFL
Minnesota Democrats entered this year’s legislative session in a similar situation. Last fall, they won control of the state’s executive branch, House and Senate — a legislative “trifecta” — but with ...
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 22/09/2026
I'm not excited by Amy Klobuchar, but I'm excited to vote for her. Not just because her opponent is awful, but because I think we can regain the trifecta, and I remember the good and crucial work the DFL did last time they had it. Like free meals at school, in the news today.
mprnews.org
Fewer skipped meals, less stigma: New data on the impact of Minnesota’s universal school meals
A trio of new studies shows Minnesota’s universal school meals program is providing a sense of relief to Minnesota families and students who are no longer skipping lunch and worrying less about family...
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Erik Ostrom @erikostrom.com · 22/09/2026
static.klipy.com
Believe Motivation
Alt: GIF of Ted Lasso pointing up at a hand-lettered sign that says BELIEVE.
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