iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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MC Lars @mclars.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

I just heard the news. Midge & her family came to every show of mine since the late 2000s. She was a fan, once my "DJ" onstage to sneak into a 21+ club. She died in a car crash last week at 26. This is her band ShiSho, the fierce younger one, mean left hook. RIP "Midge" Grapel-Barnette (2000-2026)

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 26/09/2026

“Juggalo Songs for Juggalo Cats”

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EAT PANT | Shared Custody @eatpantgames.com · 25/09/2026

BEHOLD... Shared Custody! 👿 You're demons with temporary legal guardianship of SPROG, the heir to the infernal throne. Team up in co-op to escort him through hazardous worlds to the Unholy Gates. Keep him happy, keep him alive, and appease his demands... #indiegame #gamedev #coop WISHLIST NOW! ⬇️

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Sapling @saplingband.com · 25/09/2026

We just dropped a new music video for our song No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service. ✌️❤️🍝 youtu.be/OF2bDwsefRg

youtu.be

Sapling & Friends - "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service" (Official Video)

YouTube video by Sapling

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 21/09/2026

“La Zamenhof-strato” came out over 20 years ago?! Mi estas oldulo.

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 18/09/2026

I worried I wasn’t as big a fan of Hildegard of Bingen as I thought I was, since I didn’t know her feast day, but then—wait—since when has she been a saint?! 2012, by Benedict, apparently.

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Desert Bus for Hope 🚌 #DB2026 OCTOBER 23rd @desertbus.org · 16/09/2026

Many people ask, "What is Desert Bus for Hope?" Others ask, "When are you going to update that video?" Great news:

youtu.be

What is Desert Bus for Hope? 2026 Edition

YouTube video by DesertBusForHope

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Pip Adam @pipadam.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Better off Read Episode 164: So grateful to get to speak with Terri Te Tau about The Valley of Unlikely Acquaintances. i LOVE this book. THANK YOU Spoor Books and this image of Terri was taken by Rebecca McMillan better-read.com/2026/09/12/e...

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Only In Boston @onlyinbos.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

A little Pokémon mystery has popped up inside a Watertown café. This $1 vending machine dispenses “Poorly Drawn Pokémon” mystery mini-prints, with each turn of the knob revealing a random hand-drawn Pokémon. There’s even a trade center for duplicates.

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Manawatū People's Radio @mpr.nz · 09/09/2026

If you missed todays 📚SLANZA sessions📔, jump in to listen to the team chatting with Sacha Cotter and Josh Morgan and their 2026 Margaret Mahy Book of the Year winner 🐛A GUIDE TO ROCKS🗿 mpr.nz/show/slanzas...

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 28/08/2026

My proposed lightning talk was accepted, so I guess I'm speaking at this too! (on hardware acceleration for software developers)

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 26/08/2026

I'm talking tonight at our local software developers meetup -- hoping to challenge the idea that software and hardware are two entirely different worlds, that people are only a software person or a hardware person

meetup.com

Pong on FPGA: Programming hardware with high-level languages, Thu, Aug 27, 2026, 5:30 PM | Meetup

Julie Schwartz is doing a deeper dive after her lightning talk in April: "Everything can be done in software running on a general-purpose CPU, but when would you want to us

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Borneo Jimmy @borneojimmy.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Six days until the Massachusetts primary election & we need to get Jonathan Paz across the finish line! I don't trust 99.9% of politicians. Jonathan is that one in a million. All power to the people! All of the people. www.pazforthepeople.com/issues

pazforthepeople.com

Issues — Paz for the People

Jonathan Paz is running for U.S. House of Representatives in Massachusetts's 5th Congressional District in 2026, fighting for working families, immigration justice, and medicare for all.

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BJ Colangelo @bjcolangelo.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

If you want something to motivate you to be more like Dolly, I highly recommend the documentary STILL WORKING 9 to 5. It's all about how the film inspired real labor movements to improve workplace conditions for women, and how far we still have to go. It's available to stream for free on Tubi.

tubitv.com

Still Working 9 to 5 (2022)

The stars of the cult classic comedy, 9 to 5, discuss the film’s impact on society, as well as the obstacles women face in the workplace to this day.

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 23/08/2026

Reti Rapa (Roller Derby) Triple Header in Te Papaioea! Teams from Swamp City Roller Derby, Volcanic City Rollers from Auckland and Bay of Plenty Roller Derby will be taking to the track for a full day of derby action. Saturday, 29 August / Doors open 12.00pm / Arena 3, Pascal St / Koha entry

Poster for Reti Rapa (Roller Derby) Triple Header, with a photo of opposing skaters battling it out on the track. 12:30pm, Swamp City vs Bay of Plenty. 2:30pm, Bay of Plenty vs Volcanic. 4:30pm, Volcanic vs Swamp City. 29 August (O Here-Turi-Kōkā) 2026. Doors open 12pm, Arena 3, Pascal St, koha entry.

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Paul Tobin @paultobin.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

Wife found a painting in a thrift store and now it's up in her bathroom.

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 21/08/2026

This is awesome! I love the 2001 Routes of Pride map, that details the original protest march and the landmarks it stopped at to protest the institutions oppressing queer folks. An updated map and accompanying zine is awesome! (in partnership with The West End Museum @westendmuseum.bsky.social )

queerhistoryboston.org

Routes of Pride - 2026 Zine — Queer History Boston

Our 2001 Routes of Pride Map recreated in 2026 in partnership with The West End Museum

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Manawatū People's Radio @mpr.nz · 20/08/2026

This morning, @objectivereality.bsky.social caught up with Emily Hartley-Skudder to chat about her exhibition "Cameo," which is inspired by the iconic Ladies Rest in Palmerston North. Listen here: tinyurl.com/morning-show... and find more community interviews at mpr.nz/show/morning...!

The picture "Soak and Splash" by Emily Hartley-Skudder, which is part of the exhibiton "Cameo" at Te Manawa in Palmerston North.

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jayhengepub.bsky.social @jayhengepub.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Did you know JayHenge has a freebies page? You can download Pioneers & Pathfinders now, and sometimes other complete speculative-fiction anthologies in EPUB or PDF formats—absolutely free. No catch. We’d just like the stories to be read. zurl.co/IdAMJ

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 17/08/2026

I love seeing friends doing and making things! and having fun ❤️ I’m now following @elegantlich.com

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Book Haven @bookhavennz.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Tomorrow, 14 August 6pm at Aro Valley Community Centre is the launch! We'll be there with kluge - so looking forward to it.

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 12/08/2026

I thought of Henri and wanted to relive this classic, but when I clicked on it, the voiceover was some bland bro speaking in English! Seems it was “helpfully” auto-translated and spoken by AI, because the fcking humorless fcks have to rob us of every little pleasure *tableflip*

youtube.com

Henri 4, L'Haunting

YouTube video by HenriLeChatNoir

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 09/08/2026

I always rave about this podcast, but this episode was great: Perrin talks about her watercolor comic book about sexual diversity in animals, and lets loose a fun sense of humor that makes Chris blush. Feminism, science communication, and learning there’s a fish that lives in sea cucumber butt holes

shows.acast.com

Why should you care about animal sex? (w/ Perrin Ireland) | How to Be a Better Human

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 05/08/2026

REANNZ's Aotearoa NZ Research Software Conference is coming up and I'm tempted to propose a lightning talk on "hardware acceleration for software developers" about how FPGAs, high-level hardware design languages, and free/open tools make it easier than ever for software people to use custom circuits

rseconference.nz

NZRS Conference |

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 05/08/2026

rseconference.nz

NZRS Conference |

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 04/08/2026

@bcantrill.bsky.social I know you’ve raved on your podcast about the Computer History Museum’s oral histories. I just saw that the Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation @charlesrivermuseum.bsky.social has a Massachusetts tech pioneers oral histories project

techpioneers.charlesrivermuseum.org

Massachusetts Tech Pioneers Oral History Virtual Exhibition

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 02/08/2026

Wikipedia says MTV came from Mike Nesmith (of the Monkees) seeing "Radio with Pictures" while on tour in NZ. I played a 1984 episode on the NZ On Screen website (highly recommend!) & now I've learned that Russell Crowe was a musician in his teens, interviewed here (~3m in) as manager of The Venue?!

nzonscreen.com

NZ On Screen

NZ On Screen is the online showcase of NZ television, film, music video and web series

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Sapling @saplingband.com · 31/07/2026

Happy 40th birthday, Jonny Spaghetti! To celebrate, we're dropping our new single a day early. 100% of proceeds from No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service will be donated directly to New England Justice for Our Neighbors. www.newenglandjfon.com saplingband.bandcamp.com/album/no-shi... #newsong #newmusic

saplingband.bandcamp.com

No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service, by Sapling & Friends

3 track album

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 28/07/2026

F!&k yeah, Charlotte. So much good queer resistance has been there. Proud to say it’s where I’m from. Watch for @invisiblehistories.bsky.social ‘s grand opening of the new space on November 14!

youtube.com

Charlotte is now home to one of the South's largest LGBTQ archives

YouTube video by WFAE News

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 26/07/2026

“Why is there a statue of jars of pickles in Nathan Tufts Park in Somerville?” answered in the form of a song

youtube.com

Old Powder House Pickles

YouTube video by Jef Czekaj

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 26/07/2026

Was reminiscing about going to one of the first Bazaar Bizarre markets 25-ish years ago, when it was a tiny punk craft fair in the Somerville MA VFW hall, and I bought a painting of Jonathan Richman by @jefczekaj.bsky.social and now I’ve spent all morning watching his YouTube back catalog of…

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 24/07/2026

Every time. When the topic of the Radium Girls comes up, I think, “OMD has a catchy song about that!” but I forget how it goes, so I try to look it up, but can’t find it. What?! Oh, their song is Tesla Girls. Every time.

youtube.com

Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark - Tesla Girls

YouTube video by OMDVEVO

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 15/07/2026

It’s next Tisha b'Av already?! I’ve been writing this thesis too long. Here’s hoping I finish soon

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 13/07/2026

Sam Neill in 2021 reading a poem about the place I live, “The Truth About Palmerston North” by Tim Upperton

youtu.be

Palmerston North

YouTube video by Two Paddocks

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 06/07/2026

Amazing. Reminds me of my favorite public art, just around the corner from me:

Short brick wall with an arch built into it. The back of the arch is painted, possibly by a child? perhaps a group effort? The painting is in bright colors, of a pair of tūī sitting on abstract plants, with a rainbow in the background above a distant blue mountain range, with the birds and flowers and two ladybugs (a parent and child?) on a grassy rolling foreground. The style reminds me of southwestern US art, with the heads of the tūī turned to the right.

A picture of another arch built into the short brick wall, with a painting in the back of the arch, possibly by a child? perhaps a group effort? The painting is in bright colors; here a single tūī flies across the sky with a silhouette that, even more than the other arch painting, reminds me of the style of southwestern US art; the tūī is flying above a landscape, the colors are bright pink and dark blues (or purples? sorry I'm color impaired) giving the impression of a night sky with clouds and a moon, perhaps?, or maybe a sun?, with abstract plants like flowers or cactus in the foreground below, and a road or river leading to the horizon.

A wider view of the two arches reveals that they the short wall (maybe 2 to 3 feet high) is a retaining wall for a little grassy patch of land, a little park, with a few trees, and in front of the wall is a small paved area with a gently-curving green metal bench. Some residental houses, with fences, and street parking are seen in the background beyond the park.

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 06/07/2026

My @saplingband.com stickers arrived! ❤️ This may be the kick to finally put the pile of stickers on my roller derby helmet

Where to even begin? On top of a brown paper envelope with a canceled circular USA global forever stamp (with a compass rose design) is a business card for the band Sapling and a couple of the band’s stickers. The card has a picture of the three band members and says: “Sapling: bitchpop/art rock/bad jazz. ‘The best band in America.’ -some drunk guy at O’Brien’s. www.saplingband.com saplingthree@gmail.com” One sticker is a coat of arms: a shield with a canon shooting confetti, a fleur-de-lis made of a peeled banana hovering above, the shield flanked by a rubber chicken holding a vibraphone and a dog, I think, standing upright and recursively holding a rubber chicken with a vibraphone, standing on a banner with the motto “Noli bibere aquam pigmentosam” (“Don’t drink the paint water”). The other sticker is the band’s name in a sort of Arabic-ish font, that gives it a “metal umlaut” but below the letter rather than above, in a fiery pattern on black background. Phew.

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David Schwartz 🇳🇿 @davidschwartznz.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Reminder that KiwiRPG week starts tomorrow.

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potes normalgirl @stealingpotatoes.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

my cat's always suuuper chill about going to the vets #caturday #cats #cat #comic

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 25/06/2026

Hugh! Loved this conversation! Will have to find a way to watch the movie — and check out Liz’s RPG and other work

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Te Herenga Waka University Press @thwupbooks.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

'Like the Guardian list, we hope this Southern Hemisphere Fiction 100 will spark both discovery and dissent. Let’s all read more books, from more places, from more writers.' www.anzliterature.com/feature/the-...

anzliterature.com

The Southern Hemisphere Fiction 100 – Academy of New Zealand Literature

The rest of ‘the greatest literature ever published in English’

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potes normalgirl @stealingpotatoes.bsky.social · 20/06/2026

happy pride from some stretchy and sleepy cats <3 #caturday #pride #cats

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Julie @kvarko.northsky.social · 13/06/2026

Remember?! The first thing I’d always run when using a Mac in the computer lab was MacBarf, a program that makes a barfing sound when you eject a disk

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