iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 22/09/2026

“It looks like you’re emotionally abusing your kid. Do you need to feel shame?”

Clippy, the Microsoft Word grammar Nazi mascot.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 21/09/2026

Artificial intelligence understands that a compelling headline is necessary to establish reader interest.

Screenshot of a headline from Sara Nelson's new AI "news" site that reads,

"CB 121282 2026-09-21
CM Strauss's RV program (VRAP) adds eight permanent FTEs and reprograms existing homelessness funds (Part 2)"

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 17/09/2026

Does anyone know Kash Patel’s t-shirt size?

A black t-shirt that reads in large white letters, FBI
and then in much smaller white letters, FURRY BODY INSPECTOR .

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 07/09/2026

Bizahrran Mamdani is such a funny concept.

Panel from an old Superman comic, mostly text:

“THE BIZARRO WORLD PEOPLE'S BEHAVIOR IS GOVERNED BY THEIR BIZARRO CODE...”

“BIZARRO CODE
US DO OPPOSITE OF ALL EARTHLY THINGS! US HATE BEAUTY! US LOVE UGLINESS!
IS BIG CRIME TO MAKE ANYTHING PERFECT ON BIZARRO WORLD!”

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 05/09/2026

The leaching of color from menswear over the last three decades has been infuriating. It’s gotten so bad that Esquire now considers dark grey to be “edgy.”

A screenshot from an Esquire Labor Day shopping guide showing a dark grey t-shirt. It reeds,

“For a heavyweight tee with a little extra pizazz, it doesn't get much better than Carhartt's bestselling pocket tee. It's got that rugged-cool look, is insanely durable, and is now at its lowest price of the year on Amazon in this edgy sleet gray color”

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 01/09/2026

This man has clearly never touched a book in his whole life.

Mr. Beast awkwardly holds his book as though it’s a box of cereal.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 17/08/2026

Love these little Bizarros popping up around town.

An adorable wheatpasted cartoon of the Superman character Bizarro, with an “aw, gee” look on his face.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 04/08/2026

FINALLY. Paste-Eaters rise up!

A splash page of The Human Torch Meets Paste Pot Pete story, where the villain, in a purple beret and dressed like Little Lord Fauntleroy with a bucket of glue, threatens the Human Torch.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 28/07/2026

Finally! All this raw, naked charisma was wasted on print media.

A screenshot of a smug Douthat in a NYT video podcast, with the headline "Did Women Ruin the Workplace?" above him.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 23/07/2026

Yesterday I was taking my greyhounds out for their morning perambulation. A guy whizzed by on a bike and as he passed he said, “It’s nice that you’re taking your deer out for a walk.”

Oberon, an elderly red greyhound, is looking at me and smiling. Wallace, a red blind senior greyhound, is looking toward me with concern. It’s sunny on the trail and grass is high, giving the scene a pastoral look.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 11/07/2026

Show your least politically aware friend this screenshot and then ask them which person in the photos said the quote.

A photo of a an old dweeb in a blue suit and glasses with tiny hands that look like they were pulled off a baby doll, and a photo of a young man wearing a jacket and shirt who looks like he exercises more than once a month. The quote is "He's a lightweight—a 90-pound weakling."

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 07/07/2026

Signed up for this labeler today and it's going to change the way I interact with Bluesky from now on. I'm not going to give any credence to someone who has the time and the inclination to post dozens of times a day On Here. Immediately muting any human who posted more than 100 times yesterday.

Screenshot:
Made over 50 replies yesterday
Replies over 20 times per day on average

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 25/06/2026

“Hasbro unveils Derpy Tiger and Saja Boy Demon inspired Furblets.”

William Shakespeare sits in a chair, writing with a quill pen on a pad of paper in his lap.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 12/06/2026

I’m sorry, but running shoe designers have collectively lost their goddamned minds.

A promo photo of an Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3, a sneaker that has equal amounts shoe and sole. It looks like a platform shoe, the soles are so enormous.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 07/06/2026

Yesterday’s walk: from downtown to Ballard. Did you know that there’s a Tove Jansson and Moomins exhibit at the Nordic Museum right now? It’s small, but for Jansson fans it’s a delight. Then walked along the Burke Gilman back to the train. 35,192 steps, 18.1 miles.

Color photo of Tove Jansson swimming at her small island getaway in Finland. She’s wearing a crown of flowers and smiling.

Black and white photo of Jansson wearing a crown of flowers, looking off into the distance.

Photo of Jansson’s black and white Moomin art depicting a fanciful submarine swimming alongside Marge and exotic fish.

Moody black and white illustration of a Moomin swimming to the bottom of the ocean. It’s a very detailed illustration with lots of texture.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 03/06/2026

Hey, I just wrote about this a few days ago! Feels so obvious in retrospect. buttondown.com/paulconstant...

Anyway, I deeply regret not pushing back on
"content" when it first started appearing. In fact, I think we all should have treated people calling writing, video, and art "content" as though they just released the loudest, smelliest fart imaginable.
We should not have tolerated the loosening of language, the death of specificity, the financialization of art. We should have fought back, and we should have fought hard.

Because looking back, that early-2010s funneling of journalism and video and audio essays and movies and TV shows into the beige, formless packaging of "content" really paved the way for the dawn of AI slop that we've seen in the last three years. When everything is just content to smash into the frameworks of streaming video and the endless gutters of a news website and a streaming music queue, why not just hire the robots to do that work?

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 31/05/2026

Today’s walk: From Redmond to Woodinville via the Sammamish River Trail, then over to Totem Lake. The trip home took over an hour longer than usual because light rail was screwed and my bus was in traffic all the way home. Kinda killed the buzz from the walk, honestly. 44.331 steps, 23.2 miles.

SATURDAY MAY 30, 2026
44,331
STEPS
944
DAY STREAK
23.2
MILES
23
FLOORS
介
Walked with Pedometer++

A weird sculpture resembling deconstructed wine barrels near Chateau St Michelle.

A beautiful tree on the Sammamish River Trail that looks like it’s weeping.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 30/05/2026

It is hard to overstate the obscene scale of the Zuckerberg superyacht. Just looking at this abomination makes me desperate to reinstate the 94% top marginal tax rate we had in 1944. Disgusting.

From I5 looking down on Lake Union, Zuckerberg’s superyacht dwarfs all the other boats around it. It makes all the other boats, and even buildings, look like toys.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 25/05/2026

If you’re off tomorrow, definitely go see I Love Boosters at Tasveer in Columbia City. Whether you love it or hate it, you’ll get your money’s worth of visual extravagance, and you’ll support a great community theater while you do it. (For the record, I loved it. Subtext is for cowards.)

An I Love Boosters movie poster outside Tasveer, showing that it’s playing at 5:30 and 7:45 tomorrow and Tuesday.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 13/05/2026

Oh, yeah. Some dogs figure it out and adjust their behavior around Wally very quickly. Funny enough, I don’t know if Obie, my other greyhound, even understands that Wally is blind. And they’ve been together for five years! But Obie was blessed with beauty, not brains.

Obie, a 12-year-old red greyhound, smiles for the camera.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 13/05/2026

Wally wasn’t upset! Whenever he can tell a new dog is paying attention to him he wants them to know that he is Big and Loud and Strong and Tough and Definitely Not Blind or Otherwise Vulnerable by barking and leaping straight into the air. At home and with friends, he’s a sweetie.

Wally, an eight year old red greyhound, walks along a paved trail. He’s happy. You can tell from his eyes that he’s blind.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 03/05/2026

I’m gonna go way out on a limb and predict that the answer is “money.”

Screenshot of a headline on Apple News:

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.
How Jeff Bezos Broke Into Fashion's Inner Circle
1h ago • Chavie Lieber

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 26/04/2026

Yesterday’s walk: I did my annual walk around Lake Washington. So much of the construction that’s been happening for the last few years is over so it was the easiest trip in a long time. 102,297 steps, 49 miles.

A view of the sunrise from the Montlake Bridge.

Seattle’s skyscrapers seen across the lake from Kirkland

A cool statue in Renton showing an aviator standing by a pole showing distances to far-flung locations like Wellington and Montreal

SATURDAY APR 25, 2026
102,297
STEPS
909
DAY STREAK
49.0
MILES
18
FLOORS
Walked with Pedometer++

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 25/04/2026

I’ve never seen this kind of “wave to signal” beg button before. One of the buttons didn’t seem to work by waving but the other one did. For a second I thought it was an elaborate prank on pedestrians.

A crosswalk signal in Kirkland that reads
“PUSH OR WAVE AT BUTTON
FOR [walking figure].”

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 22/04/2026

Obviously, only Michael Jackson should be allowed to review the Michael Jackson biopic. As people who have never been Michael Jackson, film critics are not equipped to understand the subject matter.

Screenshot of a skeet with the author name clipped off because I don’t want to put anyone on blast:

“If you're reviewing a pizza joint, the mission is to evaluate the quality of the pizza, not to complain that the joint doesn't offer steak or lobster. And if you hate all kinds of pizza, maybe let a pizza lover review it instead, while you go to a steakhouse...”q

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 22/04/2026

Just saw a writer share this meme and, okay, fine. Read the stories and not just the headlines, obviously. But why are we defending editors and outlets misrepresenting the work of their writers in order to anger audiences? Why should writers shrug off the distortion of their hard work?

simpsons don’t make me tap the sign meme only it says

DO NOT REACT SOLELY TO THE HEADLINE OR DESCRIPTION OF AN ARTICLE OR ESSAY, AS WRITERS DON'T GET TO CHOOSE THESE AND THEY MIGHT MISREPRESENT
WHAT'S ACTUALLY IN THE BODY OF THE PIECE

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 20/04/2026

Interesting that he says World War II lasted six years when America was only at war for less than four years. I wonder which side he’s identifying with here?

Screenshot:

Germany lasted for nearly six years in World War II, starting with the invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, and ending with its unconditional surrender on May 8, 1945, known as V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day) Following Hitler's suicide, Germany's surrender marke the end of Nazi rule and the war in

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 12/04/2026

Meanwhile, a new generation of critics boldly contradicts the conventional wisdom of the past, unafraid to bludgeon sacred cows with economical prose.

In white chalk on a sidewalk: “67 IS STUPID,” with that last word underlined three times.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 12/04/2026

A new generation of poets rises, inspired by the same springtime that roused Dickinson and Shakespeare. A torch, passed.

A child’s handwriting in pink chalk on the sidewalk: “FLOWERS ARE LOWKEY Kinda FIRE”

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 05/04/2026

Good news, guys. That post may sound insane and terrifying, but the AP says it’s just a “fiery new threat.” Nothing to worry about!

AP apnews.com
Trump issues fiery new threat against Iran as details of US aviator's rescue emerge

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 03/04/2026

Two weeks ago, when posting something negative about AI: “Hey, this site is getting good again.” Today, when he writes a bad take on immigration in The Atlantic: “This site is terrible and nobody should use it.” Buddy, develop some object permanence. The site didn’t change. You just kept talking.

Reposted by Alexander Kustov
Alexander Kustov @akoustov.bsky.social • 14d
Glad the folks here are warming up to my takes again.

Alexander Kustov @akoustov.bsky.social • 8h
For folks who still believe it's OK to stay on this website, I'm genuinely curious: can you go through these quote posts and tell me with a straight face that this is an acceptable way for adults with PhDs to engage in intellectual discussion in 2026?

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 27/03/2026

For the curious, it’s on S Jackson between Long Brothers Books and Zeitgeist Coffee. Shaping up to be a gorgeous city block. The owner is super-nice.

A photo of a wall of blank books at The Outpost, a new stationary store in Pioneer Square.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 27/03/2026

Remnick? Boo! Give Lithgow to Chotiner, you cowards!

Screenshot:

THE NEW YORKER INTERVIEW
JOHN LITHGOW ON THE CONTROVERSIAL AUTHORS ROALD DAHL AND J.K. ROWLING
The actor, who stars in the new Broadway production "Giant," about Dahl's fraught legacy, discusses whether we can separate the art from the artist.
By David Remnick
March 27, 2026

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 23/03/2026

When exactly did all the to-go coffee cup lid manufacturers decide they hated us?

An eight-ounce paper coffee cup covered in stains from the coffee dribbling under the lid and down the sides.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 22/03/2026

Today’s walk: across 90, down to Factoria, over to Newcastle, and down to Renton. The last journey across the bridge before the train opens up. A beautiful spring-y day with lots of happy people out in the sun. 51,517 steps, 24.6 miles

SATURDAY MAR 21, 2026
51,517 STEPS
874 DAY STREAK
24.6 MILES
22
FLOORS
Walked with Pedometer++

A babbling creek running red in Newcastle.

A community poetry board in Lake Boren Park, with lots of poetry written on multi-colored post-it notes.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 22/03/2026

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 15/03/2026

This was my best day last year.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 15/03/2026

Today’s walk: I realized that Tacoma is just a short train ride to Federal Way and one 574 bus stop away, so I spent the day exploring Tacoma. Some great shops, a lot of hills, and a snowy start giving way to a beautiful day. 44452 steps, 20.9 miles.

Screenshot of my Pedometer app.

SATURDAY MAR 14, 2026
44,452 STEPS
867 DAY STREAK
20.9 MILES
32 FLOORS
Walked with Pedometer++

A shot of Puget Sound from the top of a hill near the Proctor neighborhood. There’s a container ship and blue skies.

A large, ornately decorated heart-shaped lock. In place of the keyhole is the letter T.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 02/03/2026

It must be spring because a bald eagle has returned to the Chief Sealth Trail. The local crows are furious about it.

A bald eagle perched at the top of an electricity tower against a blue sky, the sun at its back.

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 01/03/2026

Today’s walk: North along Lake Washington, up to Capitol Hill, down to South Lake Union, and around Lake Union. Stopped by the Brooks store in Fremont to get this year’s fresh pair of Cascadia trail runners. 45,472 steps, 23.6 miles. A beautiful day for horrible news.

View of downtown Seattle from Gasworks Park. It’s a beautiful day.

View of Lake Union coming down from Capitol Hill into South Lake Union.

A new pair of Brooks Cascadia Trail runners, tread side up. They’re pristine. Next to them are the Brooks Trail Runners I bought last year. There is no tread on some of the heel and they’re flat on the sole.

Screenshot of my Pedometer app:

SATURDAY FEB 28, 2026
45,472 STEPS
853 DAY STREAK
23.6 MILES
30 FLOORS
Walked with Pedometer++

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Paul Constant @paulconstant.com · 14/02/2026

I don’t know why I find this headline so funny.

Screenshot of a variety headline:

Home > Film > Festivals
Feb 14, 2026 8:30am PT
Rupert Grint on the Rise of Fascism: 'Obviously, I'm
Against It'
By Alex Ritman, Ellise Shafer

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