iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 17/10/2026

I cooked "Snow Eggs" from the recent episode of Tasting History. Bloody fiddly but they turned out perfect. Absolutely delicious.

A blue bowl with custard and two white meringues floating in it.

Five yellow lumps floating in yellowish goo in a saucepan on the stove.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2026

Sigh. No #newscientist deliveries for two weeks, then the backlog arrives.

Two copies of new scientist magazine in plastic wrap on a tabletop.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/10/2026

Fixy fixy! This cable spends a lot of time underwater. I 3d printed a little mould jig so I could cast resin around the join. I wish I'd made it longer so there was more resin in contact with the sheath, but it shouldn't be under any tension. She'll be right. #fix #repair #diy #righttorepair

A photo of two ends of a blue cable poking into a rectangular black plastic box. The white and black cores inside the cable have been tinned with solder and are overlapping slightly.

The same as the previous photo, except the ends have been soldered together.

A photo of the black plastic box with the cables sitting on a workbench. The little black box has been filled with a transparent epoxy resin.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/10/2026

Weekend job: Fixing the dodgy join in the pool robot cable. Currently printing a mould to cast the join in resin for waterproofiness. A new cable is AUD$172. I'll try to save this one first.

A photo of a workbench showing parts of a disassembled pool cleaning robot. In the centre is a blue cable with white and black cores inside. The cable has been chopped open to expose the cores.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 01/10/2026

5.5 weeks of (nearly) daily practice and I'm half-way through learning to copy Morse code at 20 WPM character speed. I am really enjoying it! Learning is fun! I have an M32 Pocket for practising sending. It's got some fun games on it that require you to […] [Original post on howse.social]

A daily activity square plot showing five and a half columns of green squares of various greenness throughout september and a bit of august.

A plot of accuracy vs lesson, and a table of the same data below. Accuracy is bumping around 60-100%, with a red moving average mostly above 90%.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 30/09/2026

Y'honour this is why I have a set of scales that go down to 10mg: Avoiding arguments about who got more nerds.

A photo of two plastic bowls containing some pink and purple nerds lollies. One of the bowls is sitting on a small scale with 10.27g on the display.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 11/09/2026

@zachweinersmith.bsky.social @ZachWeinersmith I've always taken it as a given that any interactions with a LLM-as-a-service website will be added to the training corpus for the next model. Conversations with these services cannot reasonably be assumed to be […] [Original post on howse.social]

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/09/2026

Hahaha c'mon really? I'm gonna bank transfer a dollar, so their accountants have to deal with an extra 13 cents on their balance sheets.

Dear Travis,

Your old account balance is $0.00. This amount includes your past bills and payments.

Please find attached your bill for September 2026.

Your new account balance is $0.87. This amount includes the old account balance and the current bill.

Payment is requested.

We thank you for your custom, and wish you all the best for the future.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 08/09/2026

HOLY SHIT THEY HAVE A CHICK ALREADY. They must've nested somewhere else and migrated back to their usual spot once the chicks hatched. Only one seems to have survived so far. Looks less than a week old.

A photo of a bush stone-curlew and a tiny little beeper chick so cute.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/09/2026

THE CURLEWS ARE BACK. WOOO. Curlew watch 2026 begins.

A photo of two well-camoflaged bush stone-curlews in front of a wire fence under a casuarina tree. One is sitting, one is standing.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/09/2026

Here's a progress report after two weeks of learning #Morse code using the #Koch method. Making steady progress with about 10-20 minutes of practice a day. I'm about to start lesson 13/40, where the first punctuation is introduced. Sleep is excellent for […] [Original post on howse.social]

A plot of accuracy vs session count. It's bumping around between 75 and 100%. When each new lesson starts the accuracy dips down, then recovers back up to 98%.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/09/2026

I invented this little widget today. It makes winding stainless wire into a coil very easy. Previously I had to guide the wire onto the mandrel with a gloved hand, which was dangerous, painful and error-prone. This guide makes the spirals come out perfect every […] [Original post on howse.social]

A photo of a small cylindrical piece of steel clamped in a bench vice. There is a slot cut in the side of one end, and a stepped internal diameter.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 03/09/2026

New coffee machine part arrived today! Installed it, got sprayed in the face, removed it and moved the hose o-rings over from the old one (pictured), reinstalled it, got a coffee with crema on top for the first time in ages. I hope this is the end of this saga […] [Original post on howse.social]

A photo of a coffee machine part sitting in a cardboard box on a messy workbench. The part has a rectangular base with a cylindrical protrusion. The cylinder is a translucent yellow with a black end.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 02/09/2026

I'm up to lesson 8 in the Koch method for learning Morse code, and I've found I'm sometimes not associating the tones with the letter, but with the position of the key on the keyboard. As an experiment I switched to writing out the letters while listening to […] [Original post on howse.social]

A photo of my notebook covered in rows of meaningless letters, like kkkmmk mmkmk kkmmk mkkmm mkkkkk kmmmmm mkkmm, etc.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 31/08/2026

I am slowly progressing through learning Morse code using the Koch method. The accuracy I've managed since starting lesson 6 was 96/98%. After a sleep I hit 100% for the first time. It's been interesting to see how my brain works with a very strictly structured […] [Original post on howse.social]

A screenshot of lwco.net showing a 100% pass on lesson 6 at 20WPM character speed.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 31/08/2026

This setup has strong "mistake" vibes, but nothing concrete. Yet. I'll definitely be on the other side of a stout barrier the first time I power this up.

A photo of a toothed HSS cutting disk on an angle grinder. The angle grinder is bolted to a length of pine.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 31/08/2026

Woo! Found a cheap source of the same stainless wire I've used for the rest of the chainmail. It's not enough to finish off the piece, but it was 40% the price of Bunnings.

A photo of a cardboard box with 12 spools of 15m of 1.6mm stainless steel wire.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 28/08/2026

I would love some help! I am making stainless steel chainmail. I cut a batch of rings from 1.6mm 304 stainless and tumbled them with stainless shot to remove the burrs but this ruined the surface finish. I've tried many tumbling media to fix this, including […] [Original post on howse.social]

A photo of three stainless rings in a row. The left is a dark grey, the center is a lighter grey, and the right is bright shiny reflective metal. They are sitting on a black tabletop.

A photo of a cut-off milk jug full of granules of walnut shell polishing media.

A photo of a cut-off milk jug with a handful of cut rings coloured brown by iron oxide powder.

A photo of me holding a rectangle of chainmail.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/08/2026

Please enjoy this image I made for a forum photoshop competition approximately ten lifetimes ago.

A photoshopped version of a movie poster for The Shining. It shows the scene where Jack Nicholson is trying to axe Shelly Duvall a question but a door is in the way. Shelly Duvall is holding a knife in the background screaming. Jack Nicholson is replaced with an ornate grandfather clock but with Nicholson's mouth still visible. The "SHINING" text at the bottom has been altered to say "TICKING".

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 20/08/2026

I love handling welded chainmail. So liquid smooth. The soft hiss as it flows.

A photo of some stainless steel chainmail draped over my hand.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 17/08/2026

Back in the groove! I just welded up two whole rows of rings and only botched one.

A photo of a square of stainless chainmail on a metal tabletop. There is a steel rod threaded through one row of rings. Some of the threaded rings have an iridescent blue and purple oxide layer.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 13/08/2026

I rebuilt my jump ring cutting jig from many moons ago. Cut up 15m of stainless wire into rings for making some chainmail. The rings aren't perfect, there's a little burr on every one of them, but they're alright.

A photo of an angle grinder bolted to a length of wood. Underneath the wood there is a black tub of water and a series of hoses spraying water onto the angle grinder disc. A rod wound in wire is positioned touching the angle grinder blade.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/08/2026

A visitor politely waiting to come back in and resume eating our pup's dinner. #wildlife #possum #australia

A photo of an Australian brushtail possum looking in through a sliding glass door, sitting on its haunches with its front paws together. In the foreground, inside the door, there is a red water bowl and a stainless steel food bowl.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 08/08/2026

Fresh-baked sticky date pud. Mmmmmm.

A photo of a light blue bowl containing some brown pudding drizzled with brown sauce. There is a dessert spoon in the bowl too.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/08/2026

Mmmmmmmmmmmm delicious pakige. I cut up a small habanero and mixed it into my lunch couscous. Very nice.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 27/07/2026

There is a certain joy in watching kids be bad at things. Bless 'em.

A still from CCTV footage showing a kid trying to get a wheely bin up a gutter the hard way.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 26/07/2026

Sticky date pud baking. I think I over-blended the dates a bit, should still be delicious though. #pud

A photo of a light brown cake-looking thing baking in an oven. The pan is circular.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 26/07/2026

The holy grail! A hydraulic diagram of my delonghi coffee machine. I've found the service manual. This will make everything infinitely easier. These documents should be published under law. #righttorepair #buyitforlife

A screenshot of a diagram entitled "water circuit". It shows the various parts of my coffee machine, including the boiler, safety tank, expansion chamber, pump, dumper, flow meter, water tank, valve, infuser and drip tray. It shows how each of these components are linked together.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 22/07/2026

Holy jesus christ look at this cutie.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 20/07/2026

Woo! Lots of setup and fiddling in my future. Right now I'm investing in retraining my brain to be happy to wear a watch. I think I'll leave the touchscreen disabled, I much prefer the certainty of clicky buttons. #pebble

A photo of a pebble time 2 on my wrist. It's showing a watchface with lots of data on it, including date, sunset time, moon phase, heart rate, time, weather, etc.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 20/07/2026

Pakige. It's my #pebble time 2, ordered in January. Hopefully it lives up to the hype. I'm mostly interested in a smartwatch with a user-replaceable battery.

A screenshot of an australis post tracking email with the following text:
It's coming today
'Pebble'
From K & F
Tracking number:
Delivering to: QLD 4152
Required: Signature (requested by sender)

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 14/07/2026

WTF it's the dead middle of winter and a swarm looks to be moving into one of our hive boxes. These hives were abandoned about a year ago. I wasn't able to look after them properly due to long-term injury. There were some whispers of activity around one of them […] [Original post on howse.social]

A photo of a beehive surrounded by green foliage and a teeming swarm of bees.

A closer shot showing bees "bearding" off the front of the hive.

A portrait shot showing lots of airborne bees highlighted against the sun.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 12/07/2026

At the Abbey festival, watching the falconry demo. Very cute birds. There is monkey island music on the PA.

A photo of a field with some people standing in it, surrounded by a crowd of colourfully dressed people.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 11/07/2026

Farewell NZ! You were great.

A photo of some mountains out the window of a plane.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 10/07/2026

My solution to ensuring the cork doesn't pop out of this amazing NZ rum on the flight home: several band-aids.

A photo of a bottle of broken heart spiced rum on a table. The cork is taped on by several bandaids.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 01/07/2026

I added a webcam to my 3d printer, now I can keep an eye on things without having to wander into the workshop! A logitech C922 and a few lines of config in crowsnest to get it going. #reprap #mainsail #webcam #prusa

A screenshot of the mainsail web interface for 3d printers. It shows various panels of information about the print underway. I'm printing a lizard out of red PLA. In the top right is a panel with a live view of the lizard being printed. In the middle there is a plot of extruder and bed temperature vs time, on the left there is a not-very-useful picture of the finished print in black.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 30/06/2026

I am completely delighted by the CYD-Klipper project. I got a Cheap Yellow Display (CYD) out of the box and had it connected to mainsail within 20 minutes. I need to print a little mount for it now. github.com/suchmememanyskill/CYD-Kl… #reprap #3dprinter #prusa

A photo of me holding a small LCD PCB in front of a reprap 3d printer. The display is showing some details of the print and a progress bar.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 22/06/2026

Today's pakige: Some masa and a tortilla press. I immediately made some fresh tortillas for lunch. They were quick and delicious. Eldest made some tortizzas. The press definitely falls into the "mono-task kitchen gadget" category, but it's small, cheap, and […] [Original post on howse.social]

A photo of a bag of blue corn flour, and a bag of masa lista sitting on a kitchen bench. The blue corn flour is in a transparent plastic bag, the masa lista is in a paper bag.

A photo of a speckled grey-and-black aluminium tortilla press sitting on a kitchen bench. "Hispanic pantry" branding is visible on the top.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 19/06/2026

A historic occasion! Finally finished a bottle of angostura bitters. I reckon it lasted more than ten years.

Two bottles of angostura bitters side by side on a kitchen bench. One old, one new.

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tjhowse @tj.howse.social.ap.brid.gy · 18/06/2026

Time for #brisbane 's second winter of the year! It's 18°C in my office and I'm considering going to find my beanie. I am a soft queenslander. #brisbaneweather

A plot of temperature vs time. It shows a gradual wiggly decline from about 23°C down to 16°C over the course of 90 days. The line is green, the background is dark grey.

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