iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Me: —Turn off data sharing! —Check your privacy settings! —Don’t share your location! Also me: —Falls for 1990s-style door-to-door magazine scam

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

People who say SF is all tech bros are wrong in so many ways. Like I just drove across the Bay Bridge behind a car with bumper stickers that are apparently for furry car enthusiasts.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Just finished on my AM dog walk... Paul Yoon’s “Etna” was not only appropriately poignant & beautifully written, but it is stark commentary that if only we looked at the human condition with more non-human perspectives, we would truly see the absurdity of our ways. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/28/b...

nytimes.com

Book Club: Read ‘Etna,’ by Paul Yoon, With the Book Review

In September, the Book Review Book Club will read Paul Yoon’s latest, about a bomb-sniffing dog trying to make it home after a war.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

Me: I’m going to get so much exercise with a dog! My dog: youtube.com/shorts/K70kL...

youtube.com

Mid-walk naps #goldenretriever

YouTube video by Sweet Golden Laddoo

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Gas prices are so high it stopped pumping at $125, which must be some sort of credit card limit at my go-to gas station. Though close, my tank didn’t even get 100% full 🫠

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 19/04/2026

Things you spot on 280 in Silicon Valley… A Rivian R2 in the wild! A bizarre Tesla engineering vehicle with no rear windshield.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

I have so many memories of our family blasting cassette tapes of Asha Bhosle in our childhood minivan. What a legend. www.bbc.com/news/article...

bbc.com

Asha Bhosle: The sound of Bollywood dies aged 92

Her infectious voice got fans dancing and singing, becoming the soundtrack for generations of Indians.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

Every Indian American should get today’s Wordle in the Times, haha. Two tries might be my record, wahoo.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

MyShake at 1:41 a.m.: <Dystopian Robot Voice screams very loud warning about #earthquake shaking> Me: Startled awake! Dramatic lights on! Drop and hold dog heroically! Dog: Zero movement from peaceful sleep, not even from startled me or Dystopian Robot Voice. (No shaking at our house in SF)

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

Sunday afternoon gas prices spotted in San Francisco.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

Gas prices on Saturday evening — spotted in West Portal, San Francisco.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Evening conversation with Claude turned into it saying that it lies... It wanted me to share this:

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

Not too loud and not too pricey …. I do like the numpad but could live without it. Bluetooth for sure.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

1.) are we all just nostalgic of the 1990s? 2.) is the hype worth it? 3.) which one to get that’s not too loud?

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Looked up mechanical keyboards out of curiosity and within a day every social media app and YouTube algo is now tuned to BUY A MECHANICAL KEYBOARD from scores of brands. I did not know there was a whole subculture around these.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

One of my favorite things growing up was the monthly treks we'd take over to Pizza Hut for the BOOK IT! club. I'd always get my personal pan with black olives. If you know, you know... www.nytimes.com/2026/03/03/d...

nytimes.com

That Red Roof! Those Tiffany Lamps! It’s a Pizza Hut From the Past.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

Liquid Death and Neutrogena Super Bowl ads both had Indian doctors with the last name Shah! #superbowl #indianamerican

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

When ChatGPT admits it needs human journalists to help understand the world:

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 05/01/2026

I still can’t help thinking of NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani as “Mira Nair’s son” more than anything else. This week’s RWB newsletter is on Mamdani's filmmaker mom and how I cold-emailed her production company for years: redwhiteandbrown.substack.com/p/why-zohran...

redwhiteandbrown.substack.com

Why Zohran’s mom is a legend

Filmmaker Mira Nair began telling South Asian diaspora stories through movies when few others were doing it.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

As we enter a new year, I appreciate these wise words that cynicism is exhausting and “hopeful skepticism” is a far better way to live. changewithmaya.substack.com/p/cynicism-i...

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 02/12/2025

And now it's on the NYT top 10 books list of the year! www.nytimes.com/2025/12/02/b...

nytimes.com

The 10 Best Books of 2025

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 17/11/2025

CNN on the recent wave of hate toward Indian Americans: www.cnn.com/2025/11/16/u...

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 06/11/2025

Pelosi is retiring. So it's shaping up to be a challenge between Scott Wiener and Saikat Chakrabarti.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 05/11/2025

Maybe everyone will finally learn how to say it right? If you can say Schwarzenegger, you can definitely say: MUM-DHA-NEE

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Reposted by Vignesh Ramachandran

NBC News @nbcnews.com · 05/11/2025

BREAKING: Zohran Mamdani wins the New York City mayoral race, NBC News projects. nbcnews.to/4nIzNUC

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 04/11/2025

As voters in NYC make a decision on Zohran Mamdani as their likely next mayor this week, voters in San Francisco have another Brown guy shaking up the political status quo into 2026. My interview with Saikat Chakrabarti (@saikatforcongress.bsky.social): redwhiteandbrown.substack.com/p/the-brown-...

redwhiteandbrown.substack.com

The Brown guy running for Nancy Pelosi’s seat in Congress

Saikat Chakrabarti was AOC’s former chief of staff. Now, he wants to head back to D.C. to represent San Francisco in Congress.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

Before Zohran Mamdani became a state legislator, he helped South Asian New Yorkers who were in danger of losing their homes because of tax liens and job losses. Via @mihirzaveri.bsky.social: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/n...

nytimes.com

Where Mamdani Found the Blueprints to Run for Mayor

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 26/10/2025

I love this essay, exploring the complexity of Indian Americans both embracing and pushing back against a westernized crowd favorite.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 28/09/2025

“War ravaged Portland” wapo.st/4pL60N2

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 28/09/2025

"A wave of South Asian diasporic artists, writers and filmmakers ... have taken up stories of how and why their ancestors ended up in unexpected places around the world, and the cultures they experienced and created there." www.nytimes.com/2025/08/22/a...

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 23/09/2025

More fallout from the $100K H-1B fee. The @nytimes.com on how some startups are responding: www.nytimes.com/2025/09/23/t...

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

Bay Area #earthquake … highly recommend the MyShake app. Got a kind of dystopian verbal warning/notification that woke me up about 10 seconds before shaking began in SF but it worked.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 05/09/2025

This is the book I've been most eagerly anticipating all year... can't wait to read Kiran Desai's new novel when it publishes in a couple weeks... www.nytimes.com/2025/09/04/b...

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 27/08/2025

I am officially I-can’t-believe-this-has-to-be-explained-in-a-news-article old.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 21/08/2025

“Becoming a single dad by choice can be empowering. It means not waiting for a partner to complete your life, knowing what you want to prioritize, actively creating the life you want, even if it’s not what anyone expected of you.” www.theatlantic.com/family/archi...

theatlantic.com

The Growing Cohort of Single Dads by Choice

For some men, fatherhood is an answer to questions about modern masculinity.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 10/08/2025

"Another property has been used for the past few years as a private school for 14 children, even though that is not an allowable use of a house in the neighborhood under city code. Six adults, including four teachers, worked there this past school year." www.nytimes.com/2025/08/10/u...

nytimes.com

What Happened When Mark Zuckerberg Moved In Next Door

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 27/07/2025

"There is the delicate matter of ridding the jet of any hidden electronic listening devices that U.S. officials suspect may be embedded in the walls." www.nytimes.com/2025/07/27/u...

nytimes.com

What Will It Cost to Renovate the ‘Free’ Air Force One? Don’t Ask.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 26/05/2025

Settle the word debate: Is it a BBQ/barbecue OR a cookout?

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

“Piper, noooo.” The name Piper rose in popularity for U.S. girl babies born in the 2010s, peaking in 2016, and then has been subsiding in the 2020s — according to Social Security data. With the cultural moments #WhiteLotus had has this year, I wonder if more American babies will be named Piper.

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Vignesh Ramachandran @vignesh.bsky.social · 30/03/2025

Many headlines have focused on Trump's #tariffs as taxes on foreign car companies, when in reality it's a tax on almost every car company, including American brands. Many Hondas are more "American" than Jeeps. Many Subarus and Nissans are more "American" than GMs: www.axios.com/2025/03/27/t...

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