Joshua Kagavi
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kagavi.bsky.social
Joshua Kagavi
@kagavi.bsky.social
History writer and artist clinging to life in the distant badlands. Jazz Age football, stop motion animation, petroglyphs, pixel games, grumpy terriers. Jack Trice expert. Huffing mold in archives kagavi.com
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I'm a history & culture writer (Guardian, Smithsonian, Atlas Obscura, etc). I also design things like blankets & create art. Obsessed with everything. Three of my favorite pieces:

www.theguardian.com/sport/articl...

www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-...

www.smithsonianmag.com/history/this...
This Black Football Player Was Fatally Injured During a Game. A Century Later, a College Stadium Bears His Name
Rival athletes trampled Jack Trice during his "first real college game." He died two days later at age 21
www.smithsonianmag.com
I've always loved this one too which shows a whale interferring with the HMS Agamemnon cable via the MIT museum. Link is a higher res version of it

assets.mitmuseum.mit.edu/iiifimg3/120...
December 24, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Amazing story. The Zodiac serial killer appears to have been solved by an autistic 50-year-old HS dropout w/ shocking link to another notorious murder 20 years earlier w/ discovery of the Black Dahlia killer's frantic search for a motel w/ bathtub, which he eventually found named... the Zodiac Motel
If true, the theory would rewrite the history of two legendary unsolved murders. An amateur sleuth claims he has cracked both the Black Dahlia and Zodiac cases — a claim experts say remains unproven but impossible to ignore.
An amateur codebreaker may have just solved the Black Dahlia and Zodiac killings
Two retired LAPD homicide detectives say that both notorious cases are solved -- with a single culprit -- thanks to the work of a novice sleuth.
www.latimes.com
December 23, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Big thread w/ Jimmy Rogers #bluecy cfb thoughts

1.) If I'm JFR, I'm not sad at all about our star guys leaving. Get reset done 1 year early

2.) Besides Tez and Cooper weren't even due back in 2026, etc

3.) Biggest test = keep young stars like QB Manske, LB Hawthorne, TE Alexander (maybe Neal???)
December 22, 2025 at 10:44 PM
Catching up on my #bluecy crew, glad to see people sticking with it over here as the other site careens over the cliff. Gotta be the change we want
December 22, 2025 at 9:26 PM
In completely unrelated news via Reuters from the other day, a railroad biz discovered that giving AI their tiny little 100 page manual turned into a disaster, but sure, let's have AI sum up the National Archives

www.reuters.com/business/bus...
December 21, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Reposted by Joshua Kagavi
Wallace & Gromit’s Cracking Christmas: a series of animated shorts featuring Gromit having to deal with the aftermath of Wallace’s inventions (like a rabid cracker vacuum and a remote-controlled shopping cart). Free on YouTube. [kottke.org]
Wallace & Gromit’s Cracking Christmas
In 2002, Aardman Animations produced a series of short episodes called Wallace & Gromit’s Cracking Contraptions. In each episode, Wallace unveils a new invention, which Gromit then has to deal with. For the holiday seaso
kottke.org
December 19, 2025 at 11:42 PM
Before the Oorang NFL team our pal Wrinkle Meat played for Haskell Institute, which was the midwest version of Carlisle. Other names from those teams

Laughing Gas
Little Twig
Long Time Sleep
Horn Weasel
Afraid of His Track
Xavier Downwind
Baptist Thunder
Stillwell Sanooke
Fire Starter
Takes the Gun
We gotta bring back nicknames.
December 19, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Reposted by Joshua Kagavi
he was good at his job, his job was explicitly to destroy things so they'd be acquired and shareholders would make a bunch of money

this isn't an incompetent getting a payday, it's the guy who planned the heist getting the biggest cut
December 17, 2025 at 10:00 PM
I sent a note to ProPublica stating I'll stop donating if they pursue this, given it's antithetical to their stated mission. Can't report on "abuses of power and betrayals of the public trust" while swaddled in AI money. It's not a hard decision!
1/ At bargaining yesterday, @propublica.org management said that they should have 100% discretion to replace workers with AI and would not commit to labeling future AI-generated content.
December 17, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Amazing discovery of a massive amount of dino footprints on a steep mountain slope
A photographer finds thousands of dinosaur footprints near Italian Winter Olympic venue
A wildlife photographer has discovered one of the oldest and largest collections of dinosaur footprints in an Italian national park.
apnews.com
December 16, 2025 at 11:34 PM
This was so good. Charming and cozy. It's like a Pixar short film wrapped in a French supermarket commercial #animation
Illogic Wolfs Down Christmas Dinner for Intermarché
WIZZ directing collective Illogic, who just delivered this shiny holiday spot, switch styles completely in the new Christmas spectacular for French supermarket Intermarché, with live-action by DIVINE'...
www.stashmedia.tv
December 15, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Reposted by Joshua Kagavi
I don't have any news to counteract the terrible news of the last few days, so here is a thread of cute animals eating things, with most with crunchy cromchy sounds.

1.
December 15, 2025 at 5:21 AM
I really liked this. There are still way too many examples of people being given an artifical choice between being ignored in popular culture or being represented in an exoticized way.

Her Panûpünüwügai book has these photos and more

www.cararomero.com
Cara Romero is a photographer, artist and an enrolled member of the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe. She created a photo series called “First American Doll” that defies the stereotypical Native American dolls she grew up seeing at truck stops by showcasing the diversity of tribes. https://bit.ly/4rRrj0D
December 12, 2025 at 12:19 AM
incredible thread. Completely forgotten core memory unlocked
Thread: 1993-94 Cola-Cola Monsters of the Gridiron cards

Cortez Kennedy
December 11, 2025 at 11:02 PM
no idea what to even call this, but apparently this is in the bag of new ISU #bluecy offensive coordinator Tyler Roehl from his NDSU days
December 10, 2025 at 2:49 AM
Reposted by Joshua Kagavi
"there's a new serif in town"
Marco Rubio ordered diplomats to return to using Times New Roman font in official communications, calling his predecessor's decision to adopt Calibri a “wasteful” diversity move
Rubio Stages Font Coup: Times New Roman Ousts Calibri
The secretary of state called it a "wasteful" diversity move, according to an internal department cable seen by Reuters.
www.huffpost.com
December 10, 2025 at 1:06 AM
Looks like ISU's new football GM will be Ricky Ciccone - interesting name. Big Ohio guy. He was at Toledo for pretty much Candle's whole run, plus played on Mount Union's team with Campbell for a couple of years. Coached with Hank Poteat (ISU CB coach, for now)

wsucougars.com/staff-direct...
Ricky Ciccone - General Manager - Staff Directory
Ricky Ciccone begins his first season on Head Coach Jimmy Rogers’ staff, serving as general manager for Cougar Football.   Ciccone spent the 2024 season as the
wsucougars.com
December 7, 2025 at 1:05 AM
tbh if I was Nate, I wouldn't go back to college football. Work life balance is way better and I bet he's close to becoming an OC somewhere in the league #bluecy
One month later, yup. If Matt Campbell goes to Penn State, imo Pollard offers Scheelhaase the keys 5 mins later. Altho not sure Campbell appreciates being a fallback, but PSU fits him in many ways
December 5, 2025 at 10:01 PM
One month later, yup. If Matt Campbell goes to Penn State, imo Pollard offers Scheelhaase the keys 5 mins later. Altho not sure Campbell appreciates being a fallback, but PSU fits him in many ways
December 5, 2025 at 1:20 AM
Wire fox terriers are the absolute worst (complimentary)
When you think 'I should probably post more from my sketchbook' and then you look at the sketchbook and realise that since you got a dog two years ago your brain has turned into 90% dog
December 3, 2025 at 11:50 PM
IMO one of the last ISU freshmen to look this comfortable this quickly on the court was Tyrese Haliburton. Every other freshman listed here was a top 20 recruit #bluecy

www.espn.com/mens-college...
December 3, 2025 at 11:23 PM
mmmhm. Remembering the official report that "cleared" Durkin by noting UMD's culture "ranked below all but one of 32 teams", the constant humilation, miserable atmosphere.

One of the "representative comments" by players:

"He needs to learn how to control his staff and become a decent human being"
that’s a wrap on my high opinion of Golesh, and a necessary reminder that if you think you like a coach as a person — no, you don’t
December 3, 2025 at 1:58 AM
This was good. Looks like Yacht Club fell victim to the dreaded scope creep and oversized ambition w/ two teams, but that's exactly why they did so well with Shovel Knight.

It's one Zelda, what could it cost, $10?
December 2, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Good thread about the kids these days in response to another good thread
The combination of fascism covid more fascism genocide capitulation to fascism and the clear goal of AI tech bros to eradicate the workforce and make all jobs and future goals irrelevant as we all slide into poverty while eleven rich people become gods is really doing a number on us.
An issue we're seeing at all levels of university is that many students are simply refusing to do *anything*. They aren't reading the syllabus, aren't following assignment guidelines, aren't engaging with material, ignoring deadlines. And this might seem like old news, but it truly has ramped up.
December 2, 2025 at 8:48 PM
Setting aside insane $$$, still amazed at how many cfb head coaches apparently have no scruples making soooo much more than the rest of their staff, who work equally hard.

I mean look at UGA. Leader of Men Kirby makes $13m, but OC and DC only make $1.5-2m. I wouldn't be able to look them in the eye
December 1, 2025 at 9:55 PM