Nevin Thompson
@nevint.bsky.social
I like poetry, photography, languages (esp Japanese), and religion (esp Japanese). And movies (esp Japanese). And Bob Dylan. Epilepsy parent.
Pinned
Nevin Thompson
@nevint.bsky.social
· Jan 16
Photographing with intent
The number-one lesson I learned about photography in 2024.
tsunoga.ghost.io
I have a blog now. It's still a little rough around the edges with few posts, but I blog about #photography, the books I read and the movies I watch, #translation (particularly poetry), and stuff that interests me in the news, especially anything related to #japan.
tsunoga.ghost.io/photographin...
tsunoga.ghost.io/photographin...
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
A Washington Post article suggests that, beyond a certain threshold, larger homes don't make people happier. Instead, well-being is correlated with affordable housing in walkable neighborhoods where they feel socially connected.
www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
![Excerpt reads: "Prioritize your neighborhood
Neighborhoods drive our happiness (or unhappiness) more than we think.
When Lina Martinez, director of POLIS, the Center for Wellbeing Studies at Universidad Icesi in Colombia, studied the happiness of households in the city of Cali, she couldn’t find much difference between poorer and richer areas. “Their happiness is pretty much the same,” she said. But that changed when she isolated neighborhood conditions, such as access to transit, health care and parks. “The conditions of the neighborhood affect happiness,” she said. “I can’t link that to the space where [people] live.”
That aligns with findings from a 2023 study of the Vancouver metro area: Researchers found no significant differences in well-being between people living in single detached homes, duplexes, townhouses, laneway houses and apartment buildings (basement units smaller than 300 square feet were the only negative exception). What did people say they missed most in their neighborhood? Affordability, proximity to family and friends, and a sense of community. Home design was eighth on the list."](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:ks3gpa6ftoyaq7hmf6c4qx4c/bafkreicapfknasylzk2lqzaxxeb5mchgnru75obggn45dusda6j5zogvuu@jpeg)
January 7, 2026 at 4:29 AM
A Washington Post article suggests that, beyond a certain threshold, larger homes don't make people happier. Instead, well-being is correlated with affordable housing in walkable neighborhoods where they feel socially connected.
www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
This is great because now when someone asks me "what's the worst CD you own" I got a quick answer.
January 7, 2026 at 5:58 AM
This is great because now when someone asks me "what's the worst CD you own" I got a quick answer.
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
January 7, 2026 at 4:32 AM
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
I think where the “duh this is nothing new” posters get it wrong is that Mamdani is talking about bike lanes, not pot holes.
this is so common a 'new broom' mayoral tactic that it's a plot point in the fourth season of the Wire after Carcetti is elected.
It's funny how Zohran's tactic appears to be showing up to things that are well-known problems and going "wait why haven't we fixed this yet"
January 6, 2026 at 10:42 PM
I think where the “duh this is nothing new” posters get it wrong is that Mamdani is talking about bike lanes, not pot holes.
Worst premier since Vander Zalm
January 6, 2026 at 10:28 PM
Worst premier since Vander Zalm
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
The way Octavia Butler called it is pretty incredible.
January 6, 2026 at 4:10 AM
The way Octavia Butler called it is pretty incredible.
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
Basically the Rob Ford model of mayoring, but by somebody who believes in Government.
It's funny how Zohran's tactic appears to be showing up to things that are well-known problems and going "wait why haven't we fixed this yet"
January 6, 2026 at 8:11 PM
Basically the Rob Ford model of mayoring, but by somebody who believes in Government.
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
Me when I host a #HeatedRivalry rewatch party:
January 6, 2026 at 6:13 PM
Me when I host a #HeatedRivalry rewatch party:
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
Odd socks. When I finally find the other sock I fly them around the bedroom "and the loving pair are reunited for mating" in my best Attenborough voice.
January 5, 2026 at 5:20 PM
Odd socks. When I finally find the other sock I fly them around the bedroom "and the loving pair are reunited for mating" in my best Attenborough voice.
If you want to annoy a cat, put an alligator on the top level of the cat tree.
January 6, 2026 at 3:37 PM
If you want to annoy a cat, put an alligator on the top level of the cat tree.
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney clarifies position on the United States using military force to annex Greenland:
"We stand with Denmark, we stand with Greenland, our closest partnership is with the United States, and we'll work with everybody to make sure we move forward together"
"We stand with Denmark, we stand with Greenland, our closest partnership is with the United States, and we'll work with everybody to make sure we move forward together"
January 6, 2026 at 3:24 PM
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney clarifies position on the United States using military force to annex Greenland:
"We stand with Denmark, we stand with Greenland, our closest partnership is with the United States, and we'll work with everybody to make sure we move forward together"
"We stand with Denmark, we stand with Greenland, our closest partnership is with the United States, and we'll work with everybody to make sure we move forward together"
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
Mark Carney did not join NATO allies in signing this joint statement reaffirming the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Denmark and Greenland:
Joint statement on Greenland signed by the leaders of 🇫🇷🇩🇪🇮🇹🇵🇱🇪🇸🇬🇧🇩🇰
"Greenland belongs to its people. It is for Denmark and Greenland, and them only, to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland."
"Greenland belongs to its people. It is for Denmark and Greenland, and them only, to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland."
January 6, 2026 at 1:39 PM
Mark Carney did not join NATO allies in signing this joint statement reaffirming the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Denmark and Greenland:
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
ready to bust this out at the in-law’s place after Christmas dinner
December 24, 2025 at 5:20 AM
ready to bust this out at the in-law’s place after Christmas dinner
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
The sour economic mood in Japan despite being well above the G7 median for the first time in decades really shows the vibecession is a global phenomenon
Here's each G7 country's cumulative increase in real GDP per capita, since just before the pandemic:
🇺🇸 +11.3%
🇮🇹 +7.7%
🇯🇵 +3.7%
🇫🇷 +3.2%
🇬🇧 +0.8%
🇨🇦 +0.5%
🇩🇪 -1.7%
🇺🇸 +11.3%
🇮🇹 +7.7%
🇯🇵 +3.7%
🇫🇷 +3.2%
🇬🇧 +0.8%
🇨🇦 +0.5%
🇩🇪 -1.7%
December 24, 2025 at 5:26 PM
The sour economic mood in Japan despite being well above the G7 median for the first time in decades really shows the vibecession is a global phenomenon
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
not chotiner fanfic 😭
This is great, "Why one small American town won’t stop stoning its residents to death," a story where Isaac Chotiner interviews the guy who administers the lottery from "The Lottery"
archiveofourown.org/works/733964...
archiveofourown.org/works/733964...
Why one small American town won’t stop stoning its residents to death - Anonymous - The Lottery - Shirley Jackson [Archive of Our Own]
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
archiveofourown.org
December 28, 2025 at 11:00 PM
not chotiner fanfic 😭
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
new S(ubstack)-Bahn post: I evaluate Japanese Railways' first years post-privatization and examine the conditions set prior to its launch to guarantee its success. But how does one grade such success -- and can JR be deemed as a success story?
www.substack-bahn.net/p/aura-of-su...
www.substack-bahn.net/p/aura-of-su...
Aura of Success: The First Years of Japan's Privatized National Railways
What does it take to make a railway a "success"?
www.substack-bahn.net
November 15, 2024 at 4:14 PM
new S(ubstack)-Bahn post: I evaluate Japanese Railways' first years post-privatization and examine the conditions set prior to its launch to guarantee its success. But how does one grade such success -- and can JR be deemed as a success story?
www.substack-bahn.net/p/aura-of-su...
www.substack-bahn.net/p/aura-of-su...
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
29 years ago today, Homer Simpson had an epic chili pepper-induced hallucination. “El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer” first aired January 5, 1997.
Most of the sequence was animated completely by David Silverman as he wanted it to look exactly as he had imagined it.
Most of the sequence was animated completely by David Silverman as he wanted it to look exactly as he had imagined it.
January 5, 2026 at 9:50 PM
29 years ago today, Homer Simpson had an epic chili pepper-induced hallucination. “El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer” first aired January 5, 1997.
Most of the sequence was animated completely by David Silverman as he wanted it to look exactly as he had imagined it.
Most of the sequence was animated completely by David Silverman as he wanted it to look exactly as he had imagined it.
When I posted this photo to Facebook, the most common I got (from FB friends living in low density suburban sprawl) was “yuck, concrete sprawl, too many people.” I had clarify by saying “you may not like it but this is what peak performance looks like.” N American attitudes are often misanthropic.
January 5, 2026 at 10:07 PM
When I posted this photo to Facebook, the most common I got (from FB friends living in low density suburban sprawl) was “yuck, concrete sprawl, too many people.” I had clarify by saying “you may not like it but this is what peak performance looks like.” N American attitudes are often misanthropic.
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
One of my biggest takeaways from living in Tokyo was that the city is incredible in spite of the fact that 95% of the architecture is unremarkable.
It makes the years-long design review process for a single apartment building in the U.S. seem all the more frivolous.
It makes the years-long design review process for a single apartment building in the U.S. seem all the more frivolous.
Tokyo is a city that makes the argument that architecture is irrelevant.
What matters more is urbanism:
The street network
The density
The freedom of uses
The clustering around rail
What matters more is urbanism:
The street network
The density
The freedom of uses
The clustering around rail
January 5, 2026 at 9:46 PM
One of my biggest takeaways from living in Tokyo was that the city is incredible in spite of the fact that 95% of the architecture is unremarkable.
It makes the years-long design review process for a single apartment building in the U.S. seem all the more frivolous.
It makes the years-long design review process for a single apartment building in the U.S. seem all the more frivolous.
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
The obvious and best answer is with my daily Jazz OTD posts, but this is a good piece too.
I’m New to Jazz. Where Do I Start?
www.nytimes.com
January 5, 2026 at 9:38 PM
The obvious and best answer is with my daily Jazz OTD posts, but this is a good piece too.
Main accomplishments over the holidays were totally rearranging our household storage and continuing to reduce clutter, and building a Lego facsimile of Cat #1.
January 5, 2026 at 5:26 PM
Main accomplishments over the holidays were totally rearranging our household storage and continuing to reduce clutter, and building a Lego facsimile of Cat #1.
Reposted by Nevin Thompson
Wait a minute...why is NWS throwing out genAI generated slop on their socials?
This is a horrible look and doesn't help keep people safe or aware of the forecast.
This is a horrible look and doesn't help keep people safe or aware of the forecast.
January 5, 2026 at 2:24 PM
Wait a minute...why is NWS throwing out genAI generated slop on their socials?
This is a horrible look and doesn't help keep people safe or aware of the forecast.
This is a horrible look and doesn't help keep people safe or aware of the forecast.
My Member of Parliament.
Donald Trump’s threats against Greenland undermine NATO, but also risk fatally harming cooperation among the A7 Arctic states.
Our Nordic allies are clear and united that Greenland is part of K. of Denmark and its future is for Greenlanders to decide.
Canada must be as clear.
Our Nordic allies are clear and united that Greenland is part of K. of Denmark and its future is for Greenlanders to decide.
Canada must be as clear.
January 4, 2026 at 11:28 PM
My Member of Parliament.
If you’re in need of some soothing ASMR during this tumultuous New Year period, or if you want to be inspired (like me) to resume cursive writing, check the latest out this neat video comparing how some common characters are written in Taiwan, China, and Japan.
youtube.com/watch?v=4jc1...
youtube.com/watch?v=4jc1...
Differences between Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese Kanji | Handwriting
YouTube video by 書道家 東宮たくみ
youtube.com
January 4, 2026 at 11:04 PM
If you’re in need of some soothing ASMR during this tumultuous New Year period, or if you want to be inspired (like me) to resume cursive writing, check the latest out this neat video comparing how some common characters are written in Taiwan, China, and Japan.
youtube.com/watch?v=4jc1...
youtube.com/watch?v=4jc1...