Ben Odgren
@benodgren.bsky.social
Librarian in Maine.
Writing is cool and hard.
bio.site/benodgren
Writing is cool and hard.
bio.site/benodgren
Snapping turtles born at the library today! 5 so far.
September 23, 2025 at 5:40 PM
Snapping turtles born at the library today! 5 so far.
Trying to figure out ways to make #procreate drawings look a little more “analog”.
July 10, 2025 at 12:03 PM
Trying to figure out ways to make #procreate drawings look a little more “analog”.
One of my favorite movies in the world gets a great hour-long essay about it.
April 22, 2025 at 9:07 PM
One of my favorite movies in the world gets a great hour-long essay about it.
Reposted by Ben Odgren
NEW | Fossil fuels fall below 50% of US electricity for the first month on record 🇺🇸
Among all the turmoil, some positive news from the latest @ember-energy.org data for March 2025:
🏆↘️ The share of fossil fuels fell to a record low of 49.2%
🏆↗️ Wind and solar power hit a new record high of 24.4%
Among all the turmoil, some positive news from the latest @ember-energy.org data for March 2025:
🏆↘️ The share of fossil fuels fell to a record low of 49.2%
🏆↗️ Wind and solar power hit a new record high of 24.4%
April 4, 2025 at 3:05 PM
NEW | Fossil fuels fall below 50% of US electricity for the first month on record 🇺🇸
Among all the turmoil, some positive news from the latest @ember-energy.org data for March 2025:
🏆↘️ The share of fossil fuels fell to a record low of 49.2%
🏆↗️ Wind and solar power hit a new record high of 24.4%
Among all the turmoil, some positive news from the latest @ember-energy.org data for March 2025:
🏆↘️ The share of fossil fuels fell to a record low of 49.2%
🏆↗️ Wind and solar power hit a new record high of 24.4%
Heading into Boston on the MBTA. I forgot how awesome public transportation is. What a service.
February 17, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Heading into Boston on the MBTA. I forgot how awesome public transportation is. What a service.
Reposted by Ben Odgren
“The reason we face the worst is because it helps us imagine the best.” What a fantastic, hopeful read. Treat yourself to this, and then spread it around.
I wrote about the worst people in the world, charting the depths of their depravity and vastness of their incompetence, and offered some thoughts about the opportunity presented by their failure to acknowledge reality and their refusal to access any form of human virtue.
www.the-reframe.com/the/
www.the-reframe.com/the/
The Worst and the Dimmest
It's not a coincidence that we're being led by the least qualified monsters available; it's a deliberate strategy. Facing the Worst - a series about directional alignment.
www.the-reframe.com
February 16, 2025 at 7:59 PM
“The reason we face the worst is because it helps us imagine the best.” What a fantastic, hopeful read. Treat yourself to this, and then spread it around.
Reposted by Ben Odgren
Hey it's me, Sonic the Hedgehog!
Did you know that if you saved $100,000 a day every day from the birth of Jesus to today, you still wouldn't have 1/5th of Elon Musk's net worth?
Does Elon Musk perform labor that is worth way over $100,000/day for 2000+ years? Or is something seriously wrong here?
Did you know that if you saved $100,000 a day every day from the birth of Jesus to today, you still wouldn't have 1/5th of Elon Musk's net worth?
Does Elon Musk perform labor that is worth way over $100,000/day for 2000+ years? Or is something seriously wrong here?
February 16, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Hey it's me, Sonic the Hedgehog!
Did you know that if you saved $100,000 a day every day from the birth of Jesus to today, you still wouldn't have 1/5th of Elon Musk's net worth?
Does Elon Musk perform labor that is worth way over $100,000/day for 2000+ years? Or is something seriously wrong here?
Did you know that if you saved $100,000 a day every day from the birth of Jesus to today, you still wouldn't have 1/5th of Elon Musk's net worth?
Does Elon Musk perform labor that is worth way over $100,000/day for 2000+ years? Or is something seriously wrong here?
Reposted by Ben Odgren
This is happening because people like Trump, Musk, Thiel, etc *literally cannot imagine* someone dedicating themselves to a public good or service. These are genuinely deranged, damaged humans, and in
a better age we would drive them from the village.
a better age we would drive them from the village.
This comment on r/fednews really stood out to me. Trump and Musk want people to think they're firing do-nothing "bureaucrats," but they're really getting rid of people dedicated to serving this country and keeping it operational. I hope these stories get told.
February 14, 2025 at 3:11 PM
This is happening because people like Trump, Musk, Thiel, etc *literally cannot imagine* someone dedicating themselves to a public good or service. These are genuinely deranged, damaged humans, and in
a better age we would drive them from the village.
a better age we would drive them from the village.
Reposted by Ben Odgren
The @pulitzerprizes.bsky.social haven't been nice to me. They've been very, very bad. So I'm taking them over. Effective immediately, I'm giving myself a Pulitzer, because I deserve one frankly. I'll be King Pulitzer. No, Emperor Pulitzer. Like in the Star Wars. I'll have lightning hands too.
February 14, 2025 at 3:16 PM
The @pulitzerprizes.bsky.social haven't been nice to me. They've been very, very bad. So I'm taking them over. Effective immediately, I'm giving myself a Pulitzer, because I deserve one frankly. I'll be King Pulitzer. No, Emperor Pulitzer. Like in the Star Wars. I'll have lightning hands too.
Reposted by Ben Odgren
DISEASES ERADICATED OR DECIMATED BY SCIENCE:
1. Chickenpox
2. Diphtheria
3. Measles
4. Pertussis
5. Pneumococcal Infection
6. Polio
7. Tetanus
8. Typhoid
9. Yellow Fever
10. Smallpox
DISEASES ERADICATED OR DECIMATED BY RFK JR. OR PRAYER:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
1. Chickenpox
2. Diphtheria
3. Measles
4. Pertussis
5. Pneumococcal Infection
6. Polio
7. Tetanus
8. Typhoid
9. Yellow Fever
10. Smallpox
DISEASES ERADICATED OR DECIMATED BY RFK JR. OR PRAYER:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
February 13, 2025 at 5:05 PM
DISEASES ERADICATED OR DECIMATED BY SCIENCE:
1. Chickenpox
2. Diphtheria
3. Measles
4. Pertussis
5. Pneumococcal Infection
6. Polio
7. Tetanus
8. Typhoid
9. Yellow Fever
10. Smallpox
DISEASES ERADICATED OR DECIMATED BY RFK JR. OR PRAYER:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
1. Chickenpox
2. Diphtheria
3. Measles
4. Pertussis
5. Pneumococcal Infection
6. Polio
7. Tetanus
8. Typhoid
9. Yellow Fever
10. Smallpox
DISEASES ERADICATED OR DECIMATED BY RFK JR. OR PRAYER:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Reposted by Ben Odgren
Using AI to produce writing or art is like asking someone at the gym to lift weights for you.
The effort is the point.
The effort is the point.
February 10, 2025 at 9:30 AM
Using AI to produce writing or art is like asking someone at the gym to lift weights for you.
The effort is the point.
The effort is the point.
Reposted by Ben Odgren
Susan Collins is very casually saying that Trump is about to drop a big economic bomb on her state.
February 1, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Reposted by Ben Odgren
i think it is important to say that the open and explicit racism of the president and the vice president isn’t just uncouth or “controversial” but a direct attack on tens of millions of americans and a dereliction of their duty to represent the entire country
January 30, 2025 at 9:09 PM
i think it is important to say that the open and explicit racism of the president and the vice president isn’t just uncouth or “controversial” but a direct attack on tens of millions of americans and a dereliction of their duty to represent the entire country
This afternoon, on the way home from work, I saw a bald eagle launch itself out of a tree. It flew around, doing some tight loops, getting lower and closer to the road. Low enough that I thought "Is today the day I hit a bald eagle, in mid-flight with my truck?"
January 28, 2025 at 9:23 PM
This afternoon, on the way home from work, I saw a bald eagle launch itself out of a tree. It flew around, doing some tight loops, getting lower and closer to the road. Low enough that I thought "Is today the day I hit a bald eagle, in mid-flight with my truck?"
Reposted by Ben Odgren
did america vote to stop suicide prevention efforts for veterans?
UPDATED The list of programs affected includes the USDA tribal food sovereignty program, Head Start, the VA suicide prevention and legal services grants, the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, prevention programs within the Department of Justice. www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trum...
Trump administration memo announces abrupt freeze on broad swath of federal payments
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration will temporarily stop payments on multiple federal programs Tuesday evening, cutting off Americans who rely on what could be trillions in funding and likely setti...
www.newsfromthestates.com
January 28, 2025 at 5:37 PM
did america vote to stop suicide prevention efforts for veterans?
I've had the perfect amount of whiskey tonight. I would like to get another tattoo.
January 26, 2025 at 12:15 AM
I've had the perfect amount of whiskey tonight. I would like to get another tattoo.
Reposted by Ben Odgren
Late to this, but great explainer for anyone in your life who (in good faith) wants to know why Ai generated garbage is bad, why artists and creators hate it, why it’s happening to begin with, and why consumers of media deserve better.
@maxread.info for @nymag.com nymag.com/intelligence...
@maxread.info for @nymag.com nymag.com/intelligence...
Drowning in Slop
A thriving underground economy is clogging the internet with AI garbage — and it’s only going to get worse.
nymag.com
January 25, 2025 at 10:38 PM
Late to this, but great explainer for anyone in your life who (in good faith) wants to know why Ai generated garbage is bad, why artists and creators hate it, why it’s happening to begin with, and why consumers of media deserve better.
@maxread.info for @nymag.com nymag.com/intelligence...
@maxread.info for @nymag.com nymag.com/intelligence...
Making test images for a middle-grade-ish/all ages graphic novel. This idea has been in my head for a very long time. Time to make it real. #makingcomics
January 20, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Making test images for a middle-grade-ish/all ages graphic novel. This idea has been in my head for a very long time. Time to make it real. #makingcomics
That Severance finale! A real hell of a thing. Bring on season 2. #severance
January 16, 2025 at 3:13 AM
That Severance finale! A real hell of a thing. Bring on season 2. #severance
Finally watching Severance before season 2 airs and holyyyyy smokes. Defiant Jazz. What a show. #severance
January 15, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Finally watching Severance before season 2 airs and holyyyyy smokes. Defiant Jazz. What a show. #severance
Alright, it’s time for the big Hellboy/BPRD reread. I’ve had these library editions for years and there was an amazing Mignolaverse humble bundle recently. I think I have basically all of it physically and/or digitally. Let’s go. #hellboy
January 13, 2025 at 11:34 PM
Alright, it’s time for the big Hellboy/BPRD reread. I’ve had these library editions for years and there was an amazing Mignolaverse humble bundle recently. I think I have basically all of it physically and/or digitally. Let’s go. #hellboy
Sooooo about that bread meant for my in-laws. To be fair, my daughter asked me to make her a pb&j “on the good bread” for school. #bread
January 13, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Sooooo about that bread meant for my in-laws. To be fair, my daughter asked me to make her a pb&j “on the good bread” for school. #bread
I have finally found a simple bread recipe that I love to make. I have memorized the recipe . This is loaf number 4 or 5 and will probably be going to my in-laws. Unless…
January 12, 2025 at 8:36 PM
I have finally found a simple bread recipe that I love to make. I have memorized the recipe . This is loaf number 4 or 5 and will probably be going to my in-laws. Unless…
Reposted by Ben Odgren
My own opinion is that it's good to signal (through words and/or actions) the virtues that you value; that's one of the most important parts of maintaining a healthy community.
January 9, 2025 at 6:56 PM
My own opinion is that it's good to signal (through words and/or actions) the virtues that you value; that's one of the most important parts of maintaining a healthy community.
Finished watching Hellboy:The Crooked Man, and you know what? It’s solid! Witches in the mountains! No beams in the sky! Give them several million more dollars and let them adapt The Wolves of Saint August. #hellboy
January 7, 2025 at 7:22 PM
Finished watching Hellboy:The Crooked Man, and you know what? It’s solid! Witches in the mountains! No beams in the sky! Give them several million more dollars and let them adapt The Wolves of Saint August. #hellboy