Rick Ballard
rballard.bsky.social
Rick Ballard
@rballard.bsky.social
Xcode engineer, @ Apple since '05. Cheerful Californian. World traveller. Food geek. I'm not a snob, I'm an enthusiast. (He/him)

📍 San Mateo, CA
Also:
🐘 https://mastodon.social/@rballard
🧵 (inert; no thank you, Meta) https://threads.net/@rickaballard
October 19, 2025 at 12:20 AM
This post brought to you by someone's 20-message-long post of ChatGPT gaslighting them about the number of 'r's in "boysenberry" + me adding "use code" 🤷🏻 chatgpt.com/share/6896bf...
August 14, 2025 at 6:06 AM
I gave WaPo one more shot after a protest-cancellation when Bezos blocked their Harris endorsement, but this morning’s Bezos mandate for opinion to only publish pro “free markets” and “personal liberties” content is it for me. Those terms are doing a lot of euphemistic heavy lifting here.
February 26, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Time flies when you're having fun.
January 10, 2025 at 3:19 AM
This fall I learned that if you store parsley like you would flowers (snip the bottoms of the stems and stick them in a jar of water), it lasts far far longer, & doesn’t take up your fridge space. Super easy to always have it on hand now. I wish that worked for Cilantro 🥲
December 18, 2024 at 4:58 PM
Liverpool is a very pretty city. Also has a fascinating maritime history — for a time, one of the most important ports in the world, & the most advanced, with the first wet dock. (Also a major hub for the slave triangle, and sympathetic to the Confederacy during the US civil war 😬)
November 26, 2024 at 2:34 PM
Liverpool gets it.
November 25, 2024 at 10:57 AM
New schedule @gocaltrain going hard this morning… we’re gonna need more bike cars 🚴🏻‍♂️
September 24, 2024 at 3:47 PM
The new electric Caltrain being rolled out is so nice! Quiet, smooth, fast, and the WiFi even works pretty well. I’m looking forward to the updated, faster schedule they’ll have once all the diesels are decommissioned.
September 12, 2024 at 4:01 PM
Some days you just have to accept that you’re not going to be allowed to make the bed 🤷🏻‍♂️
April 2, 2024 at 3:28 PM
SanMateo county folks, the central committee is a key role on your ballot. If you care who get backed & endorsed by the dems – which has a major impact – these are the people who decide. There are big differences in who's running; so if you're pro-climate, pro-housing, pro-equity, check this out:
February 15, 2024 at 5:10 PM
No one knew who my costume was at the San Mateo Halloween event yesterday and I felt so old I almost died inside. But this good dog knows better.
October 30, 2023 at 1:51 AM
Effie when she senses me fawning over another animal.
October 21, 2023 at 10:55 PM
I’ve resisted horseposting until now because of vague embarrassment about tech compensation & income inequality, but… if Pumba keeps being this cute this could turn into a horsepics-only account 😅
October 21, 2023 at 10:25 PM
If you’ve a dog who pulls or is reactive on leash, I highly recommend a Gentle Leader headcollar. It was recommended to me by a behaviorist helping with my dog’s reactivity. Harnesses, flat collars, and prong collars are all problematic, but this thing is safe, humane, and effective.
September 30, 2023 at 10:49 PM
This F250 has a page on “protecting the environment” and… it’s almost entirely blank.
😬😬😬😬😬😬😬😬😬
September 17, 2023 at 5:37 PM