Jessamyn

Rural tech geek. Researcher. Librarian resistance. Moss collector. Postcard enjoyer. ✉️ box 345 05060 USA ✉️ (she/her)

Loosely anti-IOT. Keeps a hammer by the printer in case it ever makes an unexpected noise.

Public Key

npub17l342afnwq0u8d6v7h320t52rys8m3hw45kl47jmgd4m3dtrw2vsnzgx3s

NIP-05 Address

jessamyn@glammr-us.mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqs00c64w5ehq87rkax0tc48469pjgracmh26t06lfd5x6ack43h9xgpz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerfw36x7tnsw43q468srf

Publishing to

relay.ditto.pub

Author Public Key

npub17l342afnwq0u8d6v7h320t52rys8m3hw45kl47jmgd4m3dtrw2vsnzgx3s

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Last Notes

2026-08-11 21:51:44 UTC

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@nprofile…swwq @nprofile…nrwh You can change that side button behavior so it will actually power the phone off again it's just fussy to get to it in the settings. I made this page full of explanations https://notoai.org

2026-08-06 21:09:52 UTC

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I was already having a bit of a day (mice chewed some wires in my truck which may be why the ABS light was coming on) and that last call is to my mechanic (Chip died, the new guy is great but he's not Chip) asking if my car was going to be ready today only to be told it will be ready tomorrow. This is fine, it's just a car, but I was really holding out for one thing to be totally fixed today and this was not the day for it. Home with a seltzer and a porch. Will try again tomorrow. EOM.

2026-08-06 21:07:59 UTC

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2. Terry is an older man who had a stroke and has the use of one of his hands. He wears hearing aids. He is one of the kindest people I've seen at Drop-In which is good because his voicemail is fucked and I don't know why. This is not the call record of a problem that was easy to solve. Ultimately, even with talking to his cell provider, we could not fix it. Best guess: the app is old/outdated and his phone can't d/l a new one. It's not a great answer. Clicking didn't fix it.
https://glammr-us.s3.de.io.cloud.ovh.net/media_attachments/files/117/050/595/354/772/745/original/3ce94ee14a3f4e3c.png

2026-08-06 21:05:35 UTC

Drop-In Time report is a short one.
1. Bunny is a working artist in her 80s. She needed help with some kind of art database product she buys (and pays a lot for, built on Filemaker) which somehow exported a list of her contacts but won't show her a list of contacts inside the app. We kind of fix it, it's just clicking. I tell her for what she is paying for this software, she should get them to support their product. Definitely get a "but the light is better over here!" response. 😑

2026-08-04 21:42:04 UTC

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@nprofile…8vc5 I lucked out in that I could go to the town hall in my town and they had enough people to be witnesses AND a notary so I could get it all done right there. And then drive over two (small) mountains to get to the courthouse to file it. :lolsob:

2026-08-04 21:26:17 UTC

I rewrote my will this month because
- my old one was out of date
- I actually got some free psychic space to handle this
- I really like my lawyer and he works how I work
- I enjoy crossing things off of my clipboard
If you're someone who has been putting this off, please let this be a small nudge to do it. It may be a lot simpler than you think, depending on your jurisdiction. Nolo's got some good Getting Started stuff, as does GYST
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/wills-trusts-estates
https://getyourshittogether.org/checklists-how-tos/
https://glammr-us.s3.de.io.cloud.ovh.net/media_attachments/files/117/039/328/527/590/038/original/87f485863957141a.jpeg
https://glammr-us.s3.de.io.cloud.ovh.net/media_attachments/files/117/039/334/716/506/739/original/c259db8088375e6d.jpeg

2026-07-31 22:47:03 UTC

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@nprofile…k2kz Are you looking for Occupy-specific things? I went to one (a few) like this at the WTO Protests in Seattle. Worked decently because people were mission-aligned. There are some primary source materials linked in this article. Smaller scale than Occupy, to be sure, but also an earlier incarnation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999_Seattle_WTO_protests

2026-07-31 18:16:41 UTC

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My web host was down for nearly a week (they are free, it's fine) and so I did not get to troubleshoot my URL for which DNS has *certainly* propagated by now.
Here's my "how to remove/disable intrusive AI" post again (which I had to rebuild from an SQL dump) and if people could let me know if the URL resolves, I'd appreciate it. More helpful tips along these lines also welcome.
https://www.notoai.org/

2026-07-26 15:05:18 UTC

The Mastodon web app has subtly changed the way their advanced interface works w/r/t seeing my own replies and I am now doing my bi-yearly "Are there other interfaces I might like better?" quest. Really pining for the Tweetdeck of yore (with an option for more columns). Anyone got one that they like?
Note: not looking for iOS apps, just the web app.

2026-07-24 00:22:47 UTC

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With the help of a Mastodon pal, I think I got the domain redirecting properly. If you could let me know if http://NoToAI.org (or the https://NoToAi.org) does NOT redirect to a page on librarian.net, I'd appreciate it.

2026-07-23 19:58:43 UTC

"Stop using Media Bias/Fact Check in research" an article by some friends of mine up on Arxiv
https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.12108

2026-07-22 15:53:11 UTC

Jessamyn's Maxim of Uptime says that the likelihood that your website will be up and running is in inverse proportion to the amount of media mentions that you've gotten in the past 24 hours.
I did an interview with a person who works for an indie news outlet. I mentioned my work with Flickr Commons and my blog, librarian.net. Within 24 hours of the interview going up, both sites were down (and are both back up now.
Here's the interview. I think it came out well.
https://www.newsjunkie.net/article/jessamyn-west-interview

2026-07-21 14:41:26 UTC

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@nprofile…thg6 Haha, Jim and I have had a slightly bumpy weekend (just car troubles, we are both fine) and the big joke for us when we're dealing with Yet Another Car Setback is "Maybe we should start a family...." and then we both laugh until we cry.

2026-07-18 00:46:50 UTC

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@nprofile…9uv2 Awww I think you do resemble each other.

2026-07-17 02:55:22 UTC

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@nprofile…cxp5 Love it, very on board with that idea.

2026-07-17 02:10:34 UTC

Thanks to everyone who gave me feedback on how to turn off (or quiet) intrusive AI so that I can help my patrons at the public library who often come to me asking for this help. Can't promise that I'll keep this updated but for now I got a domain for it and everything (just redirects to a page on my website)
https://NoToAI.org
https://glammr-us.s3.de.io.cloud.ovh.net/media_attachments/files/116/932/857/735/599/584/original/5281c3c1d0f891d2.jpg

2026-07-15 18:21:58 UTC

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@nprofile…ew3d @nprofile…84tf Yep point taken and I will happily change this title to "How to keep intrusive AI from getting in your way when you're just trying to do a thing." There's no way (that I know of) to be entirely free from AI if you use large scale tech, but the question I get at the public library in my rural town remains "How do I turn it off" and what they mean is "How do I stop various AI 'helpers' from getting in my way as I muddle through my tech environment?"

2026-07-14 16:57:51 UTC

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@nprofile…84tf Google is loaded with AI, much of which is turn-offable and mine is all turned off. It does allow for good collaboration. Once this doc feels more "final form-ish" I will self host somewhere with no AI. The irony is not lost on me, but realistically people are using what they use, they just want the AI in it to be less-intrusive.

2026-07-13 17:53:28 UTC

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I have consolidated many of these suggestions into a document with a few other links. Anything major that I am missing? This is mostly for the types of users I interact with (mainly older adults) so I did not include things like Slack and I'm not sure about things I don't use much like Outlook or Facebook. Other suggestions for links about removing AI geared towards not-very-technical people?

2026-07-13 00:17:01 UTC

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@nprofile…syu3 Any copy, or a specific copy? Boston Public Library still subscribes to the print edition, so you'd need to check by location and they're only available to lend.
https://bpl.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S75C2917860
If you want to purchase a copy Harvard Co-Op is a good bet, but you'd need to call (617) 499-2000

2026-07-10 20:44:13 UTC

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Bob has come to the library before. He wants to get Malwarebytes to stop nagging him that his subscription has expired. He does not have a subscription but I guess he was on a free trial of some of the premium features that has ended and sending him menacing notifications. We go into the Windows notification center and I ask him a few questions, he doesn't want ANY notifications from software and it's very satisfying to turn them all off.

2026-07-10 20:44:05 UTC

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Tom has a serious tremor which has nothing to do with his tech problems so I ignore it. He is trying to get getting email to download when it's stuck only partially loaded. I've noticed this with the Mail app, it can sometimes give up if there's an iffy network issue. People who live here have their own private internet in their rooms and then there's public wifi so sometimes moving between them has this happen. I show him what I showed Bobbie, we practice, he's good.

2026-07-10 20:43:53 UTC

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Bobbie uses an iPad and likes Apple News but sometimes it gets stuck loading stories and she isn't sure how to get it to start loading stuff again. I show her how to close programs on the iPad which often works for this sort of thing. We practice a bit to make sure she has the finger gestures right, they're kind of tricky.

2026-07-10 20:43:39 UTC

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John has issues printing Excel and working w/formatting but he mostly wants to talk about the hard work he's put in cataloging the library there. He used Excel for work before he retired (on a PC) his kids got him on a Mac, he's been using Numbers but then switched to Excel/Mac so he could share this work with more people. Joke's on him, no one else wants to share the spreadsheet work. He has issues printing with Excel but I think he wanted an excuse to go back to using Numbers, which I give him

2026-07-10 20:42:46 UTC

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Pat says she got a new Kindle because her old one "filled up with books and wouldn't work" which, ok. She wants to set up her new one. She has the Kindle App on her phone, is logged in, and there should be a magic way to link them. There is, but the new Kindle needs to get on wifi which was a step or two earlier than where she was. Turn it off and on again, presto!

2026-07-10 20:42:39 UTC

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Joan I know because she sold her house to our children's librarian when she moved here. She wants to get images out of her email and in to Photos. She uses Mail. I show her how the import feature works but it turns out (once we've tried that) that she'd prefer to do it one at a time so I show her the joys of right-click.

2026-07-10 20:42:30 UTC

Once a month I do Drop-In Time at the local independent living place. This is a decently high-end place for this region, so people's issues are often more specific, less about going over the basics. On the other hand, more memory/mobility issues to finesse around. Here are the issues affecting them. I helped seven people in two hours.

2026-07-10 00:12:23 UTC

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Everyone I saw today, other than Keith, had a stated reason for coming to talk to me, but another thing they also wanted to talk about. Phil Agre talked about "Attending to the symbolism of the interaction." Agitation about tech is often agitation about other things: personal circumstances, control, aging, the inexorable passage of time. Being good at this job (if I may say so) means helping, if possible, with all of the parts of their problem, not just the ones that are fixable. EOM.

2026-07-10 00:12:13 UTC

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Bill is in the room I work in when I come back. He is charging his iPhone 8. He is complaining that apps he needs to use won't work with it. He's mostly not here for me just to use the electrical outlets, but maybe also to complain a little. I tell him he can get secondhand phones that will be current enough for most apps (I use a 2020 SE) for not much money but I think owning ancient tech is part of his vibe. I listen to him grouse a bit more about AT&Ts coverage and then go home.

2026-07-10 00:12:05 UTC

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Cobber is a guy just in the main part of the library who needs to print out some title transfer documents. We do not have wireless printing. The tech company our library contracts with appears to be unable to do this (I know, I know, don't @ me) so people just email their documents to our info@ email address and we print them. He doesn't have his glasses so needs help. I watch him attach a PDF to an Outlook email, then open it, then watch Adobe spin while it tries to load endless AI crap.

2026-07-10 00:11:56 UTC

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Mike, I used to work with. He's a super-lefty who owns a cool domain which has been with Network Solutions since the nineties but he has grown to LOATHE them (smart guy) and needs to extricate himself from them and it's a huge headache. His anger does get in his way, a little. He has to update some contact info so he can get a transfer code and he keeps insisting that he's DONE that. I assure him that he has not. We get the transfer started. Mike is probably still mad.

2026-07-10 00:11:49 UTC

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And ultimately have to pay $25 to get one ordered through a third-party vendor that the state contracts with. Will take 10-20 days. Lorretta "I'm not getting this before the end of the month, am I?" Me "Not likely, I'd go bug the housing agency again, this can't be the first time they've come up against this wall" Lorretta is so much more chill than I would be given the circumstances. She has no computer, just a cell phone. Many if not most tech problems are life problems that tech makes worse.

2026-07-10 00:11:39 UTC

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Next: Lorretta. She was in last week. Loretta needs housing by the end of the month but her life has been a series of small tech insults as she tries to handle this issue. Last week it was getting her an email and a Front Porch Forum (local Nextdoor) account. This week it's that she needs her Social Security card so the local housing agency can help her. Not the number, the fucking CARD. To do that she needs a birth certificate which she also doesn't have. We wrestle with NY State...

2026-07-10 00:11:30 UTC

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First up: Ruth. She grew up in my house and now lives in an apartment overlooking my house and it's a little weird but also mostly okay. She has a Chromebook which she wants to give her gardener, who has no computer and could use one. I don't use Chromebooks often and have to Google how to powerwash (i.e. reset) them but Keith worked in Ed Tech and knows how. Win! Ruth makes a few remarks about my unmaintained flower beds but she put them in, so fair cop.

2026-07-10 00:11:22 UTC

Drop in time toots are back. Busy day today (and it's BEEN busy) but today I don't feel completely wiped out so I can both do the work and talk about it. Five people today, six if you count Keith from the Central VT Council on Aging who is new at his job and learning about the tech resources available for older adults in our area. It's me, I am a resource!

2026-07-08 17:23:05 UTC

One of the biggest questions I get at Drop-In Time at the library (besides "what is taking up all my cloud storage??) is how to disable or avoid intrusive AI that shows up where people don't want it. I'm going to make a handout that explains how to do some of the basic AI-removal or AI-avoidance things.
Would appreciate links which give simple steps to do this for the most-used (Siri, Alexa, Gemini, Copilot, Firefox's AI nonsense &c.) so I can collate and synthesize. Thanks!

2026-06-30 18:34:42 UTC

Dear quilting/library community, please enjoy this bookshelf quilt made as a fundraiser for the new library (in Belleville ONT). The books are all named after local people and organizations.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/cabhc/55366630415/
https://glammr-us.s3.de.io.cloud.ovh.net/media_attachments/files/116/840/494/809/256/325/original/a0fa04e4c942011c.jpg

2026-06-24 00:29:27 UTC

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@nprofile…a57a I volunteer at my town's historic society but have lived here "only" 20 years so a lot of times when people want to know the history of their house I can find more stuff on newspapers.com than in our poorly cataloged archives.

2026-06-24 00:02:11 UTC

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@nprofile…a57a Hey hey glad I could help. I love poking around newspapers.com for stuff like this. I had no idea about the car names either. Those images are excellent, 1930s was a great time for car racing.

2026-06-23 22:05:40 UTC

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@nprofile…a57a OK! That "Durst special" and "Might have been PA" narrows it down a lot. That is... likely the late 1930s. I don't know how long these cars hung around for but here's a likely mention of it.
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-reporter-durst-special/200183808/
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-reporter-durst-special/200183808/
Looks like Ray may be the guy who took this auto mechanics class, same time.
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-philadelphia-inquirer-ray-rakowski/200184218/
There were a lot of Riley specials
https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-reporter-riley-special/200184506/

2026-05-22 22:41:17 UTC

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"We see it as an asset, and we think the library community, which has always been thoughtful about how technology serves people rather than the other way around, is exactly the right audience to have that conversation with openly."
I feel weird about this, but mostly the optics & lack of specifics. Like ht head guy mentioned how they could use it, using that language we all know like "leaning in" how not how they ARE using it, if they are. If it's for their transcripts, it's not great!
(3/3)

2026-05-22 22:39:55 UTC

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"We're leaning into responsible AI use across the EBCE team, not uncritically and not as a shortcut, but as a genuine force multiplier. Used correctly, AI helps a small mission-driven team such as ours do work that would otherwise require significantly more resources
It helps us analyze feedback patterns, accelerate development cycles, improve documentation, and spend more of our human capacity on judgment calls that actually require it." (2/3)

2026-05-22 22:37:54 UTC

LYRASIS's Palace Project (a Libby-type book lending platform that many VT libraries use) did their Spring update. Their senior director came out with a big statement about AI and then none of the other staff giving their updates about features and feedback on the hour-long call mentioned it at all. Which, unfortunately, seems like how we're used to hearing about it. Leadership loves it, staff aren't really using it, librarians are told "You're smart, you'll like this"
https://lyrasis.aviaryplatform.com/collections/2355/collection_resources/170275/

2026-05-19 00:04:19 UTC

Could use info from ppl nerdier than me. A friend asked for a scanner that can make "editable PDFs'" which my experience tells me is not a thing. However I'm aware that the world moves on and it's possible this is a thing now. So, understanding that I am not talking about annotating or making a fillable PDF out of a PDF, are editable PDFs a thing? I have read this page so I think what I mean is "Are editable PDFs a thing that you can do with normal non-Adobe software?"
https://www.adobe.com/uk/acrobat/resources/how-to-make-a-pdf-editable.html

2026-05-18 19:58:06 UTC

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The library budget has been the source of a lot of drama over the past six months with the Selectboard adjusting what the library asked for, people being Big Mad, voting the budget down in solidarity. Now they are having a special election about the new budget. It's going... rough, with some tough meetings with people pretty mad. Having library folks seem like "part of the community" (we don't always) in this way can, imo, only help us. Do what you can, there are a lot of ways to help
(3/3)

2026-05-18 19:55:46 UTC

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2. Our local newspaper does a "face to face" insert every year where they take pictures of the people who work at local businesses and they buy them as (cheap) ads. It's fun every year to see everyone in it. The library is never in it. This is probably because my director never really thought about it. I decided I'd like to do it. Surprisingly, she was not against it. The photographer (who is also the editor) came by and took everyone's photo. We'll be in the paper. Go us.
Also of note...
(2/3)

2026-05-18 19:53:54 UTC

I have been working on my community-building which involves all sorts of things that are not that hard for me but seemingly hard for others. Two examples:
1. My neighbors want to have a block party. There is paperwork and talking to cops involved in getting this process started. Despite my ACAB feelings, I can do both of these things. We now have a signed assembly permit for the block party. Other people can wrangle getting a face painting booth set up and emptying trash bins.
(1/2)

2026-05-14 00:06:02 UTC

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@nprofile…xpxu That is definitely a bird that should not be hard to ID but yellow warbler is my guess as well even though I agree the pictures really don't match.

2026-05-12 16:50:45 UTC

In anticipation of no longer being a Justice of the Peace--I am not running for re-election in 2026, 14 years is enough--I got ordained in the Universal Life Church which means that any weddings I perform after my JP term expires shall be considered "religious" ceremonies. While this feels weird, there's nothing I like more than cheap or free loopholes which help me harness the power of the state. Free Vermont weddings for anyone (who is qualified to marry)!

2026-05-08 20:00:11 UTC

Friday afternoon reminder to not empty your inbox at the expense of someone else. I carpooled with someone who had a cough (unbeknownst to me until later) and now I have the sneezes. Hoping it's just allergies. This will be a weekend of masking up, resting up, and very little typing. Schedule that message for when my sinuses have dried up and have a good weekend.
Image credit: National Library of Medicine, on Flickr Commons
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nlmhmd/49679741503/
https://glammr-us.s3.de.io.cloud.ovh.net/media_attachments/files/116/540/729/563/163/138/original/a66dfc18e83b1da0.jpeg

2026-05-03 16:24:36 UTC

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@nprofile…md6a How does he feel about escape room or puzzle hunt types of things? They often go adjacent with nerdy gaming folks. Does he like to build stuff? Lego? Building Roman weapons from Instructables? Minecraft Roman builds? Does he live with you or have his own place? A thing the two of you could build together?

2026-05-01 18:24:03 UTC

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@nprofile…cckg Oooh, tell me more about Gmail Message Recovery Tool, I do not know what that is.

2026-04-28 03:08:52 UTC

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Book 33: Carl's Doomsday Scenario. Book two of this goofy LitRPG series. I enjoyed it a lot, maybe not quite as much as the first one because there was a lot more "WTF is going on?" in the first one. This book introduces quests and some other kind of important dungeon beings. The cat gets a pet and there's a big fight against evil clowns and knife-wielding lemurs. You'll know if you'll like this book or not by how you feel about the previous sentence. I enjoyed it.
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/480/117/609/886/951/original/074c1095fb168ed6.jpg

2026-04-24 00:14:14 UTC

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I talk her through setting it up and dodging 15 different ways for Google spy on her, install more crapware. I also have a private chat about ways to make her devices more impervious to hackers (her partner doesn't seem to be the problem, but you never know) and I email her a few links to her personal email address.
Everyone goes home. I go home. I pass Bill going home in his BMW. I am whooped. I read over my partner's possible new lease so he won't have ChatGPT summarize it. Busy day. EOM

2026-04-24 00:11:08 UTC

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She begins talking about how she got hacked and her stuff "retroactively deleted" from her Chime account and how an unspecified "they" have been spying on her through her devices.
The two of them start talking to Bill, who lives off-grid and comes to the library to charge his iPhone 8. I talk to him about how to tell if it's unsupported. They all have a hearty conversation about how you can be talking about a thing and then BAM, you see an ad for it. She decides to wipe her device entirely.

2026-04-24 00:10:23 UTC

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Quinn and Paula were waiting outside. They have a new tablet which is a Lenovo Gen 3 tablet, but she says it's saying it's a Gen 2 and she wants "to update it." They have enough language to talk about tech but also a lot of misunderstandings. I ask where she saw that it was a Gen 2. There is a LOT of clicking around and "I saw it here somewhere..." I'm patient because she feels how she feels, but I also notice that the camera/microphone are covered with tape, some of her stuff doesn't add up.

2026-04-24 00:09:07 UTC

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Ed was waiting behind two other people to talk to me. He's a motorcycle mechanic and has a lot of questions but there are other people behind him so he settles for the most pressing one which is getting a copy of his business insurance to some supplier or other. He has it on his phone. He needs it on his laptop. There are other ways to do it but the one I show him is "Email it to yourself." He does. It works. He can do this himself too.

2026-04-24 00:08:54 UTC

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He accidentally set himself up with a passkey in Outlook and it's confusing and bothersome to him. We have to sign in to Microsoft approximately six times to remove this passkey which he never wanted and did not understand. Also his phone requires his six digit unlock code every time he puts it down and I ask if he wants it to not do that. Promises to love me forever if I can do that. This is actually a thing I know how to do pretty well. Maybe now Neil will remember my name.

2026-04-24 00:08:38 UTC

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Annoyingly, you can go in from the Ting home page and choose a $10/mo plan but if you go through their "activation flow" they only offer a $25/mo option. Still cheaper, but come on. We have to pop the old SIMs back IN and send him home til he can get his Verizon details. He can probably do the rest on his own, or I'll see him next week.
Neil is an old timer who always seems like he's meeting me for the first time even though I've known him for a decade...

2026-04-24 00:08:04 UTC

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Chris came in with his dumb phone and his wife's smart phone and two SIM cards and wanted to get started using Ting instead of paying ridiculous $$ to Verizon. He's an old lefty (whose partner is a yoga teacher) who I like a lot but knows very little about tech. I show him how to pop out the old SIMs and put the new ones in but their activation requires details from their Verizon account that he does not have. Also he hasn't chosen a Ting plan yet.

2026-04-24 00:07:46 UTC

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Wendy has an iPad, an iPhone, a Macbook and a gmail account and wants them all to coordinate. I assure her they DO all coordinate. She wants to know why she's seeing what she's seeing and it's because she's not on Wifi on the iPad or the Macbook sometimes so they don't update until they're online. I also explain the difference between archiving and deleting gmail and why the devices handle it differently. Wendy does not know her own cell number, I discover.

2026-04-24 00:07:36 UTC

Very busy drop-in time at the library today so I didn't get to do my one other task which was "review social media policy for library trustees." The library is in a bit of a situation, with a leaking (fancy) cupola and a town dragging its feet on a 150K grant because of preservation easement reasons. One of the trustees has been speaking AS a trustee on social media about it and even though she's generally right (imo), there probably need to be some policies. Here's who I saw today.

2026-04-21 16:25:52 UTC

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Because of rules about non-profit status in the US and ALA's nervousness about it, advocating for *workers* is done by a separate, linked, organization called ALA-APA.
This organization has been around for over two decades but ebbs and flows in its impact. It's been ebbing lately which is too bad, library work can be challenging and poorly paid, even as people are generally very supportive of libraries and their workers.
https://ala-apa.org/nlwd/

2026-04-21 16:21:30 UTC

Today is National Library Workers Day. The library where I work has a knitters group that meets on Monday. I've never been interested in learning to knit, until now.
https://ravel.me/library-card-vest
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/443/605/332/435/306/original/e5aba8351a35390e.png

2026-04-21 00:51:37 UTC

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@nprofile…kvw5 The thing I'm really concerned about as a working public librarian is that I think most librarians still treat each book challenge as if it is authentic and worthy of going through the process. And this may be true if there's a parent in the community that has a concern even if it's kind of a bullshit concern (homophobic, transphobic, "there is swearing" &c.) but it's absolutely not true if it's a coordinated national campaign.

2026-04-20 22:28:59 UTC

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@nprofile…kvw5 "Less than 3 percent of challenges originated from individual parents." It's just all pressure groups and.or the government.

2026-04-20 00:41:49 UTC

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@nprofile…r3v4 Thank you very much. Just now learning the limitations of my Wordpress-to-Mastodon plugin.

2026-04-19 20:40:06 UTC

Librarian.net: social media is real life, make it accessible
me banging on about alt text like every librarian should.
https://www.librarian.net/stax/5838/social-media-is-real-life-make-it-accessible/
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/433/302/719/578/299/original/8da8441fefa10199.webp

2026-04-17 16:16:59 UTC

One short drop-in time story this week. An unfortunate downside to working with very old people is that they sometimes die. We have a local newspaper and I sometimes see my students in the obits. Dwayne and Ginny were joined at the hip, ran a local apple orchard since forever, and were fun to talk to. Dwayne passed away last month. I sent Ginny a condolence card and told her to please not be a stranger at the library. She stopped by yesterday, my only drop-inner, and we chatted.

2026-04-15 20:10:05 UTC

I went to Hampshire College for undergrad and now it's closing. I have the usual not-interesting-to-me thoughts about what this may portend about the country, but here's a personal reflection on how this does or does not affect me, and how Hampshire affected me.
https://www.jessamyn.com/journal/2026/04/on-hampshire
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/410/531/945/399/810/original/e63b44e5bb41bdf8.jpg

2026-04-14 17:18:37 UTC

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Book 32: This Book Made Me Think Of You. A woman's young husband dies and he leaves her a gift of one hand-picked book per month from the local independent bookstore. This is an engaging and basic romance novel which has at its core the idea that books can change lives. It goes pretty much exactly where you think it's going to go. It's nice, it's bookish, the characters are likable and I did not at all mind being in this world for a while, even though romances are not usually my thing.
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/404/184/182/484/185/original/25253a9df70635fb.jpeg

2026-04-08 20:06:04 UTC

Walked downtown and paid for my annual subscription to the local newspaper (print and digital) with cash and then had a nice chat with the editor who is also my neighbor.
Here's a photo from the town's historical society (basically me and a few others) of the newspaper's offices--same building I was in today--with women seated at typesetting desks getting the paper ready, back in the day.
#Vermont
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/370/865/099/555/017/original/215ed290909f7cb7.png

2026-04-08 15:29:20 UTC

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Book 31: The Bear at the Bird Feeder. As someone who has had a bear at her bird feeder, I read this book with interest. The author is an outdoorsy type who talks about the various kinds of animals you might see if you live near their habitats and what, if anything, you can and should do about them. The animals she discusses range from bears to alligators to foxes to skunks to wild turkeys. It's sensible advice which acknowledges the complexity of these situations.
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/369/764/673/863/859/original/b16a9b6ce06b8442.jpeg

2026-04-07 23:16:32 UTC

I don't talk about my home life too much here but me and @nprofile…qe8y celebrated our 18th anniversary of when we met this past weekend. Here's us at anniversary #1 (at Walden Pond) and a pic from a few weeks ago. 💑
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/365/939/132/855/581/original/47a1c32b67a33df0.jpg
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/365/940/460/409/840/original/256c78d283c34cdc.jpeg

2026-04-07 15:46:18 UTC

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@nprofile…v2yy Oh that was good, but I am not do audiobooks for whatever reason. My commute is two minutes and dish-doing time is taken up by podcasts, but I'll keep that suggestion for other folks who are more audiobook inclined.

2026-04-07 15:06:15 UTC

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Book 30: Dungeon Crawler Carl. I put off reading this because the cover is so dumb. I'm glad I persevered. It's a "What if an RPG was in novel form and was funny?" book with Carl who survives a weird apocalypse only to wind up in a dungeon RPG along with his ex-girlfriend's cat who gets some buffs so that she can talk. There's a complex ruleset and a lot of funny bits while there's also a lot of boss battles complete with weird monsters and a lot of gore. Part of a longer series, will read more.
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/364/021/696/944/705/original/085cbffec4ab98e4.jpeg

2026-04-06 19:12:19 UTC

Librarian.net: Finally got an Apple Watch, it’s okay
Someone finally got an Apple Watch. How’s it been?
https://www.librarian.net/stax/5825/finally-got-an-apple-watch-its-okay/
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/359/347/438/808/386/original/16d4c5fdaf3342f5.jpg
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/359/347/504/242/136/original/3c37f8536c5431ff.jpg

2026-03-30 16:04:21 UTC

Book 29: The Body, a Guide for Occupants. A fun book about what we know about the human body based on science. It talks about the body section by section. The book is filled with trivia including a lot of mentions of people who are not well-known by folks (including some scientists whose research was co-opted by others who took all the glory). I knew some things, I learned some things, and I thought "Oh I think that's changed" about a few things (book is from 2017). Readable and fun.
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/318/962/369/552/621/original/319a790ec9f5f8cb.jpeg

2026-03-27 19:42:14 UTC

Made a short post on my blog about Tracy Kidder and the nostalgia hole I've been in over the past few days.
https://www.jessamyn.com/journal/2026/03/tracy-kidder-rip
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/302/840/814/487/532/original/0b1d95ff8785fdb5.png

2026-03-25 17:46:28 UTC

I am doing the racecar thing again. One car, hood and bumper. Total cost $600 for Andrea's racing season.
If you'd like to chip in either with money or good librarian slogans (can not be outwardly political, could be secretly political) that would be grand.
Paypal: first name at gmail
Venmo: iamthebestartist
Rest assured, this is not my only philanthropy but while we're all helping folks in Minnesota with their rent and folks in Vermont get out of ICE detention, we can also do this.

2026-03-23 21:11:58 UTC

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@nprofile…3h99 As more of an aside. There are two things that come up often when I talk to people about fines.
1. But how will people learn responsibility? (this is where I start taking my rings off)
2. Some cash strapped libraries need those fines are part of their operating budget. (I am very sorry this is the case)
Both of those things are pointing towards issues MUCH larger than ones that a public library can reasonably address with a single policy.

2026-03-23 21:10:11 UTC

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@nprofile…3h99 Most libraries in Vermont do not have fines. They do charge for lost books (a flat price based on the type of book iirc). The data is really clear that fines don't really do anything except punish those least able to pay and create animosity between people and their libraries. The books BELONG TO THE PATRONS, we just try to keep them available. I know not everyone is tech-savvy but being able to put a hold on a checked-out book is a game changer in this space.

2026-03-22 03:05:00 UTC

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@nprofile…6alm Me and the Mister have breakfast in one every time he's up.

2026-03-22 00:10:54 UTC

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@nprofile…y68a I sometimes feel like the random things that I am doing my goofy research on will engender teasing that I do not feel like dealing with, so I am pre-emptive.

2026-03-21 22:03:55 UTC

"This must be one of the most valuable collections known"
I do not know the story here, but while I was browsing the three-volume "Scrapbook of early aeronautica" (shut up) at the Internet Archive, I noticed that there was one page where people just wrote on it, IN it, that they appreciated it. Unusual.
https://archive.org/details/Scrapbookearlya1Upco/page/n4/mode/2up

2026-03-05 04:55:44 UTC

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@nprofile…cs94 NanoRFID which allows you to trace all meat from its point of origin (🐄🐑🐓) to individual store packages.

2026-03-01 23:20:36 UTC

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@nprofile…9uv2 In case you have not seen this...
https://howardbesser.name/T-Shirts/
This is Howard
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Besser

2026-02-27 03:55:46 UTC

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@nprofile…r6lk PIPE ORGAN IN THE WALLS

2026-02-26 20:28:26 UTC

For no reason at all, I am trying to track down a folk song I think I've heard recently which ends with a wry joke about the Bay Of Pigs. Does this ring a bell with anyone?
https://www.reddit.com/r/NameThatSong/comments/1rflbx9/folkprotests_song_with_whoops_bay_of_pigs_in/

2026-02-25 19:51:22 UTC

Town Meeting day and local elections are coming up. I'm the co-chair of the Board of Civil Authority and, along with the Town Clerk, we run elections. In order to try to make voting more accessible and less onerous (and to get younger people vaguely interested in the process), we have a Kid Table where parents can park their kids while they vote with sample ballots and coloring pages. Here are this year's contests. Past contests included dog vs. cat and pie vs. creemee.
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/133/002/320/501/995/original/5d88d7e0fac2a59e.png

2026-02-24 18:59:09 UTC

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@nprofile…v2yy I'm going to go see the rest of the exhibit today.

2026-02-24 18:53:32 UTC

Sunday a team of civics nerds including me worked with the local newspaper (host), the town moderator (moderator), the local music hall (venue) and the local public access channel (streaming) and organized a Selectboard candidate forum with the four people running for two seats. 100 people showed up either in person or online. Additional bonus of a quilting exhibit happening at the venue meant all the photos look cool. It was tedious work getting it all set up but very very worth it. #Vermont
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/127/115/307/195/522/original/eed4a087c4c563d4.jpeg

2026-02-22 00:05:08 UTC

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@nprofile…kt0j The mini-arguments me and my partner get into about who needs to walk through the door into the party first.

2026-02-21 01:26:07 UTC

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@nprofile…32kv Starts 10-ish usually wrapped up by 1. We'll see this year!

2026-02-20 21:21:03 UTC

Friday afternoon reminder to not empty your inbox at the expense of someone else's. I've got the cold that is going around. At least three of my friends have it too. We're expecting eight inches of snow. Car's in the shop. And while this might be a prime time to catch up on my correspondence, it also might not. Gotta rest up before Town Meeting next weekend.
Image credit: National Library of Medicine, on Flickr Commons
https://www.flickr.com/photos/47756470@N03/54059775063/
https://glammr.us/system/media_attachments/files/116/105/049/693/576/633/original/d260bcaa23053dd7.jpeg

2026-02-19 17:35:05 UTC

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@nprofile…n00n Wow, I nodded along to all of that and then got to Infinite Jest and was like "Wait a second..." but maybe it's just that Gen X people claim him?

2026-02-18 02:46:03 UTC

I got to talk to the librarypunk folks last week about the public domain, digitizing zines, Flickr Commons and other library nerd shit. Big fun. Also, there's a transcript link!
https://www.librarypunk.gay/e/158-flickr-commons-feat-jessamyn-west/

2026-02-07 04:25:57 UTC

There are four athletes with hometowns in #Vermont who are competing in the #Olympics. They are from four separate towns with a combined total population of 3666.
As far as I can tell this is the smallest average (916.5) hometown population size with the next smallest being Indiana at 5129 (one guy!), for any of the 32 states which have a hometown of an Olympic athlete.

2026-02-06 18:46:54 UTC

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@nprofile…ummy Did you already purchase it? I have a copy to give away. I enjoyed this book but don't need to keep it around.

2026-02-06 02:27:18 UTC

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It was the middle part of a long day that also involved working with the newspaper (hi Tim!) to host a Selectboard Candidate Forum, get a slide scanner set up for our Library of Things, do my laundry at the laundromat where I run into the guy who might take my book scanner and put it somewhere available to the public, and then home to notarize some documents for a friend before dinner.
There are a lot of little jobs that need doing in this town, it's good to have some little jobs. EOM.