The extreme preciousness of time is the point of this video by the To Scale: channel, but I hope you’ll spend 10 minutes of yours to watch it and marvel at the vast scale of the history of the universe, and our fleeting portion of it.

Amazing vision, effort, production, and payoff on this project.

This is post #7/31 for Blaugust 2025.

Blaugust Linked

Here I am, again, blogging past 11pm to try to keep up with my Blaugust goal. Although I am typically a night owl, this week I’ve been both night owl and early bird and it’s catching up with me.

Tomorrow, I have to wake up at 4:30am (in just five and half hours — yikes!) to be at a local trailhead ready to start hiking at 6am. It’ll be a long day of hiking and climbing up the Trap Dike — a very distinctive slot and slab that rises from the lake a the bottom of the Mt. Colden to its summit — with I think about 12 miles round-trip with several thousand feet of elevation gain, guiding clients on a rope system up through the steep and exposed terrain.

This is after a long day of personal climbing today, in which I was out from 10:30am until 9pm climbing at various crags in the area, culminating in a challenging route that I put up for ADK Climb Club.

Which was after a big day of guiding climbing yesterday from 8:30am till 4pm, and then a 5+ mile trail run up a mountain after work for ADK Run Club.

Which was after a big day on Monday of guiding climbing in the morning, and then doing personal climbing until after dark.

Which was after a day of canoeing with my wife in which we checked out a route that spits us out into the lake near our house.

And then on Friday I’ll have a big day of guiding a long hike (13 miles) up Gothics mountain with some clients that I took rock climbing on Monday.

Which will be followed by three days of canoe camping with my wife over the weekend.

Which will be followed by an afternoon of guiding rock climbing.

Which will be followed by — hopefully! — a rest day. 😮‍💨

To be clear, this is in no way a complaint. I love doing all these activities. I feel so fortunate to live and work in a place with such access to my favorite outdoor activities, and a great community of friends (and clients) to share it all with.

It’s just that I feel, sometimes, lately, a bit worn thin. I know I need to take more time to recover so that I can perform at my best. But. There’s so much that I want to do, and any day of good weather feels like a gift that I shouldn’t squander.

These lyrics from Hamilton’s “Non-Stop” come to mind:

How do you write like you’re running out of time?
Write day and night like you’re running out of time?

Every day you fight like you’re running out of time
Like you’re running out of time
Are you running out of time?

This is post #6/31 for Blaugust 2025.

Blaugust

My wonderful wife approached me in a tizzy yesterday. She had that look in her eye that told me she had a technology rant built up and me — the tech guy — was going to hear about it.

Sure enough, she needed to inform me that she was not happy with the lineup of Kindles that Amazon sells today. She’s been a longtime user of the original Kindle Oasis. In fact, when she smashed the screen of her first one, she bought a used version of the same model to replace it instead of purchasing a new (bigger, aluminum, 2nd-gen) one. She would have been well-reasoned to do so; her Kindle is her most-used device and it’s not even close.

What does she love about that original Oasis? All the same things I did. Namely, its ultra-portable size and weight, its flip cover with extra battery built in, its physical page-turn buttons, and its waterproofing.

All those features are missing from today’s Kindle lineup. The Oasis is no more. The plain Kindle and the Paperwhite don’t have physical page-turn buttons, and are therefore non-starters. There are two Colorsoft versions — an adult and kid model — which also don’t have the buttons, and are feature inferior screens. The Scribe is too big and bulky for her read everywhere lifestyle.

She looked alternatives like the Kobo and Boox devices. The Kobo would be a pain to manage with her massive Kindle library and Kindle Unlimited subscription. The Boox Page almost ticks all the boxes for physical buttons and Kindle app…but it doesn’t have waterproofing and she’s a beachside and in-pool reader.

“When did Amazon stop caring about power readers when it came to making Kindles?” she demanded of me.

I didn’t have an answer.

In the meantime, she’s bought another used Kindle Oasis on eBay in hopes that it’ll last long enough for either Amazon to get their Kindle house back in order, or for Boox to add waterproofing to their eReaders.

My money’s on the latter happening first.

This is post #5/31 for Blaugust 2025.

Blaugust

A weekly list of interesting things I found on the internet, posted on Sundays (or sometimes Mondays). Sometimes themed, often not.

1️⃣ Getting the Pebble trademark back from Google is a spot of feel-good news regarding a tech giant that I just never expected. [🔗 theverge.com]

2️⃣ A follow up from a few weeks ago, Becca Farsace rode an eBike over 400 miles on nothing but solar power. Cool project, and I expect it’s an early preview of tech that will emerge in the next few years. She had to rig a bunch of stuff together custom, but I imagine that solar kits will become available over time for cyclists. [▶️ youtube.com]

3️⃣ Another video. This one I can’t quite describe, but it captured my attention from beginning to end. [▶️ youtube.com]

4️⃣ 24-year-old Adam Aaronson drank every one of the 102 IBA cocktails (not in one go!) and blogged about it. It’s a fun retrospective. [🔗 aaronson.org]

5️⃣ Numeric Citizen is cataloging with screenshots and screencasts the many places where Apple’s Liquid Glass design falls down. It’s a great resource to link to in your Feedback reports, and will make a good archive to see how the design progresses through the rest of the beta and beyond. [🔗 crafted.numericcitizen.me]

6️⃣ Nick Heer shares his distaste for the design goal of getting the UI out of the way for your content. [🔗 pxlnv.com]

7️⃣ For you camping/climbing gearheads, this (long) interview with the renowned alpinist Colin Haley is a must-watch. He goes deep on how he thinks about what gear to carry, and how he modified nearly all of it to meet his precise needs. [▶️ youtube.com]

Thanks for reading 7 Things. If you enjoyed these links or have something neat to share, please let me know. And remember that you can get more links to internet nuggets that I’m finding every day by following me @jarrod on the social web.

This is post #4/31 for Blaugust 2025.

7 Things Blaugust

Sorry for the clickbait title, but I haven’t read the book. The phrase just occurred to me as I was driving back from a short canoe paddle with my wife today and saw my quick-dry towel hanging on the passenger seat that carrying a towel in my car has really paid off all summer.

I’ve slowly been turning into someone who just carries a bunch of extra stuff in the car at all times. It’s frustrating when you get somewhere and need something — like a towel — and even though you have dozens of them at home, you don’t have one right now. So I stuck a little microfiber, quick-dry towel that packs down super small into its flexible zippered case into one of the seat-back pockets. And since I have a towel, I might as well throw a pair of swimsuit/running shorts in the pocket as well. Now, I can go for a swim at the drop of a hat! Which, in this decidedly hot summer, has proved entirely worthwhile.

Some other things that I just always carry in my car now:

• An Apple Watch charger (you’d be surprised how much it can charge up in a 20-minute car ride)
• A beefy battery that doubles as a car jumper
• A sleeping mask for nights spent sleeping in back of my Subaru
• A rain tarp (more for professional purposes since I kept forgetting to pack it on rainy days and it’s a figurative life-saver for clients when rock climbing on dreary days, can can be a literal life-saver on hiking trips in the backcountry)
• Canoe straps and other lengths of tie-down rope
• An ultralight headlamp (another item that often gets forgotten, and I’ve lent it to plenty of friends)
• A small pillow and puffy blanket (the pillow gets used most often on flights, but it’s nice for long car rides too; the blanket is equally perfect for laying out on the ground for a picnic or napping in the car)
• A portable hangboard (it doesn’t get a lot of use, but can be strung up to keep working on finger strength no matter where I am)
• Extra sunglasses
• A multitool

This is post #3/31 for Blaugust 2025.

Blaugust Gear

I went outside with my MacBook today to answer some emails and work on upcoming trip logistics for my guiding service. My wife is sitting next to me, reading her book. She commented about how our backyard is full of such good sounds. So, here’s a non-exhaustive list of everything I can hear right now.

• The soft chirp of a bird high up in a nearby tree.
• The tap tap tap of a tiny bird as it tests the bark of a tree for tasty insect treats.
• The whine of a distant boat cruising the lake — or is it a leaf blower?
• The rub and scrape of paws on wood and my dog gets more comfortable in his position in the sun.
• The whoosh of a healthy breeze through the tops of the trees, although I can hardly feel it.
• The creeeeeeeak of those same trees and the bend to the wind’s will.
• Occasionally, the angry chatter of the local squirrel population chastises us and our dog for being in their space.
• And, briefly, the “And Iiiiiii will allllwaaays looooooove youuuuuuuuu” croning of Whitney Houston as someone far away blasted it for all to hear.

This is post #2/31 for Blaugust 2025.

Blaugust

Well, that really snuck up on me. Here I was, power-puttering™ around on the computer: today is the first of August. Not only does that mark the beginning of the end of summer, but it also marks the first day of the month-long blogging challenge/community event/all-around-fun-times that is Blaugust. From the ‘Blaugust 2025 is Coming’ post by Nerd Girl, who is de-facto hosting this year:

Blaugust is a month-long event that takes place each August which focuses on blogging primarily and has started to include other forms of serialized content over the last several years. The goal is to stoke the fires of creativity and allow bloggers and other content creators to mingle in a shared community while pushing each other to post more regularly. Above all the goal of Blaugust has always been to prove to folks that they can in fact sit down every day and create something fresh and then share it with the world. Posting regularly builds a community and in this era of AI-slop content, our voices are needed even more than we ever have been at any point in the past. Our hope is to create a nurturing environment where Veteran bloggers can help those just getting started and the cross-pollination of ideas can create something truly spectacular. Your blog gives you a permanent foothold on the Internet that you own and have complete control of, and that is a really good feeling in the midst of shifting trends.

I managed to post 31 times during August last year, and it really stretched those muscles. Summer has traditionally been when I take an unintentional break from blogging and being very online, which was again the case this year. I just get so busy doing outside stuff that my computer time goes way down. But I dipped my toe back into the blogging waters the other day and had a great time. I figured Blaugust would be a good thing to take a crack at again.

By the way, if you, like me, think it’ll be nigh impossible to write and publish a post on every literal day in August, don’t worry — you can double up:

Blaugust at its heart has always been about celebrating the creation of content on a regular schedule. The original challenge was to post 31 times during the month of August which is 31 days long. This can be posting every day or doubling up on some days to make the schedule a bit easier.

As you can probably tell, I didn’t put much any thought into what this piece would be. I just realized it was August 1st, opened iA Writer, and started typing. I guess that’s really all it takes. But, off the top of my head, here a few things that perhaps I’ll write about this month:

• My recent trip to climb Gannett Peak, Wyoming’s tallest mountain
• My thoughts on Liquid Glass, Apple’s new design language/material that will soon debut in their ’26 series of Operating System updates
• How iPadOS 26’s new windowing system is great in theory, but has really hampered my usage of my iPad mini (my only iPad now) with the removal of Slide Over
• Finally completing the Adirondack 46ers challenge, and perhaps some sort of ranking of each of the mountains
• A roundup of some handy little gadgets I’ve picked up over the past few months
• Trip reports from my various outdoor pursuits
• How the Camera Control button on my iPhone 16 has drastically improved my work as a mountain guide — but has also ballooned the storage space I use on my phone and has me needing up upgrade pronto

There’s seven ideas at least. Enough to get me through the first week. And if I run out of ideas, the Blaugust community has a calendar of weekly prompts to rekindle the flame — though I tend not to go by those weekly themes.

Anyway, I encourage you — yes, you! — dear reader, to join in the fun of Blaugust. There are many free blogging sites out there if you need one, but my personal recommendation is to try Micro.blog. You can get a site (that will remain on the internet even if you stop paying) for just $1 with their Micro.one plan. It’s a great service at a great deal.

See you again tomorrow, and happy Blaugust!

This is post #1/31 for Blaugust 2025.

Blaugust

Fans of Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program — the one where you pay monthly for an iPhone and have the opportunity to upgrade to a new model after a given number of payments — rejoice! You can now get a similar deal for an iPad Pro. And when I say “deal”, I really mean it. More on that in a bit.

You might remember the folks at Upgraded have offered a MacBook Upgrade Program for a while now. I used it to purchase this very M4 MacBook Air that I’m typing to you on, and have been super happy with the experience. Their website is crazy-easy to use, setting up the loan very quick, and AppleCare+ is included.

People who like to be on the cutting edge have been asking for Apple to offer this kind of program for products other than the iPhone for years. Upgraded beat them to it for the Mac. And now they have expanded their lineup to include the iPad Pro, lapping Apple in their own game! Here’s how it works, according to their emailed announcement:

Right now, it’s just the iPad Pro models — but the experience works just like our MacBook program. Seamless, flexible, and future-ready. […]

Buying an iPad Pro with us is just like buying a MacBook:

1. Pay monthly over 36 months.
2. Plans start at $31.89/month for the 11-inch, or $40.78/month for the 13-inch.
3. After 24 payments, you can upgrade to a new model or finish the last 12 payments to pay it off.
4. If you upgrade, we’ll send a prepaid return box. Just transfer your data, send the old iPad back, and we’ll refurbish it for its next life.

I mentioned that the program is great for folks who want the latest and greatest, but I think it’s equally appealing to anyone who wants or needs to pay off their gadgets over time. If you’re happy with your iPad after two years, just hang onto it, pay it off, and it’s yours to keep!

Neat! But you said they’re lower than Apple’s own pricing?

Yep! Crazy, right? But here is is in black and white:

iPad Pro, 11-inch, Wi-Fi, 256GB, Space Black

• Upgraded: $999 for the iPad + $149 one-time payment for AppleCare+ = $1148
• Apple: $999 for the iPad + $99.99/year for AppleCare+ (3 years for $299.97) = $1298.97

As you can see, Upgraded has Apple beat by about $150.

Whoa! How is that possible?

How? I’m not sure. But I think it’s because they lined all of this up before Apple’s recent reshuffle of AppleCare+.

I heard that Apple’s monthly and annual pricing went up as they eliminated any AppleCare without Theft & Loss Protection. And I think you used to be able to buy AppleCare for iPads with a one-time payment for a set period (two years?). But that’s no longer an option. It’s now monthly, yearly, or bust.

Even if Upgraded’s AppleCare coverage is only for two years — when you can swap to a new model — instead of three, they’ve still got Apple beat by $50.

The Debt Ceiling

Now, for my MacBook Air purchased through Upgraded, I make monthly payments with 0% interest. That interest rate depends on how Affirm, which manages the loan, judges your credit, so I can’t guarantee that you’ll get that same rate. It may not be as worthwhile if you’re paying a higher interest rate. I don’t link raising my personal debt ceiling, so I probably wouldn’t have sprung for the deal if I was paying extra in interest. But it is absolutely possible to not pay any extra, and in fact pay less than what Apple charges, and have the opportunity to easily upgrade to a newer model in a couple of years.

What will they think up next?

I expect Upgraded will have their hands full for a while expanding to include Mac desktops and other iPad models. But I think they’ve started with the right products.

But what do I want them to offer next?

First of all, the iPhone. I’m not on one of the major cellular carriers, which means I can’t get a phone through Apple’s iPhone Upgrade Program. So, personally, I’d be geeked if Upgraded could offer iPhones on their upgrade program. I kind of doubt it since they’re not a carrier, but maybe!

Next on my list would be the Apple Watch. It’s the only other bit of tech that I feel compelled to upgrade every few years, if just for the battery life improvements and additional sensors they keep packing into newer models. My original Apple Watch Ultra is showing its age, and I’m excited to upgrade it this year. If I could do so at a flat, monthly rate and know that I could easily swap it out for a new one again in a few years if I wanted to, I’d definitely jump on board. Fingers crossed.

Disclosure

I don’t have any sort of affiliation with Upgraded, but they did offer me a one-time discount on my MacBook Air purchase earlier this year. It was unprompted, and basically done as a thank you for all the customers I had sent their way after I first wrote about them last year. I probably would have purchased my MacBook through Upgraded even without the discount just so I could pay it off over time. And now that I’ve actually tried their service, I can wholeheartedly recommend it.

A weekly list of interesting things I found on the internet, posted on Sundays. Sometimes themed, often not.

1️⃣ Got a move streak mix up on your Apple Watch where the gadget thinks you missed a day, but you haven’t? There is a fix! (Related: my stand goal cheater shortcut.) [🔗 sixcolors.com]

2️⃣ New CGP Grey video! I know feel so much smarter about zip codes, and also sad that we don’t use Ireland’s system. [▶️ youtube.com]

3️⃣ Stephen Robles wrote about his journey as a creator, which culminated recently in being invited to WWDC. It’s quite touching. [🔗 beard.fm]

4️⃣ There are so many cool new things and improvements in visionOS 26! This newsletter/blog is the best aggregation of all things Vision Pro (though it’s a little disappointing that almost all the sources are from X). [🔗 lastweekinavp.substack.com]

5️⃣ TIL that there are things such as Nest Rafts to provide a place for loons to nest. [🔗 adirondackexplorer.org]

6️⃣ Rafa retrofit an Opal webcam’s guts into an old Apple iSight camera body and it looks awesome!! Ship it! [🦣 mastodon.design]

7️⃣ Matt Birchler did a little digging into ChatGPT’s alleged gender bias and came away with some optimism. [🔗 birchtree.me]

Thanks for reading 7 Things. If you enjoyed these links or have something neat to share, please let me know. And remember that you can get more links to internet nuggets that I’m finding every day by following me @jarrod on the social web.

7 Things

I’m thrilled to learn (via episode #573 of the Upgrade podcast with Myke Hurley and “Mr. Kobo” himself, Jason Snell) that Kobo has announced a new partnership with Instapaper to replace its Pocket integration:

In partnership with Instapaper, Kobo is working diligently to bring this integration to its eReaders, with the aim of launching by the end of summer 2025. The new Kobo and Instapaper integration will take the place of Kobo’s previous integration with Pocket after that service is sunset in June 2025.

Instapaper echos the announcement in their own blog post, which includes helpful links for importing Pocket content to Instapaper:

Since the Pocket shutdown, our top priority has been to help Pocket users migrate to Instapaper. Pocket users who have made the switch praise Instapaper on its clean, distraction-free reading experience, and robust organization tools.

We’re excited to be partnered closely with Rakuten Kobo to power the read-it-later functionality on their Kobo eReader devices!

I already swapped (back) over to Instapaper as my read-it-later service when Pocket shut down, primarily because it has the same great and easy integration with Reeder Classic — my RSS and all-around reading app of choice.¹ And now that Instapaper will sync saved articles to my Kobo later this summer, it really is a hot swap solution.

Good on both Kobo and Instapaper for stepping in to help out Pocket’s users.

Also of note, and likewise learned on Upgrade, the team from Pocket appears to have broken off to basically recreate it as Folio. It’s available on the web and the App Store, and looks just like Pocket did.

In my brief testing, Folio imported my Pocket saves without issue, and its text-to-voice feature actually beats what Pocket had. Its (single) voice sounds more natural, speeds up without sounding bad, and — my favorite² — actually announces blockquotes by saying, “Quote.”

Although I’m going to stick with Instapaper due to its integrations outlined above, I’m happy to see that the Pocket team is still making a go at it. And perhaps has more leeway on their own to improve the product. Certainly, Folio is an app to keep my eye on.

Apps