I’m off to Ellesméra! 👋
| Today is my Friday. I have a surgical consult for a bisalp tomorrow(!), when I will also be saying farewell to my IUD of many years. I then plan to spend the rest of the long weekend chilling with Eragon et al, so I accessorized accordingly. [link] [comments] |
Unpacking claim US Army 'nuclear chief' Andrew Hugg revealed secrets to undercover reporter
Sen. Chris Murphy wrote 'awesome' in response to Iranian ships evading US blockade. Here's context
Erin Reads: Pet Shop of Horrors, Collector’s Edition (volume 3, chapters 16-17)
Rereading the middle of Volume 3 (Seven Seas edition), which brings us to the end of Volume 4 (TokyoPop edition). This one has vampires in it! Good times.
As usual, I’m posting the individual reactions on Mastodon and Bluesky, then rounding them up in the blog. Previous roundups in my PSOH fandom tag. You can pick up the books with my affiliate links here.
Still haven’t figured out who “Madam C” is. Keeping an eye out…

“
Guard Doves on duty
| This pair was waiting to greet my husband when he got home today 🕊️✨ [link] [comments] |
Started another drawing
| submitted by /u/artgurlroxy [link] [comments] |
Was Trump blocked from using nuclear codes against Iran? Not so fast
📁 How ICE Got My Data | EFFector 38.8
When we use the internet, we're entrusting tech companies with some of our most private information. These companies have promised they'll keep our data safe. But what happens when the government comes knocking at their doors? In our latest EFFector newsletter, we hear from an EFF client whose data was given to ICE after Google broke its promise to him.
For over 35 years, EFFector has been your guide to understanding the intersection of technology, civil liberties, and the law. This latest issue covers the ongoing fight to reform NSA surveillance, the many attempts to censor 3D printing, and the cost of Google's broken promise to its users.
Prefer to listen in? EFFector is now available on all major podcast platforms. This time, we're chatting with EFF Senior Staff Attorney F. Mario Trujillo about how state attorneys general can hold Google accountable for failing to protect users targeted by the government. You can find the episode and subscribe on your podcast platform of choice:
Want to help us hold companies accountable? Sign up for EFF's EFFector newsletter for updates, ways to take action, and new merch drops. You can also fuel the fight for privacy and free speech online when you support EFF today!
Extra confident with this new lip combo
| Shoutout to the wonderful people of this subreddit ✨🖤 love ya [link] [comments] |
I did a hard thing today.
Please don’t mark this as a sensitive post; I’m not sensitive about it. I’m proud.
I went to my first Al-Anon meeting today. For those who are blissfully unaware, Al-Anon is for the people who are affected by alcoholism but don’t have the disease themselves.
It was the first time I haven’t felt alone in a long time. I was so anxious, to the point of nausea, but I did the thing and found some people that could relate to where I’m at in life… and oh my Goddess did it make me feel so much better.
I didn’t cause this, I can’t control it, and I can’t change him.
I’m choosing me. I’m choosing my son. I’m choosing my cats. I know I said in sickness and in health, but at some point I have to put my own wellbeing first.
I did that today and I’m so fucking proud.
Thanks for listening, Witches.
[link] [comments]
🌕 Full Moon coming up! This is your friendly reminder to collect Moon Water ✨
| Check here for exact time in your location: https://www.timeanddate.com/moon/phases/ [link] [comments] |
Search maintenance
Happy Wednesday!
I'm taking search offline sometime today to upgrade the server to a new instance type. It should be down for a day or so -- sorry for the inconvenience. If you're curious, the existing search machine is over 10 years old and was starting to accumulate a decade of cruft...!
Also, apparently these older machines cost more than twice what the newer ones cost, on top of being slower. Trying to save a bit of maintenance and cost, and hopefully a Wednesday is okay!
Edited: The other cool thing is that this also means that the search index will be effectively realtime afterwards... no more waiting a few minutes for the indexer to catch new content.
EFF Sues DHS and ICE For Records on Subpoenas Seeking to Unmask Online Critics
SAN FRANCISCO – The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) today demanding public records about their use of administrative subpoenas to try to identify their online critics.
Court records and news reports show that in the past year, DHS has used administrative subpoenas to unmask or locate people who have documented ICE's activities in their community, criticized the government, or attended protests. The subpoenas are sent to technology companies to demand information about internet users who are often engaged in protected First Amendment activity.
These subpoenas are dangerous because they don’t require judges’ approval. But they are also unlawful, and the government knows it. When a few users challenged them in court with the help of American Civil Liberties Union affiliates in Northern California and Pennsylvania, DHS withdrew them rather than waiting for a decision.
DHS and ICE have ignored EFF’s public-records requests for documents about the processes behind these subpoenas, so EFF sued Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
“DHS and ICE should not be able to first claim that they have the legal authority to unmask critics and then run from court when users challenge these administrative subpoenas,” said EFF Deputy Legal Director Aaron Mackey. “The public deserves to know what laws the agencies believe give them the power to issue these speech-chilling subpoenas.”
An administrative subpoena cannot be used to obtain the content of communications, but they have been used to try and obtain some basic subscriber information like name, address, IP address, length of service, and session times. If a technology company refuses to comply, an agency’s only recourse is to drop it or go to court and try to convince a judge that the request is lawful.
EFF and the ACLU of Northern California in February wrote to Amazon, Apple, Discord, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Reddit, SNAP, TikTok, and X to ask that they insist on court intervention and an order before complying with a DHS subpoena; give users as much notice as possible when they are the target of a subpoena, so the users can seek help; and resist gag orders that would prevent the companies from notifying users who are targets of subpoenas.
And EFF last week asked California’s and New York’s attorneys general to investigate Google for deceptive trade practices for breaking its promise to notify users before handing their data to law enforcement, citing the case of a doctoral student who was targeted with an ICE subpoena after briefly attending a pro-Palestine protest.
EFF in early March filed public-records requests with DHS and ICE for their policies, procedures, guidelines, directives, memos, and legal analyses supporting such use of administrative subpoenas. EFF also requested all Inspector General or oversight records, all approval and issuance procedures for the subpoenas, all records reflecting how many such subpoenas have been issued, all communications with technology companies concerning these demands, all communications regarding specific named targets or programs, and all communications with the Department of Justice regarding such subpoenas.
DHS and ICE have not responded, even though EFF requested expedited processing of its requests, which requires agencies to get back to requesters within 10 days.
“The policies, directives, and authorization records governing the program have not been disclosed,” the complaint notes. “The legal basis asserted by DHS and ICE for using a customs statute to compel disclosure of information about persons engaged in constitutionally protected speech and association has not been made public.”
For the complaint: https://www.eff.org/document/eff-v-dhs-ice-administrative-subpoenas-complaint
For EFF’s letter urging tech companies to protect users: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/02/open-letter-tech-companies-protect-your-users-lawless-dhs-subpoenas
For EFF’s letter urging state probes of Google: https://www.eff.org/press/releases/eff-state-ags-investigate-googles-broken-promise-users-targeted-government
Vampires, Historical Romance, & More
Ninth House
Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo is $4.99! This is Bardugo’s first adult fantasy novel and I want to warn of some graphic depictions of violence and body horror. The first chapter or so should give you a good picture on whether it’s for you. Book two, Hell Bent, is also on sale!
The mesmerizing adult debut from #1 New York Times bestselling author Leigh Bardugo
Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. By age twenty, in fact, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most elite universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her?
Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. These eight windowless “tombs” are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street and Hollywood’s biggest players. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive.
The Last True Vampire
The Last True Vampire by Kate Baxter is $2.99! This is a paranormal romance that got a romantasy cover upgrade for a rerelease (which I think is an odd choice). I read this one when it was first release and it’s very much of its time in terms of pop culture references.
As Michael’s eyes lit on a female not twenty feet away, he knew without a doubt that it was her blood that called to him and her scent that had awakened him. This female had tethered his soul and returned it to him.
Soul Survivor
He is the last of his race. The one true king of the vampires. Michael Aristov roams the nightclubs of L.A. after dark, haunted by his past and driven by his hunger. The last of the Ancient Ones, he alone has survived the destruction of his race at the hands of the slayers. Now he is forced to hunt and feed like a common vampire, a creature of lust. Nothing in this world can fulfill his needs…until he meets a woman who’s everything he’s ever wanted. And more.
Sweet Salvation
Her name is Claire Thompson. Her blood is so sweet, so intoxicating—the smell alone draws Michael to her like a moth to the flame. Sly, sexy, and seductive, Claire seems to be the only mortal who can satisfy his craving and seal his fate…forever. Can she be trusted? From their very first kiss, the last true vampire sweeps Claire into a world in which darkness rules desire—and where falling in love is the greatest danger of all…
Love on a Bookshelf
Love on a Bookshelf by Kiah Thomas is 99c! This is a standalone contemporary romance between a bookseller and an author. Reviews mention that this is a slow burn, but I also saw some readers say this felt more like a YA romance.
A deliciously bookish romance about finding what you need in the place you least expect…
What if a gorgeous, grumpy author dedicated his new bestseller to the stranger who inspired him – and that stranger was you…?
Clarrie Brooks isn’t just having a bad day – her life seems to be falling apart. She’s struggling to keep her beloved grandmother’s bookshop afloat, her boyfriend has just dumped her and now it’s, quite literally, raining inside her run-down apartment.
To top it off, the bookshop loses power for the tenth time this week . . . just as new author Declan Archer walks in to sign stock. Declan advises Clarrie to invest in better lighting. Clarrie suggests to him that he write a better book…
Two years later, Declan’s new book is on its way to becoming a bestselling cult classic – and he’s dedicated it to the bookseller who told him to write a better one. As speculation builds over the identity of the bookseller, Clarrie finds herself thrown into the spotlight. Could it be time to open her heart and draft a brand-new love story?
A Study in Scoundrels
A Study in Scoundrels by Christy Carlyle is $1.99! I don’t like this cover; the dress color washes the model out. In this one, the heroine is a secret author and the hero is an actor. This is the second book in the Romancing the Rules series, but can be read as a standalone.
Sophia Ruthven is the epitome of proper behavior. On paper at least, as long as that paper isn’t from one of the lady detective stories she secretly pens. She certainly isn’t interested in associating with the dashing Jasper Grey, the wayward heir to the Earl of Stanhope, and one of the stage’s leading men. But when she learns Grey’s younger sister Liddy has gone missing, she can’t deny her desire to solve the mystery…or her attraction to the incorrigible scoundrel.
Responsibility isn’t something Grey is very familiar with. On the boards and in the bedroom, he lives exactly how he wants to, shunning all the trappings of respectability and society. Grey knows he should avoid the bewitching Sophia, but he’s never been able to say no to what he wants. And having Sophia in his arms and his bed is quickly becoming the thing he wants the most.
As Sophia and Grey’s search for Liddy continues across the English countryside, can this scoundrel convince a proper lady that he’s actually perfect for her or will their adventure leave them both heartbroken?
WIP Wednesday
| Starry Night [link] [comments] |
My 7th Great-Grandmother
| Exploring downtown Salem for a few days while doing some research for a book I’m writing. My 7th great-grandmother was Martha Carrier- falsely accused of and hung for witchcraft during the Salem witch trials of 1690s. Fuck the patriarchy . [link] [comments] |
Investigating claim Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán used taxpayer money to fund CPAC
Hacker News Front Page: April 21, 2026
- Laws of Software Engineering
(1094 points, lawsofsoftwareengineering.com, comments) - ChatGPT Images 2.0
(919 points, openai.com, comments) - Framework Laptop 13 Pro
(1366 points, frame.work, comments) - Meta to start capturing employee mouse movements, keystrokes for AI training
(671 points, reuters.com, comments) - Edit store price tags using Flipper Zero
(353 points, github.com/i12bp8, comments) - The Vercel breach: OAuth attack exposes risk in platform environment variables
(338 points, trendmicro.com, comments) - Anthropic says OpenClaw-style Claude CLI usage is allowed again
(494 points, openclaw.ai, comments) - Britannica11.org – a structured edition of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica
(320 points, britannica11.org, comments) - Running a Minecraft Server and more on a 1960s UNIVAC Computer
(231 points, farlow.dev, comments) - Show HN: VidStudio, a browser based video editor that doesn't upload your files
(282 points, vidstudio.app, comments) - Changes to GitHub Copilot individual plans
(505 points, github.blog, comments) - MNT Reform is an open hardware laptop, designed and assembled in Germany
(294 points, stanleylieber.com, comments) - Cal.diy: open-source community edition of cal.com
(234 points, github.com/calcom, comments) - Fusion Power Plant Simulator
(175 points, fusionenergybase.com, comments) - Stephen's Sausage Roll remains one of the most influential puzzle games
(227 points, thinkygames.com, comments) - Show HN: Mediator.ai – Using Nash bargaining and LLMs to systematize fairness
(151 points, mediator.ai, comments) - How to make a fast dynamic language interpreter
(245 points, zef-lang.dev, comments) - A type-safe, realtime collaborative Graph Database in a CRDT
(160 points, codemix.com, comments) - Ternary Bonsai: Top Intelligence at 1.58 Bits
(223 points, prismml.com, comments) - A Roblox cheat and one AI tool brought down Vercel's platform
(281 points, webmatrices.com, comments) - Show HN: GoModel – an open-source AI gateway in Go
(186 points, github.com/enterpilot, comments) - The Beauty of Bonsai Styles
(209 points, longwoodgardens.org, comments) - Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing
(334 points, stratechery.com, comments) - Claude Code to be removed from Anthropic's Pro plan?
(604 points, bsky.app, comments) - Japan's cherry blossom database, 1,200 years old, has a new keeper
(167 points, nytimes.com, comments) - Salmon exposed to cocaine and its main byproduct roam more widely
(140 points, science.org, comments) - Air is full of DNA
(182 points, nature.com, comments) - Anthropic takes $5B from Amazon and pledges $100B in cloud spending in return
(270 points, techcrunch.com, comments) - Theseus, a Static Windows Emulator
(100 points, neugierig.org, comments) - How a subsea cable is repaired (2021)
(122 points, onesteppower.com, comments) - In the UK, EVs are cheaper than petrol cars, thanks to Chinese competition
(187 points, electrek.co, comments) - Louis Zocchi, games industry pioneer, has died
(127 points, icv2.com, comments) - Apple ignores DMA interoperability requests and contradicts own documentation
(228 points, fsfe.org, comments) - My practitioner view of program analysis
(46 points, sawyer.dev, comments) - Zero-Copy Pages in Rust: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Lifetimes
(79 points, redixhumayun.github.io, comments) - Year of the IPv6 Overlay Network
(77 points, defined.net, comments) - A Periodic Map of Cheese
(159 points, cheesemap.netlify.app, comments) - Clojure: Transducers
(150 points, clojure.org, comments) - Ibuilt a tiny Unix‑like 'OS' with shell and filesystem for Arduino UNO (2KB RAM)
(85 points, github.com/arc1011, comments) - Types and Neural Networks
(78 points, brunogavranovic.com, comments) - Kasane: New drop-in Kakoune front end with GPU rendering and WASM Plugins
(51 points, github.com/yus314, comments) - Tindie store under "scheduled maintenance" for days
(111 points, tindie.com, comments) - Original GrapheneOS responses to WIRED fact checker
(254 points, grapheneos.org, comments) - Bullshit About Bullshit Machines [pdf]
(86 points, aphyr.com, comments) - Claude Code to be removed from Pro Tier?
(263 points, bsky.app, comments) - Zindex – Diagram Infrastructure for Agents
(52 points, zindex.ai, comments) - High-Fidelity KV Cache Summarization Using Entropy and Low-Rank Reconstruction
(62 points, jchandra.com, comments) - I don't want your PRs anymore
(226 points, dpc.pw, comments) - Less human AI agents, please
(151 points, nial.se, comments) - Show HN: Ctx – a /resume that works across Claude Code and Codex
(66 points, github.com/dchu917, comments) - Slava's Monoid Zoo
(72 points, factorcode.org, comments) - Colorado River disappeared record for 5M years: now we know where it was
(57 points, phys.org, comments) - The purist's guide to phở in Hanoi
(116 points, connla.substack.com, comments) - Leonardo, Borgia, and Machiavelli: A Fateful Collusion
(48 points, historytoday.com, comments) - Modern Front end Complexity: essential or accidental?
(67 points, binaryigor.com, comments) - Show HN: Backlit Keyboard API for Python
(25 points, github.com/itsmeadarsh2008, comments) - Fields Medal Video: Maryna Viazovska (2022)
(29 points, simonsfoundation.org, comments) - California has more money than projected after admin miscalculated state budget
(104 points, kcra.com, comments) - As oceans warm, great white sharks are overheating
(124 points, yale.edu, comments) - Brands got worse on purpose
(222 points, worseonpurpose.com, comments)
