Andy Cerier

I decided to not only renew, but upgrade to a premium subscription so I can access all the great features and best support the site and its maintainers.

I only posted twice on “micro.blog” this year, but what I posted is very important to me and very personal (ie, not something I’d want on Facebook).

I see my primary audience as my nieces and nephews and their descendants. Hopefully, when I pass, these posts will remain available for posterity.

Each year, I question paying the $50 annual basic subscription price. But when I look at the site, I realize how valuable it is for me as a place to record bits of my personal history and as a beacon of the ‘Free Internet’. That is to say, a site not run by a commercial interest or the state.

So, for the same reason I continue to support the EFF and Wikipedia financially, I will continue to support this site.

I’ve voted for a Democrat in every election since Ronald Reagan ran for president.

I like electronic music, such as Teezo Touchdown, Younger Brother, Four Tet, Royskopp, The Chemical Brothers, and Squarepusher.

I like some country music, particularly classics, but also Miranda Lambert.

I drive a Subaru Outback Wilderness. Bring on the rocks.

I’ve been sober for over 10 years.

I own a lot of radios.

I chew sugarless gum.

I used to be a model railroader.

I collect notebooks.

Last week was my annual Baxter Boys camping trip. We are a group of 5 guys, all close friends, with whom I’ve been camping (without spouses) once a year since the early 1980s.

In earlier years, we camped in Baxter State Park in Maine, most often at the South Branch Pond campground. This campground is my heaven on earth.

As we got older, we needed cellphone service to support our families and aging parents. Thus we moved our annual trip to Acadia National Park, where we have camped in both the Blackwoods and Schoodic Point campgrounds.

This year, for the 7th time, we camped in Blackwoods Campground. This campground is close to the scenic oceanfront, has easy access to some of the best hiking trails in the park, and has a free shuttle bus to the nearby town of Bar Harbor.

We were there for five nights. It was sunny and pleasant at the beginning of the week and later clouded up, with only a few daytime sprinkles. So, we have no complaints—another great trip for the books.

I live in Boston, and I subscribe to The Boston Globe. I get the paper edition seven days a week. It’s kind of like supporting public radio, which I also do.

I scan the headlines. I check the obits to see if anyone I know has passed on. I enjoy the comics, and I do the puzzles.

Although I own an OmniFocus 4 license, I find myself pulled back again to NotePlan, which I used for about half of 2023.

For those that don’t know NotePlan, imagine an app that took the best parts of Obsidian, Craft, OmniFocus, and Fantastical and combined them into a single, high-powered, capable of anything (with a little work) Trusted System!

It also has one of the best user communities I’ve ever experienced and a developer who is always helpful, available, and involved.

I am not a Christian, but I love the thought of a bright, sunny Easter morning.

I love the idea of little girls showing off their new Easter outfits on a bright, sunny morning.

I guess I’m a romantic.

I’ve been thinking of canceling my $5 monthly Micro Blog account.

Why?

I don’t post much. I almost never read other posts on Micro Blog, despite following some really amazing people.

I have accumulated a lot of subscriptions to web things. I have been trying to get them under control.

On the other hand, there are many “on the other hand’s”:

• This is the only place I post about myself, and I like the feeling when I write here.
• I hope my nieces and nephews will find these posts and learn about me someday.

Oh, heck, I’ll give it more time.

Andy

I lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in the late 70’s and drove a taxi for most of those years.

This provided me with many opportunities to do drugs.

I smoked pot almost every day from 1976 through 1980. I quit this habit when I moved back to Boston in late 1980.

I did a lot of speed in the years I was a full-time taxi driver. I stopped taking speed when it almost killed me.

I took acid a couple of times in those years. It was always a great experience.

I did Peyote once, and my experience was both mundane and magical. Hard to explain.

I smoked opium once, accepted as a tip from a cab fare in lieu of cash. It tasted of roses and was a heavenly smoke. I understood immediately how people could smoke this endlessly and shrivel up and die and be happy.

PS: I did coke a couple of times in the eighties, and I always enjoyed it.