Blake Patterson
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blakespot.bsky.social
Blake Patterson
@blakespot.bsky.social
620 followers 160 following 950 posts
Web dev at American U in D.C., dad, retrocomputing nerd, No Man's Sky explorer. I live in northern Virginia. (He/him)

My blogs:
:: bytecellar.com (vintage computing)
:: nmsspot.com (No Man's Sky)
:: nostalgicvirginian.com (Virginia memories)
Posts Replies Media Videos
blakespot.bsky.social
I am watching Dreamscape (1984)

#movies #movie #film
February 4, 2026 at 2:34 AM
blakespot.bsky.social
Take a look around Virginia right now - things are PEACEFUL and CALM. But, here it seems the admin is about to bring violence and conflict to our beloved state.

They rage at Spanberger's win, so here come the troops.

#Virginia #VA #NoVA #FairfaxCo #Richmond #RVA #news #DC #ArlingtonVA
Raging against Spanberger's win, the administration aims to turn VA into the next Minneapolis
February 1, 2026 at 8:31 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
Flying out of DCA to New Orleans right now on a Bombardier CRJ900A. They just told us it's so cold out that the plane's water pipes are frozen and they can't serve coffee or tea and there's no bathroom sink water.

That's a first. It's cold. ❄️✈️

#flying #flights #American #planes #cold #DC #winter
January 29, 2026 at 5:02 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
CHOOSE

#hygiene #vs #cleanliness #photo #decisions #cottonelle
Bottom happiness vs cleanliness - YOU CHOOSE (Cottonelle toilet paper variants)
January 26, 2026 at 3:26 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
"Dialed" into the Mac Studio across the room (via WiFi232) for some IRCing on old hardware, here as the snow falls. ❄️

#Mac #macOS #terminal #vintagecomputing #retrocomputing #retrocomputers #AppleII #MacStudio #BBSing #IRCing #BBS #IRC #WiFi232 #telnet #computers #ByteCellar #photo
Apple IIe acting as a terminal to a Mac Studio connected wirelessly
January 25, 2026 at 3:35 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
A little far-right demonstration in the nation's capital today.

(It seems curious to me as to why _their_ flags are upside down. Maybe they just got a little confused.)

#DC #traitors #WashingtonDC #America #protest #morons #hate #NoVA #DC #DMV #demonstration #flag #photo #news #worldnews #DCnews
A group of American traitors / Nazis demonstrating in Washington DC
January 23, 2026 at 5:47 PM
Reposted by Blake Patterson
reichlinmelnick.bsky.social
This is the Trump administration trashing the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution in pursuit of its mass deportation agenda.

Worse, a footnote to this memo suggest they won't even rule out authorizing home invasions with no judicial warrant for people not even ordered removed!
This guidance addresses only the use of administrative warrants to arrest aliens subject to final orders of removal issued by an Immigration judge, the BIA, or a U.S. district court judge or magistrate judge in their place of residence. This scoping is not intended to concede that an administrative warrant would be insufficient to arrest an alien in his or her place of residence prior to a final order of removal or where there is a final order of removal issued by an immigration officer.
January 21, 2026 at 10:22 PM
Reposted by Blake Patterson
danvergano.bsky.social
NASA quietly ends financial support for planetary science groups

The U.S. space agency will quit funding several independent science advisory groups this year

www.scientificamerican.com/article/nasa...
NASA quietly ends financial support for planetary science groups
The U.S. space agency will quit funding several independent science advisory groups this year
www.scientificamerican.com
January 21, 2026 at 3:47 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
Dusk

#photograph #sunset #dusk #nature #trees #winter #NoVA #photo #photography #outdoors
A horizon at twilight
January 21, 2026 at 7:01 AM
blakespot.bsky.social
There is a 'Firehouse' Democratic Primary in Alexandria, VA on Tuesday, Jan 20th

I am working in support of long-time Alexandria criminal defense attorney Chris Leibig. Vote, District 5 voters!

www.leibigfordelegate.com

#NoVA #AlexandriaVA #Alexandria #Virginia #Primary #Election #Democrats
Chris Leibig for Delegate
www.leibigfordelegate.com
January 20, 2026 at 1:38 AM
blakespot.bsky.social
"Who still remembers mIRC and IRC?" [reddit]

www.reddit.com/r/nostalgia/...

#InternetRelayChat #IRC #IRCing #chat #network #internet #computing #computinghistory #reddit #chatroom #IRCserver
Who still remembers mIRC and IRC?
www.reddit.com
January 15, 2026 at 4:12 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
A browsable collection of Amiga mouse pointers.

heckmeck.de/amigastyle/a...

#Amiga #AmigaOS #AmigaDOS #CommodoreAmiga #vintagecomputing #retrocomputing #retrocomputers #mouse #WIMP #OS #GUI #nostalgia #tech #vintagetech #pixelart #UI
Amiga Pointer Archive
heckmeck.de
January 11, 2026 at 6:03 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
Doesn't "jibe" (not "jive").

#language #lexicon #syntax #diction
January 11, 2026 at 1:33 AM
blakespot.bsky.social
Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai are cowards

www.theverge.com/policy/85990...

#Apple #Google #fail #X #musk #socialmedia #complicit #accountability #tech #technews #techtrends #news #iOS #macOS
Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai are cowards
Once you’ve traded your principles for proximity to power, do you even run your own company?
www.theverge.com
January 10, 2026 at 10:02 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
Why can ICE wear fucking masks???
January 8, 2026 at 4:23 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
Donald Trump poses a threat to civilization
- Robert Reich

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

#worldorder #worldnews #news #DC #washingtonDC #geopolitics #war #civilization #politics #trump #destroyingamerica #worldwar3 #criminal #injustice
Donald Trump poses a threat to civilization | Robert Reich
The moral purpose of civilized society is to prevent the stronger from attacking the weaker. The US was founded on that principle
www.theguardian.com
January 7, 2026 at 12:10 AM
blakespot.bsky.social
Mac Studio and Maclock

#Mac #Macintosh #desk #macStudio #Maclock #displays #cubes #bricabrac #desktoy #toys #IRC #irssi #macOS #Apple #photo #mydesk #tungstencube #AppleIIwrench #TI99 #vintagecomputing #retrocomputing #figurines #ByteCellar
Maclock sitting alongside a Mac Studio desktop setup Maclock just unboxed, sitting on a TI-99/4A computer
January 6, 2026 at 4:53 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
Everyone who voted for the current President should be ashamed:

variety.com/2026/tv/news...

Actually - you should be deeply ashamed for a long list of things, but this is the latest, and one of the least surprising, really. (Can you imagine a maga sheep listening to Public Radio?)

#PBS #news
Corporation for Public Broadcasting to Shut Down After 58 Years Due to Trump Eliminating Funding
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting's board voted to close the organization after 58 years after the Trump Administration ended funding.
variety.com
January 6, 2026 at 3:43 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
Virginia's new law SB854 is an egregious online privacy / data security nightmare, and it will get worse from here.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukIh...

#Virginia #VA #NoVA #SB854 #stategovernment #privacy #laws #outofbounds #leavemychildalone #fail #overreach #VPN #getaVPN
Virginia’s SB854 Puts Social Media Under a Digital Straightjacket
YouTube video by verified privacy
www.youtube.com
January 3, 2026 at 4:43 PM
Reposted by Blake Patterson
bluescsi.com
Announcing BlueSCSI Ultra, Ultra Wide and (coming soon) SCA.

bluescsi.com/ultra
BlueSCSI Ultra & Ultra Wide Announcement
Announcing BlueSCSI Ultra and Ultra Wide - 68-pin 16-bit Ultra Wide support, integrated RP2350B, Front Panel support, and more.
bluescsi.com
January 2, 2026 at 11:04 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
NASA's Largest Library To Permanently Close On Jan 2, Books Will Be 'Tossed Away' under the Trump administration's reorg plans.

www.ndtv.com/world-news/n...

#NASA #space #science #archive #history #spacehistory #techhistory #trump #reorg #waste #federalgovernment #fedgov #trumpadministration
www.ndtv.com
January 2, 2026 at 11:20 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
#NewYear
January 1, 2026 at 4:58 AM
blakespot.bsky.social
Aberystwyth [a neologism], n. "A nostalgic yearning which is in itself more pleasant than the thing being yearned for." (coined by Douglas Adams)

I suffer.

#nostalgia #neologism #yearning #words
December 31, 2025 at 3:53 PM
blakespot.bsky.social
Just signed up for COMPUTE!'s Gazette print + digital magazine.

#Compute #Computesgazette #vintagecomputing #retrocomputing #homecomputers #magazine #nostalgia #computing #computers
Confirmation of an online magazine subscription
December 31, 2025 at 5:06 AM
Reposted by Blake Patterson
konstantinosd.bsky.social
Happy to report that those wonderful, beautifully illustrated Magnetic Scrolls text adventures can still be played (online) here: msmemorial.if-legends.org/msa2/msa2.html
December 30, 2025 at 2:59 PM