Jeffrey Inscho

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 13:26:45 -0400

Never gets old.

Sun, 09 Aug 2026 07:29:52 -0400

This was OK I guess. Not really sure what I was expecting having not seen the previous episodes. The visual effects were impressive, but I just couldn’t get immersed in the story. Maybe I’m just not a superhero movie guy.

Fri, 07 Aug 2026 16:49:48 -0400

It’s Bandcamp Friday! These are great days to pick up new music because Bandcamp waives their revenue share and passes all the funds directly to the artists and labels. I always try to pick up a few records on Bandcamp Fridays. Here is today’s haul.

Hoping as a Coping Mechanism by MOULD. This is a fantastic post-hardcore release. Angular and melodic, but you can also nod your head to it. The vocals remind of Fugazi (the Guy parts) at times, which is cool. The song structure is dense and I’m excited to get closer to this one over time.

Mount Zero by Swapmeet. This one captivated me from the first notes I previewed. It feels a bit Courtney Barnett-ish. Maybe a bit Modest Mousey. But heavier. And softer. If that makes sense. The melodies on this one are infectious, as are the surprising hooks that appear throughout. They’re doing the loud/quiet/loud thing really well.

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 15:52:46 -0400

Welp Pirates, it was fun while it lasted. It appears the downward, spiraling slide out of playoff contention is unquestionably underway unless they can find some way to get on heater ASAP. ⚾️

Thu, 06 Aug 2026 07:21:45 -0400

A new VHS rental shop is coming to Pittsburgh. Lost Lizard, opening this month in Lawrenceville and specializing in B-movies, cult classics and slasher flicks, says it wants to provide analog activity in the age of algorithms:

There are no apps to download or QR codes to scan in the 600-square-foot space, just knob-and-tube TVs to watch, 8-bit video game consoles to play, popcorn to eat and gory box art to ogle.

Sign me up for that monthly membership.

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 16:19:03 -0400

Watched: Phantasm 🍿

The past few months we’ve been attending the Steel City Horror Show, which takes place on the final Sunday at Pittsburgh’s Harris Theater. The concept is cool – a surprise horror flick on the big screen each month with some interesting pre-show facilitated conversation and jump scares thrown in for good measure.

Nobody knows what movie they’re in for until it begins, so you have to be prepared for anything. I’ve found the curation of the films to be really interesting. Off beat for sure.

Last night we watched Phantasm, which was released in 1979 and directed by Don Coscarelli. Plainly put, this was a wild flick. It made absolutely no sense and I mean this endearingly. I wouldn’t say I enjoyed it, but I was intrigued by it if that makes sense.

Anyway, I’m already looking forward to next month’s showing.

Sat, 01 Aug 2026 10:02:01 -0400

We had a fantastic anniversary dinner at Legend’s Eatery last night. It’s been one of our favorite spots over the years and has remained consistently delicious each time we’ve dined there. Highly recommended if you like homemade pasta and that sort of thing. A gem of Pittsburgh’s North Side.

The Sky is Not Falling

Fri, 31 Jul 2026 10:23:24 -0400

So now we’re hearing the frontier models are breaking containment. Two reported instances this week alone. First OpenAI announced that one of its agents hacked Hugging Face in order to complete a test. Then just yesterday, Anthropic announced that Claude broke out of it’s cage to hack three companies, two of which didn’t event notice the breach.

Isn’t it a coincidence that both of these stories appeared in the same week? I don’t think so. Call me a silver hat conspiracy theorist, but I think this is all coordinated PR for these companies designed to feed into the hysteria that AI will eventually end up owning us or feeding off the energy of humans.

Yeah, LLMs suck. They’re being forced upon us at every turn, they’re consuming unreasonable quantities of water and electricity, they’re making kill decisions on the battlefield, they’re putting people out of work, and the overlords running these companies are some of the Worst People on the Planet™. But in the end, as Cory Doctorow says, these are just word guessing programs.

And these word guessing programs need the hysteria of people running around like Chicken Little claiming the sky is falling because it feeds into smoke and mirror valuations that the Worst People on the Planet™ are selling to investors and the media. These guys need the hysteria because their money will run out if they try to sell a word guessing program instead of the almighty, all-knowing digital savior for capitalism and war.

It took me a while to understand that the sky is not falling. The sector as it exists now is not sustainable. The money will run out if we stop feeding into the hype.

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 09:26:12 -0400

It was a morning like this, sixteen years ago today. The sky was the brightest of blues. The air was noticably crisp for July in Pennsylvania. And I remember thinking how amazing the clouds looked that day, hovering still and brilliantly bright in the sky.

You left us that day to fly with angels in those clouds.

There hasn’t been a day since that I haven’t thought about you and how I might live my life in honor of yours. I hope I’m making you proud. Miss you.

Tue, 28 Jul 2026 09:22:35 -0400

Matt Press in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

If anyone in this business ever asks you to dress up as a giant pierogi and participate in a race at a major league ballpark, by God you do it.

A very entertaining account of what it’s like to don the pierogi costume at PNC Park.

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 17:44:11 -0400

The emergence of the neo-Luddite movement is interesting. On one hand, it’s encouraging to see this kind of energy in a movement aimed at neutralizing the hellscape AI, luxury surveilance and technology writ large is creating for us. On the other hand, I don’t think excommunicating all internet-based technology invented in the last few decades is the way to achieve these aims.

For example, if the goal is to get as many people as possible involved in the Summer of Ludd, why can’t organizers publish their calendar of events on an ethically-crafted website? Why put a self-imposed barrier (i.e. information conveyed only via phone) between your event and your audience? I get that calling a phone number is retro and cool, but it seems organizers are cutting off their nose to spite their face with a schtick like this.

I love the idea of smashing the machines that consolidate power and marginalize swaths of people, but the internet is not the enemy here. If anything, the (responsibly used) internet could be a key enabler and vehicle for growing the movement to smash the machines.

Sun, 26 Jul 2026 16:48:03 -0400

Hello from Zelienople, PA

Farewell Old Friend

Sun, 26 Jul 2026 06:43:44 -0400

Yesterday we said goodbye to my trusted Jeep Wrangler. For more than decade, the Jeep served us well. We traveled far and wide, and made a lot of memories, but it was time to move on.

It’s interesting to think about life in terms of phases and markers. The Jeep Wrangler era was certainly a good one for me.

Ultimately, we decided to go in another direction with our new vehicle and I’m looking forward to finding out how my VW era turns out.

Sat, 25 Jul 2026 08:34:19 -0400

This morning while watching a section of the Tour de France and enjoying a cup of coffee, I caught an interesting advertisement from Meta. The ad asserts an optimistic, feel-good tone and attempts to position the company in contrast to their competitors in the AI space. Throughout the spot, they use the tagline “we’re betting on people” in what I presume is a strategic decision to try and capitalize on growing anti-AI sentiment.

This also feels like Meta is selling our aversion to AI back to us, which is just gross coming from a company that wants us to wear their AI on our faces.

I’m not linking to it because I don’t want to proliferate their propaganda.

I want to believe people are smart enough to see through this kind of AI astroturfing and realize these companies are all the same. They’re all betting on people. They bet on people consume the slop. They bet on people to feed the machine. And they bet on people to continue that insidious cycle.

The tide is shifting, however. People are beginning to understand the ramifications of rampant AI development. This mass-market ad is evidence of that.

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 20:57:47 -0400

What a week. Looking forward to touching grass this weekend.

Fri, 24 Jul 2026 17:10:57 -0400

I am absolutely loving the new LP from Twisted Teens, Florida Water Blues. This record picks up where last year’s blame the clown left off and the songs are fun & sloppy in the most perfect ways. It’s been a long time since I’ve been this excited about new music. The kids are gonna be alright.

Sat, 18 Jul 2026 06:52:23 -0400

Wore my Pirates cap to a show in Philly last night and the guy next to me asked if I was really from Pittsburgh or “just a bandwagon fan.” I had no idea Pittsburgh had reached bandwagon fandom status outside of the 412.

Unbreathable Air

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:17:53 -0400

When it comes to outdoor activities, my personal mantra has always been, “there is no such thing as bad weather.” Very few weather-related things could keep me from getting out there.

Prior to today, the only thing that could keep me from my daily run was icy conditions. Add one more to the list: wildfire smoke.

We are in a code purple with air quality pushing 300 here in Pittsburgh. It smells like the world is on fire and you can’t see more than a few hundred yards away.

I run to be healthy, not to feel like I’ve smoked a pack of cigarettes afterward.

Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:00:54 -0400

Watched: The Odyssey 🍿

Not Nolan’s best IMO, but very good. Beautifully shot and the pace of this nearly 3 hour film made it feel much shorter. I was unsure about Damon as Odysseus going in, but the cast was brilliant.

Reading is Thinking

Tue, 14 Jul 2026 10:01:47 -0400

Seth Godin on how work and meeting dynamics have shifted due to the proliferation of Powerpoint-driven content:

If you have something to show us, send it before the meeting. If there’s a memo, we can read it in advance, or afterward. In fact, if the memo is really important, simply pause the meeting while we all take two minutes to read it. We know how to read.

I’ve been doing this for a while and find the most productive meetings start with a detailed pre-read. Give people the appropriate context before the meeting so they can come prepared to discuss the topic intelligently, ask the tough questions, and make the most informed decisions.

A meeting brief or memo requires people to read (a fleeting skill, I know!), but reading requires people to think and comprehend and formulate thought. And those are the things we want, er need, informing our work.

Mid-2026 Bangers

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 15:51:21 -0400

I know we’ve only just passed the halfway mark in 2026, but here are a few of my favorite records released so far this year. I will be curious to see if and how these show up on my year-end list.

bitknot by feeble little horse
URGH by Mandy, Indiana
A Short History of Decay by Nothing
Cost of Living Adjustment by Cola
Singin’ to an Empty Chair by Ratboys
EXPO by Ulrika Spacek
A Wave That Will Never Break by WU LYF
PANCHO EP by Pancho
Unexpected Violence by School Fair

What’s on your mid-year list?

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 20:45:14 -0400

📍Alder Street in Shadyside

Refreshed & Rejuvenated

Sun, 12 Jul 2026 08:14:28 -0400

We are back after spending a week on Bonita Beach in southwest Florida. I really needed this vacation. Work has been intense and this trip came at precisely the right time for my mental health. It was the first time in my career that I left work completely at home. No laptop. No work phone. Completely disconnected. And it was awesome.

While in Bonita, we just relax. Lots of time on the beach. We intentionally keep the itinerary empty and everyone just does what they feel like doing.

My favorite thing to do is take an early morning run on the beach. Our spot is just north of the Barefoot Beach preserve, which offers miles of undeveloped beachfront. I run this every morning while here and it is amazing. I can run for 2 hours and not see another human. Most mornings, the only other living things I see are porpoise, birds and jumping fish. In all my years vacationing there, I had never run the complete island in one go, so I decided to do that this time.

The point of a vacation is to return refreshed and rejuvenated. This trip did that for me and I’m ready to get get back after it now that I’m home.

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 15:05:42 -0400

Wake up babe. The new Twisted Teens LP just dropped.

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 06:41:03 -0400

Watched: Obsession 🍿

Finally watched this. Hype has been high and I was wondering if my friends and family might have oversold it to me. They did not. It’s one of my favorite films released this year.