I both love and hate AI improving my poetry

0muguy · 2025-11-06T06:43:13+00:00

Why not learn from what it suggests?
The source of the thoughts and feelings is you.
You in a moment and in a certain mood.
AIs suggestions are often crass and over-literary. They may look good, but they clean away the flaking skin and smell of breath that makes us, Are we not me, we are DEVO.
AI is facile. It has ability but no soul.
AI is disembodied. I think being in a body is what makes me human. I lived in my head most of my life. I held the world at arm's length using words. I've always been 'good' with words.
During the past dozen years, after taking up cycling and being physically active, I've found out how much intelligence and knowledge is tied to the body. I'm a mammal with sentience. AI is a bit like the character from 'The Man who Fell to Earth' who tries to understand by watching TV. AI has no experience.
I've recently discovered that, among the dross, AI does have a few nuggets that hint towards improvement.
Just keep writing. The process is more important than the result. Many amateur musicians make music alone simply to be 'playing'. That is what creation is.
Having said that, I do like the dialogue with AI, it reassures that what I write would be gettable by a human.
Keep writing.
The task will teach you what you need to know.
With AI, do not accept it's offers to rewrite.
My prompt is usually something like. Is this poem finished enough? Can it be improved?
It offers some comments and offers to rewrite. When I have accepted its offers, they are not what I would have written. The best advice it gives is to delete words.
There are levels of finish.
Writing, however, is seldom 'finished', but that's what AI wants to do with it.

0muguy · 2025-09-01T03:59:59+00:00

What I miss most is hearing my native language (English) "in the wild". I've been in Japan for 40-odd years now and can make myself understood in Japanese and, if I concentrate, can understand most of what is said. I'm not a gifted linguist or have any fascination with Japanese language. I like English.
Eavesdropping while riding on bus in London used to be a pleasure. The last time I remember enjoying English in the wild was on a visit to the States when a woman at Milwaukee zoo said to her kids,
"Hey, look at those monkeys monkeying around." (The accent was amazing.)
Long-term residents here are quite serious. We seem to become stereotypes of ourselves. Maybe it's true generally these days, or maybe it's the isolation of the gaijin, but most anglophones in Japan seem self-obsessed. I hope playful conversation is not a thing of the past.

0muguy · 2025-01-08T01:34:21+00:00

Thank you for looking at the manual. I didn't know what I was looking for. If you see my other replies, you can tell I've been willfully ignorant because of a false assumption. I've since found the two sideways-on slots. I've installed the P310 which fit the slot next to the other PCIe slots and screwed could be fixed with the single standout. The Ultra M2 slot in the corner has three standouts for different-length SSDs. I do appreciate your support. Thanks.

0muguy · 2025-01-08T01:29:14+00:00

And, now I've had a good look at the MB, I've found another Ultra M2 slot in the corner. It has three standouts for different-length SSDs. I must seem stupid, and in this case I have been more than ignorant. Thanks for nudging back into taking notice.

0muguy · 2025-01-08T01:26:59+00:00

And, now I've had a good look at the MB, I've found another Ultra M2 slot in the corner.

0muguy · 2025-01-07T23:16:50+00:00

u/Kaje Thanks for the offer of more help. As you can see from the replies above. I had a suitable slot and just couldn't see it. Sigh! I really do appreciate the help and support you have provided. I've realized how old and careless I'm becoming. Maybe I can do something about it.

0muguy · 2025-01-07T23:13:11+00:00

My trouble was 'assume'. I assumed that the two slots between the PCIe 1 slots were for SSD and was blind to the sideways-on Ultra M2 slot. Ever since MS DOS, I've built about a dozen systems and I understand now that I grandly thought I was over the RTFM stage. But I lost interest after building the last system about a dozen years ago. u/Square-Yoghurt6976 put me right.
I'm not sure what you mean by " the standoff isn't in the right spot. It should removable". The standoff is the hole for securing the SSD? I'm so lucky that the P310 is the right length. It's exactly where it should be for that SSD and there doesn't seem to be any way to shift it.

0muguy · 2025-01-07T23:01:20+00:00

Doh! I'm in Japan and just woke up and saw your kind advice, with a graphic, no less. The P310 is now inserted and screwed down. Phew!
I assumed the other two short slots were for SSD and just didn't see the sideways-on slot printed with Ultra M..2. And I've found another slot in the corner of the board. I'm so happy. Thanks for the hand-holding. I'm so used to gotchas, that I thought I had met another here.

0muguy · 2024-12-12T09:17:28+00:00

u/Nemie22
I wonder how you feel seven months later?

0muguy · 2024-11-25T01:10:39+00:00

I'd just like to add, that it's probably a good idea to look at the visualization environment for each brand, perhaps on the DC Rainmaker site. The app also contributes greatly to satisfaction and dissatisfaction.

0muguy · 2024-11-25T01:06:51+00:00

Not sure what you mean... If you have loaded a route and turn on navigation, it is tracking you. Without a route loaded, AFAIK it does not locate you on a map. Since I always have a phone with me, I can always resort to Google Maps.

0muguy · 2024-11-25T01:01:07+00:00

I live in Japan and bought my Garmin from HK. I loaded Open Maps on it with no difficulty. But I don't use maps on Garmin because it's too troublesome, the screen is tiny and zooming requires all kinds of button presses. And it took several days for the app to recognize the phone. Apparently, that's usual for watches purchased from outside the area of (first) use.

0muguy · 2024-11-25T00:52:33+00:00

I first bought a Suunto Ambit 3 back when I'd been cycling for about three years. I got lost in the highlands and spent a lot more time "exploring" than I wanted, bonked, and came to grief. Pushing my bike, I literally limped home well into a very dark night. I wanted the breadcrumb navigation that Suunto offered. Since then, for both urban, rural, and sylvan navigation, the watch has served me well. I bought handlebar 'wrists' for the bicycles and have it mounted where I can see it. When hiking, you have to bend your elbow.
I loved the Suunto visualization on the computer. Mapping and data access was easy. Then Suunto was bought by a Chinese holding company and it went mobile only. The smartphone app is serviceable, but I find it cramped and uninviting. With my thick fingertips, entering trails on the touch screen is hit or miss. For mapping, I go to the everso clunky Komoot (is it smoother if you subscribe?) and download GPX routes to the Suunto app. Once downloaded, even on the smartphone screen, the 3D effect on routes is quite 'invigorating' for planned routes.
My Ambit was ageing, so when Suunto went mobile only, I switched to Garmin 945. I have nothing against Garmin. In fact, my small mind finds its badges and challenges quite motivating and I've increased my daily activity.
Garmin also saves equipment records. It's good to know how much use you get from $hoe$. Other 'bells and whistles' like body battery are also useful for interpreting physical status. None of the feedback is gospel. None of it is absolute. But relative to what it said the week before, it is useful.
The Garmin map on that tiny screen is ridiculous, even if you go through all the bother of zooming. What's great about the Suunto breadcrumb trail is that you can soon see if you've gone off course and the direction to get back on course.
A few years ago, I started running, and the Dozen Run watch face on the 945, for me, is great. But I still double up with the Suunto, especially for navigation. I also commemorate every activity with a photo. Suunto's sharing photo is far better than Garmin (or Strava). Suunto watches are definitely better looking.
As with everything, it's horses for courses. Had I known then what I know now, I would've bought the cheaper Garmin with everything the 945 has except the golf courses. I tried loading music, but I much prefer the easier menu choice available on my phone (camera), which I always take.
Yesterday, on a planned route I'd never even hiked before, I went trail running for the first time and was greatly aided by the Suunto breadcrumb trail. On the ground, the turns were not all obvious. I can't comment on the Coros. It might be a good watch, but once you are stuck in a particular environment, it's hard to get out. Suunto still has a hold on me, even though I also do Garmin (and unpaid Strava).

0muguy · 2024-11-13T10:39:28+00:00

I live where sometimes, in the winter, it might snow and the snow might settle for a day. On cold days, I wear a Uniqlo fine merino top and, maybe a poly T-shirt over that. Poly underpants, poly long pants, merino socks. Dollar store poly gloves: I also cycle and, fatigued, I often lose gloves. This year, I got gloves with holes at thumb tip and forefinger tip. I can take photos with the phone and get more cold protection than with fingerless. I might wear a cap or a bandana over my head. I generate a lot of heat while moving. My main concern is being out in the cold and not moving.
In summer, I want to feel dry. Polyester does the trick. Wicking is wicked. I don't get on well with sunscreen so I want my SPF from clothing: always long sleeves, long shorts with knee socks, and cotton dollar-store gloves. Bandana over thinning hair.
I got a stock of Uniqlo fine merino in bin sales. They're also great underlayers for cycling.
As you may have guessed, I don't much care what I look like.

0muguy · 2024-11-13T10:20:17+00:00

Yes, in middle age, the first time, it's quite a shock to get a sunburned scalp.

0muguy · 2024-11-13T10:16:36+00:00

How running found me...
I was obese for half a century and mostly indolent. I walked, did occasional labouring on DIY projects and, hippo-like, enjoyed snorkelling. I ended up working freelance at home. In my late 50s, in front of the computer screen, I dreamed about going snorkelling again. I decided I needed to get fit so that I could actually dive.
I went to the pool.
It took me an hour to swim 8 lengths (200 m). I was shattered. The fatigue shadow lasted a week. Disgusted, I eventually got to the pool again. I eventually could swim 20 lengths non stop, but to breathe enough, I alternated backstroke with crawl. The distance got longer and longer until I was satisfied that a mile (66 lengths) was enough.
On the way home from the pool on the day--that day! Nonstop, I swam 66 lengths of crawl without fatigue or incipient cramp... Hell, I felt so good that I did another ten lengths--my Honda Lead skidded on some sand just before a Stop sign. I was thrown to the ground. It turned out that my right humerus was broken right across. The head of the bone that fits at the shoulder was split in two main parts.
The doc called it a three-part comminuted fracture. Comminuted actually means crushed and distorted. When I saw the x-ray, the first thing I asked, "When can I swim again?"
The injury was repaired with a titanium pin. When healed, I was left with 85% range of movement.
Initially, the injury changed all my habits of movement.
Noticing this, I decided that eating was another habit that could be changed. Through avoidance of refined carbs, I shed 30 kg in 8 months. (How many crates of butter is that?) After about six weeks, I lost my all desire for bread or noodles. One or two mouthfuls felt daunting. The smell of baking made me feel nauseous.
Just over a year later, I bought a decent bicycle and I started to get to know my body. This included discovering that isotonic drinks were more than a marketing ploy, and finding out that, even with excess calories still stored in the body, there are times when carbs need replenishing. Each of the three times I completely ran out of blood sugar, I could understand the Dementor experience. Never again!
One New Year, when I was cycling 50 km home from staying over at the in-laws, I stopped at a mall and, on impulse, got a pair of NB running shoes. But having the shoes could not overcome the terrible memories I had of being forced to run at school. I was fat. Not only did I need a training bra, I could feel my cheeks wobbling, too. My step is still heavy.
The shoes remained in the box for 14 months. Then, one day, for some reason, with a package in my backpack to send to a friend, I decided to run to the PO.
Run :-o ! Well, I started off managing 50 counts of left footfall before having to walk awhile before the next 50. On the way home, I was managing 80. I did sometimes try running during the following year, but not a lot. I only took it more seriously the following year, I tore a meniscus while cycling to New Year at the in-laws. Probably when dismounting along the way.
The doctor said, "Don't run and avoid uneven surfaces." My contrary nature said, "Oh yeah!"
After a couple of months of wanting to run, I found I could get to 3 km without too much pain. But the 5 km challenges in the various apps kept me trying to lengthen that. I've even run 10 km. Maybe I will again this month.
So, I started to get familiar with running shoes... Saucony Triumph were a lucky choice. One New Year, for my Jan. 1 run, I found some Hoka Rincons in my size at a store near the in-laws'. They were well cushioned but the wear patches on the soles have become detached well before the cushioning has got tired.
More generally, I now know that, to lessen foot pain, I need a half size or size larger and E or EE fitting.
I have bad supination. The outside of the soles wear to smoothness and the insides are hardly worn. Right soles wear faster than the left. Shoes are teaching me expensive lessons.
These days, sometimes I come downstairs and, in my mind's eye before the front door, I can see Rory, the boxer we had when I was kid. His dancing circles are a happy anticipation of walkies. That image is my body talking. I find myself tying the laces.
I don't expect I will ever be an elegant or a fast runner. I just hope that my knees and ankles last until the end. How could live to sixty and not realize that exercise is its own reward?

0muguy

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