Being the sole owner/operator of a store means it's rare to actually get out and enjoy yourself. I keep the shop open on weekends so I try to do little solo adventures. Today I went snorkeling at Ft Wetherill and met a crab.

I should just create a bot to repost this every time someone mentions how awful the Harry Potter universe is. From the Guardian interview with Ursula K. le Guin:

This is a cat map. A mom seated nearby has a good and safe lap that any cat would find comfy.

Lots of good places to nap. Very considerate to your capybara audience. Wanna see a polar bear map? It's a heat map so the bears know where it will be comfortable and not too hot.

I did a workshop last night in Millbury called A Map for a Cat which invites kids to make maps from the perspective of different animals. Wanna see a capybara map?

Look at that spread! Not bad! (White dots are where other beacons were erected during the War) I don't count Beacon Hill in Boston because it was erected in the 1600s as a navigational aid long before it was used to signal conflict.

One of the big beacons erected during the American Revolution was the summit of the Great Blue Hills. (WGBH got its name because their transmission antenna was put up in the same strategic location). The line of sight from those beacons covered a HUGE territory!

A C-17 burns 21,000 lbs of jet fuel per flight hour.

They knew.

Well it's begun.

I rode my bike around this part of Pawtucket taking bubble view 360 degree images every 2 seconds. I processed the photos using @mapillary and extracted all of the utility poles the computer saw in the photos. Here is a quick map that I generated.

I've been having fun doing streetview scans of Pawtucket with @mapillary and a GoPro. Hoping I can do some feature extraction service for the city DPW and prove that open source, bike-mounted imagery can be a real solution for small cities.

Max Zawatsky is a comic book artist who came to visit me in the shop yesterday with his partner Raine. They're moving to Vermont and they had to come in to say goodbye. Gonna miss these nerds.

I have to introduce you all to Tim. He's a web developer and he A. has an amazing shirt B. makes maps of fictional worlds using @mapbox.com C. goes so far as to make entire election results maps of the fictional elections held in said fictional worlds Tim is basically my ideal customer.

Right now the streetview imagery coverage in Pawtucket is quite poor. Google spends lots of money driving the streets to collect imagery that they'll charge you to use. Mapillary lets you collect your own imagery and use it for free. All I have to do is go for a 250 mile bike ride through Pawtucket.

I heard Pawtucket is releasing an RFP to map out street signs and determine where they need to be replaced. Just slapped a GoPro on my new ebike and tested out how @Mapillary can identify infrastructure. Assuming Pawtucket doesn't already have a contractor who's cousins with the mayor I'm gonna bid.

A class about semiotics, design, epistemology and cartographic history but make it whimsical and arts+crafts.

Last week I was invited to Yale University to lead an activity that I invented called "A Map for a Cat." It's about human-centered design as it relates to cartography and the students immediately got what I was trying to do. They never missed an opportunity to say "yes, and."

The view from the kids' section:

This is a shot from when I was just moving things in but it gives you the idea of how awesome the lighting is in the afternoon.

Also the theme song is written and performed by legendary straight icon Little Richard.

Map Center 2.0 loading....

One of my customers, Miya Frohmeier, took a picture of me with her vintage camera. She just got the film developed.

Just... one of my favorite places. Full stop. I have been EXACTLY where the protagonist gets swallowed. That dropoff is just epic. This is a map of the area I made.

Spent this morning with my friend Julian who unveiled another historic marker in Bristol RI. He's working to commemorate General Lafayette, whose life story reminds us that the fight for Liberty and Equality relies as much on organizing, alliances and good maps as it does gunpowder and cannons.

Who's up for a bibliophillic adventure? 1. Pick up a passport at Charter Books in Newport or Books on the Square and Providence 2. Visit all 20 RI indie bookstores and get stamped 3. Turn it in for 20% off at all participating stores! One lucky winner will get a $25 gift certificate for EACH STORE!

Today is a great day to remember that rabbits have paws covered in fur. They don't have foot pads. All Easter decorations of rabbits with toe beans are WRONG. My credentials are below. Happy Easter.

Pitfall had a health meter in the upper right corner. As you lost health, the crocodile got closer and your avatar looks over his shoulder more desperately until finally he gets eaten and you lose a life.