Iain K. MacLeod

He/Him | Paid Worker. Unremarkable Hobbyist. Occasional Friend. Full-time Dad. Great-great-great-grandnephew of Angus “Giant” MacAskill. Worked skateboard check at 1994 Gobblefest in Cape Breton. Based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada. aka Boost Ventilator. For more info…
Pinned post from October 28, 2022

Favourite Quotations

“If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood of fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence.” — Louis Brandeis “PLEASE AUTHENTICATE MY EXISTENCE” — Charlie Brooker “If you put shame in a Petri dish, it needs three things to grow exponentially:...
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April 5, 2026

Seventeen

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March 17, 2026

Camp Duly Noted

Just because, here are the different names of the camp programs that support specific chronic health conditions or life challenges at Brigadoon Village: • “Camp BELIEVE – Parental Mental Illness ” • “Camp Brainiac – Neurosurgery Conditions ” • “Camp Braveheart – Heart Conditions ” • “Camp Carpe Diem – Epilepsy ” • “Camp Clots-of-Fun– B...
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February 27, 2026

Your To Make Do List

As Jim Gaffigan says, I'm "indoorsy." While I appreciate (and occasionally fear) nature, I know I'm probably not your survivalist speed dial contact. That said: did you know there's a local tech-and-alcohol-and-distraction-free camp for grown-ups? Turns out, the YMCA's Big Cove isn't just for kids! This is a rare chance to slow down an...
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February 24, 2026

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) - ★★★★★

The Rules of Whackbat Ingredients: • 3 grabbers • 3 taggers • 5 twig runners • 1 player at Whackbat Directions: 1. Center tagger lights a pine cone and chucks it over the basket and the whack-batter tries to hit the cedar stick off the cross rock. 2. The twig runners dash back and forth until the pine cone burns out and the umpire call...
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February 20, 2026

It's not the tech I hate, it's their fans

A lot of current tech discourse brings up a mix of dread, irritation, and euphoric delight, and I’ve been sitting with it for a while. The same forces that hollow out labour and strain ecosystems also lower the cost of building small, practical software for everyday problems. It’s difficult to quote just one part of this essay, but sea...
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February 13, 2026

Review: Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie (2025) - ★★★★½

Reviewed on 15-SEP-25 Geez, a little true north pride seeing Toronto playing itself as only it could (as seen in such films as Scott Pilgrim vs. The World and Pixar’s Turning Red). Iconic scenery provided by the “SkyDome,” the CN Tower, the Rivoli (an inexplicable troupe carried over from the previous NTBTS series), and random extras w...
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February 11, 2026

Review: Instant Pot 7-in-1 Programmable Pressure Cooker (6qt/1000W) [IP-DUO60]

Purchased for $86.24 on 25-NOV-16 and still in operation after ten years, I found this old review: After hearing it was “the internet’s choice for pressure cookers” from Jason Kottke and The Wirecutter, plus several friends repeating the same sentiment on Facebook, the Instant Pop became our family's best Black Friday deal of 2016. The...
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February 5, 2026

Review: Beetlejuices

Review: Beetlejuice, 1988 - ★★★★½ Reviewed on 1-FEB-26 Oh yeah, what was the name of that movie featuring Robert Goulet and Dick Cavett? They say his name appears in the Epstein files three times. Probably my favourite Zagnut product placement until How To with John Wilson. Lost ½ a ★ because I’ve never liked how Alec Baldwin drew the ...
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February 2, 2026

Review: Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) - ★★★★★

Reviewed on 31-JAN-26 Marianne: “I haven’t seen her smile.” Sophie: “Have you tried to be funny?” A small moment that best exemplifications a detached and non-self-aware pursuit of making sure the people around us appear happy. The entire film is a remarkably concise portrait of the sometimes impossible-to-imagine and often difficult-t...
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January 28, 2026

👑 of 💩

““Politicians usually try to win voters by matching policies to preferences. Trump goes somewhere deeper. For people despairing about the country’s direction, he offers hope; for those who feel disrespected, validation; for those who feel uncertain, clarity.”” Excerpt from: “The Four Types of Trump Supporter” by Daniel Yudkin & Stephen...
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January 16, 2026

Standing Up to Survival

While some consider it passive consumption, I'm going to file it under empathy research. I spent an afternoon this week dismantling decorations and watched three comedy specials from my ever-expanding watchlist that happened to prove you don't have to continue suffering (and being insufferable) for your art. You just have to survive an...
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January 15, 2026

Stop Reappearing iCloud Tabs on Mac Safari

How to Fix Persistent ‘Ghost’ or ‘Zombie’ iCloud Tabs on Mac (Safari) If you’ve ever closed Safari tabs on your iPhone, only to see them mysteriously reappear on your Mac, you’re not alone. This “ghost tab” problem seems to happen when iCloud sync metadata gets out of sync between devices and has been annoying for many months. Bookmark...
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January 2, 2026

Review: Zootopias aka Zootropolises

Zootropia (2016) - ★★★★ Reviewed on 19-NOV-25 Ok, so aka Zootropolis? At least that’s how it’s listed on Disney+ in Canada. And speaking of Canada, quite a wide range of cameos: Tommy Chong, Peter Mansbridge, and Don Lake. I stayed clear of this one on its original release for no particular reason other than having just brought a baby ...
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