I hear you. The good news is that I’ve been working on moving to the Austin Metric blog+newsletter as my primary content platform and just using X/bsky/etc for distribution. It’s taken me a bit to build the AM’s tech and change my habits. But that’s the plan for ‘26.
Parked peacock.
A Subaru Baja with some sun wear is parked in a commercial retail center parking lot. The gas tank cover is missing.
Spotted another one. Needs a little love, but emanated grizzled, sun-wrought seriousness.
Franklin D Roosevelt sits at his desk surrounded by four standing men, which are officials and dignitaries witnessing his signature of an official act.
Here’s FDR signing the Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act back in 1934. It was an anti-tariff and pro-trade measure in response to the disastrous Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act.
NEW 🧵 Is human intelligence starting to decline?
Recent results from major international tests show that the average person’s capacity to process information, use reasoning and solve novel problems has been falling since around the mid 2010s
What should we make of this?
www.ft.com/content/a801...
Has anyone else noticed a shift in kid party goodie bags from being filled with sweets to now being overwhelmingly tiny toys or creative supplies? It seems parent etiquette has shifted to not loading up other people’s kids with sugar, right?
#ERCOT has been running at 85% clean today: 75% wind and solar and 10% nuclear. You would have been laughed out of the room if you predicted this 10 years ago. But the smallest interconnection in North America is cranking away at 75% variable resources. Beautiful sight.
@gridstatus.io
#EnergySky
Yesterday, Rabbit Hill captured the dreams of those looking to strike it rich (and nightmares of folks managing risk) in ERCOT with LMPs well above what is normally considered extreme. In fact, Rabbit Hill can now claim the 90 highest single-interval settlement point prices since at least 2011.
ERCOT broke its record winter peak yesterday and today, culminating in a new record above 80 GW for the first time at 8AM CST this morning. But even more has been going on under the hood in the last few days. 🔌💡
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Indeed. I do think that in addition to the US flag, public pro-immigration mobilizations need a second set of symbols to be clear about their stance. Love her, but La Virgen is too 1997. For todays environment, there’s St. FXC…but IMO Columbia needs a subtle reboot.
This is a quick catch-up on a long-running, complicated issue for AE via our non-profit daily. Also: would love to hear more about their geothermal project w Exceed. Thank you!
www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2024...
Does their $115m/year “transfer” into the City general fund to support things like police raises endanger their ability to provide affordable rates and sufficient system maintenance capex?
Hey Texas folk: I'm interviewing some people from Austin Energy (the city's utility) tomorrow.
What should I ask?
⚡My latest article for @noemamag.com is a deep-drill into the extraordinary untapped potential of geothermal power - a subject that has obsessed and exhilirated me like few topics I've ever written about before. ⚡
www.noemamag.com/searching-fo...
"It was Carter who first addressed the essential fact of our time, which is that modern life as we know it today has been both created by and is being destroyed by our entanglement with fossil fuels."
The Santa Cruz started to change my perception of Hyundai. A lot of folks love their Ioniq. And now this. Interesting!
www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...
Yes! Who do you think is attempting to do this and doing it well in an enterprise? Or is there research/advocacy you find inspiring? Basically, I am just trying to marinate in energy avoiding “platform decay”, to use Doctorow’s alternative phrasing.
Climate change will increase the need for cool (😉) indoor spaces. I hope Austin becomes a city of family-friendly museums, partially subsidized by the public, the Lege, and UT. One of them should be a Museum of Neon, featuring great pieces from Austin and beyond:
www.curbed.com/article/rock...
Battery storage in ERCOT: 9,894 megawatts
Austin Energy's storage: 3 megawatts.
Austin Energy wants to build a gas peaker plant but the utility's share of Texas' grid scale batteries is ~0.03%. Austin City Council will vote on AE's plan tomorrow. #txenergy 🔋🔌💡
publicinput.com/Customer/Fil...
Yes! So here’s a tricky question: as you know, we are considering a “climate bond” here in Austin…but not a lot of storage or transmission in that since it’s AE’s domain…so, what’s next on the list for the City? It seems a bit of a capex Xmas tree at the moment…
I think we all know what your _real_ problem is with these flags, Señor Martillo…
🟥⭐️⚒️⭐️🟥
Alright. It’s between these two for me.
It’s a good thing I don’t live in lovely Chicago because I am not sure which way I’d go in the new Illinois State Flag contest:
www.ilsos.gov/special/IFC/...
Crypto??? Whatever. Elite asset allocators already know what works if you are looking for a highly volatile, mania-driven, yet intoxicating store of value. And this one is low carbon, too.
I voted for Fernando today for AISD and hope friends in D7 will vote for @mikesiegeltx.bsky.social for City Council.
But Y’ALL…these December runoffs are farcical. Microscopic turnout. Austin already passed RCV. Countless better ways to do this. Need TX Lege to let us. Not a partisan issue.
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Have we gotten to see Darwin on the left and Diogo as a false 9 at all in 24/25? Diaz/Gakpo is such a complementary rotation on the left, but with a Bobby it seems Slot’s Darwin could be a Mane-like player now on the left...maybe. It’s all a bit maddening/exciting ha. Thanks for your insights, Sam.
Great stuff. Thank you for calmly and rigorously examining the situation. I had hoped that Slot would find patterns of play that suited him _offensively_. Darwin’s all around game is so much better. One thing: man, what profile _does_ Slot need in a 9 now? A pacier Jota? A Bobby regen (the irony)? 🤔
Our @energyandpolicy.bsky.social team is growing!
We're adding a research and comms manager to lead our investigations in key states, with a specific focus on TX. If you have experience in journalism, politics, research or advocacy, please consider joining us!
energyandpolicy.org/research-and...
I love mine.
