gabe

In my latest post on Over the Walled Garden, I'm entering the world of self-hosting, a whole different way to de-google my life.

This post is NOT just an excuse to share cute pictures of my cat. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/de-googlin...

Fun fact: in order to honour the subject matter and to give the lake more of a voice in the piece (and also to entertain myself), I tried to hamfistedly force water metaphors into the text. Can you find all five? 👀

Alderville First Nation grants legal personhood to Rice Lake Exploring an alternate solution to climate change, and a growing international movement

Just published a new piece on @ptbocurrents.bsky.social, all about Alderville First Nation's attempts to establish legal personhood status for Rice Lake. Check it out: peterboroughcurrents.ca/environment/...

6 personal picks from the 2026 ReFrame Film Festival This past year, I had a chance to volunteer with the Programming Advisory Committee for the ReFrame Film Festival, Peterborough’s annual festival of

This past year, I had the chance to volunteer on thee Programming Advisory Committee for the ReFrame Film Festival. Now, with the festival less than a week away, I thought I'd share my personal picks from the festival.

Read it on @ptbocurrents.bsky.social! peterboroughcurrents.ca/arts/reframe...

New post up on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden. Diving deep into the surveillance apparatus of ICE, and what it tells us about the modern world. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/what-does-...

Two short stories about strong mayor powers in Peterborough A legal challenge against the City of Peterborough is dropped and “the mayor’s budget” is passed

I wrote in @ptbocurrents.bsky.social about strong mayor powers and two examples of how they're being used in Peterborough. peterboroughcurrents.ca/news/two-str...

Is there a way to keep old computers running and out of the landfill? Am I going to break my laptop? What's a Linux?

Read the latest post on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/de-googlin...

The police budget has grown almost 50 per cent in four years. Does that make sense? What goes into a police budget? And is it the best way to improve public safety?

I just published a new long piece on the @ptbocurrents.bsky.social website!

The Ptbo police budget keeps rising - but why? What are the factors contributing to its growth? Is it reducing crime? And are the other options we could be funding to keep us safe? peterboroughcurrents.ca/in-depth/pol...

Read the latest post on Over the Walled Garden. Find out about alternate ways to get apps onto your phone (and how Google is about to ruin it all). gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/de-googlin...

Uncovering the history of the Curve Lake Day School New book reveals a pattern of abuse, cultural erasure, and systemic neglect by the Canadian government

I just published my first full article on the Peterborough Currents website as co editor! peterboroughcurrents.ca/in-depth/cur...

Introducing the new Peterborough Currents editorial team Gabe Pollock and David Tough are eager to continue Currents' committed local journalism

Excited to announce that Dave Tough and I are the new co-editors of @ptbocurrents.bsky.social! I’ve admired Currents from afar (and been a monthly donor) for years, and I’m honoured that Will + the Currents/PALN team are trusting us with their baby.
peterboroughcurrents.ca/announcement...

New post is up on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden. We're talking cookies and the other ways your activity on the internet gets tracked. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/the-devil-...

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New post on Over the Walled Garden! It's the second (and final) half of my exploration is American tech companies in China, as Facebook gives it a go (and Google tries again). gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/the-proble...

Read my latest post on Over the Walled Garden, on Google's misadventures in China, and how a company breaks its own values. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/the-proble...

Do I trust Google more or less than the collective wisdom of internet strangers?

Read the latest post on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/de-googlin...

I failed to mention this in my Over the Walled Garden post about alternative search engines, but it's recently been brought to my attention that the DuckDuckGo logo puts on little hats depending on what you search for.

(Thank you Trailmixen for this essential info.)

Did you hear? We've re-invented feudalism!

Read the latest post on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/on-middlem...

Thank you to thee @garbageface.bsky.social for giving Over the Walled Garden a shout in his excellent monthly newsletter Under the Full Moon! 🖤🖤🖤🖤

Sometimes I'll scoop up my cat and hold her tight. She lets it happen (at least for a little bit), but while I'm holding her, she'll often be licking my arm. So both of us are showing affection to the other one, in a way the other one finds annoying.

We’re both annoying!

Why can I run Doom on a refrigerator, but I can't get FaceTime on my Android?

My latest post on Over the Walled Garden is about hackers, DRM, malware, and a three-decade effort to keep a computer game alive. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/can-it-run...

Sometimes technology is marvelous, sometimes it's creepy - and sometimes it's both at once.

Read my latest post on Over the Walled Garden, and subscribe to get future posts in your email inbox. open.substack.com/pub/gabeisyo...

I would love that! I'll message you

New post up on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden. On getting my data out of America, and realizing just how hard it's going to be to extricate myself from Google Drive. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/de-googlin...

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"LIBRE not GRATIS" On the origins of the free software movement, and what happens when engineers try to talk to real people

New post is up on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden.

On the origins of the free software movement, and what happens when engineers try to talk to real people. gabeisyourgod.substack.com/p/libre-not-...

I'm reading this book about the internet, and mostly it's good, but every once in a while, it will drop the most old-man shit I've ever heard.

Here, the author describes popular online entertainment during the 2020 COVID lockdowns:

New post is up on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden!

This week, we're delving into alternative search engines. As it turns out, there's a whole world of choices. open.substack.com/pub/gabeisyo...

is it wrong to fact-check a library book?

New post up on my newsletter, Over the Walled Garden. A brief history of Google Search, and how an internet institution collapsed under its own weight. open.substack.com/pub/gabeisyo...

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In my latest post on Over the Walled Garden, I use the word "Google" 76 times. I say "Google" more than "the."

I'm kinda proud of that.

Mapping the walls of the garden How tech companies invite us in, then lock the gates. Plus: taking stock of my own reliance on Google.

Food for thought from @gabeisyourgod.bsky.social. The list is a little shocking when you see how many apps keep us tied to Google. I have weaned myself off a lot of the Google, but gmail and maps are hard to let go.