{"id":46603,"date":"2026-07-29T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/?p=46603"},"modified":"2026-07-24T08:32:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T15:32:12","slug":"whats-in-my-now-michael-ham","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/whats-in-my-now-michael-ham\/","title":{"rendered":"What&#8217;s in my NOW? \u2014 Michael Ham"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Retired after a varied career of programming, writing, and teaching, I live now in British Columbia and have the daily joy of following my interests, some of which are reflected in the list below. I enjoy cooking a whole-food, non-animal diet (for health).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To help Esperanto beginners find resources (and to share some lessons I learned from experience), I have a blog post that I frequently update: \u201c<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/424db000-a745-42d8-a4da-7abf0c9fd56a?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">If you want to learn Esperanto<\/a><\/strong>\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/files\/2026\/07\/wimb-MichaelHam-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-46604\" width=\"761\" height=\"428\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/files\/2026\/07\/wimb-MichaelHam-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/files\/2026\/07\/wimb-MichaelHam-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/files\/2026\/07\/wimb-MichaelHam-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/files\/2026\/07\/wimb-MichaelHam.jpg 1100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 761px) 100vw, 761px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>PHYSICAL<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/7c1276f2-7b62-41a7-abb3-5dbda5f14ed9?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Nordic walking poles<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;\u2014 NOT trekking poles. Trekking poles are held in front with bent arms to aid with balance and assist particularly in hiking on steep inclines; Nordic walking poles are held at the side and behind with straight arms and aid with propulsion, useful on relatively level terrain. The point is, Nordic walking poles make walking more enjoyable (and burn 20% more calories with no perceptible increase in effort \u2014 indeed, they seem to make walking easier \u2014 and also make walking a full-body exercise).&nbsp;The poles I use are the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/1a9149f9-4bf6-428c-a5ab-52ebe1a961dc?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Exel Pro Curve one-piece poles<\/a>, but those I had order from the UK. I do like them a lot,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/03d9ac0d-8b95-4472-a3be-1d99f0c881e4?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">as I explain<\/a>.<\/li><li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/7205ca89-3acf-43cb-b36a-e94f87149cc7?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Seed and nut grinder with removable cup<\/a><\/strong>. I got this initially to grind flaxseed, but now I use it constantly to grind spices (dried chipotles, cumin seed, fennel seed, etc.), chia seeds, turmeric root, etc. Reliable, easy to use, easy to clean. Whole spices stay fresh longer, so it works well to grind them just before use.<\/li><li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/8aa585da-c18a-4963-8961-f45b3f6cbcee?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MacBook Air with 15\u201d screen<\/a><\/strong>. I had not realized what an enormous difference the slightly larger screen would make, especially given that the computer when closed and carried doesn\u2019t seem much bigger than the 13\u201d Air. But in use the 15\u201d feels SO much larger.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>DIGITAL<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>I have been following from the outset the war that began when Russia invaded Ukraine, and&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/078ad986-7238-4cd8-bb75-0d0e665d18b0?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jake Broe has been a reliable chronicler of the war<\/a>,<\/strong>&nbsp;with three reports a week plus additional things like interviews, questions of the month, and the like.&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/fb240c84-3009-4a0b-bc44-0ae910cf9956?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Caolan Robertson<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;has been exceptionally good lately&nbsp;(e.g., with his expos\u00e9 of Ireland\u2019s support for a Russian factory there that provides tons of aluminum for Russia\u2019s war machine), but for day-in, day-out reliability, Jake Broe is hard to beat.<\/li><li>My invisible item is an essay, and in connection with that essay, I offer this&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/e64e98b5-b4ee-4b65-97b9-d0791eb61e67?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">basic introduction to Esperanto<\/a><\/strong>, which can accommodate learners from a wide range of native languages (English is what I used, but the user can choose from Arabic, German, Vietnamese, Tagalog, etc.) \u2014 you select your language from the initial screen.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h4><strong>INVISIBLE<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>I wanted to experience what it is like to be fluent in another language: see my brief essay, \u201c<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/31a69af9-81d3-40a5-a09e-8b49afdf82b7?j=eyJ1IjoiMXhmZzB6In0.4ieSFe4rvvESx3-YSOApdZUV-VKuM1Arc6QBuHWifaY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Learning to Learn a Language<\/a><\/strong>\u201d. Partly to minimize effort, I chose Esperanto, the learning of which involves patience more than effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n\n\n\n<p><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/whatsinmynow.substack.com\/\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Sign up here<\/em><\/a><em>\u00a0to get\u00a0What\u2019s in my NOW?\u00a0a week early in your inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>issue #264<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":47588,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[2303],"tags":[1553],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46603"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/47588"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46603"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46603\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46605,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46603\/revisions\/46605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46603"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46603"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46603"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}