By Tom Watson in weeknote — 20 Apr 2025

Weeknote 20-04-2025

A week in scotland with animals of all kinds, and pondering whether what I do has any value, or if I should just shut up and play the hits.

What I did

I went to Scotland. I stayed in a treehouse. I saw a red squirrel, and a red kite, and a king fisher, and an osprey and some deer. I saw waterfalls, and lochs. I ran a bit. I walked a bit. Mostly I just breathed it all in.

I wondered if I was losing my edge, whether I should sell my guitars and buy a turntable. I wondered if it was easier to just do the things that everyone wants, rather than push at the edges and try something new or at least different. Should I just shut up and play the hits? But deep down, I've always been a rebel. So I thought maybe I should just go harder. Because maybe I want to make something real.

Some interesting things

What is so insulting to me about those AI-written messages is that they take less time and consideration to produce than they do to consume. You are, by the nature of sharing these automated words, signaling to me that you care less about my time and attention than you do your own https://www.fastcompany.com/91317959/if-you-use-ai-to-write-me-that-note-dont-expect-me-to-read-it

Yes, I should do this https://thoughtshrapnel.com/2025/04/18/i-just-think-that-people.html

The notion site with all the things from the Powering Up Programme was shared. I'll write something more about this next week maybe.

Now is the time to increase emphasis on data sovereignty, data localization, and data protection, including close attention to where systems are hosted and how their availability is funded and guaranteed. https://developmentgateway.org/blog/the-data-crisis-following-usaids-withdrawal-opportunities-to-reimagine-data-systems/