Kim Z
@observacious.bsky.social
Writer, dabbler, daydreamer. Halloween queen. Chicago by way of a lot of places. She/her
Reposted by Kim Z
"I tell my students; I tell everybody this. When I begin a creative writing class I say, 'I know you've heard all your life, "Write what you know." Well I am here to tell you, "You don't know nothing. So do not write what you know. Think up something else." ~ Toni Morrison
November 11, 2025 at 12:29 PM
"I tell my students; I tell everybody this. When I begin a creative writing class I say, 'I know you've heard all your life, "Write what you know." Well I am here to tell you, "You don't know nothing. So do not write what you know. Think up something else." ~ Toni Morrison
Reposted by Kim Z
“The Miracle Mile Shopping Center in Chicago”
Call in the troops to solve the commercial real estate crisis in our swanky downtown cores
You can’t make this shit up, folks
You can’t make this shit up, folks
November 11, 2025 at 1:00 PM
“The Miracle Mile Shopping Center in Chicago”
Reposted by Kim Z
Breaking: New lawsuit filed against Trump admin.
“The military has made me who I am. It has made me a better person,” plaintiff Master Sgt. Logan Ireland told me. “All that I wish is for the military to see that and to honor that same sacrifice that I’ve given.” www.advocate.com/news/transge...
“The military has made me who I am. It has made me a better person,” plaintiff Master Sgt. Logan Ireland told me. “All that I wish is for the military to see that and to honor that same sacrifice that I’ve given.” www.advocate.com/news/transge...
Transgender Air Force members sue Trump administration over revoked retirements
“The military has made me who I am. It has made me a better person,” Master Sergeant Logan Ireland told The Advocate. “All that I wish is for the military to see that and to honor that same sacrifice ...
www.advocate.com
November 10, 2025 at 11:44 PM
Breaking: New lawsuit filed against Trump admin.
“The military has made me who I am. It has made me a better person,” plaintiff Master Sgt. Logan Ireland told me. “All that I wish is for the military to see that and to honor that same sacrifice that I’ve given.” www.advocate.com/news/transge...
“The military has made me who I am. It has made me a better person,” plaintiff Master Sgt. Logan Ireland told me. “All that I wish is for the military to see that and to honor that same sacrifice that I’ve given.” www.advocate.com/news/transge...
Reposted by Kim Z
Here is the Newsweek magazine article that led to the song "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald," marked up to show key passages that Lightfoot borrowed. Short thread at quoted post. Thanks to @bikeguy.bsky.social for reminding me about this. #EdmundFitzgerald50
November 9, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Here is the Newsweek magazine article that led to the song "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald," marked up to show key passages that Lightfoot borrowed. Short thread at quoted post. Thanks to @bikeguy.bsky.social for reminding me about this. #EdmundFitzgerald50
Reposted by Kim Z
Hey, a lot of people are talking about changing affiliation from Democratic to Independent.
Let me tell you why you shouldn’t do that in Colorado.
One of the main ways to get a primary challenge candidate on a ballot is to caucus for your party. You need to be registered as a Dem to caucus.
Let me tell you why you shouldn’t do that in Colorado.
One of the main ways to get a primary challenge candidate on a ballot is to caucus for your party. You need to be registered as a Dem to caucus.
November 10, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Hey, a lot of people are talking about changing affiliation from Democratic to Independent.
Let me tell you why you shouldn’t do that in Colorado.
One of the main ways to get a primary challenge candidate on a ballot is to caucus for your party. You need to be registered as a Dem to caucus.
Let me tell you why you shouldn’t do that in Colorado.
One of the main ways to get a primary challenge candidate on a ballot is to caucus for your party. You need to be registered as a Dem to caucus.
Reposted by Kim Z
@southsideweekly.bsky.social is doing the work
After ICE Raid, Vendors Push for Safety at Swap-O-Rama
A chaotic federal raid left vendors at the longtime South Side flea market shaken. Now they’re demanding stronger protections.
southsideweekly.com
November 8, 2025 at 3:03 PM
@southsideweekly.bsky.social is doing the work
Reposted by Kim Z
This one's nearly worth getting framed.
November 7, 2025 at 2:50 PM
This one's nearly worth getting framed.
Reposted by Kim Z
Today appears to be the kind of nicer than usual weather day we get in Chicago because there's bad weather coming in immediately behind it. Enjoy the day, folks
November 7, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Today appears to be the kind of nicer than usual weather day we get in Chicago because there's bad weather coming in immediately behind it. Enjoy the day, folks
The first time was so wonderful, I'm tempted to go again! Don't miss out on this, Chicago!
CHICAGO! We are getting the band back together for ONE NIGHT ONLY to celebrate Sinéad with words, music, and cake. Dec 17 at the Hideout. Proceeds go to @icirr.bsky.social
Nothing Compares to Her: A Salute to Sinéad | Hideout Chicago
Nothing Compares to Her: A Salute to Sinéad The late Sinéad O’Connor was a singular talent whose soaring voice and fearless advocacy for children, the LGBTQ community, and anyone being crushed by th...
hideoutchicago.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:17 PM
The first time was so wonderful, I'm tempted to go again! Don't miss out on this, Chicago!
Reposted by Kim Z
A man collapsed in the Oval Office yesterday. The internet got the story wrong.
My experience struggling to correct the record — including on Bluesky! — and the warning signs as AI, aggregation, and social media increasingly drive our news consumption.
My experience struggling to correct the record — including on Bluesky! — and the warning signs as AI, aggregation, and social media increasingly drive our news consumption.
A man collapsed in the Oval Office. The internet got the story wrong.
A case study in how bad information can spread — and how hard it is to correct it.
dandiamond.substack.com
November 7, 2025 at 1:27 PM
A man collapsed in the Oval Office yesterday. The internet got the story wrong.
My experience struggling to correct the record — including on Bluesky! — and the warning signs as AI, aggregation, and social media increasingly drive our news consumption.
My experience struggling to correct the record — including on Bluesky! — and the warning signs as AI, aggregation, and social media increasingly drive our news consumption.
Reposted by Kim Z
A List of Things Said to Have Been Ruined by Women
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November 6, 2025 at 8:43 PM
A List of Things Said to Have Been Ruined by Women
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Reposted by Kim Z
If you're sharing a video and don't know the details nor location or city, you probably shouldn't share it. So much dissemination of ICE videos in Chicago and some sharers don't know anything about it. Resharing traumatic moments and not taking time to research the contents isn't helpful.
November 7, 2025 at 2:44 AM
If you're sharing a video and don't know the details nor location or city, you probably shouldn't share it. So much dissemination of ICE videos in Chicago and some sharers don't know anything about it. Resharing traumatic moments and not taking time to research the contents isn't helpful.
🎉🎉🎉
HUGE ANNOUCEMENT: We are beside ourselves with excitement to share with you that we've been awarded a $100,000 grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
November 7, 2025 at 12:45 AM
🎉🎉🎉
Reposted by Kim Z
Also they make money off of Wordle and I can tell you as somebody who used to play it everyday that it was remarkably easy to switch to Quordle www.merriam-webster.com/games/quordl...
November 6, 2025 at 2:20 PM
Also they make money off of Wordle and I can tell you as somebody who used to play it everyday that it was remarkably easy to switch to Quordle www.merriam-webster.com/games/quordl...
Reposted by Kim Z
Body cams apparently show Border Patrol agents joking about tossing tear gas at a nonviolent protest, with one agent saying "Hey, throw it [tear gas] for fun."
Agents then tried to drive away, but there was apparently so much tear gas they were overcome, couldn't drive, and had to leave on foot.
Agents then tried to drive away, but there was apparently so much tear gas they were overcome, couldn't drive, and had to leave on foot.
A Border Patrol agent was caught on video telling another to throw tear gas “for fun,” according to a court filing. They also mocked protesters and residents who were getting gassed.
November 4, 2025 at 8:50 PM
Body cams apparently show Border Patrol agents joking about tossing tear gas at a nonviolent protest, with one agent saying "Hey, throw it [tear gas] for fun."
Agents then tried to drive away, but there was apparently so much tear gas they were overcome, couldn't drive, and had to leave on foot.
Agents then tried to drive away, but there was apparently so much tear gas they were overcome, couldn't drive, and had to leave on foot.
Reposted by Kim Z
Teenie Harris took this photo of a billboard in Pittsburgh in 1949 and it’s wild to think how little has changed
November 4, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Teenie Harris took this photo of a billboard in Pittsburgh in 1949 and it’s wild to think how little has changed
Reposted by Kim Z
Added a new line to my bio here: “I won’t share AI generated content (except to critique it).”
I added this because a follower wasn’t sure if a video I shared from another platform was real or not.
I added this because a follower wasn’t sure if a video I shared from another platform was real or not.
November 4, 2025 at 8:19 AM
Added a new line to my bio here: “I won’t share AI generated content (except to critique it).”
I added this because a follower wasn’t sure if a video I shared from another platform was real or not.
I added this because a follower wasn’t sure if a video I shared from another platform was real or not.
Reposted by Kim Z
The mere idea that the White House can command an audience with the head of a news network, & the head then complies, seems completely un-American
CNN editor-in-chief Mark Thompson, following a While House meeting, sought to soften the news network's coverage of President Trump's demolition of the East Wing, claiming viewers aren't that interested in the story, according to the Status newsletter.
October 27, 2025 at 9:38 AM
The mere idea that the White House can command an audience with the head of a news network, & the head then complies, seems completely un-American
Bought a bunch of tamales from Jose Flores at Clark and Lunt today. Supporting our vendors and small businesses is the easiest way to support our community (and has the bonus of delicious food)
400 Rogers Park Neighbors Rally After ICE Arrests 4, Including Tamale Vendor
Neighbors lined Clark Street on Saturday as a show of support after multiple immigration arrests. "We've seen that when we have large numbers of volunteers out here, they target us less," a neighbor s...
blockclubchicago.org
October 26, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Bought a bunch of tamales from Jose Flores at Clark and Lunt today. Supporting our vendors and small businesses is the easiest way to support our community (and has the bonus of delicious food)
Reposted by Kim Z
The destruction of the White House movie theater leads me to offer everyone 50% off Mark Feeney’s book Nixon at the Movies, which, among other things, includes an appendix listing the hundreds of movies Nixon watched in office. Use the code WHITEHOUSE at checkout.
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
Nixon at the Movies
Was it an omen? Richard Nixon and the film industry arrived in Southern California in the same year, 1913. As Mark Feeney relates in this unusual and unusually absorbing book, Nixon and the movies hav...
press.uchicago.edu
October 24, 2025 at 2:09 PM
The destruction of the White House movie theater leads me to offer everyone 50% off Mark Feeney’s book Nixon at the Movies, which, among other things, includes an appendix listing the hundreds of movies Nixon watched in office. Use the code WHITEHOUSE at checkout.
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
Reposted by Kim Z
"ICE is holding Ruben Torres under a new interpretation of immigration law rolled out by the DHS in July, which treats long-term residents who entered without inspection as “applicants for admission” subject to mandatory detention — a policy multiple courts around the country have found unlawful."
A Chicago High Schooler Had Just Returned From Chemotherapy. Then ICE Arrested Her Father blockclubchicago.org/2025/10/21/a...
A Chicago High Schooler Had Just Returned From Chemotherapy. Then ICE Arrested Her Father
Ofelia Torres is being treated for Stage 4 cancer while her father faces sudden federal detention. An emergency motion has been filed arguing that her father's detention is unlawful and violates his c...
blockclubchicago.org
October 21, 2025 at 3:45 PM
"ICE is holding Ruben Torres under a new interpretation of immigration law rolled out by the DHS in July, which treats long-term residents who entered without inspection as “applicants for admission” subject to mandatory detention — a policy multiple courts around the country have found unlawful."
Reposted by Kim Z
The Shoemaker’s Magician is available tomorrow 🍿🎥🎬
October 21, 2025 at 3:48 AM
The Shoemaker’s Magician is available tomorrow 🍿🎥🎬
Book mail! Or, technically, box-full-of-many-small-books mail!
October 21, 2025 at 1:36 AM
Book mail! Or, technically, box-full-of-many-small-books mail!
Reposted by Kim Z
The Federal Trade Commission removed several blog posts in recent months about open source and potential risks to consumers from the rapid spread of commercial AI tools.
The FTC Is Disappearing Blog Posts About AI Published During Lina Khan’s Tenure
The Federal Trade Commission removed several blog posts in recent months about open source and potential risks to consumers from the rapid spread of commercial AI tools.
wrd.cm
October 20, 2025 at 12:09 PM
The Federal Trade Commission removed several blog posts in recent months about open source and potential risks to consumers from the rapid spread of commercial AI tools.