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A Million Little Pieces Of My Mind

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Many (although not all) pages on this site include a date and possibly time at which the event described occurred, the page was posted, or the page was updated. Here you can narrow a search down to as narrow a period as you like; or, alternatively, broaden it to all of time, set the Maximum Retrievals Per Page to 1000 and browse every page here!

Artists as Tool Users

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 3/21/2023
Page Views: 112
Topics: #Autobiography
Throughout history, artists have used tools, assistants, and modern technologies like ChatGPT to assist in the creative process, resulting in more accurate, efficient, and detailed works, while sparking debates about the role of the artist and the authenticity of their work.

Throughout history, artists have always relied on tools, assistants, secretaries, and amanuenses to create their art. These aids helped artists to produce works that were more accurate, efficient, and detailed. In this essay, I will explore the different types of tools and aids that artists have used throughout history, from Vermeer's Camera Obscura to modern-day spell and grammar checkers, and how ChatGPT can assist writers.

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A Tower of Babel

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 3/20/2023
Page Views: 0
Topics: #ShortStories #ArtificialIntelligence
Communication is key. But for what lock?

In the heart of Mesopotamia, in the city of Babyl, a mighty shape could be seen under construction rising above the horizon for many, many miles away. The Ziggarat, as it was called, was to be the tallest and most impressive structure the world had ever seen. Constructed under orders from the Babylonian's God King, Marduk, it had been a source of steady employment for many generations. Marduk was generous, and the people of Babyl spared no expense in training the best engineers, programmers, lawyers, architects, and other specialists to ensure its success. However, as years passed, construction slowed to a virtual halt, and Marduk demanded a top-level meeting to determine what the problem was, and find a solution.

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Babel

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 3/20/2023
Page Views: 101
Topics: #Autobiography
My AI assistant just wrote a story for me.

Some 40 years ago I had an idea for a humorous short short story ("short short" is actutally a technical writing term) but to do it properly would have required I learn the proper use of a lot of jargon from different disciplines and I've just never had the time to do it justice. But now we have ChatGPT to help with the heavy lifting. I decided to feed it a description of the story I wanted to write and see if it couldn't do the research I was too lazy busy to do. And I have to say I was beyond pleasantly surprised.

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A Chat with ChatGPT

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 3/18/2023
Page Views: 147
Topics: #Autobiography #Computers #ArtificialIntelligence #ChatGPT
It passes the Turning Test. But is it sentient?

I felt experimental this evening and decided to really try out one of those new AI-powered chat bots that claim to be able to write anything you want, from a sonnet to a computer program to a college thesis. So I picked ChatGPT, created a login for it, and hunted for where I was supposed to type, as it's about time for me to get a new pair of glasses. But I found it, and said hello.

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Who Domesticated Whom?

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 2/16/2023
Page Views: 256
Topics: #Autobiography
Humans give themselves too much credit for being the reason for everything.

The scientific evidence that dogs domesticated humans (rather than the other way 'round) comes from the Paleolithic era, as early as 10,000 BCE. The relationship between wolves and humans is well-represented in the fossil record. During this time, wolves, which are as happy scavenging as they are hunting, would have been a natural part of the human environment; and evidence suggests that humans used wolves for a variety of tasks, such as hunting, herding, and protection. This evidence is supported by archaeological discoveries that suggest that wolves were kept in human settlements and were treated as part of the human family.

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Goodbye, Apartment

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 1/30/2023
Page Views: 134
Topics: #Autobiography
I've moved into my daughter's place.

So now that all my personal stuff has been removed from my apartment, my daughter is hoping to rent out the apartment on AirBNB. This is what it looks like.

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Kenny and the Messengers

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 12/16/2022
Posted: 1/29/2023
Page Views: 178
Topics: #Autobiography
There's nothing like a little live music!

My ex, Michael, invited me to come along to the Nutown, a more-or-less gay bar in Phoenix where his friend, Elias Armendiaz, would be playing bass in a band called Kenny and the Messengers.

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Christmas 2022 at the Rizzos'

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 12/25/2022
Posted: 1/26/2023
Page Views: 161
Topics: #Autobiography
I got to spend Christmas Eve and morning with family.

Christmas at my daughter Jenny's lasts a couple of months.

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Gravel

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 1/26/2023
Page Views: 148
Topics: #Autobiography #Dogs
Fixing up the dog yard.

My daughter's original idea of where to create an outdoor space for the dogs to go to the bathroom, was to use the side yard just outside my room. There's an entrance to it just a short run through the garage, which is also next to my room. However, the rocks covering the ground weren't too amenable to releasing dog poop. So Jenny ordered a finer gravel to cover it.

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Ripped Hand

By: Paul S. Cilwa Occurred: 11/1/2022
Posted: 1/24/2023
Page Views: 165
Topics: #Autobiography
My skin is like parchment.

Possibly the first sign of again I noticed, when I was young, was when my grandmother walked along an old wooden railing and brushed her hand, ever so lightly, against the wood. The skin of her hand simply peeled away where it touched the wood. I am now about the age she was then, and have the same problem.

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