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Todd Grooms

Finished reading: Player Piano by Kurt Vonnegut 📚

I hadn’t read any Vonnegut until last year, I think, with Cat’s Cradle. I really enjoyed this one, even as a software engineer, especially in the age of AI. It has given me a lot to contemplate.

The Lonely Cicadas

One of the constant companions during the summer while living in the south (excluding the heat and mugginess) is the rattle of the cicada. Even in non-brood years, you will frequently hear them in the mornings and in the evenings. You may hear them during the afternoon as well, but why would you subject yourself to the heat?

When I hear the cicadas in the non-brood years, I think about how sad it must be to miss out on the party (brood years) with your tribe. There are times when I wonder if I’ve missed out on being with my tribe. Specifically, I wonder about what it would have been like to live in different eras. What would I have done? What kind of person would I have been?

I spend quite a bit of time reading about the personal computer revolution, which is that seemingly magical time from the late 1970’s through the early 1990’s, when possibility seemed unbounded. There seemed to be so much optimism around what a personal computer might enable in your life. I sometimes wish I would have had the chance to live through that time. Unfortunately, I was born in 1985 in a non-technology hub and I missed out on this experience. Instead, I am left to live through that period vicariously through the stories I read and hear. I watch videos reviewing vintage computer hardware, occasionally experimenting with restoring older hardware or emulating older software. I try, but it’s quite a bit different from living in it.

Anyway, I listen to the rattle of those isolated cicadas and I wonder if they realize they missed their brood.

Finished reading: Peter and Wendy by James Matthew Barrie 📚

I read this to Adelaide. I made a few quick edits on the fly, but this also presented the opportunity to discuss slurs and racial sensitivity.

On my son’s seventh-grade school supplies list: peak calculating performance. I dug out my TI-84 Plus from when I was in high school. I am relieved that it still works and happy that I get to share this with him.

A TI-84 Plus graphing calculator, laying on a wooden table.

WWDC 2026: Between Seasons

“Wow, so you’re a veteran”, she adds – to which I reply that it’s a very nice and polite way to tell me I’m old now. She chuckles.

“How about ‘seasoned’?”

As I look back at my 40th birthday in my wake and my 20th year in the industry on the horizon, I feel well seasoned at this point. I am not a regular Mac Stories reader, but this article really struck a chord with me.

Don't use AI as a Therapist

I have been a longtime listener and subscriber of Accidental Tech Podcast. In the latest member special, ATP Movie Club: Her, the hosts discussed their thoughts after recently watching the 2013 film Her. I never watched the movie, but was vaguely aware that it dealt with the protagonist’s connection with a digital assistant (à la Siri). One of the overarching themes of the episode was the correlations we find ourselves in with respect to the “relationships” people are developing with LLMs. Towards the end of the episode, Marco discussed how people today are beginning to turn to LLMs for companionship or for help (using them as a therapist), eventually postulating current LLMs might be better than a bad human therapist. I have disagreed with many of Marco’s takes on the show, but this one really takes the cake: this is an outrageously bad take. OpenAI’s ChatGPT product has been the focus of lawsuits pertaining to violence and self-harm, for example:

These tools cannot and should not replace human connection or human conversation, regardless of how inadequate a human therapist might be. I have been fortunate to have what I consider to be a good therapist. If I did not feel that way, I would seek out a new therapist. Under no circumstances would I seek out an LLM for this role.

I like ATP and I’m fine with most of Marco’s takes, but this one is in the “Bad Takes Hall of Fame”. We can enjoy using LLMs for software development or for finding utility in repetitive tasks, but we should honestly stop there. This current episode of glazing AI in the tech sphere is getting out of hand.

Finished reading: Wings: the Story of a Band on the Run by Paul McCartney 📚

A Christmas gift from Ashley. I’ve always enjoyed Wings’ music, but wasn’t as familiar with the history of the band. It was a lot of fun. I took the time to listen to the albums after reading about them.

Finished reading: Apple The First 50 Years by David Pogue 📚

A fun read with lots of great stories and anecdotes. I still cannot believe how lucky I am to be apart of Apple and to have Apple be apart of me.

Only the thing for which you have struggled will last.

– Yoruba Proverb

Finished reading: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas 📚

I had purchased an unabridged copy of this when I was in high school. The book sat on my shelf ever since. Approximately twenty-two years later, I have read it. Well worth the wait. I only regret not reading it sooner.