Looking at Moji, an Emoji-only Chat App

Looking at Moji, an Emoji-only Chat App

A look at Max Glenister’s emoji-only Moji chat app, which he created in a weekend for his young daughter to enjoy.

thenewleafjournal.com/looking-at-moji-an-emoji...

#Emojis #ChatApp #FOSS #OpenSource

RE: https://mastodon.social/@perishable/116286247319429591

Good tips here. I too "prefer to disable automatic updates for all the things" on my WordPress sites, and that has helped me avoid issues on a few occasions. Of course, as the post leads, "[e]verypne has their own preference when it […]

Axe, Enchanting Musk, and Muskrats

An article about the smell of Axe Body Spray reminded me of when a friend in high school described his post-Axe usage “enchanting musk” and that time he called someone a “muskrat who swims in rivers.” […]

On this day in NLJ history, I published [An Essay on Productivity, Production, and Productive Leisure](thenewleafjournal.com/an-essay-on-productivity... I like that essay. According to my Years Ago Today plugin [Using Years Ago Today WordPress Plugin( […]

Uncle Susan Graffiti in Carroll Gardens Reporting on an “Uncle Susan” graffiti tag sighting on Hicks Street in Carroll Gardens next to the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

Uncle Susan Graffiti in Carroll Gardens

“UNCLE SUSAN” graffiti tag sighting on a sign post on the periperhy of Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn.

thenewleafjournal.com/uncle-susan-graffiti-in-...

Introducing N.A. Ferrell’s NLJ Blogroll Nicholas A. Ferrell re-launches his Blogroll on The New Leaf Journal with a new concept centered on short posts and articles about Blogroll entries.

Introducing N.A. Ferrell’s NLJ Blogroll

Re-launching The New Leaf Journal Blogroll after about four years centered on posts about website entries.

thenewleafjournal.com/introducing-n-a-ferrells...

My Recollection of Kobe Bryant’s 81 Bab Adebayo’s 83-point performance in March 2026 prompted me to recall how I learned about Kobe Bryant’s 81-point explision in January 2006.

My Recollection of Kobe Bryant’s 81

Bam Adebayo’s 83-point performance on March 10, 2026, prompted me to recall how I learned and shared the news of Kobe Bryant’s 81-point performance on January 22, 2006.

thenewleafjournal.com/my-recollection-of-kobe-...

Happy Cleaners Cargo Trike in the Rain I spotted the endearing Happy Cleaners Cargo Trike by the Third Street Bridge in Gowanus, Brooklyn. That led me to explore the goings on around the Gowanus Canal.

Happy Cleaners Cargo Trike in the Rain

A Happy Cleaners cargo tricycle sighting just off the Third Street Bridge in Gowanus, Brooklyn, turns into a short essay on recent developments around the Gowanus Canal.

thenewleafjournal.com/happy-cleaners-cargo-tri...

Image Thumbnails in Nemo File Manager (EndeavourOS) I had been using XFCE as my desktop on EndeavourOS. I switched to Cinnamon after having some issues with XFCE (I believe tied to Nvidia drivers). Since I switched my desktop environment, I then had a hidden files display issue in Thunar (the default XCFE file manager), so I switched to Nemo (Mint’s). Nemo works but for one issue. It was not showing image and video previews by default (only placeholders). I found an issue on the EndeavourOS forum from 2022. One poster had a solution: > In Nemo preferences, click on the Display section, and in the pull down menu next to “Only for files smaller than:” select “32 GB” (this is the default in Linux Mint 21). I did not find the “Only for files smaller than:” setting in Display. However, this forum post was written in 2022. I did find it in Edit > Preferences > Preview: The default for Nemo when installed using pacman on EndeavourOS was 1 MB for article previews. I upped it to 4 GB (as you can see above). Problem solved.

I had been using XFCE as my desktop on EndeavourOS. I switched to Cinnamon after having some issues with XFCE (I believe tied to Nvidia drivers). Since I switched my desktop environment, I then had a hidden files display issue in Thunar (the default XCFE file manager), so I switched to Nemo […]

Sharing a Stuffed Bird Rescue Story Sharing the story of someone rescuing a baby’s stuffed bird toy from the sidewalk in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Sharing a Stuffed Bird Rescue Story

I have shared stories of my own “heroism.” Today, I share the story of my friend’s heroism.

thenewleafjournal.com/sharing-a-stuffed-bird-r...

#StuffedAnimal #Williamsburg #NYC #Brooklyn

BLOB DYLAN Board in Williamsburg I stumbled upon a BLOB DYLAN tag in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on September 28, 2025, written in white on a wooden board set in the sidewalk.

BLOB DYLAN Board in Williamsburg

I came across a new BLOB DYLAN tag in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

thenewleafjournal.com/blob-dylan-board-in-will...

#NYC #Brooklyn #Williamsburg #Graffiti #BLOBDYLAN

Atlanta Hawks’ Cancelled “Magic City” Night An NBA team planned to hold a promotional night featuring a strip club. I have thoughts even after the event was mercifully cancelled.

Atlanta Hawks’ Cancelled “Magic City” Night

An NBA team planned to hold a promotional night featuring a strip club. I have thoughts even after the event was mercifully cancelled.

thenewleafjournal.com/atlanta-hawks-cancelled-...

#nba #sports #vice

February 2026 at The New Leaf Journal Reviewing the new articles and short posts on The New Leaf Journal, Emu Cafe Social, The Newsletter Leaf Journal, and related projects in February 2026.

February 2026 at The New Leaf Journal

Reviewing the snowy month that was at The New Leaf Journal in February 2026.

thenewleafjournal.com/february-2026-at-the-new...

#newleafjournal #links #blogging

RE: social.emucafe.org/naferrell/mid-march-snow...

Snow in Brooklyn on March 12, 2026, reminded me of an article I wrote about unexpected snow flurries back in March 2021.

The New York/California Post “Metro Section” RSS Feed

The New York Post Metro secution RSS feed now includes California Post articles. This was not concerning until I saw an ambiguous article about a new U.S. HQ for the maker of “Labubus” […]

The Steak Debate: Quips and a Life Well-Done I prefer my steak well-done. I share three anecdotes about where my well-done steak preference has led to disagreements with others.

The Steak Debate: Quips and a Life Well-Done

I prefer my steak well-done. Not everyone is the same. I share three personal steak-cooking disagreement anecdotes.

thenewleafjournal.com/the-steak-debate-quips-a...

#Steak #Cooking #Anecdotes #Presidents

A lone goose standing on a completely snow-covered lawn in Brooklyn Bridge Park on February 13, 2026. Its head appears to be looking in the direction of the Statue of Liberty, which we can see vaguely way off in the distance. Between the goose and the Statue of Liberty is of course the East River and a Brooklyn Bridge Park Marina in the foreground.

A goose in Brooklyn Bridge Park stares at the Statue of Liberty. To be sure, it was not actually staring at the Statue of Liberty, but sometimes your photograph just works out that way. There were actually about 14-15 geese on the snow in Brooklyn Bridge Park […]

[Original post on pixelfed.social]

Snowy Statues in Brooklyn (February 2026)

Snowy Statues in Brooklyn (February 2026)

The February 2026 snow gets to one side of statues of Christopher Columbus and Robert F. Kennedy near Brooklyn Borough Hall.

thenewleafjournal.com/snowy-statues-in-brookly...

#Snow #Photography #NYC #Brooklyn #Statues

Two snow figures with heads (black eyes, nose, mouth) and red scarves sitting on a bench around a treepit. The left figure is taller than the right figure and wearing a blue hat with yellow IHSL letters. The figures are malformed (especially the right).

Two snow creatures... maybe bears... maybe Ewoks... seen on Court Street in Cobble Hill (Brooklyn, NYC) on February 24, 2026. Photo taken with the Ubuntu Touch camera app on my Google Pixel 3a XL.

Article:
I included these "snow bears" in an article covering […]

[Original post on pixelfed.social]

I subscribe to Cornell Lab's All About Birds RSS feed. Through the feed, I learned that "[t]he oldest known Mallard was a male, and at least 27 years, 7 months old when he was shot in Arkansas in 2008. He had been banded in Louisiana in 1981." Impressive, albeit an unfortunate end to a mallard […]

Geese in the Snow in Brooklyn Bridge Park Sharing photos of geese on a snow-covered lawn in Brooklyn Bridge Park, all captured on February 13, 2026.

Geese in the Snow in Brooklyn Bridge Park

Sharing photos of geese on a snow-covered lawn in Brooklyn Bridge Park, all captured on February 13, 2026.

thenewleafjournal.com/geese-in-the-snow-in-bro...

#Photograpphy #Geese #BrooklynBridgePark #Brooklyn #Snow

Brooklyn Snowmen in February 2026 Photos of four snowman sightings in Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill, and Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, in late February 2026.

Brooklyn Snowmen in February 2026

Documenting snowman (and snow bear?) sightings in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill, and Carroll Gardens in late February 2026.

thenewleafjournal.com/brooklyn-snowmen-in-febr...

#Photography #Snow #Snowman #Brooklyn #NYC

RE: social.emucafe.org/naferrell/grokipedia-tur...

I discovered through Ahrefs Backlink Checker (and confirmed more through Google Search Console) that some of my articles are sources for Grokipedia (notwithstanding the fact I block the major AI bots, including Grok). I […]

I just happened to have my NLJ logs open (I had opened them when the site was slow for a moment). I saw something called the YandoriRSSBot requesting the NLJ ATOM feed. While not unprecedented, almost all the feed fetchers ask for the regular RSS feed. I decided to search for the user agent to […]

Shiroi Printer – Visual Novel Review

My review of a very short 2018 Japanese horror visual novel called Shiroi Printer. It was released with an English-language version (“White Printer”) that can be selected on the title screen.

thenewleafjournal.com/shiroi-printer-visual-no... […]

Dave Cowens’ 1995 NBA Comeback That Wasn’t

After learning that 1972-73 NBA MVP and Hall of Famer Dave Cowens apparently considered making a comeback with the San Antonio Spurs in 1995, 12 years after his last game, I had to conduct an investigation […]

RE: social.emucafe.org/naferrell/remembering-to...

If anyone who follows my Pixelfed saw my post and thought "wow, it's been a while" (I doubt anyone did but allow me my delusions of grandeur), they would be right. As I explain here, I was reminded to post […]

Weathered snow sculpture on a New York City sidewalk and treepit. The bearded face and crown of the "Snow King" is still visible, albeit significantly melted. In the background we see cars and trucks moving down Atlantic Avenue.

On December 28, 2025, I happened across a very impressive snow sculpture of the head of a bearded king with a crown on Atlantic Avenue in Downtown Brooklyn (NYC).

social.emucafe.org/naferrell/seeing-atlanti...

Unfortunately […]

[Original post on pixelfed.social]

BIA Addresses Marriage Fraud on Valentine’s Eve

The Board of Immigration Appeals published a precedential decision on issues related to marriage fraud investigations. I noticed it published the decision on Valentine’s Eve […]

Video Game Home Console Success By Generation

I take a look at the top-three market share in North America for home consoles sold in North America by generation, beginning with the NES-dominated generation 3 and going through Switch’s superlative generation 9 […]