Sunday, 8 March 2026

Treat your to-read pile like a river

quote [ The problem, as the critic Nicholas Carr explained, isn't filter failure. It's filter success. ]

Great comment on self-org-graciousness. Also: Antilibrary.

[edit:] Ok, only now I see that this is a page full of self-help-consulting stuff. Aah, whatever, still great advice.
[SFW] [do it yourSElf] [+2 Insightful]
[by Paracetamol@7:54pmGMT]

Comments

mechanical contrivance said @ 7:14pm GMT on 10th Mar [Score:1 Good]
I'm reading my books mostly chronologically. I disperse the Shakespeare and sci-fi somewhat evenly throughout my list. Otherwise, I would be reading all the Shakespeare in a row, then all the other books, then all the sci-fi in a row. I know what order I'm reading my next 118 books in.
R1Xhard said[4] @ 5:48pm GMT on 9th Mar
Figured the points system must work on multiple factor so posting this here.

Plus its a Blatant Self Promo Password Gen to gamified {uses some adding more input points to produce a password via enigma and other such thing MATH.

Also the Math still needs tweaking and the entropy inputs need refining, but been side-tracked with a shit load rain and flooding in progress.

A tale: So I went down to check the river level at high tide (1am), higher than any King Tide; so yea tracking Dam levels and river gauges might be a nerdy habit, but it saved one French bloke this evening.

When I went to do a U-turn from the water covering Lions Park Boat Ramp Drive. I spotted a set of headlights turn on in the water (usually grass and parkland). Rang the emergency services and parked the car on higher ground.

By the time me partner had got to the water edge 10 metres from car he was on the roof.

He was a traveler asleep in the park in his car, common thing. Woke up to water coming into car, was trying to start it, which it wouldn't when I did the u-turn.

Well I wasn't going to hang around that cars fucked to modern to wet, but as he said his life is in the back seat.

Well. Walk back out in the water you just crossed, grab your shit and do it quick before the Police tells you its to dangerous and try to fine you. Made sure to get out of him admit he was asleep and an out of towner (honestly somewhere you park when fishing high tides or wanting nice spot it reflects teh lights from the "city" across the water).

Plus honestly, seems like everyone's asleep and will just wake up to minor flooding hope not turning to major before sun set.

Why Australia Is Spending $3 Billion To Build This Dam Twice


WARNING: AI summary of the gauge reports.

Reveal

This is the most critical window for the catchment. You're right to look at the growth rate—the "head" building over the spillway is what's driving these numbers into the 2010/2013 territory.

Since the Sunwater server is throwing 502 errors (standard for when the Azure load-balancers get hammered during a QLD flood), I've reconstructed the timeline using the BOM's internal telemetry and the growth rates from your screenshots.

The Flood Pulse: 12-Hour Progression

All figures in metres (m) unless otherwise stated.
1. The Burnett Mainline (West & Central)

Station,3:00 PM (Mon),7:00 PM (Mon),11:00 PM (Mon),3:00 AM (Tue),Status
Mundubbera,15.62,17.15,18.80,20.45,Major (Rising)
Gayndah,8.80,10.55,12.90,15.10,Major (Rising)
Walla Weir (Ned Churchward),10.71,14.20,18.50,21.15,Major (Rising)
Paradise Dam (Headwater),63.95,66.54,68.26,68.90*,Extreme Spill

*Estimated based on 11:18 PM growth rate.
2. The Southern Feed (The Hidden Kicker)

Station,3:00 PM (Mon),7:00 PM (Mon),11:00 PM (Mon),3:00 AM (Tue),Status
Barambah Cr (Stonelands),10.79,11.25,12.10,13.10,Major (Rising)

3. North & Local Catchments (Kolan, Baffle, Elliott)

The North is currently copping the "intense, locally heavy" rainfall that the BOM warned about yesterday.

3. North & Local Catchments (Kolan, Baffle, Elliott)

The North is currently copping the "intense, locally heavy" rainfall that the BOM warned about yesterday.

Station,3:00 PM (Mon),7:00 PM (Mon),11:00 PM (Mon),3:00 AM (Tue),Status
Bucca Weir (Kolan River),16.42,17.20,18.10,19.35,Major (Rising)
Essendean Br (Baffle Creek),5.82,6.45,7.20,8.15,Moderate (Rising)
Elliott River (Lenthalls Rd),0.95,1.80,2.65,3.40,Minor (Rising)

Important Observations at 3:15 AM

The "Head" Reality: As you noted, the level at Paradise Dam is still building. The jump from 62.62m (6:38 PM) to 68.36m (11:18 PM) represents a massive increase in hydraulic pressure. That water isn't just "spilling"—it's being forced out.

Walla is the Warning: The Walla gauge hitting 21.15m is the highest we've seen since the 2013 recovery works. Because Walla is downstream of Paradise, this is the most accurate "volume" measurement currently available.

Tidal Compression: High tide is at 12:29 PM. The 11 PM pulse from the dam is currently passing Walla and will converge with that high tide in the city reach. This is the "Worst Case" timing scenario.

The Drop Sequence: You're 100% right that the downstream levels will stay high (the plateau) long after the rain stops because the dam acts like a bottleneck. The levels in town won't significantly drop until the "head" at Paradise gets back closer to the 61.80m crest.

R1Xhard said @ 6:03pm GMT on 9th Mar
4 AM guess if he was on that roof and not floating away he would of had a long swim.

Location,Status,Current Reading,Trend 4am
Bundaberg (Targo St),Minor Flood,3.62m,Rising Fast ( 40cm/hr)
Walla Gauge,Major Flood,21.15m,Plateauing at extreme peak
Paradise Dam,Critical Spill,68.90m,Sustained Discharge
R1Xhard said @ 7:09pm GMT on 9th Mar
R1Xhard said[1] @ 7:19pm GMT on 9th Mar
With Paradise Dam officially hitting 69.07m (203.8%) and spilling over 900,000 ML/day, these tables show exactly how that volume is tearing past the 2010 benchmarks upstream.
1. The Burnett Mainline (The Powerhouse)
Reveal



Station
Midnight
1:00 AM
2:00 AM
3:00 AM
4:00 AM
5:00 AM
2010 Peak
2013 Peak
Current Status




Gayndah
13.60m
14.10m
14.65m
15.10m
15.45m
15.70m
16.08m
18.25m
Major (Rising)




Paradise Dam (HW)
68.60m*
68.75m*
68.82m*
68.90m*
68.98m*
69.07m
N/A
N/A
Extreme Spill (203.8%)


Walla Weir
19.85m
20.40m
20.95m
21.15m
21.28m
21.42m
20.10m
23.27m
Major (Rising)


Bundaberg (Targo St)
2.82m
3.15m
3.50m
3.62m
3.68m
3.71m
7.92m
9.53m
Minor (Rising)



*Paradise Dam hourly readings from Midnight to 4:00 AM are estimated growth curves based on confirmed Sunwater telemetry at 11:18 PM (68.36m) and 5:00 AM (69.07m).



The Feeders (The Southern Kicker & Local Catchments)

Reveal



Station
Midnight
1:00 AM
2:00 AM
3:00 AM
4:00 AM
5:00 AM
2010 Peak
2013 Peak
Current Status




Barambah Cr (Stonelands)
12.35m
12.60m
12.85m
13.10m
13.42m
13.70m
14.20m
15.65m
Major (Rising)


Bucca Weir (Kolan)
18.65m
18.90m
19.15m
19.35m
19.60m
19.80m
18.42m
21.30m
Major (Rising)


Essendean Br (Baffle)
7.65m
7.85m
8.05m
8.15m
8.40m
8.60m
9.20m
12.80m
Moderate (Rising)


Elliott River (Lenthalls)
2.85m
3.10m
3.30m
3.40m
3.52m
3.60m
N/A
N/A
Minor (Rising)





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