{"title":"Nic Lake \u2022 Feed","subtitle":"Life, technology, family, and more.","link":[{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/feed.xml","rel":"self"}},{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me"}}],"updated":"2026-03-08T18:16:49Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me","author":{"name":"Nic Lake","email":"niclake13@gmail.com"},"entry":[{"title":"Now (March 2026)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-march-2026\/"}},"updated":"2026-03-08T18:16:49Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-march-2026\/","summary":"I'm itchy. No, not like that.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>We went on vacation<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>For my kid's birthday + mine &amp; my wife's wedding anniversary, we went back to Disney World. Mostly perfect weather, experience on how to get around and what to prioritize, and <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/camp-snap\/\">a camera for my kid<\/a> made for an absolutely delightful time. V is a pro traveler now, and fell asleep in her seat during takeoff.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I have the reading itch again<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I dove in to <em>Dungeon Crawler Carl<\/em> last month, and have been mainlining those books ever since. It's nice to have something that captivates my attention once again, and I just hope that I'll be able to find more books that'll keep me occupied once I get fully caught up with DCC.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I have the gaming itch again too<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I've been playing a lot of <em>Arc Raiders<\/em> with my friends lately, while also slowly working my way through <em>Clair Obscur: Expedition 33<\/em> and <em>Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights<\/em>. I also just picked up <em>Pok\u00e9mon Pokopia<\/em>, but haven't fired that up yet.<\/p>\n<p>I realized that the thing that makes a live service game like <em>Arc Raiders<\/em> stick over things like <em>Battlefield<\/em> are the stories I can tell from each match:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Battlefield: \u201cI spawned in and shot stuff and we won\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Arc: \u201cSo we loaded up with super grenades and the grenade launchers, and hunted the huge scary flying robots, but then we got jumped by literal kids with heavy machine guns because I got greedy and also tried to do a quest during the same match\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I can only dedicate time to one time-sink game at once, and Arc has clearly won out for me and my friends.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I got a new PC<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As part of that gaming itch, and with the impending &quot;AI ruins everything&quot; wave about to crash, I picked up a new PC. It's an iBUYPOWER prebuilt that I snagged on sale from Best Buy, with a Ryzen 7 9800X3D processor and an AMD 9070XT graphics card.<\/p>\n<p>I've been on the AMD CPU train for a while, and while I was originally looking at the NVIDIA graphics cards, I couldn't pass up the savings the 9070XT offered. Bonus: I've considered tossing a Linux distro on one of my hard drives, and now that I'm all-AMD, I could use <a href=\"https:\/\/bazzite.gg\/\">Bazzite<\/a> and turn my PC into a beefy <a href=\"https:\/\/store.steampowered.com\/sale\/steammachine\">Steam Machine<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I'm (finally) a Notebook (and Pen) Guy\u2122<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/\">In August<\/a>, I talked about wanting to be a Notebook Guy. Shortly after, I <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/\">picked up some notebooks and pens<\/a>. And shortly after <em>that<\/em>, I got a couple fountain pens, including a nice purple <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jetpens.com\/LAMY-AL-star-Fountain-Pen-Dark-Dusk-Fine-Special-Edition\/pd\/48667\">LAMY AL-star<\/a> that I've thrown <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jetpens.com\/LAMY-T-10-Violet-Ink-5-Cartridges\/pd\/1928\">some purple ink<\/a> into. It's not a perfect system, but it's helped to move away from being a purely digital person.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I have the maker itch now\/again<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I haven't done a lot of physical creating in the last couple of years. I spent a good 6-8 months contemplating a deep dive into woodworking, but haven't done that since someone close to me had a scary injury.<\/p>\n<p>But, I do have a ton of other projects sitting around my house that need doing. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/keyboard-tier-list-2025\/\">Some mechanical keyboards that need to be built<\/a>. Crochet kits I want to start on. The aforementioned Linux install I want to do (which I know isn't a physical project, but it's still involved and something new).<\/p>\n<p>And <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/camp-snap\/\">after our recent Disney World trip<\/a>, I really want to find an EPCOT Ball kit that I can either print or assemble, complete with LEDs that I can program. My kid would love it almost as much as I would.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I still want to be a hermit living on a farm raising porcupines<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>See <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/\">the Now (August 2025) entry<\/a> for more details. I'm even deeper into this mentality now. Alas.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Camp Snap","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/camp-snap\/"}},"updated":"2026-03-07T19:16:49Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/camp-snap\/","summary":"If you give your kid a camera, you never know what they might focus on.","content":"<p>Last year, my friend <a href=\"https:\/\/rknight.me\/\">Robb<\/a> posted about picking up a <a href=\"https:\/\/rknight.me\/blog\/camp-snap-impressions\/\">Camp Snap camera<\/a>, and I instantly knew that I wanted one of these for my kid.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>My dad had a Minolta SLR camera that he used a lot, so I grew up around cameras from a young age. I rarely got to touch that camera, but I was always enamored with it. Any time my dad would have me take a photo, he'd dial in the zoom and focus, then hand it to me and say &quot;ok don't mess with it&quot;... and I, of course, would promptly move things around.<\/p>\n<p>When I was 15 and 18, I went on school trips for band or choir to Disney World, and I remember taking a bunch of Kodak disposable cameras with me for the trips. I'm pretty sure all of the photos from those trips are still in my basement. There's a photo of a high school friend getting scolded by a park employee for going backwards through a kids play place that still makes me laugh.<\/p>\n<p>When I was 18, I managed to convince a concert promoter that I knew what the hell I was doing, and got myself a photography press pass to a multi-day music festival. I apparently didn't suck, because I got it again the next year as well. I had only the vaguest notions of things like ISO and f-stop, but I was able to take some photos I'm still proud of over 20 years later.<\/p>\n<p>Canoe trips. Sporting events. Disc golf outings with friends. I took my cameras EVERYWHERE.<\/p>\n<p>And then I got an iPhone. Having a camera in my pocket was great. Photos anywhere, any time, no bulky cameras to carry around. And look, all these apps that let you tweak and put filters on things. One-tap auto-enhancing of images? Amazing. We had one snow day during my college career, and my friends and I treked all over campus taking photos of whatever we could think of.<\/p>\n<p>But the phone has fundamentally changed how I take photos. No longer do I worry about composing a shot before hitting the shutter; now, I snap a photo immediately, more as I get the zoom or position figured out, and then 2 or 3 after I'm where I want to be. If someone asks me to take their photo, I take at least 5, just in case someone blinks. Not a bad change, but it's certainly different.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>When we got the camera for my kid, and she would only use it for 5 minutes before abandoning it for weeks, it made me sad. Sure, she was only 3, but I admit to feeling defeated. So when my wife suggested we pack it for our trip to Disney World, I was unsure. I assumed it'd just sit unused. But whatever, I tossed it in my backpack.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0575.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0575.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Y'all. She lived with that camera for 8 days. Everywhere we went. &quot;Daddy, I need my camera!&quot; The first day, &quot;oooo a bus!&quot; x 73. Every gift shop, she'd snap photos of every item for sale. Nearly 2,700 photos during the trip. Many (<em>SO<\/em> many) blurry and unusable. But this is like the perfect blend of vintage + modern technology - unlimited attempts at a photo, but only one control (the shutter), and no preview \/ review of the shot. Eat your heart out, little one.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0309.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0309.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0310.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0310.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>It's so cool seeing the world through her eyes. Some things she loved to photograph, in no particular order:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Grandma and Grandpa<\/li>\n<li>every Skyliner and Disney bus we passed<\/li>\n<li>the 7yo we shared a Skyliner with one day<\/li>\n<li>butts... so many butts (because that's about how tall she is)<\/li>\n<li>flowers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0369.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0369.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0596.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0596.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0603.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0603.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0609.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0609.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0614.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0614.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF1030.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF1030.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0308.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0308.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Anyway, if you have a kid, or if you like photography, you should pick up a camera like this. I'm sure there are many brands like it, but I can vouch for this one.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0694.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/camp-snap\/DSCF0694.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n"},{"title":"Blogomation","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/blogomation\/"}},"updated":"2026-01-09T19:52:16Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/blogomation\/","summary":"This is a VERY nerdy post about some automation I've recently added to my blog. Read at your own risk.","content":"<p>(This is a VERY nerdy post about some automation I've recently added to my blog. Read at your own risk.)<\/p>\n<p>This site is built using <a href=\"https:\/\/www.11ty.dev\/\">Eleventy<\/a>, a static site generator. It's intended to Just Be\u2122, but there are times where I want just a little bit more out of the site. This past week, I've gotten 3 easy wins out of the way, and wanted to document those.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"bookshelf-updating\" tabindex=\"-1\">Bookshelf Updating<\/h3>\n<p>I recently <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bookshelf-hardcover\/\">blogged about how I integrated Hardcover into my site<\/a>, so that my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bookshelf\/\">bookshelf page<\/a> would display all of my historical content. However, I had to manually trigger a fetch of the data every time I wanted to update that data, and push it to my GitHub repo, so that it could then be built and deployed.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately this was pretty simple. I already had a little <code>hardcover.js<\/code> script I could run to generate the data, so I just updated my <code>build.yml<\/code> to run that script right before my site builds for deployment:<\/p>\n<pre class=\"language-yml\"><code class=\"language-yml\"><span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> <span class=\"token key atrule\">name<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> Install catalog dependencies\n  <span class=\"token key atrule\">run<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> cd catalog <span class=\"token important\">&amp;&amp;<\/span> $ install\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> <span class=\"token key atrule\">name<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> Generate catalog data from Hardcover\n  <span class=\"token key atrule\">env<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span>\n    <span class=\"token key atrule\">HARDCOVER_API_KEY<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> $\n    <span class=\"token key atrule\">HARDCOVER_USER_ID<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> $\n  <span class=\"token key atrule\">run<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> node catalog\/hardcover.js<\/code><\/pre>\n<p>Now any time a build is triggered for my site, my bookshelf will update! Huzzah!<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"scheduled-builds\" tabindex=\"-1\">Scheduled Builds<\/h3>\n<p>That said, I still have one small problem. I <em>also<\/em> have my Currently Reading section, which is supposed to show books I'm reading now. And if the only time my site updates is on a build, that essentially means I need to make a blog post or some general update to the site for that data to update.<\/p>\n<p>Enter: scheduled builds. Again, another very small and easy thing to update within my <code>build.yml<\/code>:<\/p>\n<pre class=\"language-yml\"><code class=\"language-yml\"><span class=\"token key atrule\">on<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span>\n  <span class=\"token comment\"># Runs on pushes targeting the default branch<\/span>\n  <span class=\"token key atrule\">push<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span>\n    <span class=\"token key atrule\">branches<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span>\n      <span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> main\n\n  <span class=\"token comment\"># Allows you to run this workflow manually from the Actions tab<\/span>\n  <span class=\"token key atrule\">workflow_dispatch<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span>\n\n  <span class=\"token comment\"># Schedule builds every 6 hours<\/span>\n  <span class=\"token key atrule\">schedule<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span>\n    <span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> <span class=\"token key atrule\">cron<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> <span class=\"token string\">'0 *\/6 * * *'<\/span><\/code><\/pre>\n<p>The <code>schedule<\/code> section is the only new bit, and a quick jaunt over to <a href=\"https:\/\/crontab.guru\/\">crontab.guru<\/a> helped me figure out how to get my site to build 4x\/day. This will force my bookshelf to get updated on a regular cadence, but it <em>also<\/em> enables me to have scheduled posts dated in the future that will (somewhat) auto-post. Terrific!<\/p>\n<p>I think I'd eventually like to turn my Currently Reading section into a little JS script that will dynamically pull the content in real time, but for now, this will do. I'd also love to find a similar service with an API for video games, but I think I might be out of luck in that department unless I hack something together with TheGamesDB.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"updating-post-datetimes-with-git-pre-commit-hooks\" tabindex=\"-1\">Updating Post Datetimes with Git Pre-Commit Hooks<\/h3>\n<p>I have a bash script that I run every time I want to write a new blog post, which does the following:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Takes a title input<\/li>\n<li>Plops that into the <code>title<\/code> section of this post<\/li>\n<li>Slugifies it for the URL (ex. &quot;App Defaults for 2026&quot; will become <code>app-defaults-for-2026<\/code>)<\/li>\n<li>Puts a bunch of other boilerplate front matter on my site; default categories, a <code>draft<\/code> flag, and spaces for the post description and the date<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Previously, this date would be auto-generated right when I created the file, dated 30 minutes in the future. This was usually fine, but I frequently ran into instances where I'd have to step away from the post for an hour, a day, a week, whatever. The post would just sit there, and many times I'd forget to fix the date before posting it. Or, if I was able to write a post super fast, my site might build before the post's time, and it wouldn't publish.<\/p>\n<p>Static site problems, amirite?<\/p>\n<p>To fix this, I added a git <code>pre-commit<\/code> hook that will get the current date &amp; time, find the placeholder text in my front matter, and replace it automatically. I usually don't commit my posts until I'm ready to publish, so now my only edge case is if I'm writing a draft or something I intentionally want to have post later. (<a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/niclake.github.io\/blob\/984ba4240b2b45b775c735d7a4862cf524eef91e\/hooks\/pre-commit#L1\">You can see my pre-commit hook here<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>Also, because git hooks are set up on a per-machine basis, I also:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>saved the hook off in a directory within my site repo<\/li>\n<li>added an <code>install-hooks.sh<\/code> script that takes every hook in that directory, and clones it into that machine's <code>{repo}\/.git\/hooks<\/code> directory<\/li>\n<li>added a script to my <code>package.json<\/code> that runs the install script for me<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Now any time I set up my blog's repo on a new device, I just need to run <code>npm run postinstall<\/code>, and my git hooks are in place. Kachow!<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I told you this was nerdy.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"App Defaults for 2026","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/app-defaults-2026\/"}},"updated":"2026-01-09T05:50:26Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/app-defaults-2026\/","summary":"A list of all the applications I'm currently using.","content":"<p>I last updated my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/app-defaults\/\">App Defaults<\/a> at the start of last year, so I figured I'd look it all over and give it an update.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\ud83d\udce8 Email: <a href=\"http:\/\/mimestream.com\/\">Mimestream<\/a> (Mac + iOS Testflight) and Gmail (iOS) - I'm gonna need to figure something out now that I have an iCloud account with a custom domain<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcdd Notes: <a href=\"https:\/\/getdrafts.com\/\">Drafts<\/a> (personal), Notes.app (shared with family)<\/li>\n<li>\u2705 To-Do: A notebook + pen<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcf7 iPhone Photo Shooting: iOS Camera<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udfe6 Photo Management: Photos.app<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcc6 Calendar: <a href=\"https:\/\/flexibits.com\/fantastical\">Fantastical<\/a><\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcc1 Cloud File Storage: iCloud Drive<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcd6 RSS: <a href=\"https:\/\/reederapp.com\/\">Reeder<\/a> + <a href=\"http:\/\/feedbin.com\/\">Feedbin<\/a><\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\ude4d\ud83c\udffb\u200d\u2642\ufe0f Contacts: Contacts.app<\/li>\n<li>\ud83c\udf10 Browser: Safari for personal, Chrome for work, Firefox for watching YouTube, and <a href=\"https:\/\/choosy.app\/\">Choosy<\/a> to automatically redirect links for me<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcac Chat: iMessage, <a href=\"https:\/\/discord.gg\/\">Discord<\/a><\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udd16 Bookmarks: Still nothing<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcd1 Read It Later: Safari's Reading List<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcc8 Spreadsheets: Google Sheets<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\uded2 Shopping Lists: Reminders.app<\/li>\n<li>\ud83c\udf74 Meal Planning: <a href=\"http:\/\/paprikaapp.com\/\">Paprika<\/a>, NYT Cooking<\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udcf0 News: Curated RSS feed list<\/li>\n<li>\ud83c\udfb5 Music: Music.app, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.albumstheapp.com\/\">Albums<\/a> (since Music on iOS can't shuffle by album yet)<\/li>\n<li>\ud83c\udfa4 Podcasts: <a href=\"https:\/\/overcast.fm\/\">Overcast<\/a><\/li>\n<li>\ud83d\udd10 Password Management: <a href=\"https:\/\/1password.com\/\">1Password<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Other apps:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Code editor: <a href=\"https:\/\/code.visualstudio.com\/\">VS Code<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Launcher: <a href=\"http:\/\/alfred.app\/\">Alfred<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Package tracking: <a href=\"https:\/\/parcelapp.net\/\">Parcel<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Social media: <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/\">Bluesky<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/tapbots.com\/ivory\/\">Ivory<\/a> for Mastodon<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n"},{"title":"Year of the Reaper","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-reaper\/"}},"updated":"2026-01-06T05:32:28Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-reaper\/","summary":"Even the good things must sometimes come to an end. But the bad things definitely should.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/reaper.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/reaper.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"recap-of-past-themes\" tabindex=\"-1\">Recap of Past Themes<\/h2>\n<p>2022 was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-garden\/\">The Year of the Garden<\/a>. It was all about prioritizing the habits that would be important to me &amp; my family as we welcomed my daughter into the world. I needed to Harvest the established habits I wanted to maintain, Prune back the habits that were desired but growing out of control, Sowing new habits to have in my life, and Razing the habits that no longer served me.<\/p>\n<p>2023 was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-sustenance\/\">The Year of Sustenance<\/a>. I had essentially copy\/pasted the previous theme, feeling a bit <em>laissez-faire<\/em> about the whole ordeal. And wouldn't you know it, <em><strong>I got exactly as much out of it as I put in to crafting it for myself<\/strong><\/em> (which is to say, practically nothing).<\/p>\n<p>2024 was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/\">The Year of Understanding<\/a>. I tried to build a couple blocks on top of this, but the core was me trying to analyze and deep dive into not just the <em>what<\/em> or <em>how<\/em> in my life, but the <em>why<\/em>. Am I experiencing road blocks on something over and over again? <em>Why is that?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>2025 was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/\">The Year of Motion<\/a>. With a pruned garden, enough to fill my cup, and knowledge about who I was and how I operated, I wanted to keep that momentum going in a positive direction. I had 3 main points of focus:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Perfection Requires Failure<\/li>\n<li>Moving Laterally Is Still Motion<\/li>\n<li>Take the Most Important Step<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I don't think it was a successful theme for me. It was a good one; it was the right one; but there still seemed to be a lot of cruft in the way for me to get over.<\/p>\n<p>My whole life, I've been all about completing things. Making cool stuff, beating hard games, reading awesome books, whatever. But for Year of Motion, I was trying to somewhat aimlessly encourage myself to just dive in to stuff and be ok with shit results as I worked towards a goal. But that's hard. And what if I hated the thing I was trying? <em><strong>I was feeling obligated to plow through things that didn't serve me, in pursuit of finding enlightenment.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"deliberations\" tabindex=\"-1\">Deliberations<\/h2>\n<p>A quick (but relevant) aside - in late September, I was playing through <strong>Nine Sols<\/strong>, an excellent &amp; difficult video game (Metroid-style exploration with Sekiro-like parry-based combat). I loved it. I was enamored. I did everything I needed to do to get the good ending, which made the final boss just a bit harder.<\/p>\n<p>And then I spent a week trying to beat her.<\/p>\n<p>It was brutal. The run back took seconds. I could close my eyes and perfctly do the first phase based on audio cues alone. But phase 2 got much less predictible... and phase 3? Oof. I had no chance. The fights were never more than 2 minutes long, so I'd be right back at it again. And again. And again.<\/p>\n<p>I probably attempted that boss 150 times. Maybe more. I can still hear the rhythm of that fight in my head if I think about it. I wanted so desperately to beat that fight... but also, Silksong had just come out, and I wanted to start playing that...<\/p>\n<p>And then I remembered. Nine Sols has excellent accessibility controls, including allowing players to dial in how much damage they do, as well as how much damage they take. And I remember hearing a podcaster I like talk about his experience with the game, and how he bounced off the final boss hard because of how difficult it became.<\/p>\n<p>So I thought about it. I talked about it. &quot;Is it ok for me to 'give up' and beat the boss? I won't get that cool achievement, but I can see the end of the story and move on!&quot;<\/p>\n<p>(Some of you are reading this going &quot;well duh, of course it's ok&quot;. And you're right, it is! But chronic completionists like myself have a REALLY hard time &quot;giving up&quot; on something. So be nice to us, ok?)<\/p>\n<p>I did it. I switched those settings, it took me 30 seconds to win the fight, I saw the ending, it was satisfying, I didn't care that I didn't get meaningless internet points, I uninstalled the game, and I fired up Silksong (yet another excellent &amp; difficult game... I'm sensing a pattern). And I ended up being just fine.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"2026---year-of-the-reaper\" tabindex=\"-1\">2026 - Year of the Reaper<\/h2>\n<p>This year, I'm (yet again) building off of &amp; extending my goals from before. Motion is still important, and taking that first step is still the best possible thing for me to do. But my goal is to dabble, to try, to experiment. It's not about the destination, it's about the journey. And sometimes, that road is not one I will want to be on.<\/p>\n<p>My goals this year, as weird as they sound, are as follows:<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"step-into-the-experiences\" tabindex=\"-1\">Step Into The Experiences<\/h3>\n<p>I've had this crochet kit for ages. I want to make it. I want to see what crocheting is like, see if it's something I enjoy doing, but I just have held off on trying for whatever reason.<\/p>\n<p>I'm making a list of 12 (or more) things I want to dabble with this year. Each month, I'll roll a D12, take that experience, and commit to trying it during that month. This is a continuation of Motion from last year.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"let-joy-grow-naturally\" tabindex=\"-1\">Let Joy Grow Naturally<\/h3>\n<p>That's right, I'm gonna Marie Kondo the fuck out of my life.<\/p>\n<p>For so long, I've felt the need to fill in the gaps in my schedule with things, hoping to keep myself from being bored or slipping into bad habits. I spent a lot of time in 2022 trying to schedule out and plan all of my free time, hoping to distribute the joy across all of my hobbies, and thus keeping myself well-rounded and enriched.<\/p>\n<p>I think we can all guess how well that worked out.<\/p>\n<p>I'm not going to just say &quot;welp, do whatever&quot;. I'm still tracking how much I read, or exercise, or create things, or play games, or watch sports. But I'm doing this tracking on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis, as opposed to an hourly or daily basis. Some months, it's cold as hell outside, there's no baseball on TV, I have a great book or series to read, and I'm going to do nothing but read for the next 60 days and nights. I don't need to shame myself for not playing games, writing, or whatever in that window; I'm happy! Let myself experience this joy!<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"be-ok-with-moving-on\" tabindex=\"-1\">Be Ok With Moving On<\/h3>\n<p>This is the big one, the core of the year. I MUST be ok with saying &quot;nope, this is not for me&quot; and dropping activities when necessary. Similar to my Year of the Garden, I need to raze things that don't serve me, and prune back other activities that grow out of control.<\/p>\n<p>When a game I want to beat is holding me back from other activities? Move on. When a hobby I'm trying out isn't working? Pack it up, <strong>and don't put it back on the list later<\/strong>. If a friend is dumping all of their negative emotions on to me every time we talk? Maybe it's time to talk less.<\/p>\n<p>Year of the Reaper is all about becoming unburdened. That burden can be things you're actively holding, but often it can be from the things stuffed deep into your backpack, weighing you down with guilt and memories and &quot;well maybe if I just...&quot; and it must go.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I have nothing pithy with which to end this post. I am ok with moving on. Hopefully, it's for the best.<\/p>\n<p>See you soon.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"My Bookshelf via Hardcover","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bookshelf-hardcover\/"}},"updated":"2025-12-17T14:04:11Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bookshelf-hardcover\/","summary":"Integrating my books read log into my website via Hardcover.","content":"<p>I've long wanted to integrate my Goodreads or Storygraph data onto my website. Goodreads <em>used<\/em> to have an API, but that was deprecated long ago when Amazon took them over. Storygraph is getting there, but progress is slow.<\/p>\n<p>For ages, I've used a <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1-1PcHF6xzFKTaTvxnfjm6bVgo4pd5yIr3nbxsbckoFo\/edit?usp=sharing\">Google spreadsheet<\/a> to keep track of my reading history. This has grown extremely unwieldy over the years, as I added more and more books to the backlog. I was never able to reliably keep up with a book's status, and found myself copying read dates and ratings from whatever service I was using to track my reading at the time.<\/p>\n<p>Enter <a href=\"https:\/\/hardcover.app\/\">Hardcover<\/a>, yet another book tracking app. BUT, this one was built with the API access at the core. I've been poking around at it for a bit now, and finally have everything set up and ready to go.<\/p>\n<p>If it's working as it should, you should see what I'm currently reading here:<\/p>\n<div class=\"container card-container\">\n  <div class=\"center-heading\">\n    <h2 id=\"current\" class=\"bookyear\">Currently Reading<\/h2>\n  <\/div>\n  <div class=\"row\">\n      <div class=\"col-lg-2 col-md-3 col-sm-4 col-4 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n  <div class=\"w-100 catalog book\">\n    <div>\n      <a href=\"https:\/\/hardcover.app\/books\/this-inevitable-ruin\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\n        <img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hardcover.app\/edition\/32042174\/54ee7e48-38e1-4303-824a-7da6156f5bfe.png\" alt=\"This Inevitable Ruin\" \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n      <div class=\"col-lg-2 col-md-3 col-sm-4 col-4 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n  <div class=\"w-100 catalog book\">\n    <div>\n      <a href=\"https:\/\/hardcover.app\/books\/children-of-ruin\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">\n        <img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/assets.hardcover.app\/external_data\/59519642\/fd58417e6a12c823a6a733d7f285a998e05aafff.jpeg\" alt=\"Children of Ruin\" \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n  <\/div>\n  <div class=\"w-100 mt-1 mb-3\">\n    <p class=\"text-center\">\n      <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bookshelf\">View my bookshelf \u2192<\/a>\n    <\/p>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>I also have a brand new <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bookshelf\/\">Bookshelf page<\/a> that has what I'm currently reading, my favorite books, and all of the books that I've tracked dating back to 2016, along with my reading goals for each year.<\/p>\n<p>It was a fun project - doing it this way was MUCH simpler than the previous iteration I was attempting, which was using a disgusting combination of Google Sheets APIs and <a href=\"https:\/\/openlibrary.org\/\">OpenLibrary<\/a>'s comprehensive-but-not-very-elegant APIs. It was a horrible hack job, and I'm very glad to be free of that.<\/p>\n<p>Now if I could just find a similar service for video games, I'd be all set...<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Character Sheets","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/character-sheets\/"}},"updated":"2025-11-21T03:51:23Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/character-sheets\/","summary":"Sometimes it's hard to read our own character sheets.","content":"<p>Two random quotes I've heard from people today:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>I need to learn how to believe people who say the reason you\u2019re stressed out is because you care, while to me it feels like I\u2019m stressed because I\u2019m bad at my job. Believing people is hard.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>and<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>[re: someone telling them &quot;You're a lovely person who is generous with your time&quot;] It's all luck. Luck and distraction tactics.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>My response to the latter, which applies to the former:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&quot;I keep rolling nat 20s on charisma checks&quot; vs. &quot;I'm such a good egg that my Persuasion modifier is a +15&quot;<br \/>\nsometimes it's hard to read our own character sheets<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>We don't always know why we're viewed a certain way by others, and sometimes it's REALLY hard to accept it as truth. Accepting compliments when you don't feel good about yourself isn't natural to many people.<\/p>\n<p>Just remember - light radiates outward. You might be shining brighter than you realize. If someone holds a mirror up for you, it's ok to believe what you see.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Easy != Simple","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/easy-simple\/"}},"updated":"2025-11-13T04:10:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/easy-simple\/","summary":"When the Ah-ha! moment sounds like a gong going off in your head, you should listen to it.","content":"<p>My dad's phone &quot;breaks&quot; again. Which, that really just means his phone is doing something unexpected or new. In this case, some notifications settings are weird and need adjusting.<\/p>\n<p>He's well into his 70s, and after years of back and forth, we've come to an understanding - I'll just fix the problem, and then I'll explain the issue if and only if it's relevant to you; otherwise, we'll just leave it be. So I adjust the settings and hand the phone back. It takes me maybe 30 seconds.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;Thanks, Nic. You make it seem so easy.&quot; And he's right. <em>It IS easy... <strong>for me<\/strong><\/em>. But it's rooted in decades of computer experience, a dozen years of iPhone use, &amp; all the tech podcasts and Discords and whatnot that I follow. It's <strong>easy<\/strong>, but it's <em>not<\/em> <strong>simple<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I'm struggling mightly with my weight. I could chalk it up to &quot;Dad Bod&quot;, but it's more than that. A wonderful cocktail of ADHD, a compulsion to always be doing something, watching tons of sports, and a &quot;new day&quot; opening up to me when my kid goes to bed for the night.<\/p>\n<p>Every night, it seems, I find myself snacking. Sometimes it's a protein bar. Sometimes it's popcorn. Or chips and salsa. Or hot chocolate. Or trail mix. Some nights, it's <em>all<\/em> of that. I did the math one night, and it was over 1,200 calories that I snacked on between 7:30pm and when I finally went to bed.<\/p>\n<p>The answer is so <strong>simple<\/strong>: Don't eat after dinner. But with the aforementioned cocktail of Stuff\u2122, it's not <strong>easy<\/strong> for me to act (or not act) upon.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Things that are easy aren't necessarily simple things. Things that are simple things aren't necessarily easy for everyone. Having that grace in both directions, both for others and for yourself, is <em>so<\/em> important.<\/p>\n<p>This is not a brilliant &quot;ah-ha!&quot; moment. Many others before me have had this exact realization. I've probably had this realization. But in the context of my family, of my health, of habits I'm trying to break or nurture, this &quot;ah-ha&quot; moment sounded like a gong going off in my head.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe it will for you too.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Keyboard Tier List for 2025","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/keyboard-tier-list-2025\/"}},"updated":"2025-10-08T01:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/keyboard-tier-list-2025\/","summary":"It's for the kids, he sobs, as he is forced to pick his least favorite keyboards.","content":"<p>Each September, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/\">the Relay podcast network<\/a> rallies support for the life-saving mission of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stjude.org\/\">St.\u00a0Jude Children's Research Hospital\u00ae<\/a> during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. One of the ways that they make it fun &amp; engaging is by encouraging their listeners to run their own fundraisers, complete with their own sets of giveaways and milestones.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/keyboards-10-25.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/keyboards-10-25.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my keyboard wall\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>The wall of keyboards as of October 2025. I'm gonna need more room soon.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The <code>#keyboards<\/code> channel of the server always manage to come together and set silly milestones; many of us will do things that are VERY inconvenient to type with for a week, once a certain amount has been raised. This year's fundraiser was aptly named <em><strong>&quot;#Keyboards Suffers; Kids Win&quot;<\/strong><\/em> I still owe a week of typing on a keyboard in the standard QWERTY layout (because <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/colemak\/\">I'm a weirdo that uses Colemak<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>One of the early milestones this year was &quot;everyone make your own keyboard tier lists&quot;, where we rank the boards that we have. I've done this exercise before, and it's <em>tough<\/em> - trying to pick out my favorite, when all of the boards are so drasticaly different, is quite a challenge. I'm incapable of doing a true &quot;1 to however many&quot; ranking, but I've found I'm able to easily put them into ranked groups.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"the-unbuilt-boards\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Unbuilt Boards<\/h3>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/alpha28.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/alpha28.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Alpha28 keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"alpha28\" tabindex=\"-1\">Alpha28<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: Other (smol boy)<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Cherry Speed Silvers<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: OEM WoB<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This one used to work just fine, but the case on it was just a bunch of acrylic pieces stacked together. I used my 3D printer to make a new case for it, thinking that moving from A to B would be a quick thing. Alas, I must desolder every switch, so I can remove it from the plate, so I can put it in the new plate for the new case. Not difficult, just time consuming. I'll get around to it eventually<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/masonry.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/masonry.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of a mockup of the Masonry keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"masonry\" tabindex=\"-1\">Masonry<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 40% (weirdo)<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Rollers<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: DSA Ergo Blanks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This definitely falls into the &quot;weird keyboard&quot; category. It's like a run of the mill 40% keyboard, but uses the different sized keycaps to make it mold more fully into the rectangular case. My friend <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/c\/IanOfEarth\">Ian<\/a> printed me a case for this, and I'm super excited to use it.<\/p>\n<p>Problem is, this is a true kid, requiring me to solder diodes in place for every switch. And that terrifies me. Probably super easy, just time consuming, but it's new and uncharted territory I have yet to discover.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/reviung41.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/reviung41.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of an example of the Reviung41 keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"reviung41\" tabindex=\"-1\">Reviung41<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 40% ergo<\/li>\n<li>Switches: JWICK Taros<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: Artifact Shield Purple-on-Black<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Another &quot;diodes and all&quot; kit that I need to put together. I have a custom printed high-profile (i.e. it has walls) case for this one as well.<\/p>\n<p>I should really just set aside time to do these, huh?<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 id=\"the-wife's-boards\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Wife's Boards<\/h3>\n<p>At a certain point, I convinced my wife to try out one of my keyboards &quot;just to see what it's like&quot;. Then I showed her various websites with keyboard and keycap offerings &quot;just to see what's out there&quot;. Now she's the primary user of 3 of the keyboards in the collection.<\/p>\n<p>I'm doing something right.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/tab.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/tab.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my wife's Tab 90M keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"vortex-tab-90m\" tabindex=\"-1\">Vortex Tab 90M<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 100% \/ 1800<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Cherry Blacks<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: DSA Astrolokeys<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This was the second keyboard I ever purchased, used for gaming \/ home office. The 1800 layout is probably my favorite of the &quot;big&quot; layouts; if it's gonna have all the keys, I'd much prefer they're all compacted down on one another. My wife saw the Astrolokeys set and went &quot;oooo pretty&quot;, so I gave her this board to put it on.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/dr70.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/dr70.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my wife's DR-70 keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"dr-70f\" tabindex=\"-1\">DR-70F<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 70%<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Gateron Beer<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: Drop DCX Latte<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I showed this one to my wife, and she thought it was interesting from a &quot;oh so it doesn't have a numpad on it?&quot; sense. She also loved the orange color, as it was perfect for fall. I went all in with the switches and keycaps, turning this into her &quot;Pumpkin Spice Latte \/ Pumpkin Beer&quot; keyboard.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/qk100.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/qk100.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my wife's QK100 keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"qk100\" tabindex=\"-1\">QK100<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 100% \/ 1800<\/li>\n<li>Switches: TKC Tangerines<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: XDA Halloween<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My wife currently has this on her desk, because surprise, it's almost Halloween. I love building themed boards for her, and I think she has more fun engaging with the keyboard hobby from this angle.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 id=\"the-infrequent-boards\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Infrequent Boards<\/h3>\n<p>The boards that have layouts I don't like as much anymore, have keycaps or switches I'm ambivalent about, or have been supplanted by something newer. For whatever reason, taking these off the shelf isn't a big priority.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/ctrl.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/ctrl.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Drop CTRL keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"drop-ctrl\" tabindex=\"-1\">Drop CTRL<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: TKL (80%)<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Cherry Clears<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: Domikey Dolsh Green<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A gift from a friend. I'm a &quot;layout collector&quot;, so having a real TKL in my collection was something I jumped at. It's <em>much<\/em> larger than the boards I typically use, but with a little TLC, I could definitely find a good use for this one.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/boardwalk.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/boardwalk.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Boardwalk keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"boardwalk-%2B-kbdfans-5%C2%B0\" tabindex=\"-1\">Boardwalk + KBDfans 5\u00b0<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 60% ortholinear<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Zaku IIs<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: KAT Cyberspace<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My first build - every other board I'd purchased up to this point was a prebuilt. I remember the abject terror I felt when trying to pick out the exact right parts I would need, making uninformed decisions on switches or a switch plate, and just hoping for the best. Turned out great, though, and was my main keyboard for over 3 years (until I REALLY got the hobby itch).<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/dz60.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/dz60.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my DZ60 keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"dz60-%2B-tofu60-acrylic\" tabindex=\"-1\">DZ60 + Tofu60 Acrylic<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 60%<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Zakus<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: GMK CYL Oblivion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My second build, and the one that replaced my first prebuilt board (a Vortex Pok3r). As my collection grew, it sat a bit unused and collecting dust, but I just switched out the keycaps &amp; lubricated the stabilizers last month, and that's made a <em>huge<\/em> difference. I'm already looking forward to the next time this board makes its way onto my desk.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/elora.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/elora.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Elora keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"splitkb-elora\" tabindex=\"-1\">SplitKB Elora<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 60% Split Ergo<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Kailh Box Heavy Yellows<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: GMK Dots 2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I desperately want to love this board. I pre-loved this board so much that I made custom walnut cases\/bases for the halves. I just... don't know if I like true split keyboards. Ergo is one thing, but a split, I get in my head about positioning, angles, and whatever else, without actually enjoying the typing experience. This one also has a LOT of keys, and had a pre-defined layout I tried to adapt and didn't really enjoy. I need to wipe the whole layout and start fresh, and see if maybe that helps my enjoyment factor any.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/foldkb.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/foldkb.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my  keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"keebio-foldkb\" tabindex=\"-1\">KeebIO FoldKB<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 60% Split<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Gateron Pro Yellow<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: DSA Berry Yogurt<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I won this board at my first ever keyboard meetup - everyone got drawn for a door prize, and when it was my turn, I thought &quot;ooo a new keyboard&quot;! Took me quite a while to actually go through the process to set it up (I'm sensing a theme). I simply need to spend more time with this board. Love the switches, love the look, but again, it's another true split board, and I've yet to vibe with it as much as I hoped.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/cerberus.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/cerberus.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Cerberus keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"pikatea-cerberus\" tabindex=\"-1\">Pikatea Cerberus<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 65%<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Kailh Choc Jade<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: Chocfox CFX White Blanks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I met Jack (Pikatea) at the Iowa Keyboard Meetups. Really nice guy, making some really bizzare keyboards. This one isn't bizzare, but it did have a feature I long wanted in a 60\/65%, which is a split space, so when I saw this prototype he had, I requested one instantly. This was the first board I soldered, so that was a fun learning experience. I need to fix one key, and figure out a good way to mount the board into the case, before I use it again.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 id=\"the-rotational-boards\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Rotational Boards<\/h3>\n<p>Every Monday, I have a little reminder pop up telling me to switch out my keyboards for something new. The remaining boards on this list are the ones I tend to gravitate towards, for one reason or another.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/bully.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/bully.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Bully keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"cbkbd-bully\" tabindex=\"-1\">CBKBD Bully<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 40%<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Gateron Oil Kings<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: SA Mizu R3<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My first actually built\/used &quot;smol boy&quot; on the rankings. The Bully is nice, because it was designed to use keycaps from a full size kit, while still retaining the basic layout of a 40% keyboard (i.e. no numrow). While it's my lowest ranked small board, it's certainly still a board I enjoy using regularly.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/prom.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/prom.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Promenade keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"promenade-%2B-tofu-redux\" tabindex=\"-1\">Promenade + Tofu Redux<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 60% ortholinear<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Gateron Raws<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: KAM Command<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The board that replaced the Boardwalk. The Promenade was a re-release of that general layout, after the company behind the Boardwalk went belly-up. I always thought having just 4 buttons in the middle vs. 6 would be plenty, so this was a great opportunity to give that a shot (and I was right). Also, the Gateron Raws feel\/sound amazing on this board.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/prime-e.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/prime-e.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Prime_E keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"prime_e\" tabindex=\"-1\">Prime_E<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 40% ergo<\/li>\n<li>Switches: custom JWICK stem + Cherry housing<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: KAT Iron<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My newest board, and a budding favorite. I had another cheap board that I'd been trying to sell for ages, and someone offered this in a trade straight-up. The customized switches he provided are certainly interesting, and I have no complaints.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 id=\"the-core-boards\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Core Boards<\/h3>\n<p>Do I need &quot;Rotational&quot; and &quot;Core&quot;? Probably not. But these boards make their way onto my desk more often than the previous grouping, so here we are.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/sixtyfive.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/sixtyfive.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my SixtyFive keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"mode-sixtyfive\" tabindex=\"-1\">Mode SixtyFive<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 65%<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Mode Tomorrow Tactiles<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: GMK WoB<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My first &quot;luxury&quot; purchase. There certainly are more keyboards out there that are more expensive... hell, even the SixtyFive had options that were vastly more expensive than my version (which was literally the cheapest you could get at the time). But being able to pick out all the components, having the little walnut strip to match my desk... this was a treat for myself, and I'm glad I went with what I did.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/candybar.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/candybar.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Candybar keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"candybar-lefty\" tabindex=\"-1\">Candybar Lefty<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 50%<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Kailh Pro Purple<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: GMK Sumi<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This is the board that's currently on my desk as I type this post. A 40% with a numpad - how novel! This board is a chonky boy, one of the heavier ones I own, and I love the color scheme. I really need to replace these switches, because as much as I enjoy using this board, I don't care for these switches as all. They're quite spongy\/squishy feeling.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/libramini.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/libramini.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Libra Mini keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"libra-mini\" tabindex=\"-1\">Libra Mini<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 40% ergo<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Neo Whites<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: Drop + Matt3o MT3 3277<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A bit more of an opinionated ergonomic layout, the Libra Mini also has a bit of slope to each half of the board. It's not much, but it's definitely noticable. The joystick is a small novelty that I have yet to fully implement; I need to re-flash the firmware on the board to unlock it. Once I do, I'm going to have that be a mouse, and if it works as I hope it will, this will probably be my main travel board (not that I travel much).<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/nk65superuser.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/nk65superuser.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my NK65 Superuser keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"nk65-superuser\" tabindex=\"-1\">NK65 Superuser<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 65%<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Emerald Silks<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: KAM Superuser<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Was originally up in my &quot;Rotational Boards&quot; section, but this is truly a core board for one reason - it's the one that remains set with QWERTY as the default for use with my gaming PC. Other boards could certainly fill in for gaming, but it's easy enough to grab this one off the wall and plug it in for a gaming session.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 id=\"the-favorite-boards\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Favorite Boards<\/h3>\n<p>Here we are, the top of my list. If someone forced me to get rid of the vast majority of my boards, these are the ones that I wouldn't even consider parting with.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/planck.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/planck.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Planck keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"drop-planck\" tabindex=\"-1\">Drop Planck<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 40% ortholinear<\/li>\n<li>Switches: BSUN Pines<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: KAT Explosion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This is the board that took the keyboard hobby from &quot;well I have a couple&quot; to &quot;ok yeah I'm a collector now&quot;. I'd long been interested in a 40% board, and the Planck is usually available on-demand from Drop, so I finally snatched one up. Using this is what really drove me to embracing keyboard layers, and most of my boards now utilize similar layers and combos from what I came up with here. (Also, the Pines are absolutely incredible switches.)<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/planck.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/planck.png\" alt=\"My Planck layout\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>My Planck layout, showcasing the layers and combos I utilize.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/j42kbm.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/j42kbm.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my J42Kbm keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"j42kbm\" tabindex=\"-1\">J42Kbm<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 40% ortholinear<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Gateron Green Apples<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: DSA Hana<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A newer entry to the collection, and the first of mine that features a <a href=\"https:\/\/hhkb.io\/layout\/\">Happy Hacking Keyboard, or HHKB, layout<\/a>. It's also a chonky board, and the purple is just divine looking; photos do NOT do it justice.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/sonnet.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/sonnet.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Sonnet keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"mode-sonnet\" tabindex=\"-1\">Mode Sonnet<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 75%<\/li>\n<li>Switches: BSUN Strawberry Wine<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: KAT Space Dust<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you don't give 2 shits about drama, go ahead and keep scrolling to the next board. Otherwise, stick around for the crazy world of &quot;keyboard group buys post-pandemic&quot;.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>This board has so many stories attached to it.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Like the SixtyFive, it's a bit more of a premium board... but I got it at a DEEP discount, because someone just didn't like it and wanted to sell.<\/li>\n<li>It came with the Strawberry Wine switches, but the board was littered with a bunch of random switches in random places as well. Odd.<\/li>\n<li>The person who had lubricated the stabilizers had put <em>so much<\/em> lubricant on them that they basically stuck together, so every time I pressed the space bar it was like a memory foam pillow pushing it back up.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Also, the Space Dust keycaps have their own &quot;fun&quot; story.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Purchased as part of a group buy on 5\/24\/2021<\/li>\n<li>Went through production hell, post-COVID manufacturing issues, and long periods of 0 communication<\/li>\n<li>Finally begin shipping to customers in 2024<\/li>\n<li>At some point in the previous 3 years, the US vendor did a purchase system transition; those of us with Space Dust orders can see our orders, but can't confirm them, can't update our addresses, and more. So now we are wondering if they'll even reach us.<\/li>\n<li>Other retailers worldwide got their orders + extras, but the US vendor had unexpected delays<\/li>\n<li>US vendor's orders ship on a container ship. Gets to port in California. Sits for 3 weeks. Then we find out, oh no, they've been returned to China because they were packed in shipping containers filled with illegal cotton. <em><strong>ILLEGAL COTTON!<\/strong><\/em> I wish I was making that up.<\/li>\n<li>Meanwhile, I realize I need some additional kits, and since the US is the final vendor, I'm unsure if any of the ones I need will be available. For that matter, will the ones I even ordered be the ones I need?<\/li>\n<li>Place an order for my kits that I want through the Canadian vendor, because they have them in stock, and I figure I can re-sell the ones from my US order.<\/li>\n<li>4 days later, Canadian vendor says &quot;whoopsie we're all out&quot; and cancels my order.<\/li>\n<li>US order ships! To my old address! Because even though I emailed the vendor 3 separate times about updating my address, and got confirmation 3 separate times, their system still pulled addresses from the old purchase system!<\/li>\n<li>Cue a very upset email to the vendor.<\/li>\n<li>I manage to get ahold of my old neighbors, who agree to porch pirate the box if it shows up at my old address.<\/li>\n<li>Which turns out to be unnecessary, because even though we'd been gone for over a year at that point, my old mail carrier is an absolutely incredible human being, realized it was meant for me, looked up my address manually, and forwarded it for me.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/keyboard-tier-list-2025\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>And within the span of 2 days, 2 boxes arrive on my front porch; the original box, that had gotten forwarded to me, and a new box, that the vendor has apparently ALSO shipped out, but never notified anyone.<\/li>\n<li>When asked about returning it, the vendor said (I'm paraphrasing, but not very much) &quot;Just keep it, we're fuckin' tired of dealing with this kit, Merry Christmas&quot;<\/li>\n<li>It is now 7\/2\/2024, or 1,136 days later, and these pretty little pieces of plastic have finally arrived.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Anyway, I love this board, I love these caps, and the story surrounding this board is something I am thankfully able to laugh about now. <em><strong>If you forced me to pick just one keyboard from my collection, this is the one I'd pick.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/qull.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/qull.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Qull keyboard\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h4 id=\"cbkbd-qull\" tabindex=\"-1\">CBKBD Qull<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Layout: 35% \/ QAZ<\/li>\n<li>Switches: Gateron Smoothies<\/li>\n<li>Keycaps: GMK Nautilus<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You thought the other boards were small... get a load of this one.<\/p>\n<p>I waited a long time to start using this board, mostly because I was skeptical about the practicality of the QAZ layout (the Q, A, and Z keys are &quot;gone&quot;, but exist where the Esc, Tab, and Shift keys are). After using 40s for so long, though, I was able to pick it up really quick. Also, the Gateron Smoothie switches are some of my favorites, which makes this tiny board an absolute delight to type on. Also, the GMK Nautilus keycaps were the caps that got me into the hobby in the first place; I saw them, and went &quot;oh I want those&quot;, bought a Pok3r to put them on, and the rest is history.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>There you have it - my rankings\/groupings of all of my (current) keyboards. Let me know if you have any questions, or want to know more about any of the boards in my collection.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Both of our mail carriers that my wife and I have had since we've been in houses have been incredible. The extra work that they do on behalf of their customers, vs. the work that's done by those who came before or any subs, is SO noticable, and I appreciate them so much. If you have a good one, tell them. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/keyboard-tier-list-2025\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Sourdough","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sourdough\/"}},"updated":"2025-10-07T21:36:51Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sourdough\/","summary":"Gather around, children, as I tell you the tale of That One Time I Made Sourdough","content":"<p>This is a story about baking bread.<\/p>\n<p>I wouldn't say that I have capital-A Anxiety, but I do get anxious, just like everyone else. I'm prone to impatience, and wanting to have things now now now.<\/p>\n<p>I remember the last time I did a job search, and knew that I was going to hear back from the hiring manager. They told me &quot;End of Day Tuesday&quot;, which I took to mean &quot;by 5&quot;. So I'm attached to my phone and email, waiting to hear something. It's 2, nothing. 3, nothing. 4, still nothing. 4:30, what's the hold-up. 4:45, oh god, where are they? 5, 5:05, 5:10, oh no what happened?<\/p>\n<p>The company is based on the west coast, 2 hours behind me. I got the call at 6:15pm my time.<\/p>\n<p>Anxiety sucks. It's all consuming, and ruins hours, days, weeks, months. With <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/blog\/tags\/#adhd\">my ADHD<\/a>, I've had to learn how to yank myself out of anxious spirals and stay in the moments. It's not always successful. I've cut vacations short because a package was supposed to be delivered &amp; needed a signature; of course it didn't arrive until 7pm. I hover around V, telling her &quot;be careful!&quot;, instead of letting her experience the joy of (checks notes) climbing on the side of the couch.<\/p>\n<p>And don't even get me started on being anxious about Thing A, only to have that be perfectly fine, but Thing B comes along and bites you in the ass instead while you weren't paying attention.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>This is a story about anxiety.<\/p>\n<p>I was so excited to bake sourdough for the first time. My wife and I both made starters (&quot;Mr. X&quot; and &quot;Kevin Bacon&quot;), and today was the day.<\/p>\n<p>Except, the only vessel I had to bake in was my cooking pot. You know, the ones with 6&quot; high walls. How the <em>fuck<\/em> am I supposed to get the bread into that without burning myself?<\/p>\n<p>Pot &amp; lid into the 500\u00b0 oven to preheat. Dough laid out on the parchment paper. I'm starting to feel anxious. I burned myself really badly once when I was 14, and I had no desire to go through that again. Damnit, why didn't I get one of <a href=\"https:\/\/a.co\/d\/93K8vVP\">those cool Dutch ovens to bake on???<\/a><sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sourdough\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>Everything's preheated. Here I go.<\/p>\n<p>Pull the pot out of the oven. Take off the lid and set it aside. Take off the oven mitts, and grasp corners of the parchment paper. Mild hyperventilating. You can do it you can do it you can do it.<\/p>\n<p>Lift.<\/p>\n<p>Move.<\/p>\n<p>Drop, maybe a tad aggressively.<\/p>\n<p>It's in! I didn't touch the pot! Hooray! High fived my wife! Celebrations all around! Woohoooooo!!!!!<\/p>\n<p>Grab the (preheated) pot lid with my bare hand.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>This is a story, and I'll let you decide if you want to take anything meaningful from it.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sourdough\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Editor's note: these work VERY well, highly recommend. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sourdough\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Epilogue - Burned the fuck out of my hand. Blisters everywhere, hurt to grab anything or type or whatever. Miserable for about 10 days. Haven't baked a loaf of sourdough since. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sourdough\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Outvoted","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/outvoted\/"}},"updated":"2025-10-06T22:05:54Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/outvoted\/","summary":"Past You & Future You want Present You to take good care of yourself. You're outvoted 2-1.","content":"<blockquote>\n<p>Past You &amp; Future You want Present You to take good care of yourself.<br \/>\nYou're outvoted 2-1.<br \/>\nSuck it.<br \/>\n-Me<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n"},{"title":"Going Analog","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/"}},"updated":"2025-10-02T01:32:07Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/","summary":"Journals and Pens and Scribbles, oh my!","content":"<p>I can still remember practically every computer\/device setup I've ever had:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Family computers, starting in the mid 90s (a PowerMac G4 and an iMac DV SE)<\/li>\n<li>My first laptop in 2005 (a PowerBook G4 Titanium), as I went off to college<\/li>\n<li>Running 3 laptops (Mac, Windows, and Linux) simultaneously while I did WoW raids<\/li>\n<li>Getting pissed off that friends would shoot NERF guns in the direction of my iMac in college<\/li>\n<li>Doing the iMac \/ MacBook Air \/ iPad \/ iPhone lifestyle and thinking it was somehow making me more productive<\/li>\n<li>Running a Mac and a gaming PC, with all peripherals integrated between the two<\/li>\n<li>Going from 1 monitor, to 2, to 3 (can't be a True Gamer without 3, right?)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Over the years, I've attempted to find small ways to disconnect from my devices, especially now that I'm a parent. I've tried <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pocket-notebook\/\">using notebooks all the time<\/a>, gotten frustrated, and <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/understanding-notebooks\/\">tried to figure out why it wasn't for me<\/a>. I used a notepad on my desk as a general task list, got mad that I couldn't take it everywhere with me, and pivoted to using <a href=\"https:\/\/www.omnigroup.com\/omnifocus\/\">OmniFocus<\/a> to keep track of everything on my phone. I've tried oodles of Focus Modes, making sure only the important apps were in front of me.<\/p>\n<p>But the things that finally got me over the hump?<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Switching from 3 monitors to 2 (<a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/desk\/\">an ultra-wide + second monitor above<\/a>), and<\/li>\n<li>Switching to a Mac Mini \/ doing away with a laptop as my every day machine<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I still have my work laptop that I utilize when necessary, but 99% of the time it's parked underneath my desk in my office, and I just remote in to it for whatever I need.<\/p>\n<p>It's been great - at 4pm every day, I stand up from my desk, and often times I don't return until the following morning. I'll have my phone on me, but no computers make their way downstairs barring a work emergency.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I've also been much better about not coming up to play many games on my PC at night; instead, I've been busting out the Steam Deck as my primary gaming device, or picking up my Kindle (or <em>GASP<\/em> a physical book) to read instead. It's been baseball season, so I've been glued to my TV most night... but hey, if it helps me break away from my desk a bit more, so be it.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I was in a good place. I thought I was done. And then... <a href=\"https:\/\/rknight.me\/blog\/five-months-of-journalling\/\">Robb blogged about his journaling<\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Look, I've said it before - I desperately want to be a notebook person. I don't know why, but the thought of having a nice notebook sitting in front of me that I can write down thoughts about my life, the things I need to do, make little doodles in... that appeals to me for some reason.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I tried the school planners when I was a kid. I hated them, because it forced me to be responsible. I tried them again in college. I hated them too, because again, they forced me to be responsible.<\/p>\n<p><em>And now? I'm trying out using a pen &amp; paper as my primary form of organization for a third time, using modified Bullet Journaling, because I <strong>have<\/strong> to be responsible, and now I feel obligated to force myself to embrace it.<\/em><\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/going-analog\/journals.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/going-analog\/journals.jpeg\" alt=\"A photo of my journals\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I totally swiped a lot of Robb's suggestions, mostly because if I didn't, I would've been paralyzed as far as where I should start. I picked up the <a href=\"https:\/\/a.co\/d\/2Id5DxR\">Scribbles That Matter Pro A5 dot grid journal<\/a> (I got the Aqua color with 120gsm paper), along with a <a href=\"https:\/\/a.co\/d\/hN50xl7\">LIHIT LAB Compact Pen Case<\/a>. Pens, I'll leave for another time, but I wholly recommend the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jetpens.com\/Zebra-Sarasa-Clip-Gel-Pen-0.5-mm-10-Color-Set\/pd\/6384\">Zebra Sarasa Clip gel pens<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/going-analog\/journal.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/going-analog\/journal.jpeg\" alt=\"A photo of my weekly task list setup\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I have a couple different sections set up currently:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/going-analog\/inktober.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/going-analog\/inktober.jpeg\" alt=\"A photo of day 1 of Inktober\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>A yearly calendar, with holidays, birthdays, and major events that I know are coming down the pipe<\/li>\n<li>A section that has some of the top games, books, movies, and shows I want to consume<\/li>\n<li>My weekly task lists, which is the primary purpose of this journal for me (I totally swiped the layout of this from Robb too, but to be fair, it's a really nice one)<\/li>\n<li>Moments of Joy, which is what I was doing with my pocket journal when I first tried picking it up<\/li>\n<li>An activity tracker, so I can see how I'm choosing to spend my free time<\/li>\n<li>A book &amp; game log (so long, spreadsheets)<\/li>\n<li>Task list for some projects<\/li>\n<li>Work meeting notes<\/li>\n<li>Pages set aside for <a href=\"https:\/\/inktober.com\/\">Inktober<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I also picked up a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lochby.com\/collections\/journals\/products\/pocket-journal?variant=42350526365732\">Lochby Pocket Journal<\/a>, for carrying around and jotting things down on the fly. I've been telling my phone to remind me about things later, but writing it down and then triaging that list as I go has helped a bunch. I'll also put my shopping lists into that notebook, and let my daughter &quot;help me&quot; by crossing things off.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/#fn4\" id=\"fnref4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>We'll see how this goes. I <em>feel<\/em> better, and like I have a better understanding not only of my current day, but also what's coming up through the rest of the week. I've been doing this since late August, and it seems to have stuck over these 6ish weeks. I've also already gotten my 2026 journal (PURPLE!), and have planned out all the sections for it.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/going-analog\/next-journal.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/going-analog\/next-journal.jpeg\" alt=\"A photo of my journals\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>(I fully admit, I used to think Notebook People\u2122 were a little crazy and a lot extra... but I get it now.)<\/p>\n<p>I guess I'm a <a href=\"https:\/\/ruminatepodcast.com\/201\/\">Big BuJo Boy<\/a> now.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I did take my laptop down last week to do something while I watched a baseball game, and it felt <em>VERY<\/em> weird. So, I guess the conditioning has worked. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>We'll see how that changes after the Red Sox season ends. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Just like commuting to work on a nice cafe-racer style motorcycle, with a nice backpack that holds the laptop, notebook(s), pens &amp; pencils, water, and whatever amazing things I, a late-30s nerd, have been conditioned by Big EDC\u2122 to Need In My Life. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn4\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>My 3 year old has stolen a lot of my Field Notes journals to scribble in, which is great until we're out shopping and she wants to scribble in my pocket journal. I'm <em>really<\/em> trying to not be precious about this. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/going-analog\/#fnref4\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Do One Thing Well","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do-one-thing-well\/"}},"updated":"2025-09-05T23:32:56Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do-one-thing-well\/","summary":"It's always nice when you can find an app that does EXACTLY what you need it to do, especially when that thing is extremely niche.","content":"<p>Years ago, my friend Patrick said or shared the phrase <em><strong>&quot;do one thing well&quot;<\/strong><\/em>. I don't remember exactly what we were talking about, but the concept is simple; if you are buying an item to do something, it should JUST do that thing, and not eleventythousand different things. If it does too much, then that's extra points of failure down the road, or features you're paying for that will never get used.<\/p>\n<p>An easy example is our Instant Pot. It's a pressure cooker, and a good one. It also has a saut\u00e9 function, which is convenient. It can also make hard boiled eggs, rice, <em>yogurt?!?<\/em>, and more. I paid extra for this model, vs. the simple basic model that I think just has pressure cook &amp; saut\u00e9.<\/p>\n<p>Reader, guess how many times I've done <em>ANYTHING<\/em> with our Instant Pot that wasn't pressure cooking or saut\u00e9ing.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;Do one thing well&quot;. Be excellent at that thing. Be so excellent that <a href=\"https:\/\/atp.fm\/334\">some people buy a whole bunch because they can't find anything like it and want to have spares if and when it breaks (again)<\/a><sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do-one-thing-well\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I use Safari as my main browser across all my devices. It syncs between all of them, has features I enjoy, and works well for my purposes.<\/p>\n<p>I use Chrome for work and development, because that's the standard across the board.<\/p>\n<p>I use Firefox to watch YouTube, because ad blockers still consistently work there, AND it has the added benefit of siloing YouTube off from my every day browsing, so I don't get sucked in and spend hours lost in random videos<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do-one-thing-well\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>The problem:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Any time I click on a URL, it goes to Safari. This is good, except...<\/li>\n<li>If I click on a link in Slack, I always want it to be in Chrome, and...<\/li>\n<li>If I open a YouTube link, I want it to be in Firefox.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The &quot;solution&quot;, up until this week, has been:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Right-click &gt; Copy links in Slack, move to Chrome, paste, go<\/li>\n<li>If a YouTube link ever opens, copy it, go to Firefox, paste, go<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Functional? Yes. Annoying? Also yes.<\/p>\n<p>I happened to gripe about this on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/membership\">Relay member's Discord<\/a>, hoping someone would have a solution for me.<\/p>\n<p>Enter: <a href=\"http:\/\/choosy.app\/\">Choosy<\/a>. (Thank you, <a href=\"https:\/\/bencardy.co.uk\/\">Ben<\/a>, for pointing this out to me.)<\/p>\n<p>Choosy is the <em>perfect<\/em> app for me, for this particular use case. Set up your browsers, set up the roles, and off you go. My rules are simple:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If the URL contains <code>youtube.com<\/code> or <code>youtu.be<\/code>, open it in Firefox<\/li>\n<li>If the URL comes from Slack, open it in Chrome<\/li>\n<li>Otherwise, open it in Safari<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It does one thing well. It's exactly what I need, no more, no less. The perfect app (and an immediate $10 from me).<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I'll never go that hard for cheese graters, but hey, to each their own. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do-one-thing-well\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I'm still missing those hours of sleep. If found, please return. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do-one-thing-well\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Raising Money for St. Jude - 2025","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/st-jude-2025\/"}},"updated":"2025-08-28T20:32:32Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/st-jude-2025\/","summary":"Many of us are about to drop lots of money on new phones. The least we could do is help out the children too, right? (... right???)","content":"<blockquote>\n<p>It's almost September.<br \/>\nIt's basically September.<br \/>\nIt's September (gaslighting) <strong>&lt;-- you are here<\/strong><br \/>\nIt's September!!!<br \/>\nSeptember is almost over.<br \/>\nIt's still September (threatening)<br \/>\nGOTO 10<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Each September, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/\">the Relay podcast network<\/a> rallies support for the life-saving mission of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stjude.org\/\">St.\u00a0Jude Children's Research Hospital\u00ae<\/a> during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. By joining with them, we can all help make more cures possible. Together, we can help give families facing childhood cancer more tomorrows.<\/p>\n<p>Since 2019, <a href=\"https:\/\/relay.experience.stjude.org\/#\">Relay has raised over $4,000,000 for St. Jude<\/a>. They're aiming to raise (at least) another $700,000 this year, but I predict that they're going to smash right through that once again.<\/p>\n<p>In 2023, I was able to help raise over $1,000 as part of the drive. This year, I'm aiming a bit higher - I'd love to hit $2,500.<\/p>\n<p>While I don't have any giveaways to do this year, I do have some milestones that I'd love to hit.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>$250: I will match the first $250 donated.<\/li>\n<li>$1,000: I will bust out my old Twitch stream, and play some spooky game for Halloween (I hate scary anything).<\/li>\n<li>$2,000: I will get the St. Jude logo tattoo'd on my person.<\/li>\n<li>$2,500: I, a sedentary creature, will sign up for &amp; run a 5k.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I threw this together real quick yesterday, so if you have any other milestone ideas, or rewards I could do for certain donation thresholds, I'd love to hear about them. If they don't make it in this year, I could at least have that ready to go for next year.<\/p>\n<h4 id=\"and-remember...-it's-for-the-children.\" tabindex=\"-1\">And remember... it's for the children.<\/h4>\n"},{"title":"Life's Too Short","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/lifes-too-short\/"}},"updated":"2025-08-22T22:17:43Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/lifes-too-short\/","summary":"Some notes for myself. Maybe for you too.","content":"<p>Stop reading that book or playing that game that you're not really enjoying.<\/p>\n<p>Stop saving those stickers for the perfect moment. Let your child have them.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.joanwestenberg.com\/p\/i-deleted-my-second-brain\">Clear out that second brain you've been curating for 7 years<\/a> if it's actively holding you back or not serving you in the now.<\/p>\n<p>Don't hold on to that one random item because &quot;well what if I might need it???&quot; (Dads, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/shorts\/7Fw7bZoPyVU\">you get a tiny pass here<\/a>, but seriously... 20 years? Come on.)<\/p>\n<p>Call that person you care about.<\/p>\n<p>Stop giving a shit about people doing things that just don't matter. They want to skateboard down that hill without a helmet? Godspeed, you reckless buffoon!<\/p>\n<p>Put things on your blog, even if you think &quot;but that's not what I'm trying to write about!!!&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Stop deleting things out of your rough drafts. It's a rough draft. That's the point.<\/p>\n<p>Use the damn notebooks, even if there's something on the first 3 pages.<\/p>\n<p>Let your daughters put makeup and nail polish on you. Who cares?!? (She does, and that's the point.)<\/p>\n<p>Admit when you're wrong. Apologize.<\/p>\n<p>Eat that cookie.<\/p>\n<p>Buy that thing.<\/p>\n<p>Love yourself. Your whole self. Not just the parts that are already how you like them. Not the &quot;future you&quot; you're aiming to be. Love yourself for who you are today.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"The Best Meal of my Life","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-meal-of-my-life\/"}},"updated":"2025-08-20T23:40:37Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-meal-of-my-life\/","summary":"Every once in a while, I try to remember what the best things I've ever eaten was. This was me trying to figure that out.","content":"<p>I forgot our first wedding anniversary.<\/p>\n<p>Specifically, I forgot to book us a reservation at a nice restaurant in Des Moines. Don't really know why; I was excited to celebrate, the place my wife wanted to go looked really good, I'd known that I needed to make a reservation for months, and... I just didn't.<\/p>\n<p>When I called that place about booking a reservation, naturally they were full up for the entire weekend. Fuck.<\/p>\n<p>So, I did a little research. Found another spot that looked to be just as good\/fancy. They had openings, so I reserved it. I could tell that my wife was disappointed, but we went anyway.<\/p>\n<p>We got in there, and the place was practically empty<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-meal-of-my-life\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>, so we got excellent service from the host, the waiter, and the bar staff. They had a multi-course (5? 7? I can't recall) tasting menu of Mediterranean-but-not-Italian dishes. A lot of it was north African-inspired, with some Spanish, French, and Middle Eastern influences. They also had a wine paring to go along with it. It was our first anniversary; fuck it, why not?<\/p>\n<p>When I tell you that this remains one of the best meals of my life, I'm not even kidding. I was full but not stuffed, pleasantly buzzed... it was perfect.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>We went back to that restaurant together another time for Valentine's Day. Different food theme this time, can't recall what it was. They didn't have a tasting menu this time, but when we mentioned how much we enjoyed that last time, the waiter was like &quot;hang on&quot;, ran to the back, came back out, &quot;yeah, Chef says he's happy to do that with our current menu.&quot; Hell yeah. Food was incredibly delicious.<\/p>\n<p>This time, the bar staff discovered that we worked at a brewery in town. Wanted to talk all about Scottish and English ales. Had a bunch of bottles. &quot;Can I share some of these with you?&quot; I shit you not, we had over a dozen glasses on our table and the next table over, with samples of Scottish Wee Heavy, English milds, and more. It was nuts.<\/p>\n<p>I was very drunk. Thank god for Uber.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>When I was in Boy Scouts, our troop went camping every month from September to May. We'd go all over the state of Iowa, and sometimes into Minnesota or Wisconsin. Tons of cool experiences, and generally just a nice opportunity to get out of the house for a weekend with friends.<\/p>\n<p>One winter trip, I don't exactly recall where we went, one of the adults made Dutch oven chili. It sat and cooked all day while we had snowball fights, looked at a bison, and did who knows what else. Beef, beans, tomatoes, whatever else. I don't think there was anything special in it, just your generic run-of-the-mill chili.<\/p>\n<p>Best chili I've ever had in my life. Better than my own. Better than any chili I've ever had at any cook-off. Why? Couldn't tell you. Was it because it was below freezing outside, and we're able to hold the bowls to warm our hands and eat the chili to warm us from the inside? Probably!<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I was just in San Francisco for a work trip, and went to a Thai place a half block from the hotel for the final dinner in town. It was just me and one other guy on my team.<\/p>\n<p>When we found it, we were skeptical. It was down this alley, tucked away from a busy street (we'd had numerous jokes already from the week about sketchy alleyways). We got there right as they opened, though, so we popped in and gave it a shot.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/hedverythaisf.com\/san-francisco-downtown-hed-verythai-food-menu\">The menu was interesting<\/a>; they had appetizers, but then dinners were a fully curated affair. You could choose from one of 8 different options (4 set and 4 seasonal), with different types of protein, a side, a soup, and more.<\/p>\n<p>Everything was delicious. Fresh, spicy, hot and cold, crispy and soft. It hit every note possible. It was SO good. If my wife and I ever make the trip out to SF together, that'll be the first place I take her.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-meal-of-my-life\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>It's funny, I know where and when the best food I ever tasted was. I can remember so many things about the experiences surrounding those meals; what I saw, what I heard, what I smelled. I remember that those things tasted delicious. But sometimes, <em>I don't even remember what I ate<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>But maybe that's the point.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>My wife and I have a knack for showing up at places at the perfect times to beat the rushes. I don't know how we consistently do this, but it's been a non-stop feat for a dozen years now. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-meal-of-my-life\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Another restaurant called <a href=\"https:\/\/www.burmalove.co\/burma-love-downtown#location-menu\">Burma Love<\/a> will be the second. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-meal-of-my-life\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"An Apple Wishlist for Fall 2025","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/an-apple-wishlist-for-fall-2025\/"}},"updated":"2025-08-19T01:53:36Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/an-apple-wishlist-for-fall-2025\/","summary":"Maybe, if I ask enough times, Apple will actually listen to me.","content":"<p>Back in the summer of 2024, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/an-apple-wish-list\/\">I wrote out a little Apple wishlist<\/a> of some things I really would've liked to see. With new iPhones &amp; other devices coming out, I thought I'd revisit those, see if we got anything, and add new things.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>A standalone Touch ID sensor, and\/or one that's baked in to the Magic Trackpad<\/strong> - haven't gotten this, but I did build my own that's plugged in to my Mac Mini. So, close enough. (I still think Apple should go this, though.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/touchid.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/touchid.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of a custom TouchID sensor housing\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>I harvested a TouchID sensor from a Magic Keyboard, and stuffed it into a little 3D printed container. I also sunk a threaded insert juuuuust a bit too far.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Apple Music &quot;shuffle by album&quot; on iPhone<\/strong> - still nope. Thankfully, <a href=\"https:\/\/apps.apple.com\/us\/app\/albums-music-library-player\/id1469948986\">the Albums app<\/a> continues to serve me well.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Apple Watch grocery list issues<\/strong> - that was a random bug I was able to solve by hard-deleting both of them.<\/li>\n<li><strong>An iPhone Pro Mini<\/strong> - give it to meeeeeeee<\/li>\n<li><strong>Devices using Lightning<\/strong> - have they finally gotten the Magic Trackpad and Keyboard onto USB-C?<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sharing anything via iCloud<\/strong> - still a huge hassle. Also, same with taking a photo on your phone and having it available on your Mac via Photos within any decent time frame.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Extra Small Widgets<\/strong> - I'm still lusting for this. It would change up how I use my phone completely.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I do have a couple of new additions as well:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If I have multiple home screens on my iPhone, I want an option to always go back to the first one every time I unlock my phone.<\/li>\n<li>Allow any Setting to be mapped to a Control Center widget. Let me drill down and choose it, then either make it a button, a slider, or something that invokes a menu. Easy. (Some prime options: ringer volume or silence unknown callers)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>What's on your wishlist?<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>8\/19 UPDATE<\/strong><\/em>: I thought of two more.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You should be able to change what folder an app lives in within the App Library. Some of that sorting makes no sense.<\/li>\n<li>Photos desperately needs a better &quot;clean up&quot; option. Duplicates, similar photos from when you take 7 hoping for one good one... I bet half of my library could be cleaned up.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n"},{"title":"Now (Aug 2025)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/"}},"updated":"2025-08-14T19:54:07Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/","summary":"Eventually I'll figure out something witty to say here, but it'll be after I publish the post.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>I'm currently in San Francisco.<\/strong><\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-25-08\/sf.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-25-08\/sf.jpeg\" alt=\"Downtown San Francisco\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>My jobby job has brought me to San Francisco this week for a team offsite. It's been an overall positive experience; getting to meet my team in person for the first time in the 3 years I've been working here has been interesting. We've eaten a ton of great food (Burma Love and Sotto Mare have been the standouts so far), I went to a Giants baseball game, I've walked a ton, and I've realized that I'm very, VERY glad I never moved here when I was considering it a dozen or so years ago. Don't get me wrong, I'll visit any time... but living here? No thanks.<\/p>\n<p>(I'd come back just so I could go eat lunch\/dinner in Chinatown every day for a month.)<\/p>\n<p>Also, my kid gave me a little Goomba toy to take with me on my trip, so this has been &quot;Goomba Explores San Francisco&quot;. I encourage anyone with kids to do this on any trip they take; it makes for delightful memories.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-25-08\/goomba.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-25-08\/goomba.jpeg\" alt=\"Downtown San Francisco\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>It's ok to lean in to your weird self.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I've worn a baseball jersey every day I've been here. I'm now &quot;Baseball Guy&quot;. I had multiple conversations with people at the Giants game about the Red Sox &amp; Athletics, multiple conversations around the office about the Savannah Bananas, and one conversation with someone already this morning about the Giants and Willie Mays. (Also R2-D2\/Star Wars\/Disney, since I have that jersey too.)<\/p>\n<p>I considered bringing one of my many mechanical keyboards with me, but thought &quot;no that'd just be too extra&quot;. I've spent 2+ hours at a desk working every morning, and would've had a perfect opportunity to use it. I should've brought it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I miss my family.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This is the first time I've been away from my kid for &gt; 36 hours. It sucks.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I want to nuke all of my hobbies.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I had a bit of an existential crisis this past weekend - <em>what if I just gave up all my current hobbies, and took up new ones?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>This baseball season has really consumed all of my time, and caused me to not partake in a lot of my other &quot;normal&quot; hobbies. That's made me wonder, ok, are these hobbies actually things I want to partake in anymore? Or have I outgrown them, similar to how I outgrew music?<\/p>\n<p>Video gaming in particular is something that I'm just not quite sure how much I vibe with anymore. As a college kid, I played a ton of games with my friends (Halo, Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, League of Legends), and supplemented those with single player games. Now it's completely flipped; I mostly play single player games, and will occasionally play multiplayer games with one of my friends (I think we're going to pick up Battlefield 6 when it comes out in a couple of months). Gaming was primarially a social activity for me, and I lost that in the pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>Reading has also been something that just disappeared off of my interest radar. I've only read... 6? 8? books all year. It's not from a lack of interest in books that are out there, or new books being released. I just haven't felt interested in sitting down, grabbing my Kindle or a physical book, and spending time reading it.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> I do have 2 preorders that either just came out (Jackson Ford's <em><strong>The Bone Raiders<\/strong><\/em>), or is about to come out (R.F. Kuang's <em><strong>Katabasis<\/strong><\/em>), so I'm curious if those will help me get back in that groove again.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I want to be a Notebook Guy\u2122.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I've always loved the concept of being someone who uses notebooks. I don't know why that is; something about the physical aspect of them, even in a digital world, really speaks to me.<\/p>\n<p>Any time I see someone with a nice notebook, a collection of pens, people getting their new yearly journals from Hobonichi every December... it's always a tickle of FOMO. Oh, you're getting into Bullet Journaling? Please, write 17,000 blog posts about it so I can live vicariously through you. (My friend Robb <a href=\"https:\/\/rknight.me\/blog\/biting-the-bullet\/\">has done this<\/a>, bless him.)<\/p>\n<p>The stack of notebooks that is in my closet, my drawers, my shelves, in containers in the basement, shows me that this just Is Not My Thing... but maybe if I try something a little bit new, it could be?<\/p>\n<p>(Or maybe I'll just revert to using Notes or Drafts on my iPhone again, just like every other time.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>I don't know if I want to be a software developer.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I've been a professional software developer for 13 years now. I'm good at what I do. I'm fortunate that it affords me &amp; my family a comfortable life, allows my wife to be a SAHM, and lets us put my kid into Montessori preschool.<\/p>\n<p>I'm at a pivot point of my career. I either need to continue down the Individual Contributor (IC) path, working my way up to a principal\/staff engineer or architect... or, I need to pivot to the People\u2122 side of things, become an engineering manager, and work my way up that side of the ladder.<\/p>\n<p>But there are days where I think, &quot;why didn't I just go into accounting?&quot; What would parachuting out and finding a brand new career look like?<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>With all the uncertainty in tech right now, it's just scary to think about what the future is going to look like in 5, 10, 20 years. When I retire<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>, am I still going to be a tech person? A people person inside tech companies? A hermit living on a farm raising porcupines?<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/#fn4\" id=\"fnref4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>Too many existential moments, not enough free time to contemplate my place in the universe. And I'll probably get back home next week and think &quot;oh yeah, I love software development again&quot;. \ud83e\udd37\ud83c\udffb\u200d\u2642\ufe0f<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Before anyone suggests it, I can't do audio books. That doesn't work for me. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>It would look terrifying - there, that was easy. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Bold of me to assume I'm going to get to retire. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn4\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I just kinda made this up on the spot, but you better believe I'm going to research it after I finish writing this post. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-aug-2025\/#fnref4\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Let There Be Light","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/let-there-be-light\/"}},"updated":"2025-07-18T21:40:26Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/let-there-be-light\/","summary":"Let's get visual.","content":"<p>I've been a fan of the <a href=\"https:\/\/draculatheme.com\/\">Dracula color scheme<\/a> for a while now; I used to use <a href=\"https:\/\/monokai.pro\/\">Monokai<\/a> in all of my code editors ever since I discovered <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sublimetext.com\/\">Sublime Text<\/a> way back in the day, but when I took the leap to using <a href=\"https:\/\/code.visualstudio.com\/\">VS Code<\/a> at my current job, I couldn't find a version of Monokai that I really loved. Things that once looked great within <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jetbrains.com\/ruby\/\">RubyMine<\/a> never fully lined up after the switch, and I could never get over that mental hump seeing constants or methods with the &quot;wrong&quot; colors.<\/p>\n<p>After a ton of trial and error, plus repeatedly looking up &quot;Best dark color scheme for vs code&quot;, I finally landed on Dracula. It just works for me; the colors are bold, the contrast is great, and it's always just seemed fun.<\/p>\n<p>So of course, I used it for my personal website. Because why not?<\/p>\n<p>Fast forward to last summer, when I was partaking in <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo\/\">Weblog Posting Month<\/a>, and I started hearing some feedback like &quot;hey could you make a light mode?&quot; Never before had I considered this; I liked my colors opinionated and bold<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/let-there-be-light\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>. But, from an accessibility standpoint, it made sense - some people apparently get migraines when using dark modes or color schemes. Ick. I've been putting this off for ages. Too busy, lack of motivation, unhappy with how things look, etc.<\/p>\n<p>Then, last week, I got an email from the Dracula creators<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/let-there-be-light\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup> - they were officially launching Dracula's light mode, aptly named Alucard. <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/dracula\/draculatheme.com\/pull\/290\/files#diff-f001bc3cca46914bd319f5505ed9694d15edb2f9bf3b32cd9fd736cc3f1fca67\">They have an open pull request<\/a> that contains the whole spec for both classic &amp; light, so practically all my work was done for me... I just had to update some CSS!<\/p>\n<p>Readers - &quot;some&quot; CSS is really me just updating 23 files and creating 5 more, creating a ton of variables, learning that my JavaScript can, in fact, read a CSS variable (which is super handy), and meticulously going over every page on my site to ensure that things look how they're supposed to.<\/p>\n<p>But at long last... it's complete!<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/alucard.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/alucard.png\" alt=\"LET THERE BE LIGHT!\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>The original dark Dracula on the left, and the bright & shiny Alucard on the right<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I will continue to be a bit opinionated - by default, when you arrive on the site, it'll be set to dark mode. You can opt out of this, however, and set dark\/light\/auto based on your preference.<\/p>\n<p>There are still some very minor tweaks that I have left to do, but I'm really happy with how this is turning out. Here's the full pallete of colors I'm using on the site (which you can also see on <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/styleguide\/\">my site's style guide<\/a>).<\/p>\n<div class=\"container card-container\">\n  <div class=\"row\"><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #282a36;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #FFFBEB;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Background<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #282a36<br \/>\n                40, 42, 54\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #FFFBEB<br \/>\n                255, 251, 235\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Site background\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #f8f8f2;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #2F2F2F;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Text<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #f8f8f2<br \/>\n                248, 248, 242\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #2F2F2F<br \/>\n                47, 47, 47\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Base text color\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #6272a4;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #6C664B;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Sub Text<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #6272a4<br \/>\n                98, 114, 164\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #6C664B<br \/>\n                108, 102, 75\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Nav links, post dates, & image captions\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #44475a;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #BBB8A5;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Grey<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #44475a<br \/>\n                68, 71, 90\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #BBB8A5<br \/>\n                68, 71, 90\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Code block backgrounds\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #ff5555;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #CB3A2A;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Red<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #ff5555<br \/>\n                255, 85, 85\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #CB3A2A<br \/>\n                203, 58, 42\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Footnote link hover\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #ffb86c;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #A34D14;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Orange<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #ffb86c<br \/>\n                255, 184, 108\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #A34D14<br \/>\n                163, 77, 20\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>H4s & link underlines\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #f1fa8c;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #846E15;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Yellow<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #f1fa8c<br \/>\n                241, 250, 140\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #846E15<br \/>\n                132, 110, 21\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>H3s\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #50fa7b;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #14710A;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Green<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #50fa7b<br \/>\n                80, 250, 123\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #14710A<br \/>\n                20, 113, 10\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>H2s, nav page active, indented list markers, & hovered links\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #8be9fd;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #036A96;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Cyan<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #8be9fd<br \/>\n                139, 233, 253\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #036A96<br \/>\n                3, 106, 150\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Masthead accents, nav page hover, & inline code\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #bd93f9;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #644AC9;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Purple<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #bd93f9<br \/>\n                189, 147, 249\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #644AC9<br \/>\n                100, 74, 201\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Footnote links, link hover gradients, blockquote border gradient, & divider gradients\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #ff79c6;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #A3144D;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Pink<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #ff79c6<br \/>\n                255, 121, 198\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #A3144D<br \/>\n                163, 20, 77\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Masthead accents, H1s, link hover gradients, list markers, blockquote border gradient, & divider gradients\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #000000;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #FFFFFF;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Emphasis<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #000000<br \/>\n                0, 0, 0\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #FFFFFF<br \/>\n                255, 255, 255\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Text color when selected\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><div class=\"col-lg-4 col-md-6 col-sm-12 d-flex align-items-stretch\">\n        <div class=\"card color-box\">\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #ffffff;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"the-color\" style=\"background-color: #000000;\">&nbsp;<\/div>\n          <div class=\"mt-2 mb-auto\">\n            <div>\n              <h5>Reverse Emphasis<\/h5>\n            <\/div>\n            <div class=\"color-stats\">\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Dark Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #ffffff<br \/>\n                255, 255, 255\n              <\/div>\n              <div class=\"stat\">\n                <strong>Light Mode<\/strong><br \/>\n                #000000<br \/>\n                0, 0, 0\n              <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n            <div>\n              <br \/><strong>Usage<\/strong><br \/>Default link color, masthead \/index hover, `strong` and `em` text color\n            <\/div>\n          <\/div>\n        <\/div>\n      <\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Please do let me know if you see any weirdness with the site, as I'm guessing I missed at least one thing. Otherwise, enjoy!<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>The creators of Dracula have often been asked <em>&quot;Will you create a light theme?&quot;<\/em>, and their answer was always: <em>&quot;No. Dracula doesn't support light.&quot;<\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/let-there-be-light\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Yes, I subscribe to a newletter for a color scheme. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/let-there-be-light\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Now July 2025","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-july-2025\/"}},"updated":"2025-07-16T00:59:56Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-july-2025\/","summary":"Life's too short to write timely blog posts updating everyone on my life","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>I'm busy<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This is the second time I've tried writing this post. So much random stuff has been going on in my\/our lives that I just haven't had the time (or, frankly, the energy) to sit down and write any posts until today.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Baseball rules<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As a Red Sox fan, this has been a tough season for me. Trading Devers hurt, but the team has seemed to come together, capped off with a 10 game win streak heading into the All Star break. Having baseball on as background noise around the house has been really nice, and I look forward to games returning in a couple of days.<\/p>\n<p><strong>We cut out V's nap<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Up until the start of the month, V had still been taking a ~2 hour nap every day. It had slowly started to become more difficult to get her to take the nap, and it had started impacting\/pushing back bedtime as well, so we just went cold turkey - no naps at all.<\/p>\n<p>That's gone... ok, I guess? V tends to get tired around 4 or so, but hits her second wind at dinner time. Bedtime is a breeze. B and I are <em>exhausted<\/em>, though - it was already a lot when she\/we got a little gap in the early afternoon, but now that it's just go-go-go after school, it's a lot for everyone.<\/p>\n<p>(As I was writing this, I got a text from B that V had passed out on the couch at 2pm. So, that'll be interesting.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>I'm slowly getting back in to video games<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>For whatever reason, I'd been feeling major apprehension about playing any games lately. I spent a ton of time playing Marvel Rivals, but the competitive nature was wearing me down, so I gave that up.<\/p>\n<p>I've made a point to have my Steam Deck updated and ready to go with games lately, and I've found that to be a huge help. I plowed through <em>Hyper Light Drifter<\/em> and <em>My Friend Pedro<\/em> in June, and I'm currently playing through <em>Final Fantasy IV<\/em> for the first time. I also still have <em>Undertale<\/em>, <em>Pokemon LeafGreen<\/em>, <em>Nine Sols<\/em>, <em>Fallout: New Vegas<\/em>, and <em>Baldur's Gate 3<\/em> in progress.<\/p>\n<p>Also...<\/p>\n<p><strong>I gave up on a spreadsheet<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>GASP!<\/em><\/p>\n<p>After way too long, I finally gave up on trying to keep my games backlog updated manually, and shifted over to using <a href=\"https:\/\/howlongtobeat.com\/user\/niclake\">HowLongToBeat<\/a>'s backlog tracker. It's not perfect, but honestly, neither was my spreadsheet.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I got my wife into 3D Printing<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I have a Bambu Labs P1S printer in my office, and a couple weeks ago I installed the Bambu Handy app on her phone and showed her how to find things &amp; print them.<\/p>\n<p>When I say I lost access to my printer for a couple of days, I'm not exaggerating - she was finding things left and right. I told her to save things she wanted to print into a collection, and woke up the next morning to nearly 50 things being added to it.<\/p>\n<p>I'm 0% mad about this.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Now (March 2025)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-march-2025\/"}},"updated":"2025-03-19T00:05:57Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-march-2025\/","summary":"So little to say, so much time.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>I've been relatively radio silent this year.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Stuff has happened in the world<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-march-2025\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> that has caused me to retreat inward a bit more. I'm barely posting on socials, I fully quit Facebook (finally), and I've retreated from a lot of the Discord servers I'm a part of. Things are just scary and frustrating and there's lots of doom everywhere.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I'm taking a pottery class.<\/strong><\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-25-3\/pottery1.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-25-3\/pottery1.jpg\" alt=\"The pottery wheel at my class.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>For years, I've thought that learning how to make pottery with a wheel would be really cool. It seems like a fun activity, it's creative, and it's something I can do with my hands. Also, it's much safer than using power tools like I do with woodworking.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-25-3\/pottery2.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-25-3\/pottery2.jpg\" alt=\"My first pots that I threw. They're not great, but they're mine.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>My first pots that I threw. They're not great, but they're mine.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>My wife got me a 4 week class at the local museum (which is where we got married 9 years ago). It's for an hour and a half every Tuesday evening, which is weird because I haven't really gotten out of the house to do anything by myself in 3+ years. I'm having a fantastic time, learning a lot, and trying to channel <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/\">my yearly theme<\/a> &amp; getting comfortable with not being perfect.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I released a couple of projects.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In January, I put together <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/3dp-alfred\/\">an Alfred workflow that lets you search multiple sites for 3D printing models<\/a>. It's come in handy, and I know other people that have downloaded it and are using it, so that's cool.<\/p>\n<p>Yesterday, I released <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/vs-code-move-file-to-group\/\">a VS Code extension that puts &quot;Move {direction}&quot; in the file contextual menu<\/a>. I'm someone that usually has at least 2 files up at once while I'm developing, and the default functionality within VS Code is to &quot;split&quot; your current file, so you have copies in separate groups the left\/right or top\/bottom. I <em>never<\/em> want this; I want to &quot;move&quot; the file to the other group. You could do this, but it wasn't something you could get at easily. With this extension, now it is.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-march-2025\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p><strong>The plague hit us hard.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Feb 11, I started feeling crummy. From then until today:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I was mildly sick on my birthday<\/li>\n<li>V was sick on her birthday<\/li>\n<li>My wife got really sick<\/li>\n<li>I went to the doctor on our anniversary, and got stuff for bronchitis<\/li>\n<li>I went to urgent care a few days later, and got stuff for pneumonia<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Now, on March 18, we are <em>finally<\/em> all feeling better again. A full month+ of sickness. Nobody prepares you for this when you become a parent, and they really should.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Baseball is back.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Dodgers and Cubs played a game that counted in Tokyo this morning. The Red Sox play their first game next Thursday. We're going to a Red Sox\/White Sox game in April. I'm super excited; I don't think I've paid this much attention to prospects, minor leagues, and\/or Spring Training ever in my whole fandom. 9 more days.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Gee, I wonder what that could be... \ud83e\udd14 <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-march-2025\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I'll be honest, I hope Microsoft straight up steals this idea. The fact that the most popular IDE on the market today doesn't offer this option is absurd to me. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-march-2025\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Move File to Group - a VS Code extension","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/vs-code-move-file-to-group\/"}},"updated":"2025-03-18T02:19:10Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/vs-code-move-file-to-group\/","summary":"A VS Code extension that puts 'Move {direction}' into a file's contextual menu.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/vs-code-move-icon.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/vs-code-move-icon.png\" alt=\"someAltText\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Long-time JetBrains IDE users will be familiar with the &quot;Move {direction}&quot; options from the tab contextual menus. VS Code defaults to Split, which isn't always the most ideal, and the Move commands are buried in keyboard settings &amp; never surfaced in any menus.<\/p>\n<p>Thankfully, VS Code extensions are relatively easy to make... so I did. This extension puts &quot;Move {direction}&quot; options in the editor tab contextual (right click) menu.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/vs-code-move.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/vs-code-move.png\" alt=\"someAltText\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/marketplace.visualstudio.com\/items?itemName=niclake.move-file-to-group\">The extension is available in the VS Code Marketplace<\/a>, or you can find it by searching <code>Move File to Group<\/code> and looking for the moving van picture. <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/move-file-to-group\">The source code is available on Github<\/a>.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"appDefaults.local","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/iphone-default-apps\/"}},"updated":"2025-03-04T03:41:20Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/iphone-default-apps\/","summary":"When the apps that I use \/ bring no joy, only blues \/ time to tinkerrrr...","content":"<p>I like to fiddle. Change for the sake of change can (sometimes) be really good, and I try to not be precious about old habits as much as I can.<\/p>\n<p>Case in point: I was an avid proponent of the <a href=\"https:\/\/monokai.pro\/\">Monokai color scheme<\/a> for ages, but at some point in the last year or so, I pivoted to using <a href=\"https:\/\/draculatheme.com\/\">Dracula<\/a> everywhere, including on this site.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/iphone-default-apps\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>So, my latest &quot;I should fiddle with this&quot; endeavor - trying out the default apps that the iPhone provides. Specifically, I wanted to look into Podcasts, Mail, Calendar, and Reminders. One has already been done, and the others I'm preparing for when I have small windows of time.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"overcast--%3E-podcasts\" tabindex=\"-1\">Overcast -&gt; Podcasts<\/h2>\n<p>This is a weird one for me, because I don't have any reference for using the default app. I started listening to podcasts somewhere around 2017\/18, when Overcast already existed, and I somehow was tapped in enough to just start using it from the jump. So this particular &quot;go back to the default&quot; is really &quot;try out a new app&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>This is also the particular app that has been giving me the most reasons to switch, because of the myriad of bugs that I've had cropping up within Overcast since it got a full rewrite late last year. For example:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Some episodes immediately complete and delete when they become the current podcast. I've noticed this happening with added frequency when I complete the previous podcast by scrubbing to the very end of the ep; I'd expect it to complete, tick over to the new episode, and start, but the new episode will sometimes also\u00a0complete, and it will go to the 3rd podcast.<\/li>\n<li>Auto play randomly doesn\u2019t work; when an episode completes, sometimes the next one will highlight and become the current episode, but it just won't start.<\/li>\n<li>Swipe down doesn\u2019t work with any consistency. Tap to dismiss won't always work either. Sometimes I just have to take a breath and count to 5, and then\u00a0it'll sometimes work for me. This irritates the heck out of me.<\/li>\n<li>Some podcasts won't delete after completion. When this is the case, it's like they rewind themselves 10 to 20 seconds when the next podcast begins, almost like the deletion task and the &quot;update podcast status&quot; task are having a race condition or something.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So I started this whole &quot;try default apps&quot; endeavor with those 4 things in mind.<\/p>\n<p>When I tell you that I lasted about 10 minutes on this app, that's not hyperbole. I got all my subscriptions migrated over (including the Memberful ones that required me to sign in and grab links for), got the current episodes queued up, and started up the first pod.<\/p>\n<p>Within 5 minutes of playtime, I was reminded why I'm on Overcast.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Smart Speed is just too dang good. I listen to a speed that's about 1.6x, but Smart Speed helps eliminate some of those gaps in talking. Podcasts' 1.5x or 1.75x both don't feel good to me, and they still leave in all that space.<\/li>\n<li>Voice Boost does slightly degrade the delivered audio quality a bit, BUT it helps bring up a lot of the quiet parts where someone is speaking softly or leaning away from their mic, and I'll take that trade-off any day of the week.<\/li>\n<li>The layout of Podcasts is centered around discovering new things to listen to, with &quot;my current set of downloaded episodes&quot; being something I have to dig to get at. That's so user hostile to me.<\/li>\n<li>Not being able to custom sort podcast episodes stinks. I have Overcast prioritize a handful of pods for me, and even then, I like being able to drag and sort the episodes so the queue can keep rolling. Strange that Podcasts doesn't let you do this.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So Podcasts got a big <em><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/connected\/532\">Inferior Minus<\/a><\/strong><\/em> from me - I had intended on using this for a week or so, but I instantly switched back. I'll just stick with Overcast, and hope Marco can fix the bugs.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"mimestream-(mac)-%2B-gmail-(iphone)--%3E-mail\" tabindex=\"-1\">Mimestream (Mac) + Gmail (iPhone) -&gt; Mail<\/h2>\n<p>Both apps I use today are designed around Gmail's weird APIs, making them the ideal use for all of my email accounts. However, I don't love using different apps to do the same thing between different devices, and paying for an email app seems... weird? It feels like racketeering; I'm paying someone to make the mode of communication I hate the most slightly less bad.<\/p>\n<p>I know that Mail has started using categories in the inbox. I turned that feature on last year in Gmail after multiple years of avoiding it, and it's honestly been great at making sure the only time I get a badge on my app is when I have an email I actually need to check.<\/p>\n<p>I'll be really curious what my reaction to this switch is. I'm going to try and live with it for a while and see how my thoughts change.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"fantastical--%3E-calendar\" tabindex=\"-1\">Fantastical -&gt; Calendar<\/h2>\n<p>My main gripes here are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Fantastical is $57 a year, and I'm not sure if it's adding that much value<\/li>\n<li>iOS doesn't let you set a default calendar app, and enough things use Calendar that it drives me nuts<\/li>\n<li>The Modular watch face on the Apple Watch won't let you switch the Day\/Date to a 3rd party app<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I also have 2 important bits of context that make this relevant:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>When I switched over to Fantastical, I started using their built-in sports schedules for everything. This rules, but it means that none of those schedules are available to anything that calls the Calendar API.<\/li>\n<li>I am part of one absurdly noisy calendar that I don't want to see by default. With Fantastical, I can just remove it from my default Calendar set. With Calendars, it seems I have to exclude it from anything outside the app (widgets, primarily) that want to call it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So, knowing that I'm gonna have a little bit of set-up, I'm going to dive in and give this a try.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"omnifocus--%3E-reminders\" tabindex=\"-1\">OmniFocus -&gt; Reminders<\/h2>\n<p>I pivoted over to OmniFocus this winter as a place for me to store EVERYTHING that I need to do. Daily tasks, recurring events, project notes, work to-do items... if I need it, it's here. I do still make heavy use of <em>&quot;Hey Siri, remind me...&quot;<\/em>, and it's great that OmniFocus can just suck this data in automatically. The only thing Reminders gets used for at this point is my grocery list, because I can tell my watch <em>&quot;Add potatoes to the grocery list&quot;<\/em> and it works (and my wife can easily manage this list too).<\/p>\n<p>I'm going into this exercise assuming that this is not going to be the solution for me; I have a very custom &quot;Daily HUD&quot; OmniFocus perspective that gets populated based on a weird subset of rules, and I just don't see Reminders getting there. That said, if Reminders is even somewhat close with a tiny bit of tweaking, being able to save $100+ a year is gonna make this decision pretty easy for me.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Let's not get in to the fact that the entire reason I changed is because I <em>also<\/em> changed IDEs right around that time, and VS Code didn't have great Ruby support for Monokai... <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/iphone-default-apps\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"24 > 12","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/24-12\/"}},"updated":"2025-01-15T23:25:53Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/24-12\/","summary":"That feeling when inanimate objects jump-scare you.","content":"<p>The setting: college. Early December. Not quite finals time, but getting close. Some weekday afternoon.<\/p>\n<p>I'm cramming for an 8am test the following morning. I'm sick and feeling exhausted, so I have a few cans of Mt. Dew for the energy boost. I can stay awake. I can do this.<\/p>\n<p>Next thing I know, I'm waking up, having gone head-down on my textbook. I look at the clock. 7:50.<\/p>\n<p>Oh man oh jeez oh fuck.<\/p>\n<p>Grab my jacket, grab my bag. Sprint across campus. Run into the building, up the stairs, to the classroom. The door is locked. Why is the door locked? let-me-in.gif<\/p>\n<p>My phone buzzes. It's my friend. &quot;Hey where you at? We're about to hop on CoD, you wanna play?&quot;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>And that is why, to this day, every digital clock I own is set to military time.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Quickly Search for 3D Printing STL Files with Alfred","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/3dp-alfred\/"}},"updated":"2025-01-14T04:23:47Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/3dp-alfred\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-3dp-stl-search\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/alfred-3dp.png\" alt=\"An Alfred workflow to look up STL files for 3D printing on MakerWorld, Printables, and STLFinder.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>An Alfred workflow to look up STL files for 3D printing on MakerWorld, Printables, and STLFinder.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>As someone that's somewhat new to 3D printing, I'm still trying to figure out what the best places to find STL files to print are. Sometimes I'll find something good on one site, but not on another, and it's frustrating to go from site to site.<\/p>\n<p>Alfred coming through yet again for me. <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-3dp-stl-search\">I created a simple workflow<\/a> that will take in your query and search MakerWorld, Printables, and STLFinder, opening all of those links in new tabs within your default browser. Simple, easy, helpful.<\/p>\n<p>You can view the latest release &amp; download the workflow <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-3dp-stl-search\/releases\/latest\">on GitHub<\/a>.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Useful Mac Defaults to Change","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/useful-mac-defaults-to-change\/"}},"updated":"2025-01-14T02:05:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/useful-mac-defaults-to-change\/","summary":"This is mostly for me to remember whenever I set up a new computer again.","content":"<p>I picked up a new Mac mini last week, and it's been an absolute delight going through and setting everything up fresh again. I always get a ton of satisfaction with doing clean installs and adding things back as necessary; it's a good way to save space, examine what's been working for me, and identify things that I've just completely forgotten about.<\/p>\n<p>Some of those things include various quality of life enhancements I make to my Macs that are done through the command line, overwriting some defaults Apple has set for various reasons. Some of these revert behavior to legacy, pre-OS X days, while others are just nice enhancements I've discovered over time.<\/p>\n<p>I'm mostly documenting this in a central location so I can remember it for later, but I figured I'd share with you too. If you're curious about trying these, just launch the <code>Terminal<\/code> app, copy these, paste them in, and hit enter. Most of these have boolean <code>true\/false<\/code> options in them; if you want to revert a change, just flip it and run the command again.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>Hold Key to Repeat<\/strong> (vs. bringing up the accents window)<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/useful-mac-defaults-to-change\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>: <code>defaults write -g ApplePressAndHoldEnabled -bool false<\/code><\/p>\n<p><strong>Show the App Switcher (\u2318-Tab) on Every Display<\/strong>: <code>defaults write com.apple.Dock appswitcher-all-displays -bool true; killall Dock<\/code><\/p>\n<p><strong>Add Spacers to your Dock<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Small spacer: <code>defaults write com.apple.dock persistent-apps -array-add '{&quot;tile-type&quot;=&quot;small-spacer-tile&quot;;}'; killall Dock<\/code><\/li>\n<li>Large spacer: <code>defaults write com.apple.dock persistent-apps -array-add '{&quot;tile-type&quot;=&quot;spacer-tile&quot;;}'; killall Dock<\/code><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You can add as many spacers as you want - just run the command again. To can drag around to reposition, or drag off the dock to remove.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/dock-spacers.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/dock-spacers.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of my Dock with spacers\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>This is an example of spacers in my dock - these are all small spacers.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Change the Location for Screenshots to be Saved<\/strong>: <code>defaults write com.apple.screencapture location &lt;path&gt;<\/code> (ex: <code>~\/Documents\/Screenshots<\/code>)<\/p>\n<p>This will likely be a living document, so expect to see updates to this list.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>This is always discovered when I try to go type something like &quot;lmaoooooooooo&quot; and the accent window pops up. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/useful-mac-defaults-to-change\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Removing the Screen Sharing Icon When Using DisplayLink Devices on Macs","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac-displaylink\/"}},"updated":"2025-01-09T17:31:04Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac-displaylink\/","summary":"If you, like me, are tired of that little purple icon in your menu bar.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/displaylink\/big-brother.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/displaylink\/big-brother.jpg\" alt=\"Big Brother is always watching you\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>In 2024, Apple launched a new feature for Macs that show a lovely purple icon on your menu bar any time it believes your screen is being recorded. For example, if you start a screen share within Zoom, you'll see that icon pop up.<\/p>\n<p>I used the word &quot;believes&quot; above, because for some situations, it's not <em>really<\/em> the case.<\/p>\n<p>Take DisplayLink devices, for example. I have a dock for my laptop (the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4bSRgEn\">TOTU USB-C Docking Station<\/a>) that allows me to support 3 external monitors. It does this using DisplayLink and some trickery, but it does work. However, Apple's APIs go &quot;wait, you're recording the screen in order to make this happen!&quot; So, every time I plug in my laptop, there's that little purple icon staring at me, letting me know that Big Brother is watching me.<\/p>\n<p>Cue the biggest eye roll in existence.<\/p>\n<p>I'd come to just accept\/ignore this, but just today, <a href=\"https:\/\/akrabat.com\/\">Rob Allen<\/a> pointed me to <a href=\"https:\/\/akrabat.com\/running-displaylink-manager-on-mac-without-the-purple-icon\/\">a post he'd made last month<\/a> where he ran into (and solved) this exact issue, thanks to <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/lwouis\/alt-tab-macos\/issues\/2606#issuecomment-2351026226\">a GitHub comment on an issue for AltTab<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>If you're dealing with this issue, here are the steps to take:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Within DisplayLink Manager, un-check <code>Launch automatically after login<\/code><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/displaylink\/disable-login.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/displaylink\/disable-login.png\" alt=\"Disable the auto-login\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>Open <code>Terminal.app<\/code>, and type <code>cd \/usr\/local\/bin\/<\/code>.<\/li>\n<li>Type <code>touch displaylink.command<\/code> to create a new file<\/li>\n<li>Edit this file however you see fit<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac-displaylink\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>Within the file, paste the following command:<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<pre class=\"language-bash\"><code class=\"language-bash\"><span class=\"token function\">screen<\/span> <span class=\"token parameter variable\">-dmS<\/span> displaylink arch <span class=\"token parameter variable\">-arm64<\/span> \/Applications\/DisplayLink<span class=\"token punctuation\">\\<\/span> Manager.app\/Contents\/MacOS\/DisplayLinkUserAgent<span class=\"token punctuation\">;<\/span> <span class=\"token function\">killall<\/span> Terminal<\/code><\/pre>\n<p>(For those curious, this is using <code>screen<\/code> to launch DisplayLink, then immediately closing the terminal window. Since Apple apparently allows its own applications to bypass the sharing icon, this will allow DisplayLink to run, but not nag you with the &quot;hey your screen is being shared!&quot; notice.)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Save &amp; close the file<\/li>\n<li>Within <code>Terminal.app<\/code>, type <code>chmod a+x \/usr\/local\/bin\/displaylink.command<\/code> to make this file executable<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/displaylink\/terminal.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/displaylink\/terminal.png\" alt=\"A view of my Terminal window after running all the commands\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>When you're all done, your Terminal window should look something like this.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>Open <code>System Settings<\/code>, go to the <code>General<\/code> section, and select <code>Login Items &amp; Extensions<\/code><\/li>\n<li>Within the <code>Open at Login<\/code> section, hit the <code>+<\/code> button<\/li>\n<li>Navigate to <code>\/usr\/local\/bin\/<\/code> and choose the <code>displaylink.command<\/code> file. To do this easily, from the open file picker, press <code>\u2318\u21e7G<\/code>, type <code>\/usr\/local\/bin\/<\/code>, and press Enter.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/displaylink\/login-item.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/displaylink\/login-item.png\" alt=\"Added to the login items\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>You should now see <code>Item: displaylink.command, Kind: Terminal shell script<\/code> within your login items.<\/li>\n<li>Restart your computer. When you log in, you may be prompted with a request for <code>screen<\/code> to record your computer; allow this.<\/li>\n<li>Ta da! No more purple icon in your menu bar!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Thanks again to Rob Allen and @nendonerd for pointing me to the answer. Hopefully this is useful for you as well.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>If you're unfamiliar with using the terminal or command line, you can type <code>open .<\/code> to open a Finder window to the <code>\/usr\/local\/bin\/<\/code> directory. Find your new <code>displaylink.command<\/code> file, right click, Open With..., and choose TextEdit or your editor of choice. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac-displaylink\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"My 2024 Books, Games, and Media","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-2024-in-media\/"}},"updated":"2024-12-31T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-2024-in-media\/","summary":"I really enjoyed the year in media wrap-up that I did for 2023, so I thought I'd do it again this year.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/helios-i.mashable.com\/imagery\/reviews\/0778lG5KNk5Wr8uLrNcBSdY\/hero-image.fill.size_1248x702.v1623384545.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/helios-i.mashable.com\/imagery\/reviews\/0778lG5KNk5Wr8uLrNcBSdY\/hero-image.fill.size_1248x702.v1623384545.jpg\" alt=\"Reading\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I really enjoyed the <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-2023-in-media\/\">year in media wrap-up that I did for 2023<\/a>, so I thought I'd do it again this year.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"books\" tabindex=\"-1\">Books<\/h2>\n<p>Once again, I found myself eschewing my Kindle in lieu of just reading on my phone. I'm not mad about it, but there's something almost comical about &quot;I don't want to be on my phone as much&quot; becoming &quot;well at <em>least<\/em> I'm reading a book!&quot;<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"books-read-in-2024%3A-27\" tabindex=\"-1\">Books read in 2024: 27<\/h3>\n<p><em>Previous years - 2023: 25 books, 2022: 30 books, 2021: 50 books, 2020: 23 books<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Rhythm of War<\/em> (<strong>The Stormlight Archive<\/strong> book 4) by Brandon Sanderson<\/li>\n<li><em>The Martian<\/em> by Andy Weir<\/li>\n<li><em>The Mysteries<\/em> by Bill Watterson<\/li>\n<li><em>The Book of Accidents<\/em> by Chuck Wendig<\/li>\n<li><em>System Collapse<\/em> (<strong>Murderbot Diaries 7<\/strong>) by Martha Wells<\/li>\n<li><em>Starter Villain<\/em> by John Scalzi<\/li>\n<li><em>Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin<\/em> by Kevin Eastman<\/li>\n<li><strong>Southern Reach<\/strong> series 1 &amp; 2 (<em>Annihilation<\/em> and <em>Authority<\/em>) by Jeff VanderMeer<\/li>\n<li><strong>Red Rising<\/strong> series 1-3 (<em>Red Rising<\/em>, <em>Golden Son<\/em>, &amp; <em>Morning Star<\/em>) by Pierce Brown<\/li>\n<li>The entire <strong>Galactic Cold War<\/strong> series (5 novels &amp; 4 short stories) by Dan Moren<\/li>\n<li><em>Warbreaker<\/em> by Brandon Sanderson<\/li>\n<li><strong>The Inheritance Cycle<\/strong> series 1-4 (<em>Eragon<\/em>, <em>Eldest<\/em>, <em>Brisingr<\/em>, &amp; <em>Inheritance<\/em>) by Christopher Paolini<\/li>\n<li><em>Wind and Truth<\/em> (<strong>The Stormlight Archive<\/strong> book 5) by Brandon Sanderson<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>After unintentionally doing really well reading stories by a diverse group of people last year, it appears I only read 1 novel written by a non-male author last year. Yeesh. Going to make sure I do better with that in 2025.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"games\" tabindex=\"-1\">Games<\/h2>\n<p>I did kick the PC back on this year, but I also made sure to spend a bunch of time on the Steam Deck as well. I do have a couple games (Pok\u00e9mon LeafGreen and Fallout New Vegas) in progress right now, so that should be 2 quick ones to start off the year.<\/p>\n<p>Also, while they got 0 recognition because I didn't actually beat them, I did play a bunch of <em>World of Warcraft<\/em>, <em>Balatro<\/em>, <em>Hades<\/em>, and <em>Dead Cells<\/em> throughout the year. Trying to spend less time on repetitive games, but that seems like an adage I say every year.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"games-beaten-in-2024%3A-6\" tabindex=\"-1\">Games beaten in 2024: 6<\/h3>\n<p><em>Previous years - 2023: 4, 2022: 15, 2021: 5, 2020: 22<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Bastion<\/em> (Steam Deck)<\/li>\n<li><em>Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic<\/em> (Steam)<\/li>\n<li><em>Cyberpunk 2077<\/em> (Steam)<\/li>\n<li><em>Hollow Knight<\/em> (Steam Deck)<\/li>\n<li><em>Celeste<\/em> (Steam Deck)<\/li>\n<li><em>Elden Ring<\/em> (Steam) - I took my sweet time and 100%'d this. I don't think I'll ever go back. What a grind.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"other-media\" tabindex=\"-1\">Other Media<\/h2>\n<p>Movies &amp; TV shows remain something I only watch when I'm absolutely bored out of my mind, or too lazy\/tired to go upstairs and do something else. I don't keep good track of any of this, so it's non-exhaustive.<\/p>\n<p>I will say, I'm <em>VERY<\/em> excited for <em>Severance<\/em> season 2 to come out in January. My wife and I will be watching the crap out of that.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Justice League<\/em> (not the Snyder Cut, and no, I won't go back)<\/li>\n<li><em>Arcane<\/em> S1 and 2<\/li>\n<li>All of the <em>Bad Boys<\/em> movies, for some reason<\/li>\n<li>A whole bunch of NBA, MLB, NFL, F1, &amp; Premier League (again)<\/li>\n<li>A whole bunch of <em>Bluey, Sesame Street, Gabby's Dollhouse, Super Simple Songs, Daniel Tiger, Blippi<\/em>, and more (again)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n"},{"title":"Now (December 2024)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-december-2024\/"}},"updated":"2024-12-21T21:10:30Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-december-2024\/","summary":"It's the end of the year as we know it.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>My wife and I went to a football game.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We tend to stay pretty close to home and to our daughter; prior to this, I don't think we've been away from her for more than 3ish hours at a time. But in November, we dropped her off at the grandparent's house, and drove in to Chicago for the Vikings @ Bears game. We had an absolute blast, have some great stories to remember it, and V (and the grandparents) had a wonderful time together. We've always been so hesitant to ask for time, but we planned this out months in advance, and I'm so glad we went.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-24-12\/bears.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-24-12\/bears.jpg\" alt=\"My wife and I at the Vikings @ Bears game\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>My Steam Deck is now a Pok\u00e9mon machine.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I've been wanting to use my Steam Deck more. I've also been itching to play the old Pok\u00e9mon games again. A couple hours of internet sleuthing later, and <em>ta daaaa<\/em>, all of the pre-Switch games are now on my Deck. Also, it's my first time ever playing the games emulated, and even as a huge Pok\u00e9mon fan, you wouldn't <em>believe<\/em> how much more enjoyable it is to speed the game up 3 or 4x speed and blitz some of the more grind-y bits. I'm at the 7th gym, and I've played less than 10 hours. It's wonderful.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I got a 3D printer.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A new Bambu P1S showed up at my house at the beginning of December, and for a solid 2 weeks, I think it was running about 12 hours a day. I've been making al sorts of stuff; planters, vases, Gridfinity organization bins for my tools and batteries and stuff, and even little toys for V (I made her a little articulating T-rex that she absolutely loves).<\/p>\n<p><strong>I updated my Daily Sports Emails project.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I released v1 in the summer to get schedules &amp; standings for MLB, but now it supports NBA and NFL as well. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/an-update-to-the-daily-sports-emails\/\">Go check it out!<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>I'm ready for 2025.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I have some pretty grand aspirations for this coming year. I'm ready to implement <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/\">my theme of Year of Motion<\/a> and make some headway on a variety of things - projects, organization, hobbies (both new and old), and some fun activities for my family. 2024 was an ok year - here's to making 2025 the best one yet.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"An update to Daily Sports Emails","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/an-update-to-the-daily-sports-emails\/"}},"updated":"2024-12-21T18:50:59Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/an-update-to-the-daily-sports-emails\/","summary":"For you sickos like me who enjoy a good email or two in the morning","content":"<p>Back in June, I released the first version of <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/daily-sports-email\/\">my Daily Sports Emails project<\/a>. At the time, this only would send emails each day for MLB. This has now been updated, and <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/daily-sports-email\">the project now also officially supports NBA and NFL games &amp; teams<\/a>. Hooray!<\/p>\n<p>For NBA and NFL games, you'll need to get a <a href=\"http:\/\/sportsdata.io\/\">SportsData.IO<\/a> account, along with free trials to either the NBA or NFL APIs. It's super easy to do (and free!), and unlocks the ability to get these emails generated for you.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\">Let me know what you think<\/a>, if you have any questions, or run into any problems! And as always, if you enjoy this project, you can <a href=\"https:\/\/ko-fi.com\/niclake\" :target=\"_blank\">buy me a coffee<\/a>.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Year of Motion","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/"}},"updated":"2024-12-21T02:30:27Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/","summary":"It's me, I'm the object.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/motion.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/motion.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<blockquote>\n<ol>\n<li>An object at rest tends to stay at rest. An object in motion tends to stay in motion.<\/li>\n<li>The acceleration of an object depends on its mass, and the amount of force applied.<\/li>\n<li>For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Sir Isaac Newton, 1686<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>As of last week, I had 0 plans to do a yearly theme for 2025.<\/p>\n<p>It's not that I don't like them. I do; I think &quot;theme&quot; is a much better idea than &quot;resolution&quot;. I'm not resolving to Do A Thing, I'm setting intentions to sculpt my life in such a way that The Thing becomes a priority. It's a different way of thinking, and one that I've found myself really enjoying.<\/p>\n<p>But no plan survives contact with the enemy. Or the birth of a child. Or changing jobs. Or moving across the state. Or the ADHD diagnosis. Or. Or. Or.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"recap\" tabindex=\"-1\">Recap<\/h2>\n<p>2022 was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-garden\/\">The Year of the Garden<\/a>. It was all about prioritizing the habits that would be important to me &amp; my family as we welcomed my daughter into the world. I needed to Harvest the established habits I wanted to maintain, Prune back the habits that were desired but growing out of control, Sowing new habits to have in my life, and Razing the habits that no longer served me.<\/p>\n<p>2023 was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-sustenance\/\">The Year of Sustenance<\/a>. I had essentially copy\/pasted the previous theme, feeling a bit <em>laissez-faire<\/em> about the whole ordeal. And wouldn't you know it, <em><strong>I got exactly as much out of it as I put in to crafting it for myself<\/strong><\/em> (which is to say, practically nothing).<\/p>\n<p>2024 was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/\">The Year of Understanding<\/a>. I tried to build a couple blocks on top of this, but the core was me trying to analyze and deep dive into not just the <em>what<\/em> or <em>how<\/em> in my life, but the <em>why<\/em>. Am I experiencing road blocks on something over and over again? <em>Why is that?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Two things happened in 2024 that really helped me understand the <em>why<\/em> more:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>In March, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcner\/\">I received an adult ADHD diagnosis<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>In July, I started going to therapy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When I tell you that the combination of these two things was earth-shattering for me, know that it's a huge understatement. For so long, I have been white-knuckling my life, because I kept telling myself &quot;well things aren't THAT bad, I'm ok, I'll get through this&quot;, over and over and over again.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> And then, I finally buckled down, advocated for myself, got the diagnosis, got the right medication<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>, and find a therapist that listens and, more importantly, challenges me in ways I've never before considered.<\/p>\n<p>I am not whole, nor am I healed. But so many of the puzzle pieces from years past have just clicked in to place, explaining so much about <em>why<\/em> I thought or said or did the things I did. And now, I have a framework to build off of.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"deliberations\" tabindex=\"-1\">Deliberations<\/h2>\n<p>There was no deliberation this year. There was no plan, and then suddenly, the word was there for me.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"2025---year-of-motion\" tabindex=\"-1\">2025 - Year of Motion<\/h2>\n<p>One thing I talk about in therapy is how sometimes, it can be difficult for me to start on something, especially now that my free time is more limited due to being a dad. I love analogies<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>, and the way I described it to my therapist was that my brain is like a car with a bad starter, parked on a hill. There are some (many [ok, most]) days where my brain simply will not turn over. I have the time allocated, the plan in place, but I'll just be unable to start doing the activity.<\/p>\n<p>But, some days I can trick my brain<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fn4\" id=\"fnref4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup>. If I can do something small, something so miniscule that it seems inconsequential, that can be akin to popping the parking brake, turning the wheels towards the road, and rolling downhill. I get momentum. I'm in Motion.<\/p>\n<p>This isn't foolproof; there are plenty of days where that motion just fizzles and doesn't amount to anything. But the more I've put this into place, the more I've practiced and refined what this looks like for me, the fewer false starts I have, the more the engine turns over, and the better I feel about myself.<\/p>\n<p>And that, right there, was Understanding paying dividends for the entire year, and giving me something to carry into the new year.<\/p>\n<p>Here's what I've landed on for me to direct my focus towards:<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"perfection-requires-failure\" tabindex=\"-1\">Perfection Requires Failure<\/h3>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&quot;Life before death. Strength before weakness. Journey before destination.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>The First Ideal of the Knights Radiant<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I want to be perfect out of the gate. 10,000 hours? Nah, if I can't juggle right away I'm no longer interested. I don't even want to open this Woobles crochet kit that I've had for almost 2 years because I'm afraid I'll be terrible. <em><strong>I'm so concerned about the destination, that I don't even think about the journey to get there.<\/strong><\/em> And that's neither helpful, nor is it healthy.<\/p>\n<p>Motion is movement. Movement doesn't mean perfection; movement means trying something. I &quot;taught&quot; myself how to spin a pen this year. I still fling it across the room 75% of the time, and that's ok - I'm still learning. It's ok to suck. I need to learn to have fun as part of the process.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fn5\" id=\"fnref5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<h3 id=\"moving-laterally-is-still-motion\" tabindex=\"-1\">Moving Laterally Is Still Motion<\/h3>\n<p>Motion is movement, but sideways (or backwards) motion can sometimes feel like wasted time, spinning wheels, or just being bad at something.<\/p>\n<p>Like with reading; I always want to read, but sometimes the books I think I should read just aren't doing it for me right now. Or I'll be in this amazing stretch of reading 4 books in a row... and then I just stop. Energy gone. And I get frustrated about that.<\/p>\n<p>But sometimes, a quick sidestep is exactly what's needed. A book I haven't read in a while that I really like? Pick that up, blaze through it, and suddenly that fire has been re-kindled<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fn6\" id=\"fnref6\">[6]<\/a><\/sup> for reading once again. Moving in a direction other than &quot;straight ahead&quot; can sometimes help build momentum, and that momentum can be used to achieve my goals.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"take-the-most-important-step\" tabindex=\"-1\">Take The Most Important Step<\/h3>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&quot;The most important step a man can take. It's not the first one, is it? It's the next one. Always the next step.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Dalinar Kohlin, to himself<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>(Forgive me, I just finished Brandon Sanderson's &quot;Wind and Truth&quot;, so I'm spewing out quotes from across the Stormlight Archive. They seem... relevant.)<\/p>\n<p>The last time I started on a project, I sat down, ripped through a bunch of tutorials, and started poking at stuff. I knew I wasn't knowledgable about everything I was doing, and I was cool with learning. I was willing to take steps backwards or sideways to find the answers, and move forward once I had them.<\/p>\n<p>And then... one day, I just stopped.<\/p>\n<p>I don't know why. Maybe I was busy. Maybe something else occupied my time. Maybe I was upset at the progress I was (or wasn't) making. But for whatever reason, there was no motion. I had just stalled. And now, thinking about getting back into it, I go &quot;ah jeez, I'll <em>have<\/em> to take steps back to remember what I was doing... ugh, that seems like a lot&quot; and I don't touch it.<\/p>\n<p>People always say &quot;oh just start, that'll be fine! Once you get going, you're golden!&quot; And there's validity to that. Fear of that first step can be a lot. But the first step will never be the most important one.<\/p>\n<p>The most important step is the next step.<\/p>\n<p>Without building the habits, without repetition, without the willingness to fail, without the willingness to step backwards before moving forwards again, we stall, we stop, we freeze, and we sit in the stillness. And that's not helpful. Consistency is the most important thing. Habits aren't formed overnight, and until I have that momentum, I must be intention about putting one metaphorical foot in front of the other. (I also need to spend more time doing the thing, and less time thinking about the best ways to track the stuff. A cool chart is meaningless without data points to put on it.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fn7\" id=\"fnref7\">[7]<\/a><\/sup>)<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So there we go. 2025 is The Year of Motion. Perfection Requires Failure. Moving Laterally Is Still Motion. Take The Most Important Step.<\/p>\n<p>Let's see how this goes.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Hint: don't do this. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>One med worked great, but the side effects were miserable. My current med works well, but now I have to seek out a particular manufacturer, because the other ones seem ineffective. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I've realized that the reason I like analogies so much is because for so long, I've <em>known<\/em> that my brain has been wired differently, so I tried to put things into a perspective that can make sense to everyone. It's not flawless, but it's something. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn4\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>It's a skill I've gotten very good at in the past 9 months, as I Understand (see?) more about how people with ADHD are wired. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fnref4\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn5\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I shit you not, I'm typing out a bullet list to try to organize my thoughts, and I changed <em>just the simple note for later me<\/em> at least 5 times. <em>NIC STOP IT HOLY FUCK<\/em>. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fnref5\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn6\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Pun not intended. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fnref6\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn7\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Occasionally, I can put my brain on autopilot and just word vomit a bunch of notes about something I want to write about. This was one of those notes, and I feel very called out by my inner brain right now. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-motion\/#fnref7\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Nothing But Bluesky Do I See","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bluesky\/"}},"updated":"2024-11-22T21:22:31Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bluesky\/","summary":"I've longed for the feeling of early Twitter, and I think it's here again.","content":"<p><em>TL;DR <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/niclake.me\">I'm on Bluesky now<\/a>. If you miss early Twitter, you should come hang out.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Social media used to be good. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fuck-social-media\/\">It sucks now<\/a>, but it used to be good.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bluesky\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>Gone are the days of Facebook being for college students only. Gone are the days of 140 character limits.  Gone are the days where a social media presence wasn't mandatory for existing in this world.<\/p>\n<p>Gone, too, are the days where the Bird Site wasn't a complete toxic cesspool.<\/p>\n<p>For all the bad, I still miss the good. Which, hooray, that's what getting older is all about, right? I miss Lich King-era WoW. Late 00s screamo. 90s era Surge. We pine for days of yore, when our decisions didn't have such a profound impact on our physical, mental, and emotional health.<\/p>\n<p>Social media was something I enjoyed, for a ton of reasons. Now, it's something I dip into when I'm bored or tired. The negativity got to be too much, and I just didn't want to have anything to do with it.<\/p>\n<p>And then... the election happened, and everyone <em>finally<\/em> said &quot;yeah fuck this&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>I've been on Mastodon for a while now, and was hopeful that it would get a solid foothold in the social media wars. Sadly, it lost out to Threads, which sucks in its own ways. So when people started to flee, I wondered, where exactly were they going to go?<\/p>\n<p>For whatever reason, Bluesky was the place. And I'm so happy for that.<\/p>\n<p>I don't think I'm ever going to be as chronically online as I was pre-pandemic. It's not healthy, and with a kid, I just don't have that kind of free time anymore.<\/p>\n<p>But when I tell you that I'm getting that 2015 Twitter feeling again from Bluesky? Where everyone is present and engaged and shitposting and having fun? I've missed it so much. And maybe, just maybe, I can have a little bit of fun again, as a treat.<\/p>\n<p>I don't think it'll last forever. Capitalism exists, and server costs exist, and stakeholders always want more more more. So I'll just take what I can get, for as long as I can get it, and hope that it sticks around for as long as possible.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/niclake.me\">You can follow me on Bluesky<\/a>, if you want. I hope you do.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I talk in the linked post there about my entire history with social media. Check it out if you want. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/bluesky\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"I'm Blue","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/da-ba-dee-da-ba-di\/"}},"updated":"2024-11-07T18:30:27Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/da-ba-dee-da-ba-di\/","summary":"I'm tired. I'm angry. I'm sad. I'm scared.","content":"<h2 id=\"i%E2%80%99m-tired-because%E2%80%A6\" tabindex=\"-1\">I\u2019m Tired Because\u2026<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>I woke up at 2am on Wednesday, saw the election results, and couldn\u2019t get back to sleep. Then I spent the entire day traveling back home from vacation.<\/li>\n<li>We\u2019ve worked tirelessly for 8 years to prevent this and nearly 73 million people just decided \u201cnah\u201d.<\/li>\n<li>I continue to hear pro-Trump, pro-&quot;life&quot;, pro-gun, pro-fracking, pro-gas arguments that ignore all logic or ignore all the harm they would cause to people and the planet, and after 8 years of it, the misinformation firehose has finally worn me out.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"i%E2%80%99m-angry-because%E2%80%A6\" tabindex=\"-1\">I\u2019m Angry Because\u2026<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>There are people hiding in plain sight that want my family and my friends dead, deported, or as miserable as they can possibly be. They smile, they ask how you are, they say all the right things, they like photos of your friends and family on social media, and then they walk into a voting booth and spit in your face and say \u201cfuck you\u201d and vote for a fascist, sexist, irrational, felonious man who has clearly stated how he wants to make misery the new American currency.<\/li>\n<li>\u201cHe tells it like it is!\u201d + \u201cWell that\u2019s not what he meant!\u201d over and over until they\u2019re storming the Capitol.<\/li>\n<li>There are people using the name of Christ to weaponize hatred, conveniently ignoring the parts of their stories where he just\u2026 didn\u2019t do that. Not to mention the &quot;we'll pray over His Trumpiness for good leadership&quot; and &quot;wow, I remember when people used to concede gracefully&quot; and &quot;both sides are bad&quot;. Spare me.<\/li>\n<li>There are people who call themselves allies who refused to cast a vote for Harris because of some reason. &quot;She's not tough enough on Isreal.&quot; \u201cShe\u2019s not left enough.\u201d \u201cShe\u2019s former law enforcement-adjacent.\u201d \u201cShe was just given the position.\u201d Y\u2019all knew the stakes and said \u201ceh it\u2019s not gonna be so bad for me.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>I will inevitably get replies to this post like \u201cwell you\u2019re just being dramatic, it\u2019s not that bad.\u201d or \u201cyou\u2019re a cishet white man, you have nothing to complain about&quot; because god forbid we practice kindness and empathy around here.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"i%E2%80%99m-sad-because%E2%80%A6\" tabindex=\"-1\">I\u2019m Sad Because\u2026<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>I have a red hat I really like that I just can\u2019t wear anymore.<\/li>\n<li>My friends are afraid for their lives, and I feel helpless.<\/li>\n<li>My friends are looking into leaving the country, and I will miss them.<\/li>\n<li>I don't have any hope remaining. I'll continue to do my part, but my hope for humanity, for this country, for progress, is gone.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"i%E2%80%99m-scared-because%E2%80%A6\" tabindex=\"-1\">I\u2019m Scared Because\u2026<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>I see this cycle repeating itself, in both large and small ways, all over the world. The number of safe havens for people are dwindling, they're expensive as hell, and who knows if they'll last.<\/li>\n<li>We, the United States, have been the ones to stick our appendages in and &quot;right the wrongs&quot; all over the world for decades. But now there's nobody around to do this for us. Many across the globe hope for our complete and utter collapse.<\/li>\n<li>The GOP platform is simple: make the world better for the rich, the powerful, the white, the straights, the men, and fuck everyone else, all while creating imagined realities where they are the ones being persecuted. And yet somehow, they've managed to rope some of the poor, weak,  non-white, non-straight, non-male population into believing that Trump is for them. The logic is right there, smacking them in the face, and they still voted for him.<\/li>\n<li>My daughter's preschool has security plans and threat analysis and evacuation plans and active shooter plans because that's the world we live in nowadays.<\/li>\n<li>I don\u2019t know how we break this cycle.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/im-blue.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/im-blue.jpg\" alt=\"The best feeling in the world.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>As I sat on our flight home yesterday, holding my daughter while she slept, I just felt an immense wave of sadness. We actively postponed having a child until Trump was out, because we wanted to make sure the country was on a better trajectory before bringing new life into the world.<\/p>\n<p>Welp.<\/p>\n<p>She doesn't know any better. She smiles at everyone and says &quot;look Daddy, a red hat&quot; not knowing what it means. And it breaks my heart to know that she'll have to grow up and quickly learn how to live in a world where many view her as a commodity, as property, as beneath them.<\/p>\n<p>So many men, with grandmothers, mothers, aunts, wives, friends, daughters, and granddaughters, voted for someone who sees all of those people as &quot;less than&quot;. As people who shouldn't have as many rights as they do. And they'll do whatever hand-waving necessary to conveniently ignore that fact (or they'll lean in to it because that's exactly how they feel).<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I went to get some carry out for dinner last night after we got home. The 2 cars in front of me weren't paying attention and missed the light turning green. After a few seconds, I honked. The car in the other lane moved. The car in front of me didn't.<\/p>\n<p>And my first thought was <em><strong>&quot;ah fuck, wonder if this is a Trumper with a gun and I just pissed him off.&quot;<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Thankfully, after another couple seconds, he noticed and drove ahead. But this is the world that I live in. That we live in.<\/p>\n<p>And that fucking sucks.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"7 == 9","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/"}},"updated":"2024-10-18T01:15:49Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/","summary":"I told my therapist that I can't remember the last time I felt joy, and he got mad at me.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/joy.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/joy.jpg\" alt=\"Does it spark joy?\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I was telling my therapist that I feel like my whole life is basically a 7 out of 10<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>, and I couldn't remember the last time that I felt joy. And he got mad at me.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I mentioned how the last times I truly felt joy were when I met my wife, when we got married, when we moved into our first house, and when our daughter was born. Anywhere from 2.5 to 10 years ago. He interrupted me with &quot;so what the fuck do you have to complain about?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>He got one of his textbooks down, flipped it to a page<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>, and handed it to me. It was full of synonyms for the word &quot;joy&quot;. I had to go through them and choose a better word. &quot;Happy&quot;. &quot;Content&quot;. &quot;Glad&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>To him, &quot;joy&quot; is the pinnacle. The peak. A perfect 10. Joy is the aspirational thing that you only get occasionally. It's a thing you work towards, not an Everyday Thing\u2122.<\/p>\n<p>And then we started to drill down into life, and why I defined it as a 7. I feel like I'm coasting, just going through the motions. I'm comfortable. And it's scary to feel like you're comfortable or coasting, when you should be doing and achieving more. But he stopped me again and made me examine my life.<\/p>\n<p>I'm comfortable and &quot;coasting&quot; because life is good. It's great. I have a beautiful family, a nice home, a stable(ish) job with a good salary. I have so many things that so many people dream of and strive for, and I've just been taking all of that for granted.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;What you consider a 7 is probably a 9 to most people. You're just so used to the routine of it that it makes you feel like it's normal.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>He made me get up, walk to the whiteboard, and write my name. Then he made me switch hands and try again.<\/p>\n<p>The same 3 letters. Both legible. But incredibly different. One was sloppy but legible. Comfortable. The other was purposeful but messy. A struggle; it took effort to use my off hand.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/#fn4\" id=\"fnref4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>And then he said the thing that really stuck in my mind.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&quot;If your life was actually a 7, you'd notice more 8s and 9s popping up. But your life is a 9. The only thing above that is a 10. And those are already infrequent as it is.&quot;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I have difficulty living in the present. With my ADHD, I often feel compelled to have multiple things going on at once; normally, I'd be listening to music or a podcast as I write a post like this. Some nights I'll have 3 or 4 screens going with different things. It drives my wife crazy.<\/p>\n<p>On the flip side, my wife loves to go outside and garden or take care of the yard. Whenever she does, she's just out in nature, no AirPods, no music, no podcasts... just existing. Doing one thing. <strong>That's such a foreign concept to me, I have no idea how she does it.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I've been challenged to live more in the present moments with what I'm doing. Enjoy the sounds of birds chirping, of a chainsaw chopping something a mile or so away, of the breeze blowing through the trees. Enjoy interacting with people at the grocery store as I shop, instead of tuning everything out. Be fully present with whatever my daughter is doing, instead of waiting for her to come over to me and pull me off the couch.<\/p>\n<p>My life is good. Great, even. And I've been so blinded by complacency that I've not been able to recognize that fact.<\/p>\n<p>My 7 is actually a 9.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>5 out of 7 with rice [that's a reference]. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>He didn't actually, I'm editorializing because it's my blog and I can do that. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>he had it bookmarked - &quot;this is the only useful page in this book&quot; <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn4\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>He told me that whenever someone does this exercise, he sees them look at the marker as though it was foreign. Sometimes they'd put it back in their dominant hand again, and return it to the off hand again, because it felt so weird and they didn't know how to hold it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/7-9\/#fnref4\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Now (October 2024)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-october-2024\/"}},"updated":"2024-10-14T20:10:30Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-october-2024\/","summary":"When 2 months pass and you don't feel like you have much to talk about.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>I've been going to the gym (somewhat) regularly.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I'm trying to get into a 2 + 3 day rotation of going to the gym, alternating with the days I take V to school. Haven't been able to be as consistent as I want, but it's good to have a routine and be back in the swing of things. I've also got a foldable treadmill under my desk that I'm using to get some steps in during the work day.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sadly, the weight loss is (still) stalled.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>When you eat 2 breakfasts and snack after dinner, it's crazy that the weight doesn't just slide off. Who knew? \ud83e\udd37\ud83c\udffb\u200d\u2642\ufe0f<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/3d-pot.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/3d-pot.jpg\" alt=\"A little sassy flowerpot I printed for my wife.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>I have the 3D printing itch.<\/strong> I borrowed my father in law's Ender 3 Pro, a basic\/entry level printer from yesteryear, and have been printing a ton of things with it. I made V a bunch of dinosaurs, I've started doing some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ra_9zU-mnl8\">Gridfinity organization stuff<\/a>, and I printed R a little flowerpot. I also like to use some hooks that I print for my Skadis pegboard to hang my keyboards, so I've been printing a lot of those overnight.<\/p>\n<p>I have a bunch of ideas of things I want to do, trying to make things in my life more organized. It's been fun printing off designs other people have made, but I'm excited to start making my own as well.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/3d-dino.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/3d-dino.jpg\" alt=\"The herd of dinosaurs for my daughter.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>More keyboards in the house-y house.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A bunch of keyboards have made their way into our home somehow. Whoops. I'm having a lot of fun with all of these new layouts.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Daring Run DR-70F (for my wife)<\/li>\n<li>Candybar Lefty R3<\/li>\n<li>Qwertykeys QK100 (also for my wife)<\/li>\n<li>CBKBD Qull<\/li>\n<li>Libra Mini<\/li>\n<li>Masonry<\/li>\n<li>Reviung41<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>I 100%'d Elden Ring.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Took me 96 hours. Malenia was a beast. But at long last, my str\/faith build using the Staff of the Avatar &amp; Golden Halberd took down the Elden Beast. I have no idea what game I'm going to play next; I tried both Sekiro and Ghost of Tsushima, and bounced off of both.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Now (August 2024)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-august-2024\/"}},"updated":"2024-08-13T20:10:30Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-august-2024\/","summary":"My, how time flies.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>July has come and gone. August is half over. What even is time?<\/p>\n<p><strong>The weight loss journey has stalled.<\/strong> I was successful in shedding 10lbs within the first month. After that, things just... stopped. I've been holding steady just under 190lbs, which is great. But, there's still 30lbs left to go. I have grand aspirations to start going to the gym in 2 weeks time (more on that in a second), so hopefully I can still hit my goal before the end of the year.<\/p>\n<p><strong>V starts school in 2 weeks.<\/strong> We decided to send her to the Montessori school just up the street, and she starts at the end of August. We toured the facility back in April\/May, and the entire time she was trying to get in to the classrooms to see what the other kids were doing (they were all waving at her too, which was very cute).<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/keyboards-08-24.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/keyboards-08-24.jpg\" alt=\"The latest iteration of the keyboard wall\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>I added to the keyboard collection.<\/strong> I've had a couple of keyboard projects just sitting for a long time, but I finally took the time to build them last month. We have:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A new IKEA Skadis board with some more hooks and containers, because I was running out of space<\/li>\n<li>(Top section, bottom right, white blank keycaps) a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pikatea.com\/products\/pikatea-cerberus-low-profile-keyboard-kit\">Pikatea Cerberus<\/a>. Saw this one at the Iowa Keyboard Meetup this spring, and asked the creator if he would make me one as well. This was my first time doing a full assembly - soldering the diodes, the controller, and the switches. It took about 2 hours, but I only had 3 mistakes that were easily fixed.<\/li>\n<li>(Bottom section, 2nd to last row) a <a href=\"https:\/\/keeb.io\/products\/foldkb?srsltid=AfmBOooR_ocfM7l2T6OpQpXo2RbrShdi3meiKOPgGdywaBWh7QusCXPq\">KeebIO FoldKB<\/a>. Won this at the aforementioned Iowa Keyboard Meetup, but it had just sat for ages, as I couldn't find keycaps I wanted for this. Made use of some summer sales to finally get some (DSA Berry Yogurt), assembled, and we're good to go!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I also had a bit of extra room on the pegboard, so I threw my consoles and controller on there too. Plenty of expansion room for later! (I'm going to make a page this week with info on all the keyboards I have, so stay tuned if you're curious.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>V had her first slip &amp; slide experience.<\/strong> We have family that does a big party every summer, and we took her out to go check it out. We went down 1 time, went faster than we anticipated, and V decided that yes she had fun, but no she did not want to do it again. We spent the rest of the time pushing cousins down the slide, playing with bubbles, trying to watch the USA vs. France men's basketball gold medal game, and having a blast on a gorgeous day.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I started going to therapy.<\/strong> I've now had 2 sessions with my therapist, and I gotta tell you... it's pretty damn great. I'm using it as a building block of my yearly theme, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/\">&quot;the Year of Understanding&quot;<\/a>, as I try to learn more about how I function and exist in the world. Now if only they would accept my FSA card for payment...<\/p>\n<p><strong>All of my projects have been on standby.<\/strong> I've really been leaning into the ADHD, letting it take me where it thinks I should go on a given evening instead of trying to wrestle it into submission. None of my projects have had any meaningful work done to them.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>This site still has a light mode feature coming at some point.<\/li>\n<li>My daily sports email still needs NFL and NBA hookups, plus making sure that the MLB data is set for the playoffs.<\/li>\n<li>I think I'm actually going to move the games, books, keyboards, and albums into this site, vs. doing it as a standalone thing. We'll see.<\/li>\n<li>I haven't opened Xcode intentionally<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-august-2024\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> in a month.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The only project I made any effort on was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-great-migration\/\">migrating all of my old blog posts onto this site<\/a>, but I haven't entered the realm of doing any clean up yet. Maybe just getting it over here is Good Enough\u2122.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>No, computer, I <em>don't<\/em> want every .json file to open in Xcode. Stop it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-august-2024\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"The Great Migration","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-great-migration\/"}},"updated":"2024-08-07T19:19:06Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-great-migration\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>Hopefully, if you subscribe to my RSS feed, this is the only post you're seeing today, and you're not inundated with [checks notes] 382 additional notifications.<\/p>\n<p>On Monday, I got the bright idea in my head to see if I could find old versions of my site. That led me to look for old versions of my .com address, before it was snagged by a domain sniper. Then THAT led me to track down my really old blogs from my college days.<\/p>\n<p>I'll be honest, I don't actually know what prompted this. I'm not a sentimental person by any means, but for whatever reason, the desire to drag all this content out of the depths was there.<\/p>\n<p>My stuff was kinda scattered. I had 2 old blogs on Wordpress - one a personal site (The Music Plays You, which ended up being my music project name), and a sports blog for when I wanted to try and be a sports writer (Words To Play By) - and a Tumblr backend for my old .com. Thankfully, it was trivial to export all of the content. I was able to use <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/lonekorean\/wordpress-export-to-markdown\">a Wordpress Export to Markdown tool<\/a> to get everything bulk converted for my current site. Tumblr was shaping up to be more of a pain, but I only had about 50 posts make the transition from there, so I ended up just fleshing those out by hand.<\/p>\n<p>I also had a moment of clarity that I used to be an editor &amp; write for <a href=\"http:\/\/macgasm.net\/\">Macgasm<\/a> back in the day. <a href=\"https:\/\/news.macgasm.net\/author\/niclake\/\">I only made 38 posts while I was there<\/a>, but those were just too topical and unimportant to bring over.<\/p>\n<p>If I did everything correctly:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>You should see all of the really really old posts on my blog, either <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/blog\/\">in the archive<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/blog\/tags\/\">bloating all of the tags<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>None of the posts should've shown up in the RSS feed.<\/li>\n<li>My shame is now on display for all to see.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Over the coming days, I'm gonna have to go back and fix\/prune a lot of stuff. Tons of photos, especially on the sports blog, that just don't exist anywhere anymore, along with what I presume will be a bunch of mucked up formatting. As long as my site compiles, I'm rolling with it for now.<\/p>\n<p>I'm also going to dig out a bunch of older posts. Some were inspirational\/deep thoughts. Some were hilarious. And some were just plain bad. It should be a good time.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"The Ultimate Fantasy Football Keeper League","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fantasy-football\/"}},"updated":"2024-07-08T21:15:05Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fantasy-football\/","summary":"If your fantasy football leagues are becoming bland, boring, or a massive snoozefest, I have the solution for you. It involves punters.","content":"<p>Back in college, I came up with a concept for a fantasy football (FFB) keeper league that resonated with all of my friends. I ended up running 2 leagues using this ruleset from 2012 through 2018 before &quot;retiring&quot; from fantasy sports.<\/p>\n<p>But this year? This year it's coming back. And it's time I shared the magic with you.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>A quick aside for those unfamiliar with keeper leagues. The concept is relatively simple; every year, each team can keep a certain subset of their players. ESPN's rules used to be a maximum of 4 players. The dominant players always get kept; in my day, it was Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Rob Gronkowski... all the studs, the high performers, the guys going in the first couple rounds.<\/p>\n<p>To be frank, this sucks. It's bland, boring, and leads to one team loading up on 3 or 4 incredible players and dominating the league for years. Yawn.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"rosters\" tabindex=\"-1\">Rosters<\/h2>\n<p>Rosters are the easy part. Most FFB leagues default to 15 players on each team, but for our purposes, we need a nice even number that divides easily (more on this in a second), so I added a slot. Here's what the rosters look like:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>1 QB (max 2 allowed on roster)<\/li>\n<li>2 RB (5)<\/li>\n<li>2 WR (5)<\/li>\n<li>1 TE (2)<\/li>\n<li>1 Flex (RB, WR, or TE)<\/li>\n<li>1 Defense\/Special Teams (2)<\/li>\n<li>1 Kicker (2)<\/li>\n<li>1 Punter (2)<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fantasy-football\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>6 bench slots<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>That's right - punters. I could've added another Flex spot, or some people might advocate for a superflex (Flex + QB [which basically means &quot;here, have another QB starting&quot; for most teams]), but punters are a super unique option that adds a ton of suspense every week (more on this in a second too).<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"scoring\" tabindex=\"-1\">Scoring<\/h2>\n<p>Scoring is easy - figure out what you like, and roll with it. Both leagues I ran in yesteryears were 1 point per reception (PPR) leagues (aka every time a RB\/WR\/TE makes a catch, they get 1 point, along with their yardage), 0.1 points per rushing\/receiving yard, and 0.1 points per 2.5 passing yards<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fantasy-football\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>I also give out 5 bonus points for the following:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A QB has a perfect rating<\/li>\n<li>A QB throws for 500+ yards passing<\/li>\n<li>A RB\/WR\/TE gets 300+ yards receiving OR rushing (not combined)<\/li>\n<li>A (kicker) makes a 60+ yard field goal<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And finally, punters have their own unique scoring:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Each punt is 1 point<\/li>\n<li>Each punt that is downed inside the opponent's 20 is +2 points (total of 3)<\/li>\n<li>Each punt that is downed inside the opponent's 10 is +3 points (total of 6)<\/li>\n<li>Each punt that goes for a touchback is -2 (-1 total)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So for example:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A punt is downed on the 18. That's 3 points.<\/li>\n<li>A punt is caught on the 5 and returned to the 12. That's also 3 points.<\/li>\n<li>A punt is downed on the 2. That's 6 points.<\/li>\n<li>A punt goes into the end zone. That's -1 points.<\/li>\n<li>A punt is fielded anywhere and\/or run out beyond the 20 yard line. That's 1 point.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The fun with this is that the &quot;downed inside the 10&quot; points are not computed live; everything else is, but the stat checkers go back and triple check those before finalizing the stats every night. There have been <em>numerous<\/em> instances in the leagues where you go to bed winning by 5, and you wake up the following morning losing because multiple punts were given +3 points for being downed inside the 10.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"drafting%2C-free-agency%2C-trades%2C-%26-keepers\" tabindex=\"-1\">Drafting, Free Agency, Trades, &amp; Keepers<\/h2>\n<p>And now, we get to the true fun of this league - how to make this a keeper league, while keeping everything dynamic and fresh. (A TL;DR is at the bottom.)<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"year-1-draft\" tabindex=\"-1\">Year 1 Draft<\/h3>\n<p>Year 1 is simple. It's a snake draft. Pick your players like normal, don't go over position limits, and fill out your whole team in the draft. Done.<\/p>\n<p>The added bit is this: <strong>when you draft a player, they receive a <em>Pick Value (PV)<\/em>, which is <code>SET<\/code> to the round they are drafted<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Here's the draft board from 2016:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/ffb\/2016draft.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/ffb\/2016draft.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of the draft board from the 2016 draft\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>Snake draft for 2016; you can see that some people got crazy with pre-draft trades.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>So, if you check out my team (NME), Jamaal Charles and Dez Bryant were drafted in the 2nd round; they're both given PV of 2. Matt Jones had a PV of 10. Simple enough.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"free-agency-%26-trades\" tabindex=\"-1\">Free Agency &amp; Trades<\/h3>\n<p>PVs come in to play with free agency and trades like so:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>During the season, a player's <em>Pick Value (PV)<\/em> can change from being <code>SET<\/code> (acquired from free agency) or <code>CLEARED<\/code> (by being dropped to free agency)<\/li>\n<li>A player acquired from free agency has their PV <code>SET<\/code> to 16.<\/li>\n<li>If you trade a player, their PV does not change.<\/li>\n<li>When you drop a player from your roster, that player's PV is <code>CLEARED<\/code>.\n<ul>\n<li>If you drop a player, then add them back to your team before any other team adds them, their PV is <code>SET<\/code> to whatever their value was when you dropped them.<\/li>\n<li>ex: From the above draft board, if I drop Matt Jones in week 2, then pick him back up in week 5, and nobody else has rostered him in that time, his PV would be <code>SET<\/code> to 10 once again.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Here's what the rosters looked like at the end of the 2016 season:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/ffb\/2016season.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/ffb\/2016season.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of the rosters after the 2016 season\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>All of the teams at the end of the 2016 season. Z-Money won. Some guy that went by NME did not. Let's not talk about that.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>We won't talk about me finishing last. But you can see a bunch of things happening here:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Tons of picks have been traded. I sent my first round pick to Z-Money, who then traded it to B-Dog.<\/li>\n<li>B-Dog traded both their 1st and 16th round picks, but also acquired those same rounds from other people.<\/li>\n<li>A TON of players were dropped off of draft rosters (all the empty holes; my 4th\/5th\/6th rounds, for example).<\/li>\n<li>A TON of players were added via free agency (and they all currently sit with PVs of 16 for each team).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Additionally, you can trade current draft picks, plus draft picks for the following season. There are a few rules with that:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If you acquire additional picks that would exceed a total of 16, you lose picks starting in the 15th round\n<ul>\n<li>Ex: you acquire an extra 1st and 7th round pick in a trade. You would forfeit your 15th and 14th round picks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>If you end up trading picks away and don't have 16 picks, you will make compensation picks after the 16th round\n<ul>\n<li>Ex: the team that traded away their 1st and 7th round picks would now make picks in the 17th and 18th rounds<\/li>\n<li>These extra rounds follow the same order as the draft, but only those needing to fill roster slots make picks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"year-2---locking-in-keepers\" tabindex=\"-1\">Year 2 - Locking In Keepers<\/h3>\n<p>Pre-draft year 2 is where the fun of this league really kicks in.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>In order to keep a player, you MUST have a pick that exactly matches that player's PV<\/li>\n<li>You may NOT use a better PV to keep a player\n<ul>\n<li>ex1: Up above, my team (NME) has Jamaal Charles and Dez Bryant with a PV of 2. If I wanted to keep both, I needed to acquire a 2nd round pick to go along with my own.<\/li>\n<li>ex2: Matt Jones still has a PV of 10 on my team. I could NOT bump him up to a 9, 8, 7, etc. in order to keep him. If I don't have a 10th round pick, too bad.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you look at A-Train's team above, you can see that he really only has 2 decisions to make:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Which players that I drafted and retained do I keep? (because there's no overlap)<\/li>\n<li>Which player that I acquired in free agency do I keep? (he can only keep 1, since he only has 1 16th round pick)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So every team sends in their list of keepers, and it looks like this:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/ffb\/2017predraft.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/ffb\/2017predraft.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of the rosters after everyone locks in keepers\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>All of the teams at the end of the 2016 season. Z-Money won. Some guy that went by NME did not. Let's not talk about that.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>You can see that I decided to <em>only<\/em> keep Dez Bryant in the 2nd round, and I also have an extra 2nd round pick (which is Z-Money's).<\/li>\n<li>I do NOT have my first round pick, which would've been the 1st overall pick; that went to Z-Money, who used it + his to keep both David Johnson and Julio Jones.<\/li>\n<li>Allllllllll those players below the red line were players that were not kept, and will be available in the draft.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>From running this league over the years, I quickly found that 16th round picks were <em>almost<\/em> as valuable as 1st round picks, because if someone managed to hit on multiple free agency pickups, they'd be desperate to hold on to them. Why? Well, let's quickly go to the draft.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"year-2---draft\" tabindex=\"-1\">Year 2 - Draft<\/h3>\n<p>So we had the keepers, they're locked in. We have declared &quot;I am using {pick} to keep {player}&quot;. We then have all the remaining picks to go through and draft with.<\/p>\n<p>At this point, every player still retains their PV from last year; for my team (NME), Dez Bryant is still a 2, and will remain a 2 until the conclusion of the draft.<\/p>\n<p><em>Quick note: year 1 is the only year where you do a snake draft. Years 2 and beyond are always done worst to best, just like the regular NFL draft is.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Here's what the 2017 draft board looked like:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/ffb\/2017draft.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/ffb\/2017draft.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of the draft board from the 2017 draft\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>Fixed order draft for 2017 and beyond.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I specifically called out Dez Bryant above, because you can see that at some point during the draft, I traded him to DD, and he slots in at the 2nd round (because of the PV).<\/p>\n<p>Now, for the important &amp; final part of managing pick values. To this point, we've had <code>SET<\/code>ting (via draft or free agency) and <code>CLEAR<\/code>ing (via dropping) of PVs, but at the end of each draft year 2 &amp; beyond, a player officially becomes kept, and their PV is <code>HALVED<\/code>, rounded down.<\/p>\n<p>So, to follow Dez Bryant through the whole chain:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Year 1: drafted in the 2nd round by NME. PV set to 2.<\/li>\n<li>End of year 1: remains on NME's roster going in to the offseason. PV still 2.<\/li>\n<li>Year 2 Pre-draft: declared as a keeper w\/ NME's 2nd round pick. PV still 2.<\/li>\n<li>Year 2 during the draft: traded to DD. Retains value during trades. PV still 2.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fantasy-football\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>End of Year 2 draft: officially &quot;kept&quot;. PV is halved to 1.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So now, as the 2017 season begins, Bryant has a PV of 1. Everyone knows that next season, DD (or any team trading for him) would have to use their 1st round pick to keep him.<\/p>\n<p>Here's what the PV chart looks like:<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Pre-Draft PV<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">PV If Kept<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">2 &amp; 3<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">4 &amp; 5<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">2<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">6 &amp; 7<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">8 &amp; 9<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">10 &amp; 11<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">5<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">12 &amp; 13<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">14 &amp; 15<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">16<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">8<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Why does this work? A few reasons:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A player drafted in the first round could be kept maximum 1 time before being returned to the draft pool, as a player with a PV of 0 cannot be kept<\/li>\n<li>Players in higher slots end up merging together, requiring long term planning, tough choices, and\/or instigating trades\n<ul>\n<li>ex: if I keep players with both my 2nd and 3rd round picks, they'll both become players with PV of 1<\/li>\n<li>We round down when we <code>HALVE<\/code> the PV to keep 1st and 16th round picks isolated from nearby picks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>A player acquired in free agency could be on someone's team for 5+ years (picked up [16], and kept 5 times [8 -&gt; 4 -&gt; 2 -&gt; 1 -&gt; 0])<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"pick-value-tl%3Bdr\" tabindex=\"-1\">Pick Value TL;DR<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>A player's pick value (PV) is initially <code>SET<\/code> to the round they are drafted.<\/li>\n<li>You may only keep a player with a draft pick corresponding to their PV.<\/li>\n<li>Players who are kept will have their PVs <code>HALVED<\/code> (rounded down) immediately following the draft.<\/li>\n<li>Players retain their PV in trades.<\/li>\n<li>A player's PV is <code>CLEARED<\/code> if they are dropped to free agency.\n<ul>\n<li>The player's PV is re-<code>SET<\/code> if the team that dropped them reacquires them before another team does<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>A player's PV is <code>SET<\/code> to 16 if they are added from free agency.<\/li>\n<li>If you choose not to keep a player on your team that has a PV of 1, but you draft them with your first round pick, it acts as if they were kept and their PV is <code>HALVED<\/code> to 0.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p>It's a lot! It seems weird! But in truth, once you do one crazy offseason, everything makes perfect sense.<\/p>\n<p>If anyone would like to check out the spreadsheet I used to keep track of everything, <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1T5STfrvdQeQNHok6ZfpzVMBim_hG9gdC9jvLsnlIj4U\/edit?usp=sharing\">I made a public copy for y'all to look at<\/a>. If you have any questions, comments, or things I can help clarify, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\/\">feel free to reach out to me<\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Cue every single fantasy player going &quot;wtf?!?&quot; <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fantasy-football\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>You could just do 1 point per 10 \/ 25 yards, but I like to allow for partial points so that you feel like you're getting credit for stuff. A 9 yard rush netting you 0 points? Silly. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fantasy-football\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Draft-day player trades are rare, but this is a great example to call out. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fantasy-football\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Hello World (from 11ty)!","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello-world-11ty\/"}},"updated":"2024-07-07T18:38:13Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello-world-11ty\/","summary":"Ah shit, here we go again dot gif","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eleventy.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eleventy.png\" alt=\"The logo for Eleventy\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Well, I did it. I created yet another blog.<\/p>\n<p>(insert Neo &quot;D\u00e9j\u00e0 vu&quot; and a black cat here)<\/p>\n<p><code>niclake.me<\/code> has been up and running since August 15 of 2018. I've been hosting using GitHub Pages since then, and they recommended using <a href=\"http:\/\/jekyllrb.com\/\">Jekyll<\/a>, a little blogging engine written with Ruby. I went with it, it worked fine, and I've gone about my merry way.<\/p>\n<p>This year, though, I've been wandering back in to <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello-world-11ty\/\">Mastodon<\/a> a bit more, and got a chance to participate in <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/blog\/tags#weblogpomo-2024\">WeblogPoMo<\/a> (or Weblog Posting Month), and ran across a whole bunch of people that were using a service called <a href=\"https:\/\/www.11ty.dev\/\">Eleventy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Eleventy is, at its core, the same thing as Jekyll. They are static site generators, which means they take every bit of data that I put in and render it all down as a single <code>.html<\/code> file per page. The top of this post looks like this:<\/p>\n<pre class=\"language-md\"><code class=\"language-md\">\n<span class=\"token front-matter-block\"><span class=\"token punctuation\">---<\/span>\n<span class=\"token front-matter yaml language-yaml\"><span class=\"token key atrule\">title<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> <span class=\"token string\">\"Hello World (from 11ty)!\"<\/span>\n<span class=\"token key atrule\">permalink<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> \/hello<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>world<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>11ty\/index.html\n<span class=\"token key atrule\">date<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> <span class=\"token datetime number\">2024-07-07T13:38:13Z<\/span>\n<span class=\"token key atrule\">description<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> BLURB\n<span class=\"token key atrule\">image<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> eleventy.png\n<span class=\"token key atrule\">tags<\/span><span class=\"token punctuation\">:<\/span> \n  <span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Personal<\/span>\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">---<\/span><\/span>\n\n{% include 'image.njk',\n  src: \"eleventy.njk\",\n  position: \"banner\",\n  alt: \"The logo for Eleventy\"\n%}\n\nWell, I did it. I created yet another blog.\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<p>But instead, you see... well, this post! Neat!<\/p>\n<p>Eleventy runs on <code>Node.js<\/code> instead of Ruby, which immediately opens the door to a ton more people having an understanding of how to work with or tweak the site in certain ways. I've been able to talk with <a href=\"http:\/\/rknight.me\/\">Robb Knight<\/a>, along with the Eleventy Discord community, to get help as needed for making specific tweaks to my site. I've also come up with a <em>huge<\/em> backlog of enhancements that I'd like to make at some point in the future, so keep your eyes peeled for those.<\/p>\n<p>Anyway, if you've subscribed to my RSS feed before... apologies for blasting you with 98 posts on Friday. (And if you're not subscribed, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/feed.xml\">why not<\/a>?)<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Now (July 2024)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-july-2024\/"}},"updated":"2024-07-01T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-july-2024\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>What a crazy month June ended up being.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Boston Celtics won the NBA Championship<\/strong>. What an absolute blast of a season. On top practically wire to wire. They had a relatively easy path in the playoffs, but the Mavericks (and Luka specifically) scared the shit out of me. Let's run it back next year.<\/p>\n<p><strong>My family celebrated a few milestones &amp; mourned some passings.<\/strong> June is one of the months where we have a ton of things that have happened in our lives. Pixel's birthday and passing were both in June. We found out my wife was pregnant with V in June. We finally weened V (see above). There's an 8 day stretch where all of these notifications pop up for us, and it's always a wild ride of emotions.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I've been on a weight loss journey.<\/strong> With a family history looming over my head, and a daughter that wants Tickle Monster to chase her all around, I finally buckled down and started actively trying to shed a few extra pounds. The happiest &amp; healthiest I ever felt was when I was 19, when I weighed 155lbs. I was also doing 20+ hours of weighted cardio a week (yay, drumline), which I just do not have time for anymore. I started simple, by logging everything I ate and counting the calories. Turns out, when you don't LITERALLY eat like a hobbit, it's pretty easy to drop weight. I crossed the 190lbs mark a few days ago, with a long term goal of getting under 160. Slow and steady.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-7-24\/weightloss.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-7-24\/weightloss.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my weigh ins, showing my progression over the month\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>A tree fell <s>in the forest<\/s> on our garage.<\/strong><sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-july-2024\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> This past Friday was a hell of a day. Our neighbor has a tree that's coming down here in a week or two, and I thought &quot;oh no, it fell early&quot;. But no, it was our seemingly healthy pine tree in our backyard, narrowly missing V's swing set but coming to rest on our garage roof. Nobody was hurt, and we don't think there was any damage to things &amp; stuff, but we do have a couple holes in the roof. (Also, an insurance adjuster can't get out to check it out for <em>two months<\/em>?!?!?!? What in the world...)<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-7-24\/tree-fell.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-7-24\/tree-fell.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of the tree that fell on our garage\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>For the first time ever, I have more that one dev\/coding project going at once<\/strong>. I've always thought developers who code in their free time were strange. It was always a major challenge for me to figure out anything that I would want to work on in enough to dedicate time to it, when I could be relaxing outside or playing games or watching TV or whatever. And now here I am, actively juggling 4 projects:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Yet Another Blog Update<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/daily-sports-email\/\">My daily sports email<\/a>, which still needs tweaking before NFL and NBA seasons start up again<\/li>\n<li>Turning my <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1zg-SOYI8DlH-ibSNslfPtq0xJB4sEMb_7OHKbq2qclk\/edit?usp=sharing\">games<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1-1PcHF6xzFKTaTvxnfjm6bVgo4pd5yIr3nbxsbckoFo\/edit?usp=sharing\">books<\/a> backlogs into a standalone app<\/li>\n<li>An iPhone app, mostly for personal use<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So this is definitely a new experience for me, but I'm excited to have all these things to work on. Now I just need a project manager to make sure I'm prioritizing appropriately.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-july-2024\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>It made a <em>whoooooosh<\/em> sound. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-july-2024\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Oh god, do I need a sprint board? <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-july-2024\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Backslide","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/backslide\/"}},"updated":"2024-06-29T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/backslide\/","summary":"This is a post about politics. You don't have to read it. But maybe you should.","content":"<p>This is a post about politics. You don't have to read it. But maybe you should.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>The root of <em>&quot;progressive&quot;<\/em> is <em>&quot;progress&quot;<\/em>. The main goal of progress is to <em>move forward<\/em>, bit by bit, no matter how slowly. It's like weight loss, or learning a new skill. You're <em>NEVER<\/em> gonna make that leap from A to Z. You have to go the path, and take it day by day, and keep the big picture in mind. Because the second goal of progress is to <em>minimize the backslide<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>And you're gonna backslide. Things are gonna trip you up. You might have all this momentum and everything feels good and then BAM you're gonna have a tree fall on your garage and be really stressed out and eat half a pizza for dinner and whoops you gained a pound. And if you sit and stare at the scale and go &quot;oh no, +1.0 lbs? <em>I've failed<\/em>&quot; then you might fail. But if you look at your log and go &quot;huh, I'm still -9.3 lbs for the month, <em>that's ahead of schedule!<\/em>&quot;, then you can easily get back on track.<\/p>\n<p>Or maybe you go into an election year trying to vote a narcissistic fascist out of office, and you're all hyped up behind your progressive candidate, but then various groups come along and say &quot;we're not ready for a woman to be President&quot; or &quot;he's too radical&quot; or &quot;he's not radical enough&quot; or &quot;she's gonna be a member of the Republican party in 2 years&quot; or whatever, and suddenly you find yourself with a candidate that's not too hot and not too cold, but <em>juuuuuuuust<\/em> boring enough to win the popular vote. And we all celebrate but inside we're like &quot;well, that could've been better&quot;. And then 4 years go by and we're voting for that same tepid bowl of blah against that same narcissistic fascist who's somehow both MORE narcissistic and MORE fascist than before, and this doesn't look like progress, and suddenly we're looking for someone to blame.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TimGrierson\/status\/1008907610890702848\">There's a post<\/a> making the rounds lately that says &quot;Being angry all the time is exhausting and corrosive. Not being angry feels morally irresponsible.&quot; I couldn't agree more with both parts. Being a progressive and wanting better for this country sucks sometimes. It's hard. The answers seem so obvious to all of us, but there's political gridlock and centrists not wanting to upset the cart and the 1.5 year lull from when the President is sworn in until midterms happen.<\/p>\n<p>I wonder, when y'all decided to tune in to the debate this week, what exactly were you watching for? Did you anticipate learning something about a candidate? Are you (somehow) an undecided voter? Were you watching for the lulz? Hate watching?<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/backslide\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I'm seeing SO MANY PEOPLE say things like &quot;well Biden isn't any better than Trump, they're both just old white men losing their minds and shouldn't be running the country.&quot; <strong>AGREED!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Some are saying &quot;well no, Biden's not <em>as bad<\/em> as Trump. He's just old and needs to retire.&quot; <strong>ALSO AGREED!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>And some say&quot;If you back Biden, you're as responsible for ruining the country as someone who votes for Trump.&quot; <strong>HOLD THE <em>FUCK<\/em> UP!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You're not getting married to the President. You don't have to post <em>&quot;JUST VOTED FAM #BIDENBOY #CUPOFJOE&quot;<\/em>. Y'all don't even have to LIKE it. But god<em>DAMN<\/em>, we do not need to pretend that Joe Biden == Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p>My mind has been made up since Biden was elected President for his first term, knowing that it was highly likely that he'd be running for re-election. Joe Biden is getting my vote, specifically and only because he's NOT Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p>We all knew this was coming. Every single one of us. If you thought &quot;well maybe he'd step down for Kamala&quot; or &quot;maybe a progressive would primary him&quot; or anything like that, you're either lying to us, or lying to yourself.<\/p>\n<p>Absolutely nobody is (or should be) saying &quot;oh, chin up, stay positive.&quot; Be pissed. Be angry. Be furious. Trump's gonna be moping in Mar-A-Lago anyway; don't let him do it with the title &quot;45.2&quot;. He's a parasite we have to outlast. Minimize the backslide.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I had a lovely excuse to not pay attention - it was at my daughter's bedtime, so I was busy. I laid down next to her and held her hand and it was pure bliss. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/backslide\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Shortcuts On The Home Screen","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/shortcuts-on-the-home-screen\/"}},"updated":"2024-06-28T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/shortcuts-on-the-home-screen\/","summary":"Apple (apparently) Doesn't Want You To Know This One Great Tip!","content":"<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/shortcuts\/with-widget.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/shortcuts\/with-widget.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my home screen with my Reading Shortcut widget.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>When a single Shortcut takes up 4 icons worth of space, it's hard to justify.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I have recently gotten in to using Shortcuts to help me with various tasks in my life. It's a fantastic little tool that can be used for the most mundane things (switching on a Focus mode, adding the currently playing song to a specific playlist, and more), and it can also be used for incredibly powerful and full-featured things (when you hold the new Action button down, check the current orientation of the phone; if it's face-down or upside down, toggle the Silent Mode; otherwise, launch the Camera). The team over at MacStories has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.macstories.net\/shortcuts\/\">a huge collection of Shortcuts &amp; ideas<\/a>, if you're so inclined.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/shortcuts-on-the-home-screen\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>One of my gripes with Shortcuts, and probably the most important thing that's kept me from using them more frequently, is triggering them. I use Siri constantly, so saying &quot;run X shortcut&quot; isn't an issue for me. But there are others that it makes more sense to have as a button on my home screen, and that's long been an issue for me.<\/p>\n<p>Take my Evening Focus mode screen, for instance. Here's what it was this morning. You see that big purple block that says &quot;Reading&quot;? That's my shortcut that I've added to my screen via a Shortcuts widget. Since a 2x2 square is the smallest widget you could have, it's either I have this big widget like this, or I could have one other sharing the space with it (but I have nothing of value to add).<\/p>\n<p>This shortcut is basically a mini-launcher for me - when pressed, it shows me a menu asking me what I'd like to do:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/shortcuts\/the-shortcut.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/shortcuts\/the-shortcut.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of my Reading shortcut prompt.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>open Kindle<\/li>\n<li>open Libby (checking out books from the library)<\/li>\n<li>open StoryGraph (how I track my reading)<\/li>\n<li>open Goodreads (the old way of tracking)<\/li>\n<li>open Albums (the app I use to listen to a playlist of albums on my phone)<\/li>\n<li>open Google Sheets (for my books tracker &amp; catalog)<\/li>\n<li>run Send Book to Kindle (a shortcut that grabs an epub from Files and emails it to my actual Kindle)<\/li>\n<li>Toggle my Reading Focus mode<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It does a bunch. It easily displaced 6 apps from my home screen, so it's worth the space it has taken up. But it has <em>always<\/em> eaten at me that I couldn't have an app icon-sized shortcut trigger on my home screen.<\/p>\n<p>Readers.<\/p>\n<p>When I tell you that you can, in fact, have an app icon-sized shortcut trigger, I hope you are as flabbergasted as I am. Because if I find out that y'all knew this and hid this from me for all these years, I'm going to be very upset.<\/p>\n<p>It's <em>extremely<\/em> unintuitive to get to (which, it's modern Apple, so this shouldn't be a surprise to anyone), but it's also very easy.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Open Shortcuts, and find your Shortcut<\/li>\n<li>Long press on it to bring up the option menu, and choose Share<\/li>\n<li>One of those options will be &quot;Add to Home Screen&quot;<\/li>\n<li>When you press on it, you can choose whatever icon and color you want, and give it a name<\/li>\n<li>Press Add, and <em>ta-daaaaaaa<\/em>, there it is<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/shortcuts\/add-shortcut.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/shortcuts\/add-shortcut.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of adding a shortcut to your home screen.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>Ahhhhh, that's better.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Anyway, now my home screen layouts are all sorts of buggered, so I need to go fix them. But hey, this is a good problem to have.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Jason Snell from <a href=\"https:\/\/sixcolors.com\/\">Six Colors<\/a> and many of your favorite podcasts gave me an idea for an obvious one this week; if you have a Roomba, you can create shortcuts for various rooms\/zones you want to clean. Then create a Shortcuts widget folder on your Today View (swipe right on the home screen), and you can have them all there. Bonus: you don't even have to unlock your phone to get to those. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/shortcuts-on-the-home-screen\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"The Kool-Aid Pitcher","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcher\/"}},"updated":"2024-06-25T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcher\/","summary":"When you can't properly express how you feel, turn it into a weird analogy. Oh yeah!","content":"<p>On March 19, 2024, I sent a very excited message to my friends:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u2705 ADHD med prescription<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>With a toddler running around the house, attempting to white-knuckle my way through life when I <em>knew<\/em> my brain would not let me concentrate on stuff was just no longer an option. I've suspected that I'd had some sort of ADD or ADHD since 2006, and it's taken me nearly 20 years to finally seek out a true screening, diagnosis, and prescription.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Quick aside\/caveat - what I refer to, and what many of you know, as &quot;ADHD&quot; as actually &quot;Attention Deficit Disorder - Hyperactive Type&quot;. I've had someone come for me about this previously, so I just wanted to clear that up. Ok, back to it.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>When I tell you that my prescription has changed <strong>EVERYTHING<\/strong> about my life, I am not kidding. It's now extremely rare for me to get off-task... sometimes to my detriment.<\/p>\n<p>I've realized that taking the time to truly understand not only how my brain is functioning, but why it's functioning in that way, is important to me growing with this and learning how to manage. The medication is a tool for me, but I need a whole arsenal at my disposal to make sure I'm well equipped to better understand, but also to help others around me (like my family) understand me as well.<\/p>\n<p>I use analogies a lot for things, because visualizing something helps me latch on to it better<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcher\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>, and also seems to work better for explaining it. But sometimes they get weird, like this one.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"my-brain-is-like-a-kool-aid-pitcher\" tabindex=\"-1\">My brain is like a Kool-Aid pitcher<\/h2>\n<p>You know the ones I'm talking about. Tall, not too wide, frosted but you can still see what's inside. That's my brain.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I have a very finite amount of space in that pitcher. I can't just go to the store and get a second one, or a bigger one. What I've got is what I've got.<\/li>\n<li>A big task will occupy the entire container. So, whatever I'm doing for work? Pour it in. Fill it up.<\/li>\n<li>As long as nothing jostles the container, it doesn't matter if it's stuffed to the brim. Once it's in there, and everything is peaceful, I'm good.<\/li>\n<li>When I'm all done with that task, I (metaphorically) pick up the pitcher, take it to the sink, and dump it out. Great. Time to reset and fill it back up.<\/li>\n<li>If someone\/something comes along and jostles that pitcher, things spill. If they pick it up and say &quot;no sorry you have to do this now&quot; and dump it out, I have no idea what to do, and my brain starts to flip out. Same thing if someone comes along with a new project and says &quot;here do this&quot; and just unceremoniously adds it to my current flow - everything gets mixed together, things overflow out the top, and I have to regulate\/let the fluid settle before being able to accomplish anything else.<\/li>\n<li>If my pitcher is NOT 100% full, my brain does everything in its power to fill it. This is usually to my detriment.<\/li>\n<li>To that end, if I'm doing something that's not super demanding of my attention (say, grocery shopping), I can fill it with something else (like a podcast), and I'm golden; the pitcher is topped off like a black &amp; tan. We're good.<\/li>\n<li>To THAT end<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcher\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>, some tasks are what I call &quot;low density&quot;. Repeat watching of a TV show or a movie is a perfect example. It's easily displaced by things. And, they're not super demanding tasks on top of that, so now I've got a half full pitcher of light density stuff. If my brain fills it with, say, doomscrolling on the web (a very &quot;high density&quot; task), now I'm at risk of continuing to fill and fill and fill until all of the low density stuff has been shoved out (the TV is still on but I haven't looked at it in over an hour) by all the high density stuff (oh god what the fuck did Trump do today? <em>scroll scroll scroll<\/em>).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Now, given all of that, I've realized that the ADHD meds help me in 2 very specific ways:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>First, they help me care less about the empty space in my pitcher. Normally, even when I'd be writing a post like this, I'd still have music on to listen to as background noise. Currently, I don't have anything else going. I'm ~80% capacity and doing just fine, thank you.<\/li>\n<li>Second, it helps stabilize the pitcher even more on the table. Things that might've bumped into it and caused spillage now just bounce off (this can be both good and bad). Part of that is because, if the pitcher is not at max capacity, there's more room for sloshing. The other part is just that I'm more focused on whatever is in front of me, so you can't &quot;Oh yeah!&quot; your way into my brain as easily.<\/li>\n<li>That said, the &quot;help&quot; can also be a hinderance, as I'm laser focused on whatever is the &quot;high density&quot; thing in my pitcher, whether I want that to be my focus or not.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you read this far, thank you. It truly does mean a lot. Writing things like this out is a form of therapy for me<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcher\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>, and if even one other person feels person feels enlightened by this, I'd consider it a huge win.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>If you ever tell me where something is, like &quot;oh just go down Aisle 7, and it'll be on the top shelf on your left&quot;, you'll probably see me close my eyes - I'm attempting to picture it in my head, because having any sort of repetition that isn't you telling me the thing makes it lock in more solidly for me. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcher\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Sorry, the analogy gets messy. Bear with me. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcher\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Actual therapy is better - y'all should try it. It's great. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-kool-aid-pitcher\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Daily Sports Schedules and Standings Email","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/daily-sports-email\/"}},"updated":"2024-06-24T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/daily-sports-email\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/daily-sports-email\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/mlb-example.jpg\" alt=\"A GitHub Action written in NodeJS that pulls in schedules & standings, and sends you an email on a schedule.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>A GitHub Action written in NodeJS that pulls in schedules & standings, and sends you an email on a schedule.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I am the type of person that needs information put right in front of me if I want to guarantee that I'll see it. As a sports fan, this means that I'd like to know what the schedule of games is every day, especially for baseball games during the workday; I don't know what it is, but having baseball on as ambient noise is one of my favorite things.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mlb-schedule-shortcut\/\">I had a Shortcut set up<\/a> that would send me the MLB schedule every morning. However, about a year ago, Apple killed off the ability to send HTML formatted emails via Shortcuts, and they've made no move to fix it. So, rather than getting a bland, boring email every morning, I decided to try something new.<\/p>\n<p>The end result: <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/daily-sports-email\">my new Daily Sports Emails project<\/a>. Written in NodeJS (which is new to me), and executed via a GitHub Action, this is a great solution for me to be able to get what I need.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"current-features\" tabindex=\"-1\">Current Features<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>MLB, NBA, and NFL schedules &amp; standings can be sent out each day<\/li>\n<li>For schedules, the grid shows start times, current team records, and (for baseball) the probable starters<\/li>\n<li>For standings, it shows each league\/conference\/division, along with current playoff standings where appropriate<\/li>\n<li>For the NFL, you get a weekly email on Wednesday showing every upcoming game. Also, each NFL email includes a direct link to 506Sports, so you can see what games are broadcast in your area<\/li>\n<li>You can flag any team(s) as &quot;favorites&quot;, which highlights them in the schedules &amp; standings to quickly pull your eyes to the important teams and games<\/li>\n<li>There are options to configure this to send from any service provider that allows for SMTP<\/li>\n<li>There are options to configure the game times based on your time zone, and display in 12 or 24 hour time<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"coming-soon\" tabindex=\"-1\">Coming Soon<\/h2>\n<p><em>(as of 21 Dec 2024)<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If I can figure it out, it'd be cool to highlight the games local to the user based on their county, similar to how <a href=\"https:\/\/506sports.com\/\">506Sports<\/a> does with their maps<\/li>\n<li>A configuration tool to make setup easier<\/li>\n<li>An option to show schedules or standings individually per league<\/li>\n<li>An option to only display games involving your favorite teams<\/li>\n<li>An option to receive an email every Monday morning with that week's schedules for your favorite teams across all sports<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you have any thoughts about how I could improve this, feel free to <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\/\">reach out<\/a>. If you enjoy this project, you can <a href=\"https:\/\/ko-fi.com\/niclake\" :target=\"_blank\">buy me a coffee<\/a>.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Eden","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/eden\/"}},"updated":"2024-06-17T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/eden\/","summary":"Wanna get real nerdy about why music can be so cool?","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eden\/sleeptoken.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eden\/sleeptoken.png\" alt=\"Sleep Token\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I love prog (or progressive) metal. It's a genre that slowly snuck up on me through the years, starting with a lot of the emo\/metalcore\/post-hardcore bands I started listening to in college. Even a few dips into classic prog rock from Pink Floyd and Rush helped lay a ton of groundwork. But it was the first time I heard Dream Theater play that really tipped me over the edge. Nowadays, I'm listening to a wide variety of artists, such as Periphery, TesseracT, Plini, Leprous, ERRA, and Devin Townsend.<\/p>\n<p>A band that hit metal fan's collective radar last year was <strong>Sleep Token<\/strong>, with their latest release, <em>&quot;Take Me Back To Eden&quot;<\/em>. It's crazy, because the prog metal community simultaneously embraced the album and tried to distance themselves from it as &quot;not metal&quot;. It's a genre-bending experience, blending rock and metal with hip-hop, trap, R&amp;B, jazz, indie pop, and more.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes you listen to an album and think &quot;oh yeah, that slaps,&quot; but you can't exactly think of <em>why<\/em> you like it so much. I decided to break down one of the key songs on the album, and see if I could explain some of the things that make prog, well, proggy, and how it all ties back in to really basic musical concepts that have been around forever. We're specifically going to focus on track 11, the title track <em>&quot;Take Me Back To Eden&quot;<\/em> (or <em>&quot;Eden&quot;<\/em>), but there will be references made to the opening track, <em>&quot;Chokehold&quot;<\/em>, as well as the final track, <em>&quot;Euclid&quot;<\/em> (neither of the others are required to grok this post).<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>There are 3 general music theory or musically nerdy things happening in &quot;Eden&quot; that happen somewhat frequently in progressive, or &quot;prog&quot;, music. The first thing is relatively simple &amp; common - <strong>theme &amp; variation<\/strong>. It's been a thing in music since the classical era, and most people know can recognize this within music by Bach and Mozart. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=DDMvvelPXj0\">Here's Mozart's <em>&quot;Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman&quot;<\/em><\/a>, better known now as <em>&quot;Twinkle Twinkle Little Star&quot;<\/em> or <em>&quot;The ABC song&quot;<\/em>, as a prime example.<\/p>\n<div style=\"max-width:100%; margin-bottom: 1rem;\"><div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:calc(56.25% + 52px);height: 0;\"><iframe style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" src=\"https:\/\/odesli.co\/embed\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsong.link%2Fi%2F1669570010&theme=light\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" sandbox=\"allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-presentation allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\" allow=\"clipboard-read; clipboard-write\"><\/iframe><\/div><\/div>\n<p>The chorus of <em>&quot;Eden&quot;<\/em> (it starts with &quot;My, my, those eyes like fire&quot;) happens 3 different times, and every time is in a different key; the first, at 1:42, is in Ab minor. The second, at 3:53, is in Eb minor. And the last, at 6:10, is in F minor. Interesting in its own right... but there are 2 additional, subtle differences between how each one is crafted that I want to call out.<\/p>\n<p>(Note: if you're not musically inclined here, that's ok - just look at the notes\/symbols themselves, and their position on the stems. You can intuit the rest.)<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eden\/chorus.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eden\/chorus.png\" alt=\"The start of the three choruses in Eden\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>The start of the three choruses in 'Eden'<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Hit play at 1:42 and listen to the first lines of the chorus (&quot;My, my, those eyes like fire \/ I'm a winged insect, you're a funeral pyre&quot;). We're in the key of Ab, and the 1st note is an Eb, so we've already &quot;jumped&quot; up a major 5th from the root key up to that note. From the first note to the second, it drops down a major 3rd. Then, as we go through the melody, he drops a major 4th into the words &quot;winged&quot; or &quot;wake(ing)&quot; and bounces back up a minor 6th to the subsequent word or syllable. This &quot;bounce&quot; feels jarring, almost like when you're bouncing on a trampoline.<\/p>\n<p>(Non-musicians: look at the gap between the notes on the first line where the number 2 is. That's the &quot;bounce&quot; I'm referring to, dropping down and then back up.)<\/p>\n<p>But now, let's compare that iteration to the 2nd time through (go hit play at 3:53). If you look at the first note in each stem, you'll notice that the first note is the same, an Eb, even though we're in different keys (the 2nd time through we're in the key of Eb). Since we start on the tonic (the same note as the key), you feel like you're starting on more of a level surface.<\/p>\n<p>But then... a change! Instead of dropping a major 3rd to the 2nd note, we now drop a major 4th. A bigger gap. And yet, the remainder of the melody feels like you're rolling over a slightly uneven road, instead of hitting one big lurching bump halfway through. This is because the gaps between the outermost notes and the ones next in the order are smoothed out. The &quot;bounce&quot; is now a minor 3rd + major 5th (vs. the major 4th + minor 6th). There's still motion, but it's more consistent across the melody.<\/p>\n<p>(Non-musicians: check the gap between notes on the second line at the number 10. It's smaller!)<\/p>\n<p>Conceptually, this makes the first iteration of the melody feel &quot;heavier&quot; and more disjointed, while the 2nd time through feels like you're cruising with the windows down. The 2nd iteration also comes right after a hip hop\/trap beat section, which itself was a bit disjointed and frantic, so it's an added feeling of smoothness that helps ground you.<\/p>\n<p>And then, you get to the final iteration (hit play at 6:10). The melodic flow is identical to the 2nd iteration, but now we've bumped the key up a whole step, to F minor. So, all else being equal, your brain is inclined to just hear this as &quot;pitch goes up = energy goes up&quot;. Neat! Themes &amp; variations.<\/p>\n<p>But they've done one additional thing to make that work, which is the second music theory callout. Go back to the first iteration, where he sings the lines &quot;Take me back to Eden&quot; 3 times (2:23). When the bass &amp; guitars drop in, they are SUPER low, almost to the point of sounding out of tune. When the vocalist sings &quot;Eden&quot; the 3rd time (2:45), he takes it super duper high; look at the gap on the stems as to how far apart they are:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eden\/stretch.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eden\/stretch.png\" alt=\"Ooooo, big stretch!\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>Ooooo, big stretch!<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>That's not a typo; it really goes off the page, looking almost comical. It's a 4.5 octave gap (Mariah Carey is famous for having a nearly 5 octave range; it's basically that.) It's a cool effect, and it feels weighty. It's like doing a pushup with your hands out as wide as you can go; really difficult to do &amp; exhausting.<\/p>\n<p>But then we get to the end of the 3rd iteration, where he sings &quot;desire&quot; (6:41). This is the energetic peak of this song. And look at the gap between top and bottom notes here:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eden\/less-stretch.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/eden\/less-stretch.png\" alt=\"Ooooo, a smaller stretch!\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Still big, but MUCH closer, at only a 2.5 octave gap. <strong>They bring the focal points closer together, making for one larger, cohesive peak, instead of 2 smaller ones with a huge valley in between<\/strong>. So you've been cruising through this less-disjointed final iteration of the chorus, and you slam into this focal point with all the energy the song can muster.<\/p>\n<p>And then, also at this exact spot, the 3rd neat thing happens simultaneously, which is <strong>a callback<\/strong>. Underneath the held out &quot;desire&quot;, you can hear the opening lyrics of the album from <em>&quot;Chokehold&quot;<\/em> (&quot;When we were made, it was no accident \/ we were tangled up like branches in a flood&quot;). While <em>&quot;Chokehold&quot;<\/em>'s beat has a bit of a swing or triplet feel to it, <em>&quot;Eden&quot;<\/em> is very straight up and rigid 4\/4, and yet those lyrics and that melody fit in seamlessly.<\/p>\n<p>All of these elements combine together to give the listener a sense of familiarity, a sense of &quot;oh, I've heard that before... but where?&quot; It's a payoff that encourages front-to-back album listening, which is the way I've always been enjoying music since I was a kid.<\/p>\n<p>Oh, and for one additional neat thing, go to the next\/final song on the album, <em>&quot;Euclid&quot;<\/em>, and just listen to the rhythm of the lyrics. <strong>It's almost a copy\/paste of the <em>&quot;Eden&quot;<\/em> chorus rhythm and melody line<\/strong>, but this time in a hopeful, happy, major key. A happy ending, if you will. Some people would consider this to be &quot;lazy songwriting&quot;; I think it's a beautiful nod to other points of the album, giving the listener a little treat for listening to the entire things straight down.<\/p>\n<p>Music theory and concepts are fun. Albums like this are all about the cohesive listening experience, and rewarding listeners with a payoff of little nuggets like this. Whether the writers craft it with care and attention to the actual musical theory, or just do it because it sounds cool, this is the structure and psychology of music that can make it so appealing to listeners.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Death to Robots","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/death-to-robots\/"}},"updated":"2024-06-13T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/death-to-robots\/","summary":"If your site running Jekyll & hosted on GitHub Pages, this post is for you.","content":"<p>With all of the recent news coming out lately about Apple Intelligence crawling the web to build it's own LLM, a lot of people have woken up to the nightmare that is our data being used to train these models without our consent. All of these services are firmly in the <em>&quot;Steal First, Never Ask For Forgiveness Later&quot;<\/em> camp, which sucks!<\/p>\n<p>Over on Mastodon, <a href=\"https:\/\/follow.ethanmarcotte.com\/@beep\">Ethan Marcotte<\/a> posted a link to <a href=\"https:\/\/ethanmarcotte.com\/wrote\/blockin-bots\/\">his blog post<\/a> detailing how he set up a way to generate his <code>.htaccess<\/code> file using Jekyll. When I went and looked into this, I realized GitHub Pages (who kindly hosts this site) doesn't allow me to edit my <code>.htaccess<\/code>. Shit!<\/p>\n<p>So we have to rely on the next best thing - the good 'ol <code>robots.txt<\/code> file.<\/p>\n<p>Similar to Ethan, I wanted to do this in a way that would leverage Jekyll's static site generator to my advantage, vs. having a massively long &amp; hard to grok string of crawlers. So here's what I did:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Created a <code>~\/_data\/robots.yml<\/code> file<\/strong>:<\/p>\n<pre class=\"language-yml\"><code class=\"language-yml\"><span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> AdsBot<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>Google\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Amazonbot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> anthropic<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>ai\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Applebot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Applebot<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>Extended\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> AwarioRssBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> AwarioSmartBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Bytespider\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> CCBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> ChatGPT\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> ChatGPT<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>User\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Claude<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>Web\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> ClaudeBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> cohere<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>ai\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> DataForSeoBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Diffbot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> FacebookBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Google<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>Extended\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> GPTBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> ImagesiftBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> magpie<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span>crawler\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> omgili\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> Omgilibot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> peer39_crawler\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> PerplexityBot\n<span class=\"token punctuation\">-<\/span> YouBot<\/code><\/pre>\n<p><strong>Created a <code>~\/robots.txt<\/code> file<\/strong> (note the empty front matter; this is required for Jekyll to compile the Liquid syntax appropriately):<\/p>\n<pre class=\"language-liquid\"><code class=\"language-liquid\">\n---\n# intentionally left blank\n---\n\n<span class=\"token liquid language-liquid\"><span class=\"token delimiter punctuation\">{%<\/span> <span class=\"token keyword\">for<\/span> bot <span class=\"token keyword\">in<\/span> site<span class=\"token punctuation\">.<\/span>data<span class=\"token punctuation\">.<\/span><span class=\"token object\">robots<\/span> <span class=\"token delimiter punctuation\">%}<\/span><\/span>\n  User-agent: <span class=\"token liquid language-liquid\"><span class=\"token delimiter punctuation\">{{<\/span> bot <span class=\"token delimiter punctuation\">}}<\/span><\/span>\n  Disallow: \/\n  \n<span class=\"token liquid language-liquid\"><span class=\"token delimiter punctuation\">{%<\/span> <span class=\"token keyword\">endfor<\/span> <span class=\"token delimiter punctuation\">%}<\/span><\/span>\n<\/code><\/pre>\n<p>And with that, you can look at <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/robots.txt\/\">my <code>robots.txt<\/code> file<\/a>, and see the desired output!<\/p>\n"},{"title":"My WWDC Wish List for 2024","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/wwdc-2024-wish-list\/"}},"updated":"2024-06-06T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/wwdc-2024-wish-list\/","summary":"With WWDC 2024 right around the corner, I put together my personal short list of things I'd like to see.","content":"<p>Of note: these are all software related features or changes I would like to see; my dream of a Magic Trackpad with integrated Touch ID sensor can wait until later.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"focus-modes-and-notification-summaries\" tabindex=\"-1\">Focus Modes and Notification Summaries<\/h2>\n<p>I'm gonna start with these two features and lump them together, because I think they tie together for a lot of people who have tried to use them over the years - a way to stay focused, present the user with relevant information, and cut down on the amount of time that we're pulled away from doing whatever we're trying to get done. I love the general concepts of these tools, and I've overall had positive experiences with them, but there are some random things that irritate me that I'd love to see Apple address.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ordering Focus Modes<\/strong>. This might be a relatively minor gripe, but the fact that you can't organize these at all is just baffling to me. And then, depending on where you look, the orders are different! On the Mac, in Settings &gt; Focus, they're in alphabetical order. On the Mac or iPhone, in the actual menu to change your current focus, it's just completely wonky. I'm not sure what gives here, but this is a prime example of one of my biggest frustrations with modern Apple - <em>inconsistency across different parts of the system<\/em>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/focus.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/focus.png\" alt=\"What in tarnation is this order?\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>A Focus Mode scheduling tool<\/strong>. I've recently switched over to using a Focus Mode every hour of the day, and the set up for this was just a pain. Plus, as I've gone through and realized my times aren't exactly what I wanted, making modifications is another exercise in pain points; you have to change the end time of one, and the start time of another. This just seems unintuitive and clunky.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/siri.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/siri.jpg\" alt=\"Thank you, HAL.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Triggering a Focus Mode using Siri<\/strong>. <em>Some<\/em> Focus modes, like Work or Fitness, work ok. Others, like any of them you create and name yourself, have maybe a 20% hit rate. Siri's voice recognition is routinely pretty good for me, so something is going on here.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Better settings for Notification Scheduled Summaries<\/strong>. I tried using Scheduled Summary on my iPhone last fall, with a general intention of saying &quot;I'd like to receive all of my hidden notifications at the top of the hour, all day, every day&quot;. Seems simple. You can't do that... because Apple artificially limits you to a maximum of 12 summary times. And then, you can't define times where Summaries was off, so you're stuck in this weird limbo of figuring out when you're ok not receiving anything at all. It's a fantastic tool when you want to use it, and a garbage one when you don't.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/summary.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/summary.png\" alt=\"Seems excessive, and yet, it's incomplete.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>An API for apps to be able to push specific notifications through Focus Modes and\/or Scheduled Summaries<\/strong>. I'll use the MLB app for an example here. I follow the Red Sox pretty religiously, and I always want to see notifications about the team, no matter what Focus mode or Scheduled Summary I happen to be in - I want a way to have this app, and\/or these specific notifications, push through any block I have. But simultaneously, I want to receive notifications from other Major League teams, or general league news, and I want those to stay contained to any Focus or Summary that they're captured by today.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/mlb.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/mlb.png\" alt=\"So many notification options.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Apple does a lot of things really well, but as they add more devices and more services to their suite of offerings, there seem to be more ideas that got shipped as a Minimum Viable Product, and then completely abandoned. This has been less of a problem on the Mac, with the swath of developers making fantastic applications to serve a niche market, plus the ability to run sandboxed apps that can change so much of how your computer operates. But with how locked down the iPhone is, all of these pieces of abandonware cluttering up the device are just leading to a horrendous user experience.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"other-i(pad)os-desires\" tabindex=\"-1\">Other i(Pad)OS Desires<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Let apps start Live Activities without any interaction<\/strong>. Going back to the MLB app for this one. You can see in my screenshot that I tell the app to automatically start a live activity for every game. Does it do that? Nope! When Carrot Weather detects precipitation in your area, you can tell it to automatically start a live activity. Does it do that? Nope! The catch: you have to open the app, or interact with the relevant notification, for it to start. This is terrible UX, and makes the user think they're doing something wrong, or that the app isn't doing it right. This should be changed ASAP.<\/p>\n<p><strong>App-sized widgets on the iPhone and iPad home screens<\/strong> (and maybe in the Mac Dock as well?), <strong>App-sized Shortcuts triggers<\/strong>, and <strong>Dynamic app icons<\/strong>. I'm lumping all 3 of these together because there's such an overlap in use case here.<\/p>\n<p>I don't need a 2x2 &quot;small&quot; widget for the Fitness app. I just need the app icon to update and show my current ring status.<\/p>\n<p>I don't need a 2x2 &quot;small&quot; widget for showing me the current temperature, or the high\/low temp for the day. Just give us app sized widgets so that I can have 3 or 4 separate Carrot Weather widgets showing me the individual data points I want.<\/p>\n<p>I have a shortcut I wrote to launch various reading-related apps, or start my Reading focus mode. The only way I can surface this on my home screen is within a 2x2 widget, either by itself or with one other (probably unrelated) shortcut. Why? Why is this necessary?<\/p>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/fantastical.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/wwdc-24\/fantastical.jpg\" alt=\"Imagine if it was the 31st.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>Imagine if it was the 31st.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>You'd <em>think<\/em> a calendar app like Fantastical would be able to show the date on the app icon. But no... the only way they can do that is <em>to put a notification badge on the app with the current date inside it.<\/em> This is terrible UI.<\/p>\n<p>This is another prime case of fragmentation across the Apple ecosystem. The Watch is all about small complications. Even the iPhone lock screen allows for small data points like this. Why can't we get that same treatment on our home screens too?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Allow the Apple Music widget to pin a specific playlist<\/strong>. When I go to the gym, I listen to the same playlist. When I put my daughter to bed, I turn on the same playlist. The Music widget exists, but it's just to start the most recently played song\/album\/playlist, which isn't always what I want. I could solve this with a shortcut, but again... do I want to take up all that room?<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Modular Apple Watch face calendar complication isn't available to 3rd party apps<\/strong>. This is a newer one that's started to bug me a little bit. I recently started using the Modular face, and realized that the only options for the day and date are &quot;show it&quot; or &quot;don't show it&quot;, and the app assigned to &quot;show it&quot; can't be changed away from Calendar. As a Fantastical user, this is frustrating.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Improve the granularity of notification white\/blacklisting on the Apple Watch<\/strong>. I've recently been exploring cutting down on some of the notifications I get sent to my Watch, including restricting most of the text notifications I get during the work day to just my partner &amp; immediate family. To do this, you have to use a custom Focus mode on the Watch, <em>and<\/em> you have to prevent your other devices from overriding your Watch's focus mode. Again, just a really weird and frustrating &quot;hacky&quot; experience to use the native tooling to do something that should be simple.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Now (June 2024)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-june-2024\/"}},"updated":"2024-06-04T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-june-2024\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>First and foremost, <strong>welcome to my somewhat revamped website<\/strong>. I've been meaning to make a bunch of changes for ages, then held off when participating in <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/categories\/#weblogpomo-2024\">Weblog Posting Month<\/a>. But how we're out the other side, I had plenty of coffee, so I knocked it all out.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Most of these changes were back-end related. I have a new\/better way of adding images to my posts, my navigation content is organized for use in a couple of spots, all of my images live in a more appropriate folder, and so on. If you're a weirdo who enjoys seeing how the sausage is made, <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/niclake.github.io\/pull\/18\">you should be able to view my pull request<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>My friend <a href=\"https:\/\/bencardy.co.uk\/\">Ben<\/a> made me a nifty little monogram. You should see that up at the top of the page, as well as at the bottom of each post.<\/li>\n<li>Those nifty little monograms change color every time you refresh the page. Go on, try it!<\/li>\n<li>The biggest change is that, if you land on <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/\">my home page<\/a>, it's no longer the root of my blog (you can find that at <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/blog\/\">\/blog\/<\/a> now). In an effort to trick people into thinking I'm more professional, I made my site root a simple landing page, surfacing some recent blog posts &amp; projects.<\/li>\n<li>I've also introduced or surfaced a bunch of different pages (About, Now, Uses, and Style Guide); rather than link to them all individually, you can find them all over at <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pages\/\">\/pages<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>All of this is on top of <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/\">some other cosmetic changes I made last month<\/a>. Being on my own site every day gave me a ton of opportunity to examine what was working and what wasn't, and make a bunch of changes for the better.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you see anything you love, or if something is broken, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\/\">please reach out and let me know<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p><strong>The NBA Finals are fast approaching<\/strong>. I'll be honest, I'm really nervous about this one as a Celtics fan. We were the best team in the regular season. We waltzed through the Eastern conference playoffs. But dang, I do <em>not<\/em> feel good about the matchup against the Mavs. Fingers are crossed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>This weekend will mark 1 year since Pixel passed away<\/strong>. (For those unfamiliar, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pixel\/\">I wrote up a nice little piece for him last year<\/a>.) Like then, grief continues to come in waves. I've been hit more and more frequently as of late with the impending anniversary. My wife frequently wears a locket with Pixel's photo in it, and V likes to get her to open it, say &quot;Hi Pixel!&quot;, and give the locket a kiss. Last night, she was looking at a book with a bunch of different cartoon cats in it, and she'd point to the striped cats and say &quot;Bearcat&quot; or the spotted cats and say &quot;Beau Beau&quot;. I pointed to the black cat and asked &quot;who's that?&quot; <strong>&quot;That's Pixel!&quot;<\/strong> Whether she remembers him fondly, or just knows the name from Mom and Dad talking about him in front of her, I'm not sure. I'm gonna choose to believe the former.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I switched from learning Spanish to Japanese<\/strong>. Spanish was just reminding me too much of high school. Japanese is a fresh start (also it's hard as fuck? What the hell). Whenever I meet Shohei Ohtani, I'll be ready. (I also started learning some more sign language, but the service is not cheap, so I've hit pause on that for a bit.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>I (re)played a couple older platformers<\/strong>. I finally beat <em>Hollow Knight<\/em>, and immediately jumped in to <em>Celeste<\/em> and finished that up last month. It's been nice to actually get some use out of the Steam Deck, although now my PC is just sitting abandoned underneath my desk. I started <em>Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door<\/em> this past weekend, but I'm not far into it yet. Hopefully I'll be able to wrap that up before June 21st; the <em>Elden Ring<\/em> expansion comes out that day. I've not gotten far into <em>Elden Ring<\/em> before, seeing as it came out within a week of my daughter being born, so I'm excited to dive in and experience the whole game. I also reorganized my <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1zg-SOYI8DlH-ibSNslfPtq0xJB4sEMb_7OHKbq2qclk\/edit#gid=1698105614\">games backlog<\/a>. (<em>Games beaten in 2024: 5<\/em>)<\/p>\n<p><strong>I've read 15 pages in the last month and a half<\/strong>. After a pretty decent April, along with a bunch of motivation to be a part of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Fantasy\/\">\/r\/fantasy<\/a>'s Book Bingo Challenge, I just lost all motivation to sit down with a book. This does dovetail perfectly with the start of the NBA playoffs, so I'm gonna give myself some grace and just dive back in. (<em>Books read in 2024: 7<\/em>)<\/p>\n<p><strong>I have a cool idea for a simple iPhone app<\/strong>. Hopefully I can find some time in the near future to work on that.<\/p>\n<p><strong>My ADHD meds were changed<\/strong>, and I feel great. They give me a tremendous amount of focus during the day, and now my challenge is making sure that focus is pointed in the right direction. To that end...<\/p>\n<p><strong>I've been playing around with a lot of automation-type stuff<\/strong> on my iPhone and Mac, doing whatever I can to set myself up for success on a daily basis. I'm going to write more about that here after I make sure my Focus Mode settings are ironed out, but I'm really enjoying this process.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-june-2024\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p><strong>We got an air fryer<\/strong>. Those were the best damn fish sticks I've ever had.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Sneak peek - I hijacked the &quot;Lock Screen&quot; shortcut on my Mac to shut off the lights in my office if the laptop is docked. My wife thinks this is great (&quot;hey you turned your lights off&quot;) and the dumbest thing imaginable simultaneously. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-june-2024\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"WeblogPoMo Recap","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo-recap\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-31T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo-recap\/","summary":"Some things I learned from blogging every* day for a month.","content":"<p>We did it. Weblog Posting Month, or WeblogPoMo, has come to a close. Congrats to all who made it this far - it's been a lot of fun getting to know new people and learning more about y'all.<\/p>\n<p>I feel like I learned a <em>lot<\/em> over the last few weeks, and thought I'd share a few of those things with you.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Finding topics to write about is hard<\/strong>. That was honestly my biggest struggle of the whole ordeal. I was able to lock in to the first 2 weeks worth of topics, and picked up some ideas here and there from other people, but there were days where it'd be 10pm and I'd have no idea what to write about. Thank you to anyone who offered ideas or voted on my polls.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo-recap\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p><strong>Brevity is hard<\/strong>. I could really use a good editor from time to time.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Is this thing on?!?<\/strong> Remember back in the day when everyone would have page counters on their websites? I do not miss those days at all. It's always a struggle wondering if the things you write are being read at all, especially when everyone is trying to get their posts seen by others as well.<\/p>\n<p>(I will say, I appreciate every single person who went out of their way to toot me on Mastodon, boosted my posts so others would see, or write me an email. I loved knowing that various things that I wrote resonated with you to various degrees; honestly, that's why I write, is for others to read. And to that end...)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Heartfelt is best<\/strong>. Who cares about my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-great-rss-pruning\/\">pruning of RSS feeds<\/a>? Not many people. Who enjoys <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-feeling\/\">a sappy post about my kid<\/a>? Or my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ai\/\">angry rant about AI<\/a>? <em>Everyone<\/em>, apparently. The key differentiator: at least for me, the posts with emotion behind them resonated with far more people.<\/p>\n<p>I had a terrific time with WeblogPoMo, and I'm already looking forward to next year.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>This is also why I normally post so infrequently; I only post when I have something to write about, and without being forced to write every day, I don't think about finding topics. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo-recap\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Derailment","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/derailment\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-30T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/derailment\/","summary":"Society has forgotten what 'falling off the wagon' feels like.","content":"<p>It's no secret that I'm very proud of my (currently) 152 sobriety streak. I'm someone that has a hard time committing to anything long-term, so being able to keep that up has been great.<\/p>\n<p>When you read this post, it'll be May 31st (or later). Today is the final day of Weblog Posting Month, or <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/categories\/#weblogpomo-2024\">WeblogPoMo<\/a>. I'd been going strong all month, coming up with topics out of nowhere &amp; knocking out tons of blog posts, even on days I really didn't feel like it.<\/p>\n<p>And then yesterday, right before dinner, my daughter injured herself. (Everything's ok - she had about 2 dozen splinters of various size in her hand. We tried to extract them last night, failed, hoped they'd come out on their own overnight, they didn't, so we went to urgent care this morning.)<\/p>\n<p>Suffice to say, I didn't get a post written last night. I had a good topic, but that'll just have to wait until later.<\/p>\n<p>But I realized... <strong>I felt an <em>extraordinary<\/em> amount of guilt for missing a day.<\/strong> Self-imposed guilt for sure, but damn, I was gonna have to miss a day. And that sucks.<\/p>\n<p>I track my daily water consumption. I am learning Japanese and Spanish using an app. I keep a task list that includes things I need to check off every day. I'm logging the days I don't drink alcohol. <em>And absolutely none of these things have good ways to handle a missed day<\/em> - falling off the wagon, if you will. Being derailed from your intended tasks.<\/p>\n<p>People have been asking Apple for <em>years<\/em> to give you a way to press pause on your streak of closing your Activity rings. People get sick. Get injured. Have a death in the family. Shit comes up, and they're worried about losing a 2,000+ day streak that nobody sees.<\/p>\n<p>Society has been set up to gameify everything that we do as a means for encouraging success. And at a certain point, even I (who lives for that stuff) have to wonder if this is doing more harm than good.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Proud Dad Moment #1: when we were extracting the splinters, V was <em>screaming<\/em>. Pain, confusion, the whole gamut. But when we'd say &quot;just let me see it&quot; or &quot;can I get you anything?&quot;, she would consistently scream out through tears &quot;NO THANK YOU!&quot; I joke all the time &quot;wow, how did we get such a polite little girl?&quot; I know it's all about how we raise her, and she sees that come from us, so I feel good that I'm modeling the behavior for her... but I'm so proud that she's latched on to that. She's so funny, kind, polite, and loving. Just the best.<\/p>\n<p>Proud Dad Moment #2: I know that having an authority figure step in to take those splinters out is a different experience than having Mom or Dad do it, but she was an absolute trooper. The first half dozen or so came out with no complaints at all; the remainder, we'd take real short breaks to reset, and she'd calm right down and say &quot;ok, ready&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>Proud Dad Moment #3: we left urgent care, realized we'd not had any coffee yet, so went to the coffee shop that's right next door. V sees the clinic out her window and goes &quot;thank you so much, bye bye!&quot;<\/p>\n<p>I don't care about winning any World's Best Dad awards, because I've already got the world's best kid.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Tattoos","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/tattoos\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-29T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/tattoos\/","summary":"Everyone always wants to know the story behind the ink.","content":"<p>I always tend to get 3 kinds of comments on my tattoos:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>&quot;Dude, those are sick!&quot; (usually from nerds about my Pok\u00e9mon tattoos)<\/li>\n<li>&quot;Oh nice, are you a musician?&quot; (about my treble\/bass clef)<\/li>\n<li>&quot;You're going to regret those some day.&quot; (from assholes)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>I love tattoos. I'm running out of real estate, and getting to my tattoo artist nowadays would be a massive PITA (see #3 below), but <em>damn<\/em>, I want more tattoos. Here's what I have currently:<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"wwjd-bracelet\" tabindex=\"-1\">#1: WWJD Bracelet (left wrist)<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/wwjd.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/wwjd.jpg\" alt=\"A WWJD bracelet tattooed on my left wrist\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>When I was in junior high\/high school, the &quot;WWJD&quot; bracelets were all the rage amongst Christian kids (of which I was one). I had a black band w\/ gold lettering that I never took off from age... idk, 12? 13? until I had arm surgery when I was 19. It had gotten so gross and matted over the years<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/tattoos\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> that the surgery prep team had to cut it off of me, which bummed me out. I got a replacement, but it just didn't feel the same.<\/p>\n<p>So, at age 24, I went to what was supposed to be the best shop in my area and got a true replacement inked on me for my first tattoo. They let the apprentice do it, and if I had to grade his work, I'd probably give him a D. The lettering is ok (but I had another artist pack it with white later on), but the black fill is poor, the lines aren't straight... overall, it's just not good.<\/p>\n<p>I don't mind having this ink, even as someone not affiliated with the church anymore. The stories of Jesus paint him as a pretty dope dude, and modern Christianity seems to ignore his teachings. I've thought about having this blacked out &amp; replaced with something new, but Apple Watches don't do great with full coverage tattoos (or didn't when they first came out, at least), so I've been hesitant.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"music-arm\" tabindex=\"-1\">#2: Treble\/Bass Clef (left upper arm)<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/music.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/music.jpg\" alt=\"A treble & bass clef, plus music staff, tattooed on my left bi\/tricep\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>This is a <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/\">tribute to my mom<\/a>. While I may not play as much as I used to, it's still a nice reminder of her that I carry with me daily.<\/p>\n<p>This is back at the same shop as the first ink, this time done by the guy that had a great reputation. I had to really advocate for myself to get the ink I wanted; he kept trying to modify the design in a way that I wasn't fond of. His after-care instructions were also a pile of garbage (&quot;Go home and run it under the hottest water you can stand. Basically, scald it. That'll kill the bacteria.&quot; Kids, do not do this.), and this tattoo also has a ton of issues w\/ the black packing just like my first one did.<\/p>\n<p>In hindsight, that shop sucked, and we just didn't have better options in my hometown back then.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"phoenix\" tabindex=\"-1\">#3: Phoenix (right forearm)<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/phoenix.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/phoenix.jpg\" alt=\"A blue, green, and purple phoenix tattooed on my right forearm\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I'd been wanting a phoenix tattoo for ages. I'd always envisioned it on my right arm, arms outstretched and spreading up on to my hand. I'd grown tired of corporate America pretty quickly, and figured I could easily weed out the good orgs from the bad by having a tattoo that would be visible from underneath my dress shirts.<\/p>\n<p>My wife has <em>amazing<\/em> tattoos; a full bird &amp; moth sleeve, plus a full cat sleeve filled in with mandalas, all done by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/rabbitabbytatuering\/\">Rabbit Abby<\/a>. (Here's <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/4BIJ-ys8eL\/\">the top of my wife's bird sleeve<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BepN3ytHvbd\/\">her old cat Pepper<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BusK3xkABdO\/\">the full cat sleeve (part 1)<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BvaYLVcg2-O\/\">(part 2)<\/a>. I got to meet Rabbit during one of her sessions, and casually mentioned that I was interested in getting some more work done. I was <em>super<\/em> impressed with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/35NrQgM8YB\/\">(mild NSFW) a full-torso fox<\/a> that she had just done for another client. Rabbit had just begun pivoting into exclusively doing black &amp; white realism tattoos, but seemed excited by my idea, so I booked a session.<\/p>\n<p>I couldn't be more happy with how <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/76Y1IWs8dT\/\">my phoenix<\/a> turned out. It's different than the concept I'd originally had in my mind, but better than what I'd envisioned. We did a color palette swap to make it more unique, and also because I really vibed with the Pok\u00e9mon Articuno.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"pokemon-sleeve\" tabindex=\"-1\">#4: Pok\u00e9mon Sleeve (right arm)<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/pokemon.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/pokemon.jpg\" alt=\"My full Pok\u00e9mon sleeve on my right arm\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>While working on the phoenix, Rabbit and I started talking about anything and everything. Turns out, she's a huge gamer nerd like I was, and also enjoys Pok\u00e9mon. I knew at that moment what I wanted to do for my next tattoo.<\/p>\n<p>I decided that, before I got the ink done, I had to do a replay of Pok\u00e9mon Blue, just to make sure I did still love the game as much as I thought I did. Turns out, it became a great inspiration for what we put on my arm.<\/p>\n<p>The Pok\u00e9mon I got inked were:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Venusaur, Charmander, and Squirtle (Venusaur instead of Bulbasaur to indicate that they're my favorite)<\/li>\n<li>Pikachu (because they're iconic)<\/li>\n<li>Eevee, because my niece was infatuated w\/ them at that time (also, the 5th starter since Pok\u00e9mon Let's Go!)<\/li>\n<li>Alakazam, Dewgong, Dugtrio, Gyarados, and Snorlax (them + Venusaur were my party for the Elite Four)\n<ul>\n<li>Also, Snorlax is playing Pok\u00e9mon Blue on his Atomic Purple GameBoy Color, just like I did<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Ghastly, Jigglypuff, and Geodude (small round-ish Pok\u00e9mon to help fill in some gaps)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I love this ink so much. So happy I got it. It's a great conversation starter too, both with fellow Millennials as well as younger kids.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"pixel-tribute\" tabindex=\"-1\">#5: Pixel Tribute (left forearm)<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/pixel.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/tattoos\/pixel.jpg\" alt=\"A pixelated black heart and a cat paw print on my left forearm\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pixel\/\">When Pixel died last year<\/a>, I knew I wanted to get a little tribute tattoo for him. My left arm has seemingly become a quasi-memorial graveyard (my mom, my first kitten, and Jesus).<\/p>\n<p>I knew instantly that I wanted to do a black, pixelated, Zelda-esque heart, so that part was easy. One of the things the vet that helped Pixel transition did was get us his footprints inked on cards; those sit in and outside my office. I had hopes that I could somehow replicate that around the heart as well.<\/p>\n<p>A friend of ours here in our current city was able to slot me in a week after Pixel died, and did just the most amazing job. The detail on his paw print is just incredible. I tried not to cry as she worked, and it turned out amazing.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So there you go. There's all my ink that I have currently. Writing this post has made me want to go get more, though... so maybe that will change soon.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I washed it along with my arm every day, relax. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/tattoos\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Two Year Old Teachings","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/two-year-old-teachings\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-28T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/two-year-old-teachings\/","summary":"My 2 year old daughter teaches me a lot.","content":"<p>My 2 year old daughter teaches me a lot. The older she gets, the more I realize this, and the more I've tuned in and listened.<\/p>\n<p>When she says &quot;Daddy, snuggle&quot; as I'm putting her down for the night, it doesn't matter if the Celtics are playing... I get in bed and I snuggle until she is asleep. Sometimes I am too. Oh well.<\/p>\n<p>I will do <em>anything<\/em> to help her succeed. I'll move mountains. I'll call in favors. Whatever she needs, she'll get. So why don't I do that for <em>myself<\/em>? Why will I not do whatever I can do to help me succeed at things I want to accomplish? I should look into that.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mind over matter<\/strong>. V has 2 short parents, and in turn, is short herself. She was in the 0.1% for height at her 2 year checkup; after a growth spurt, she's up to the 1st percentile now. I joke that all the growth hormones are going straight to her brain, because she is smart as hell (and everyone notices). When she can't physically conquer an obstacle in front of her, I watch her think it through, then navigate it to the best of her ability. Or she'll come and speak full sentences to us to elicit our assistance. I used to be so self-conscious about my height, but watching her navigate life, it makes me realize what truly matters.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Be joyful, make joy<\/strong>. We are truly lucky; V is such a happy kid. I know grumpy kids, and she is not one of them. She's super funny, loves everything and everyone, and wants to include you in her activities (&quot;hey pest control man, you wanna sit down and watch Bluey with my kid? She's asking for you.&quot;). Her joy is infectious, too. Her laugh is the best sound I've ever heard, and it makes me smile and laugh along with her. When she squeals with glee when someone chases her, it makes you want to chase her more. When she goes over to my wife, grabs her head, and gives her a dozen kisses on her head, it makes me remember what showing love is all about.<\/p>\n<p>She's constantly teaching me about life, and I couldn't be happier to learn from her.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"The Death of Music","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-27T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/","summary":"What happens when a lifelong musician reckons with childhood trauma?","content":"<p>Earlier this month, I talked about <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/when-i-grow-up\/\">other jobs I might have had<\/a> if things had bounced a different way. The first three things talked about various instruments I played. A few people have asked whether I still play or not.<\/p>\n<p>(Today ended up turning into a VERY long post; if you want a TL;DR, click this footnote.)<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>My relationship with music is weird. I love listening to music, but I prioritize podcasts over it nowadays. I loved playing, but would often find myself getting frustrated with the other musicians around me, or not wanting to let loved ones hear me noodle around for whatever reason. I enjoy writing &amp; recording, but I'm such a harsh self-critic that things often just get mired in limbo (like the <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/themusicplaysyou\/anchor-yourselffoundations-demo-6\">sixth demo version of a song<\/a> I've had rattling around since the day after I released my EP in 2013).<\/p>\n<p>The more I unpack it, the more it goes all the way back to the very beginning.<\/p>\n<p>I mentioned how I asked to learn piano when I was 4. What I didn't mention was that my mom had her Masters in piano performance, and for as long as I could remember, taught piano to (mostly) kids in my hometown. She was an outstanding teacher; students who cared even a little bit would turn into terrific pianists. Many would do really well at the regional and state-wide competitions. My mom had a true gift.<\/p>\n<p>My mom also had arthritis in her hands. It made it difficult for her to play, and really the only time I ever remember her playing was when she would be going over new music she had received to figure out what it sounded like. As I wrote that last sentence, it sank in that my mom could sight-read music better than I ever could, and gave me a new appreciation for her talent.<\/p>\n<p>As I look back, what ended up happening was that my mom lived vicariously through me, driving me to be just as good of a piano player (or better) than she was. And I ended up being <em>very<\/em> good.<\/p>\n<p>She quickly realized that it would be beneficial for me to receive instruction from another piano teacher (because who wants to listen to their parents?), so I started taking lessons from a woman named Joan. Joan was a great teacher in her own right, and helped me flourish between ages 5 and 10.<\/p>\n<p>Every morning, I would wake up early (5:30ish?), practice piano under the direction of my mom (somewhere between 1 to 2 hours, depending on my age), and then go to school. Every Tuesday after school, I'd go to Joan's for an hour long lesson. <em>It was like I was receiving 8 lessons every week.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>When I was 10, I phased out of the skill level that Joan taught<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>, so we started driving 25 minutes to a nearby college to take lessons from a professor there (Dr. Reuter). For 7-8 years, he instructed me, and I grew into a monster musician.<\/p>\n<p>This is the same time frame where my parents ended up getting me a drum set, then a bass, and then a guitar (with private lessons for all of them), I joined band at school, &amp; ended up becoming an All-State percussionist twice. I also got heavily involved with the praise band at our church, eventually working as a roaving session musician for 4 churches over the next 15 years.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Through all of this time, everything was &quot;practice, practice, practice&quot;. 1.5 hours of piano before school, 2 on the weekends. Also, practicing for band, practicing for drumline, practicing for percussion lessons. My parent bought me a marimba that sat in my bedroom, so that I could practice that at home every day. My piano lessons on Tuesdays. Guitar for church. Guitar lessons. All on top of school, reading, playing basketball at the rec center, and whatever else I got up to as a kid.<\/p>\n<p>My mom and I fought <em>constantly<\/em>. She would set a timer on our microwave for how long I had to practice, and would hover downstairs providing feedback and instruction as I did. She'd often boost my time up by 5 minutes to extend my time; I'd often sneak in really quick and decrease my time by 5 minutes here and there. At some point, someone learned that if you set the clock on the microwave a specific way, it would disable the beeping from every button press. This made things a million times worse.<\/p>\n<p>When my arm started to give out from tendonitis<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>, I felt relief. After consulting a doctor, it was determined that something had to give. I'd already walked away from playing basketball<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fn4\" id=\"fnref4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup>, and I'd already started thinking about pursuing music ed for percussion in college, so reluctantly my mom let me stop playing piano.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>When I hit the chime during that wind symphony concert at the end of freshman year and felt my tendon in my wrist snap, I felt agony... but also, more relief. I'd been able to coast through most of high school music based on raw talent, but college was putting me through the ringer. I'd also started dabbling in the first few music ed courses, and realized very quickly that teaching music was going to be extremely difficult for me. So much of what I knew and could do was raw talent that I'd honed over the years, vs. a learned skill. I could get the right answers in music theory, but couldn't tell you <em>why<\/em> they were right.<\/p>\n<p>But still, I soldiered on with music. Strumming a guitar was a lateral bend that didn't seem to aggravate my wrist and elbow as much, so I poured all of my energy into that. Playing at church every other weekend, with rehearsals on Thursdays. Sitting in as a sub for guitar or bass. Helping out with Wednesday night youth services. Joining a band that toured around the midwest.<\/p>\n<p>After a few years, my arm healed to the point where I felt I could trust it. This coincided with a change in churches for me, and a tripling down of my time playing music. We had 3 teams that rotated through weekends, and I often found myself on 2 of them. Thursday rehearsal, Saturday service, Sunday 2 services. Then Sunday night college youth service. Then Wednesday, helping lead the high school service. Then on the off Thursdays, helping with another college service. It was nonstop. But I told myself I was enjoying it. When I graduated college &amp; moved an hour south to another metro for work, <em>I still volunteered on a 3 week rotation at the church back home<\/em>.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fn5\" id=\"fnref5\">[5]<\/a><\/sup> I started making music in my bedroom as my primary hobby. I auditioned to play guitar for three bands\/artists<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fn6\" id=\"fnref6\">[6]<\/a><\/sup>, and didn't get them because I was too short.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>And then my mom died, 2 days before my 26th birthday. It coincided with me releasing <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sailing\/\">my first and only EP<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>I was on the schedule for church that weekend. I thought, what better way to honor my mom's legacy than to perform?<\/p>\n<p>She died on Monday. I had rehearsal on Thursday. Her funeral was on Friday. I had services to perform at Saturday and Sunday. I was back at work on Monday morning.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>It's been nearly 9 years since I've done anything substantial or meaningful with my instruments. I sold all of my amps and pedals, relying on <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/uses\/#software-2\">digital amp simulators<\/a> if I want to play guitar. I inherited my mom's piano, but I've only played it for maybe an hour total in those 9 years.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fn7\" id=\"fnref7\">[7]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I love music. I'd love to get back into writing new music again, or finding an outlet to perform. But <em>every time<\/em> I touch an instrument, I soon feel a sense of dread come over me that I just don't want to muck around with. (I'm not-so-secretly hoping this post is a bit cathartic in helping with that.)<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Then my daughter discovered that pushing the keys on the piano made noise. And &quot;piano, Daddy!&quot; became a thing.<\/p>\n<p>V is 2. She now has her own little piano, a xylophone, and a small percussion set. She loves to sing, and have us sing to her (&quot;Daddy, sing Baby Shark&quot;). She loves music, even the loud progressive metal that I tend to enjoy nowadays.<\/p>\n<p>I'm watching her grow, and looking at that piano sitting in our front room, and worrying about repeating traumas with her that were imparted on to me. We've thought about selling the piano, but I don't know if I'm quite ready for that yet, and it would probably break my dad's heart. So there it sits, unused except when V goes over and pokes at the keys.<\/p>\n<p>I wish I knew how best to proceed. Slogging through it because I think I might still enjoy it is off the table. I'm really good at ignoring it, but eventually I'm going to have to reckon with that monstrosity sitting in the front room.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I know that my mom meant well when she imparted all of her wisdom on to me. I'd shown interest, she had the ability to teach me, and she did an incredible job at transforming me into an amazing musician. When I'd protest, though, I was met with &quot;no, you can't quit&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>Society has progressed a lot since the 90s, and I learned a ton over the years about both how I want to raise my kid (lots of books, speaking to them like an adult, etc.), but also how I <em>don't<\/em> want to do things. My wife and I have already had talks about how we'll handle V wanting to do something like a sport, but deciding mid-season that she's not interested anymore - do we let her drop it at a whim, or force her to see it through since she committed to her teammates, coaches, etc.? And I think, what if she asks me to teach her an instrument? How would I handle that?<\/p>\n<p>I always used to define myself as a musician, but I've started to wonder recently if that's truly me, or what someone else wanted from me. Was it my passion, or my mom's? Is there a way for me to find joy from these talents anymore, or is there too much mental trauma surrounding it that I'm going to end up abandoning something that basically consumed all of my formative years?<\/p>\n<p>I don't know the answer yet. But I need to figure it out soon, before history repeats itself.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>My mom had her masters in piano performance, but also had arthritis that made it very difficult for her to play. She taught piano out of our home for as long as I can remember. When I was four, I sat down at the piano and made some comment about how I wanted to learn how to play. In hindsight, my mom lived vicariously through me and pushed me to be what she couldn\u2019t. I was really fucking good. But the mental trauma of being forced to do do that for years lives with me still, and makes me not want to touch an instrument. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>For youth competitions, there were basically 6 skill levels, A through F. Joan mostly did A &amp; B level teaching. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>The three leading causes of tendonitis development in children in the early 2000s were piano, percussion, and basketball. Guess who learned this the hard way? (I'm guessing today it's &quot;typing on a keybiard&quot; which, hey, that's my day job!) <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn4\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I never got to play organized sports, because &quot;what if something happens to your hands?&quot; All I ever got to do was play rec league baseball in the summers. Any time I jammed my fingers, I'd have to suffer and push through it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fnref4\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn5\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>This isn't a boast. This is an &quot;oh shit&quot;. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fnref5\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn6\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Two of which are currently doing something called &quot;The Eras Tour&quot;. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fnref6\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn7\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>House shopping with a baby grand piano sucks butt. The first thing I asked myself with every house we looked at was &quot;ok, where can we put the piano?&quot; It ruled out a couple of really nice houses (and a ton of shitty ones). <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-death-of-music\/#fnref7\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-26T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/","summary":"Turn and face the strange.","content":"<p>I love to tinker.<\/p>\n<p>I change things with my life around <em>constantly<\/em>. I wouldn't say that I'm indecisive, per se, but I do always find myself on the lookout for different things, especially when it comes to anything tech related.<\/p>\n<p>A great example: in my office, I currently utilize <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3yIsf04\">Hue Bulbs<\/a>, allowing me to set the temperature dynamically throughout the day, as well as control them remotely. However, there's one drawback - nobody can touch the light switch, for any reason. If it's off, then the lights don't work. Suck!<\/p>\n<p>When we re-did our basement at our last house &amp; turned that into my office, one of the things I did was ensure that the contractor installed a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3QZoo5f\">Lutron Caseta dimmer switch<\/a> for the lights. Not only could I now control on\/off + brightness remotely, but <em>anyone<\/em> could when they touched the switch. Plus, the switches are much cheaper than the bulbs. It worked perfectly.<\/p>\n<p>So now, I'm here pining to return to &quot;the old days&quot;<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>, wishing I had my Caseta switch back.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>One of the wonderful parts of participating in Weblog Posting Month (WeblogPoMo) has been the opportunity to tweak my site to modify a ton of things that had either bothering me for ages, or I just saw and thought &quot;ooo yeah, ok!&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, everything I did recently has been in the service of readability; I try to leave the flash and flair for non-important moments (save the final change), and make this a more enjoyable site for you to look at &amp; read.<\/p>\n<p>Here's a non-exhaustive list of all the changes I've made over the past 26 days:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Updated the header colors; gone is the plain white text, now it has a bit of color (also the &quot;<code>(me)<\/code>&quot; was, in my humble opinion, a fantastic touch).<\/li>\n<li>Mastodon and RSS images\/links now live in the header.<\/li>\n<li>Fixed my <a href=\"http:\/\/littlefoot.js.org\/\">Littlefoot<\/a> footnotes so they worked properly. On the home page, they'd often get crossed up with other posts on the page. (Shout out to <a href=\"http:\/\/rknight.me\/\">Robb<\/a> for the assist there.)<\/li>\n<li>Changed the default font &amp; font size. The base font is now whatever your device thinks it should be for your own legibility. The font sizes are generally a bit larger<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>, and they also scale dynamically with device size (if you're on desktop, shrink your window down; you should see the font change as you do).<\/li>\n<li>Updated font colors, link colors, and more. The base font color was made a bit thinner, and the color was modified to add some extra contrast. <em>Emphasized<\/em>, <strong>bolded<\/strong>, and <em><strong>embolded<\/strong><\/em> text got even more contrast to truly stand out. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/\">Links got the same treatment<\/a>, going from all orange to white + orange underline. Hopefully this makes things pop a bit more.<\/li>\n<li>Updated the background color. I'd been using a cool, subtle gradient before, but this was causing some issues on mobile, and making for an inconsistent reading experience. Bye bye.<\/li>\n<li>Updated my URL scheme to remove the trailing <code>\/<\/code> from every link. That annoyed me.<\/li>\n<li>Built specific pages for <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/archive\/\">post archives<\/a> (to go along with the pre-existing <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/categories\/\">categories<\/a>), my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/app-defaults\/\">app defaults<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/uses\/\">uses<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Updated my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/about\/\">About page<\/a> to be more about the past, my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now\/\">Now page<\/a> to be more focused on the present (&amp; dynamic, sucking in the latest appropriate blog post), &amp; my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\/\">Hello page<\/a> to be more specific to contacting me.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>Made the dividers between posts on the home page more prominent.<\/li>\n<li>Fixed the cosmetic footer to be anchored in place for mobile users (sorry, Whatsie).<\/li>\n<li>Added color to my list markers to make them stand out.\n<ul>\n<li>Indented ones have their own color too!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Added an entire template to handle displaying images with captions, specifically for <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/\">my post about hats<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Last but not least, as I wrote this post, I updated my post links to have a cool gradient on hover. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/\">Go on, give it a try<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Hopefully all of these changes are well received. If you don't care for any of them, be sure to let me know why it doesn't work for you. And if you have anything you think I should add, let me know that too! I'm always up for more changes.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>It was just over a year ago, Nic. Calm down. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>The older I get, the more I have to reckon with the fact that a 10pt font is just not suitable for me anymore. I don't care for this knowledge. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I got my first reader email this month. That was cool. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/changes\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Scouts","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/scouts\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-25T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/scouts\/","summary":"4 short stories about my time as a Boy Scout.","content":"<p>4 short stories about my time as a Boy Scout.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I took 2 &quot;High Adventure&quot; trips with the Scouts. The first was a hiking trip in Glacier National Park in Montana. We hiked 44 miles in 4 days, carrying everything we needed on our backs. It was beautiful and grueling and a fantastic memory.<\/p>\n<p>On the 3rd day, we crested the particular mountain we were climbing, and began our descent down the other side. On my left, a sheer rock wall. On my right, a 500 foot drop into an open valley, filled with trees and a gorgeous lake. The path was maybe 4 feet wide, somewhat loose gravel; not inherently deadly, but not the easiest place to walk when you're fully loaded with camping gear. I remember putting my walking stick in my right hand, to better prop myself as I walked and keep myself from getting too close to the edge. This worked great.<\/p>\n<p>It was a bit of a breezy day. The wind was shooting in off the lake, shoving me towards the cliff wall on my left. Perfect, I thought. But then, somehow, the wind shot in to the wall above me, slid down the wall, and tried to shove me off the path.<\/p>\n<p>I nearly fell 3 times in about 10 seconds. It's the closest I've ever been to death.<\/p>\n<p>I looked in front of me; the other kids &amp; their dad were way out in front. I looked behind me; my dad was working his way down the path and hadn't seen a thing.<\/p>\n<p>I shook my head, gripped my stick, and kept going.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Every summer, we went to the nearby camp for a week in the summer. I always had a fantastic time there; good weather, swimming, tons of activities for us to do.<\/p>\n<p>In the evenings, we'd often sit around the camp site playing games. One particular card game we played was called &quot;Spoons&quot;; it's akin to Musical Chairs. You all sit around a table, and everyone gets dealt 4 cards. The dealer then starts going through the remainder of the deck 1 card at a time as fast as they can. They can pass the card if they don't want it, or swap with a card in their hand and pass that card. The goal is to get 4 of a kind, and then reach in to the center and grab a spoon (there's 1 fewer spoon than there are players). When someone takes a spoon, that's everyone else's cue to grab one for themselves. The person without a spoon is out for the remainder of that game.<\/p>\n<p>I remember one particular game, I got 4 of a kind. I dropped my cards, and reached for the spoon. But we were playing on picnic tables, and as I reached, my finger got hung up in the little gap between planks, before springing free and hitting the spoon I was reaching for into the lap of the kid across from me. By the time I recovered, everyone else had grabbed a spoon for themselves.<\/p>\n<p>I, the one who had actually gotten 4 of a kind and initiated the mad scramble, was out.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>The other High Adventure trip I went on was to the Boundary Waters in northern Minnesota, We spent 7 days canoeing, day-hiking, swimming, jumping into waterfalls, and fishing. Our path took us right up to the Canadian border; at one point, I diverted my canoe onto Canadian soil so I could use the bathroom (my international excursions include building a house in Mexico, and taking a piss in Canada).<\/p>\n<p>We were 4 days into our trip, as far from home base as we could possibly be, and decided to do some fishing. I got a bite, and after wrestling it in, I realized I'd caught a gigantic largemouth bass.<\/p>\n<p>We took it back to shore, and took some cursory measurements before releasing it. (I forget the exact measurements here, but remember the important details.) The fish measured about 21 inches, easily the biggest fish I'd ever caught. Simultaneously, my best friend was about a quarter mile away on the rocks catching a 30 inch northern pike. So I thought I'd been overshadowed.<\/p>\n<p>When we got back to base, we shared the story with the guys at the shop and showed them the photos. The guy stared for a second, then grabbed a book that had all of the logs of the records for fish sizes. The record was 21.5 inches. And he says &quot;well, if you'd fanned the tail out like you're supposed to, you would've gotten an extra inch and a half.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>So I am the unofficial record holder for largemouth bass in the state of Minnesota.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/scouts\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>Unrelated: there was a restaurant in Ely, MN called Cranberry's that I had fond memories of. We at there the night before our canoe excursion, and the day we got back. I don't remember what we ate, but it was good, the staff was fantastic, and we had a great time.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I have my Eagle Scout. I'm very proud of this, and it's unlocked a handful of doors for me over the years.<\/p>\n<p>About a year prior to receiving it, I got into a very, very minor altercation with another scout in our troop. Due to a misunderstanding, he got in my face wanting to fight; I didn't push it, but I didn't back down either.<\/p>\n<p>Due to that altercation, my Scoutmaster implemented a condition to getting my Eagle Scout, in that I was required me to take 1 anger management class. I don't remember many specifics about things I learned in school or as a kid, but I still use some of those tools that I learned in that 4 hour class nearly 20 years later. Breathing exercises, conflict management, and more. I'll forever be grateful that I was made to take that class.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>It turns out that the record would've only stood for a year or so; a 23.5&quot; largemouth was recorded in 2005. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/scouts\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Opinion: AI Is Not Ready For The World","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ai\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-24T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ai\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><em>This post has been a work in progress for nearly 24 hours now, with more things trickling out over that time causing this post to grow in scope. The post is in chronological order. Massive content warning (depression, self-harm, suicide) for Part 3.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"part-1%3A-put-that-thing-back-where-it-came-from%2C-or-so-help-me\" tabindex=\"-1\">Part 1: Put That Thing Back Where It Came From, Or So Help Me<\/h2>\n<p>The most pressing problem with artificial intelligences (AIs) or Large Language Models (LLMs) isn't that they are shoved in your face without your consent, or that it\u2019s built on the backs of stolen content.<\/p>\n<p>The main problem right now is that Google AI, ChatGPT, etc. have been positioned by their creators as bastions of truth. And this... well, couldn't be further from the truth.<\/p>\n<p>They're the loud guy at the bar. The know-it-all inserting themselves into every conversation with a loud <strong>\u201cackshually\u201d<\/strong>, spewing whatever thoughts come to mind, and walking away before accepting any consequence for their intrusion. &quot;LLM's aren't necessarily the best approach to always getting at factuality,&quot; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.threads.net\/@reckless1280\/post\/C7VHs6txwym\">said Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Alphabet\/Google<\/a>. If that's the case, then what even is the point of them? Why do they exist?<\/p>\n<p>Some examples of various AIs, including Google's, being That Guy:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.404media.co\/google-is-paying-reddit-60-million-for-fucksmith-to-tell-its-users-to-eat-glue\/\">Add glue to your pizza<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/mastodon.social\/@danielnazer\/112492966707079287\">Eat one small rock every day<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/kanaraspberry.bsky.social\/post\/3kqlh726gjs26\">That poisonous mushroom is fine to eat<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/windbag.org\/@adam\/112493025446367156\">The CIA uses black highlighters<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/mastodon.social\/@JoeUchill\/112493317168967705\">Learn how to make spicy spaghetti<\/a><sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ai\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.threads.net\/@kylie.robison\/post\/C7U6WHkSQJk\">Kenya doesn\u2019t exist<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/hachyderm.io\/@samhenrigold\/112492421881495236\">The past is not as far away as you think<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These are all easy enough to &quot;lol&quot; from the outside, but are examples of a systematic problem with the tools themselves. Some of these fuck ups are obvious and comical (you're not actually going to eat a rock); some of these are less obvious and dangerous or lethal (mushrooms can seriously ruin your day). People ask questions because they don\u2019t know the answers, and Google\u2019s AI positions itself #1 in your search results; the implication is that the information they provide is factual, and you don't need to verify. (Oh and they\u2019re <a href=\"https:\/\/www.threads.net\/@reckless1280\/post\/C7U_sBiP6nf\/?xmt=AQGzMkYYljhSv3wE3PbJQlNxmqkfijM2lSSjt4tmm191tA\">very aware of the issues<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.threads.net\/@reckless1280\/post\/C7VVgb9Ik--\">\u201cfixing them\u201d on the fly<\/a>.)<\/p>\n<p>Google execs will (and have) look(ed) at these results and go \u201cwell sure, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.threads.net\/@reckless1280\/post\/C7SKnp2P0Wf\/?xmt=AQGzBuwMniXLAFIKbnWaBUiFLgEcnBIvpdNImPUesbzibA\">our AI isn\u2019t perfect yet<\/a>. We still need to tweak The Algorithm\u201d. <em><strong>Shouldn\u2019t the bare fucking minimum of a soft launch of a forced-upon-you AI\/LLM on a tool as widely adopted as Google be \u201cit returns facts 100% of the time\u201d?<\/strong><\/em> Even for a \u201cbeta\u201d<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ai\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>. Those same executive teams will consult with their legal teams, who will in turn regurgitate the famous quotes from <em>Fight Club<\/em>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Now, should we initiate a recall? Take the number of vehicles in the field, A, multiply by the probable rate of failure, B, multiply by the average out-of-court settlement, C. A times B times C equals X. If X is less than the cost of a recall, we don't do one.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"part-2%3A-this-impacts-me-now\" tabindex=\"-1\">Part 2: This Impacts Me Now<\/h2>\n<p>I've been working on a draft of this post since yesterday evening, intending for it to just be focused on Google. But the problems are more widespread than that.<\/p>\n<p>On Monday, the popular Mac terminal client <a href=\"https:\/\/iterm2.com\/index.html\">iTerm2<\/a> released update 3.5; included in the <a href=\"https:\/\/iterm2.com\/downloads\/stable\/iTerm2-3_5_0.changelog\">changelog<\/a> was this note:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<ul>\n<li>Using OpenAI's ChatGPT API, iTerm2 can now write commands for you, interpret the output of commands, and guide you towards a goal. See the AI section below for details.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Now, if you've read this far, you have a pretty good idea what my feelings about AI are, so you would be correct in assuming that I instantly felt really squicky about this. <a href=\"https:\/\/gitlab.com\/gnachman\/iterm2\/-\/issues\/11475\">Thankfully, it seems that I am not alone<\/a>, as <a href=\"https:\/\/gitlab.com\/gnachman\/iterm2\/-\/issues\/11470\">multiple other people have taken to the app's forums<\/a> to voice their frustrations. Some examples:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Concerns:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Privacy<\/li>\n<li>Performance<\/li>\n<li>Memory<\/li>\n<li>Complexity<\/li>\n<li>Is this an instance of a more general problem?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I think all five of these bullet points count for this problem. Also &quot;destruction of planetary ecology&quot; -- that could be added. :)<\/p>\n<p>I use iTerm2 to control production systems with data usage restrictions.  Having even the risk of it sending data to 3rd parties is a complete dealbreaker and a data security violation that could get me into legal trouble.<\/p>\n<p>I work for a company where I often need to log-in to systems that host highly sensitive data. I have to stop using iTerm2 now since there's no explicit way to disable AI integration.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>There is a risk that everything I type is being sent to someone else's server somewhere<\/li>\n<li>There is a risk that some LLM-generated random spew is typed into my shell and executed ?! (possibly as root)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>iTerm2's creator, George Nachman, <a href=\"https:\/\/gitlab.com\/gnachman\/iterm2\/-\/issues\/11475#note_1915685588\">responded to these comments<\/a>; while it was mostly fine, the final 2 paragraphs set a lot of people off (emphasis mine):<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>I'm not interested in discussing the politics of AI.<\/strong> Computing technology is full of odious things made by odious people in the most odious ways, and has been for as long as I've been alive. Take what's useful and recognize that every choice is a tradeoff.<\/p>\n<p>I don't know if the demand for an AI-free binary is widespread or just a few squeaky wheels. It would be a pain to maintain two distributions, but if secops really requires this at real companies, that would be persuasive. If your company has a blanket ban on programs that contain opt-in generative AI support that MDM mitigations cannot overcome, please let me know.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>As we all have (or should have) learned in the last 5 years, <strong>silence, or opting out of having a stance, is itself a stance &amp; a statement<\/strong>. Attempting to hand-wave the concerns of his users away as &quot;politics of AI&quot; is essentially a &quot;fuck off, I don't care, this isn't my problem&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>After a few days of pressure, Nachman developed an updated (and, as of writing, beta-only\/unreleased) version of the app, along with a plugin to integrate ChatGPT in with the app. As one interested party put it, <a href=\"https:\/\/octodon.social\/@Eramdam\/112494245820702347\">&quot;bullying works&quot;<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>And that's true, on a small scale; Nachman is just one person, making iTerm as a passion project, and can iterate rapidly on issues. But Google? With an organization that size, everything moves at a glacial pace. Multiple teams would have hands on the code. It has to go through legal, through marketing. And that's assuming they <em>want<\/em> to learn and change and grow, or put the interests of its users in front of the interests of its shareholders.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"part-3%3A-holy-fucking-shit\" tabindex=\"-1\">Part 3: Holy Fucking Shit<\/h2>\n<p><em><strong>Massive content warning for depression, self-harm, and suicide<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>I can't. I just can't.<\/p>\n<p>Yesterday (Part 1) I saw that mushrooms post, and knew something like that was going to get people hurt. I didn't really think that (<strong>CONTENT WARNING<\/strong>) <a href=\"https:\/\/mastodon.social\/@niclake\/112496938801436276\">asking how best to deal with depression<\/a> was going to be next on the &quot;shit I didn't want to see&quot; Bingo card.<\/p>\n<p>The organizations know. They know that these tools are not ready. They call it a &quot;beta&quot; and feed it to you anyway.<\/p>\n<p>They know. We know. They know we know, and we know they know. And at some point, something has to give. OSHA regulations and all safety rules are all written in blood; hopefully, legislators wake up to the reality that AIs and LLMs that intrude on our way of life are going to cause serious harm, and do something about it before someone gets hurt.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Google\u2019s AI actually \u201clearned\u201d this one <a href=\"https:\/\/mastodon.social\/@JoeUchill\/112493385783974293\">from another AI<\/a>. The enshitification of the web is a circle. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ai\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>We need to stop calling shit \u201cbeta\u201d when we release it wide to the masses; \u201ca buggy incomplete v1 that shouldn\u2019t see the light of day\u201d is a better description. The same issue is prevalent in gaming with &quot;Early Access&quot; games being sold and\/or having subscription models. It's gross and bad and we need to stop it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ai\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Put A Lid On It","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-23T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/","summary":"I have a fondness for a good hat.","content":"<p>2 things happened when I entered high school that changed who I was forever.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>I discovered that the school had a policy that allowed students to wear hats all the time.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>One of my best friends gave me a new hat for my birthday.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Now, it wasn't just <em>any<\/em> hat. No, it was a University of Nebraska hat. A school with which I have never and will never have any affiliation with. Why the heck would I wear this? &quot;The N is for 'Nic'.&quot;? Seriously?<\/p>\n<p>Reader, I swear to you, I wore that hat practically every day for almost 3 years. By the time it was retired, it had faded from the deep black of a new hat to a tan color. The brim had split and exposed the plastic underneath. I think I'd lost that little button on the very top. The metal sizing clasp got broken at some point, so my mom sewed it back together; it was my first fitted hat.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/hats\/redsoxhat.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/hats\/redsoxhat.png\" alt=\"Red Sox hats, old and new\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Eventually I got my first Red Sox hat, which received similar treatment over the years. But all it took was that stupid Nebraska hat to set me down a path that I've yet to come out of.<\/p>\n<p>My taste in hats has certainly changed over the years. I used to be all in on 47brand hats. Lower profile, curved bill, not fitted, a bit floppy and loose. But, as someone who has worn glasses my whole life, I got tired of the bill of my hat always shoving my glasses around.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/hats\/hats.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/hats\/hats.jpg\" alt=\"The current collection of hats\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>From left to right: my non-sports related hats, my non-Red Sox sport hats, and all of my Red Sox hats, plus some beanies in the back.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>So, at some point over the last decade, I switched over to almost exclusively wearing New Era 59fifty hats. 6 Red Sox hats, one each for the Celtics, Vikings, Iowa Hawkeyes, and Iowa Cubs, plus a couple of novelty hats (and some Neff &amp; Carhart beanies). My <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/wishlist\/#hats\">hat wishlist<\/a> is always in need of pruning<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup> (which mostly happens when they go out of stock), and one of my pipe dreams is to some day have a hat collection for every MLB team. When we moved into our new house last year, I was able to finally store them all in a drawer in my office, which is perfect.<\/p>\n<p>Every once in a while, I'll post a photo of myself without a hat on, and some of my friends will inevitably say &quot;I don't think I've ever seen you without a hat&quot;. Which, valid.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup> I don't know what exactly prompted me to start wearing hats all those years ago; maybe it was a control thing? Something to make me feel like I stood out from my peers? Whatever it was, it's here to stay.<\/p>\n<p>Apparently, even my kid knows about my hat obsession. We were just at the store, and I saw a hat that I thought was cool. I asked her &quot;V, should I get this hat?&quot; And she said &quot;no Daddy, have hat&quot; and touched the one on my head.<\/p>\n<p>My wife has trained her well.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Individual teachers could say &quot;no hats in my class&quot;. My 10th grade Spanish class teacher was the only one who made me take it off. I only remember 2 things from her class: &quot;chinita&quot;, which she said meant &quot;little Chinese girl&quot; but apparently means &quot;ladybug&quot;?, and &quot;\u00a1No ay shit en la clase de espa\u00f1ol!&quot;, or &quot;No saying shit in [my] Spanish class!&quot; <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>My biggest regret was not buying <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fittedhats.com\/products\/new-era-boston-red-sox-streakpop-59fifty-fitted-hat\">the Streakpop Red Sox hat<\/a>; I occasionally hunt the web to see if I can find one in my size. Alas. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I have the green Celtics hat on right now. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/put-a-lid-on-it\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"The Chief Keef 'That's That Shit I Don't Like' Trophy Case","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/nope\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-22T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/nope\/","summary":"If I'm gonna be negative online, this is going to be the place for it.","content":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mastodon.social\/@davatron5000\/112479724323610058\">Dave Rupert (@davatron5000) on Mastodon.social<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Free Idea: You get one page on your website to list all the stuff you don\u2019t like (react, tailwind, capitalism, whatever) and then the rest of the site can be about stuff you do like (birds, music, books, whatever). So whenever you\u2019re writing a post and start edgelord\u2019ing towards a rehashing of the stuff you don\u2019t like, you can say \u201coh I already wrote about that!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I'm shamelessly stealing this, because it's a great idea, and actually allows me a space to gripe online! Who knows, I'll probably turn this into an actual page someday.<\/p>\n<p>(The title of this post\/page comes from <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SheaSerrano\">Shea Serrano<\/a>, who is one of the hosts of the outstanding <a href=\"https:\/\/wondery.com\/shows\/six-trophies\/\">Six Trophies<\/a> podcast. &quot;Next up: the Chief Keef 'That's that shit I don't like' trophy, which is given out to whoever it is who does something, and we just don't like it. We don't like it. <a href=\"https:\/\/overcast.fm\/+BEI9m884Yw\/42:37\">I don't like it!<\/a>&quot;)<\/p>\n<p>This is not meant to be an exhaustive list. Lots of things make me grumpy. But these are the ones on my mind right now.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Olives. They're gross and shouldn't be a thing.<\/li>\n<li>Politics. The worst!<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/nope\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>They've closed one of the 3 bridges that cross the river here; while the other two are Fine\u2122, they add about 5 minutes each way for taking V to her grandparent's house (and also to where the woodshop is).<\/li>\n<li>Social media. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fuck-social-media\/\">It sucks!<\/a> And I love it. But it sucks!<\/li>\n<li>MLB blackouts. <a href=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/1\/16\/MLB_Blackout_Areas.svg\/776px-MLB_Blackout_Areas.svg.png\">As an Iowan<\/a>, if the schedule breaks right, there will be some days where I am blacked out of watching 40% of the baseball games that day. Shit's unacceptable.<\/li>\n<li>2.5-3 hour podcasts as a normal thing. Why? Do you really have that much interesting stuff to say? You need an editor.<\/li>\n<li>&quot;Inflation&quot;, aka &quot;well everyone needed stuff for the pandemic so we're jacking up the price because we can&quot;. (Yes, I took economics, I understand supply and demand. These are my gripes. Begone with you.)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/tailwindcss.com\/\">Tailwind<\/a>. Dave mentioning this in his post is what actually prompted me to write this. I didn't know Tailwind was a thing until last week, and I really wish I had never learned about it. It's an awful implementation for lazy developers who don't want to learn how to do real front end work.<\/li>\n<li>Somehow nobody has built a teleporter <em>or<\/em> a time machine yet. This is an outrage.<\/li>\n<li>Getting old. I didn't develop a good exercise habit at a younger age, and I'm paying for that now in my <s>mid<\/s> late 30s.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/nope\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>Sporting events starting at\/after 8pm Central. I realize the west coast is a thing, and I empathize with people having to work. But could we not? Normally Central Time is the best time for viewing all sporting events, but even I can't make it through late night baseball games (and I pity east coast fans trying to watch).<\/li>\n<li>The New York Yankees.<\/li>\n<li>I've always been the person who's Macs &amp; Apple products Just Work\u2122; whenever people have a problem, it used to be that I'd never heard of it before. Now, my devices are doing weird things <em>all the time<\/em>. I feel like I have to restart my iPhone at least once a week nowadays.<\/li>\n<li>Allergies. I have a mild grass allergy. It makes springtime an absolute nightmare.<\/li>\n<li>When you are out of your meds that help you focus, and the pharmacy calls and says &quot;hey your meds are ready&quot; and you think &quot;perfect, I need them for tomorrow's dose, I'll go get them in the morning&quot;, but then you go and realize it's Sunday and the pharmacy is closed on Sundays.<\/li>\n<li>Getting a new iPad for the first time in ages, and being really excited to use it one evening, but you've forgotten to charge it because you're still not used to using the iPad every day.<\/li>\n<li>When you start on a project, go to the hardware store and get everything* you need, get home, start on it, realize &quot;ah jeez, I need something else&quot;, go <em>back<\/em> to the hardware store and get everything else** you need, get home, get 99% of the way done, realize &quot;ah <em>fuck<\/em> I need one more thing&quot;, go back to the hardware store and get the last thing, get home, and finish the project. And then it sits unused.<\/li>\n<li>Dill pickles. Nah.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Every time someone says &quot;I should get in to politics, I really want to do good and fix all the things&quot;, I'm reminded of <a href=\"https:\/\/xkcd.com\/927\/\">my favorite XKCD<\/a>. (Not that they wouldn't try. But the outcome is always the same.) <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/nope\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>When I was 26, I herniated a disc in my back by sleeping on a futon. I wish I was kidding. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/nope\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"My Mechanical Keyboards","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/clack-clack-clack\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-21T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/clack-clack-clack\/","summary":"Does is clack? Does it thock? Who could say?!?","content":"<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/keyboards.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/keyboards.jpg\" alt=\"My humble collection\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I remember randomly discovering <a href=\"https:\/\/old.reddit.com\/r\/mechanicalkeyboards\">Reddit's mechanical keyboards subreddit<\/a> about 10-11 years ago. I thought, &quot;wow, what the heck, why would you buy custom keyboards?&quot; I remember a year later, randomly seeing the <a href=\"https:\/\/drop.com\/buy\/massdrop-x-zambumon-gmk-nautilus-custom-keycap-set\">GMK Nautilus keycap set<\/a>, and thinking &quot;hmm, ok, I guess I could get behind that... but then I'd have to get a keyboard to put it on&quot;. And now here I am, neck deep in the mechanical keyboard hobby, having just had some parts delivered this morning for the 2nd unbuilt board in my drawer.<\/p>\n<p>At the highest level, a mechanical keyboard is... well, just a nicer keyboard. You can customize a lot of different things based on what you purchase; caps can be different heights and made of different materials, the switches can move smoothly or have a tactile feel to them, the cases can be light as a feather or heavy as a rock, and all of that can contribute to the feel of typing on it &amp; the sound that it makes. Also, they can look pretty.<\/p>\n<p>Here's a look at my collection (boards are listed from the photo, top to bottom, left to right):<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"left-column\" tabindex=\"-1\">Left column<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>DZ60 + Tofu acrylic case, Zaku linear switches, DSA &quot;UnAlice&quot; keycaps<\/strong>: This is what's considered a 60% keyboard, meaning there are no arrow keys, no numpad, and no function keys. This is what I consider to be my &quot;default&quot; layout. &quot;Well Nic, how do you move around with no arrows?&quot; After I list my boards, I'll explain more about my default setup for most of these boards. (Also, if you look at this and think &quot;wow, Nic, your letters are in the wrong spots&quot;, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/colemak\/\">there's a reason for that<\/a>.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Boardwalk + KBDfans 5\u00b0 aluminum case, Zaku II tactile switches, KAT Cyberspace keycaps<\/strong>: This was my first true custom board; everything else that I'd purchased up until this point was a prebuilt. It is an ortholinear keyboard, meaning that all of the keys are lined up horizontally and vertically. The aluminum case, plus the brass plate holding switches in place, makes this a very pingy &amp; loud board to type on.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Mode Sonnet, BSUN Strawberry Wine linear switches, <s>KAT Space Dust<\/s> random purple keycaps<\/strong>: The board I'm currently typing on. I got this used from a friend, and this is truly one of my favorite boards to type on. It's smooth, fast, and the sound is incredible. These should have some cool black\/blue\/pink keycaps on them, but they're currently mired in transportation woes after one of the longest group buys in keyboard history; last I checked, they had been sent back to China because they'd been shipped to the US in a container with illegal cotton (seriously).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Planck, BSUN Pine tactile switches, KAT Explosion keycaps<\/strong>: A 40% board (aka no number row). If you aren't a keyboard person, you're probably looking at this thinking &quot;how?!?&quot; To type numbers, I hold down that up arrow to the right of the space to access the number layer (more on layers soon), and then 1-0 are on the standard ASDFGHJKL; keys. I have a lot of fun typing on this board.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"right-column\" tabindex=\"-1\">Right column<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>FoldKB (unbuilt), Gateron Yellow Pro linear switches, ??? keycaps<\/strong>: I won this board at the most recent Iowa Mechanical Keyboard meetup in April, but I have yet to assemble it. This will be my first &quot;solder everything into place&quot; board; up till now, I've been using boards that have hotswap sockets, letting me easily change out switches on the fly.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Promenade + Tofu Redux case, Gateron Raw linear switches, KAM Command keycaps<\/strong>: My most recent build. This is a clone of the Boardwalk, since the company behind that board is no longer in existence, but this one allows me to easily have the taller keys in the center column. I need a replacement &quot;J&quot; key, which is en route from China (they forgot to include a &quot;normal&quot; J in the box for people who don't use QWERTY layouts).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Elora + custom walnut cases, Kailh Box Heavy Yellow linear switches, GMK Dots 2 keycaps<\/strong>: My first split keyboard, one that I've been excited about for a long time. In the photo, they're sitting up on their sides in order to fit in with the shelf; <a href=\"https:\/\/splitkb.com\/cdn\/shop\/files\/Keyboard_3_1620x1080.jpg\">this is a better example of how the keyboard would look on my desk<\/a>. This is an ergonomic layout, meant to reduce stress on your fingers and wrists by allowing you to get the halves of the board in an optimal position for each user.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Alpha28, Cherry MX Speed Silver linear switches, generic black keycaps<\/strong>: Someone was giving this away at the Iowa meetup. I've ensured that it functions, but haven't done anything more than that yet; I'm saving it for the <a href=\"http:\/\/relay.fm\/\">Relay.fm<\/a> St. Jude campaign this fall as a stretch goal for someone's fundraiser (I'll have to use it exclusively for a week).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bully, Gateron Oil King linear switches, SA Mizu keycaps<\/strong>: I love this little board a lot; a standard stagger-layout 40% board, it's a bit of a challenge to type on at times, but once I get in the groove with things, it's another favorite typing experience.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/planck.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/keyboards\/planck.png\" alt=\"My Planck layout\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I mentioned earlier how I have &quot;layers&quot; on all of these boards; layers are a pretty standard option when it comes to mechanical keyboards, and something that I make extensive use of, especially on smaller boards. Above is a view of my Planck's keymap.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Note that the key that's normally where Caps Lock would be is orange; if I hold that down, and press any key with orange text in the upper left (ex: my N key has the down arrow), it will input that instead. Similarly, the blue key w\/ the down arrow corresponds to the numbers on my home row.<\/li>\n<li>I also use what is called <a href=\"https:\/\/stevelosh.com\/blog\/2012\/10\/a-modern-space-cadet\/#s17-shift-parentheses\">Space Cadet Shifts<\/a>, which functions as something called a &quot;ModTap&quot;; essentially, if I hold the key down, it functions as a standard Shift modifier key. But if I just tap it instead, it inputs the ( or ) keys (depenging on left or right shift being pressed). As a software developer, I make extensive use of parentheses, so having easy access to this is wonderful.<\/li>\n<li>Additionally, I also use Key Combos a lot. You can see the small yellow keys bridging the full sized ones on my layout; those mean that when I press the two keys simultaneously, it will instead output the displayed key (ex: I press X + C to output `, or C + V for ~). While I mainly implemented this for use on my tiny keyboards, I've gotten so used to these over time that I've implemented all of these combos on all of my boards, even the bigger ones.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p>There's a lot to the world of mechanical keyboards, and the rabbit hole can go <em>really<\/em> deep. Some people (like my wife) look at the keycaps and go &quot;oh those look nice&quot;, and that's all they care about. Other people are focused on the quality of materials, including <a href=\"https:\/\/modedesigns.com\/pages\/loop-tkl\">boards that have custom accent pieces underneath where you can't see them<\/a> (that's a bit much for me, personally).<\/p>\n<p>Do you have a keyboard collection? I'd love to see it!<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Mornings Are For Coffee & Contemplation","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/coffee\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-20T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/coffee\/","summary":"Join me as I share about my morning ritual + the tools I use to make coffee","content":"<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/coffee\/coffee.JPG\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/coffee\/coffee.JPG\" alt=\"A full shot of the coffee equipment\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><em>Note: this post contains affiliate links to the various products I use.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/meditation\/\">A couple of days ago, I blogged about one of my &quot;meditations&quot;<\/a>, a way that I found myself able to center my mind and reset around noon or at the end of the day. But how about starting my day? What do I do there?<\/p>\n<p>That, my friends, is what coffee is for.<\/p>\n<p>Specifically, that's what the process of making my coffee is all about. A small 7-8 minute window wherein I go through the ritual of brewing a fresh cup of coffee for myself while my daughter plays in the other room. It's how I wake up, how I get right with the day as it begins. It's part of why I bring so much of this stuff with me when I go on vacation<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/coffee\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>, because it's all about that initial process of creation that sets me up for the day ahead.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"the-equipment\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Equipment<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/coffee\/coffee-top.JPG\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/coffee\/coffee-top.JPG\" alt=\"The Every Day Brewing Tools\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Let's start with what's on the counter for use every day. From left to right:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3yla4NS\">An Aeropress<\/a> plus a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3V85X0M\">flow control filter cap<\/a>. This is (well, was until recently) my go-to for travel coffee, and I use it to make iced coffees in the summer. The flow control cap is great; the fussiest part of the Aeropress is creating the vacuum seal before too much liquid escapes, and this solves all of that hassle (although it does make plunging a bit more effort).<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4dPiZau\">A Hario V60<\/a>. This is my every day coffee maker; I entered the world of pour over coffee about 3 years ago, and I've never looked back. I've owned 2; the first fell victim to a cat on the counter.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/44Mq47T\">A Hario pour over scale<\/a>. It's not perfect (the touch buttons can sometimes not register), but overall it's perfect for what I need. The integrated timer makes this fantastic.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4arj6Gv\">A COSORI electric gooseneck kettle<\/a>. Great little kettle for your pour over needs. Less great for things like tea or hot chocolate, simply because of the restricted flow rate. Also, I wish that the max fill line was also stamped on the front, instead of where the handle is, because you have to hold it somewhat awkwardly to see it. Minor gripes, though. The multiple temp buttons and hold setting are perfect.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3QNJkvJ\">A Baratza Encore grinder<\/a>. Baratza is fantastic not only from a construction standpoint, but from a repair standpoint; they sell EVERY part for this grinder so you can replace them as needed. I've made a few enhancements; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.redbubble.com\/i\/sticker\/Stardew-Valley-Coffee-by-Serendipitous71\/40627443.EJUG5\">a sticker from Redbubble<\/a>, an upgraded conical burr, and 3D printed chaff tray + on\/off knob arm. Best bang for your buck grinder, and I have no reason at this time to upgrade.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4asmdxS\">A little spray bottle<\/a> for water. Grinding coffee beans can produce static electricity, and the chaff can stick to everything or scatter everywhere. A quick spray of water on the beans before grinding can solve that problem. Any sprayer is fine, but this one makes me feel like a secret agent every time I use it.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4bFJGfW\">A Bonavita 8 cup drip machine<\/a>. Most coffee machines fall down in 3 areas; the water doesn't get hot enough when brewing, there's no way to &quot;bloom&quot; the coffee with a small initial pour to help release CO2, and the warming unit underneath scalds the coffee. This machine fixes all of those. I did a ton of research before making this purchase, and I'm really glad I did. It makes terrific coffee for large groups (or when you're really tired in the mornings).<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3WNBd6e\">An Ember mug<\/a>. My first Father's Day gift. I'd previously poured my coffee into a thermos, and then dosed out 2-3 oz at a time into a small mug. This worked ok, but I found that I lost a lot of coffee to &quot;forgetting about it&quot;, as I dislike tepid-temped coffee. The mug fixed this problem instantly, and it's probably the best gift my wife has ever gotten me. I have it set to keep my coffee at 130\u00b0 F, down 5\u00b0 from default.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/coffee\/coffee-drawer.JPG\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/coffee\/coffee-drawer.JPG\" alt=\"The Drawer of Caffenation\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>As for the rest of the supplies (mostly left to right, some jumping around):<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>V60 filters: I have long used <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4aB6k8E\">the default white tabbed filters<\/a>, and they generally work great. However, sometimes they can get clogged or drain slowly, leading to a more bitter cup of coffee. To counteract this, I've started using <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/44NODkQ\">CAFEC Abaca filters<\/a> as my go-to filter. They drain much quicker and consistently from bean to bean; if I get one that's too fast, but the flavor profile is there, I'll switch back to the standard filters.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/biocoffee.com\/\">Biocoffee<\/a>. This is my wife's choice of coffee every day.<\/li>\n<li>Beans: I get my beans from <a href=\"http:\/\/rwrd.io\/du3ayh2?c\">Trade Coffee<\/a>. I can't express how much I love Trade enough. I did a full breakdown of the pricing of different coffee providers when my daughter was born, trying to figure out which would be best. I landed on Trade, because they would ship coffees as needed, vs. on a fixed schedule, and I've been incredibly happy with them. (If you've not tried them, you can <a href=\"http:\/\/rwrd.io\/du3ayh2?c\">use my link<\/a> to get 30% off your first month; I'll receive a free bag if you do.)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4ayniUW\">A portable grinder<\/a>. Perfect for taking on road trips.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3K7OrmU\">A Bodum French press<\/a>. I have both a 17oz and 34oz press. This was the way I first got into coffee, and they still make a terrific cup; however, they tend to be a bit more oily and dense than the pour over, so I don't make them as often anymore. When I do, I employ <a href=\"https:\/\/sevencoffeeroasters.com\/blogs\/coffee-101\/james-hoffmann-french-press\">James Hoffman's method<\/a>, which is essentially to scoop the grounds off the top and let everything settle before plunging. This certainly helps with the oiliness of the method, but is much more fussy and time consuming.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.etsy.com\/listing\/1174633678\/foldable-pour-over-coffee-maker-cone?click_key=841e3845e0e798702535d1c01e45ff18bb6dfeff%3A1174633678&amp;click_sum=e3fee39d&amp;ref=shop_home_active_1&amp;crt=1\">A portable pour over cone<\/a>. Another gift from the wife for my portable coffee needs. I made extensive use of this during our recent vacation, and it works flawlessly. Perfect for travel or camping.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"the-methods\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Methods<\/h2>\n<p>I basically make 2 types of coffee right now - pour overs &amp; iced coffees. Here is a brief rundown of the steps I take for each.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"pour-over\" tabindex=\"-1\">Pour Over<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li>Heat 250g water to 205\u00b0 F; 195\u00b0 F if using a dark roast<\/li>\n<li>Grind 15g of beans, slightly coarser than you would for typical pour over (16 on the Encore)<\/li>\n<li>Rinse the filter\/preheat the cone &amp; carafe<\/li>\n<li>Dump coffee in to cone, shake to level, then add a little dimple in the center with your finger<\/li>\n<li>0:00-0:10 - pour 50g of water, starting in center and spiraling out<\/li>\n<li>0:10 - give a quick, light swirl, and let bloom<\/li>\n<li>0:45-0:55 - pour 50g of water in concentric circles<\/li>\n<li>1:10-1:20 - pour 50g of water in concentric circles<\/li>\n<li>1:30-1:40 - pour 50g of water in concentric circles<\/li>\n<li>1:50-2:00 - pour 50g of water in concentric circles<\/li>\n<li>2:00 - give a light swirl, and let drain<\/li>\n<li>Brewing should be complete by around 3:00-3:15; if shorter, switch to standard filters or grind finer; if longer, grind coarser<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3 id=\"aeropress-iced-coffee\" tabindex=\"-1\">Aeropress Iced Coffee<\/h3>\n<ol>\n<li>Heat 240g water to 205\u00b0 F; 195\u00b0 F if using a dark roast<\/li>\n<li>Place 160g of ice (~4-5 ice cubes) in a mug\/cup suitable for plunging Aeropress (I use an insulated travel mug)<\/li>\n<li>Grind 22g of beans on a fine setting (9 on the Encore)<\/li>\n<li>Assemble Aeropress (no need to rinse filter), place on mug\/cup, and add grinds<\/li>\n<li>(Optional) add 1 packet of raw sugar to the grinds<\/li>\n<li>Add 240g of water (will be just below the brim), and give a quick swirl\/stir<\/li>\n<li>If using the standard filter cap, add plunger to create vacuum seal<\/li>\n<li>Let brew for 3:30<\/li>\n<li>Give a quick swirl, and brew for 30 more seconds<\/li>\n<li>Plunge through the hiss into the iced mug\/cup; should take about 30 seconds<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<hr \/>\n<p>There you go! A full rundown of my coffee setup + brewing methods. I hope this is helpful to someone, and\/or gives people some ideas about where to go next with their own coffee journeys. If you have a post like this, let me know - I would love to check it out!<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>My wife has just learned to accept this as part of our travel life now, and to her credit, she's purchased things for me as gifts to enable this behavior. I love and appreciate her for this. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/coffee\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Now (May 2024)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-may-2024\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-19T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-may-2024\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/aquarium.JPG\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/aquarium.JPG\" alt=\"The aquarium\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>We took a nice vacation at the end of April\/beginning of May,<\/strong> heading down to visit my wife's sister &amp; family in North Carolina. Pre-child, we would just make the 11 or 13.5hr (depending on origin) drive to NC in one day; lately, we've been breaking it into 3 or 4 days so that V isn't stuck in the van for too long, but we'd just stop for the night and depart the next day. This time, we actually hit up some of the spots we've always been looking at during our drives. We spent 2 days at a nice resort with a small waterpark, and took V to an aquarium as well. It was a wonderful time, and I love that our kiddo has forced us out of our shell to do and experience new things. V also had a blast playing with her older cousins, so that was fantastic.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/pentray.JPG\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/pentray.JPG\" alt=\"A pen tray I've started on\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>I finally got back out to the wood shop<\/strong>, this time starting on a simple pen\/pencil tray for all of the stuff I have on my desk every day. Spent 3x as long figuring out how to make the grooves than I did actually cutting. Always love being able to get out there and work, and hoping to prioritize that more this summer.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The wife and I have been watching a TON of the NBA playoffs<\/strong>. Both of our teams (Celtics for me, Timberwolves for her) have advanced to their respective conference finals, and presumably could be on a collision course to play in the NBA Finals. That would be a ton of fun.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/swing.JPG\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/swing.JPG\" alt=\"This is the before picture, don't worry\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>V is getting a swing set.<\/strong> This did involve 1 massive parts order + 2 trips to the hardware store, and it's still not done. But she saw her new swing and <em>flipped out<\/em>, running around the house shouting &quot;BLUE SWING BLUE SWING BLUE SWING&quot;, so that's dope. +1 dad point.<\/p>\n<p><strong>We have nature all around our house,<\/strong> and we're loving it. My wife is thrilled to have a ton of plants and landscaping to work on &amp; make nice. V is a huge fan of being outside at all times, and now that she's a bit older, she's able to go out with her mom and &quot;help&quot; with various things. We've been in the house for exactly 1 year as of today, and the difference in the landscaping has been night and day.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/chippy.JPG\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/chippy.JPG\" alt=\"Chippy\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>We've got a bunch of friends around the house too. There's a chipmunk we've dubbed &quot;Chippy&quot; that loves to hang out just off our deck practically all day, and they've realized they can get on our squirrel-proof bird feeders and eat the seed no problem. Hooray?<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/birds.JPG\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/birds.JPG\" alt=\"Baby birds\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>We've also got some baby birds that have hatched in one of our hanging baskets on the front porch. Mama has been aloof a bit, but she's started cautiously coming back to the nest while we sit on the front porch. It's been cool to get the basket down to water the plant every day or two and see the growth the birds are making; V really enjoys looking at them too. (&quot;Baby birds!!!&quot;)<\/p>\n<p><strong>I'm trying to take a page out of the cat's book on the weekends<\/strong>; it's nice to get stuff done and great to feel productive, but it's also important to just chill and relax and soak up the sun a little bit. (As such, I forgot to hit &quot;post&quot; on this until Monday morning. Oops.)<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/beaunap.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now-5-24\/beaunap.jpg\" alt=\"What a rough life\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n"},{"title":"My Blogging Workflow","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-blogging-workflow\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-18T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-blogging-workflow\/","summary":"Because I'm sure you just are DYING to know how I get my words out to you.","content":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/rknight.me\/blog\/my-blogging-workflow\/\">A couple<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/bjhess.com\/posts\/my-blogging-workflow\">of different<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/birming.com\/posts\/my-tedious-blogging-workflow\">people<\/a> have written some posts this week about their particular blogging workflows. Some are simple (write post, publish). Some are tedious (speak in to notes, reformat by hand, pass through a grammar checker, pass in to an AI for editing<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-blogging-workflow\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>, publish). And I thought, hmm... mine is certainly unique. Maybe I should share.<\/p>\n<p>My site is built with <a href=\"http:\/\/jekyllrb.com\/\">Jekyll<\/a>, and hosted on <a href=\"https:\/\/pages.github.com\/\">GitHub Pages<\/a>. This works pretty well for me, a software developer, since my whole life is about writing code and pushing it out. However, it falls down <em>real quick<\/em> when I'm not at my computer, as I found out at the start of this month when I was blogging while on vacation. GitHub Mobile doesn't have any way of creating pull requests or allowing me to easily maintain the repo my blog sits in &amp; builds from. Neat!<\/p>\n<p>Anyway, here's my standard workflow + caveats for when I was on vacation.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>I write the post in VS Code. Yes, VS Code. (On vacation, I wrote it in Apple Notes.)<\/li>\n<li>Using the terminal built in to VS Code, I push the change to my GitHub repo. Posts like this, I've done the night before, so it gets a pull request. Other posts, written day-of, I just push straight to the <code>main<\/code> branch. (On vacation, I had to delete the GitHub app from my phone, then go to the GitHub website, create a manual pull request, add the content, and merge it all manually.)<\/li>\n<li>That's it!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>(Quick side note: if you're on Wordpress, or Pika, or whatever... PLEASE, for the love of Gaben, do not write your post in the WYSIWYG editor those services provide. PLEASE write it in a local application and move it to your platform manually. The day you lose a massive blog post when you try to submit because the network is down, you'll remember this advice and go &quot;wow, Nic, I should've listened to you&quot;. Tools like MarsEdit or any text editor are great for this.)<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I'm not one to yuck someone else's yum... but <em>yuck<\/em>. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-blogging-workflow\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"35","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/35\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-16T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/35\/","summary":"I can't figure out what to write today, so here's a list of thoughts.","content":"<p>I wrote a list with 35 <code>&lt;li&gt;<\/code>s.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Bulbasaur is the best Pok\u00e9mon. There is no debate here. You may have a different opinion, but it's wrong, and that's ok.<\/li>\n<li>I think that Bill Murray is dead, because somehow, him getting shot in <em>&quot;Zombieland&quot;<\/em> is lodged in my brain as canon, and I can't purge it.<\/li>\n<li>I've been sober for 137 days.<\/li>\n<li>Fender guitars are the best.<\/li>\n<li>If you tell me a party starts at 7, I'm showing up at 7. I'll probably be outside at 6:50, to be honest. &quot;Nobody shows up on time to a party&quot; I do.<\/li>\n<li>Bidets are weird. We own one, I understand the concept, but I'll never be ok with spraying my bottom with freezing cold water.<\/li>\n<li>I was interrupted writing this post by my daughter coming in to put a bunch of butterfly stickers on my leg.<\/li>\n<li>Sharpie Gel pens are the best commercially available pens out there. Chuck those Pilot G2s in the trash.<\/li>\n<li>I was again interrupted by my daughter; this time, she came in to the room with a wooden chef's knife, stood by me until I looked at her, shouted &quot;HI-YA!!!&quot;, and laughed.<\/li>\n<li>I don't believe in horoscopes, Enneagram, Myers-Briggs, or any of that; I <em>do<\/em> think they can be useful tools, but defining your life into a small bucket seems silly.<\/li>\n<li>Cookies should be eaten straight out of the freezer, especially Thin Mints.<\/li>\n<li>Having fear of something is not the problem, it's the fear towards the fear.<\/li>\n<li>This morning, I learned about an unincorporated community in Texas named Ding Dong. I want to move there.<\/li>\n<li>TV shows are probably dead last on my list of &quot;everyday activity I'd like to pass my free time with&quot;. I know I'm missing out on some great stuff, but that's just how my mind works.<\/li>\n<li>Related: I've not seen every episode of <em>&quot;The Office&quot;<\/em> or <em>&quot;Parks &amp; Rec&quot;<\/em>, but I have listened to every episode at least a dozen times since that's what my wife watches when she's going to sleep.<\/li>\n<li>It's absolutely wild to me that the internet is a thing. That some brilliant minds contrived of it and built it, that others have come along and bolted enhancements to the existing framework, and that it exists today. It's just wild to think about.<\/li>\n<li>Same with cell phones. I can be practically anywhere in the world and speak to you with minimal delay? Mind boggling.<\/li>\n<li>I personally rank sushi establishments by how good their spicy salmon rolls are.<\/li>\n<li>A friend and I spent 3 weeks in college learning how to throw a knuckleball. We didn't have a backstop, so the best ones either rolled far away, or hit us.<\/li>\n<li>I'm not a lyric person; a good melody is all it takes to hook me. I'll come back to the lyrics after I've listened to the song about 3 dozen times.<\/li>\n<li>Related: I love instrumental prog metal.<\/li>\n<li>I've always been at least a year behind the times on adopting tech-related things. Podcasts. Spotify. Bitcoin. Software languages. Ultrawide monitors.<\/li>\n<li>Money can buy you peace and comfort, which is the key to true happiness.<\/li>\n<li>I helped a coworker that was in her mid-50s get a 72% raise once. That felt really good.<\/li>\n<li>I once hired a junior developer that was so good, they gave me impostor syndrome.<\/li>\n<li>Baseball is the best sport.<\/li>\n<li>Baseball seasons are too long, and it makes the sport worse.<\/li>\n<li>I think I'm going to learn how to spin a pencil\/pen.<\/li>\n<li>Blogging for 31 straight days is <em>really<\/em> difficult. Mostly because finding 31 unique topics to talk about is a massive pain.<\/li>\n<li>The Boston Celtics are the most frustrating great team I've ever watched.<\/li>\n<li>The very early days of Twitter were some of my favorite times. I met some amazing people. I worked for burritos. I got 3 jobby jobs because of it. Early Twitter will always and forever be my favorite era of the internet.<\/li>\n<li>I miss having NERF wars with my friends at college. I looked at the latest NERF guns the last time I was at Target... man, we would've had fun with those.<\/li>\n<li>You're never going to achieve perfection at anything. The goal is just to work towards perfection every day.<\/li>\n<li>When I was a kid, &quot;retirement&quot; sounded amazing - just imagining getting to do whatever you want every day and not being beholden to anything? Bliss. Now, &quot;retirement&quot; sounds horrifying - if I didn't have anything on my plate each day, I'd go insane.<\/li>\n<li>I heard someone use the phrase &quot;8 dimensional Roshambo&quot; in place of &quot;4 dimensional chess&quot; and I think I'm gonna use that.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n"},{"title":"Why I Write","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-i-write\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-15T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-i-write\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>I write because sometimes, it's just helpful to get a thought off my chest, and process it through my fingertips.<\/p>\n<p>I write because maybe someone out there reads what I am thinking and goes &quot;hey, me too!&quot;<\/p>\n<p>I write because it's cheaper than therapy.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-i-write\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I write because often times I have a whole bunch to say about a topic, and never have the right venue. Plus, I know that once I start writing, it'll take forever for me to hit the brakes, and being able to edit myself before hitting &quot;send&quot; is sometimes to everyone's benefit. Nothing like killing off friendships because you just had to get a word in edgewise.<\/p>\n<p>I write to learn brevity.<\/p>\n<p>I write because that one time in high school, when I was taking creative writing, I wrote something that my teacher thought was mildly concerning depression-wise, but rather than report me to the principal, she took the time out of her day to talk to me and make sure I was good; after all, it <em>was<\/em> just a creative writing exercise.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-i-write\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I write because I learned from an early age how important and amazing reading is, and I hoped one day to be able to give that back to future generations.<\/p>\n<p>I write because my entire thought process is analogies and comparisons, and those don't always make sense to others unless I get them into words.<\/p>\n<p>I write because I love the sound of my keyboards as I hit each key, and I get that feeling of satisfaction as I <em>clack clack clack<\/em> through a post.<\/p>\n<p>I write because it's fun. I write because it sucks. I write because I'm a good writer. I write because I'm a bad writer.<\/p>\n<p>I write because writing is a creative process. A rambling series of sentences can become a cohesive story. I can create something out of an ephemeral thought<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-i-write\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>, and publish it with the click of a button. I can make it, then stand up and walk away, knowing that others get a chance to see what I made. Or not! Maybe nobody reads it.<\/p>\n<p>I write, and I hope you write too, because knowing each other through our published thoughts is such an Old Way of the Internet\u2122 type of thing, and I love it so much.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>It's not a substitute... but sometimes it's enough. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-i-write\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I was just a little emo kid when I wrote it on a Thurs\/Fri; when she talked to me on Monday everything was better. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-i-write\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I write because I enjoy flowery words like &quot;ephemeral&quot; but don't always have good opportunities to use them in MeatSpace. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-i-write\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"What\u2019s In A Name?","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/whats-in-a-name\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-14T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/whats-in-a-name\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>Lately, I\u2019ve been on a quest for finding a new handle\/screenname for playing games online. Partly because I like changing things up from time to time, but also because I don\u2019t vibe with the ones I use anymore for a variety of reasons. As I was thinking back on all of my old handles, I thought \u201chey that could be fun to write about\u201d. So\u2026 here goes. Enjoy.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>bluestreak<\/strong>: my first character name on the first online game I remember playing, <a href=\"http:\/\/jedimud.net\/\">JediMUD<\/a>, way back in the late 90s. I played the heck out of this game for a number of years, and even developed a small zone for the game. bluestreak was also my first experience with clerics\/healers, which lives as my preferred archetype nearly 3 decades later. I also used <strong>redstreak<\/strong> for an alt. (Oh, and this handle wasn\u2019t inspired by Transformers; rather, it stemmed from the terrible Martin Lawrence film. Alas.)<\/li>\n<li><strong>phoenix<\/strong> \/ <strong>griffin<\/strong>: more alts for JediMUD, and my first time venturing into the world of \u201cwhat do you mean, I can\u2019t get my preferred handle on any game I play?\u201d Using \u201cphoenix\u201d as part of my online persona would continue on to this day.<\/li>\n<li><strong>ilk<\/strong>: my first email handle. I didn\u2019t know \u201cilk\u201d was a word when I came up with this; (I\u2019ve never admitted this before so have fun) the whole reason for this handle was a placeholder for \u201cI Like K____\u201d, my first crush in junior high.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/whats-in-a-name\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> I just told people it was every other letter of my name, and \u201cNcae\u201d was gibberish.<\/li>\n<li><strong>ihatelockers<\/strong>: AOL Instant Messenger, or AIM, was huge in my school. I\u2019m pretty sure I started off as bluestreak when I signed up, and I know I (like my peers) changed screen names constantly. In the final week of 9th grade, I got into a minor altercation during recess, and my punishment was having to come back the day after school got out and clean lockers out for a few hours.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/whats-in-a-name\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup> It was gross. As soon as I got home, I made this handle, and it would be the AIM handle I used into college.<\/li>\n<li><strong>graffitisky<\/strong>: Linkin Park\u2019s song \u201cRunaway\u201d starts with the lyrics \u201cGraffiti decorations \/ under a sky of dust\u201d, and I always really enjoyed those lyrics for some reason. When the Reanimation album came out, the remixed track \u201cRnw@y\u201d had little chopped up lyrics at the start saying \u201cGraffiti Sky\u201d. I thought this was a beautiful visual, and made that my handle for a while. It remains one that my brain returns to often.<\/li>\n<li><strong>niclake13<\/strong> \/ <strong>niclake<\/strong>: It\u2019s my name. Woo. As I\u2019ve gotten older (and when Twitter had really short character limits), I dropped \u201c13\u201d off the handle.<\/li>\n<li><strong>PhoenixUNI<\/strong>: my primary handle for the better part of 15 years. A combo of my favorite mythical creature + my university (Northern Iowa). I didn\u2019t count on a) me falling out of love with my school over the years, and 2) the University of Phoenix existing\/becoming a meme.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Themble<\/strong>: my first World of Warcraft character, a gnome mage. It was auto generated by WoW\u2019s name generator, and I\u2019ve used it off and on over the years for placeholder characters.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bruuding<\/strong>: my main character name on World of Warcraft since Burning Crusade. It got assigned to my Blood Elf Paladin, which I mained as healer and tank for years. All of my subsequent characters were riffs on the \u201cbruu\u201d tag and tangentially related to brewing beer; Stoutbruu for my warrior, Arcanebruu for my mage, Hoppybruu for my druid, Dotfearbruu for my warlock, or Pewpewbruu for my hunter.<\/li>\n<li><strong>GoodDayToFeed<\/strong>: I had a really aggressive playstyle for League of Legends, and often got told to \u201cstop feeding [kills]\u201d when I played too recklessly. I spun up a second account where I mained Teemo, arguably the most hated character in the game, and this handle seemed perfect for it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>BulbaSnorlax<\/strong>: around the time of the pandemic, I attempted a rebrand of my streaming persona. I still use this handle in a lot of places, but my interest in streaming died off pretty quick, so this mostly just sits abandoned.<\/li>\n<li><strong>ciNekaL<\/strong>: pronounced \u201ccynical\u201d, it\u2019s just my name backwards. Clever, huh? This is my newest name that I\u2019ve just recently started going by.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>What about you? Does this dig up any fun memories from your early screennames? Have any sorta embarrassing ones in your history? Let\u2019s hear em!<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>If I recall correctly, I asked them to the 8th grade dance out of the blue. They said no. Nothing ever came out of it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/whats-in-a-name\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>We were playing knockout, a basketball game. I made my shot, got the ball, and threw it back to the next guy in line. He wasn\u2019t paying attention, and it hit him below the belt. My instinct was to laugh, but immediately said sorry. He took a swing at me and knocked my glasses off. He then showed up almost an hour late to punishment day, and while I got to leave at lunch, he had to stay the whole day. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/whats-in-a-name\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Brain Drain","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/brain-drain\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-13T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/brain-drain\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>I'll be honest, I've got absolutely nothing to write about today.<\/p>\n<p>I'm back from a 2 week vacation. First day was just trying to re-immerse myself in work and remembering what I was doing. It was an absolute slog on my brain, so much so that I forgot to buy 2 items that were on my shopping list at the store.<\/p>\n<p>I've nearly exhausted my list of things I wanna write about. The last 2 on my list are posts that take a bit more to write and\/or have photos involved, so those are out today.<\/p>\n<p>Weblog Posting Month has been great at getting me to Just Write\u2122. I've been worried that this day would come, where I just wouldn't have anything to write about. But instead of forcing it, I'm gonna go downstairs, kick my feet up, and relax a bit.<\/p>\n<p>(If you have anything you'd like to hear me write about, let me know.)<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Surprise and Delight","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/surprise-and-delight\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-12T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/surprise-and-delight\/","summary":"The reveal is important. But the way that reveal makes someone feel... THAT is the key.","content":"<p>I remember when I was about 5 or 6, my parents and I went to our normal pizza place; we lived in a college town, and this place was on &quot;the hill&quot;, right next to campus. My parents had actually met there years earlier when my dad was working there. We arrived, and I did my usual routine; sit still until I couldn't any longer, and then ask if I can go &quot;play pinball&quot;. By that, I mean I'd drag one of the nearby bar stools over to the machine, sit\/kneel on it, and press the buttons or pull the plunger while the machine made noises. It was the coolest thing in the universe. Nothing could top it.<\/p>\n<p>Until that day. Because that day, one of the waitresses (some college girl) walked over and went &quot;do you want a quarter to play?&quot; I had no idea what she was actually asking, but she took some of her tip money out and dropped it in the machine.<\/p>\n<p><strong>NEW NOISES! WHOA THE BUTTONS MAKE FLIPPERS MOVE?!? WHOA THERE'S A BALL?!?!?!?!? WHAT IS GOING ONNNNNNN?!?!?!?!?!?!?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I lost all 3 balls relatively quickly, as one is prone to do the very first time they play a game. And then it went back to the way it used to be. Still making sounds. Still letting me push buttons. But nothing moved. There was no more action; it had been robbed of me.<\/p>\n<p>That quarter unlocked surprise and delight for me.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>The first iPod was a revolution. You could carry music with you. And recharge it. And you didn't need any CDs or cassettes. What a delight.<\/p>\n<p>The first MacBook Air was a revolution. Jobs pulled out a goddamn manilla envelope and pulled a fully functional laptop out of it. And it was light. And silent. And had good battery life. Holy smokes, what a delight.<\/p>\n<p>The term <em>&quot;Surprise and Delight&quot;<\/em> has been around for a long time, but I learned of it from Apple's presentations, specifically the ones run by Steve Jobs. The entire experience of their keynotes wasn't just about showing off a new product; to him, it was about shocking the world with what Apple had created, and delighting them with the results it could produce.<\/p>\n<p>Nowadays, things just don't hit the same. Every iPhone is just a slightly different looking version than what came before. Every enhancement leaks weeks in advance. Oh boy, they got FASTER and LIGHTER and MORE NITS and BETTER BATTERY, just like every other device that came before it. Even the Vision Pro, as cool as it seems, didn't manage to delight its users enough to prevent many of them from being returned. And yet, practically every podcaster and tech blogger who got to do the demos seemed to be absolutely delighted by it... but were they surprised?<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>One huge bummer about modern society is the sheer lack of surprise and delight coupled together any longer. In a world where we have every news source at our fingertips, the race to be &quot;FIRST&quot; or grab a scoop leads to spoilers and wild speculation. Gone are the days where people just sit on scoops; information is currency when it comes to ad-driven revenue. There's a flash of surprise (&quot;wow, can't believe so and so are gonna do X&quot;) and sometimes delight (&quot;hallelujah, the iPhone is getting USB C!&quot;), but never paired together in a package that you can touch and feel. It's ephemeral. It's vapor. It's gone, and when you finally get your hands on whatever it is, it doesn't come back.<\/p>\n<p>To beat a video game back in the day took a lot of trial and error. Sure, you could spend your hard earned money on a strategy guide, but the trial and error method worked too. And then... wait, what's this? A website filled with game guides? <em>EVERY<\/em> collectible listed? Holy cow, this is awesome! And then you approach every challenge of a game with &quot;ugh, alright, lemme find a walkthrough or YouTube video showing me how to do the thing&quot; (which, fair - sometimes things are a massive PITA... but maybe they're a PITA because the developer no longer has to craft a scenario with as much care as they once did, since they know you're just going to look up how to do it anyway).<\/p>\n<p>I really miss those days. Days when I could be surprised AND delighted, AND get to experience it all first-hand in real time.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>On vacation, V and I took a walk down the hill during lunch, and stumbled across a pet store. They had a vending machine with dog treats out front, and a basket for people to drop the containers the treats came in for re-use. Naturally, V wanted to play with those containers, so we stood there for a minute.<\/p>\n<p>The woman running the register saw us, and called out, &quot;would you like a quarter for the machine?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>I smiled. &quot;No thank you. Not today.&quot; V's only 2. Every new experience she has right now triggers joy for her. Showing her something like this, only to snatch it away with a &quot;come one, we have to go eat&quot; seems like asking for trouble.<\/p>\n<p>But one day... one day, I'll hand her that quarter, and prepare to witness the surprise and delight.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Meditation","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/meditation\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-11T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/meditation\/","summary":"I am Calm and Comfort and Quiet and Peace\u2122","content":"<p>I've tried traditional meditation. I don't care for it.<\/p>\n<p>A lot of that probably has to do with my ADHD. I'm incapable of shutting off my brain for long enough to just sit still and not think about anything. Meditation instructors will say &quot;but that's the point, you have to learn it.&quot; Which... sure, that's fair.<\/p>\n<p>But I also don't care for the fact that &quot;meditation&quot; is considered sacred, and if it doesn't look like someone sitting crisscross applesauce on a comfy pillow in perfect silence, then it doesn't count. Fuck that.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>I meditate 1-2 times every day, when I walk my daughter to sleep before her nap or bedtime.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>During that time, my whole goal is to be a pillar of comfort and a beacon of peace to V. I'm not &quot;pick me up and spin me around&quot; Dad, or &quot;chasing me all over trying to get me to brush my teeth&quot; Dad. I am Calm and Comfort and Quiet and Peace\u2122.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes when we walk, I turn on a quiet lo-fi chillhop playlist for us to listen to. Other times, I'll sing. Sometimes, V will scream or cry or fight me the whole way. Sometimes, we just walk silently. Routinely, I work on taking deep breaths, and encourage V to do so as well in order to help her regulate.<\/p>\n<p>Some days, I'm in a great mood, life is perfect, and the transition to this time is easy. Some days, V has been fighting us at bedtime, and won't settle down. Some days, I'm in the worst mood imaginable, and I know that once she's out I'll have to return to whatever I have to deal with.<\/p>\n<p>No matter what the situation is, within seconds, I manage to drop into a state I feel most who meditate strive to achieve; my brain calms down, I'm able to relax, and I can be that anchor V needs in order to get to sleep.<\/p>\n<p>I may not be on a path to enlightenment. But my kid is asleep, and that's a path to inner peace for everyone in my home. I call that a win.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Fur Babies","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fur-babies\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-10T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fur-babies\/","summary":"I wrote about my cats. You're welcome.","content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/all_table.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/all_table.jpeg\" alt=\"The boys all together\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>Pixel, Bearcat, and Beau working together to get cottage cheese<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I joke that in our household, I'm the 6th most important living being. The ranking goes: V (our daughter), R (my wife), Bearcat &amp; Beau (our cats), all of the plants inside and out as one entity, and then myself.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fur-babies\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> I figured I should take this day and introduce you to our boys, because they're great.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"bearcat\" tabindex=\"-1\">Bearcat<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/bearcat.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/bearcat.jpeg\" alt=\"Bearcat\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>My wife adopted Bearcat 2 months before we started dating. He was the loner cat, tucked away in a cage in the cat room because he didn't get along with any of the other cats. She took pity on him, and he became the sweetest cat you'll ever meet. When he was adopted, they estimated that he was anywhere from 1-3 years old; I've always estimated on the lower side because I don't want to admit that we have an old cat, but he's probably around 13 years old now. He's only about 10lbs., relatively small for a fully grown cat. He's got crazy crumpled up ears, likely do to ear mites from when he was a stray, and my wife thought he looked like a bear, so Bearcat stuck.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fur-babies\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>The best possible way to describe Bearcat is that he's like the most chill dog you've ever met. He's cool doing his own thing, but when he wants your attention he demands it (I spent about an hour this morning with him sprawled in front of my keyboard while I worked). He opened my eyes to how loving a cat can be, and he's been our best bud through our entire relationship. He'd sleep on my wife's passenger seat when she'd drive up to visit me for long weekends, and has been with us through 2 apartments and 2 houses.<\/p>\n<p>Alternate names: Buddy, Bee-doh, Boar-cat<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"beau\" tabindex=\"-1\">Beau<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/beau_baby.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/beau_baby.jpeg\" alt=\"Beau as a baby\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Beau was our pandemic baby. We weren't really sure if adding a (at the time) 3rd cat to the family was the best idea, but we decided to go for it, and it worked out amazingly. We <em>almost<\/em> didn't get to adopt him. The timeline was kinda weird:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Our friend (who fostered kittens for the ARL) posted a photo of Beau, and I immediately fell in love.<\/li>\n<li>I tried to convince my wife that we should adopt him. After about a week, she was like &quot;hmm ok maybe&quot;.<\/li>\n<li>I reached out to our friend to express interest, and was told he'd been adopted by Family A. I was bummed.<\/li>\n<li>About a week later, Friend posted another photo of Beau, stating that the adoption with Family A had fallen through.<\/li>\n<li>Convincing and cajoling took place, but I finally got my wife on board. Hurray!<\/li>\n<li>I message Friend, and was told &quot;oh yeah, sorry, Family B adopted him&quot;. <em><strong>FUCK!!!<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n<li>On a whim, I tell Friend that if for whatever reason he became available again to please let us know.<\/li>\n<li>Friend posts a video of her introducing the kitten litter to her other pets, including 2 small-ish dogs. Beau seems afraid of said dogs.<\/li>\n<li>I get a message from Friend on Sunday morning; Family B has backed out because they have 2 huskies, and worry about compatibility.<\/li>\n<li>We're at her house 3 hours later meeting Beau.<\/li>\n<li>We brought him home that Thursday.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/beau.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/beau.jpeg\" alt=\"Beau\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Beau is hilarious; random things still frighten him to a degree, like &quot;moving your foot while sitting on the couch&quot; or &quot;sneezing&quot; or &quot;petting him&quot;; in the mornings when he's hyper, it just leads to lots of zoomies. He has the most incessant meow, as well as little &quot;woofs&quot; he does when I stop petting him for more than 5 seconds. He also loves to nibble on parts of me while being petted, including fingers, toes, and my kneecaps(???). He's <em>massive<\/em> (16+ lbs) but not fat; the last vet we took him to saw him and immediately went &quot;holy shit, he's <strong>awesome<\/strong>!&quot; He constantly wants to play with Bearcat, and it's hit or miss whether they chase each other around the house (maybe 5% of the time) or it leads to Beau getting smacked in the head (the other 95%).<\/p>\n<p>Alternate names: Chongo Bongo, Beef Ball, Bow Wow<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"pixel\" tabindex=\"-1\">Pixel<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/pixel.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/pixel.jpeg\" alt=\"Pixel\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I wrote <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pixel\/\">a nice eulogy for Pixel<\/a> last June; we're rapidly approaching the date of his passing, and I'm slowly starting to process the grief all over again. I miss him every day; he loved V and would've had a blast growing up with her.<\/p>\n<p>We adopted Pixel a bit recklessly; we'd been told since day 1 that Bearcat was a loner, that we shouldn't bring another cat into the home, yadda yadda. But we saw him at a mall kiosk one day, and just knew that we had to bring him home. He was the funniest animal I've ever been around, constantly up to antics that would land him in comical situations. He was the social butterfly, forcing Bearcat (and eventually Beau) to love him, and bridging the gap between them. He took to V right away, always wanting to see what she was up to, letting her hug him or pull his fur. He'd find the most narrow slice of sunlight coming through a window, and would live there the rest of the afternoon. He had the softest fur of any animal I've ever met. He was the best.<\/p>\n<p>Alternate names: Snowball, Big Floof<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Our cats are a part of our family, so much so that we have people stay at our house when we're on vacation to keep them company. Having a child has certainly changed our dynamic more, and I've been cognizant of making sure I spend a lot of time downstairs with them in the evenings so that they don't feel left out. They're the best, and I'm gonna go pet them right now, in fact.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/all_window.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/fur-babies\/all_window.jpeg\" alt=\"The boys all together\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I was the one that coined this ranking. My wife doesn't disagree. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fur-babies\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Most vets that we've taken to have him listed in their system as &quot;Bear&quot;; it takes a lot of convincing that his name is actually &quot;Bearcat&quot;. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fur-babies\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"The Answer is Always 'No' If You Don't Ask","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-10T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/","summary":"You are your biggest and best advocate. Don't shut the door in your own face if you're trying to walk through it.","content":"<p>There I was, sitting in an interview for a job. I didn't really want that specific developer job, and in fact, I was not qualified for it based on my tech stack, but I wanted to get out of my current organization. So, I interviewed.<\/p>\n<p>Standard round of questions. How would you do X? What is your greatest strength? So on and so forth.<\/p>\n<p>But then, one of the interviewers<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> asked &quot;if you could have a different job title, what would it be?&quot; And it got me thinking... you know, I'd seen another job posting for this organization that I was also interested in. It was for a business analyst role for an augmented and virtual reality team. Seemed like pretty cool stuff, and I felt like I had the interpersonal skills to handle a role like that.<\/p>\n<p>So, after a moment's hesitation, I said that. &quot;I've always thought about trying my hand at being a business analyst.&quot; Talked about how I could leverage my developer skills to better understand what my team would need, while also using my communication and organizational skills to be effective in the role.<\/p>\n<p>I got a phone call that afternoon. It was one of the other interviewers that had been present. &quot;Hey, so, I'm the manager in charge of all of the business analysts. I loved how you pitched yourself. You wanna come work for me?&quot;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>My dad always has had a knack for getting on my nerves with his never-ending wealth of quotes, thoughts, and ideas about everything. &quot;Dad, how does this work?&quot; &quot;Physics!&quot;<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup> Shit drove me <em>nuts<\/em> when I was growing up, and still does sometimes today.<\/p>\n<p>But underneath all of his quips was a lot of wisdom. The whole &quot;ugh, I don't want to admit my parents were right about anything&quot; sort of stuff. One of those that stuck with me the most has always been <strong>&quot;The answer is always 'no' if you don't ask&quot;<\/strong>.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>There are so many things this can apply to. Could I order something that's not directly listed on the menu? Would you like to get coffee\/dinner with me? Could I take a day off work? Can I buy a new iPad? Could I fly to Boston to go to a keyboard meetup?<\/p>\n<p>Obviously, there's more than just asking the questions; &quot;Can I have a pony?&quot; will (almost) always be a no (but if V asks I might consider it). Kindness, politeness, and rational thought to back up your request can go a long ways. But if you're not willing to ask the question, you've shut the door in your own face. &quot;I really need this Friday off for something, but I did just take a 2 week vacation, so I shouldn't even ask.&quot; Don't do that shit. &quot;Hey boss, I know I just took this vacation, but something has come up, and it'd be a huge help if I could have Friday off. Would that be ok?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>(The alternate title to this post was &quot;Make Them Tell You 'No'&quot; but while the point is valid, it feels squicky given the whole man vs. bear discourse going on right now.)<\/p>\n<p>Advocate for yourself. Be confident, or at least pretend to be for 30 seconds. You will always and forever be your #1 hype person. Even if you think it's a 50\/50 shot, that's still better odds than a 100% &quot;no&quot; from not speaking up.<\/p>\n<p>Just ask.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>To show that I'm not a total grump about my dad, here's my favorite joke that he ever told me:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&quot;Have you ever looked at geese flying in the sky?&quot;<br \/>\n&quot;Sure.&quot;<br \/>\n&quot;And you know how they fly in a V formation?&quot;<br \/>\n&quot;Yeah.&quot;<br \/>\n&quot;And have you ever wondered why one side of the V is sometimes longer than the other?&quot;<br \/>\n(after thinking for a second) &quot;No, why?&quot;<br \/>\n&quot;Because there's more geese on that side.&quot;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I can't wait till my daughter is old enough so I can tell her that one.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/#fn4\" id=\"fnref4\">[4]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Maybe the only time in my life that I'm thankful this interview had a half dozen people in the room. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Cue a very strong eye-roll from me. But to his credit, he'd always try to explain the stuff. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Guys, this isn't an invite to harass women. Don't even think about it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn4\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>When my wife and I were dating, we'd drive 2 hours to see each other and stay for the weekend, getting up at 4 or 5 in the morning on Monday to drive back. One morning, she was leaving my house, and some geese flew over my head. I told her this joke. She stared at me for about 5 seconds, got in her car, and left without saying goodbye. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/ask-or-no\/#fnref4\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"A Digital Reset","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/a-digital-reset\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-09T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/a-digital-reset\/","summary":"Have you ever thought about nuking everything on your devices and starting over?","content":"<p>(Quick note: I'm back from vacation! It was an amazing time away, and I'm back recharged and energized again. It's so much nicer to be able to type on a real keyboard and get everything published easily, vs. attempting to do this all via Apple Notes and GitHub's website [because the app doesn't let you create pull requests]. I'm sure I'll write more about my time off at some point.)<\/p>\n<p>Have you ever thought about nuking everything on your devices and starting over?<\/p>\n<p>I've often thought about how different my computing experience is compared to many other people. I remember watching how a coworker had their laptop set up; they were making heavy use of Mac's Spaces feature, having a browser window, IDE window, and other relevant apps for every client that we worked with. It allowed them to stay focused on just the things they needed for the particular client they were working on at the current moment, with no other distractions. Slack was even in a separate space, preventing them from getting pulled away by random conversations. This is far too much effort for me; I have various apps tiled all over the screen in a nice, organized manner, but I just Cmd-Tab from one app to the next for the most part.<\/p>\n<p>Someone else was talking just the other week about how they make heavy use of Gmail's inbox tabs (Primary, Promotions, etc.). This is something I disabled the second I had the option to do so, because over the past decade plus, I've set up enough filters to push emails into various labels and out of my inbox (although this itself was driven by older email systems built around the concept of folders, and not of labels). I'm also someone that has defaulted to deleting emails vs. archiving them, which has come back to bite me in the ass numerous times when deleting the conversation also deletes any emails I may have sent during that conversation.<\/p>\n<p>All of this made me think.. what would it be like if I just nuked everything and started over? What if I went through the sorts of things people new to the Mac, or at least those who took to them more recently than me, would try to solve? How would they organize their spaces? What would their inbox look like? What sorts of features would they lean heavily upon that I just ignore (or don't even know exist)? What apps would they use to do certain tasks (<a href=\"https:\/\/rknight.me\/blog\/trying-raycast-part-one\/\">Robb has recently switched from Alfred to Raycast<\/a>, and is trying to convince me to do the same)?<\/p>\n<p>I've done something like this in the past; whenever I get a new iPhone, I'll save a screenshot of my home screen layout, and then set up the new phone completely from scratch. I usually end up with something very similar to what I had before, but at least it forces me to think about what I use frequently and why. But it doesn't make me revisit app choices and think &quot;is there something better?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Have you ever done a full reset before? How was it? Would you recommend it?<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Git Gud","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/git-gud\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-08T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/git-gud\/","summary":"When the going gets tough, the tough install hacks. Or play Teemo.","content":"<p>I play games for fun. Besting a difficult challenge adds to that fun for me.<\/p>\n<p>Dark Souls is a great example. If you're not a gamer, Dark Souls is a brutally hard series of games that has spawned an entire genre (Souls-likes) that is defined by incredibly challenging boss fights, as well as the ability to lose your currency if you die before recovering it from your previous death. I remember streaming Dark Souls 3 when it came out, and I had a death counter going; pretty sure I was nearing 300 deaths before I was halfway through the game.<\/p>\n<p>There's something about that personal, mano a mano challenge you get from tough single player games that makes you want to keep coming back and finish it. When that feedback loop is juuuust right, it can really suck you in.<\/p>\n<p>It's a completely different story when it comes to multiplayer games. The challenge there is all about who you face off against, and the wide variety of skill levels from game to game make it a really weird experience. You can go all night playing against opponents you're better than and winning, and sometimes it feels awesome; other times it's just boring. Sometimes you can go multiple games in a row playing opponents that are so much better than you, and it can be wildly frustrating.<\/p>\n<p>I think there's a lot of sunk cost fallacy built in to how I feel about multiplayer games too; if I spend 30 minutes playing a match against someone, and it sucks, I got nothing from that. Conversely, I could beat my head against a boss in a single player game multiple times, and feel like I've learned things, or accomplished something, or made it to the next phase of the fight enough times that I go &quot;ok just one more try&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>It didn't always used to be this way for me; I spent <em>hours<\/em> playing Call of Duty, League of Legends (Teemo top or Vi jungle), and World of Warcraft (holy paladin, shadow priest, or arcane mage) in competitive\/collaborative settings for the better part of a decade. The fun of competing against other people usually outweighed the frustrations of inconsistent challenge levels. But the older I got, the more and more those frustrations would really eat at me, and make me grumpy, both while I was gaming and away from my computer or console.<\/p>\n<p>Since V was born, I've made efforts to not play any games that I can't pause and put down. I never know when I'm going to have time to play, and I want to have things I can drop in and out of at a moment's notice.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/git-gud\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> This has been great, and every time I've tried revisiting a multiplayer game over the past couple of years, it just will not stick; I'll have fun for a couple of hours, realize I don't have the time to devote to &quot;git gud&quot; at it, and bounce.<\/p>\n<p>With age comes arthritis, grey hairs, taxes, and occasionally wisdom. I'd like to think me learning what works for me nowadays as far as my free time goes is me being wiser. Or tired. Maybe both. Even if I had free time available to me, I don't think I'd try and return to multiplayer challenges anymore. Even a quick dip to see what's changed makes me go &quot;ugh&quot; nowadays. I may never &quot;git gud&quot; anymore... but honestly, I think I'm ok with that.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I've been playing through Hollow Knight during this vacation; I'm pretty sure I'm about to go face off against the final boss. What a treat this game has been. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/git-gud\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"The Great RSS Pruning","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-great-rss-pruning\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-07T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-great-rss-pruning\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>A few weeks ago, I decided to completely redo how I consumed written content from the web. I <em>intended<\/em> to cut down on how much I was seeing on a regular basis\u2026 task failed successfully.<\/p>\n<p>I had been using <a href=\"https:\/\/netnewswire.com\/\">NetNewsWire<\/a> for a long, long time, basically since Google killed Reader (RIP). It\u2019s a fantastic app, it\u2019s free, it\u2019s great. If you want to get started consuming RSS feeds, you can\u2019t go wrong using it.<\/p>\n<p>That said, a ton of people have extolled the greatness of <a href=\"https:\/\/reederapp.com\/\">Reeder<\/a> for years, and I\u2019ve always been hesitant to take the plunge because (<em>gasp<\/em>) it wasn\u2019t free like NNW. I decided to give it a shot, and I totally get it; Reeder is a beautiful reading experience. There is clearly a lot of care taken with making it a terrific experience to consume content.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/rss\/rss1.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/rss\/rss1.jpeg\" alt=\"The entry browser of NetNewsWire and Reeder\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>The entry browser of NetNewsWire and Reeder<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>NNW is no slouch either; while the UI might not be as elegant, I love how customizable you can make the UI, and there are a couple of decisions the app makes that I still wish I could do within Reeder. (Honestly, re-downloading NNW to write this post has made me go \u201chmm\u2026\u201d)<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/rss\/rss2.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/rss\/rss2.jpeg\" alt=\"The entry viewer of NetNewsWire and Reeder\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>The entry viewer of NetNewsWire and Reeder<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The other tool I implemented into my reading setup was a <a href=\"https:\/\/feedbin.com\/\">Feedbin<\/a> account. \u201cBut Nic, isn\u2019t paying for a service to consolidate your feeds pointless?\u201d Don\u2019t worry, I asked myself the same question, and thankfully Feedbin gives you a free trial to test things out\u2026 which is smart, because once you use the features, you\u2019ll be hooked.<\/p>\n<p>The winning feature is that Feedbin will give your account its own unique email address with which you can use to sign up for email newsletters. Want to have a cleaner email inbox? This is the best way to do it. That, plus the app\u2019s built in reader modes, make even the clunkiest newsletter a breeze to read through.<\/p>\n<p>At the suggestion of others who have ventured down this road, I also created a new Gmail address specifically for feeds; if you do something like <code>nic.feeds+NEWSLETTERNAME@gmail.com<\/code> whenever you sign up for a newsletter, you can keep track of who sells your data to third parties. You can then forward all of the email from this Gmail account to your Feedbin email, protecting your RSS feeds from potential spam. I moved <em>all<\/em> of my newsletters to this new Gmail address, and it worked like a charm.<\/p>\n<p>The final thing I did was move all my feeds over to Feedbin; however, instead of using OPML to export\/import, I moved each feed by hand, because:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I wanted to trim out dead feeds that didn\u2019t work anymore (and, in some cases, find their replacements)<\/li>\n<li>I wanted to get rid of the loud\/noisy feeds. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.patrickrhone.net\/\">My good friend Patrick<\/a> has long talked about the value of signal vs. noise, and I tried to take that to heart with this exercise<\/li>\n<li>I wanted to ensure I actually wanted to read the feeds, so I could do a quick audit of what was posted, and<\/li>\n<li>I wanted to re-sort my feeds. Previously, I had 5 huge buckets; now, I have 12 smaller ones<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When I started the process, I had 83 feeds on NNW. After migrating, moving all of my newsletters over, and giving it a little bit to shake out, I now have <checks notes=\"\"> <strong>282 feeds<\/strong>.<\/checks><\/p>\n<p>Ah jeez.<\/p>\n<p>Honestly, though, I think I\u2019ve landed on a really good spot. I have already knocked out a few noisy feeds that I added (I was subscribed to a lot of news feeds from places like BBC and The Guardian, but using summary newsletters like <a href=\"https:\/\/themorningnews.org\/\">The Morning News<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/nextdraft.com\/\">NextDraft<\/a> have been more that sufficient), and I still have a few more subjects I need to hunt down good feeds for. I feel like I\u2019m able to keep up with topics easily, without wallowing in the negative that Apple News or Twitter like to shove in front of my face.<\/p>\n<p>RSS is not dead. Thank goodness.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Sprints","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sprints\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-06T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sprints\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>In software development (and probably other industries, idk), there exists the concept of \u201csprints\u201d. Basically, you and your team commit to doing a set amount of work in a given time period; for all of my experience, it\u2019s been over 2 weeks.<\/p>\n<p>I love this concept, because once your team gets in the habit of accurately scoping out tasks to understand how much effort they will take, you can easily determine how long it will take to develop a new feature. It also helps protect developers from changes to their workflow, since you\u2019ve committed to getting things accomplished; the project managers have to determine if bumping promised work is worth it.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s amusing, because in my every day life, I also find myself \u201csprinting\u201d when it comes to doing various things. I might start in on a new hobby, or pick up a new game or book, and I\u2019ve discovered that I\u2019ve got just about 2 weeks to make that stick; if it doesn\u2019t, then it\u2019s a sign that I need to move on from that thing.<\/p>\n<p>Case in point: Baldur\u2019s Gate 3. I played the shit out of that game for about 2 weeks, wandered in to Act 3\u2026 and promptly gave it up for a book. I haven\u2019t been back. I don\u2019t know if I <em>can<\/em> go back; while their quest log is excellent, I worry I\u2019m gonna forget so many things about what is going on.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/accidental-fifty\/\">So when I do manage to latch on to something and see it through<\/a>, it feels really satisfying. I\u2019ve got a 4 day streak with Duolingo going at the moment<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sprints\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>, and I\u2019m attempting to finally finish <em>Hollow Knight<\/em><sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sprints\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup> on my Steam Deck<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sprints\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup> during this vacation. I\u2019ve lost my reading streak, but I\u2019ll pick that back up soon. I also want to get back out to the woodshop when we get back next week, as well as finally open this \u201clearn to crochet\u201d kit I have sitting on my desk.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s taken me a long time to come to grips with giving up on things that I\u2019m not feeling - <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sunday-ritual\/\">I\u2019ll keep adding them to my to do list for a while<\/a>, but eventually I just learned to sever that tie; if it comes back around, the door is always open.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I switched from Spanish (which I learned in junior high) to Japanese (so I can talk to Shohei Ohtani if I ever meet him). <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sprints\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>3rd attempt. I\u2019m right at the spot where I have fallen off the game the previous two times. I\u2019m committed to finally beating it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sprints\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I\u2019m annoyed at how long it took me to finally love my Steam Deck. I\u2019ve had it for ages, but have only really put time into Vampire Survivors until now. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sprints\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"The Best Feeling","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-feeling\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-05T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/the-best-feeling\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>The first sip of coffee in the morning.<\/p>\n<p>When you put the final touches on something you make by hand, and you stand back to admire it.<\/p>\n<p>When you finally beat a tough boss in a video game that\u2019s been giving you fits for hours.<\/p>\n<p>When you taste the food you\u2019ve had going all afternoon, and it\u2019s exquisite.<\/p>\n<p>Stepping out on the balcony of your vacation rental, and taking a deep breath of morning air.<\/p>\n<p>These are all things that are high up on the \u201cbest feelings\u201d list, but there\u2019s a new one that has topped the list for all time, at least for me:<\/p>\n<p><em>When your child sees you from across the room, shouts your name, and sprints to you to give you the biggest hug that they don\u2019t want to let go of.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s it. That\u2019s the best feeling.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"An Apple Wish List","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/an-apple-wish-list\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-04T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/an-apple-wish-list\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>We're about to get an Apple Event on Tuesday. This is going to be the first one in a while that I'm probably not going to get to watch; I'll be driving back from vacation that day, so it would be highly irresponsible of me to try and tune in.<\/p>\n<p>So, you know... maybe.<\/p>\n<p>I bought my first Apple computer (a Titanium PowerBook G4) in the summer of 2005. I've been using Apple computers in various forms since the mid 90s. I've been entrenched in the ecosystem for a long time, and I'm now able to use Macs as part of my career, which is pretty great.<\/p>\n<p>I'd consider myself to be a staunch Apple fanboy, but there are still a <em>ton<\/em> of things that I wish Apple would make better, and today I'm going to use this space to put them into the world and hope for the best. In no particular order:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A standalone Touch ID sensor, and\/or one that's baked in to the Magic Trackpad<\/li>\n<li>Apple Music on the Mac <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/one-software-feature\/\">lets you shuffle by album<\/a> - why is this not the case on iPhone?<\/li>\n<li>Why does my Apple Watch insist that I have 2 lists titled Grocery List when I try to use Siri to add something? (No matter which one I choose, it ends up on the right spot, but I shouldn't have to confirm it.)<\/li>\n<li>Please give us an iPhone Pro Mini.<\/li>\n<li>Why does ANYTHING still use Lightning? USB-C for everything already, c'mon.<\/li>\n<li>Why is sharing something via iCloud with a family member so wildly inconsistent and\/or unintuitive?<\/li>\n<li>Widgets should have an &quot;extra small&quot; size option thats just the size of an app icon. Also, every app should be able to dynamically set their app icon if the user enables it (i.e. Fantastical should be able to show me the date).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I'm sure I have more deep in my bag, but these are my main ones right now. Do you have any gripes?<\/p>\n"},{"title":"D&D Friday - Kosta & Thason","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/kosta-and-thason\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-03T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/kosta-and-thason\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><em>I've been playing in a D&amp;D campaign with some friends online for almost 3 years now. My character is a dwarf cleric named Kosta Dragonstone. Occasionally, I get an urge to write out some more backstory, and I've decided that I'll use the 4 Fridays of WeblogPoMo to do that. Welcome to D&amp;D Friday.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Kosta's hammer thudded into the final zombie, dropping it to the floor with a raspy gurgle. With a sigh, Kosta lowered the hammer and his shield, looking at the swath of undead littering the crypt. &quot;You're good, Father. Come on in.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>A middle aged half-elf cautiously peers through the doorway, before shuffling inside. He smiles ruefully while shaking his head. &quot;Ah, Kosta. One of these days, you'll lean in to your teachings and channel your divinity.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>&quot;'Divinity' sounds like a good name for my hammer. Good one, Yve.&quot; Kosta chuckles, wiping gore from his weapon. &quot;You're the Father. I'm...&quot;<\/p>\n<p>&quot;'Just an initiate.' How many years are you going to try and keep using that excuse, K? You've been ordained. You've been chosen. You have Pelor's favor. Why do you spurn your calling?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Kosta shrugs. &quot;If I start using spells, I wouldn't need to bring you along with me on adventures. And we both know you'd drive the nuns crazy if you were left behind. Besides,&quot; he says with a grin, &quot;I gotta show the youngsters how it's done.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>&quot;I heard that.&quot; With a grunt, a tall, lanky human entered the room, his titanic mace scraping the stone archway. &quot;The only way you keep up is by making me do rear guard. Father Thason, please, sir, let me lead the exploration. I promise I'm ready.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Thason's mouth curls in a slight smile. &quot;Of course, Anders. Your protection has been admirable and appreciated. By all means, lead the way.&quot; He and Kosta step aside as Anders trudges ahead, mace at the ready. After a few seconds, the sounds of his armor clanking diminishes, and Thason lets out a laugh. &quot;Remember yesterday when he was terrified of even stepping foot in this place? You know how to get them out of their shell, my friend.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Kosta hefts his warhammer and shield again, giving the room a final look before following Anders' path. &quot;I'm the only dwarf at the temple. You think any of them could stand letting me get the best of them?&quot; He helps Thason down a tricky set of boulders, taking care to avoid water pooling from the dripping stalactites. &quot;But really... are we going to talk about your refusal to carry a weapon? It's been what, 6 months? 7? What's going on, Yve?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>&quot;If I pick up a weapon, I wouldn't need to bring you along with me on adventures,&quot; Thason says with a twinkle in his eye.<\/p>\n<p>Kosta barks a laugh, echoing through the caves. &quot;Don't deflect. Not even a shield. No one faults you for what happened. The parents made their choice. How were you to know the boy would try to attack you?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Thason sighs. &quot;Must we go over this now? You know this. Pelor is the god of light and life. I don't bemoan you lifting your hammer to eradicate the darkness, but I just choose to shine brighter.&quot; He puts his hand on Thason's shoulder. &quot;Besides, I <em>do<\/em> quite enjoy the excuse to bring you with me on all of my excursions. 'Oh he can protect me' and 'oh I can help him with his channeling'. Being in leadership has its perks sometimes.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>A cry rings out from the path ahead, before being rapidly choked off. Thason's hands shoot to his amulet, and he holds it out in front of him. &quot;Anders?&quot; he calls into the darkness.<\/p>\n<p>With a <em>whoosh<\/em>, a creature shoots down the tunnel towards them, sending Kosta sprawling, his hammer clattering away. He rolls onto his back, shield raised in defense, but the tunnel is empty. &quot;Thason?!?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>A deep cackle comes from the room they left behind, and Kosta can hear sounds of a struggle. &quot;Yve!! Hang on!&quot; Kosta scrambles up the rocks they had climbed down, charging back into the room. The lights from the torches seems dim, swallowed by the presence of... &quot;Anders?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>The tall man turns his head towards Kosta. &quot;Ahh, Thason. Is this your newest project?&quot; His eyes glow with an angry red light, and he holds Thason off the ground with a single hand. &quot;A pity. This one is so... small.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>&quot;Well, be thankful he didn't fall into your traps then. Belvadar, meet Kosta. Kosta, meet the reason why we came here.&quot; Thason struggles, trying to break free, but the grip on his cloak is like a vice. &quot;Anders, if you can still hear me, don't worry. We'll get you out of there.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Anders\/Belvadar laughs. &quot;Don't be so sure about that, my friend. Three of you this time, and you're already on the back foot.&quot; With a grunt, he hurls Thason across the room, where he slams into the wall and crumples to the floor, unconscious. Anders\/Belvadar turns towards Kosta, lifting the huge mace. &quot;Now let's see. Another initiate to squash? Fabulous... I always appreciate the fresh meat Thason brings me.&quot; He lunges, swinging the mace.<\/p>\n<p>Kosta raises his shield, absorbing the full force of the strike, and cries out as it is ripped from his fingers. He dives to the floor, narrowly missing another swing. He scrambles for fallen weapons from the felled undead, but can't gather one before more mace strikes force him to dodge out of the way. &quot;THASON!!!&quot; he screams.<\/p>\n<p>With a sickening <em>crunch<\/em>, Kosta finds himself flying across the room, landing in a heap. His chainmail had absorbed some of the blow, but his breath is raspy and ragged and pain shoots through his ribs. He groans as he rolls to his back, staring at the ceiling. &quot;Thason...&quot; he calls weakly.<\/p>\n<p>The tall man looms over Kosta. his mace on his shoulder. &quot;Pity. Normally they put up more of a fight. This one just let me take over, and now you don't even lift a finger against me? His Lightness must be struggling to find new recruits.&quot; Kosta watches in horror as demonic looking horns slowly grow from Anders' head, and his fingers elongate and sharpen into points. &quot;Ah well,&quot; he says, his teeth sharpening into points, &quot;it was always meant to end this way. You can watch... I'll come back for you.&quot; The man turns and stomps towards Thason's body.<\/p>\n<p>Kosta coughs, blood pooling in his mouth. &quot;No,&quot; he manages to whisper. &quot;No. You will not. You cannot.&quot; He struggles to get his elbows under him, propping himself up slightly. Wheezing, he manages to pull his amulet from beneath his robes, and holds it towards the man. &quot;You will not. We are servants of Pelor, and you... will... not...&quot;<\/p>\n<p>The amulet glows slightly, and the man turns back to Kosta. &quot;Oh ho hoooo, what is this?&quot; He has further transformed, looking even more terrible and less like Anders. &quot;Puny dwarf. You have no power over me. You can't possibly fathom my power.&quot; He strides back to Kosta, and stomps on his wrist, pinning his arm and the amulet to the floor. Kosta cries out as he hears something <em>snap<\/em> in his arm.<\/p>\n<p>The demon lowers his head to Kosta's, and Kosta can watch as bones shift and stretch underneath the already-greying skin. &quot;Fool,&quot; it says, &quot;you think you can stop me?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>&quot;No,&quot; Kosta coughs, &quot;but he can.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Light swells in the room, and the demon spins around, only to be thrown back by a surging golden wave. It howls, thrashing, as Thason slowly climbs to his feet, his wounds closing. He strides towards the demon, his amulet of Pelor held outstretched. The light tears at the demon's features, its horns ripping from its skull and the light seeming to pass right through its body.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;Begone, Belvadar. Your end is not today, but neither is ours. Begone from this land, and do not return, or by Pelor's light, I will ensure your demise. BEGONE!&quot; With a shout, a final wave pulses across the room, and Kosta averts his eyes, blinded.<\/p>\n<p>The demonic howling fades, and the light recedes. Kosta looks back, and is surprised to see Anders standing there, looking perplexed. The man looks at Kosta, then at Thason. &quot;Father? What's going on? What happened?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Thason walks to Anders and places his amulet on his chest, holding it there for a few seconds, before lowering it and stepping back. &quot;No worries, son. Come, we're done here. Let's get back to the temple, and I will explain.&quot;  He turns and walks over to Kosta, kneeling beside him. &quot;Good work. I thought for sure you were going to try and go toe to toe with Bel on your own. Healing me was a nice touch.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Kosta's eyes go wide. &quot;Wait. 'Bel'? That sounds awfully chummy. You knew they would be here?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Thason smirks again. &quot;Something had to get you out of your shell. I figured, what better way for you to get used to wielding your powers than to force you to?&quot; He shrugs. &quot;I assumed it was Bel. He makes his rounds every few months, so we were due. A thorn in my side, but nothing we couldn't handle.&quot; He reaches out and squeezes Kosta on the shoulder. &quot;Come on. Let's get Anders back to the temple.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Kosta struggles to rise, but cries out in pain and collapses. &quot;A little help?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Thason reaches out and takes Kosta's hand, but instead of pulling him to his feet, Thason presses his amulet into Kosta's hand. &quot;You've got that covered now, don't you?&quot; Thason grins, then turns to help Anders stagger out of the room.<\/p>\n<p>Kosta watches them leave in bewilderment, and then smiles, blood trickling from his mouth. &quot;Fuck you, Yve,&quot; he chuckles, as the amulet begins to glow softly. &quot;You bastard.&quot;<\/p>\n"},{"title":"When I Grow Up","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/when-i-grow-up\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-02T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/when-i-grow-up\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>I remember the very first thing I wanted to be when I grew up - the person pouring the water at our local Chinese restaurant.<\/p>\n<p>They made it an absolute art form; taking your glass, starting close but then holding the pitcher and glass a mile apart. Didn't spill a drop. I was <em>fascinated<\/em> by this, and always drank a ton of water whenever we went there because I wanted to watch them pour more water.<\/p>\n<p>I wonder what the starting salary for &quot;water pourer&quot; is in 2024. Maybe a career change is in order.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>When I was 4, I walked over to my mom's piano (she was a piano teacher) and started poking at the keys. She asked, &quot;do you want to learn how to play?&quot; and I apparently said yes. I then played piano until I was 17 (and I was really fucking good at it).<\/p>\n<p>When I was 10, I got my first drum set, followed not long after by a bass and a guitar. I wanted to be a professional musician for ages; I was in a touring band for a while that made money, and I <em>almost<\/em> got a gig with arguably the most popular artist in music right now back before their 2nd album released.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/when-i-grow-up\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> So close.<\/p>\n<p>When I was in high school, I got enamored with marching band, and decided I wanted to go to college for music ed so I could teach drumline at a huge Texas high school.<\/p>\n<p>After an injury took me out of music, I decided to pursue a long love of computers with a computer science major. That rapidly pivoted to an information systems management degree after being convinced by some other classmates (I still don't know if this was the &quot;better&quot; decision, but it worked out.)<\/p>\n<p>Along the way, I know I've wanted to be a lot of different things - 3rd baseman for the Red Sox, author, sports journalist, video game developer, games journalist, sports statistician, Apple tech journalist (I really had a thing for journalism for a bit), iOS software developer (still want this), TTRPG module writer (aka D&amp;D campaigns), Apple developer, brewer\/brewery owner, woodworker, and most recently, electrical engineer.<\/p>\n<p>I always think about whether I chose correctly or not; I'm good at my job, but it is only for paying the bills. I don't love what I do by any means. It's interesting to look back on all of this now, as I attempt to corral and raise a 2 year old, and try to guess what she's going to become when she's older.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/when-i-grow-up\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup> It's fascinating to watch her interest in various things blossom, and see what sticks around for more than a week or two.<\/p>\n<p>If she decides to play 3rd base, I just hope it's not for the Yankees.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I was told that I was &quot;too short&quot;. Which, fair. I'm 5'6&quot;, and said artist is 5'10&quot;. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/when-i-grow-up\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>We're leaning stunt woman as of today. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/when-i-grow-up\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"One Software Feature","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/one-software-feature\/"}},"updated":"2024-05-01T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/one-software-feature\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>There\u2019s a joke that makes its rounds on the internet every now and again \u2013 a guy interviews at a company for a software developer role. Goes through the entire process, and makes a good enough impression that he receives a job offer. First day on the job, he digs into the code, finds a bug that has driven him (as a user of the software) crazy for years, fixes it, and immediately gives his two week notice.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Software and apps are funny things; tiny ones can receive enhancements and improvements at a glacial pace, while massive monoliths seem to push out changes almost daily. Some companies (hi Apple) tell you what you want, while others solicit feedback on changes their users want. (Whether they follow through or not\u2026 that\u2019s another issue.)<\/p>\n<p>Imagine wanting a bug fixed <em>so badly<\/em> that you went out of your way to get hired by the company, just so you could fix it and immediately quit.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/one-software-feature\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>The issue that tops my list? <strong>Spotify doesn\u2019t let you shuffle a playlist by album.<\/strong> I\u2019ve grown up listening to albums all the way through, and have always preferred to listen that way. I actually abandoned Spotify last year to go back to Apple Music because of this\u2026 only to find out that only Apple Music on the Mac supports this. iPhone? lol good luck.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/one-software-feature\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p><em>Do you have a particular bug that drives you nuts, or a feature missing from an app that prevents you from enjoying it to the fullest?<\/em><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>At my current org, we tend to turn new developers loose on our task backlogs. Find something in there that we\u2019d love to fix, but we just don\u2019t have time to commit to it. Let the fresh blood tackle it before they become another cog in the machine. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/one-software-feature\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>If you\u2019re in the same boat as me, check out the app Albums for iOS. Works like a charm. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/one-software-feature\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Weblog Posting Month 2024","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo\/"}},"updated":"2024-04-30T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>i\u2019ve decided to join in on Weblog Posting Month, or WeblogPoMo, for May 2024.<\/p>\n<p>Blogging has always been an outlet for me. I\u2019ve had aspirations of doing something more with it, and I would like to make writing something that I do more frequently.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/rknight.me\/blog\/weblog-posting-month-2024\/\">Robb Knight<\/a> brought my attention to WeblogPoMo, and I thought it would be a great way for me to start flexing my writing muscle once again. It\u2019ll be a little bit of a challenge, considering I\u2019m leaving for vacation in less than two hours<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>, but I think it\u2019ll be quite a bit of fun.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s what <a href=\"https:\/\/weblog.anniegreens.lol\/weblog-posting-month-2024\">Anne, the individual who is organizing thing, has to say<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>What is it? Weblog Posting Month, 2024! If you use weblog.lol, or otherwise have a personal blog, you should absolutely participate in this month-long blog posting extravaganza!<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Anne suggests that we choose some sort of guiding theme; mine is simply \u201cwrite\u201d. I\u2019ve already got a ton of ideas that range from \u201chow I Dad\u201d to \u201cwhat would I do if I could start college over?\u201d to \u201chere\u2019s a short story about my D&amp;D character\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019d like to follow along with me &amp; the community, you can follow along with the social hashtag <code>#WeblogPoMo2024<\/code>, <a href=\"https:\/\/beep.town\/@Pomo\">the @pomo account on Mastodon<\/a>, or by <a href=\"https:\/\/weblog.anniegreens.lol\/weblog-posting-month-2024\/participators\">checking out the participants list<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>See ya on the other side. \ud83d\udc4b\ud83c\udffb<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I really didn\u2019t want to bring my laptop with me, but I\u2019m going to do everything in my power to leave it in my bag and just use my phone or iPad to write and post all of these. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/weblogpomo\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Unproductive Productivity","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/unproductive-productivity\/"}},"updated":"2024-04-25T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/unproductive-productivity\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>If you'd like an insight into my brain, here's the process flow I went through after V went down for the night:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I sat down at my desk and flipped on the NBA games to watch them.<\/li>\n<li>I started going through a backlog of &quot;to read later&quot; sites in my browser, organizing them for later use.<\/li>\n<li>One of the sites was a blog that gave me an idea for a blog post.<\/li>\n<li>I opened VS Code<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/unproductive-productivity\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> to write a post<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/unproductive-productivity\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/li>\n<li>In the process of creating the new file, I thought &quot;man, this is a massive pain in the ass... could I make it better?&quot; (This was at approximately 9:30pm.)<\/li>\n<li>I spent the next 20-30 minutes researching <code>sh<\/code> (which I've never really used, even as a professional developer) and figuring out the best way to write it to do what I wanted.<\/li>\n<li>I thought &quot;hey, I love Alfred, why not make a workflow so I can execute this from anywhere?&quot;<\/li>\n<li>I spent the next 5 minutes swearing, because my script wouldn't run from anywhere.<\/li>\n<li>Eventually we got there. Hooray!<\/li>\n<li>I'm now writing this blog post at 10:54pm.<\/li>\n<li>I haven't watched a minute of the NBA games, or sorted\/gone through any more of the sites I wanted to.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/unproductive.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/unproductive.png\" alt=\"The final Alfred workflow\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>This is just how my brain operates now, I guess.<\/p>\n<p>Oh, and here's the script in all its glory, if you care:<\/p>\n<pre class=\"language-bash\"><code class=\"language-bash\"><span class=\"token assign-left variable\">title<\/span><span class=\"token operator\">=<\/span><span class=\"token variable\"><span class=\"token variable\">$(<\/span><span class=\"token builtin class-name\">echo<\/span> <span class=\"token string\">\"<span class=\"token variable\">$1<\/span>\"<\/span> <span class=\"token operator\">|<\/span> <span class=\"token function\">tr<\/span> <span class=\"token string\">'[:upper:]'<\/span> <span class=\"token string\">'[:lower:]'<\/span> <span class=\"token operator\">|<\/span> <span class=\"token function\">tr<\/span> <span class=\"token string\">' '<\/span> <span class=\"token string\">'-'<\/span><span class=\"token variable\">)<\/span><\/span>\n<span class=\"token function\">cp<\/span> ~\/github\/niclake.github.io\/_posts\/_PostTemplate.md ~\/github\/niclake.github.io\/_posts\/<span class=\"token variable\"><span class=\"token variable\">$(<\/span><span class=\"token function\">date<\/span> +%Y-%m-%d<span class=\"token variable\">)<\/span><\/span>-<span class=\"token variable\">$title<\/span>.md<\/code><\/pre>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Yeah, I use VS Code to write my blog posts. The whole site is up on GitHub, and it's just easier for my brain to write it here vs. somewhere else. Maybe one day I'll go back to MarsEdit or something. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/unproductive-productivity\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>It wasn't this one, I'll tell you that much. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/unproductive-productivity\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"If You Build It, They Will Come (My Custom Standing Desk)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/desk\/"}},"updated":"2024-04-22T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/desk\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk6.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk6.jpg\" alt=\"Every good DIY post demands the finished product at the start.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mastodon.social\/@tvaziri\/112312634387826723#.\">&quot;Do we all love Uplift desks?&quot;<\/a><sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/desk\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>This innocuous toot reminded me that I've been using my custom standing desk for over 6 months, and have yet to blog about it like I intended to. (In fairness to myself, I'd not written it <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sunday-ritual\/\">on my to-do list<\/a>, so boo past me.)<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>&quot;But Nic, I'm not that handy.&quot; &quot;Oh man, I couldn't do that, what if it didn't work?&quot; &quot;I'll just buy this one, it's cheaper.&quot; No. Stop. Just... just read this. Give it a chance.<\/p>\n<p>I looked at all of the standing desks out there. Uplift. Herman Miller. Branch. IKEA. Amazon. I'd eventually settled on Uplift, and bracing for convincing my wife that spending $1k on a new desk was a worthwhile investment.<\/p>\n<p>Then, when talking to some of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/membership\">Relay FM Discord members<\/a>, one person suggested just building my own. I'm pretty sure I had the same reaction I told you not to; &quot;I'm not that handy.&quot; &quot;What if I fuck it up?&quot; &quot;I'll just buy one.&quot; Thankfully, they convinced me otherwise, and I managed to get away with spending considerably less on a desk than I would've otherwise.<\/p>\n<p>There are only 3 steps that you <em>MUST<\/em> follow in order to build your own desk. Here's what I did:<\/p>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk1.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk1.jpg\" alt=\"The raw, unfinished slab\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"buy-the-stuff\" tabindex=\"-1\">Buy The Stuff<\/h2>\n<p>Kinda a &quot;duh&quot; step, but yeah. You will need two things: a butcher block countertop, and a standing desk frame. I went with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homedepot.com\/p\/HARDWOOD-REFLECTIONS-5-ft-L-x-30-in-D-Unfinished-Birch-Solid-Wood-Butcher-Block-Desktop-Countertop-With-Eased-Edge-1530HDBIR-60\/316334372\">a birch 5ft x 30in block from Home Depot<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3Qhgdkj\">the VIVO dual motor frame<\/a>. You do not need these exact items, but I can vouch for them. The frame can support a desk just under 7ft wide, so you have some flexibility there.<\/p>\n<p>This is literally all that you <em>MUST<\/em> buy. Total cost: <strong>$380<\/strong>. Which, by my math, is WAY less than the ~$1,000 a lot of Uplift configurations come in.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"protect-it%2C-and-(optional)-make-it-prettier\" tabindex=\"-1\">Protect It, and (Optional) Make It Prettier<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk2.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk2.jpg\" alt=\"Prep work complete!\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The countertop looks great right out of the box, and if I'd just sealed it right then, I would've been perfectly happy. However, I had access to some tools and had some ideas, so I decided to make a few modifications.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>(Optional) I decided that I wanted a couple of holes in the corners of my desk to route some speaker and power cables through. I used a hole saw and a power drill to accomplish this. I got some cheap grommet hole covers to route cables through; you could optionally get some that have power outlets built in to them (something I wish I'd done, and might go back and add eventually).<\/li>\n<li>You'll need to sand the countertop down first; 80, 150, and 220 grit sandpaper passes did the trick just fine.<\/li>\n<li>(Optional) I went with some <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homedepot.com\/p\/Varathane-1-qt-Honey-Classic-Wood-Interior-Stain-339718\/305502019\">honey colored Varathane wood stain<\/a> for that nice, rich brown look. 2 coats made it pop.<\/li>\n<li>I sealed my desk with [Varathane's satin polyurethane]. 2 coats, plus some buffing with 0000 steel wool, took care of this.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>At this point, I have a desk top that is fully protected, has the color I want, and a couple of grommet holes. Cool.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk3.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk3.jpg\" alt=\"Checking out the bottom\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"avengers%2C-assemble\" tabindex=\"-1\">Avengers, Assemble<\/h2>\n<p>This part was also quite simple. The VIVO frame went together easily. I mounted it so the frame was flush with the back corners of the desk; most of the weight from the monitors, speakers, and computer will end up being over the back edge of your desk, whereas most of the weight on the front will come from you leaning on it, so having the balance point further back worked perfectly. (If you get a top that is deeper than 30 inches, do a bit of research to see recommendations on mounting points.)<\/p>\n<p>The other major consideration will be, do you want the controller on the left or the right? I decided to have mine on the left, which is contrary to every other desk I've seen, because it's tucked away in the corner a bit more and I don't have to be worried about my daughter getting at it.<\/p>\n<p>Honestly, I was amazed at how easily this went together. I kept thinking &quot;ok, what am I forgetting&quot; over and over until I got it upright... lo and behold, I hadn't forgotten a thing.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"add-any-(optional)-accessories\" tabindex=\"-1\">Add Any (Optional) Accessories<\/h2>\n<p>I added 3 (well, 4) accessories to my desk to make it more in line with what I wanted.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk4.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk4.jpg\" alt=\"Time to flip\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3JrqOFo\">An under-desk headphone mount + power outlet<\/a>. Works perfectly to hold my gaming headset, and provide me with a couple USB ports &amp; a power outlet for anything I need to plug in easily. (This was in lieu of me using a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3QcBETQ\">powered grommet hole<\/a> like I mentioned earlier; I wanted to route cables and not have stuff on top of my desk.)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3W8zk3W\">Cable management trays<\/a>. Get all my cables up off the floor.<\/li>\n<li>A good power strip with surge protection. I have one that I've used for years <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3Qc0SBJ\">that looks something like this<\/a>; lots of outlets, and a long cord leading off of it. Anything that lives on my desk (including the motors) plugs in to this, and I have a single power cable running off with enough slack to handle sitting or standing heights. I mounted this upside down under the desk with some screws.<\/li>\n<li>A computer tower holder. I had aspirations of having my tower go up and down with my desk, especially since I'm seated on plush carpet. However, I forgot to check the specs, and found out after I'd attached it to my desk that my tower was too wide. There wasn't a solution I really liked, so I just got a stand for my tower and leave enough cable slack for when I stand up.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure class=\"\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk5.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/desk\/desk5.jpg\" alt=\"It's upright!\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>There's tons of accessory options that you can add to your own desk; drawers, power, monitor stands, and more. You've saved a ton of money on the desk, so feel free to snag anything you need. (Pro tip - if you're on carpet, and want to get your desk into a corner, get some furniture sliders under the legs, assemble and get everything powered in the middle of the room, and then slide it back in to place.)<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>That's it! It might seem like a lot of work, but it's honestly something that anyone could tackle in a weekend (waiting for the stain and\/or sealant to dry &amp; cure takes the longest amount of time). For less than half the money you could've spent on a commercially available option, you could have your very own desk that you build with your hands, something you could be proud of every time you used your desk.<\/p>\n<p>If you give it a go, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\/\">reach out and let me know<\/a>! I'd love to see what you do.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Yeah, I'm back on Mastodon. It moves slowly enough that I feel ok being there. I haven't put it on my phone yet, and probably won't. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/desk\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Sunday Ritual","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sunday-ritual\/"}},"updated":"2024-04-21T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sunday-ritual\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/sunday-ritual.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/sunday-ritual.jpg\" alt=\"A good pen, some paper, and time\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I've talked before about <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pocket-notebook\/\">how I desperately want to be someone who uses a pocket notebook<\/a>. I've also realized that <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/understanding-notebooks\/\">this just is not who I am as a person<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>But there's just something cathartic, something that scratches a primal urge, about writing out a to-do list, and marking things off as I go.<\/p>\n<p>Every Sunday, after V goes down for the night, I settle in at my desk, grab my <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4aECqB0\">pad of paper<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/4aJnvpg\">my trusty pens<\/a>, rip off last week's list, and start anew. I've got 2 sections:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The standard to do list, with the important things that I want to get done this week.<\/li>\n<li>The essential repeating blocks tracking my 5 important things I want to carve out time for; Read, Watch, Play, Create, and Move.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My friend Patrick, who spends a lot of time thinking about the best ways to get things done, <a href=\"https:\/\/patrickrhone.com\/2008\/04\/17\/getting-real-with-your-lists\/\">once wrote<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Your to-do list should be a sacred place. It should be filled only with the things you really plan on doing, are consistently evaluating and are taking active steps move items forward and to get those things done.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I think the general spirit of this is good, and anything that makes my list for this week is actually something I want to get done. Fold laundry. Make an update to my site. Call to get gutters cleaned. But I also move things that weren't completed last week over; if I find myself moving the thing over more than once, it gets a <strong>&quot;?&quot;<\/strong> tossed after it, and if it's not done that week, I've shown myself that it's not really important, and it's ok to not put on the list.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sunday-ritual\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>I started doing this sometime in 2023, and it's honestly been the best thing for me to get things done. Gone are the days of daily to-do lists. Gone is the guilt of not crossing everything off my list, and thus immediately feeling doom &amp; gloom about starting on today's items.<\/p>\n<p>My biggest gripe in the past has been, how do I remind myself about things that I want to get done if I'm not at my desk? Occasionally, I'll sprint upstairs, add the item, and return. But if I'm out and about, or busy with family, I'll just have Siri remind me of the thing at 8pm (which is usually at\/after V goes to bed for the night). Elegant? Not really. Functional? Absolutely.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sunday-ritual\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>The older I get, the more I realize that I basically have to trick my brain, or turn things into a game, in order to get the most out of it. Put a carrot on a stick (&quot;hey, if you do this, you can get your red pen and fill in the square&quot;), and I'm golden. Gone are the days I wish I could just &quot;be normal like everyone else&quot;. I am myself, I'm glad I'm me; this works for how I operate, and that's the only thing that matters.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I liken this to turning your clothes hangers backwards every spring, and donating the clothes that don't get worn that following year. Small things I can do to remind my future self that my past self was looking out for me. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sunday-ritual\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>We went to Target yesterday, and as we were walking in, my phone buzzed; I had set a location-based reminder saying &quot;Target Gift Card&quot;, reminding me that I had one on me (which is good, because with contactless payment options, I don't even open my bag most times). My wife thinks I'm nuts. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/sunday-ritual\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Why Now?","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-now\/"}},"updated":"2024-04-19T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-now\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>I remember the days of smaller internet<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-now\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>I remember getting kicked off of the computer because Mom wanted to call Grandma. I remember signing up for a Minnesota Vikings Yahoo! group, and getting emails for every post when people wanted to talk about the team (and I played fantasy football with a lot of them until '22). I remember when Facebook was for people with .edu emails only. I remember having pen pals via email. I remember using Dreamweaver to make websites, way back when it was owned by Macromedia.<\/p>\n<p>Then Facebook happened. And Instagram. And Twitter. We wanted so badly to connect with everyone. And for a brief time, it was glorious. It was pure. I got a couple jobs, a ton of free burritos, some lifelong internet friends, and a life partner out of Twitter. It was good. It was fun.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fuck-social-media\/\">And then, suddenly, it wasn't.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>It's really interesting to sit back and look over the landscape of what once was, and what it is today. Things go in cycles<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-now\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>, and I feel like that's starting to happen once again with the internet.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-for-april-2024\/\">I mentioned the other day<\/a> how I was trying to make some changes to <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now\/\">my Now page<\/a>. The reason why is because I stumbled across a cool website called, appropriately, <a href=\"https:\/\/nownownow.com\/\">NowNowNow<\/a>. It's a site full of individuals who contribute links to their own blogs about what's going on in their life, what they're doing, what they're thinking, etc. Exactly like what the old internet used to feel like, in a way.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/clockwise\/550\">The most recent episode of Clockwise<\/a> actually got me thinking about this too; when talking about early online experiences and nostalgia, they were talking about usenets and webrings, ways of people and websites staying connected with one another. If you managed to jump in anywhere within the group, you could easily connect with any of the other people therein and learn more about them and what they were about.<\/p>\n<p>The early days of Twitter were like that too. The afore-mentioned burritos happened because I discovered who was behind my favorite chain's Twitter account, followed them, and did some side work for their org; in following him, I also discovered people in <em>his<\/em> circle that I followed as well, and so forth. We actually all met up and had snacks and drinks one day years ago, and it was cool to get a chance to interact with these people in person. Even today, there are 3 circles of friends that I miss from the Twitter days, and I pop back in every now and again to check on how they're doing.<\/p>\n<p>Thankfully, I've managed to fall in with a couple Discord communities that are of a similar vein. We're scattered all across the world, but have connected with each other in ways that just seem... hard? impossible? as an adult with a child. And as I watch social media continue to descend into a place I just don't want to be a part of anymore (paying to tweet? only searching Instagram with their AI tool now? blergh), I'm grateful for those people more than they know.<\/p>\n<p>I, for one, am glad for this &quot;shrinking&quot;. I welcome Web 1.0; give me RSS feeds, newsletters, and more direct connection with smaller groups of people. The internet didn't control our lives back in those days, and we were better for it.<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-now\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I swear this isn't an &quot;old man yelling at clouds&quot; type post. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-now\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Apparently low rise jeans and high socks are back in fashion? Whatever. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-now\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Ok, maybe it is an &quot;old man yells at clouds&quot; post. But I'm not sorry for it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/why-now\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Now (April 2024)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-april-2024\/"}},"updated":"2024-04-17T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-april-2024\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/now.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I've been utilizing <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now\/\">my Now page<\/a> for a little over a year now<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-april-2024\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>. It was originally intended to be a place for me to keep track of stuff that was going on in my life, but it's turned into a &quot;what games am I playing or what books am I reading?&quot; list, which I think defeats the purpose a little bit.<\/p>\n<p>I'm going to experiment with a bit of a new format for a bit; while I don't want this blog to just turn in to a list of things I've got going on in my life, I would like to write more, AND I'd like to turn my Now page into something a bit more verbose. So, you may see some extra blog posts popping up now and again with a few more life updates.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>V is 2 now<\/strong>, and she's great. An all-consuming, boundary-testing, nonstop ball of energy, but great nonetheless. Her grasp of language is exploding every day, she's funny as hell, and the way she grasps patterns is nothing short of astounding to me<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-april-2024\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>. I'm blessed to be her dad.<\/p>\n<p>I'm still working as a software developer, but <strong>I've taken a couple of internal interviews for some engineering management positions<\/strong>. Unknown what the future holds for me as of yet, but going through the process has been enjoyable thus far.<\/p>\n<p>I was <strong>diagnosed with adult ADHD<\/strong> last month. The first medication we tried had a not fun side effect, so I get to talk with my doctor tomorrow to see what we can do about a dosage or prescription change. But honestly, just having the diagnosis has been very enlightening to me, helping me better understand myself and some of my quirks.<\/p>\n<p><strong>I'm 108 days sober.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Schedules have definitely been flexing over the past few months, but I've been attempting to <strong>spend as much time as possible in my father-in-law's woodshop<\/strong>. So far, my accomplishments have been some shelves for our built-ins, a couple cutting boards, a keyboard wrist\/palm rest, some cases for one of my keyboards, and a birdhouse for my wife. I've got aspirations of doing a lot more with this hobby, and hopefully I'll be able to find some more time to carve out and spend over there.<\/p>\n<p>I've found <strong>my video game time has dropped to practically nil<\/strong> as of late. I haven't played a game that I've loved yet this year (Cyberpunk 2077 was the last I played), and as V's bedtime gets later and later, the prospect of firing up a game for a shorter block of time just doesn't appeal to me as much as it used to. More of an observation than a complaint; priorities change.<\/p>\n<p>I've managed to <strong>let <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Fantasy\/\">\/r\/fantasy<\/a>'s Book Bingo Challenge draw me in to reading more<\/strong>. I've already completed 3 of the 25 squares in 3 weeks, and convinced a couple of friends to participate with me (hooray, accountabilibuddies). I've just started Steven Erikson's <em>Gardens of the Moon<\/em>, and I'm excited to see what else I discover this year.<\/p>\n<p><strong>It's prime sports watching season for me<\/strong>. Baseball is back in full swing<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-april-2024\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>, the NBA playoffs start this weekend, F1 races are happening, the end of the Premier League season is approaching... and I wonder why I don't make time for anything else. \ud83d\ude02<\/p>\n<p>I have 2 tabs open that may or may not cause me to <strong>rework my blog's tech stack<\/strong>. Possible related: I've been <strong>going through all of my RSS feeds<\/strong> as I migrate from NetNewsWire to Reeder. If you have any you think I should be following, please let me know.<\/p>\n<p>We might (<em>might<\/em>) be maybe thinking about considering <strong>getting a kitten or two<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Let me know what you think about this format. I'm gonna try it out for a bit, and see if it helps me get into the groove of blogging a bit more.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>&quot;Semantic satiation&quot; is a phenomenon where, when you see or hear a word several times in a row, it suddenly seems like it's not a real word. That happened when looking at &quot;Now&quot; over and over again. Maybe it'll happen to you too. You're welcome. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-april-2024\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>My wife peeled her an orange last week, and went over to the living room chair to sit with V and help her eat it. Now, if I ask her &quot;hey V, would you like an orange?&quot; she'll go &quot;Yeah!&quot; and immediately run to the chair and climb in. That's the orange eating chair now, I guess. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-april-2024\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>The Red Sox are projected to be hot garbage this year, but I'm a mod for a Discord server for the main Red Sox podcast, and we've got a really fun group of people that like to chat during games, which has been a blast. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-april-2024\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"SpONgEbOb MocKing TeXt - an Alfred Workflow","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/spongebob-mock-alfred\/"}},"updated":"2024-04-10T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/spongebob-mock-alfred\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-spongebob-mocking-text\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-spongebob-mocking-text\/raw\/main\/preview.png\" alt=\"An Alfred workflow to help you generate SpONgEbOb MocKing TeXt for use wherever you feel like.\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n  <figcaption>An Alfred workflow to help you generate SpONgEbOb MocKing TeXt for use wherever you feel like.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Occasionally, I get an idea in my head that I just can't shake. Today's idea: what if I had a way to quickly generate Spongebob mocking text? (I mentioned that I'm developing in Ruby, and wanted to head off the inevitable &quot;MAybE jUsT dON'T uSE rUBy ThEn&quot;.)<\/p>\n<p>I went online to see if an Alfred workflow existed for this. <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/kwaugh\/Aflred-Spongebob-Mocking-Text\">It did... kinda.<\/a> It was an old version from 5 years ago, written with <code>python<\/code> instead of <code>python3<\/code>, and seemed wildly complicated with all the various function calls.<\/p>\n<p>23 lines of code later, my own version of the Spongebob Mocking Text workflow now exists.<\/p>\n<p>You can download the latest version of the workflow <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-spongebob-mocking-text\/releases\/download\/v1.0.0\/Spongebob.Mocking.Text.alfredworkflow\">on GitHub<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-spongebob-mocking-text\/releases\/latest\">view the latest release<\/a>.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Accidental Fifty","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/accidental-fifty\/"}},"updated":"2024-02-19T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/accidental-fifty\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/accidental-fifty.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/accidental-fifty.jpg\" alt=\"A widget tracking the days since my last drink\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><em>CW: this post talks about alcohol and sobriety. If you, or someone you know, is in need of help, please call the SAMHSA hotline at 1-800-662-4357.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>You ever accidentally do something really cool?<\/p>\n<p>I feel like every activity has a couple of little things that you end up doing accidentally for the first time. Guitar playing has pinch harmonics. Baseball has breaking pitches (or knuckleballs). These things that you do inadvertently and go &quot;whoa... that's cool!&quot; and then spend countless hours attempting to recreate.<\/p>\n<p>That was me on January 3rd. I went out to the garage to get a beer, and was like &quot;hang on... I haven't had a beer yet this year.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>I've been drinking since I was 18, with a few gaps here and there over the years. I started drinking beer in 2010, and really started to pick up on the craft beer scene around 2013. Since then, I've gone to numerous conventions, traded beer with people all across the country, and been a bartender at 4 different breweries.<\/p>\n<p>When we found out my wife was pregnant, I drastically reduced my consumption of alcohol in solidarity. After she was born, we started getting non-alcoholic beers to have around so that my wife could have something other than water. Even now that we're mostly back to normal habits, we still keep a solid supply of Brewdog's gin &amp; tonic-inspired NA for my wife. After months (years?) of reduced consumption, some days even one beer would make me feel a bit tipsy, so having NAs on hand was always nice.<\/p>\n<p>So here I was, on a cold January day, standing in front of our fridge, realizing I hadn't had a sip of alcohol yet. &quot;Well, what's another couple of days to make it a week sober?&quot; became &quot;Well, what's another few weeks to make it a month?&quot; became &quot;Well, I could make it 50 days, yeah?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Turns out, yes I can.<\/p>\n<p>I'm not someone who often sticks with things. Learning a language. Exercising regularly. Drinking enough water. Self-study for... well, anything. You name it, I have fallen off the habit train numerous times. So to know that I was able to just say &quot;hey, I can do this&quot; and see it through has been pretty cool.<\/p>\n<p>I don't know how long this will continue. Having this little widget on my home screen has certainly helped. I'm not an alcoholic, nor someone who deals with substance abuse, so this hasn't been something I'm doing out of necessity; I've actually held off posting something for weeks, simply because I didn't want to seem insensitive or that I was glorifying my iron will of giving up booze or something.<\/p>\n<p>I just did something cool on accident, and thought maybe I'd share.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Understanding: Notebooks","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/understanding-notebooks\/"}},"updated":"2024-01-15T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/understanding-notebooks\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notebooks.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notebooks.jpeg\" alt=\"The random notebooks within an arm's reach of my desk\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><em>As part of my 2024 theme, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/\">Year of Understanding<\/a>, I'm doing a bunch of introspection about various things. This is one of a series of posts about me working towards understanding some aspect of my life.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Write it down.<\/p>\n<p>I can still hear my dad telling me that phrase over and over and over again as I grew up. Write it down. Is it important? Do you need to remember it? Write it down.<\/p>\n<p>I was always terrible at taking notes growing up, and still am to this day. In class? Eh... I'd get some of it. A planner? I'd use it for a week or two, and then it'd get lost in my backpack somewhere. A journal? Good luck. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pocket-notebook\/\">A pocketbook filled with joyous moments?<\/a> Abandoned. A little musical ideas notebook? I feel weird about adding things to it, so it lays abandoned.<\/p>\n<p>I've always been envious of people that take notes on paper, and\/or have an interesting and varied enough life that warrants something like that. Same with people who draw and have oodles of sketchbooks, or nice pen collections with which to write things. The whole &quot;scene&quot; surrounding notebooks and writing has always been very appealing to me (I've got a massive stack of notebooks around here somewhere, including a really nice leather-bound one my wife got me as a gift years ago). And yet, try as I might, I cannot break into it at all. Especially now, in my Work From Home era, when I just wear sweatpants or shorts around the house and don't have any of my EDC stuff on me.<\/p>\n<p>Also, there's that stupid pressure of &quot;oh jeez, do I REALLY want to use THIS notebook for THIS topic?&quot; or &quot;well, now that I've used 1-3 pages of a project that's abandoned, I can't use this notebook anymore&quot;... brains are weird.<\/p>\n<p>For me, digital is so convenient. It's faster for me to write. It's portable, now that I carry a smartphone around every day. It's legible, as my handwriting is objectively terrible. I'm also not a very sentimental person, so while I think it would be cool to have <em>something<\/em> worth keeping around, I'm not prone to forcing the issue (see: the joyous moments notebook project being abandoned).<\/p>\n<p>The one place that it's managed to actually stay present in my life? <strong>The weekly checklist.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>My wife and I have 2 shared reminders lists; one is our grocery list, and the other a list of things to be done around the house. Both of these are more of a &quot;don't forget about X&quot; thing, as opposed to what I'd deem to be things I want to take action on with any sort of urgency.<\/p>\n<p>At some point last year, I started jotting down the list of things that I wanted to accomplish each week on a scratch pad at my desk. It was similar to what I'd been doing in my Theme Journals of the past, but rather than daily lists, I settled with weekly. It seems to be a perfect fit for me; enough of a reminder that makes me want to get things done, but passive enough that I don't feel any guilt about not accomplishing things.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"what-do-i-understand-now%3F\" tabindex=\"-1\">What Do I Understand Now?<\/h2>\n<p>I'm not someone who sticks with writing anything long-form down with pen &amp; paper.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"am-i-ok-with-this-understanding%3F\" tabindex=\"-1\">Am I OK With This Understanding?<\/h2>\n<p>Yes; ultimately, any instance of me trying to use a notebook for <em>anything<\/em> has been because other people do it, and I want to feel hip\/cool.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-will-i-change-with-this-understanding\" tabindex=\"-1\">What Will I Change With This Understanding<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Continue to use my weekly checklists<\/li>\n<li>Stop buying more notebooks for things; I have plenty<\/li>\n<li>Remove anything related to writing from any sort of long term wishlist (sorry, <a href=\"https:\/\/cottonbureau.com\/people\/cortex-podcast#\/shop\">Cortex<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.studioneat.com\/\">Studio Neat<\/a> - you're not getting my money)<\/li>\n<li>Give more consideration to the &quot;why&quot; of doing something; is it for me, or is it because others do it?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n"},{"title":"My 2023 Books, Games, and Media","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-2023-in-media\/"}},"updated":"2024-01-02T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-2023-in-media\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/helios-i.mashable.com\/imagery\/reviews\/0778lG5KNk5Wr8uLrNcBSdY\/hero-image.fill.size_1248x702.v1623384545.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/helios-i.mashable.com\/imagery\/reviews\/0778lG5KNk5Wr8uLrNcBSdY\/hero-image.fill.size_1248x702.v1623384545.jpg\" alt=\"Reading\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>One of my main goals for 2024 is to read a lot more, finish more games, and actually consume some great shows &amp; movies<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-2023-in-media\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>. I keep meticulous track of these, and I thought it would be fun to share what I had done in 2023.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"books\" tabindex=\"-1\">Books<\/h2>\n<p>It's funny - I have my Kindle, but I barely read on it. Most of my reading comes via the Kindle app on my phone. Convenience plays a large part of that, I assume.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"books-read-in-2023%3A-25-(2022%3A-30%2C-2021%3A-50%2C-2020%3A-23)\" tabindex=\"-1\">Books read in 2023: 25 (2022: 30, 2021: 50, 2020: 23)<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Ruination<\/em> by Anthony Reynolds<\/li>\n<li><em>Elder Race<\/em> by Adrian Tchaikovsky (my top read of the year)<\/li>\n<li><em>Noor<\/em> by Nnedi Okorafor<\/li>\n<li><em>The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms<\/em> by N.K. Jemisin<\/li>\n<li><strong>The Poppy War<\/strong> series (<em>The Poppy War, The Dragon Republic, &amp; The Burning God<\/em>) by R.F. Kuang<\/li>\n<li><em>Yellowface<\/em> by R.F. Kuang<\/li>\n<li><strong>Silo<\/strong> series (<em>Wool, Shift, &amp; Dust<\/em>) by Hugh Howey<\/li>\n<li><strong>The Divide<\/strong> series (<em>The Last Watch, &amp; The Exiled Fleet<\/em>) by J.S. Dewes<\/li>\n<li><em>Redshirts<\/em> by John Scalzi<\/li>\n<li><strong>Newsflesh<\/strong> series (<em>Feed, Deadline, &amp; Blackout, + Feedback<\/em>) by Mira Grant<\/li>\n<li><em>This Is How You Lose The Time War<\/em> by Amal El-Mohtar &amp; Max Gladstone<\/li>\n<li><em>Rubicon<\/em> by J.S. Dewes<\/li>\n<li><strong>The Stormlight Archive<\/strong> 1-3 + 2 novellas (<em>The Way of Kings, Words of Radiance, Edgedancer, Oathbringer, &amp; Dawnshard<\/em>) by Brandon Sanderson<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"games\" tabindex=\"-1\">Games<\/h2>\n<p>My PC game playing dropped a <em>ton<\/em> this year for a few reasons. Moving helped me hit the reset button a bit, and <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pixel\/\">with Pixel dying<\/a>, I made it a focus to hang around my cats more often in the evening; they really like being downstairs at the new house, so that's where I am too.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"games-beaten-in-2023%3A-4-(2022%3A-15%2C-2021%3A-5%2C-2020%3A-22)\" tabindex=\"-1\">Games beaten in 2023: 4 (2022: 15, 2021: 5, 2020: 22)<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Horizon: Forbidden West<\/em> (PS5)<\/li>\n<li><em>Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order<\/em> (Steam Deck)<\/li>\n<li><em>The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom<\/em> (Switch) (my favorite game of the year)<\/li>\n<li><em>Spider-Man 2<\/em> (PS5)<\/li>\n<li>I also played waaaaaaaaaay too much <em>World of Warcraft<\/em> (and will continue to do so, thank you very much)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"other-media\" tabindex=\"-1\">Other Media<\/h2>\n<p>I went through a couple of different spurts this year, sitting downstairs watching shows every night for a week or two. Maybe I'll have to find another film series to do that with.<\/p>\n<p>(This list is totally from memory, so it's likely I'm forgetting a bunch of stuff)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The Bear<\/em>, seasons 1 &amp; 2 (this rules and if you haven't watched it you should)<\/li>\n<li><em>Reacher<\/em>, some of season 1<\/li>\n<li><em>Jack Ryan<\/em>, the whole thing<\/li>\n<li><em>Primo<\/em><\/li>\n<li>The first 6 <em>Mission: Impossible<\/em> movies (rankings: Rogue Nation, 3, 4: Ghost Protocol, 6: Fallout, 1, 2)<\/li>\n<li>Most of the MCU (I think I stopped at <em>Endgame<\/em> because of the proliferation of the shows)<\/li>\n<li>The start of the DCEU (<em>Man of Steel &amp; BvS<\/em> - I couldn't finish <em>Suicide Squad<\/em> because it was so bad)<\/li>\n<li>A whole bunch of NBA, MLB, NFL, F1, &amp; Premier League<\/li>\n<li>A whole bunch of <em>Bluey, Sesame Street, Super Simple Songs, Daniel Tiger, Blippi<\/em>, and more<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Watching TV and movies is honestly my lowest priority for hobbies; however, I'm <em>also<\/em> trying to get in to crochet, so I think these might dovetail nicely. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-2023-in-media\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Year of Understanding","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/"}},"updated":"2024-01-01T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/understanding.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/understanding.jpg\" alt=\"Understanding\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>As 2023 comes to a close, it's time for me to figure out my <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themesystem.com\/\">yearly theme<\/a> for 2024.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"recap\" tabindex=\"-1\">Recap<\/h2>\n<p>Rather than doing resolutions (which seem destined for failure), over the past couple of years I have been doing yearly themes<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>; not as much tangible goals that I'm attempting to measure myself against throughout the year, and more guideposts that I aim to stay between (or adjust appropriately) as the year goes on.<\/p>\n<p>In 2022, I did <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-garden\/\">Year of the Garden<\/a>. Its aim was to encourage the habits and hobbies that I wanted to flourish in my life, while simultaneously pruning back or razing the things that were making me unhappy or taking up too much of my time. This was mostly prep for my daughter being born, as I knew that I needed to learn how to prioritize my time well.<\/p>\n<p>2023 was more of the same - I went with <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-sustenance\/\">Year of Sustenance<\/a>. While I was initially annoyed realizing the similarities between my 2022 and 2023 themes, it sank in that the core goals were what I truly needed to focus on, as I don't feel like I really &quot;completed&quot; my initial theme<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>Themes can definitely be similar to resolutions; a great thing to start your year, and something that you just fall off of hard within a few weeks or months. Unfortunately, this is what's happened to me. When they say &quot;no plan survives first contact with the enemy&quot; they could've written that about a growing toddler.<\/p>\n<p>My main goal with Sustenance was focus on blocking out and planning my time, while simultaneously giving myself the freedom and flexibility to make changes as necessary. But I'd go one week where I forget to make that plan because I was stressed out from parenting things, and suddenly I was in a tailspin that I couldn't seem to climb out of.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"deliberations\" tabindex=\"-1\">Deliberations<\/h2>\n<p>So here I was, on break for the holiday, trying to figure out what it was that I wanted to do. Some more garden theme stuff (Year of Cultivation)? Another year of trying to iron out my free time so there are no wrinkles? That just didn't sound... fun. Enjoyable. Purposeful. It made me feel like I was in a rut.<\/p>\n<p>As I'm contemplating all of this, I happened to be listening to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/cortex\/150\">most recent Cortex episode<\/a> where Myke and Grey were talking over their themes from last year and sharing what they're doing for this year. I don't remember exactly what phrase Grey said, but it triggered an absolute lightbulb moment for me.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"2024---year-of-understanding\" tabindex=\"-1\">2024 - Year of Understanding<\/h2>\n<p><em>Understanding. &quot;A mental grasp; the capacity to apprehend general relations of particulars; a mutual agreement not formally entered into but in some degree binding on each side.&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>As 2023 wore on, I found myself doing a lot of analyzing of not just what I did or said or emoted, but <em>how<\/em> I did these things, and <em>why<\/em> I did them. Why do I gravitate to games that take up all my time? Why do I think that carrying a notebook with me will make me feel better? Why do I not want to touch my piano or make music anymore?<\/p>\n<p>Many of the adjustments that I have been making in my life have been ones where I am just changing to change. Making adjustments without thinking through the &quot;why&quot; behind it. A literal manifestation of &quot;fuck around and find out&quot;. Sometimes the results are great, other times hilarious, but many times things just don't stick and I find myself getting frustrated. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pocket-notebook\/\">That notebook I was so excited to carry with me and write in?<\/a> It's been sitting on my dresser for weeks.<\/p>\n<p>I'm not exactly sure how this is going to look, especially as I dive into it more, but here's what I'm thinking:<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"continue-gardening\" tabindex=\"-1\">Continue Gardening<\/h3>\n<p>Lol.<\/p>\n<p>And here I thought I was gonna escape my last two themes. NOPE! I do want to continue this work, carving out opportunities for joy in my life, and prioritizing the things that matter the most. Because right now, that's what's most important to me, is making sure my family is taken care of, and that my physical, mental, and spiritual health are all maintained.<\/p>\n<p>As of right now, this will look a lot like last year - making lists of the things I want to accomplish, blocking out the time to do them, and finding some sort of way to keep track of stuff in a way that allows me to see the success.<\/p>\n<p>(I will say, I'm <em>really<\/em> happy that this general theme worked so well for me that it's taken over my life. That means I did something really well a couple years ago.)<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"schedules%2C-planning%2C-%26-recaps\" tabindex=\"-1\">Schedules, Planning, &amp; Recaps<\/h3>\n<p>I've discovered over time that I work really well in small blocks of time. Developers might think of this as &quot;agile methodology&quot;, where I carve out the work I want to do in 1-2 week blocks, commit to doing it, getting it done, and then repeating those steps over and over until the project is complete. It's different when the project is &quot;life&quot;... but not really.<\/p>\n<p>In my head, this looks like 3 separate things:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Schedule out time for me to do concrete, repeatable things (gym time, woodworking time, and dedicated game time with friends). Get these on the calendar, make them repeating events, and stick to them. I've already gotten a jump start on a lot of these, and so far it's worked out well.<\/li>\n<li>Plan out other activities. Things like the books I want to try and read this year, or the woodworking projects I want to do. That way, when I go to do those activities, I don't get into the wheel-spinning rut of &quot;well what do I do?&quot;, and I can just dive in.<\/li>\n<li>Recap frequently. Instead of revisiting just quarterly, do small weekly recaps, and medium sized monthly recaps as well. Break things down to a level that gives me the freedom to reset accordingly as I go, while also letting me build up to bigger and bigger things.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"analysis-%26-deep-dives\" tabindex=\"-1\">Analysis &amp; Deep Dives<\/h3>\n<p>This is the crux of my year, and how I'm mixing things up from the last two years. Using what I learn from each weekly recap, I'm going to try and do more digging into the how and why of the things I choose to do, say, and think. Did I not follow through with something I really wanted to? Ok, fine... but why? What was the thing that made me go &quot;yeah, I want to do that&quot;, and why was I unable to continue that train of thought to success?<\/p>\n<p>I've set way too many arbitrary goals with no plan on how to get from A to B. Instead, I think it's time I look at some of these pathways, and figure out what it would take to keep me on course. Whether it's some sort of motivation, or smaller goals, or milestones to make sure I hit... whatever it is, <em>this<\/em> is what I need to figure out.<\/p>\n<p>(Some of you will look at this and go &quot;hey that's like therapy&quot;, which will then make you think &quot;hey maybe you should go to therapy, Nic&quot;. And you'd be right on both counts.)<\/p>\n<p>I'm super excited about this theme, and I think figuring out a way to make my analysis somewhat public or outward-facing could be a really fun exercise. We'll see how this goes.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>They're more like guidelines, really. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>This is <em>not<\/em> the goal of themes, but that's just how my brain works. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-understanding\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Pocket Notebook","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pocket-notebook\/"}},"updated":"2023-10-02T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pocket-notebook\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notebook.jpeg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notebook.jpeg\" alt=\"A photo of my notebook and pen\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I've been carrying a notebook around in my pocket for a week now. Maybe it's the &quot;hipster&quot; thing to do, but I've wanted to use a pen and paper for... something. It's taken me ages to figure out what, but I think I've landed on something.<\/p>\n<p>From the first page:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>This notebook is going to be a journal of things that give me joy. I want a reason to carry around a pen &amp; notebook, &amp; I can think of no better reason to have one.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Having this kind of mission, of purpose, has led me to reach for it multiple times per day. Focusing on joy has helped me lean in to the happy moments I experience.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe my daughter will find these tucked in a box one day and flip through them. I hope so.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Sept 2023 Life Updates","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/09-23-life-updates\/"}},"updated":"2023-09-23T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/09-23-life-updates\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>\ud83d\udc4b\ud83c\udffb Hello, everyone. We're officially halfway through the month, and I thought I'd update on some fun things that's been going on.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"new-blog-theme\" tabindex=\"-1\">New blog theme<\/h3>\n<p>As you might be able to see, I have a new blog theme. Still utilizing Jekyll on the backend, but I <em>finally<\/em> revamped the look and feel of the site, switched over to Bootstrap 5, using some different fonts in places, &amp; finally figured out what I wanted to do with footnote styling after... what, 10 years? <sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/09-23-life-updates\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> Anyway, if you see anything hinky with the site, please let me know.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"raising-money-for-st.-jude\" tabindex=\"-1\">Raising money for St. Jude<\/h3>\n<p>I've done a handful of little activities here and there working to <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/09-23-life-updates\/st-jude-2023\">raise money for St. Jude via the Relay FM campaign<\/a>. I personally have been able to raise (at this time) $890, which is super cool. Relay as a whole has cracked $321k, which smashed their monthly goal of $293k that they had set for themselves; this also means that over the 5 years they've been fundraising, they have managed to raise <em><strong>over $2.5 MILLION dollars<\/strong><\/em>, which is just incredible.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"leaning-in-to-new-hobbies\" tabindex=\"-1\">Leaning in to new hobbies<\/h3>\n<p>I've barely played any video games in September (I'm right at the start of Act 2 in Baldur's Gate), as I've been focused on some other hobbies. Mostly, this has centered around my new desk that I'm sitting (actually standing) at as I write this. I've been utilizing my father in law's workshop behind their house to do some woodworking, which included finishing this desk, and this whole week has centered around getting my office a bit more organized. I'll probably do an office tour here in the coming days. I have a whole bunch of woodworking projects that I want to tackle, and I think I'm going to start looking into a 3D printer for the two of us to dabble with. This could be fun.<\/p>\n<p>I'm also still in a Play By Text (via Discord) D&amp;D campaign that's been running over 2 years at this point; we're level 6, our party has stopped the end of the world (for now), and my character (a cleric) has been suffering a crisis of faith for the vast majority of it. I still have some aspirations to write and run my own campaign, but I have the utmost respect for all of the DMs I've had in my life; the effort that is required to run a good campaign is astounding, and I'm constantly in awe of the world building the games I've been a part of have had in them. (Who knows, maybe I'll just join another game and punch things...)<\/p>\n<p>I also sat down and <em>devoured<\/em> a book on Tuesday <sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/09-23-life-updates\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>, which is something I haven't done in years. I've checked out a couple of physical books from the library over the past few months, but they have all just sat unopened until I've needed to return them. This time was different; I felt called to just sit and read, and the next thing I knew, it was 11:30pm and I was done with the book. Felt really good, and now I gotta find the next book to read.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"losing-weight-(again)\" tabindex=\"-1\">Losing weight (again)<\/h3>\n<p>A friend and I have been motivating each other and providing accountability to get healthy and lose some weight this summer\/fall. My family has had a handful of health scares over the past couple of years, and with my daughter growing like a weed, I know that I'm gonna need to be in the best shape possible in order to keep up. So far, everything has focused on just eating the right foods as much as possible; it hasn't been perfect, but I'm already seeing results, feeling a lot better, and I know that I have exercise and more strict food consumption in my back pocket when I hit my plateau.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"parenting\" tabindex=\"-1\">Parenting<\/h3>\n<p>V is an amazing human being, full of joy and curiosity. Current favs: slowly rotating the recliner while one of the cats sits on it and saying &quot;wheeeeee!&quot; (everything is &quot;wheeeee!&quot; right now, but that one is extra cute), making mama and I &quot;play drums&quot; on a fan before bed, having every person that's dropped by our home stop and shoot hoops with her, and chasing both cats all around the house. It took 18 months for me to really feel like we have everything under control, which inevitably means something drastic is about to change.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"sports\" tabindex=\"-1\">Sports<\/h3>\n<p>My wife and I have both been enjoying sports a lot more over the past few years, and we're really leaning into it this fall. Iowa football is back, my wife has felt compelled to root for the Chicago Bears, baseball season is winding down and the Red Sox are gonna miss the postseason, the NBA season is just around the corner and the Celtics have high hopes, F1 has been a delight (as long as we don't pay attention to who wins the races), and we've even started to pay attention to the Premier League, adopting Liverpool as our team of choice (subject to change). I'm not gonna force a love for any sport or team on my daughter, but I really hope she takes to it at least a little bit; it'd be a lot of fun to be able to share my love of sports with her as she grows up.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I'm always aiming to write more, and I do have a handful of things banked that I'll probably jot down in the coming days. Otherwise, check out my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/09-23-life-updates\/now\">Now page<\/a> for updates on what I'm currently doing.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I've had my eyes on the general footnote styling that I've wanted to use on <a href=\"https:\/\/marco.org\/\">Marco Arment's blog<\/a> since I was in college, and it's literally taken me this long to finally do something about it. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/09-23-life-updates\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>&quot;Redshirts&quot; by John Scalzi. 3.5 stars; a fun, campy book, but one of his earlier works. Just a tad rough around the edges, compared to his most recent book &quot;The Kaiju Preservation Society&quot;, which I thought was fantastic. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/09-23-life-updates\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Raising Money for St. Jude","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/st-jude-2023\/"}},"updated":"2023-08-28T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/st-jude-2023\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/join-me2023.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/join-me2023.jpg\" alt=\"Join me (and V) in raising money for St. Jude\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><em>If you would like to skip the blog post, <a href=\"https:\/\/tiltify.com\/@niclake\/nic-lake-for-st-jude-2023\">here's a link to my fundraising campaign<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/donate.tiltify.com\/@niclake\/nic-lake-for-st-jude-2023\">a link directly to the donation page<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>My daughter turned 18 months old today. It feels like just yesterday, she was a tiny blob that I had to burp multiple times a day. Now, she's devouring chicken, speaking in her own fun language (&quot;no&quot; means no, but an emphatic &quot;NO!&quot; means yes, which is gonna get me into trouble when we're in public), and generally being the coolest kid ever.<\/p>\n<p>She is perfect and wonderful and healthy. But what if she wasn't? What if we took her in for a checkup and the doctor told us &quot;hey, so, V has cancer&quot;?<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p><strong>(VERY IMPORTANT POINT OF EMPHASIS - SHE IS FINE, PERFECTLY HEALTHY, DOES NOT HAVE CANCER, ETC. - THE PURE HAPPENSTANCE OF HER HALF-BIRTHDAY FALLING ON THE DAY OF THE CAMPAIGN LAUNCH IS JUST A COINCIDENCE)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>That's why I'm partnering with <a href=\"https:\/\/relay.experience.stjude.org\/\">the Relay FM podcast community<\/a> during September (which just so happens to be Childhood Cancer Awareness Month) to help raise money for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stjude.org\/\">St. Jude Children's Research Hospital<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/tiltify.com\/@niclake\/nic-lake-for-st-jude-2023\">Here is a link to my campaign where you can donate<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>UPDATE: I had set a very modest goal of raising $250, and promised to match it. I figured I'd need to post 30 times to get anywhere close to that, but y'all crushed this goal within 5 hours. That rules.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If you aren\u2019t aware, St. Jude Children\u2019s Research Hospital is the world leader in understanding, treating, and defeating childhood cancer &amp; other life-threatening diseases. The majority of their funding comes from generous donors, and it allows them to not only lead the way on life-saving research, but also provide treatment at little to no cost for the patient &amp; families. As a parent, I couldn\u2019t even imagine what it would be like to find out that she had cancer, and not being able to get the help we needed.<\/p>\n<p>Relay FM has been raising money for St. Jude every September since 2019. Together, their community has raised over $2.2m, and their goal this year is to eclipse the $2.5m threshold. They're a wonderful group of humans using their platform to raise money for a good cause, and I've loved taking part in helping them do that.<\/p>\n<p>One more time, for the people who have scrolled this far - <a href=\"https:\/\/tiltify.com\/@niclake\/nic-lake-for-st-jude-2023\">here's a link to my fundraising campaign<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/donate.tiltify.com\/@niclake\/nic-lake-for-st-jude-2023\">a link directly to the donation page<\/a>. Any amount is welcome. Any amount is amazing. Any amount will make a difference in the life of a child, both today and in the years to come.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Thank you Elon, Zuck, and Spez","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fuck-social-media\/"}},"updated":"2023-07-19T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fuck-social-media\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/www.vyprvpn.com\/site\/assets\/files\/1823\/image.png\" alt=\"Delete your social media\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Shout out to the three biggest twatwaffles in tech these days, as they have actually conspired to make my life better!<\/p>\n<p>As someone who spent decades being &quot;chronically online&quot;, the last month or so has been really weird for me. And it's all thanks to the brilliant (lol) decisions made by the heads of Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit.<\/p>\n<p>I should back up a bit.<\/p>\n<p>My online experience started with AOL Instant Messenger, or AIM. Everyone seemed to have it back in my junior high, and I remember racing home from school to hop online and chat with my friends that I'd spent all day being around. We all had the cryptic away messages, about info, and all that. I can't remember most of my screennames over the years, but I do remember my last one: <strong>ihatelockers<\/strong>. (I got in a very minor scuffle the final week of 9th grade, and my punishment was that I had to come back for 4 hours the day summer started and help clean out lockers. The other guy showed up an hour late, and had to stay all day + come back the next day. Sucker.)<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/espn.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/espn.jpg\" alt=\"Me at a UNI basketball game\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>I lived through the LiveJournal, MySpace, Xanga, and Tumblr eras. I was a leader of the grassroots effort to keep Facebook from opening itself up to people without .edu email addresses back in 2006. I was on ESPN multiple times because I interacted with the various show hosts on Twitter (or because I stuck my face in front of a camera at my school's token appearance).<\/p>\n<p>I've made friends, gotten jobs, joined WoW guilds, first interacted with my now-wife, and more all because of social media. There are so many amazing experiences that I know people have had purely because of the networking abilities these various apps have provided to people.<\/p>\n<p>But now? Now, the landscape has been fractured, and I'm Very Tired\u2122. I can't keep up with everything that's going on nowadays. Everyone <em>was<\/em> on Twitter, and now it's all split up, because Elon Musk is a giant manbaby. Mastodon has the tech conversation. Bluesky has the ultra-liberal gamers that are (apparently) trying to tell Dril how to post. Facebook has the family. And Twitter still has all the sports stuff (and, let's face it, pretty much everyone else from Bluesky too, because we're in that phase where nobody wants to pull the plug). Plus, there's Discord, which is full of a handful of communities and friend groups that I interact with more than anything else. And finally, Reddit recently made changes to their API, effectively killing the best 3rd party apps, and resulting in a lot of subreddits I followed going dark indefinitely.<\/p>\n<p>I had a folder on my iPhone home screen for ages that was full of all the various apps. I caught myself just flipping between 5 or 6 of them nearly non-stop a few weeks ago, and got really mad at myself. None of this was serving me. None of this was even fun anymore. It was a chore to try and interact with any of the people I wanted to interact with.<\/p>\n<p>So, I went... what's just under nuclear? Whatever that is, I did it. I still have all my accounts across the various services, but a lot of them (Ivory for Mastodon, Reddit, Facebook, Twitter) got deleted, and a few others (Instagram, Bluesky) got relegated to the App Library - accessible if I need them for something, but out of sight\/mind the rest of the time.<\/p>\n<p>I can't believe that the thing that finally broke the social media chokehold on me was the various owners being complete garbage humans... and yet, here we are. I have no idea if any of these services will ever return to my life in the capacity they were before. I sure hope not. I do miss a lot of the people I would interact with, and I'm trying to be proactive about connecting with those that I really appreciated (if this is you, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\/\">hello, come talk to me<\/a>), but I'm doing best to not let the allure of what once was suck me back in to a space I know is not good for me.<\/p>\n<p>Friendly reminder: if you're not paying for it, YOU are the product.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Waves (R.I.P. Pixel)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pixel\/"}},"updated":"2023-06-10T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/pixel\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/banner.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/banner.jpg\" alt=\"A picture collage of Pixel\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<blockquote>\n<p>I am laying on a beach.<\/p>\n<p>It's not a particularly nice beach. It's got sand, and water, but that's about it. It's lonely; no birds are circling around. It's cold; there's a breeze coming off the water, and it's a little chilly.<\/p>\n<p>I am laying on a beach, on my towel, where the waves can reach me. They come rhythmically, but with a timing I cannot predict. Some are gentle, swirling up underneath my back. Others are forceful, crashing over me with a violence I am not prepared for.<\/p>\n<p>I could move, if I wanted to. All I have to do is stand up, pick up my towel, and move back to where the waves cannot reach me. But I just feel... heavy. Tired. Sad.<\/p>\n<p>The tide comes in. I am swallowed by the sea. The waves continue to pound overhead. I should really move. I finally stand up, and make for dry land. The waves pummel me as I strive for solid footing. Every step is treacherous. Why did I stay here? I don't want to drown. I want to breathe.<\/p>\n<p>I make it to dry land. The waves continue to break upon the beach behind me. I towel off, and go down the boardwalk. Check out some shops. Grab a bite to eat. Wow, this is a really good donut.<\/p>\n<p>Then suddenly, as I'm enjoying this little round delicious sugar bomb, I feel guilt. How could I <strong>possibly<\/strong> be enjoying this moment when there are waves I need to feel on the beach? I throw the donut down, run back to the shore, and dive headlong into the oncoming crest.<\/p>\n<p>It smashes me flat. But somehow, that feels right. I don't enjoy it, but this is where I belong.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<hr \/>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/shoes.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/shoes.jpg\" alt=\"Pixel with my shoes\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>At 2:45pm on Thursday, June 8th, 2023, my wife and I put our beloved cat Pixel to sleep. He was one week shy of his 5th birthday.<\/p>\n<p>We took Pixel to the vet on the 1st, and discovered that he had bladder stones, 2 of which had caused a blockage. We were going to try and bring him home on the 4th, but he got blocked up again early that morning. He had an emergency cystotomy on the 5th, and we were able to bring him home the evening of the 6th. He had a somewhat normal day on the 7th, just wandering around the house and trying to be as much of his normal self as he could. I spent the 6th and 7th sleeping in the office with him in my sleeping bag, so that he didn't have to worry about being alone as he healed.<\/p>\n<p>On the 8th, we realized Pixel hadn't eaten or drank anything since early that morning, and he was extremely lethargic and didn't want to wake up from naps. We took him back to the vet, and discovered that he now had 6 or 7 stones causing another blockage. We made the decision to forego another rough and potentially complicated surgery, and let him rest.<\/p>\n<p>Pixel knew it was time, I think. At home, he'd pawed at my lap for attention and basked in some belly rubs before stealing my office chair and drifting into his deep slumber. At the vet, he crawled straight into my lap after his x-ray, and stayed there until he took his last breath.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/boys.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/boys.jpg\" alt=\"Pixel and his brothers\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Pixel was an amazing cat. He was an orphan, off by himself when we saw him, and we knew we had to bring him home with us. He melted the cold heart of our eldest cat, Bearcat, and was the bridge between him and our 3rd cat, Beau, when he joined our family. He was mischievous, always diving into open closets or attempting &quot;freedom runs&quot; onto the patio when we slid the door open. It took a long time for him to enjoy and seek out cuddles from us, but once he did, he'd share every bit of his warmth with your lap. If you ever met Pixel, there's no doubt that he flopped down in front of you demanding you pet his belly. <strong>Pixel taught all of us how to love everyone unconditionally (but still hiss at a motherfucker who needed to be hissed at [this was usually Beau]).<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>My final happy memory of Pixel is maybe one of my favorites of him ever. He was laying on the couch sleeping, and our daughter V (who is 15 months old) was sitting next to him. She reached over and gave him a few pets on his side. I said to her &quot;V, can you give Pixel a big hug?&quot; and with no hesitation she went face-first into his belly, giggling and hugging him tight. It was so precious, so perfect, and I couldn't ask for a better lasting memory that I'll cherish forever.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/v.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/v.jpg\" alt=\"Pixel and V\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I have never felt grief like what I experienced Thursday, or what I've been struggling with ever since. Not when my mom passed, not when my dad was going through a bunch of severe medical stuff, not when my childhood dog died... they all sucked, and I felt sadness, but Pixel passing just <em>ruined<\/em> me.<\/p>\n<p>I did a speed run of the grief stages Thursday at the vet, and then have been going through them again slowly over the last few days. Denial that this was as serious as it was. Anger at the vet for not getting all the stones during the surgery. Bargaining for just one more day, one more meow, one more belly rub. Depression about... well, everything.<\/p>\n<p>They say that grief comes in waves. I'll probably get better throughout the week, and then I'll see the notification of Pixel's birthday this coming Thursday and get sad again. Or I'll hang a photo I have of him. Or I'll go to close a closet door and instinctively check to see if he jumped in. Or I'll fire up Zelda and find my horse Snowball (what I was adamant about naming him before we settled on the name Pixel [also, fun fact, his original name was Ralph]).<\/p>\n<p>I've found myself feeling a lot like the guy on the beach these past few days. Friday I went to Target, trying to go about life. I had a podcast on that made me laugh. I was, in that moment, happy. And then I was like &quot;oh shit, how can you be happy, your cat just died&quot; and I went spiraling downwards.<\/p>\n<p>I know that's not what Pixel would've wanted for me, or for us. Pixel was a beacon of joy. He was there when we were sad, or mad, or sick, or busy, or tired, and he gave every ounce of his energy to bring us back to level. He made me laugh with his antics constantly. All he ever wanted was to share his joy with everyone he encountered. We were so lucky to have him with us for 1,744 days, and I'll cherish those memories of him forever.<\/p>\n<p>Am I ok? Hell no. Shit sucks, I'm sad, and I'm gonna be sad for a while. But I also know that I don't have to punish myself for moments when I don't feel sad by diving headlong into the grief. We just have to handle the waves as they come, and not stand on the shore waiting for the tide to come in. As the Dr. Seuss line says, &quot;Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.&quot; Pixel brought me joy every day; the best way to honor his memory is to continue to live joyously.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Farewell, little buddy. You'll always be my first kitten. You were the best cat. I love you so much.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/window.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/pixel\/window.jpg\" alt=\"Goodbye, my friend\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n"},{"title":"ClackTrack - a Keyboard Cataloging Tool for iOS & iPadOS","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/clacktrack\/"}},"updated":"2023-02-23T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/clacktrack\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/clacktrack.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/clacktrack.png\" alt=\"ClackTrack - Catalog your mechanical keyboard collection\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Note: ClackTrack is currently on hold as I work on some other projects (and parent a toddler), but I have not abandoned this.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>I'd like to present to you a new project I'm working on called <a href=\"https:\/\/clacktrack.app\/\">ClackTrack<\/a>. ClackTrack is an application I'm developing for iPhone and iPad, allowing users to catalog their mechanical keyboard collection.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>This honestly all started early 2022, when I asked myself, &quot;why haven't I learned how to make iOS apps yet?&quot; I've been a web application developer for most of my career, but the prospect of making apps for iPhones has appealed to me since the day I got my iPhone 4S<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/clacktrack\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>. But at long last, I finally took the plunge and started learning SwiftUI.<\/p>\n<p>It's been... slow? Having a child will definitely stunt any hobby progression, but I've also never really been a person that makes software in my free time. That all changed this winter; for someone that rarely has any project ideas kicking around in my head, I went on a tear where I had a whole bunch of them back to back. Mostly small, script-y things that I could do to improve my life, or extensions that I could write for apps like Alfred.<\/p>\n<p>But then I got one really fun one in my head: &quot;What if I made the <a href=\"https:\/\/hurleynumber.com\/\">Hurley Number app<\/a> in SwiftUI?&quot;<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/clacktrack\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>That quickly spiraled out of control - what if it had this feature, and that feature, and, and, and... and then, the idea of a cataloging app just hit me full on. A lot of people I know do theirs in a Google spreadsheet - functional, but not really elegant. What if I took that and made it, well, Better\u2122?<\/p>\n<p>So, this is a post announcing the announcement of the release of ClackTrack. It's to build hype, to keep me honest, and to share with everyone what I'm working on. If you'd like to stay in the know about it, you can sign up for emails <a href=\"https:\/\/clacktrack.app\/\">on the site<\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Had to wait until Sprint had a white iPhone. It showed up the same day that an ex and I adopted a puppy. Guess which one I was more excited for? <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/clacktrack\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>The Hurley Number is a quasi-joke metric thought up by the <a href=\"http:\/\/relay.fm\/\">Relay.FM<\/a> Discord members for tracking how extensive your mechanical keyboard collection is. You can see more in the FAQ section on the site. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/clacktrack\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"This Is Thirty Six","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thirty-six\/"}},"updated":"2023-02-13T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thirty-six\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/ZeuuS1K.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"The most fascinating thing in the world for my daughter is staring through a crunchy pineapple ring at her mom\" \/><\/p>\n<p>In years past, I would sleep in on February 13. Today, I'm up at 5:15am, a full hour and a half before my wife and V, which is odd (the being up before anyone else part, not the 5:15 part).<\/p>\n<p>In years past, I'd take the day off of work and play video games all day. Today, my game time will start when V goes down for the night. Could be 6:30. Could be 8. Maybe I'll be too tired to start anything and I'll just fall asleep instead.<\/p>\n<p>In years past, I'd get a phone call from my dad at 10:54am, so he could sing me an annoying rendition of &quot;Happy birthday&quot; at the time I was born. Today, I'm crossing my fingers he remembers, given everything that he's had happen to him over the past 3ish months.<\/p>\n<p>In years past, I'd have no plans for my day. Today, I'm calling an orthopedic surgeon for a consult on my messed up shoulder, and my wife and I are going to try and go for a walk.<\/p>\n<p>In years past, I'd have no responsibilities to attend to. Today, my daughter is everything and all-encompassing, and I've spent the whole morning with her and my wife playing in the living room.<\/p>\n<p>In years past, I'd be blogging from my laptop. Today, the only way I can write 350 words is on my phone in short spurts.<\/p>\n<p>In years past, I'd be annoyed that it's always snowy and cold on my birthday. Today, I'm loving that I get to bundle up and stay inside.<\/p>\n<p>None of this is to complain (ok I'm a little pissed about my arm, so that one might be). All of this is just change. Not good change or bad change. Just change. For years, I've been so resistant to change. I'm stubborn and selfish, and I was nervous about having a child because of it. But now? I wouldn't have it any other way.<\/p>\n<p>This is February 13, 2023. This is the 44th day of the year. This is Monday. This is a day ending in &quot;y&quot;. This is another day where my family is healthy, my daughter is happy, and the house is warm.<\/p>\n<p>This is thirty-six.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Now","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-post\/"}},"updated":"2023-02-06T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now-post\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/dy1njwx6v16vt.cloudfront.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2018\/12\/NOW-Secondary.jpg\" alt=\"Now That's What I Call Content\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Taking a cue from a few other people, like my good friend <a href=\"https:\/\/www.patrickrhone.net\/now\/\">Patrick Rhone<\/a>, I've gone ahead and implemented <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/now\/\">a new Now page<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>I have my own personal lists of things that I try to stay on top of in regards to what my current priorities are, but exposing them to the world allows others to keep me accountable (&quot;hey, how's Project X going for you?&quot;), or invites people to read\/play the same things I do, or just shares info with the world about what my life is all about. I'd encourage you to share your Now pages with me - I'm always curious what types of things people are working on.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Music for Programming","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/music-for-programming\/"}},"updated":"2023-02-01T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/music-for-programming\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>I found a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Music\/comments\/10blstf\/i_am_a_programmer_and_made_a_list_with_electronic\/\">post on Reddit<\/a> a couple of weeks ago about a great playlist to listen to while programming or coding. So far, I can say that it's been doing a great job - lots of ambient, chill, yet still energetic music that's helped me be less distracted throughout the day. The original URL from the Reddit post is dead, but I've managed to rescue &amp; recreate the playlists in both <a href=\"https:\/\/music.apple.com\/us\/playlist\/programming-coding-playlist\/pl.u-RRbV0XNsxea5DG\">Apple Music<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/playlist\/4fsrrC5lCaLsCGw7z1HsUC\">Spotify<\/a> using a slick service called <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tunemymusic.com\/\">TuneMyMusic<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, I also discovered <a href=\"https:\/\/musicforprogramming.net\/\">MusicForProgramming.net<\/a>, a very cool looking site that has a bunch of shorter playlists of music for this same purpose. I haven't dug into this one much, but I will, and thought y'all might be interested in this as well.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Death of the Third Space + Quiet Quitting","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac\/"}},"updated":"2023-01-27T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/cO2e6Ox.png\" alt=\"A very tired person with their head on their desk holding a sign that says &quot;help&quot;.\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I think by now, most people have heard the phrase <strong>&quot;quiet quitting&quot;<\/strong> floating around, though some may not know what it means. The way I see it, &quot;quiet quitting&quot; is when you aren't feeling invested in your job, so you do juuuuuust enough to get by. Got something that'll take 5 minutes to do? Maybe I'll get to it after a 15 minute walk to the coffee machine and a 10 minute bathroom break. Someone needs help? Eh, that's not really <em>my<\/em> problem, is it? They'll figure it out. People get their core responsibilities done, but nothing more. They don't show up early, they don't stay late, they don't attend any meetings that aren't mandatory, and they don't do any work outside of what's expected of them.<\/p>\n<p>There's been a lot of talk as to why this is a thing. Mostly, it stems from burnout at work, especially during the pandemic &amp; return to &quot;normal&quot;. We're becoming more aware of toxic behaviors, and less forgiving of them. When the job doesn't care about us, why should we care back?<\/p>\n<p>I think I inadvertently stumbled on to another possible reason as to why this burnout might be happening: <strong>the death of the third space<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>What is the Third Space (or third place)? <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Third_place\">Per Wikipedia<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>In sociology, the third place\/space refers to the social surroundings that are separate from the two usual social environments of home (&quot;first place&quot;) and the workplace (&quot;second place&quot;). Examples of third places include churches, cafes, clubs, public libraries, gyms, bookstores, stoops and parks. In his book The Great Good Place (1989), Ray Oldenburg argues that third places are important for civil society, democracy, civic engagement, and establishing feelings of a sense of place.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>If I think back on my own life, I've had a lot of third spaces. I spent countless hours in church from age 10 to age 29. I've been Chronically Online for most of my adult life. I spent a lot of time playing video games with my friends. I moonlighted as a bartender at a brewery in my city, both to make some extra money, but also to be around people I enjoyed.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>None of these third spaces exist for me right now.<\/strong><\/em> I left the church for a myriad of personal reasons. Twitter is dying a loud &amp; obnoxious death, Facebook is already a toxic cesspool, and Mastodon is still new enough that it still feels like everyone is just making noise for the time being. Now that V is here, I don't play games with people online anymore, and I don't bartend anymore. I'm sure I'm not alone in this; while not everyone had kids, we all had to deal with the pandemic throwing a wrench in our personal lives, basically eliminating this Third Space for a lot of us.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, lots of people (myself included) stopped going in to the office, leading to a growing number of people merging their First and Second Spaces into one weird mishmash. Many people have tried to put physical limits on their time at work in various ways (dressing in work clothes during the work day, having a dedicated office for doing everything, going to a co-working space, etc.), to a wide range of success.<\/p>\n<p>But think about it - people no longer have their Third Space, so they don't have any sort of outlet to relax, vent, and unwind after a long day. And now their First and Second Spaces are overlapping more and more, so any sort of toxicity from their job is having a more direct impact on their home life. <em><strong>All of the individual spaces have become compressed down into one space<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>I'm suffering a lot from this right now. My org was one of the many tech firms that announced layoffs earlier this month, and while I survived, my morale and mental state has definitely taken a hit. I can't help but bring that home with me any time I use the restroom, or get water, or check in on the family. My separate spaces no longer exist, and it's very frustrating.<\/p>\n<p>I don't have an answer for this. I wish I did. It's just something that's forefront of my mind, and something I need to make sure I'm thinking about &amp; being proactive at trying to rectify. Perhaps you're going through something similar and didn't realize it; if so, I hope this helps you.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Curb Your Enthusiasm (for Notifications)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/notifications\/"}},"updated":"2023-01-19T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/notifications\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/banner.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/banner.jpg\" alt=\"Notifications taking over everything\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>As my daughter grows up, I'm realizing how much she values the attention my wife and I can give her, and how frustrated she becomes when she realizes that our attention is split. My wife just got a new Kindle yesterday, and we were sitting downstairs trying to get it set up before I left for the evening; my daughter climbed up the couch and attempted to snatch the Kindle away, trying to put herself between it and us.<\/p>\n<p>This is just a small story, but one that really drives home how attached I have become to my devices over the years, and how our daughter is making me a better person for recognizing that and trying to break the habits. But they're <em>really hard<\/em> habits to break! So, I've been attempting to use some of the iPhone's built in features, along with a couple modifications to my data consumption, in order to put more of an air gap between myself and my phone.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>To wrangle my time and attention back, I implemented a handful of things:<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"1%3A-set-app-limits-for-time-sucking-apps\" tabindex=\"-1\">1: Set App Limits for Time-Sucking Apps<\/h2>\n<p>This is what I think is the bare minimum that anyone can do to help reclaim their time on their phone. It's so easy for us to pick it up and mindlessly scroll through a series of apps (mostly social media) - restricting your time you're allowed to spend on them can certainly help.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/applimits.jpg\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/applimits.jpg\" alt=\"A screenshot of the app limits settings screen\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Where to enable<\/strong>: Settings &gt; Screen Time &gt; App Limits<\/p>\n<p>Something to note: for my particular limits, Twitter (I refuse to call it X) means both the base Twitter app, but <em>also<\/em> Twitter's website (at least, if you're using it through Safari - can't speak to how it behaves if you have a 3rd party browser), which is great because that means you don't have as many workarounds.<\/p>\n<p>I know that there are a few studies out there that say that using App Limits actually causes you to use the apps more; anecdotally, I don't have that issue, but your mileage may vary.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"2%3A-deleted-(most)-social-media-off-my-phone\" tabindex=\"-1\">2: Deleted (most) Social Media Off my Phone<\/h2>\n<p>I'm not going to pretend that I'm holier than thou or anything here; everyone has their own reasons for using social media, and you don't need me preaching at you <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/fuck-social-media\/\">any more than I already have<\/a>. That said, the only app that I have left on my phone is Instagram, mostly because a few friends and I use it to send various funny clips to one another. I barely post there anymore. Facebook, Twitter (RIP Tweetbot), Reddit (RIP Apollo), Mastodon, Bluesky, Threads - they're all long gone. It's freeing. You should try it. As mentioned above, App Limits will still keep you from logging in on the web and mindlessly scrolling, so these two together have been great.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"3%3A-reconfigure-my-news-sources\" tabindex=\"-1\">3: Reconfigure My News Sources<\/h2>\n<p>I kept Twitter and Reddit around for ages because I utilized them for getting news about various things, so if I was going to disconnect, I needed to find better sources. (Do we NEED to follow along &amp; live-tweet when Trump gets indicted for the 17th time? Seriously - shit's unhealthy, y'all, and we need to stop.) I did this in two ways:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Set up an Apple News widget stack for sports stuff. Red Sox, Celtics, Vikings, F1, and general sports all have their own widgets in the stack, and I can just flip through those to keep up w\/ articles.<\/li>\n<li>Sign up for the Apple News morning email digest (in the app), along with a couple email digests like <a href=\"https:\/\/themorningnews.org\/\">The Morning News<\/a> (btw if anyone has any other recommendations I'm all ears)<\/li>\n<li>Use an RSS feed reader like NetNewsWire or Reeder to keep up with various websites &amp; blogs. RSS readers are great, and I'm glad to have found a reason to bring one back into my life.<\/li>\n<li>Signing up for more Substacks (or related services). For me, email remains something that I feel in relative control over; I don't clamor for inbox zero or anything like that (I do stay tidy - there's only 14 items in my inbox as I write this, and I actually just triaged 9 of them, so we're down to 5), so receiving long-form messages actually feels nice. If I'm not interested? Delete! All gone!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Ultimately, I'm replacing a live refreshing feed that is constantly in need of my attention to stay current, with something that just shows up and lets me tackle at my own pace, on my own time. Much more optimal.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"4%3A-set-up-a-scheduled-focus-mode\" tabindex=\"-1\">4: Set Up a Scheduled Focus Mode<\/h2>\n<p>These next two are what I started doing a couple of weeks ago, and I must say, I'm VERY happy with how they've turned out.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/focus.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/focus.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of my focus mode setup\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Focus modes are one of those things that I think people know exist, but don't really grok all that well. I've got one that I've used for reading; whenever I'm in the Kindle app for longer than a minute, it switches me over to a focus mode that's a full Do Not Disturb, and gives me a new home screen that only has the Kindle app &amp; my various music apps on it, to keep me from just hopping into some other app and not reading.<\/p>\n<p>What I did for this experiment was to set up a Personal focus mode on a schedule, from the time I'm up until the time Violet goes to bed, with small gaps to catch up &amp; a bigger gap during her nap time. I've only allowed notifications from a select group of people (wife, family, really good friends, and my boss at the brewery) and apps (anything related to work, money, or our smart home, plus a few others - note that if you have a Mac, you'll want to go in and whitelist your Mac apps that should peek through as well). I've found that this really helps keep me focused, while simultaneously reminding me to take little breaks in the morning and afternoon when the notifications come in, so this is working nice as a dual-purpose solution.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Where to enable<\/strong>: Settings &gt; Focus<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"5%3A-set-up-notification-scheduled-summaries\" tabindex=\"-1\">5: Set Up Notification Scheduled Summaries<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"right\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/summary.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/summary.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of my notification summary setup\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The final thing I did was to set up a scheduled summary of notifications. I'm still trying to play around with whether or not having both this and a Focus mode enabled are really necessary, but this setup seems to be working ok for me, so I'm going to stick with it for right now and see how it goes.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"left\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/summary_lock.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/notifications\/summary_lock.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of my lock screen, showing the results of my notification summary\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Basically, I'm telling all of the notifications that aren't getting whitelisted in my Focus mode to get sucked up into a big summary every 60-90 minutes. Instead of being blasted with a ton of notifications every time I come up for air, it's all rolled up together in one nice-looking summary, with the best feature being <em>that I can dismiss all of them all at once<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>ESPN is one of those apps that I have a love\/hate relationship with. I love staying up with all of the sports news that happens throughout the day; however, I've come to realize that I just do not need to have this all right in front of my face at all times. So the Focus mode keeps it all contained throughout the day, and then my scheduled summary rolls it all up together so I can speed through all of them at a pace more suited to what I want. Think like when Stranger Things drops - they give you all the episodes so you can binge them, instead of having to go one at a time, week by week.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Where to enable<\/strong>: Settings &gt; Notifications &gt; Scheduled Summary<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Ultimately, how you want to set these sorts of things up is totally up to you. I've found a couple things that have been working out ok for me, and thoughts I'd share to see if they might be able to help you as well. Do you have any suggestions for what I could do better, or differently? <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\/\">Get in touch! I'd love to hear from you<\/a>.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"MLB Daily Schedule Shortcut","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mlb-schedule-shortcut\/"}},"updated":"2023-01-19T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mlb-schedule-shortcut\/","summary":{},"content":"<figure class=\"banner\">\n  <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/mlb-schedule-shortcut.png\">\n    <img src=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/assets\/images\/mlb-schedule-shortcut.png\" alt=\"A screenshot of the email sent from my MLB Schedule shortcut\" \/>\n  <\/a>\n<\/figure>\n<p><em><strong>[24 June 2024] Note: Apple made some changes to Shortcuts about a year ago that nuked the ability to send HTML emails. I've been hopeful that they'd fix this, but in the meantime, I went ahead and <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/daily-sports-email\/\">created a new project<\/a> that can be configured &amp; run from a GitHub Action.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>I work from home every day, and have a TV hooked up in my office. I also love watching baseball. On days with day games, this tends to be great for me... unless I don't realize that there are any day games being played (like today).<\/p>\n<p>Enter: Apple Shortcuts.<\/p>\n<p>I was attempting to figure out how I could pull down the schedule every day in a way that a) gave me the info automatically, instead of having to seek it out, 2) didn't clutter up my calendar, and III) wasn't costly to implement. Now that Heroku's free hosting has gone out the window, I wasn't exactly sure what the best method would be. And then, someone suggested Shortcuts.<\/p>\n<p>I fully admit that I've never been a user of Shortcuts. I have 2 (one to automatically pull up directions to home, and one to generate a QR code for my guest WiFi network) that I have never used. But I thought, how hard could this be? (Answer: a lot more of a pain in the ass than I anticipated.)<\/p>\n<p>If you are interested in installing the shortcut for yourself, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.icloud.com\/shortcuts\/a67a3888908d4ae0a37c54ce578f5995\">here is a link for you to download and install it<\/a>. You will be prompted to put in your email address, and then you can run it to generate the games for the day. I then went ahead and set up a daily automation to generate the schedule at 7am and email it to myself.<\/p>\n<p>Give it a try, and let me know if you run into any problems, or if you have any suggestions on how to improve it. I already have plans for a version 2 that'll include the up-to-date standings as well.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"GitHub Repository Helper - an Alfred Workflow","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/github-alfred\/"}},"updated":"2023-01-19T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/github-alfred\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/content.invisioncic.com\/r229491\/monthly_2023_01\/image.thumb.png.ea18e9102196e9cdc120da0b1d050002.png\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Yesterday, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac-helper-apps\/\">I posted about how I consolidated some of my Mac helper apps<\/a>. I was talking to members of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/membership\">Relay.FM member's Discord<\/a> when going through this exercise, and I happened to mention an Alfred workflow that I had helped create for work. Enough people seemed interested in it that I went through the whole process of getting it set up for other people to download.<\/p>\n<p>Introducing: the <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-github-repo-helper\">GitHub Repository Helper workflow<\/a> for <a href=\"http:\/\/alfredapp.com\/\">Alfred.app<\/a><\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>This workflow is pretty straight-forward. You first scan all of your repos tied to your GitHub account, and then you can pull them up using Alfred with the command <code>gh {repo_name}<\/code>. At that point, you can press enter to go straight to the repo in your browser, or hold various keys to copy the repo's URL, or jump straight to the repo's pull requests, issues, or projects page.<\/p>\n<p>You can veiw the latest version of the workflow <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/niclake\/alfred-github-repo-helper\/releases\/latest\">on GitHub<\/a>.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Mac Helper Apps, or Where The FUDGE Is This Triggered From?","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac-helper-apps\/"}},"updated":"2023-01-19T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/mac-helper-apps\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/8l7zERD.png\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Over at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/membership\">Relay.FM member's Discord<\/a>, a lot of different conversations take place about a variety of topics. I spend a lot of time in our <em><strong>#apple<\/strong><\/em> channel, talking about everything Apple news related, along with discussions about hardware &amp; software. One of the conversations that <a href=\"https:\/\/rosemaryorchard.com\/\">Rosemary Orchard<\/a> started in prepping for a future episode of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/automators\">Automators podcast<\/a> actually gave me a great idea for 2 blog posts - this is the first one of those.<\/p>\n<p>One of the best parts about using a Mac is the sheer abundence of apps and utilities to help you be productive. Clipboard managers, app launchers, ways to dump snippets of text on demand, controlling audio... that's just scratching the surface.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>However, one of the issues arises from having a multitude of apps and utilities that have started to aggressively expand their feature set. I remember when BetterTouchTool first added app window management - it was a huge deal for me, as I'd not experienced that before. But then I went &quot;oh, there's other apps that do this in a better, more powerful way. I should use that instead.&quot; Same thing with clipboard managers - I used the one built in to Keyboard Maestro for years, before switching over to Alfred's, now that I have the Powerpack, it seems like a no brainer to utilize it.<\/p>\n<p>And therein lies the main point of this post - <em>do you know what all of your Mac Helper Apps are doing?<\/em> How much legacy content do you have just hanging around, not doing anything vital, and\/or requiring you to spend money on it for a subscription?<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Ok, time to audit. Let's check a combo of my menubar and my apps folder to see what apps I am using, and what they're being used for:<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/KTQr6Ax.png\" alt=\"A shot of my menu bar\" \/><\/p>\n<p><em>I'm just going to get ahead of this now: my menu bar is split thanks to Bartender. Top row left to right: iStat Menus (from weather thru the calendar icon), Bartender, &amp; Control Center. Bottom row: Maestrel, Zoom, DisplayLink, 1Password, Music.app, Adobe CreativeCloud, Alfred, TextExpander, Rocket, Keyboard Maestro, MacMediaKeyForwarder, Spotlight, Karabiner-Elements, native Keyboard switcher, BetterTouchTool, Users, spacer, Magnet, Nightfall, Moom, Bluetooth, Wifi, spacer, Superpowered, Docker, Zscaler.<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/alfredapp.com\/\">Alfred<\/a> (app launcher, various workflows, clipboard manager)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/folivora.ai\/\">BetterTouchTool<\/a> (mouse &amp; trackpad gestures)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/karabiner-elements.pqrs.org\/\">Karabiner-Elements<\/a> (custom key commands on my MacBook to match my mechanical keyboards)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.keyboardmaestro.com\/main\/\">Keyboard Maestro<\/a> (a very small set of keyboard commands to trigger actions)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/magnet.crowdcafe.com\/\">Magnet<\/a> (window snapping via drag\/drop or key commands)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/manytricks.com\/moom\/\">Moom<\/a> (auto-set window placement when my laptop is hooked up to my external monitors)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/r-thomson\/Nightfall\">Nightfall<\/a> (toggle light\/dark mode)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/textexpander.com\/\">TextExpander<\/a> (expand snippets of text)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I'll start with the easy one. <strong>Keyboard Maestro<\/strong> is really only doing a very limited subset of things for me; controlling Apple Music (play\/pause, prev\/next song, vol up\/down) or quitting all of my running apps.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/3RKzI6K.png\" alt=\"A shot of my existing Keyboard Maestro actions\" \/><\/p>\n<p>It turns out that both of these are absurdly easy to reconfigure in Alfred. All of those Music.app features were available as Workflow presets, so I just combined them all into one workflow and called it a day.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/asYf6As.png\" alt=\"A shot of my new Alfred workflow\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Additionally, I (re)discovered that just typing <em>quit<\/em> into Alfred prompts me with the ability to quit all running apps. Boom, one app removed!<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/5h9hhBm.png\" alt=\"A shot of my Alfred's quit action\" \/><\/p>\n<p><em>Edit: it turns out that Alfred also supports Music.app via <strong>play<\/strong>, <strong>pause<\/strong>, and similar commands. Their volume controls are a bit more limited, however, only offering max, half, or mute. This may be more your speed, but I'll stick with the new workflow for now.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>What about <strong>Nightfall<\/strong>? A neat app, sure, but do I <em>need<\/em> an app dedicated to just doing one thing maybe once a week?<\/p>\n<p>It turns out, no, I do not. Another simple Alfred workflow, and now I can either type in <em>darkmode<\/em> or press \u2318\u2325\u2303 + \\, and boom, it switches!<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/C4rhgGi.png\" alt=\"A shot of my Alfred workflow to toggle Dark Mode\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Behind the scenes, this is just running an AppleScript:<\/p>\n<pre class=\"language-applescript\"><code class=\"language-applescript\"><span class=\"token keyword\">tell<\/span> <span class=\"token class-name\">application<\/span> <span class=\"token string\">\"System Events\"<\/span>\n    <span class=\"token keyword\">tell<\/span> appearance preferences\n        <span class=\"token keyword\">set<\/span> dark mode <span class=\"token keyword\">to<\/span> <span class=\"token operator\">not<\/span> dark mode\n    <span class=\"token keyword\">end<\/span> <span class=\"token keyword\">tell<\/span>\n<span class=\"token keyword\">end<\/span> <span class=\"token keyword\">tell<\/span><\/code><\/pre>\n<p>Also, unlike Nightfall, this implementation has the added bonus of not mucking with my appearence preferences - I have it set to <em>Auto<\/em>, so it switches to dark mode at sundown and light mode at sunrise, but Nightfall would override it and set it to whatever mode I put it in. This script method changes the appearence, but leaves it on Auto, so it will continue to flip like normal the next day. Win\/win!<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Text\/snippet expansion? I've been a <strong>TextExpander<\/strong> user for a long time, but admittedly have never utilized it to its full potential. The extent of most of my snippets are quick pasting my phone number or email, or dropping in a 5 paragraph lorem ipsum. The biggest lift was a reply I'd send out to recruiters when they'd send me a job posting, where it would prompt me to put in their name before pasting the message.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/AAisGDK.png\" alt=\"A shot of my old TextExpander snippet\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Surprise surprise, Alfred comes to the rescue again with its Snippet feature. They don't work exactly the same - TextExpander would pop up a very legacy-looking window prompting me to fill in any dynamic content before pasting, whereas Alfred will paste the content in and then let you move the cursor to where you have to type. For my needs, though, this is perfect. (What the heck, Alfred's pretty powerful...)<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/ICrFNJx.png\" alt=\"A shot of my Job Search snippet in Alfred\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>I still want to play around with some of these apps and see if I can replace <strong>Karabiner-Elements<\/strong>, along with one of <strong>Magnet<\/strong> or <strong>Moom<\/strong>, but at this point, I feel like this was a <em>very<\/em> productive exercise. I'll be able to save some money not paying for a TextExpander subscription, clear a couple of apps off my computer, <em>and<\/em> I feel like this gives me cause to dive even further into Alfred's feature set to see what all is there. I encourage you to do an audit as well - who knows, maybe you'll unlock some pretty powerful features as well!<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Year of Sustenance","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-sustenance\/"}},"updated":"2022-12-20T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-sustenance\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/hbZ3nRy.png\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>As 2022 wraps up, it's time for me to iron out my <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themesystem.com\/\">yearly theme<\/a> for 2023. I did <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-garden\/\">Year of the Garden<\/a>, and it went... <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/review-year-of-the-garden\/\">ok, I guess<\/a>? Could've been better, could've been a lot worse.<\/p>\n<p>But! I learned a lot. I learned more about what makes me tick, what I see as being valueable or worth my time &amp; attention when I'm looking down from a 5,000 ft. view. I learned the kinds of things I need to do to keep my theme at the center of what I'm doing. And most importantly, I (think I) learned how to make this year a rousing success.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"general-thoughts\" tabindex=\"-1\">General Thoughts<\/h2>\n<p>As I went through the exercise of thinking about what this year would look like, I started taking a bunch of notes. Things that I looked at and went &quot;yes, focus on this&quot; or &quot;this sucked&quot; or &quot;here's what I want to be important next year&quot;. I also examined how I spent my time throughout my days. When was I feeling fulfilled, when was I struggling, and what could I do to get more of the former and less of the latter?<\/p>\n<p>As I started to sketch things out, I noticed something - <em>no matter how crafty I got with rewording my thoughts, it looked nearly identical to Year of the Garden<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/1y5Pq40.png\" alt=\"I zoomed waaaaaaaay in on Discord just for this shot. You're welcome.\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Initially, I was <em>very<\/em> upset about this. Why the heck would I want to just repeat my theme again? That's so boring! I'm a creative, dangit!!!<\/p>\n<p>But the more I thought about it, and the more I talked to people about it, the more I realized - maybe my theme is so similar because that's what's really important to me right now. Instead of trying to upset the apple cart, perhaps I just need to stay focused on the garden I was trying to tend to last year, in order to make it grow.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"deliberations\" tabindex=\"-1\">Deliberations<\/h2>\n<p>So I went back and forth on a lot of different things. I almost stole <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mykehurley.net\/about\">Myke Hurley<\/a>'s theme from last year, <em>Year of Structure<\/em>, as a way for me to build the building blocks. But, I'm not constructing something new, I'm continuing what I started last year. Other ideas that were floating around were <em>Year of Foundation, Bedrock, Groundwork, Pillars<\/em>, or <em>2022 2: Electric Boogaloo<\/em> (thanks, Izzy, this one gave me a real good laugh). But ultimately, I ended up with...<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"2023---year-of-sustenance\" tabindex=\"-1\">2023 - Year of Sustenance<\/h2>\n<p>Sustenance. &quot;Food and drink regarded as a source of strength; nourishment; the maintaining of someone or something in life or existence.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>As I type that above sentence, I realize how perfect Year of Sustenance is for me for this year. I'm continuing the theme centered around the garden, but now I'm less focused on getting stuff to grow, and I'm more directly tied to growing things that are going to sustain me, my family, and those around me. Yes. All the yes.<\/p>\n<p>My goal with the Year of Sustenance: <strong>Renew my focus on the habits, hobbies, and behaviors I formed last year, and take action on them in order to establish a baseline to build my future upon in the years to come.<\/strong> The garden, so to speak, has been appropriately razed of weeds, pruned of thinkgs choking out the rest of the garden, and sowed with nourishment for the year to come. Now it's time to put that all to good use. I have 3 main areas that I want to focus my energy on this year:<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"work\" tabindex=\"-1\">Work<\/h3>\n<p>I'm truly blessed to have a job that allows me to be remote so I can be with my family, and to have the time flexibility within my workday to help out with my daughter or with things around the house when they need to be done. That said, I need to make sure I'm not just coasting, but actively ensuring that I have a future that I can rely upon. My goals this year:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Continue to advance on the career track, and get a promotion + raise this year (ideally March)<\/li>\n<li>Learn new languages to expand my toolkit &amp; help provide opportunities or a safety net (currently working on a SwiftUI\/iOS app, and then learning Python)<\/li>\n<li>Revamp my daily schedule to block out opportune times to maximize my productivity (i.e. no meetings when my daughter is napping, if at all possible)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"health\" tabindex=\"-1\">Health<\/h3>\n<p>We've had a bit of a family health scare in the family at the end of this year. I'm fine, but it's really making me evaluate and reflect on what truly matters to me. At the forefront of that is my daughter, my wife, and the family we have built. And I can't enjoy that if I'm not taking care of myself.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I've done pretty ok with cutting out soda + sugary drinks, and making healthy meals. I want to keep going on this train, as well as ensure that I'm drinking enough water to stay hydrates (especially as winter rolls in)<\/li>\n<li>I <em>need<\/em> to exercise. Something, somehow. Whether that's just some light cardio in the home, or whether I end up going to a gym, I need to get my heart rate up and move my body. Ideally, I still am carrying around 35 lbs that I would love to dispose of somewhere. But ultimately, I just want to be able to keep up with my daughter as she zooms around the house, not feel like a loaf every time I go to pick her up, and be able to get on the floor to play with her without fearing that I can't get back up.<\/li>\n<li>Continue to meal plan every week. My wife and I started doing this towards the end of the year as a way to keep us focused, make as few trips to the store as possible, and have fewer converstaions that start with me asking &quot;so what do you want to eat tonight?&quot;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"personal\" tabindex=\"-1\">Personal<\/h3>\n<p>This is really just a catch-all bucket. Things here relate to both work and health, while also being about my free time, my life, and other things.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Start using <strong>time blocking<\/strong> in order to be as productive as I can. This goes for work (i.e. focus time during V's naps), but also for my free time. I struggle a lot when it comes to actually picking something I want to do, much less getting the thing done. If I can put a little prep time in each week to make sure my time is going where I want it, I think this could be a huge success. My goal is to pick 2-3 things that I have the option of doing each evening, and choosing from those specifically (with the caveat of, if I'm feeling compelled to do something else, I can! The structure is just to help me start).<\/li>\n<li>Get back to using my <a href=\"https:\/\/cottonbureau.com\/p\/TZ4WZJ\/journal\/the-theme-system-journal#\/6880807\/grey-paper-standard-journal\">Theme Journal's<\/a> daily &amp; weekly checklists. The dopamine hit I get from checking off a task is so much better for me than just hitting a checkbox in Reminders. Plus, I always say that I forget things if I don't write it down, so this is gonna be the way I combine all of that.<\/li>\n<li>Do monthly &quot;garden pruning&quot;. Look at the things I'm doing, the information I'm ingesting, and Marie Kondo the shit out of it. Things like podcasts, newsletters, RSS feeds, social media follows, my time blocks, etc. will all be up for an audit every month. And I'm going to be harsh. My time is valuable, and I need to make the best use of it that I can.<\/li>\n<li>Put my gosh dang phone down more. Utilize screen time, focus modes, and uninstalling problem apps in order to stay more present and less distracted. When I'm on my phone, it needs to be on less &quot;distractiony&quot; things (lookings straight at you, Marvel SNAP).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>As far as my personal time blocking goes, I've sorted things into 3 buckets:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The <strong>Very Yes List<\/strong> list (things I definitely want to be doing more of): reading, writing (blog posts, a D&amp;D campaign, short stories, or whatever), and programming (whether that's Ruby\/Rails continuing ed, or learning a new language)<\/li>\n<li>The <strong>I'm Cool With This<\/strong> list (things that are important to me in healthy doses): video games (my actual backlog of games, not just Marvel SNAP), watching sports, and watching shows\/movies (I barely watch anything that isn't live sports anymore, and I wouldn't mind catching up on a few shows that I'v missed)<\/li>\n<li>The <strong>Maybe?<\/strong> list (things that I'd love to pursue, but I'm unsure if I want to dedicate the time to them): learning how to draw, learning to crochet, playing music (guitar, piano, writing\/recording new songs), and (re-)learning a language (probably Spanish, maybe ASL?)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And an example schedule might look like this:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Monday: Exercise, then read or program<\/li>\n<li>Tuesday: Program or video games<\/li>\n<li>Wednesday: Exercise, then video games or write<\/li>\n<li>Thursday: Write or Spanish<\/li>\n<li>Friday: Exercise, then Spanish or read<\/li>\n<li>Weekend: Free for all - what's made me feel the best this week?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I have NO CLUE how this will actually play out, but I'm excited to give it a shot. I do think that this theme is going to be a great continuation of the foundation I laid for myslef last year, and I look forward to having the scheduled audits to help me refresh what's important to me.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"What's In My Bags?","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-bag-2022\/"}},"updated":"2022-12-04T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-bag-2022\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/7D0rpBv.png\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I've always been a huge fan of the &quot;what's in my bag&quot; posts. Any time anyone I follow posts one of theirs, I pore over them, looking to see what kinds of cool bags are out there, what they're stuffed with, and how I could improve my own bag setup.<\/p>\n<p>Since I've been working remotely for nearly 3 years, my bags have gotten a bit neglected. However, I've been spending a lot of time on the road in recent weeks, so I've gotten the bag re-packed and set up just how I like. I figured it'd be fun to share them with you.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<h2 id=\"the-backpack\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Backpack<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/vc4UT1v.jpg\" title=\"A photo of everything in my backpack\"><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/gXOGKTa.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"A photo of everything in my backpack\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>(Click for a full-size image)<\/p>\n<p>The backpack is a discontinued, older model <a href=\"https:\/\/www.trailspace.com\/gear\/the-north-face\/big-shot\/\">North Face Big Shot<\/a>. I'd been talking for years about how I wanted a different backpack with some extra compartments to carry my various devices, and my wife saw this one day on a clearance rack during Christmas vacation. It ended up being exactly what I was hoping for at the time, and while I'm always on the hunt for The Perfect Bag\u2122, this one has done the trick for over 8 years now.<\/p>\n<p>And as for what we have packed inside:<\/p>\n<h4 id=\"top-row\" tabindex=\"-1\">Top row<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Composition notebook, for various notes (this one is filled with notes for a D&amp;D campaign I want to write)<\/li>\n<li>Laptop: 2021 16&quot; M1 MacBook Pro (M1 Max, 32GB RAM, 512GB storage - easily the best computer I've ever used) for writing code &amp; blog posts<\/li>\n<li>MagSafe charger + extension cord<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.warbyparker.com\/eyeglasses\/men\/ames\/jet-black-matte-with-polished-silver\">Warby Parker Ames glasses<\/a> (I'm trying out these new glasses with blue light filtering lenses to see if they make extended computing or gaming sessions a bit easier on my eyes. So far I'm very happy with these.)<\/li>\n<li>iPad (8th gen, 32GB, mostly used as a portable TV)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4 id=\"left-of-the-bag\" tabindex=\"-1\">Left of the bag<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Nintendo Switch + <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3VL00UO\">Daydayup Switch Case<\/a> (Currently playing: Pok\u00e9mon Violet)<\/li>\n<li>Steam Deck (Currently playing: Final Fantasy IV)<\/li>\n<li>Drawing supplies:\n<ul>\n<li>A generic lined notebook for practicing<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3H9MdmE\">UCreate Poly Cover Sketch Book<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Generic Target pencil case<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3BblUZz\">Paper Mate Comfort Mate Ultra mechanical pencils<\/a> (my favorite pencils since college)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3XVd6AG\">Pentel AM13 mechanical pencil (1.3mm)<\/a> (for heavy line work or shading)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3VOP0Wr\">Superior Needle Drawing Pens (0.5mm)<\/a> (Note: this link is for a full set, but I just use the 0.5mm)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3h6Brmu\">Pilot G2 rolling ball gel pens (0.7mm)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3BbmVRn\">Ticonderoga #2 wooden pencils<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Erasers, lead, a double sided Sharpie, and a pencil sharpener<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Spare pens, pencils, and lead (for when the drawing supplies aren't with me)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3XPXui5\">CHAFON Multi Charging Cable<\/a> (I don't remember who introduced these to me, but they're absolute game changers until we get the USB-C standard across the board.)<\/li>\n<li>Steam Deck USB-C charger (for the Deck or Switch)<\/li>\n<li>Note cards<\/li>\n<li>USB-C to Lightning charger<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3P7nphi\">Morphie 6000 mAh power bank<\/a> (Saved my bacon when I got caught in a tornado a few years back. Doesn't get used often, but when it does, it's the best investment I've ever made.)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3umg97w\">Hidrate Spark PRO Smart Water Bottle<\/a> (Yes, it's a smart water bottle. The bottom glows to remind you to drink, and the app tracks how much you've had throughout the day. A great help if you struggle to remember to drink water.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4 id=\"under-the-bag\" tabindex=\"-1\">Under the bag<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Gum<\/li>\n<li>Tissues<\/li>\n<li>USB-C to Lightning + USB-A Apple Watch charger<\/li>\n<li>A travel grooming kit with nail clippers and tweezers (literally the only conference swag I've ever gotten that I actually use, and somehow never impounded by TSA)<\/li>\n<li>Tylenol &amp; allergy meds<\/li>\n<li>Chap stick (I'm partial to Burt's Bees)<\/li>\n<li>Batteries, both AA and AAA<\/li>\n<li>Quarters, in case I need to feed a parking meter<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/krMImRp.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"A series of photos of my backpack\" \/><\/p>\n<p>There are a handful of changes that I'd like to make to this setup.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Replace the multitude of chargers w\/ <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3XTAOxp\">a 100W multi-port charger<\/a>, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.zagg.com\/en_us\/3-in-1-travel-charger-magsafe-apple\">3-in-1 portable MagSafe charger<\/a>, some cables, and stuff everything in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.peakdesign.com\/products\/tech-pouch\/\">Peak Design tech pouch<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Toss in a spare Apple TV - we have an extra 1080p unit sitting around, and having one for when we're on the go would make things convenient<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Additionally, I'm always looking into different bags just to see what's out there. While the Big Shot is fine, I'd love to get something that feels a bit less &quot;repurposed hiking bag&quot;. I've always been a fan of sling bags, but most of them either a) can't carry a water bottle without spill potential, b) doesn't have enough compartments to keep things from sliding around, c) doesn't stand up on its own when placed on the floor, or d) all of the above.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"the-sling-bag\" tabindex=\"-1\">The Sling Bag<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/b0F08M2.jpg\" title=\"A photo of everything in my sling bag\"><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/TGXdOJ8.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"A photo of everything in my sling bag\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>(Click for a full-size image)<\/p>\n<p>I've been carrying a sling bag since my daughter was born. Having extra space to haul things, even when I'm just going on a short trip to the store, had been invaluable to making sure I remember everything when walking out the door. I'd been using a generic fanny pack as my sling for months, but I just got a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aersf.com\/day-sling-3-gray\">Aer Day Sling<\/a> last week, and I'm loving it so far. Here's what's loaded inside:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A KN95 mask<\/li>\n<li>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.getkeysmart.com\/products\/keysmart_ext\">KeySmart<\/a> key organizer<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-bag-2022\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> + an S-clip to quickly swap between car or van keys<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.warbyparker.com\/sunglasses\/men\/barkley\/black-matte-eclipse\">Warby Parker Barkley perscription sunglasses<\/a><sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-bag-2022\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup><\/li>\n<li>A <a href=\"https:\/\/ridge.com\/products\/aluminum-navy\">Ridge Wallet<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Tissues<\/li>\n<li>Glasses cleaning cloths<\/li>\n<li>Chap stick (doTERRA)<\/li>\n<li>Bose SoundSport wired in-ear headphones (my emergency oh-shit headphones)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3F5acAM\">Kindle Paperwhite<\/a> (The whole reason I got this sling - now I can carry my Kindle with me everywhere)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/7xRj5u7.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"A series of photos of my sling bag\" \/><\/p>\n<p>There's a handful of changes I want to make to this setup as well.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>This is a brand new bag, so I'm still working on figuring out the best organization for everything. Right now, the front pocket is only for my keys, and that seems wasteful.<\/li>\n<li>I need to pack some Tylenol and allergy meds in this bag as well.<\/li>\n<li>A multi-cable charger + brick for emergencies wouldn't hurt.<\/li>\n<li>Other small items, like a notebook + pencil, gum or mints, &amp; snacks would all probably be great if they fit.<\/li>\n<li>While the headphone case I have is the official one from Bose, it's a tad bulky, so something smaller would be ideal.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So that's it! That's my bag setup as of today. What do you think?<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I use this key organizer out of spite - when I purchased it, someone told me &quot;oh you'll only use that for like 2 months&quot;. I put a reminder in my calendar to rub it in their face 2 months later, and then brought it up any time I remembered. That was... like, 5 years ago. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-bag-2022\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I was FURIOUS that it took me 32 years to discover how amazing being able to actually see properly while wearing sunglasses was. I've never been a contacts guy, so I'd just take off my glasses and put on sunnies, or get huge oversized sunnies to put on over the top of my glasses and look like a huge dweeb. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/my-bag-2022\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Creativity","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/creativity\/"}},"updated":"2022-09-04T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/creativity\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/melschwartz.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/perfectionism-man-in-chains-1-2.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"The Weight of Perfection\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I just spent 16 hours in a car over the last 2 days as my wife, my daughter, and I all zipped off to a vacation. I spent a lot of that time listening to podcasts, and so many of them happened to talk about being creative, calling yourself &quot;a creative&quot; vs. &quot;an artist&quot;, and similar conversations. I listened to a lot of people talk about their creative endeavors, and getting inspired to pursue mine.<\/p>\n<p>But, since I was stuck in a car, my mind instead wandered to &quot;why do I have such a hard time actually being creative?&quot;<\/p>\n<p>I have so many random creative projects in flight. An incomplete list:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A new EP (which may be on hold - <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do\">see my last post<\/a> if you're curious0<\/li>\n<li>A D&amp;D campaign I'd like to get back to running, which is a prelude to...<\/li>\n<li>A D&amp;D campaign I'd like to actually get written so I can run it at some point<\/li>\n<li>Learning Swift, so I can make a couple iOS apps<\/li>\n<li>Learning how to draw<\/li>\n<li>Learning how to crochet<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I have absurd admiration for people who create things from scratch, and every once in a while I'll get the itch to try, or get back to trying, my own hand at it. But I've got a problem.<\/p>\n<p>I talked <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do\">last time<\/a> about my endeavors with learning to play piano. I always saw my music as a creative outlet, but what I did was more about precision and exactness. About perfection. If it wasn't perfect, I had to drill it over and over again until it was. If I had any sort of creative flourish to add to something, too bad, that's not how the piece was written, can't do that.<\/p>\n<p>After more than a dozen years of that, <em>I'm unable to just create, or even just <strong>try<\/strong> something - it must be perfect, or it's no good.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Take <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nanowrimo.org\/\">NaNoWriMo<\/a>, for example. (For the uninitiated, NNWM is an event during the month of November where people attempt to write a 50,000 word story, which would be the length of a typical novel.) I've attempted NNWM 3 times previously. I make it maaaaaybe 3 days before my brain goes &quot;no, you ding dong, you need to go back and edit what you've already written,&quot; which goes against the spirit of the event. You're supposed to just write, and write, and write some more.<\/p>\n<p>There's a saying about race cars that the most important element is the brakes. It doesn't matter how fast your car can go, or how easily you can turn, if you can't stop. I have the inverse problem - my brakes are TOO good. When it comes time to hit the gas and accelerate, my car is held back like the parking brake is permanently on, because well what if I need to change directions suddenly?<\/p>\n<p>And don't get me started on learning new things. I've always wanted to learn how to draw, but I remember in 5th and 6th grade that my &quot;drawing&quot; skills were actually me just tracing the final examples in a &quot;learn to draw&quot; book. I started trying to teach myself again last fall, and I did about 2 or 3 things before I went &quot;wow this is kinda tough!&quot; and not touching it again. When it's not perfect right away, I go &quot;ugh this sucks&quot; and give up. Which is a <em>horrible<\/em> mentality to have... and yet.<\/p>\n<p>I wish I could turn off the part of my brain that equates perfection with success. I wish I could be ok with learning something new, or making something with imperfections, instead of being annoyed and frustrated with it not sparkling like a gem.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Review - Year of the Garden","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/review-year-of-the-garden\/"}},"updated":"2022-08-28T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/review-year-of-the-garden\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/countrysquire.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/22wq.jpg?resize=1920%2C768&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Once again, it's time for a new <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themesystem.com\/\">yearly theme<\/a>. Last year's theme was <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-garden\/\">Year of the Garden<\/a>, and I honestly thought this was a terrific success.<\/p>\n<p>Before I talk about my 2023 theme, let's do a real quick recap on what my 2022 theme was, and how I think it went.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"last-year\" tabindex=\"-1\">Last Year<\/h2>\n<p>Year of the Garden was built around 4 core tenants:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Harvest<\/strong> from existing activities that I wanted to continue.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Prune<\/strong> some habits that were taking up too much time.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sow<\/strong> new habits into my life, so that I could benefit from them going forward.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Raze<\/strong> habits that were not actively serving me, or would hinder me as I went through the year.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Overall, I'm really happy with how the theme helped me look at my life and determine what was important, vs. what was just taking up space or time that could've been used elsewhere.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"harvest\" tabindex=\"-1\">Harvest<\/h3>\n<p>I had 2 general ideas, both of which were a rousing success. I wanted to read at least one book a month, and while I didn't complete one in either September or October, I will have completed (at least) 29 books by the end of the year. I also wanted to make coffee at home every day, as opposed to going out and buying sugary mochas; this went pretty well for most of the year, and I still have 2-3 cups of pour over per day, but my wife and I do splurge at least once a week on a latte from the shop down the street.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"prune\" tabindex=\"-1\">Prune<\/h3>\n<p>I actively trimmed down the people I followed on social media, I knocked out any video game that I couldn't pause (and inadvertently knocked out playing video games almost entirely), and I definitely managed to focus on more healthy recipes. With our daughter here, I do feel that I fell into the trap of just scrolling endlessly on my phone while she was asleep, or making the same recipes over and over because they were convenient. I'll give this goal a solid &quot;good try&quot;.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"sow\" tabindex=\"-1\">Sow<\/h3>\n<p>I set up a big list of 9 things that I wanted to try and add to my life. Here on December 20th, I can say that I was successful at exactly 0 of these. I'm not exactly surprised; I knew that having a child would be tiring, but I was optimistic that I could try and fit some of these in. Drinking water, I thought, would be no problem, especially with a bottle &amp; app that tracked my usage. I'll give myself partial credit for healthy movement (my wife got me out of the house a lot this summer for 30-60 minute walks with our daughter) and learning a new programming language (I'm actively working towards develpoing a new iOS app using SwiftUI), but I utterly failed at this part of my theme.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"raze\" tabindex=\"-1\">Raze<\/h3>\n<p>... well, it's about the same as sowing. I had aspirations of staying off of Facebook, but when everyone wants to see photos of your kid, you kinda have to be there. I did use Screen Time for Instagram and Facebook, and that was a huge help - I never ran into the time limit I set for myself, and having it ping me was a nice reminder of &quot;hey maybe I shouldn't&quot;. My nails are still uber-short, and I'm staring at the tube of bitter tasting stuff I was supposed to apply to help me not bite them. Ah well. (Also, Marvel SNAP showed up out of nowhere at the end of the year and just swarmed my garden.)<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"recap\" tabindex=\"-1\">Recap<\/h2>\n<p>So I'm what, 50%? For my first year actively doing a theme, I'm pretty ok with that. I learned a lot, too.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>While I may have struggled in some parts, I did find myself actively thinking about my theme throughout the year when it came to prioritizing the things that I did. It didn't always pan out for the best possible outcome, but it did live in the forefront of my mind, which is exactly what I was hoping for.<\/li>\n<li>I set these broad goals for myself because I could see the time crunch coming. I was 100% correct about how much it would limit my time, and I'm really proud of myself for being able to recognize that early on.<\/li>\n<li>Having these kinds of goals are great, but I do a lot better with specifics. Rather than staring at these half-full buckets of ideas throughout the year, I need to be intentional about filling them with new goals.<\/li>\n<li>In addition, I need to be better about revisiting the goals I've set myself more than just (checks notes) one time, in December. A quarterly, or even monthly, check-in with myself would benefit me a lot.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So with that... it's on to planning for 2023.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Doers vs. Those Who Do","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do\/"}},"updated":"2022-08-28T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/do\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>I wrote a note to myself at midnight a couple of nights ago: <em>&quot;Blog idea for myself: A Doer vs. A Person Who Does (Related: hello, existential crisis and depression)&quot;<\/em>. I don't remember exactly what caused this thought to enter my mind, but I do know what it meant and where my mind was going.<\/p>\n<p>Here's the general gist of what I was thinking: a <em><strong>doer<\/strong><\/em> is someone who really embodies the thing that they are doing, whereas <em><strong>those who do<\/strong><\/em> are people who aren't fully entrenched in the thing that they're doing; more like a casual hobbyist, or a passerby, or something like that.<\/p>\n<p>Confused? Sure, I get it. Let me give you an example.<\/p>\n<p>I started playing piano at age 4. Picked up drums at 10, bass at 12, and guitar at 14. Went to college for music education, before an injury forced me into a career change. Gigged regularly from age 11 until I was 29 - a solid 18 years of my life. Recorded an EP, with aspirations of doing more.<\/p>\n<p>If you had asked me last week if I would've called myself a musician? I would've said yes. Yes, I was a musician. I lived it. I considered myself defined by music. I was a doer. I'm not anymore... probably wouldn't even lump myself in as a &quot;those who do&quot; these days. But back then? Absolutely.<\/p>\n<p>I talked about how I started playing piano at age 4. My mom was a piano teacher with a Masters in piano performance, and the story goes that I sat down at the piano one day when I was 4 and said that I wanted to learn how to play. So, Mom taught me. I played til I was 17. I was really fucking good at it. It fueled all of my ancillary musical endeavors, led to me being an All-State percussionist (twice), and why I decided I wanted to be a music ed major in the first place.<\/p>\n<p>But a lot of people don't know how much I ended up hating the piano. How much my mom and I fought about practicing (2 hours a day by the end, always before school every day). How she ended up basically owning everything that I did - I never was able to play organized sports because she was afraid I'd hurt my hands. My mom had early onset arthritis, among other things, and looking back, I feel like she was living vicariously through me.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, I think a lot of my first 19 years of life were truly not my own. Piano. Even the pivots into the other instruments. The initial college major. If I push beyond that, my desire to keep playing and pursuing music for the following 10 years after that. <strong>In hindsight, I may have been a musician, but I wasn't a doer, because it was never about me. I was just an extension of what my mom wanted for my life.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>And then, she died. She got cancer, and she passed away 2 days before my birthday. On a Monday. And on that Thursday, I went to a practice section for my gig, buried her on Friday, and gigged on Saturday and Sunday. Because that's what Mom would've wanted.<\/p>\n<p>Fast forward 9 years. I have so many things that I felt defined me over the years, things that I would've considered myself a &quot;doer&quot; of, that don't exist to me, or don't matter anymore - they were just fleeting things that don't matter to me anymore. Including music. The only things that matter to me are my wife and daughter. The only things I'm a &quot;doer&quot; of are being a husband and a father.<\/p>\n<p>I came to this realization over the span of about 5 seconds on Thursday night\/Friday morning. It was so sudden and so all encompassing. It was both a clarifying purpose, and something I can only describe as feeling like I've made 300 successful parachute jumps, but realizing that somehow I never had the chute on. That every lifeline that I'd anchored to my being, every foundational layer of who I believed I am as a person, the things I would say that I was a &quot;doer&quot; of, was nothing more than a thin verner on top of a pile of hobbies. Every part of my life, I'm just a &quot;those who do&quot;. Except for my family. And it's really weird to witness my brain process all of these facts in real time and try to cope with it in a healthy way.<\/p>\n<p>This post might get deleted tomorrow. It might be something that only sits up long enough for me to get some sleep, wake up, and go &quot;oh god, what did I do???&quot; But I think it's important to really examine one's life and truly understand what are our bedrock, foundational, &quot;doer&quot; things in life, and where we are just &quot;those who do&quot;.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Music of my Life (part 3)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/music-pt-3\/"}},"updated":"2022-08-13T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/music-pt-3\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/WGugXu3.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Music\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Welcome back to the final installment of Music of my Life, a series of blog posts that started as an exercise of &quot;what songs do I love&quot; and quickly spiraled out of control into something that has occupied a ton of my time and sent me down a ton of nostalgia rabbit holes. If you missed any of the previous posts, check out <a href=\"nttps:\/\/niclake.me\/2022-08-08-music-pt-1\">Part 1<\/a> and <a href=\"nttps:\/\/niclake.me\/2022-08-10-music-pt-2\">Part 2<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p>For this final installment, we're talking about the 10 year stretch that has happened since I graduated from college, ages 25 to 35.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>The last 10 years have been... a lot. New jobs. Living in 4 cities, and working in 7. A relationship that turned in to a wonderful marriage. Our first child. There's so much that has happened, and my musical tastes have definitely reflected that.<\/p>\n<iframe style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/playlist\/76Pla7InpOo3RhCYwjca0x?utm_source=generator\" width=\"100%\" height=\"380\" frameBorder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\"><\/iframe>\n<p><strong>Pink Floyd - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=JwYX52BP2Sk\"><em>Time<\/em><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=tC8631Kqzb0\">Coming Back To Life<\/a><\/strong> - I'd always been a casual fan of Pink Floyd over the years, but it took until my graduation for me to actually latch on to the band as one of my favorites. <em>Time<\/em> is definitely a classic, and I feel like I'm cheating a bit tossing it in here, so I'll actually link one of my favorite tracks that isn't as well known. <em>Coming Back To Life<\/em> is a song from the 1994 album <em>The Division Bell<\/em>, one of the least well known Pink Floyd releases, and this track just hooked me in with the guitar tone.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Of Mice &amp; Men - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qSeiG6qMhaI\"><em>Second &amp; Sebring<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Ok, time for some sad. 2 days before my 26th birthday, my mother passed away due to cancer. The lyrics of this song had been hooking me since I found out around 3 months prior, and I remember listening to this song the night she passed and really getting pummeled by them. I still can't listen to this song without feeling sadness and loss. (On a lighter note, if you are not familiar with crabcore, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/blogs\/nme-blogs\/10-years-crabcore-metal-meme-2361620\">read this article<\/a> and then watch the video.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Porcupine Tree - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=JTEWlSTQ1RI\"><em>Time Flies<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Porcupine Tree was the band that finally tipped me into the prog rock\/metal world. I saw a video of their drummer doing a clinic on one of their other songs, <em>Bonnie the Cat<\/em> (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=XUA_n04C1bs\">here's the video<\/a>), and fell down the rabbit hole of listening to their entire catalog, both as a band and as Steven Wilson's solo content.<\/p>\n<p><strong>DispersE - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=OEOahMpEFL8\"><em>Dancing With Endless Love<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Back in the day, I used to listen to my entire library on shuffle; thousands of songs just randomly chosen by the app. I'd had this album in my collection, but had never listened to it, and this song came on one day. It's an instrumental intro track with a beautiful melody, transitioning to a heavier feel. It was much later that I finally listened to the whole album, and realized that the melody was a motif that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=eqP_YHPsMsU\">returned for the final track of the album<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/eqP_YHPsMsU?t=169\">skip to 2:49<\/a> if you want to hear where it comes back).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Snarky Puppy - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=L_XJ_s5IsQc\"><em>Lingus<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Out of all the tracks on today's post, this is the one where I encourage you to carve out 10 minutes, get in whatever situation is best for your musical enjoyment, and watch. This is musicianship at its finest, and one of my favorite videos on the internet.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tycho - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ziAqB9nb_To\"><em>Awake<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - A song for anything and everything. A car trip. A workout. A meditation. One of the best instrumental songs ever written, in my humble opinion.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Hidden Hospitals - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ZEqurkZFxtE\"><em>Trilogy<\/em><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=mSzakIH3clw\"><em>Rose Hips<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Steve's band is back, this time with their full length album. The whole album is worth a listen, but these two are some of my favorites. <em>Trilogy<\/em> is a calm, atmospheric track that suddenly punches you with a heavy riff, while <em>Rose Hips<\/em> tries to rip you to shreds with dissonance. I'm sad the band is no longer together as a group, but they left behind some wonderful tracks for us to enjoy forever.<\/p>\n<p><strong>TesseracT - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=S7oLwBCOjXg\"><em>Phoenix<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - I love TesseracT. Such a wonderful band with a truly unique sound. This track is my favorite because it showcases Dan's incredible vocal range (starting around 1:30).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Devin Townsend - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=DrDM6V08wcE\"><em>Deadhead<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - A few points:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The Spotify playlist song is the album version. You want to watch the live YouTube link.<\/li>\n<li>Devin is incredibly sick when they did this show<\/li>\n<li>The best part happens at 6:28, so at least watch that (you'll know when it happens)<\/li>\n<li>I wish I could've been at this show<\/li>\n<li>I wish I could be Devin's friend; he genuinely seems like such a swell individual<\/li>\n<li>If you need a YouTube rabbit hole to go down, look up &quot;vocal coach react Devin Townsend&quot; and enjoy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Intervals - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=0ipv_l7KoSI\"><em>Epiphany<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - I started getting into instrumental prog metal around this time, and this was the song that tipped me over the edge. The little riff at 1:18 that leads into the first heavy section is just so beautiful, and the rhythmic riffs hook me straight to my core. (Also, the drummer for this band, Anup Sastry, did the drums for the end of Devin Townsend's most recent album, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=kb935JynuhQ\">his video playthrough<\/a> is absolutely stellar. Great drum videos are probably my favorite. You can watch Anup &quot;shift gears&quot; at 2:36, and again at 3:22, and it's just cool how infectious that energy is.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Plini - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=4qOeZzZh9MM\"><em>Handmade Cities<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - This whole album is a masterpiece. This track somehow manages to stand out above the rest. The solo starting around 3:28 is just perfection (so much so that apparently Doja Cat &quot;borrowed&quot; it for her EMA performance? The things I learn looking up videos for this blog.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sleeping At Last - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=muLfJWOfqGQ\"><em>I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Making their return to today's list, Sleeping At Last managed to mellow out a wonderful love song into something powerful and soulful. This was the song R and I danced to at our wedding. Such a beautiful song.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Thrice - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WNTjrsLOuHo\"><em>Hurricane<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Thrice was a band that I knew of in high school, but never got into for whatever reason. I remember hearing an acoustic version of this song and thinking &quot;huh, I should check this band out&quot;. Such an incredible voice, an edgy 90s rock sound that still carries weight 30 years later. So good.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Vulfpeck - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=le0BLAEO93g\"><em>Dean Town<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Yes, I put a bass solo up here. Vulfpeck are so much fun, and this song makes you want to groove with no lyrics. Bonus: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=rhxQoDlt2AU\">here's the track performed at their show at Madison Square Garden<\/a> (and the audience sings along, which is my favorite), and <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/electriclump\/work-it-dean-vulfpeck-vs-beyonce\">here is probably one of my favorite mashups of all time - Vulfpeck + Beyonc\u00e9<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Bear's Den - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=H9xcmNbqtI4\"><em>Stubborn Beast<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - The version on the record rules, but seeing this band live with my wife in Minneapolis the year before the pandemic hit is still one of my favorite memories.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Periphery - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=pGLuKRVX-J4\"><em>The Way The News Goes...<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - I thought about writing a blog post just for Periphery. Easily my favorite band out there working today. Energy and emotion and rhythm and riffs for days on end. They continue to blaze a trail for progressive metal, as musicians but also producers, software creators, and more. <em>News<\/em> is a chill song compared to most of their catalog, but the riff is divine and the drop into the heavy section at the end makes me want to run through a brick wall. Honorable mentions: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=fQQxhyhdg-w\"><em>Reptile<\/em><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=YFII9-pZKz4\"><em>Satellites<\/em><\/a> (just carve out 25 minutes to listen to both of these).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Leprous - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=hOMSRmfcvag\"><em>Nighttime Disguise<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - The first entry to all 3 blog posts. This was the song that had been stuck in my head for a few weeks when the prompt was first presented. A great representation of the musicality that is prevalent within the metal community right now, and worth your time to listen to.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So that's it! That's the end of my list of inspiring music. There are so many more tracks that have impacted me throughout the years, but these are the ones that have stood the test of time over many, many years. Let me know what you think - did you have a favorite song? Anything new I introduced you to that you now can't get enough of?<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Music of my Life (part 2)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/music-pt-2\/"}},"updated":"2022-08-10T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/music-pt-2\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/dotravel.com\/uploads\/articles\/96\/live-music-barcelona-feature.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Music\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Welcome back to Music of my Life, a series of blog posts that started as an exercise of &quot;what songs do I love&quot; and quickly spiraled out of control into something that has occupied a ton of my time and sent me down a ton of nostalgia rabbit holes. If you missed Part 1, <a href=\"nttps:\/\/niclake.me\/2022-08-08-music.pt.1\">check it out!<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Last time, I talked about music that imprinted on me from ages 12 to 20. This time, we're talking about 20 to 25.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<h3 id=\"post-breakup%2C-college-dropout%2C-and-college-pt.-2-(2007---2012)\" tabindex=\"-1\">Post-Breakup, College Dropout, and College Pt. 2 (2007 - 2012)<\/h3>\n<p>A LOT happened during this block of time, which is why I cut it down to only 6 years (and even then, it's STILL 27 songs... sorry).<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>My college girlfriend and I broke up, sending me into a deep depression.<\/li>\n<li>I discovered World of Warcraft.<\/li>\n<li>I dropped out of college. (Yes, it happened in that order. No, I'm not certain they're related, but I'm not ruling it out.)<\/li>\n<li>I spent time working as an IT guy for a major manufacturer, which afforded me a lot of free time.<\/li>\n<li>I hung out with friends from my childhood, got high as fuck, and copied about 30 GB of music off of his hard drive. I had no clue what most of it was.<\/li>\n<li>I went back to college &amp; made new friends.<\/li>\n<li>I got an internship that had me driving 15,000 miles (24,000 kilometers) every summer and winter for 2 years.<\/li>\n<li>I joined a Christian rock band.<\/li>\n<li>I graduated at the ripe old age of 25.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>During this time, I discovered entirely new genres of music that I didn't know existed. I went full emo for a time. I found solace in silence, and peace in a lack of lyrics. I started <a href=\"https:\/\/themusicplaysyou.bandcamp.com\/\">writing an EP around the end of this time<\/a>. Dubstep became a thing (and I loved it).<\/p>\n<p>I tried to put the first post into a real timeline of discovery, but stuff in this window is really jumbled and messy. There's also a lot more of &quot;where I was\/what I was going&quot; thoughts instead of &quot;how did this make me feel&quot;. (Also, I was VERY much into Christian rock and CCM around this time, but I'm NOT putting any of that in here, because it's extremely triggering for me.)<\/p>\n<iframe style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/playlist\/5RK7s606AeZpS5x3jScitk?utm_source=generator\" width=\"100%\" height=\"380\" frameBorder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\"><\/iframe>\n<p><strong>Deas Vail - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=O3ZPxbN2F74\"><em>Light As Air<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Peter Bradley Adams - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=8F64Gsh43ao\"><em>Los Angeles<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Weaver At The Loom - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ESzQekXtn04\"><em>You can't evade them.<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Sara Bareilles - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qi7Yh16dA0w\"><em>Love Song<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This first batch of 11 songs are ones that I have a distinct memory of listening to at my major manufacturer IT job. We had an entire month where one of the major facilities was shut down, so my team and I were tasked with walking through all 4 of the sites spread across town and cataloging all the computers and where they were located. I can still smell the oil and feel the soot between my fingers as I listen to these.<\/p>\n<p>These four songs are much more mild, emotional, contemplative. I had a massive yo-yoing of emotions during this time, and this was the quiet &amp; calm side of me. I got to play piano on Love Song for a gig, and that was a ton of fun (&quot;oh wow I didn't know you played piano!&quot; &quot;... yeah, for like 16 years now.&quot;)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Secret &amp; Whisper - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Q1HRcThcLcc\"><em>You Are Familiar<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Damiera - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Y9JTLrpaxPg\"><em>Obsessions<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Emarosa - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=F0fCXsles90\"><em>The Past Should Stay Dead<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Emery - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=s8D6OM8q1fk\"><em>Edge Of The World<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>The Butterfly Effect - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=MIO_kvBqYus\"><em>Worlds On Fire<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Polar Bear Club - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=kpADEYW-Kkk\"><em>See The Wind<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Some additional, much more energetic &amp; heavy songs. Damiera was a band introduced to me (and later joined) by my friend Steve from yesterday. The Emarosa and Polar Bear Club tracks both opened their respective albums, and absolutely punched me in the face - &quot;oh yeah, I'm gonna LOVE this!&quot; The ending of The Butterfly Effect's track ended that particular album, and more than once I'd rewind that song to just listen to the last minute over and over. All of these songs continue to rule just as hard today as they did when I first discovered them.<\/p>\n<p><strong>He Is Legend - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qtUJJZEcw1E\"><em>China White<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Getting a standalone callout here. <em>I Am Hollywood<\/em> remains one of my top-to-bottom favorite albums of all time, a wonderful concept album talking about the darker side of fame. Smack in the center of the album is this beautiful song. Out of anything in this whole list, I encourage you to listen to this song.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A.M. Architect - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=XOhKGUPIzWg\"><em>Unspoken<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>The Glitch Mob - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=eHFx11tUO1M\"><em>Between Two Points<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Infected Mushroom - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=eTWyDlFEXDc\">Vicious Delicious<\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Closure In Moscow - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=OIVwpU_mmEY\"><em>Kissing Cousins<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>HRVRD - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=LfdQDefOD-s\"><em>French Girls<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Another batch of &quot;where was I?&quot; songs. I got DEEP into World of Warcraft right around the time the first expansion, &quot;The Burning Crusade&quot;, was released. Right around this time, I also got into listening to a lot of electronic, house, and trance music. When I listen to <em>Vicious Delicious<\/em>, I can still picture myself roaming across Hellfire Peninsula with my Tauren Paladin. <em>Between Two Points<\/em> was deep in the heart of Zangarmarsh. The following year, I'd be galloping around the &quot;Wrath of the Lich King&quot; zones listening to <em>Kissing Cousins<\/em> and <em>French Girls<\/em>. So many songs have deep rooted memories with WoW, that I actually have to be careful listening to them that I don't find myself sucked back into the game that I spent so much time with. (HRVRD's <em>The Inevitable and I<\/em> is another fantastic top-to-bottom album; if you like <em>French Girls<\/em> I encourage you to check it out.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Dream Theater - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=mBCNLzhHYYo\"><em>The Spirit Carries On<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - One of the good things that came out of my time in that afore-mentioned Christian rock band was that the other guitarist introduced me to Dream Theater. I still watch their &quot;Score&quot; live concert with regularity, and this song is easily the best part of it. John Petrucci is one of the pioneers of modern progressive metal, and his guitar playing on this song is absolute perfection. (Also, I very much miss Mike Portnoy on the drums for this band.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>Lowercase Noises - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=_1W2Ui_I86Y\"><em>Stars, Pt. 2<\/em><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=gvBuTYCZ1IY\"><em>Ambient Song 22<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - I'm cheating a little and putting 2 songs by one artist here. It's my list, I'll do what I want. I don't remember exactly how I discovered Andy and his music, but <em>Stars<\/em> was the song that made me go &quot;ok yeah, I want to make ambient instrumental music&quot; (remember <a href=\"https:\/\/themusicplaysyou.bandcamp.com\/\">that EP I mentioned earlier?<\/a> Andy was the one that did final mastering on it.) All of Andy's stuff is excellent. But he hit an absolute gold mine with <em>Ambient Song 22<\/em>. A little series of live, one-take recordings that he'd post on YouTube churned out this huge hit with over 3m views. It's not available in the playlist, so make sure you click on the link (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=gvBuTYCZ1IY\">here it is again<\/a>) and take a listen.<\/p>\n<p><strong>This Will Destroy You - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=F836tdz1Meo\"><em>Quiet<\/em><\/a><\/strong> \/\/ <strong>Tides of Man - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=RvFLRPX7hAQ\"><em>New Futures<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Once I discovered ambient instrumental music, I went on a quest to find more. These songs aren't the only ones by a long shot, but they remain some of my favorites to this day.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Derdg - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=LHWw9K7iCH8\"><em>Ode To The Sun<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Andy also introduced me to this band. They get a little bit wackier in some of their other releases, but <em>Ode<\/em> has such a terrific riff and hook, and it's cemented as one of my top songs of all time.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Hidden Hospitals - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ja0MVk-eFRk\"><em>Swan Dive<\/em><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WzIQLLPOzcM\"><em>Picture Perfect<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - My friend Steve (from yesterday and from the Damiera track above) formed a new band with the Damiera singer. These are two tracks off of their first two EPs. Goddamn, do they slap.<\/p>\n<p><strong>John Mayer - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=QiFh26fwdSI\"><em>Belief (Live in LA)<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Another live track, another masterpiece. If I could be David Ryan Harris for like 30 seconds, I'd pick the time when he got to play this little riff. If I could go back and time and be at any concert, this would be in contention for shows that I would go to. John gets a bad rap sometimes, but he's an everyman artist - some people love him for his crooning voice and love-y lyrics, and others love him for his masterful guitar playing.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Killswitch Engage - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Vn3WKmyprEo\"><em>This Is Absolution<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - I've been listening to Killswitch since I was in high school, but it wasn't till about 2010 that they really hooked me in. The breakdown lyrics hit me like a truck when I was trying to come out of my depression; &quot;anchor yourself to the foundation of everything you love, believe you have just begun to live&quot;.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Skrillex - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WSeNSzJ2-Jw\"><em>Scary Monsters &amp; Nice Sprites<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Where were you when you learned about dub step? I was at a party where I realized a whole bunch of high school friends, a bunch of college friends, and my cousin were all apparently in a big friend group now, and I had no clue. It was awesome. I may have been sampling the Devil's Lettuce that evening as well, so hearing this absolutely blew my mind.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sleeping At Last - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Xg1x9DviWoo\"><em>Night Must End<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - SAL has had such an interesting journey. I picked up with them when they released this album, <em>Ghosts<\/em>, but really started to pay attention around the time of Ryan started doing a musical project called <em>Yearbook<\/em>. He recorded 3 songs every month and released them for an entire calendar year. It was such an inspiration, and drove me to dive further in to my efforts to write and record my EP in the coming years.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So there we have it. Music of my formative years, ages 20 to 25. Anything you love or vibe with? I'd love to hear about it.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Music of my Life (part 1)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/music-pt-1\/"}},"updated":"2022-08-08T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/music-pt-1\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/www.dsmpartnership.com\/filesimages\/BLOGS\/22-3\/Header\/LiveMusic2_header.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Music\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I was talking with a group of friends in our Discord this past weekend, and a great prompt came up. <em>&quot;Share 3 songs that you feel like summarize your musical preferences\/your journey through discovering new styles of music.&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Y'all realize how hard it is to narrow that prompt down to just <strong>three<\/strong> songs? Cripes.<\/p>\n<p>Anyway, I fulfilled the prompt, but a lot of us were talking about our honorable mentions. This led me down a rabbit hole of figuring out what were my personal defining songs from my life, and now... well, it turned into 3 blog posts.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<h3 id=\"history\" tabindex=\"-1\">History<\/h3>\n<p>Prior to high school, I listened to a ton of different stuff. My first 3 albums that I ever owned were (lol in advance) <strong>Spice Girls - <em>Spice<\/em><\/strong>, <strong>Hanson - <em>Middle of Nowhere<\/em><\/strong>, and the <strong>Mortal Kombat Annihilation soundtrack<\/strong>. I then dabbled with a lot of <strong>Creed<\/strong> and other Christian-adjacent bands as I learned to play drums, bass, and guitar over the years. But none of that was really what I considered &quot;formative&quot; - most of those bands I'd heard on the radio, or was convinced by my mom to buy the CDs. <strong>Mortal Kombat<\/strong> was an out of the blue album purchase for me - I'd played the video games in the arcades, but didn't even see the movie until I was in my 20s. I was pretty much relying on other people's suggestions of what music to listen to until 1999\/2000, when I was 12-13.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"jr.-high%2C-high-school%2C-%26-early-college-(1999---2007)\" tabindex=\"-1\">Jr. High, High School, &amp; Early College (1999 - 2007)<\/h3>\n<p>Around 99\/2000, I finally started to break out of the shell of &quot;listen to music my parents recommend&quot;, and found things via friends that I really enjoyed. I've included a Spotify playlist of 12 songs from that time that I loved\/continue to love today, and either where I can picture myself listening to the song, or why I love it so much. (I'm including a Spotify playlist here, but I'll link every song on YouTube as well.)<\/p>\n<iframe style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/playlist\/7fSEezomJbMv4i2YItkP34?utm_source=generator&theme=0\" width=\"100%\" height=\"380\" frameBorder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\"><\/iframe>\n<p><strong>Deftones - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=XOzs1FehYOA\"><em>My Own Summer (Shove It)<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - My cousin Cory has always been a very gifted drummer and musician, and I looked up to him a lot. Always loved going over to his house as a kid and playing drums (he's now got his Masters in Jazz Studies). I still remember him playing <strong>Rage Against The Machine<\/strong> and Deftones for me as a &quot;check this out&quot; sort of deal, and opening my eyes to a new world of music.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Linkin Park - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=jfviFOcnlew\"><em>Krwlng<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - I still remember throwing on <strong><em>Hybrid Theory<\/em><\/strong> for the first time on a way back from some church camp my friend and I went to, and being blown away. The emotion I felt from Chester's vocals and the band's instrumentation gripped me and changed my perception on a lot of things. While HT and <strong><em>Meteora<\/em><\/strong> continue to be amazing albums, <strong><em>Reanimation<\/em><\/strong> has some absolutely incredible remixes, and the harmonies on Krwlng make the original song 300% better.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Norma Jean - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=yxgaoGkaU_c\"><em>Creating Something Out Of Nothing, Only To Destroy It<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - There was a concert venue just down the street from where I grew up called The Reverb. It was a dimly lit bar on the 2nd floor above some Main Street businesses. I'd be down there nearly once a week, going to shows of my friend's bands, or other bands that came through. We had a pretty robust straight-edge\/hardcore scene (x319x), and I still remember how energetic and chaotic the Norma Jean show I went to was. An absolutely incredible memory.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Beloved - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=oX6_v3xuuk8\"><em>Death to Traitors<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - I latched on to Beloved as one of my favorite hardcore bands, simply because they brought more melodic structure to their music. They played a show at the local rec center that was a block from my house, and it was nuts seeing kids running all over, playing basketball or throwing a football, while this band set up in the corner and just absolutely ripped.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Anberlin - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=FadZ-KHW92Y\"><em>Ready Fuels<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - I don't remember exactly how I discovered Anberlin, but this was their very first track off their first album, and it spawned a nearly 2 decades long infatuation with this band. I spent many an afternoon in my room playing along to this album on my guitar and bass.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Billy Music - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=uL6IxJ4MdnU\"><em>Stereofoam<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - A band that came through my hometown and played a show, and then practically dropped off the face of the planet. I would love to get a group of friends together and cover this whole album top to bottom. Stereofoam is in my top 10 songs of all time.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Incubus - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=rT7aDgdPDYQ\"><em>Summer Romance (Anti-Gravity Love Song)<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - My friend Steve LOVED Incubus. Their mainstream releases were all really good, but I fell in love with their super early stuff (Fungus Amongus and S.C.I.E.N.C.E.). This is a song we'd casually drop while playing pep band gigs (along with <strong>Are You In?<\/strong> from <em>Morning View<\/em>).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Thursday - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=aAD6lJiHBdA\"><em>War All The Time<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Oh yeah, I definitely had an emo phase that I went through. I distinctly remember listening to this album while sitting at my desk waiting for 1st period Trig to start. This album, plus <em>Full Collapse<\/em>, were on frequent rotation for me.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Underoath - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=K70VfYtWpX4\"><em>Down, Set, Go<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Underoath is a band that I still continue to listen to on repeat to this day. Soaring melodies, heavy hitting riffs... this band had everything I wanted back in the day, and their music still resonates today. I moshed right alongside a bunch of youths when I saw them live a few years ago.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mae - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=MDMcotLp2yY\"><em>Suspension<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - One of those churchy-adjacent bands that I listened to a lot of, Mae's music has always been this melodic punky vibe that I seem to click with. The main guitar riff was one that I still play to this day when I pick up a guitar.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Relient K - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=_w8FVBr5M-s\"><em>Devestation and Reform<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - Exact same as <strong><em>Suspension<\/em><\/strong> above, with the only difference being that I'm in the music video for this song.<\/p>\n<p><strong>MUTEMATH - <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=7XVWR-5fiG0\"><em>Typical<\/em><\/a><\/strong> - My college girlfriend and I went to go see The Fray play at her college. Wasn't a fan, but it was live music, so why not? MUTEMATH opened for them, and absolutely blew them out of the water. Such an incredible performance, I was completely hyped and energized. Bought the t-shirts, the CDs, everything. God, that was such a good show.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So there we have it. Music of my formative years, ages 12 to 20. Anything you love or vibe with? I'd love to hear about it.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Resetting","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/resetting\/"}},"updated":"2022-07-15T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/resetting\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/www.tomferry.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/resetting-relationships-1200x628-compressor-1.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Reset! Reset!\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Man. A lot has happened.<\/p>\n<p>It's been almost 7 full months since my last post, and SO MANY THINGS have changed. Mostly for the better. Let's do a quick recap.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"new-page\" tabindex=\"-1\">New page<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\">I've added a new page to my site called Hello<\/a>. My friend Patrick was the one that turned me on to this trend, and honestly, I think it's great. Go check it out.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"theme-system-journal\" tabindex=\"-1\">Theme System Journal<\/h3>\n<p>I did implement the Theme System journal that I talked about <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-garden\/\">in my last post<\/a> into the start of my year, and it was a tremendous help in rapidly prioritizing things that mattered vs. things that didn't.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Harvest<\/strong>: I'm through 17 books so far, and I've only stopped for coffee maybe a dozen times all year (thank you, Trade Coffee, for keeping me stocked with beans).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Prune<\/strong>: My Twitter and Instagram lists are both staying small, I haven't gotten hooked on any long-play video games, and we've been doing our best to eat healthier overall.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sow<\/strong>: I've been getting out and walking a lot, and I've been drinking a lot of water. I'm also in the progress of learning Swift. The other things on that list... not so much.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Raze<\/strong>: I'm back on Facebook, albeit very infrequently. I've not done anything with Screen Time (honestly forgot about that one), and my nails are still short.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I'm definitely leaning into the theme, even if I'm not actively using the journal as much anymore. More on that in a minute.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"new-addition-to-the-family\" tabindex=\"-1\">New addition to the family<\/h3>\n<p>My wife and I welcomed our first child, a daughter (you may see me refer to her as V in some places), on February 28th. We thought we were so prepared. We weren't even close lol.<\/p>\n<p>V has been wonderful. She's smiling and giggling, she's curious, and she gives amazing hugs. We've been doing the best that we can to get out of the house and do things. Most of my walks that I've been doing have been pushing her around the neighborhood in her stroller while the weather is nice. We've been taking her out and about around some friends, and tomorrow she gets to go to a friend's child's 1st birthday party. I love her so much.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"community\" tabindex=\"-1\">Community<\/h3>\n<p>I've been doing better about trying to foster the kinds of communities that I want to be a part of. I've been actively trying to rekindle relationships with friends of yesteryear, now that we all have kids and can relate to that. It's been great to touch base with all of them, swap stories and tips, and be reassured that we aren't alone in our journey.<\/p>\n<p>I've also become a member of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.relay.fm\/membership\">Relay FM podcast network<\/a>, and through it, made some great friendships with people all over the world. We talk about random nonsense, we share projects we're working on, and we hold each other accountable for things we're trying to accomplish. We're even doing a Play-By-Post D&amp;D game, which I rejoined this month after taking an absence for V's birth. This has been one of the best decisions that I've made in a long time, and I'm so thankful that I took the plunge - thanks to all of you (if you're reading this) for being an outlet, a support system, and wonderful friends over the past few months.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"jobby-job\" tabindex=\"-1\">Jobby Job<\/h3>\n<p>I quit my job! Today was actually my last full day. It's all good though - I have another gig lined up, one that's gonna be fantastic for allowing me to flex my time &amp; help out my wife and V. Having more time available, and not feeling pressured to be Always On from 9 to 5 is going to be huge (and honestly, hats off to families of the past - I can't even imagine how hard it would be trying to go to work every day and being away from my family. Yikes).<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Those are the high points of what's been going on with me as of late. I'm hoping to write a lot more over the coming weeks and months as we finally settle into a routine again. No promises, though.<\/p>\n<p><em>Did you enjoy this post? Did something I say really resonate with you? Am I just flat-out wrong? <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello\">Check out my Hello page<\/a> to find a way to contact me, and let's chat about it.<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"Year of the Garden","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-garden\/"}},"updated":"2021-12-28T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/year-of-the-garden\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/images.squarespace-cdn.com\/content\/v1\/555dd767e4b0c1834b5b6595\/1580185618952-77GY5JMT4XS8QGC4OXFL\/IMG_6150.png\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>So I really wanted to do <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themesystem.com\/\">a theme<\/a> this year. Thought it'd be a nice thing to do instead of &quot;goals&quot; or &quot;resolutions&quot; or anything like that. However! Life is gonna get a little complicated with a newborn arriving in February, and I knew that was going to throw everything into whack.<\/p>\n<p>With that said, my theme is: <strong>Year of the Garden<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>I want to work on all of the small things in my life, thinking of it like a garden that I need to tend to in order to have success this year, and be ready for future years as well.<\/p>\n<p>With that said, here are my 4 main buckets:<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"harvest---continue-with-established-habits\" tabindex=\"-1\">Harvest - continue with established habits<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Read at least 1 book\/month (far less than my goal of 50 that I had for 2021, but hey - a baby is incoming)<\/li>\n<li>Brew coffee daily vs. buying sugary mochas<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"prune---trim-down-existing-habits-to-be-better-suited-for-my-future\" tabindex=\"-1\">Prune - trim down existing habits to be better suited for my future<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Prune who I follow on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube every quarter (<a href=\"https:\/\/tokimeki-unfollow.glitch.me\/\">Tokimeki Unfollow<\/a> is GREAT for this if you're a Twitter user)<\/li>\n<li>Uninstall\/stop playing video games that I can't pause<\/li>\n<li>Cook fewer &quot;comfort&quot; recipes, and focus on healthier options<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"sow---plant-new-habits\" tabindex=\"-1\">Sow - plant new habits<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Healthy movement daily (exercise, Ring Fit, walking)<\/li>\n<li>Drinking 80+ oz (2.3 L) of water daily<\/li>\n<li>Write more (D&amp;D campaign, blogging, journaling, etc.)<\/li>\n<li>Practice piano<\/li>\n<li>Practice guitar<\/li>\n<li>Write music again (possibly Q2-Q3)<\/li>\n<li>Learn to draw (iPad? Pencil?)<\/li>\n<li>Learn a language (Spanish, Korean, French)<\/li>\n<li>Learn a new programming language (Python, Swift, Rust?)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 id=\"raze---clear-weeds-and-unwanted-habits-to-make-way-for-better-things\" tabindex=\"-1\">Raze - clear weeds and unwanted habits to make way for better things<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Get off of Facebook (planned departure date of 1\/1\/22)<\/li>\n<li>Use the Screen Time functions of Mac\/iOS to restrict time on Twitter and Instagram<\/li>\n<li>Actively identify and implement solutions to stop biting\/picking my nails<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I fully intend for items to move around in this list. For example, once I &quot;sow&quot; some of these new habits, I intend to move them to the &quot;harvest&quot; category where I continue to pursue them. Some &quot;harvest&quot; items will need to be &quot;pruned&quot; as I go along, or &quot;razed&quot; entirely. I want to leave myself the flexibility to identify and attempt new things, while simultaneously understanding that my time will not be my own in about 2 months.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, I want to trim the fat, keep things lean, and identify the things that bring me joy and growth. Lay the ground work and prepare the garden for future years. Practice habit gardening now, so I am experienced with it as my life changes and I need to change.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Deadlines (or, On Writing)","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/deadlines\/"}},"updated":"2020-07-25T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/deadlines\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/media.distractify.com\/brand-img\/2VmOVEEJn\/2160x1131\/is-will-gay-stranger-things-1562352049791.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I love writing.<\/p>\n<p>Technically, I guess you could say that I love words. I've been an avid reader since I can remember, and I found that I really enjoyed writing as I got into jr. high. I've always had an extremely vivid imagination, and it was fairly easy for me to manifest those crazy daydreams into decent stories.<\/p>\n<p>For most of college, I ran or wrote for a handful of blogs or media outlets. Some of the actual reporting that I did <a href=\"https:\/\/www.macgasm.net\/author\/niclake\/\">still exists over in Macgasm's archives<\/a>. Beyond that, I've run a sports blog, maybe a dozen personal blogs, a well-meaning (but in hindsight, extremely cringe-worthy) &quot;How To Be A Gentleman&quot; blog.<\/p>\n<p>Yeesh.<\/p>\n<p>Anyway, as college became post-college, and as my free time dwindled &amp; became occupied with other things, I've been looking for an outlet to start writing more. I've had this site up for nearly 2 years now after I stupidly let my .com address lapse (I mean, I could always get it back [for the low price of $4,000]...), and I've gone in spurts with writing posts when I actually have something to say. But beyond that? I haven't done much of anything.<\/p>\n<p>It's crazy, too... I haven't done a lot of creative writing in that time, either. Something that I used to love to do has now become something that I'm ashamed of, or at least apprehensive about sharing with the world. It's the same with my music; when playing in front of a huge crowd, it's no big deal. When playing for a small group, and ESPECIALLY family? Hard pass. I don't pretend to get it, but that's the way it is.<\/p>\n<p>But I think that I have <strong>FINALLY<\/strong> found an outlet. One that not only affords me the ability to creatively write again, but also share it with a smaller, more intimate group &amp; setting.<\/p>\n<p>Becoming a Dungeon Master.<\/p>\n<p>The returning popularity of Dungeons &amp; Dragons (D&amp;D) has been something I'm very thankful for. I've been playing since I was in high school (surprise, Mom &amp; Dad), dabbled a bit in college, and then completely dropped off of it until about 2 years ago. I've only played in other people's campaigns up until this point, but at the encouragement of my group, I'm starting up my first campaign next weekend.<\/p>\n<p>I've actually been dabbling with a story\/plot for the better part of these 2 years that I've been playing again, but I've not really taken the time to sit down and finish it. Actually, the plot spawned off of a novel series idea that I had about 5-6 years ago, and I've been just poking at with sticks every few months ever since. Occasionally I'll get a new idea for the campaign, but they're usually big, grandiose plot points that don't fit in anywhere &amp; would require a full rewrite of the story in order to accommodate.<\/p>\n<p>Well, that happened again mid-June, but this time, I just took the idea and ran with it. It's simultaneously a small yet huge plot, with a ton of threads that I'm having to ensure don't unravel when you pluck at them. It's been a great exercise in not only writing, but organizational skills as well (which is something I've struggled with for years, so yay, more practice).<\/p>\n<p>The additional benefit? I now have deadlines to hit.<\/p>\n<p><em>Do you enjoy writing or playing D&amp;D? Do you have any tips or tricks on how to keep your worlds organized? <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">Hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let me know!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"Digital Pruning","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/digital-pruning\/"}},"updated":"2020-06-26T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/digital-pruning\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/hips.hearstapps.com\/hmg-prod.s3.amazonaws.com\/images\/pruning-garden-1521648761.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When I woke up this morning, I was following 733 Twitter accounts. As of right now, I'm following 435. 298 just got the boot.<\/p>\n<p>I'm not sharing this to brag, or to to make you feel bad. I'm sharing this in case it helps you out.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>There are moments when pruning the digital garden that we've cultivated is beneficial. My Twitter feed, for example, had an extremely low &quot;signal to noise&quot; ratio. It was all just people retweeting stuff or being angry or whatever, and not a lot of good thoughts, important content, &amp; the like. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/patrickrhone\/status\/1276588576042516481\">My friend Patrick<\/a> made mention of a service he was going to be using called <a href=\"https:\/\/tokimeki-unfollow.glitch.me\/\">Tokimeki Unfollow<\/a>, and I decided to give it a once-over.<\/p>\n<p>It's actually <em>really hard<\/em> to go through all of the accounts you follow &amp; try to determine who stays &amp; who goes. Old friends you don't talk to much? Companies that you really enjoy? The one person that shares a ton of content, both good and bad?<\/p>\n<p>The thing that kept me going, and being really decisive about pruning, was the little line above the &quot;Unfollow&quot; and &quot;Keep&quot; buttons on the Tokimaki site: <em>&quot;Do the tweets still spark joy or feel important to you?&quot;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>As I went along, I made up a few guidelines for myself:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>People over products<\/li>\n<li>People over companies<\/li>\n<li>Thoughts over mindlessness<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>So... following the people that were part of a podcast is more important than following the podcast itself. Similarly, following the people working for a company or publication is more important than following the company itself. In both cases, I can expect that the important content from the parent company will filter through via RTs.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, I cut out a bunch of people who did nothing but RT without substance. A friend (I believe it was Patrick (EDIT: <a href=\"https:\/\/patrickrhone.com\/2016\/06\/30\/twitter-zen-and-the-art-of-retweet-maintenance\/\">I was right<\/a>)) imparted some wisdom to me years ago; instead of a blind retweet, they were more interested in actually knowing what the person thought about the content they were sharing (often done via quote tweets). Thoughts over mindlessness. Signal over noise.<\/p>\n<p>I'm not saying I won't add these kinds of accounts back; on the contrary, if I find myself missing the kinds of things that they posted, I'll absolutely follow them again. I'm just trying to do a hard reset for my feed, and for my mental well-being.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, for my sanity, I'm doing 2 additional things:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Removing Facebook from my phone<\/li>\n<li>Installing (and using) an RSS feed reader<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The former, I'm removing so I stop wasting so much time. The latter, so I can have a dedicated location to read content from all of those companies, blogs, etc. that I want to read.<\/p>\n<p>I have no idea how it's going to go. This isn't the first time I've done a prune before. But especially with everything going on right now, I think it's vital to have peace of mind wherever we spend time, and this is how I'm going to attempt to give myself some.<\/p>\n<p><em>Did this help you? Do you have your own suggestions for how to keep your digital garden pruned? <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">Hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let me know!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"Life","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/life-update\/"}},"updated":"2020-06-25T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/life-update\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><code>&lt;Insert the 30 Rock &quot;What a year, huh?&quot; &quot;Lemon, it's June&quot; graphic here, because right now, generating that meme is just too much effort&gt;<\/code><\/p>\n<p>2020 is. It doesn't rule. It DEFINITELY sucks. But here at the end of June, I'm just trying to make do with what I've got. I think that's all any of us can do at this point.<\/p>\n<p>There's really no rhyme or reason to this post, at least not yet. That might change as I go, but for now, this is just going to be a nice little &quot;life update&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>My <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2020-goals\">2020 goals<\/a> have been all over the board. I've stagnated on my weight, I've not written since February, and I've only finished 2 books so far. On the other hand, I've cooked a whole bunch of stuff (that I've not written down, but whatever), and I've completed 13 games so far this year (including 5 in April). It's apparent that priorities have changed quite a bit for just about everyone, given COVID, George Floyd, and everything else that's going on.<\/p>\n<p>So, what <em>have<\/em> I actually done this year?<\/p>\n<h4 id=\"beaten-13-games\" tabindex=\"-1\">Beaten 13 games<\/h4>\n<p>As I mentioned before, I've gotten 13 games completed. They are: <strong>The Outer Worlds, Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, Ori and the Blind Forest, Pokemon Shield, Control, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Halo: Reach, Halo, Outer Wilds, Halo 2, Chrono Trigger,<\/strong> &amp; <strong>The Last of Us<\/strong>. I've been making liberal use of Xbox Game Pass for PC, which has unlocked a ton of other games for me to play, and I also hooked my PS4 back up in order to go through some of these AAA titles that have been collecting dust on my shelf. <strong>Horizon: Zero Dawn<\/strong> is next on my list.<\/p>\n<p>I was really only able to do this for a few reasons... one of which being I FINALLY uninstalled <strong>League of Legends<\/strong>. I've been playing for 6 years, and it finally just got to be too much for me. (I did just recently replace it with Valorant, a fun new shooter from the same company, but I'm keeping a close eye on things to make sure I don't repeat the same habits.)<\/p>\n<h4 id=\"adopted-a(nother)-kitten\" tabindex=\"-1\">Adopted a(nother) kitten<\/h4>\n<p>Please meet Beau.<\/p>\n<p><em>pretend that there's an image of a cool cat here<\/em><\/p>\n<p>R &amp; I picked up Beau at the beginning of May, and he's been a joy. Beau &amp; Pixel are fast friends. Bearcat is still a bit apprehensive, but they're bonding more and more every day.<\/p>\n<h4 id=\"transitioned-to-colemak\" tabindex=\"-1\">Transitioned to Colemak<\/h4>\n<p>Back in March of last year, <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/colemak\">I blogged about my experiment with switching my keyboard layouts over to Colemak<\/a>. I gave it up for a variety of reasons, but since I've been stuck at home for a few months now, I decided to go cold turkey with QWERTY and make the switch.<\/p>\n<p>It honestly wasn't terrible. I still had a bunch of muscle memory built up, and while I'm still nowhere near as fast as I was on QWERTY, I'm enjoying the more limited movements with typing. Plus, it's a good conversation piece to have in my back pocket. (I'm still waiting on my Nerd Cred\u2122 card to show up in the mail, though.)<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So there's one more thing I've done this year that's pretty important. Some of you may have heard me talk about this over the last 3 months; I've written and deleted 4 or 5 posts about this because I didn't want to seem like I was just bitching about it. Feel free to completely skip over this section if you want, but I think it's finally time I put this down on &quot;paper&quot;.<\/p>\n<h4 id=\"cut-out-toxic-people\" tabindex=\"-1\">Cut out toxic people<\/h4>\n<p>The first weekend of quarantine, I cut out an extremely toxic friend (and, by association, our friend group) from my life.<\/p>\n<p>This was incredibly difficult for me. These 3 were the guys that I talked to pretty much daily through Google Hangouts or Discord for 7+ years. They were my gaming group that played games (like League) multiple times a week. We've been at\/in each other's weddings (for the two of us that are married). They were My People.<\/p>\n<p>But for years, I'd been keeping one of them off to the side. He was the self-proclaimed asshole of the group. Sometimes it was funny. Sometimes it wasn't. And in hindsight, a lot of the &quot;funny&quot; stuff was actually just me trying to laugh off some pretty rampant toxicity, bullying, and &quot;guy talk&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>Things came to a head when he said something in our group, and just kept doubling down on it. It wasn't a thing directed at me, per se, but it vividly showed me how much of a dick he was to anyone that he didn't deem worthy of his presence. So, I cut him out. And the rest of the group sided with him (which I fully anticipated, but it didn't make it hurt any less).<\/p>\n<p>I'm not saying that I've always been this perfect poster child. On the contrary, I'd definitely said things within that group that I am ashamed of. But I believe that most (not all) of that mentality and behavior was due to the proximity &amp; tacit approval that I received from this individual. Others around me have said that they've noticed a change in my persona since March; I jokingly chalk it up to &quot;more self-reflection time in quarantine&quot;, but really, I think it's been because of more self-reflection time due to not having a friend group to talk to on the regular.<\/p>\n<p>I'm not gonna lie, it's sucked not having that group around. We celebrated victories (in game or in life), and were able to actually discuss some struggles, which is something a lot of men don't have the opportunity to do. There were a bunch of hard days\/weeks in there when I didn't have that group to talk to anymore. But now? I'd say I'm out the other side, and ultimately better for the decision I made.<\/p>\n<p>I've been interacting with one of the guys more frequently, and another one on a couple occasions. But I haven't spoken to the toxic one in (quick math) nearly 15 weeks, and I'm not at all upset about that. He knows how to get in touch with me if he feels like it, but I doubt that day will ever come.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So yeah. 2020's been real weird. I'm ready for some sort of &quot;normal&quot; to come back. I'm happy that I've been able to work remotely throughout all of this, but I'm just very ready to get out of the house and experience life again. I hope you're all doing well too.<\/p>\n<p><em>How are all of your 2020 goals &amp; resolutions going? Are any of you doing smaller goals like I am? Have you had great success or serious setbacks? <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">Hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let me know!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"Time To Update Some Goals!","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2020-goals-update\/"}},"updated":"2020-01-14T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2020-goals-update\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/uxX3gc8.png\" alt=\"alt text\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I KNEW that doing the smaller goals in 2020 would pay off in spades.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2020-goals\">My entire goal for this year<\/a> was to set small, achievable goals every quarter. Then, if I hit a goal, I could set a new one for the remaining time, or if I missed a goal in a quarter, I could analyze why and reevaluate if I should continue to aim to achieve it or replace it with something else.<\/p>\n<p>To that end, I said that one of my &quot;Get Healthy&quot; goals was to lose 6 lbs in the first quarter of 2020.<\/p>\n<p>I did it in 2 weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Honestly, it wasn't all that difficult. I've been logging all of my meals in an app called MyPlate, aiming to get both my standing and movement goals fully closed every day on my Apple Watch, and just be smarter about the fuel I put into my body. I had a few days where I splurged (watching the Patriots get beat in the AFC Wild Card game was not conducive to a positive food or alcohol intake), and as such, my weight chart wasn't a flawless downward trend. But overall, I made a nice downward progression, and I achieved my goal in 1\/6th the time I allotted for it.<\/p>\n<p>I think the best decision I made (thanks to the suggestion of my wife) was to use MyPlate. I've tried doing the apps before, but nothing really clicked with me. This one did, though, because it includes a spot to log your weight right on the main page of the app when you load it up. They also will pipe in your calories burned from your Apple Watch (on the iPhone version, at least), and include a spot to log your water intake.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/agwKUrN.png\" alt=\"MyPlate Screenshot\" \/><\/p>\n<p>For me, I'm the kind of person that likes to have all of these tangible things in front of me to play with daily. Plus, the app will notify me if I forgot to log something, which is a nice touch as well.<\/p>\n<p>Over the last two weeks, I've found myself actively thinking more about what it is that I'm eating or thinking about making. Like last night; I wanted a bag of popcorn (which is all carbs, btw), but we didn't have anything. So I thought about making eggs and toast. Or peanut butter toast. Or a wide variety of other things. Instead, I settled on just having a cheese stick. I've found myself actively walking away from doughnuts, soda, chocolate, or chips at work because I know that I'll have to log them, and I'll be unhappy with myself if I do.<\/p>\n<p>But the other really cool thing that I'm a huge fan of is the &quot;Burned&quot; and &quot;Net&quot; calorie sections, and how your progress bar updates throughout the day with your movement and exercise. It's nice to see how going to yoga basically doubles my &quot;Burned&quot; calories, or that working a shift at the brewery will triple or even quadruple it depending on how busy we are. Small little things that help you reaffirm the &quot;Duh&quot; aspects of how exercise can affect your weight loss journey.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>ALSO! I'm modifying another one of my goals.<\/p>\n<p>My final long-term goal for the year was &quot;Write More&quot;, which I think was a good one to set. But instead of allocating it to just doing blog posts, I'm going to mix it up a bit.<\/p>\n<p>I discovered a great little website called <a href=\"https:\/\/750words.com\/\">750words<\/a> thanks to a random blog post I came across on Twitter. The premise is simple: every day, you go to this site and write (at least) 750 words about whatever you want. Some people use it as a blog. Others use it to help them write a book. Apparently the community is big on participating in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nanowrimo.org\/\">NaNoWriMo<\/a> (National Novel Writing Month, which takes place in November), which is something that I've tried and failed at twice before when I was younger. They'll send you email reminders every day if you want, which I leave sitting unread in my inbox until I've had an opportunity to pop over and get my writing in.<\/p>\n<p>As far as topics? A few days, I've just journaled. Today, I wrote this blog post. On a couple of days, I've popped over to the Writing Prompts subreddit and snagged an idea that looked fun from there (and they have indeed been fun). I try not to be too critical about what I write, I just write. The important thing is to get the words down on the page; I can always go back at a later date and edit them if I really need to.<\/p>\n<p>So yeah. 2020 is off to a great start. I've already made 4 of 6 recipes and finished a game (The Outer Worlds, which was really fun). I'm going to need to buckle down and make sure I do some reading, as well as spending some outside-of-work time working on some code projects. But so far, so good!<\/p>\n<p><em>How are all of your 2020 goals &amp; resolutions going? Are any of you doing smaller goals like I am? Have you had great success or serious setbacks? <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">Hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let me know!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"2020 Q1 Goals","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2020-q1-goals\/"}},"updated":"2019-12-30T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2020-q1-goals\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"http:\/\/culture360.asef.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2013\/11\/Creative-Writing-Banner.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Setting Goals\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If you've been keeping tabs on my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-goals\">2019 goals<\/a>, it's pretty apparent that I whiffed on juuuuust about all of them.<\/p>\n<p>If you read my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/patience\">recent post about patience<\/a>, you'll know that I intend to be better about that by breaking them down into much smaller, more easily achievable chunks.<\/p>\n<p>I'm tired of missing the boat on all of my goals, getting discouraged, and feeling like I didn't accomplish anything at the end of the year. My priorities shifted a ton since last Dec\/Jan, and seeing such a daunting goal still looming in front of me on things like my weight loss made me just stop trying at all.<\/p>\n<p>So! Let's set these achievable goals, and see if we can do any better this year.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 id=\"long-term-goal%3A-lose-weight%2C-get-healthier\" tabindex=\"-1\">Long-Term Goal: Lose Weight, Get Healthier<\/h3>\n<h4 id=\"q1-goal%3A-lose-6-lbs.-in-q1\" tabindex=\"-1\"><s>Q1 Goal: Lose 6 lbs. in Q1<\/s><\/h4>\n<h4 id=\"updated-q1-goal%3A-lose-10-lbs.-in-q1\" tabindex=\"-1\">Updated Q1 Goal: Lose 10 lbs. in Q1<\/h4>\n<p>2 pounds every month. I'm itching to bump it up to 9 lbs., but I don't wanna get ahead of myself. More water, maybe a few less cookies, and this will be EASILY achievable.<\/p>\n<p>EDIT 1\/14\/20: I was right, it was easily achievable. Bumping this up to a 10 lbs. goal, so aiming for 177.2.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Date<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Weight (lbs)<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Weight Lost<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>1\/1<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">187.2<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">---<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>1\/14<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">181.2<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">-6 lbs<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h4 id=\"q1-goal%3A-make-6-new-recipes-in-q1\" tabindex=\"-1\">Q1 Goal: Make 6 new recipes in Q1<\/h4>\n<p>I <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/recipes\/\">wrote a few weeks ago<\/a> about how I'm going to be tracking all of my recipes in 2020. Ready to put this notebook to good use.<\/p>\n<p>| Recipe | Date |<br \/>\n|---|:-:|:-:|<br \/>\n| 1. Avocado &amp; Black Bean Salad | 1\/1 |<br \/>\n| 2. Low Carb Breakfast Casserole | 1\/4 |<br \/>\n| 3. Chicken Adobo | 1\/10 |<br \/>\n| 4. Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup | 1\/12 |<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"long-term-goal%3A-continue-to-improve-my-software-dev-skills\" tabindex=\"-1\">Long-Term Goal: Continue to Improve My Software Dev Skills<\/h3>\n<h4 id=\"q1-goal%3A-create-a-new-%22backlog-dreadsheets%22-site\" tabindex=\"-1\">Q1 Goal: Create a New &quot;Backlog Dreadsheets&quot; Site<\/h4>\n<p>If you've been around my site before, you've probably seen my <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1zg-SOYI8DlH-ibSNslfPtq0xJB4sEMb_7OHKbq2qclk\/edit?usp=sharing\">video game<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1-1PcHF6xzFKTaTvxnfjm6bVgo4pd5yIr3nbxsbckoFo\/edit?usp=sharing\">books<\/a> backlog spreadsheets. While these are fine, they're really bulky &amp; inelegant solutions. Also, now that I've started a new job &amp; started working with a new language (Ruby\/Rails), I'm trying to find little projects that I can do to help me learn quicker.<\/p>\n<p>To that end, I'll be working to develop a site to track all of these. Should be pretty straightforward, a nice learning opportunity, and it'll allow me to have everything sorted exactly how I want. Wins all around.<\/p>\n<p>And speaking of these backlogs...<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"long-term-goal%3A-work-through-my-various-backlogs\" tabindex=\"-1\">Long-Term Goal: Work Through My Various Backlogs<\/h3>\n<h4 id=\"q1-goal%3A-beat-2-video-games\" tabindex=\"-1\">Q1 Goal: Beat 2 Video Games<\/h4>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Game<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">System<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Completed Date<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>The Outer Worlds<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">PC<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h4 id=\"q1-goal%3A-read-2-books\" tabindex=\"-1\">Q1 Goal: Read 2 Books<\/h4>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Book<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Author<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Read Date<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Wanderers<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Chuck Wendig<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">2\/3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>I've had a book sitting on my nightstand for a few months now, and just got 4 more for Christmas. Maybe it's time I open them. I've also got a myriad of games installed on my PC for years. I need to actually launch them and beat them.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"long-term-goal%3A-write-more\" tabindex=\"-1\">Long-Term Goal: Write More<\/h3>\n<h4 id=\"q1-goal%3A-write-6-blog-posts\" tabindex=\"-1\"><s>Q1 Goal: Write 6 Blog Posts<\/s><\/h4>\n<h4 id=\"updated-q1-goal%3A-write-every-day-on-750words\" tabindex=\"-1\">Updated Q1 Goal: Write Every Day on 750words<\/h4>\n<p>This is the one I'm actually going to push myself on. Not only do I have to write 6 posts, but they're not game review posts or anything like that. Actual content, things that I actually thing need to be said or logged for posterity.<\/p>\n<p>EDIT 1\/14\/20: Changing this up, and instead I'm going to aim to write &amp; hit my goal every day on <a href=\"http:\/\/750words.com\/\">750words.com<\/a>. I started on Jan 8, and am currently on a 7 day streak.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>That's it! 6 goals for Q1. Keeping them small, simple, and achievable. I want to blow past all of these goals, and give myself the motivation to either stretch these for Q2, or open up to some different goals in the spring.<\/p>\n<p><em>What goals do you have for yourself? Are you planning to do monthly or quarterly goals this year? Need someone to check in with you and keep you motivated? <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">Hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let me know!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"2019 Music Of the Year, Part 1","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/aoty-2019-1\/"}},"updated":"2019-12-26T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/aoty-2019-1\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>Every year, I'm always anxious to find out what people's albums or songs of the year are. Every year, I lament that I should've started in on my own ranking earlier on, so I'd have something to contribute.<\/p>\n<p>This year, I finally did it.<\/p>\n<p>While the lists have taken numerous forms<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/aoty-2019-1\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> since January, it has been meticulously updated since the start of the year. It's been cool to watch my perceptions change along the say. My #1 album of the year was usurped in the final hours by another album that had been out all year, and finally clicked with me. Even though I'm really into the progressive rock &amp; metal, a ton of indie (and some hip hop???) made its way onto my list. I've found it absurdly difficult to keep a running list, and actually had reservations about saying &quot;this album is better than that one&quot; later on in the year<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/aoty-2019-1\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>So, without further ado, let's start the lists!<\/p>\n<h1 id=\"singles-of-2019\" tabindex=\"-1\">Singles of 2019<\/h1>\n<p>I wanted to start with my favorite EPs and singles of 2019, which are not ranked and just exist as individual bright spots on the year. All of these hit me at a certain point in time that made me go &quot;whoa&quot; for various reasons, and I wanted to share them with you (some with commentary, and some without).<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"killswitch-engage---the-signal-fire\" tabindex=\"-1\">Killswitch Engage - <em>The Signal Fire<\/em><\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"genre%3A-metal%2C-metalcore\" tabindex=\"-1\">Genre: Metal, Metalcore<\/h3>\n<p>I've been listening to Killswitch Engage since I was in high school, and fell in love with the band when Howard Jones became their singer after Jesse Leach's departure in 2002. Jones himself had to depart from the band in 2012 while dealing with type 2 diabetes, and the band eventually brought Leach back to be their vocalist.<\/p>\n<p>For 7 years, I had been crossing my fingers that the band would bring Howard back to split vocal duties on a tour, or even a show. Instead, I got a song and a music video! The magic moment starts at 0:51 below.<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\" style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\">\n  <div style=\"width:600px\">\n    <div class=\"embed\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2N0ShfOOEq4\" frameborder=\"0\" maxwidth=\"600px\" allowfullscreen=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;left:0px;top:0px;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"pomplamoose---lisztomanoa-(phoenix-cover)\" tabindex=\"-1\">Pomplamoose - <em>Lisztomanoa (Phoenix cover)<\/em><\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"genre%3A-indie\" tabindex=\"-1\">Genre: Indie<\/h3>\n<p>Pomplamoose is another band that's been with me for years. I remember listening to their covers of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=7UCm6uyzNE8\">the Angry Birds theme song<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=meT2eqgDjiM\">Michael Jackson's 'Beat It'<\/a> in college. Over the past year &amp; change, Nataly and Jack have been recording a ton of unique mashups, covers, and originals with the help of some of their friends, and they have all been killer. I encourage you to check out their full video catalog if you enjoy this video.<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\" style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\">\n  <div style=\"width:600px\">\n    <div class=\"embed\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HqxcJb5ydDw\" frameborder=\"0\" maxwidth=\"600px\" allowfullscreen=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;left:0px;top:0px;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"bad-snacks---oh%2C-shoot\" tabindex=\"-1\">Bad Snacks - <em>Oh, Shoot<\/em><\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"genre%3A-hip-hop%2C-chill-hop\" tabindex=\"-1\">Genre: Hip-hop, Chill Hop<\/h3>\n<p>At some point earlier this year, I stumbled across <strong>Andrew Huang's<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=zvKY_DnM1PA\">&quot;Flip the Sample&quot; challenge<\/a>, and I was blown away by the creativity of all of the participants and the concept of these videos in general. Watching Snacks transform the simple piano line into a beautiful chill-hop beat was one of my favorite musical discoveries of 2019. (Honorable mention to Virtual Riot's flip in the video.)<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\" style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\">\n  <div style=\"width:600px\">\n    <div class=\"embed\">\n      <iframe width=\"100%\" height=\"300\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" allow=\"autoplay\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/566680191&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true\"><\/iframe>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"jakub-zytecki---sunflower\" tabindex=\"-1\">Jakub Zytecki - <em>Sunflower<\/em><\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"genre%3A-prog-rock%2C-instrumental\" tabindex=\"-1\">Genre: Prog rock, Instrumental<\/h3>\n<p>Just a gorgeous track from Jakub, making me wish I could write music and guitar lines even 10% as good as he can.<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\" style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\">\n  <div style=\"width:600px\">\n    <div class=\"embed\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/5RFipLyZC60\" frameborder=\"0\" maxwidth=\"600px\" allowfullscreen=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;left:0px;top:0px;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"the-1975---people\" tabindex=\"-1\">The 1975 - <em>People<\/em><\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"genre%3A-indie-rock\" tabindex=\"-1\">Genre: Indie Rock<\/h3>\n<p>I'm constantly impressed with The 1975's ability to completely transform their sound from album to album, or even track to track. The punk aesthetic of this song grabbed hold of me the day this track dropped, and actually inspired this entire category to be created.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"warning%3A-do-not-watch-this-video-if-you-suffer-from-epilepsy\" tabindex=\"-1\">Warning: do not watch this video if you suffer from epilepsy<\/h3>\n<div align=\"center\" style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\">\n  <div style=\"width:600px\">\n    <div class=\"embed\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/EKdPxXWm7Jg\" frameborder=\"0\" maxwidth=\"600px\" allowfullscreen=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;left:0px;top:0px;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"voyager---colours\" tabindex=\"-1\">Voyager - <em>Colours<\/em><\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"genre%3A-progressive-metal\" tabindex=\"-1\">Genre: Progressive Metal<\/h3>\n<p>This song grabbed me with its blend of metal and synthwave, a genre I took a deep dive into earlier this year.<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\" style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\">\n  <div style=\"width:600px\">\n    <div class=\"embed\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/reFRCJzHN8I\" frameborder=\"0\" maxwidth=\"600px\" allowfullscreen=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;left:0px;top:0px;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<h2 id=\"opeth---lovelorn-crime\" tabindex=\"-1\">Opeth - <em>Lovelorn Crime<\/em><\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"genre%3A-progressive-rock\" tabindex=\"-1\">Genre: Progressive Rock<\/h3>\n<p>This album will be making its return on my Albums of the Year lists, but I wanted to specifically call it out here as well. The guitar player was talking about this song in an interview, and stated &quot;[Lovelorn Crime] started off in the demo stage of the album, Mikael [vocalist] had this beautiful ballad. He asked me, 'I want you to do a long solo. I want this to be the solo that people will remember you for when you die'. I thought, 'Okay, thank you for the pressure, mate.'&quot; Sit back in your favorite chair and give this track a listen.<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\" style=\"margin-bottom: 20px;\">\n  <div style=\"width:600px\">\n    <div class=\"embed\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/b1vJTzhxm7g\" frameborder=\"0\" maxwidth=\"600px\" allowfullscreen=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;left:0px;top:0px;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<p>That's it for the singles. Stay tuned in the coming days for my favorite albums!<\/p>\n<p><em>What do you think? Great tracks? Terrible songs? Did you have any particular favorites in 2019? You should <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\" title=\"Nic Lake on Twitter\">hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let me know!<\/em><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>First just a text list in Notes, then a full Google spreadsheet, and finally a Trello board so I could drag &amp; drop the albums in order. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/aoty-2019-1\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Music is art, and art is subjective. That's why all of these are going to be labeled as my favorites, and not &quot;best of&quot;, because what I enjoy here in December 2019 is drastically different than it was in January 2019, or what I'll enjoy down the road. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/aoty-2019-1\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"The Perfect* Thanksgiving Dinner","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/"}},"updated":"2019-11-30T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>Every year around mid-November, I find myself pouring over blogs, articles, and all of my saved recipes in order to find the perfect dishes for Thanksgiving. I'm telling you that so that you understand what the <strong>true<\/strong> purpose of this post is: not a put-down of your beloved recipes, but a storehouse for mine<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p><em>Note: My Thanksgiving dinner is no more perfect than yours; I'm just super happy about how everything turned out this year, and wanted to share the recipes with all of you.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>I've been making Thanksgiving dinner for my family for about 4 or 5 years now, back when my wife and I were dating\/engaged. It's routinely us, her parents, and my dad at the dinner table, though one year it also included my wife's sister, her husband, and their three children. Some of us are somewhat adventurous eaters, but I distinctly remember my mother-in-law telling me one year &quot;I just want a plain turkey with salt and pepper. Don't do anything fancy.&quot; So I've known that whatever I make not only has to be great, but it has to appeal to the masses.<\/p>\n<p>(One quick tip before we begin: are you someone that panics and wonders &quot;oh no, when is {thing} supposed to go into the oven?&quot; <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1tOnjFqRslKc0zlwz6tiAm7sNs9W1X1px-kT4Gqrs5b8\/edit?usp=sharing\">Use a spreadsheet and plan it all out like I did<\/a>.)<\/p>\n<p>So, without further ado, here are the recipes that I made this year (plus some commentary, because what's a blog without commentary):<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"gordon-ramsay's-christmas-turkey-%2B-gravy\" tabindex=\"-1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=XO5DF8soxwM\">Gordon Ramsay's Christmas Turkey + Gravy<\/a><\/h3>\n<p>(For those that like to read, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gordonramsay.com\/gr\/recipes\/roast-turkey-with-lemon-parsley-and-garlic\/\">here is a link to the turkey recipe<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>I love Gordon Ramsay. His energy is a combination of a kid in a candy store plus a Wall Street day trader strung out on coke, but that kind of energy is infectious, you know?<\/p>\n<p>To be honest, I <em>never<\/em> liked turkey before I tried this recipe. It was always dry and gross, no flavor, just a boring meat that nobody should cook. Now? I look forward to this every year. It's a blast, it's really not that hard, and the best part is that it's just chilling on your counter while everything else bakes<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>The gravy is also an excellent one, full of flavor, and you get to make it right in the roasting pan over a couple of burners, which always makes me feel like an actual chef whenever I do it. Pro tip: as soon as you put the turkey in the oven, use the giblets and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.allrecipes.com\/recipe\/13650\/awesome-turkey-giblet-stock\/\">start making a stock<\/a> out of them. Replace the chicken broth in Gordon's recipe with this stock. It's <em><strong>delicious<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"bon-app%C3%A9tit's-simple-stuffing\" tabindex=\"-1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bonappetit.com\/recipe\/simple-is-best-dressing\">Bon App\u00e9tit's Simple Stuffing<\/a><\/h3>\n<p>In previous years, I had made a sausage and herb stuffing for Thanksgiving. It always turned out delicious, but I felt that doubling up on the meats lent itself to being really dense and heavy.<\/p>\n<p>Bon App\u00e9tit has been on heavy rotation for me lately; they're one of the handful of YouTube channels that I watch every video of. Tons of inspiration, lots of laughs, and extremely educational. So when they said &quot;oh, THIS stuffing is THE stuffing&quot;, I knew I had to give it a shot. And wouldn't you know, they were right. Absolutely perfect in every way, delicious, and a crowd pleaser. This was one of my 3 new recipes for this year, and one that'll stick around for a long time.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"bon-app%C3%A9tit's-ultra-creamy-mashed-potatoes\" tabindex=\"-1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bonappetit.com\/recipe\/ultra-creamy-mashed-potatoes\">Bon App\u00e9tit's Ultra-Creamy Mashed Potatoes<\/a><\/h3>\n<p>Look, you can be as healthy as you wanna be on Thanksgiving, and I'm not going to stop you. If you want bland, boring potatoes that take forever and just kinda sit there on your plate, be my guest.<\/p>\n<p>But if you wanna put in like 5 minutes of extra work to make some heavenly potatoes? These are what you should make. As the 2nd new recipe I made this year (and the 2nd from Bon App\u00e9tit), I know there are some things I'd do slightly different next year<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/#fn3\" id=\"fnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/sup>, but they WILL be made again next year.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"vegan-green-bean-casserole\" tabindex=\"-1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/skillet.lifehacker.com\/how-to-make-the-creamiest-vegan-green-bean-casserole-1840029669\">Vegan Green Bean Casserole<\/a><\/h3>\n<p>This recipe crossed my Twitter feed the Monday before Thanksgiving, and was the 3rd new one I made this year. It seems a little daunting; making soup just for a casserole?!? Where the heck do I even find dried shiitake mushrooms?<\/p>\n<p>Oh. My. God. Y'all, this was SO worth it. That soup was delicious, the casserole turned out amazing, and I will definitely make this again.<\/p>\n<p>(Bonus points: you can make the soup up to a week ahead of time, so you can just assemble day-of and go.)<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"my-mother-in-law's-scalloped-corn\" tabindex=\"-1\">My mother-in-law's scalloped corn<\/h3>\n<p>We're gonna end this post on the most not-good-for-you thing on the menu, and quite possibly my wife's most favorite food in existence. This one's not posted online, so I'm just gonna write it out here. You need:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A pound of Oscar Meyer* thin smokey bacon<\/li>\n<li>2 tubes of Ritz* crackers<\/li>\n<li>2 cans of Delmonte* creamed corn<\/li>\n<li>2 eggs<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The prep is super easy too.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cook up the bacon in whatever way you prefer, let it cool, and then dice it up. (You can do this the day before)<\/li>\n<li>In a decently sized oven-safe bowl, combine the crackers and the corn. Whisk up the eggs, then add them &amp; the bacon in and combine.<\/li>\n<li>Bake at 350\u00b0F for about 1 hour.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Note that most of the ingredients call for a specific brand; I'm not the expert on this one, I've just been specifically instructed to not f*** this up because using alternatives makes for an inferior tasting product.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>And that's it! That's the Lake Family Thanksgiving, leaving us with full stomachs, tons of leftovers, and a happy family. Next year, I might make a cranberry sauce from scratch... anything else? Do you have a favorite recipe that you think I should add? Or is your version better than one of the ones I found? <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">Hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let's chat about it.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>But really, you're gonna want to keep reading, because these recipes are absolutely divine. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Always rest your meats after you cook them. Always. Steaks? Rest 'em. Chicken on the grill? Cover them with foil. Pork chops? Wait, you fool! <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn3\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>In the video on their post, the guy uses a potato ricer that only has holes in the bottom. Mine has holes along the side as well, for some reason, and lemme tell you, molten hot riced potato is not something you want to get on your hands. I'm either replacing this or removing the skins before ricing next year. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/#fnref3\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Patience","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/patience\/"}},"updated":"2019-11-21T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/patience\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/Aw5nQoN.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Patience, my young padawan\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If you polled the people closest to me and asked them to rate my patience on a scale from 1 to 10, I'm confident that most of the results would come in below a 5. If not, then they clearly don't know me well enough. Patience is something that I've never embodied in my life, much to my detriment at times.<\/p>\n<p>For those unaware, I just started a new job on Monday. I'm now back in the software development world, using new languages (Ruby\/Rails) that I've never used before<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/patience\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>. My coworker who is guiding me through a lot of the stuff has told me numerous times &quot;don't worry about being useful for the first month or so, just pick up what you can and learn.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>And lemme tell you, as someone with 0 patience? I take that as a challenge. &quot;What do you mean, I won't be useful for a month??? I can pick this stuff up quick! Look, here's a pull request!!!&quot; I have no desire to sit at my desk and feel useless; being bored at work is the worst.<\/p>\n<p>Or hey, let's talk about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kickstarter.com\/projects\/themusicplaysyou\/holophrase\" title=\"The Music Plays You - 'Holophrase' on Kickstarter\">my Kickstarter that failed miserably<\/a>. I was all fired up, ready to go, ready to get back into making some great music. I got some swanky headshots taken, I figured out exactly how much I needed to raise, and I made my Kickstarter page look really nice.<\/p>\n<p>My wife, who runs her own business and does her own marketing, told me numerous times &quot;make sure you've got an emotional hook,&quot; or &quot;plan out some content to post in the coming days,&quot; or &quot;don't just expect people to donate, give them a reason.&quot; And of course, being the stubborn idiot that I am, I completely ignored her. &quot;My music is great. People will love it! I got this,&quot; I thought.<\/p>\n<p>The result? I got a ton of people to donate on the first couple of days, and then nothing. And since I'm impatient, instead of actually following her wonderful suggestions, I got mad and frustrated and watched my plans completely crash and burn.<\/p>\n<p>One more example: <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-goals\/\">take a look at all of my 2019 goals I set<\/a>. 6 of my 7 goals are currently not completed. Only 1 or 2 of those actually has a shot. And you know why? Because I set massive, 365-day-long goals, didn't see enough progress early on, got impatient, and gave up.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><em><strong>Does this last one sound like you? Did you set some goals for this past year and give up because of a lack of early-year progress?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Then do what I'm gonna do in 2020: <em><strong>don't make yearly goals. Make them quarterly, or even monthly.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>One thing I learned at my last job is that when you're working on a project, not only do you need to set realistic expectations, you also set concrete and achievable milestones. Those milestones are almost <em>more<\/em> important when it comes to accomplishing your goals or projects. If you hit them, it gives you inspiration and something to hang your hat on. If you miss them, it gives you a chance to re-assess your long-term plan. Can you get back on track &amp; hit the original deadline? Do you need to adjust and extend that deadline out a ways?<\/p>\n<p>So. 2020. I'm going to be setting some long-term goals, and they're gonna look similar to what they looked like this year. But my goals that I'm going to track? Those will be quarterly goals. Tangible steps that I can accomplish. A way for me to not get so discouraged if life happens and I miss the mark.<\/p>\n<p>Will you join me?<\/p>\n<p><em>Did you enjoy this post? Did something I say really resonate with you? Am I just flat-out wrong? <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">Hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let's chat about it.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Side note: I'm sorry to everyone that I've ignored over the years when you've talked about how awesome this language is. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/patience\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Kickstart","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/kickstart\/"}},"updated":"2019-08-09T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/kickstart\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/nCNlDpp.jpg\" alt=\"altText\" title=\"The Music Plays You - Holophrase\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I've come to discover that it is EXTREMELY DIFFICULT to be your own hype man if you're not used to doing it on a regular basis. I'm gonna practice it now. Y'all ready?<\/p>\n<p>Some of you may know that I have previously released music under the name <strong>The Music Plays You<\/strong>. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kickstarter.com\/projects\/themusicplaysyou\/holophrase\">I recently launched a Kickstarter for my next album, &quot;Holophrase&quot;<\/a>, and it's currently sitting at 21% funded (thank you so much to those who have contributed so far). I'm simultaneously excited &amp; nervous about doing this, for a variety of reasons, and I thought I'd write a little blog post to talk about it.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p><em>Side note: I genuinely wonder how many other people who have run a Kickstarter have had <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/CmXWkMlKFkI?t=28\">M\u00f6tley Cr\u00fce's &quot;Kickstart My Heart&quot;<\/a> stuck in their head like I have.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 id=\"who-or-what-is-the-music-plays-you%3F\" tabindex=\"-1\">Who or what is The Music Plays You?<\/h3>\n<p><strong>The Music Plays You<\/strong> is my solo music project for all of my post-rock, ambient, and instrumental creations. I've been writing and recording music for it off and on since 2012, and after a 6 year hiatus, I'm ready to release some more tunes.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"what-exactly-is-%22post-rock%22%3F\" tabindex=\"-1\">What exactly is &quot;post-rock&quot;?<\/h3>\n<p>Wikipedia defines post-rock as &quot;a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbres over traditional rock song structure, chords, or riffs.&quot; Basically, take any modern guitar-based rock music, take out the vocals, and then make it interesting enough that it never needed vocals in the first place. A couple popular post-rock acts include <strong>Sigur R\u00f3s<\/strong>, <strong>Radiohead<\/strong> (especially their work on the <em>Kid A<\/em> album), and <strong>Explosions in the Sky<\/strong>, who gained in popularity after being featured as the soundtrack to the TV show <em>Friday Night Lights<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"why-do-you-need-to-kickstart-this%3F-why-not-just-release-it%3F\" tabindex=\"-1\">Why do you need to Kickstart this? Why not just release it?<\/h3>\n<p>My wife and I ran into some unexpected expenses when we moved this past fall, and it necessitated me selling off a lot of my recording equipment. So, some of the funds from this Kickstarter are going towards replacing those items.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, I learned after releasing my first EP that having someone master my album or create artwork for it should be something I plan from the beginning, and not an 11th hour afterthought. I've already reached out to people and gotten things lined up, and the rest of the funds will go towards that.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/A1PGBvT.jpg\" alt=\"altText\" title=\"The Music Plays You - Holophrase\" \/><\/p>\n<h3 id=\"what-does-%22holophrase%22-mean%3F\" tabindex=\"-1\">What does &quot;holophrase&quot; mean?<\/h3>\n<p>Let's go back to Wikipedia again! &quot;Holophrasis is the prelinguistic use of a single word to express a complex idea. A holophrase may resemble an interjection, but whereas an interjection is linguistic, and has a specific grammatical function, a holophrase is simply a vocalization memorized by rote and used without grammatical intent.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Here's an example: when a toddler says &quot;Up!&quot;, what they're probably saying is &quot;pick me up so I'm not on the floor.&quot; &quot;Food&quot; might really mean &quot;I'm hungry, and I would like something to eat.&quot; &quot;Ball&quot; probably means &quot;I want that ball that you currently have.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>The concept of a holophrase caught my attention about a year ago, and I've been fascinated with how that can and does shape my music. I've been gathering words that elicit feeling and emotions out of me, and using them to craft songs and melodies. I've not solidified any of the tracks yet, but you can hear an example of <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/themusicplaysyou\/anchor-yourself-foundation-demo-2\">what the word Foundation elicited out of me once upon a time<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"why-has-it-taken-you-6-years-to-put-out-new-music%3F\" tabindex=\"-1\">Why has it taken you 6 years to put out new music?<\/h3>\n<p>Oh man, you didn't actually think you were gonna get out of here without an emotional hook, did you?<\/p>\n<p>When I was 4 years old, I went and sat down at the family piano, and asked my mom (who was a piano teacher) to teach me how to play. I spent the next 14 years honing my craft, and eventually became one of the best under-18 piano players in the state of Iowa. I also picked up drums &amp; percussion, bass, and guitar along the way as well. I was a 2-time All-State percussionist, and entered college as a music education major. While that didn't pan out for me (<a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/rerouting\/\">got bit by the injury bug<\/a>), music has never left my blood.<\/p>\n<p>In the fall of 2012, while in the midst of recording my first EP <em>Sailing<\/em>, my mom was diagnosed with cancer. I rushed to finish it, because I wanted her to be able to hear what I had done.<\/p>\n<p>I had planned to release the EP on my birthday, February 13th. My mom passed away 2 days earlier, on the 11th.<\/p>\n<p>I am so incredibly thankful that I was able to share the EP with her before its release, because I felt like it was a way of saying &quot;thank you&quot; for all that she had done for me. <strong>But for years afterwards, my desire &amp; energy to make music has dwindled to the point where I haven't really sought out making music.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>After some conversations with a couple of people this summer, that energy has been rekindled, and I am ready to jump head-first back into the fray. Sitting and feeling sad and not using the talents &amp; gifts my mom helped me develop doesn't do anyone any good; I'd rather release more music and put all of this energy and emotion to good use.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So yeah. The Kickstarter is live, and will run until August 23rd. I'm so excited about this album, and I hope you all are as well. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kickstarter.com\/projects\/themusicplaysyou\/holophrase\">Any amount helps, even if all you can afford is $1.<\/a> Thank you so much for your support, and I cannot wait to share this music with all of you.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"May '19 Check In","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-may-check-in\/"}},"updated":"2019-05-01T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-may-check-in\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>Well, I intended to do this quarterly, but I kinda dropped the ball on it, so I guess I'll be doing 3 updates this year on my <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-goals\/\">goals progress<\/a>. Mostly for me, but also for you!<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"goal-1%3A-lose-36-lbs\" tabindex=\"-1\">Goal 1: Lose 36 lbs<\/h3>\n<p>I'm currently down 8.4lbs, which is great! However, I lost 8.8lbs in the first month, when I was hyper-focused on my goal (and I got the flu and a nasty cold, which sucked but also helped me shed some weight pretty fast). Also, if I wanted to be keeping pace, I should be down an extra 3.6lbs (12.4 net), so I'm a little behind there. I'm looking forward to getting back into yoga heavily, focusing hard on what I'm eating, and getting out on the bike as the weather warms up.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"goal-2%3A-cook-12-new-recipes\" tabindex=\"-1\">Goal 2: Cook 12 new recipes<\/h3>\n<p>I'm currently sitting at 7, with most of those coming in the first month as we got hyper-focused on eating better. The Egg Roll in a Bowl is outstanding, and we've made it a handful of times since. The cucumber chips are probably my wife's favorite. Looking forward to some more stuff out on the grill!<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"goal-3%3A-record-12-songs%2C-and-release-a-new-album\" tabindex=\"-1\">Goal 3: Record 12 songs, and release a new album<\/h3>\n<p>Honestly not sure if this is going to happen or not. I've had a few realizations in the past few weeks that have helped me understand why I have such a hard time making music nowadays, and I'm not sure if that's something I'm going to be able to get past or not. I have TONS of ideas ready to go, though.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"goal-4%3A-complete-12-video-games\" tabindex=\"-1\">Goal 4: Complete 12 video games<\/h3>\n<p>Bad news: I haven't completed any yet.<\/p>\n<p>Good news: I have 5 in flight, with 3 (Pokemon Let's Go, Dark Souls 1, and Half Life) nearing the finish line.<\/p>\n<p>GREAT news: Last night, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\/status\/1123390103211118592\">I hit Gold in League of Legends<\/a> on my main account. This is something I've been trying to do for 6 years now, and I finally accomplished my goal. I immediately uninstalled the game, as I know I have a HUGE backlog to get through. I'll likely go back in June, but I wanted to force myself to have May to focus on other games. I don't have League, Overwatch, WoW, or Apex installed currently, so we'll see if that helps galvanize me.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"goal-5%3A-read-12-books\" tabindex=\"-1\">Goal 5: Read 12 books<\/h3>\n<p>I'm super impressed as to how well I've done on this so far. 5 books down, although technically only 4 count, as I had a mini-rule that only 3 of the books I read could be repeats. <em>The Armored Saint<\/em> by Myke Cole is the only new book I've read so far this year (and it was great!). Up next is <em>The Eye of the World<\/em>, the first of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan.<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"goal-6%3A-write-36-blog-posts\" tabindex=\"-1\">Goal 6: Write 36 blog posts<\/h3>\n<p>Not doing great here! I should be at 12, but this is #5 (although I have at least 3 more topics in the works). Once I start getting some games completed, that will help as well. If you've got any topics you'd like me to write about, PLEASE let me know!<\/p>\n<h3 id=\"goal-7%3A-finish-writing-(and-start-running)-my-d%26d-campaign\" tabindex=\"-1\">Goal 7: Finish writing (and start running) my D&amp;D campaign<\/h3>\n<p>This goal has hit a major speed bump. For one, I've not made the time to work on this since February. For another, my D&amp;D group has not played in over a month; schedules have gotten crazy, a child has been born, and we've just not made it a priority for ourselves. This was last on my list for a reason, as I wanted to prioritize pretty much everything else above it, but I would like to do more with this at some point soon.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So there it is; my 4 month update. Some goals are going great, some not so great... but that's ok! These were just guidelines to help me feel like I'm doing something with my year, and things always change in terms of life priorities and the like.<\/p>\n<p><em>How are your goals going? Do you need some motivation? Do you have any motivation for me? Use the hashtag #GoalsUpdate when you <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">message me on Twitter<\/a> and let's chat!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"Rerouting","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/rerouting\/"}},"updated":"2019-04-24T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/rerouting\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>13 years ago today, I got news that completely changed the course of my life.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>For those that are not aware, I entered college as a music education (percussion) major. I'd been a 2-time All-State percussionist, as well as one of the best non-collegiate piano players in the state of Iowa. I have perfect pitch. In addition to piano and percussion, I was &amp; am an excellent guitar &amp; bass player. Music had been in my blood since I was 4 years old, and 18 year old me had aspirations of becoming a drumline\/marching band instructor at a huge high school in Texas.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, for years, I had dealt with tendinitis in my right arm. The leading causes of tendinitis stemmed from playing piano, drums, basketball, and baseball; I played them all. During my junior year of high school, I actually quit playing piano (much to the chagrin of my mother) in order to help manage the decrease the repetitive motion that my arm took. I was going to rehab multiple times a week, wearing wrist guards to restrict movement &amp; those stupid tennis elbow bands to make a fashion statement<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/rerouting\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>. But still, I remained adamant; I was going into education, and I was going to play drums.<\/p>\n<p>College started, and I was thrown onto the snare line for marching band. 14 hours a week (20, if it was a game week) of marching and playing, and that's not counting practice. Percussion lessons that required me to be in the practice rooms for at least an hour a day. Wind symphony. African drum ensemble. Accompanying a variety of vocal &amp; instrumental students. It was more than a full time job that necessitated repetitive motions in order to survive, improve, and thrive. And of course, I never talked about it with anyone, because why would I want to show weakness?<\/p>\n<p>Eventually, I started having to wear that wrist guard as I played. It was a brace that had a thin aluminum plate running from my right palm down to my mid-forearm, helping to keep my wrist from bending forward, which was the cause of the most pain. It certainly helped the pain management, but it made practicing &amp; performing more and more difficult. It was March, and I was racing to make it through my finals in order to rest for a few months.<\/p>\n<p>Cue a Wind Symphony concert in mid April, 2006. My last group performance of the year. Get through that, get through my practical on snare, timpani, and marimba, and I was home free.<\/p>\n<p>On the very last song, I played the <a href=\"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/images.static.steveweissmusic.com\/products\/images\/uploads\/1138846_43213_popup.jpg\">chimes<\/a>. Large metal pipes that I literally hit with a hammer. With about a minute to go, with the song at its peak, I played the first note with my right hand, and could HEAR a tendon in my wrist snap. Pain like I'd never felt before. I gutted it out and finished the concert, packed up my things, and sat in the little break area right by all of the percussion practice rooms for nearly an hour, trying to figure out what the fuck I was going to do.<\/p>\n<p>13 years ago today, I got new that completely changed the course of my life. Surgery was required. They needed to repair the torn tendon in my wrist, and they also went in to the tendons in my elbow and poked thousands of microscopic holes in them, in order to give the inflammation room to go. I couldn't get in until after finals, but I also could not use my arm in the meantime. I had to get a medical withdrawal from my percussion lessons, which means I couldn't complete my Year 1 requirements, which means that I couldn't continue on to Year 2. &quot;Well maybe you can come do your practical at the end of the summer before classes start.&quot; Ok, except I'm going to be in a cast until July, then doing rehab for 3-6 months, so that puts me at anywhere from September to December.<\/p>\n<p>So I changed my major to computer science. And I hated it. And I ended up flunking out of college and being forced to go to community college in order to get my GPA back up. But then depression showed up and I ended up not going to my classes. Flunked out of community college. Ended up crawling back to the university and begging for help. Got a medical withdrawal from my failed semester, took 2 summer classes to claw my GPA out of the depths, switched my major AGAIN to Management Information Systems (business + computers), and dove back in. I took the 7 year road through college, finally graduating when I was 25.<\/p>\n<p>My life now looks nothing like what I thought my life would be when I was about to graduate from high school. But that's ok. That happens. Honestly, at this point, I'd be more concerned if my life looked EXACTLY like I hoped it would've. I'm sure the weather in Texas would be generally nicer than what it is here in Iowa, but I've got a lot of other great things that make how my life turned out just fine, thank you.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Honestly, I don't think those bands actually did anything for me. They itched because of the velcro, they looked stupid because of the little inflated pillow thing, and it honestly just sat there on my arm like a wart. I NEVER felt any relief from wearing that thing. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/rerouting\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Colemak","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/colemak\/"}},"updated":"2019-03-15T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/colemak\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/www.learncolemak.com\/picks\/Colemak_vs_qwerty.jpg\" alt=\"altText\" title=\"Colemak Keyboard Layout\" \/><\/p>\n<p>My job requires me working on computers all day. Most of my hobbies revolve around computers in one way or another. It'd make sense not to throw all of that into complete disarray, right?<\/p>\n<p>It would. Which CLEARLY means I gotta screw with it somehow.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>For the <em>vast<\/em> majority of people that are reading this, you are using a computer keyboard with the QWERTY layout. This has been the standard layout since the 1870s, when the typewriter was invented. Back then, the keyboard layout was dictated by mechanical limitations; pressing keys next to each other in rapid succession could cause it to jam, so keys had to be strategically placed to minimize that as much as possible. Another small (and possibly unintentional) of the QWERTY layout is that you can type the word &quot;typewriter&quot; on the top row, which would've been great for demonstrative purposes.<\/p>\n<p>So why switch? Why buck the trend and intentionally make life difficult for myself?<\/p>\n<p>Well, one major reason is <strong>ergonomics<\/strong>. As you can see in the image below, the QWERTY keyboard spreads the most-used keys all over the keyboard. The Dvorak layout attempted to solve this issue back in the 1930s, but never caught on for a variety of reasons. The layout does manage to bring most of the main keys onto the home row, but EVERYTHING seemingly gets shifted. Undo\/Cut\/Copy\/Paste commands that you and I take for granted would have to be completely relearned. Colemak, on the other hand, manages to bring everything in line without sacrificing every shortcut you might be used to.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"http:\/\/img.scoop.it\/TfeIcqw1xinCV3pWXKnfeDl72eJkfbmt4t8yenImKBXEejxNn4ZJNZ2ss5Ku7Cxt\" alt=\"Keyboard Heatmap\" title=\"Keyboard Heatmap\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&quot;But how am I supposed to switch? Wouldn't that be confusing?&quot; For sure. Making a direct transition is something that would probably cause a ton of headaches, and likely severely impact productivity. I wouldn't recommend trying to learn at home while sticking with QWERTY at work; the repetition is part of what will help anchor the muscle memory.<\/p>\n<p>So what's the solution? A transition method called <a href=\"https:\/\/forum.colemak.com\/topic\/1858-learn-colemak-in-steps-with-the-tarmak-layouts\/\" title=\"Tarmak\">Tarmak<\/a>. Instead of shifting all of the keys all at once, you only shift about 4 keys at a time. This gives you a chance to learn those specific locations before moving on to the next step. Some people do a step every day, others do a step per week, and some go as long as a month before moving on to the next steps. Myself, I just transitioned to Step 3 of 5 this morning, and I've found myself spending about 5 days with each step.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/static.makeuseof.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Tarmak_SpectralAnimation-90d_thumb.gif\" alt=\"Tarmak Transition Gif\" title=\"Tarmak Transition Gif\" \/><\/p>\n<p>My thoughts so far are mostly positive. My typing speed is WAY down; I'm doing my best to focus on being precise with my typing, as opposed to just backspacing and fixing mistakes. I'm able to reliably hit 50+ WPM after 5 days with each step, but switching drops it back down again. I think it's pretty cool to see how little my fingers have to move to type things, or how little the letter J is actually used, considering it lives right underneath your left pointer finger. I'm also fretting over what rebinding all of my keys for gaming is gonna be like, but that's a mostly minor issue.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, though, this has been an enjoyable exercise that I'm going to keep progressing with, if only because I'm stubborn and don't like giving up. If you're looking for a nerdy project to challenge yourself with, or if you deal with wrist pain and would enjoy typing being just a little easier, I highly recommend you giving Colemak a try.<\/p>\n"},{"title":"Game Review - Apex Legends","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/apex-legends\/"}},"updated":"2019-02-27T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/apex-legends\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/s3.dexerto.com\/thumbnails\/_thumbnailLarge\/map-guide-apex-legends-battle-royale-locations-hot-zone-supply-ships.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Apex Legends\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Game<\/strong>: Apex Legends<\/li>\n<li><strong>Platform<\/strong>: PC (also on console)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Developer<\/strong>: Respawn Entertainment<\/li>\n<li><strong>Publisher<\/strong>: EA<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Battle Royale games have taken over the gaming industry over the last few years. After <strong>The Hunger Games<\/strong> made its mark on the movie industry, mods for games like <strong>Minecraft<\/strong> and <strong>ARMA 2<\/strong> (the <strong>DayZ<\/strong> mod) popped up fairly quickly, giving players arenas to battle it out for map supremacy. Soon, standalone games like <em>PUBG<\/em> (itself a mod of the <strong>DayZ<\/strong> mod) and <strong>Fortnite<\/strong> took over, becoming not only insanely popular, but managing to deeply integrate themselves into pop culture. The success of <strong>Fortnite<\/strong> was one that many thought would not be overcome for a long time; its absolute dominance over the attention spans of gamers worldwide seemed absolute.<\/p>\n<p>And then EA released <strong>Apex Legends<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>I've actively been uninstalling a lot of &quot;time sink&quot; games from my computer (<strong>Overwatch<\/strong> and <strong>League of Legends<\/strong>, mostly) so that I could play other smaller and\/or single player games. When Apex dropped, I thought &quot;well, it's free, so I can give it a try at least&quot;. It was literally overnight that this game took over most of my gaming time, as well as the time of so many other people. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/apex-legends-downloads-2-million-first-day-2019-2\" title=\"Business Insider\">2 million people downloaded the game in the first day, and over 10 million had played within 72 hours<\/a>. An absolutely absurd, unheard-of adoption rate.<\/p>\n<p>(Below is a clip of a recent game I played with some of my friends. Excuse the swearing.)<\/p>\n<div class=\"embed\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/streamable.com\/s\/9lg6p\/ioxcpn\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" allowfullscreen=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;left:0px;top:0px;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>There are a few major reasons why I think the game is so successful:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>A smaller game.<\/strong> Most battle royale games give you a massive map with up to 100 people, and give you a ton of options on how to play (solo, duos, squads, first person or third person, etc.). Apex doesn't do this; 60 players, 20 teams of 3, on a map that still feels large, and yet encourages you moving around pretty quickly using...<\/li>\n<li><strong>The great mobility options.<\/strong> Slide down hills. Climb over walls (commonplace now, but not a default in the early stages of some of these games). Use balloons to launch yourself back into the air. Getting around the map is refreshing and fun; while there are a few instances that you might have to cover long distances in open space, there are usually a couple of loot boxes for you and your team to pick up.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The communication options.<\/strong> While I often am playing with friends, I'll still fly solo with 2 random teammates. I know there are many players out there that would rather not have to speak to their teammates for various reasons, and in Apex, you don't have to. The pinging system works incredibly well, allowing you to give nearly complete context of what you're doing or what is on the map to the rest of your team without a microphone. I anticipate this being a fixture in any future battle royale games that hit the market.<br \/>\n<strong>The speed of the game.<\/strong> I was big into Call of Duty back in college, and the pace of Apex is right on the cusp of that series. While there are definitely moments of tranquility as you traverse across the aforementioned open areas or loot a tucked away zone, the fights are routinely fast and furious. And yet... even with all the blitz and blam, there is still enough time to make calculated decisions, to use abilities for disengaging or repositioning. The guns are strong but not TOO strong, the clips are big enough except oh crap reload reLoAd RELOAD!!!, and the ability to have your teammates bring you back after being knocked down makes this game have absolute perfect pacing.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>(Another clip of a win from last night.)<\/p>\n<div class=\"embed\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/streamable.com\/s\/q7tdi\/ldbmka\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" allowfullscreen=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:100%;left:0px;top:0px;overflow:hidden;\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p>The biggest complaints I've seen about this game so far are somewhat dumb; that being &quot;<a href=\"https:\/\/kotaku.com\/apex-legends-player-spent-500-to-unlock-a-rare-item-s-1832822740\">all the paid content is too expensive!!!<\/a>&quot; Well, Dave, the game is COMPLETELY FREE. They need to recover the money from somewhere, yeah? Honestly, I don't think I'll ever make a single purchase with actual money in this game, but that's just me.<\/p>\n<p>My praise for Apex honestly could not be any higher. They've already given us a new gun (which is great), and there are enough other guns, gadgets, and settings from the Titanfall universe that they can expand with in the future. The servers are getting better every day. The devs and community managers are out in front, actively engaging on Reddit and Twitter about both the good and the less good with the game, and it sounds like Respawn has plans to continue churning out content and improvements over the coming weeks &amp; months.<\/p>\n<p>Now if you'll excuse me, I've been typing for too long, and I need to go drop in.<\/p>\n<p><em>Did you enjoy this review? Did I skip anything important? Do you want to tell me how wrong I am? Use the hashtag #ApexReview when you <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">message me on Twitter<\/a> and let's chat!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"Recipes","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/recipes\/"}},"updated":"2019-01-28T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/recipes\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/zAMHwcM.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Cooking\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I don't actually know if my mom liked cooking, but she did it a lot and was good at it. Her Yummy Bars were always the best thing at any party, and everything she made was always full of flavor and the literal definition of comfort food. I know my dad loved to cook; he was the grill master, the one who made rigatoni or pancakes, and the one who did the most experimenting with spices when Mom was away.<\/p>\n<p>But me? I <em>hated<\/em> cooking growing up.<\/p>\n<p>I don't know why, but cooking was never something that I latched on to when I was a kid. The only things I would &quot;cook&quot; were frozen pizzas, ramen noodles (the 10\u00a2 packs), and later on, some boxed Kraft Mac &amp; Cheese. A far cry from <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/thanksgiving-menu\/\">making Thanksgiving dinner<\/a> for the whole family.<\/p>\n<p>I can actually pinpoint the key moments throughout my life that instilled a love of cooking within me. Moving to college and discovering the Food Network during Thanksgiving break. Moving into an apartment and getting sick of frozen dinners (and being grotesquely overweight). Making some pizza rollups<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/recipes\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> or frying eggs at 3am with college friends. Moving to a new city and going to a massive farmer's market that next day. Meeting a really amazing woman &amp; deciding to make her stuffed peppers, death-by-chocolate cake, and hundreds of other delicious things as a way of convincing that I'd make good husband material.<\/p>\n<p>(It worked.)<\/p>\n<p>But now here I am, years later, trying to figure out how to best catalog all of my recipes. I've been using an application called Evernote for years, but a variety of things are making that not a great solution for me. I've had a few people suggest Google Drive, and storing the recipes in separate notes with links, change management, and search functions. I think if I go back to a technology-rooted solution, this might be the one.<\/p>\n<p>Instead, I think I'm going to go analog for 2020.<\/p>\n<p>I'm always a huge fan of nice notebooks. Not the 39\u00a2 versions you get while back-to-school shopping, but the really nice ones like Decomposition Books or Moleskine notebooks. My handwriting generally sucks, but I always get satisfaction from writing things down when there's a purpose to it. I'm also not a sentimental person, but the idea of a functional log of handwritten information that I can share with others holds strong appeal to me.<\/p>\n<p>To that end, I think my solution is going to be this: <strong>using a Moleskine notebook<\/strong> (or series of notebooks) <strong>to keep track of all of the recipes I cook in 2020.<\/strong> And I think I've already figured out a system for this:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Write down the recipe on the left-side page.<\/li>\n<li>Keep a &quot;made it&quot; log on the right, complete w\/ dates, notes, and revisions.<\/li>\n<li>At the end of the year, anything that was made &gt;= 3x gets added to the Evernote archive (or wherever my recipes are living at that point in time).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>That'd actually provide me with a few key things:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Intentionality<\/strong>. Anything I make gets written down.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Journaling<\/strong>.  I'm a big fan of journaling or blogging or whatever it is people do to talk about what they're thinking, so this gives me a quasi-way of doing that.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Reducing clutter<\/strong>. Right now, EVERY recipe I have resides in Evernote; there's a couple dozen that have never been made in the 7+ years I've been cataloging them. Pruning or purging is hard, because &quot;well what if I want to make this someday?&quot; This would help me eliminate clutter.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>What do you think? Good idea? Bad idea? You have a better suggestion? You should <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">hit me up on Twitter<\/a> and let me know!<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Canned crescent roll triangles, each with 6 slices of pepperoni and half a cheese stick. Roll 'em up, bake 'em how the roll instructions stipulate, and enjoy. Try not to eat them all in one sitting. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/recipes\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Start","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/start\/"}},"updated":"2019-01-28T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/start\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/XqJZ06v.jpg\" alt=\"altText\" title=\"Winter is Here\" \/><\/p>\n<p>(Not So) Fun fact: on Wednesday, Jan 30, 2019, the projected temperature in Des Moines (with wind chill) will be 122 degrees colder than it will be inside my house.<\/p>\n<p>It's anticipated that cars left outside will have extreme difficulty starting in those conditions. Buses won't operate because the diesel will gum up. These finely crafted &amp; tuned machines<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/start\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> still have trouble functioning in every climate.<\/p>\n<p>The same can be said for human beings. This is literally Death Weather. The update going around right now is &quot;hey, if your skin starts to blister from the cold (because that's normal behavior, right?), seek medical attention immediately&quot;. As I type this, I literally got a Groupon in my inbox for a cryotherapy session. Come to Iowa, we have that for free!<\/p>\n<p>Automobiles can't be expected to function in every climate. Human bodies definitely don't function well in this kind of weather. So why do we have an expectation that our minds work well all the time?<\/p>\n<p>There are certain circumstances where we just cannot be the best versions of ourselves. Sometimes it's when you have a high-stress project at work. Maybe you've had something preventing you from participating in your normal self-care routines, like a lack of free time or an injury. Or maybe it's LITERALLY colder than Antarctica outside, and you haven't seen the sun in weeks, and you'd rather stay in bed with your partner and your cats than do anything even remotely resembling &quot;being an adult&quot;.<\/p>\n<p>This doesn't have to be allocated to the winter months either, but it feels especially relevant now. Seasonal Affective Disorder (or SAD) is definitely a thing, and my wife and I both suffer hard from this. This week is going to be a tough one, and I know it. There's not an easy &quot;fix&quot;, as it were, but there is a simple way to try and stave it off.<\/p>\n<p>And that is <strong>to start<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Whatever it is you need to or want to be doing. <strong>Just start<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>When your car is cold, there's really only so much you can do but cross your fingers and hope that it turns over. Once it starts, then it's just a matter of getting warmed up; the hardest part is already out of the way.<\/p>\n<p>I know that tomorrow night, I'm not going to want to record a new song. For whatever reason, beginning that process is just something I have a hard time with. But once I get going, it's easy for the juices to flow.<\/p>\n<p>I know that thinking about writing a blog post is easy, but there's a reason that this is only my 2nd one of the year... because up until right now, I haven't taken the time to really start. And as soon as I did, it's like the words jumped from my brain and onto this post.<\/p>\n<p>So here's your motivation for today. Think of that thing that you know needs to be done, whether for work or for pleasure. Ignore all the reasons why you shouldn't.<\/p>\n<p>Get to the place you need to be.<\/p>\n<p>Silence your mind.<\/p>\n<p>And <strong>start<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Insert snide quip about Ford vehicles here. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/start\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"2019 Goals","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-goals\/"}},"updated":"2018-12-23T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-goals\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/www.incimages.com\/uploaded_files\/image\/970x450\/getty_537586633_262861.jpg\" alt=\"altText\" title=\"2019 Goals\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Congratulations, everyone. We made it<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-goals\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> to the end of 2018.<\/p>\n<p>It's been an absolutely crazy year for me. A new job started. A ton of fun games released. A new kitten acquired. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/we-bought-a-house\/\">A house purchased<\/a>. 2018 was definitely a blast, and yet I feel like some things have been lacking from it.<\/p>\n<p>I think I narrowed down the cause; beyond these huge, major milestones, I feel like I didn't accomplish a whole lot this year. I used to give myself some goals back in the day, and while I wouldn't always achieve them, I felt like they gave me some guidance and organization to my life. When I transitioned to a business analyst this spring, I realized that I thrive on structure and having clear-cut goals to accomplish.<\/p>\n<p>So! For the first time since 2013, I'm going to set some goals for my upcoming year. I routinely post my goals to my blog a) in order to have access everywhere, and b) to have public accountability.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>So without further ado, here are my goals:<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3 id=\"lose-36-lbs\" tabindex=\"-1\">Lose 36 lbs<\/h3>\n<p>The obvious weight loss goal. I've been wanting to get under 160 lbs for years, and 2019 seems like the perfect year to finally achieve this.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Date<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Weight (lbs)<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Lost (diff from previous)<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>1\/1<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">185.6<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">---<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>1\/31<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">176.8<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">8.8 lbs<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>2\/28<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">177.2<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">8.4 lbs (+0.4)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>3\/31<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">176.4<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">9.2 lbs (-0.8)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>4\/30<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">177.2<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">8.4 lbs (+0.8)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>5\/31<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">???<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">??? (I didn't weigh myself)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>6\/30<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">179.0<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">5.6 lbs (+1.8)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h3 id=\"cook-12-new-recipes\" tabindex=\"-1\">Cook 12 new recipes<\/h3>\n<p>The food that we've been making and eating at home has become a little boring, so I'm gonna spice things up and try out some brand new recipes. Entrees, appitizers, sides, or baking; anything is fair game here.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Recipe<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Date<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Rating<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>1. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thekitchn.com\/marinated-white-beans-259044\">Marinated White Beans<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/6<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Goes great with quinoa.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>2. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thekitchn.com\/egg-roll-in-a-bowl-264939\">Egg Roll in a Bowl<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/7<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Delicious. Used ground chicken. New favorite weeknight dish.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>3. <a href=\"https:\/\/thestonesoup.com\/blog\/2018\/07\/31\/one-pot-chicken-broccoli-with-peanut-lime-sauce\/\">One Pot Chicken &amp; Broccoli with Peanut &amp; Lime Sauce<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/10<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Very interesting. Would like the chicken to have more texture.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>4. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thekitchn.com\/recipe-chorizo-chicken-chili-240605\">Chorizo Chicken Chili<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/17<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">This is so good. Maybe better than my default chili recipe?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>5. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thekitchn.com\/recipe-smoky-sweet-potato-amp-black-bean-casserole-239326\">Smoky Sweet Potato &amp; Black Bean Casserole<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/24<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Another great recipe. Mine wasn't as cheesy as the photo looks, but it was still really tasty.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>6. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=2KR44a_5v_A\">Gordon Ramsay's Broccoli Soup<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/30<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Great flavors. Might try just blending the cheese in with the soup next time.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>7. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.karissasvegankitchen.com\/baked-cucumber-chips\/\">Baked Cucumber Chips<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">3\/3<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Delicious! A bit of pickle tang, and we tossed with smoked paprika and garlic powder.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>8. Spinach, Cucumber, &amp; Carrot Salad w\/ Balsamic Vinegrette<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">5\/21<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Whipped together in about 5 minutes; finally got to use my food processor's slicer (for the cukes) and shredder (for the carrots). Wife approved!<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>9. <a href=\"https:\/\/minimalistbaker.com\/5-ingredient-banana-egg-pancakes\/?omhide=true\">5 Ingredient Banana Egg Pancakes<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">5\/22<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Holy shit these were good. I would've made them the next night had we both been home.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thekitchn.com\/recipe-10-minute-black-bean-tacos-233042\">10 Minute Black Bean Tacos<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">6\/15<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Really tasty and filling. Needs garlic.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>11. <a href=\"https:\/\/headbangerskitchen.com\/recipe\/keto-thai-basil-chicken\/\">Keto Thai Basil Chicken<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">6\/16<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Original recipe is VERY spicy, but the flavors are delicious.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>12. <a href=\"https:\/\/headbangerskitchen.com\/recipe\/how-to-make-cauliflower-rice\/\">Cauliflower Rice<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">6\/16<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">A really nice way to add texture &amp; body to a dish without all the carbs. Make sure you cook out all the moisture.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>13. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thekitchn.com\/corn-salad-268340?utm_source=instagram&amp;utm_medium=curalate_like2buy_jFruWRJL__e9c6c6a8-8a08-429f-a776-357be0cd01a5&amp;crl8_id=e9c6c6a8-8a08-429f-a776-357be0cd01a5\">Corn Salad<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">6\/16<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Made this for Father's Day, and the entire family was raving about how good it was. Very delicious.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>14. <a href=\"https:\/\/theproteinchef.co\/how-to-make-the-best-roasted-chickpeas-recipe\/\">Roasted Chickpeas<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">7\/1<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Simple, easy, and easy to adapt to anyone's taste buds.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h3 id=\"record-12-songs%2C-and-release-a-new-album\" tabindex=\"-1\">Record 12 songs, and release a new album<\/h3>\n<p>It's time. <a href=\"https:\/\/themusicplaysyou.bandcamp.com\/\">My first release<\/a> is nearly 6 years old at this point.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Song<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Date<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/themusicplaysyou\/anchor-yourself-foundation-demo-2\">Anchor Yourself\/Foundation DEMO<\/a> (and the <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/themusicplaysyou\/anchor-yourselffoundations-demo\">original demo<\/a>)<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/11<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h3 id=\"complete-12-video-games\" tabindex=\"-1\">Complete 12 video games<\/h3>\n<p>I talk about <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1zg-SOYI8DlH-ibSNslfPtq0xJB4sEMb_7OHKbq2qclk\/edit?usp=sharing\">my list of games<\/a> all the time, and it's finally time to start cracking away at some of these. I'm setting this goal with the intention of getting away from the same ol' games I play all the time (League, Overwatch, and World of Warcraft, mostly). I've already earmarked <em><strong>Horizon: Zero Dawn<\/strong><\/em>, <em><strong>The Last of Us<\/strong><\/em> (which I will definitely be streaming), and <em><strong>Bloodborne<\/strong><\/em> as games to beat this year; if you've got ideas for others, let me know.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Game<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">System<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Completed Date<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\/status\/1124802174922289152\">Pokemon Let's Go Eevee<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Switch<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">5\/4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Half Life<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">PC<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">5\/5<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Half Life 2<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">PC<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">5\/23<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Dark Souls<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">PC<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">6\/13<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Mass Effect 2<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">PC<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">10\/30<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Mass Effect 3<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">PC<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">11\/6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Hollow Knight<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Switch<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">In Progress<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>The Outer Worlds<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">PC<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">In Progress<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Pokemon Shield<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Switch<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">In Progress<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h3 id=\"read-12-books\" tabindex=\"-1\">Read 12 books<\/h3>\n<p>Anyone else notice a pattern here? Everything is in 12s (or at least multiples of 12). I figure it's SO MUCH EASIER to say &quot;oh yeah let's read 1 book this month&quot; than it is to say &quot;yeah I wanna read 30 books this year&quot; like I did in 2013 (spoiler: I only read 7). I used to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.buzzfeed.com\/ariannarebolini\/signs-you-were-a-total-bookworm-as-a-kid\">read all the time<\/a> (see #15 on this list), and I've lost the habit since graduating from college. (Side note: I'm only allowed to count a maximum of 3 books that I've read before on this list. Gotta have some new variety.)<\/p>\n<p>UPDATE: I <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1-1PcHF6xzFKTaTvxnfjm6bVgo4pd5yIr3nbxsbckoFo\/edit?usp=sharing\">created a spreadsheet<\/a> (because of course I did) with some books that I want to read. If you'd like to add to it, you should <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">tweet me your recommendations<\/a>.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Title<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Author<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Date Completed<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2Rj0nt5\">The Forever War<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Joe Haldeman<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2TwSOjE\">Feed<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Mira Grant<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">3\/7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2XSUbHF\">Deadline<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Mira Grant<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">3\/8<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2SYB23o\">Blackout<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Mira Grant<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">3\/10<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/2WWCPIK\">The Armored Saint<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Myke Cole<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">4\/6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/37pL0U3\">The Eye of the World<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Robert Jordan<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">9\/15<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/37nj4Al\">Steel Crow Saga<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">Paul Krueger<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">10\/12<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h3 id=\"write-36-blog-posts\" tabindex=\"-1\">Write 36 blog posts<\/h3>\n<p>I have this post up for a few reasons. If I know I have to make posts, it'll motivate me to finish more games, since I can <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/categories#Review\">use my game reviews<\/a> as part of this. I'll also likely write about my weight loss journey, food I've made, books I've read, or stuff about the songwriting process. I'm also attempting to be on Facebook less, and since I'm going to try to not post as much, I figure I can use this blog as a nice way to keep interested parties updated as to what's going on in my life.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Post<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align:center\">Date<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/start\/\">Start<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">1\/28<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/apex-legends\/\">Game Review: Apex Legends<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">2\/27<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/colemak\/\">Colemak<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">3\/15<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/rerouting\/\">Rerouting<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">4\/23<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/may-check-in\/\">May Check In<\/a><\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align:center\">5\/1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h3 id=\"finish-writing-(and-start-running)-my-d%26d-campaign\" tabindex=\"-1\">Finish writing (and start running) my D&amp;D campaign<\/h3>\n<p>I have been in the midst of writing a Dungeons &amp; Dragons campaign for a few years now. Progress is... slow? Kinda steady, but mostly slow. I have so many people that have expressed interest in playing that I'll likely have to run a couple of campaigns simultaneously, which is intimidating, but also flattering and exciting. We've got a coffee shop really close to our house, so I'm gonna try and start going in there some mornings and flesh out the remaining framework of the world so this can begin.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Month<\/th>\n<th>Progress<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Jan<\/td>\n<td>I literally did 0 work on this. I'm disappointed.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Feb<\/td>\n<td>More of the world backstory has been created. I'm not even into writing much content for the game itself; I want to make sure the history is perfect.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Mar<\/td>\n<td>LOL<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Apr<\/td>\n<td>This has just not been a priority for me since February.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>May<\/td>\n<td>Nothing.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>June<\/td>\n<td>Nothing.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<hr \/>\n<p>So that's it. 7 goals. Some easier than others, but all of them definitely achieveable if I put some effort into them. I'll be coming back to this post frequently and updating it with my progress (mostly for me, but in case you feel like helping me hold myself accountable too). Hopefully next Christmas, I'll be able to post about how I achieved every single one of these, and be able to push myself to even more challenging goals for 2020.<\/p>\n<p><em>If you feel like encouraging me, harrassing me, or just want to say hello, you should <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">stop by my Twitter page<\/a> and tweet at me. Tell me about all of <strong>your<\/strong> goals for the coming year, and what you're doing to help yourself stay accountable!<\/em><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>Well, almost. It's only the 23rd, and stranger things have happened. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/2019-goals\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Game Review - Shadow of the Colossus","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/shadow-of-the-colossus\/"}},"updated":"2018-11-24T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/shadow-of-the-colossus\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/1vzLSHn.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Shadow of the Colossus\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Game<\/strong>: Shadow of the Colossus (PS4 remaster)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Platform<\/strong>: PS4 (remaster)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Developer<\/strong>: SCE Japan Studio \/ Team Ico<\/li>\n<li><strong>Publisher<\/strong>: Sony Computer Entertainment<\/li>\n<li><strong>Completed Date<\/strong>: 24 Nov 2018<\/li>\n<li><strong>Time to Complete<\/strong>: 4 hours 7 minutes 25 seconds<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>When I was about 10, my best friend and I went on a group trip to go explore some caves. I had a great time; we spent about 5 hours inside, and I just kept running around, exploring every nook &amp; cranny, and even getting stuck at one point climbing through a tunnel I don't think we were supposed to go through.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>My friend, on the other hand, didn't enjoy the trip at all. He went around a bit, but never came close to the same enjoyment level that I had. To him, it was 5 hours of feeling kinda blah, with a few moments of &quot;ok this is kinda cool&quot; scattered throughout.<\/p>\n<p>My friend's feelings about that cave trip perfectly encapsulate my feelings about Shadow of the Colossus.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/fbHnlh7.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Riding through the desert\" \/><\/p>\n<p>For <em>years<\/em>, I have heard about how good this game was supposed to be. Some claim it's on their best of all time list. And don't get me wrong, Shadow of the Colossus was a fine game. But that's all it was; fine. When it was released 13 years ago, I'm guessing that this was revolutionary. Today, though? It's fine.<\/p>\n<p>For those unaware, Shadow of the Colossus is a game about a kid with a sword, your horse Argo, and a damsel in distress. All you really know is that, in order to revive this lady, you need to go and kill a bunch of really big monsters scattered across this land you're in. You and Argo journey together to go track down these beasts (16 in all) and slay them with your sword or bow.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/Tqr3J9D.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Really Big Monsters\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Did I say &quot;really big monsters&quot;? Because I meant it. The tallest clocks in at over 200 ft tall, and the longest nearly 500 ft long. They are absolutely humongous. At its core, though, this game is simple and small, even with the massive monster and world. The entire point of combat is to figure out how to expose these colossus's weak spots by climbing them or knocking them over.<\/p>\n<p>The first 4 colossi went down within the hour, and I had a pretty great time with it. As the game wore on, I found myself thinking &quot;ugh, again?&quot; with every boss I discovered. Because even though they're all unique, the core concept for each one was exactly the same; track them down, find their spots, stab them. I hit a pretty big lull from #5 through #14, finding minimal enjoyment<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/shadow-of-the-colossus\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup> and just slogging through the game in order to <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1zg-SOYI8DlH-ibSNslfPtq0xJB4sEMb_7OHKbq2qclk\/edit?usp=sharing\">check it off of my list<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The final two bosses finally breathed life back into the game. (MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD, SKIP THIS PARAGRAPH) #15 had a multitude of attacks that you actually had to force it to use in order to scale it properly, and the final boss had a massive amount of ground that you had to cover &amp; multiple spots to hit. While other colossi had some complexity to them, none were as enjoyable as those final bosses.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/NXEKy47.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Fighting a colossus\" \/><\/p>\n<p>All that being said, it's <em>REALLY<\/em> easy to see how much inspiration has been taken from this game over the years. Assassin's Creed with all the climbing. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/breath-of-the-wild\/\">Zelda: Breath of the Wild<\/a> and the open world exploration. Dark Souls with its straight ahead, minimal explanation gameplay. I really wish I had taken the time to experience Shadow of the Colossus when it was first released, as I'm sure I would've had a much different reaction to it overall.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, Shadow of the Colossus is just <em>fine<\/em> in 2018. Nothing more, nothing less. I'm glad I played it, and I'm glad I stuck it out to beat it.<\/p>\n<p><em>Did you enjoy this review? Did I skip anything important? Do you want to tell me how wrong I am? Use the hashtag #SotCReview when you <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">message me on Twitter<\/a> and let's chat!<\/em><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I think a telling factor about the relative enjoyment of this game can be gleaned from the trophies. The trophy for defeating the 1st colossus has been earned by 90.5% of all people who have played the game. Then there's a sharp dropoff between colossus 2 (81.4% beaten) and 3 (68.4%), and then a pretty stable decline all the way down to 29% that have beaten the final colossus. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/shadow-of-the-colossus\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"We Bought A House!","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/we-bought-a-house\/"}},"updated":"2018-11-17T21:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/we-bought-a-house\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/UVGvIhc.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Sold\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Game<\/strong>: Buying a House<\/li>\n<li><strong>Platform<\/strong>: Planet Earth<\/li>\n<li><strong>Developer<\/strong>: My parents (lol)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Completed Date<\/strong>: 9 Nov 2018<\/li>\n<li><strong>Time to Complete<\/strong>: 31 years 8 months (unknown completion)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Be honest, how many of you forgot I had a blog?<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/we-bought-a-house\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n<p>My gaming has been a bit sparse as of late. A few life changes, a few game changes, and... my wife and I bought our first house!<\/p>\n<p>This post isn't going to be abnormally long, because we have <strong>Pok\u00e9mon Let's Go<\/strong> to play, but I just wanted to make this post and let everyone know that yes, I still exist, and yes, I'm going to be reviewing more games here in the future. Should be a good time.<\/p>\n<p><em>Normally I'd put some boilerplate here about how you can harass me about my opinions on the games I review, but today you can't do that. <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">Message me on Twitter anyway<\/a> and let's chat!<\/em><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>I did. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/we-bought-a-house\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Game Review - Minit","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/posts\/2018\/2018-08-24-minit\/"}},"updated":"2018-08-24T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/posts\/2018\/2018-08-24-minit\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/zV3AVkm.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Minit\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Game<\/strong>: Minit<\/li>\n<li><strong>Platform<\/strong>: Nintendo Switch<\/li>\n<li><strong>Developer<\/strong>: JW, Kitty, Jukio, and Dom<\/li>\n<li><strong>Publisher<\/strong>: Devolver Digital<\/li>\n<li><strong>Completed Date<\/strong>: 24 Aug 2018<\/li>\n<li><strong>Time to Complete<\/strong>: 58 minutes 2.53 seconds (51% completion)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Society is filled with unoriginal ideas right now. Hollywood is filled with remakes, TV is filled with crappy reality shows, and game developers love beating established IPs into the ground with sequel after sequel. Even <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/breath-of-the-wild\">one of the best games of all time<\/a> is the 18th game in a series that spans over 30 years<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/posts\/2018\/2018-08-24-minit\/#fn1\" id=\"fnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/sup>.<\/p>\n<p>Somehow, in an era where graphics and mechanics rule, <strong>Minit<\/strong> succeeds as a refreshingly unique game, while managing to be an ultra simple concept.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>Time is a concept that I think more video games could utilize to take ordinary concepts and make them something greater. We've had time limits in games since the beginning. We have characters like Tracer in <strong>Overwatch<\/strong> or Leblanc in <strong>League of Legends<\/strong> that can teleport to where they were moments ago. Speed runners have even added time to games that don't utilize it, competing with one another to beat games in the quickest times possible.<\/p>\n<p>The <em>Legend of Zelda<\/em> series has managed to incorporate time elements into a lot of their games, which I have no doubt has contributed to their decades-long success. <strong>Ocarina of Time<\/strong> had you going back and forth through time to complete various stages, which was a twist on <strong>Link to the Past<\/strong>'s realm travel. <strong>Majora's Mask<\/strong> takes the basic concept of time limits and augments it, giving you 3 days to complete as much as you can, and then resets you back to the beginning. Some progress, like collectibles, will stay with you. Some things, like defeated monsters, will be reset.<\/p>\n<p>Minit's entire premise is a spin on that Majora's Mask style of gameplay. You have 60 seconds to run around, collect items, complete objectives, and progress the story. At the end, you &quot;die&quot; and respawn in your house, ready to start again.<\/p>\n<p><img src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/eyejkXj.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Buying shoes\" \/><br \/>\n<em>Simple graphics, simple controls, cranky salesmen.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The missions you have to complete aren't difficult, but discovering and figuring out what to do next can take you a couple of lives. The game encourages casual exploration, experimentation, and curiosity. I apparently completed a quest about 10-15 minutes before I should have, simply because I was exploring the map and figured out what to do.<\/p>\n<p>2018 is full of games with gorgeous graphics, and Minit admittedly is not one of those. The cute &amp; simple 2-tone pixel graphics harken back to pre-Atari days, with some of the characters reminding me of my old Tamagotchi that I used to carry around. And yet, these simple graphics are part of what make the game so enticing. It's different. It's unique. It lets you focus on the story and the time limits, instead of distracting you with a bunch of pretty backdrops. It's exactly what a game like this calls for.<\/p>\n<p>It's hard for me to fully encapsulate how refreshing this little 1 hour game was. I died 79 times<sup class=\"footnote-ref\"><a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/posts\/2018\/2018-08-24-minit\/#fn2\" id=\"fnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/sup> while playing, many of those due to the 60 second time constraint, but I never felt exasperated. The challenge forced me to rethink my progress from point A to point B, ensuring I was making optimal use of my time. It's about as close to speed running as one can get without actively trying to be on a leaderboard.<\/p>\n<p>Minit is a quirky and fun challenge, unique and without a true likeness in this era of gaming. For $10, it's a really fun challenge that I undoubtedly will revisit many times. The developers were able to craft a masterful game within this tiny package, and they should be applauded for their efforts.<\/p>\n<p><em>Did you enjoy this review? Did I skip anything important? Do you want to tell me how wrong I am? Use the hashtag #MinitReview when you <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">message me on Twitter<\/a> and let's chat!<\/em><\/p>\n<hr class=\"footnotes-sep\" \/>\n<section class=\"footnotes\">\n<ol class=\"footnotes-list\">\n<li id=\"fn1\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p><em>The Legend of Zelda<\/em> was released February 21, 1986. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/posts\/2018\/2018-08-24-minit\/#fnref1\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li id=\"fn2\" class=\"footnote-item\"><p>The controls are simple; A to interact, B to die &amp; reset. At least a dozen of my deaths were either purely accidental fat-fingers, or me saying &quot;wait that can't really be all the controls, can it?&quot; and pushing every button. <a href=\"https:\/\/niclake.me\/posts\/2018\/2018-08-24-minit\/#fnref2\" class=\"footnote-backref\">\u21a9\ufe0e<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n"},{"title":"Game Review - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/breath-of-the-wild\/"}},"updated":"2018-08-23T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/breath-of-the-wild\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/TbfJNYx.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Game<\/strong>: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild<\/li>\n<li><strong>Platform<\/strong>: Switch (and Wii U)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Developer<\/strong>: Nintendo EPD<\/li>\n<li><strong>Publisher<\/strong>: Nintendo<\/li>\n<li><strong>Completed Date<\/strong>: Aug 8, 2018<\/li>\n<li><strong>Time to Complete<\/strong>: 25 hours*<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My first console as a kid was an N64, and <strong>Ocarina of Time<\/strong> was one of the first games I remember owning, playing, and beating. It was my first for a lot of things; first Zelda game, first RPG, first major open world game, first real challenge as a gamer.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>When <strong>Breath of the Wild<\/strong> was announced, I (along with pretty much every other gamer out there, I'm sure) just <em>knew<\/em> that I had to have it. It managed to drag up every memory &amp; emotion that I had ever tied to Ocarina, and just slapped me in the face with nostalgia. I ended up downloading it immediately upon launch on my Wii U, and I got about halfway through the story before my wife gifted me with my Switch (and Breath) for Christmas.<\/p>\n<p>It's been a really long time coming, but I finally wrapped up the main quest of Breath just a few weeks ago. I'm someone that finds it extremely difficult to complete a massive RPG like this, regardless of how good the game might be, so 9-10 months (and only 2 game restarts, because honestly, who can actually remember what you  did or where you were at?) is a really good time for me.<\/p>\n<p>This is probably a good time to address my &quot;Time to Complete&quot; listing. 25 hours is what it took for me to beat the main quest, a handful of side quests, complete 56 shrines (of 120), find 46 Korok seeds (of 900), and get 15 total hearts and 2+ total stamina wheels... This game is <em>gargantuan<\/em>; I'm only at a 16.79% completion percentage. So, while I completed the main quest, I most definitely did <em><strong>not<\/strong><\/em> complete the whole game.<\/p>\n<p>If you read or listen to other reviews, you're going to hear descriptors like &quot;breathtaking&quot;, &quot;grand&quot;, &quot;epic&quot;, and &quot;one of the best games of all time&quot;. And they're all right. There's really nothing I can add along that front; only so much praise can be heaped on a pile before it seems excessive. Winning Game of the Year last year seems like it was a no-brainer for most people (although I do need to play through <strong>Horizon: Zero Dawn<\/strong> to properly compare). The more important question was, what elevated this game from &quot;great&quot; to &quot;best of all time&quot; for everyone? The story? The world? The cute sounds the Koroks make when you discover them?<\/p>\n<p>For me, the defining moments in this game all had to do with the minor nostalgia trips via <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Breath_of_the_Wild\/comments\/5y89h9\/i_love_callbacks_in_the_form_of_weapons\/\">items<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.looper.com\/29217\/nintendo-reveals-callbacks-original-zelda-game-breath-wild\/\">locations<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=rDgNrj60_JA\">musical themes<\/a>. Oh man, the music in this game. It's such a trip. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Yx45D7T6HZU\">The music when you finally beat the main quest<\/a> specifically made me sit back and go &quot;whoa&quot;. My personal favorite, though, is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=JccnXOVhesA\">when you're riding a horse in Hyrule Field at night<\/a>; the real trick is to get to the good parts before you stumble across a Guardian and the track changes. Apparently Kass, the accordion-playing Rito, also has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=VWIHaSNvMgA\">a metric ton of music<\/a> beyond his stable theme that I have yet to discover.<\/p>\n<p>Breath of the Wild clearly adheres to the tried &amp; tested questing method of &quot;go to place, do a small task so you can progress the big task, do the big task, to go next place&quot;. To beat the main story properly, you really only need to complete (by my really rough count) 7 &quot;big&quot; tasks (glider, Kakariko Village, each Divine Beast, Calamity Ganon). Breath's trick is spacing those throughout the world, and giving you so much ground to cover, that you're bound to stumble upon numerous shrines, seeds, and side quests along the way. There are many accounts of people who have dumped multiple hundreds of hours into this game, whether they're going for a 100% completion score, finding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qhbzQK0OwcM\">creative ways to complete shrines<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=XuhOtub5deA\">soaring across the map<\/a>. While those aren't necessarily my vibe, I can definitely see myself returning to this world to complete the main quest over and over again.<\/p>\n<p><em>Did you enjoy this review? Did I skip anything important? Do you want to tell me how wrong I am? Use the hashtag #BreathReview when you <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">message me on Twitter<\/a> and let's chat!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"Game Review - Portal & Portal 2","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/portal-portal-2\/"}},"updated":"2018-08-18T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/portal-portal-2\/","summary":{},"content":"<p><img src=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/q9BZBhy.jpg\" alt=\"alt text\" title=\"Portal &amp; Portal 2\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When I said I had no idea what I wanted to do with this site the other day, I lied. There are actually 2 things I (might) want to do. One of them is converting my <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1zg-SOYI8DlH-ibSNslfPtq0xJB4sEMb_7OHKbq2qclk\/edit?usp=sharing\">aforementioned gaming spreadsheet<\/a> into something more readable &amp; usable on the web. Right now, entering a new game into that requires me to unhide a column, type things out, sort, then hide the column again. Updating one requires me to find it on the massive main list in order to make changes. It's gross.<\/p>\n<!-- more -->\n<p>The second thing is, I want to actually start writing about video games as a possible portfolio builder. I recently started <a href=\"http:\/\/switchfocuspodcast.com\/podcasts\/episode-43-dead-smashing-news\/\">editing a gaming podcast<\/a>, and the itch to become part of the industry has been something sitting on my mind for years. In addition, this project would give me incentive to actually plow through the afore-mentioned spreadsheet of games and finish them.<\/p>\n<p>So. With that said...<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Game<\/strong>: Portal &amp; Portal 2<\/li>\n<li><strong>Platform<\/strong>: PC<\/li>\n<li><strong>Developer<\/strong>: Valve Corporation<\/li>\n<li><strong>Publisher<\/strong>: Valve Corporation<\/li>\n<li><strong>Completed Date<\/strong>: Aug 11 &amp; 14, 2018<\/li>\n<li><strong>Time to Complete<\/strong>: 1.25 &amp; 5 hours<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I'm going to preface this by saying yes, I have definitely played both of these before. The first Portal is a game that I play maybe once every 1-2 years; a quick game that can be completed over the course of an evening. Portal 2, I haven't played since it released in 2011, so it was a great opportunity to go back to.<\/p>\n<p>2007 was a great year for new IPs in video games. BioShock, Assassin's Creed, The Witcher, and Mass Effect all started that year. There were also some new installments of IPs with CoD4: Modern Warfare, Halo 3, Super Mario Galaxy, and Rock Band. With all these big names, it's amazing that a small game like Portal is considered one of the best games of that year, but is still a quality game 11 years later.<\/p>\n<p>There's no doubt that the graphics aren't superb, but everything still looks really nice for a lightweight game that is over a decade old. Moving through the world feels great, with only a few odd bits with the portals themselves causing any issue.<\/p>\n<p>And the puzzles! Man, how great are these puzzles. I've played this game nearly 10 times at this point, and the puzzles never cease to impress me. This game is a genuine challenge, a great exercise for your mind, and even when you know exactly how to beat them, you can attempt to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=bmEZWZPqyT4\">race through them as fast as humanly possible<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Portal 2's campaign is one of the best things I've ever played. The gameplay picks up right where you left off, and literally drops you back into very familiar environments all over again. With some added elements like bridges made of light, and some gels that make you bounce or run fast, the puzzle complexity has increased exponentially. I found myself saying &quot;whoa&quot; and &quot;cool!&quot; numerous times as I soared hundreds of yards through the air, bounced off walls, and progressed through the story.<\/p>\n<p>And oh what a story it is. Portal 1 is just... fine, story wise. There's nothing to it. But Portal 2? It's complex. It's meaningful. It's purposeful. It's hysterical and terrifying and heartbreaking. Any character who speaks is bound to make you laugh at least once, from Wheatley's incompetence to G.L.A.D.O.S.'s snark to Cave Johnson's everything. And that doesn't even cover <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/xeKMS62GrTI?t=50\">the funniest line in the game<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>I didn't get an opportunity to play through the multiplayer levels of Portal 2, but I recall being amazed by their complexity as well when I played through them with a good friend at launch. If you've never gotten the opportunity to play through those levels, find a friend and do it. If you thought the complexity of levels was high with one portal gun, imagine how crazy the game can get with two. Coupled with Portal 2's added elements, the game just gets bonkers and amazingly fun.<\/p>\n<p>Literally my only gripe with the entire series happens right after you avoid being baked into a not-cake at the tail end of the first game. As you get into the back hallway, you're presented with an elevated walkway and a door <em>just barely<\/em> cracked. There's no prompt that you're able to interact with this door and actually open it, and even as someone who's played through the game numerous times, I always seem to forget that it can be opened. It's a minor annoyance that always gets to me.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, it's clear why the Portal games are considered some of the best of all time. Portal 1 shoved the entire gaming world forward in conceptualizing how physics and puzzles should work. Portal 2 took that already unique and interesting world, and gave us a terrific and compelling story to go along with it. These games are a great way to spend a couple hours, and I'm sure I'll be back to do it all over again in no time at all.<\/p>\n<p><em>Did you enjoy this review? Did I skip anything important? Do you want to tell me how wrong I am? Use the hashtag #PortalReview when you <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/niclake\">message me on Twitter<\/a> and let's chat!<\/em><\/p>\n"},{"title":"Hello World","link":{"@attributes":{"href":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello-world\/"}},"updated":"2018-08-15T20:00:00Z","id":"https:\/\/niclake.me\/hello-world\/","summary":{},"content":"<p>Well, I did it. I created yet another blog.<\/p>\n<p>I'm not really sure what the entire point of doing this is yet. Part of me is disillusioned with Twitter. Part of me just wanted a domain to work on some small personal projects, like <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/spreadsheets\/d\/1zg-SOYI8DlH-ibSNslfPtq0xJB4sEMb_7OHKbq2qclk\/edit?usp=sharing\">converting my games to play spreadsheet<\/a> into something more readable.<\/p>\n<p>Anyway, I'm looking forward to getting this site up and running. Thanks for stopping by.<\/p>\n"}]}