Life on Lagging Indicators

Hosting an RSS reader on an old phone

Sun, 18 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

I have long had a habit of bookmarking interesting blogs online then never reading them again. Part of setting up my own blog was the RSS feed, and with AI now, I thought it would be quick to take a folder of the ~2k bookmarks and turn it into an RSS feed so I could actually leverage all those links. Plus, I’ve seen all those cool projects where people re-use old electronics, and I wanted to learn how to do this.

Timelapse of properly healing cat laceration

Sat, 22 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Our cat recently got cut on his leg; being in an area without access to a vet, we were a bit unsure on the severity of the injury or what a naturally healing cut would look like over time (and how to identify the start of any infection). I couldn’t find a good clear set of photos online. Hopefully this can alleviate some concern or save a trip to the vet.

Croissant Club

Sun, 02 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Croissant Club has been live for about 3 weeks now. It is a personal review blog for croissants. Huge traffic to it, obviously.

Over the past few years I have developed an appreciation for croissants, and I thought this would be a simple funny project to look back on in a few years if I keep up with it. Backfilling the data has been a bit irritating, but luckily I’ve only had this idea for a month or two.

Disassembling a Nespresso Vertuo Next

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Nespresso Vertuo Next we had would

when initially turned on, immediately blink orange and not stop
if you pressed it, sometimes it would switch to blinking orange twice, then pausing, over and over
the application would various show and error that the machine was unlocked, or ready to brew
- never was the mobile application useful

A couple tips that I struggled with from watching videos (and I saw also in the comments):

I spent $16 opting out of Pearson VUE's facial comparison policy

Sat, 21 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Signing up for an online, at-home test from Pearson VUE also means accepting their Facial Comparison Policy.¹

Pearson VUE may use facial images collected during the testing process to develop, upgrade, and improve our online proctoring application in the event that automated facial comparison processes are determined to have resulted in a matching failure. In these cases, facial images will be reviewed manually to determine the cause and the results from such a review may be used to develop, upgrade, and improve our online proctoring application. - Pearson VUE Privacy Policy

Thoughts from first 3D print

Sat, 22 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000

With the Flashforge Adventurer 5m, my first 3D print is the Enclosure kit project. What follows are just a quick few notes from trying to figure this all out.

After exploring some of the comments around the enclosure online, I decided to follow the DIY Minimal Enclosure from @design8studio, so thank you to them. I did forget to print the updated riser panels that is now linked on that project, however, and just used the project at that link. I would recommend to use the upgrades after printing the original, but they aren’t serious enough to make me want to print anything over again.

Building a personalized wedding website

Sun, 03 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

At our wedding, each table was named after a country we had either visited or had some relation to, as a personal touch instead of classic table numbers. To complement this, I built a small static website deployed on GitHub pages to learn more about the country with Claude Sonnet 4 through Github Copilot.

Each table had small printed cards with QR codes linking to the webpage that attendees could scan and briefly view. I generated the 17 QR Codes manually for each table through Project Nayuki’s web implementation and renamed the downloaded file to the country. Thanks to them! I figured generating the code to do so would take about the same amount of time. This said, I fortunately didn’t have to ever change the URL of each page.

Sign Me Up, Please

Thu, 22 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

I’d like to take a popular class for 3d printing at the library, but I can’t get a spot. The ideal LLM assistant could check for class availability and sign me up, without me monitoring the page constantly.

Unfortunately we are not there yet.

MLK Labs in DC offers apparently highly desirable 3d printing classes. These are posted 30 days out - but have been booked solid for the past few weeks.

Obligatory Migration Post from Wordpress to Hugo

Sun, 26 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This is the obligatory moved blog from one framework to a different framework article.

Wordpress.com asked me for $78 for a two year subscription. However, I dislike the mobile app and the text editing experience online. I also had difficulties editing any part of the website with the in-browser tools. Originally, I signed up because I wanted my focus to be on writing, rather than on coding, a blog. Simply purchasing the Wordpress plan let me test whether or not I wanted to keep up with writing posts at all. It did that, but I didn’t find that WordPress provided much additional value.

2 years of notes from building an app I didn't release

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Close to 2 years ago, I had an idea for a mobile application that allowed users to store, submit, and manage tax reimbursements in foreign countries. For 2 years ago, I on and off worked on this idea and had a functioning version on my phone - and for nearly all that time, I never felt like the application was ready to release to potential users - and it doesn’t look like I’ll ever get it there.

Play 8 Red Squares

Sun, 15 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

I re-deployed 8 Red Squares, a site that allows you to play through the 8 Queens Puzzle on different sized boards.

Future enhancements I’d like to add are

Timer (for each segment), and total running time until the users solves n=8.
Better mobile support (board size 9 and 10 don’t handle small screens well).
Foundational solutions checklist, e.g., if a user wants to find all possible arrangements (excluding symmetries and rotations).

From a Mouse to a Trackball

Sat, 14 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000

I recently bought the Kensington Slimblade Trackball to replace the Logitech MX Master mouse that I have been using for the last year. This is the first time that I’ve used a trackball. A couple of thoughts worth noting that are either omitted from or in conflict with other reviews:

The device is too large for me. It takes up almost an entire mousepad, and it is wide enough to force frequent movement between the trackball and the keyboard (I use a Glove80). I blame this partially on the desk, as it requires a roll-out keyboard holder that was not made to accommodate the split keyboard and the trackball. But for a trackball with “Slim” in the name, I expected it to be smaller.

Why (not) write online?

Sun, 28 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

a) improve communication skills by forcing myself to formalize an opinion. Feedback from anonymous readers may either point out an error I made while translating what I think to a written document or a flaw in the argument itself. Of course, I need to be willing to be wrong, and reminding myself that I am excited about learning is an powerful way to cope with finding errors in my work. Writing online is a low-barrier opportunity to become comfortable with this.

Replacing a mouse with a pen and tablet?

Mon, 22 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

These are some thoughts about using a Wacom Intuos Wireless Pen and Tablet to complement a mouse and keyboard over the past few weeks. I made this purchase in an effort to decrease forearm and finger pain from overuse working at a desk. Previously, I’ve been using the Logitech MX Master 3 For Business mouse, and I was hoping that switching to a pen and tablet would limit some of the forearm rotation that was causing me pain. While I put the mouse to the side, I am still using a Glove80 keyboard, as well as Windows Voice Access.

My UChicago MSCAPP Application Essay Answers (2018)

Wed, 17 Apr 2024 00:00:00 +0000

These were my answers to the application essay questions for UChicago’s MSCAPP program back from the 2018 round. Only piece of advice - make sure you know what skills or knowledge you want to get out of any MS program - which means work for a bit prior to attending.

Why is a combined program between policy and computer science a good match for your career goals? (max 300 words)

With a M.S. in Computational Analysis and Public Policy, I can support the shift from Michigan nonprofits solely serving constituents to leading communities. My primary career goal is to increase volunteerism through developing the technical expertise of the nonprofit sector. By applying data science techniques, I will provide organizations with evidence of successful interventions and expand their capacity to deliver services. To accomplish this, I need intensive direction to develop my quantitative analysis skills through computer science and statistics courses.

All my cultural tourism is commercial exchanges

Fri, 23 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

I recently went on a weekend trip, where I counted each time that I interacted with a person who was a citizen of the country I was visiting. I did not include any interactions with individuals at the airport prior to landing at the destination, nor once I reached the airport to return. Non-verbal interactions were not considered, e.g., making room for someone on the sidewalk, or gesturing for a car to go first at an intersection.

Thoughts on Babbel Live Classes

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

I took about 70 classes over a one-year unlimited class subscription with Babbel Live for Spanish from mid-2022 to 2023. My level was beginner to low intermediate over the course of the year, and I only took classes in the A1, A2, and B1 range. Prior to the classes, I was working with Anki flashcards and Duolingo lessons. What follows are some thoughts I had wrote down while taking the courses. Some aspects of the course may have changed since I took them.

Ridiculously Easy Origami Sunflowers (adapted)

Thu, 15 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The choices to make origami sunflowers are few. I adapted the simple Lotus Blossom design from Origami-Instructions.com with an additional small square of brown paper, allowing for a very simple sunflower design that holds up against other designs that have more complicated multi-sheet folding, are hexagon-based, or require glue.

Instructions

With the Blintz base, place a sheet of brown paper within the corner folds into the center.

Glove80 Keyboard Review (3 months)

Wed, 14 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Some people are very into keyboards. They build them, they buy many of them, they review them. They know a lot about the software and hardware, and can describe the pros and cons of each component. When they look for a keyboard, they can use their prior experience to decide what features they care about, and can identify potential issues.

I am not one of these people. But given recent wrist and forearm pain, I decided to switch impulsively to a split keyboard. I did some not-comprehensive-at-all research - I didn’t really know what I was looking at, or how to compare different brands, or what attributes to consider that would be right for me. I ended up buying the MoErgo Glove80 Split Wireless Keyboard, largely because the curved design, tenting system, and my perception of the company as a start-up that had a large passionate community behind the product. It also looked reasonably professional, minimal, and like it would fit on my desk.

Dead Butterflies, Broken Cars

Sun, 11 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

227 vehicles have passed by us in the last hour. We are parked on the side of the road, in a car that is leaking oil. At least the hood has stopped smoking. Our two friends left in a taxi to Taluca, the closest town, to see a mechanic and have a grua tow us either to the town, or back all the way to Mexico City.

We had gone to the park to see the monarch butterflies before they begin their migration north; we arrived too late, the mariposas had left three days prior, but the trail was still open at a discount, and many bodies of the butterflies that died were still littered on the edges of the walking paths, the ticket takers told us. We had driven about 2 hours out of the city to see them; we were three days and two hours too late.

There's a stone in my lentils

Sun, 11 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

For the first time, in my many years of eating lentils, I found a small stone in my lentils while I was eating the curry. It was slightly smaller than a single lentil.

On the bag of the lentils, and in every online recipe describing how to cook lentils, the following warning exists: be sure to rinse your lentils prior to cooking to remove any rocks or debris as modern cleaning equipment cannot. And I do. But I have never actually found a pebble, and so thought this was a cautionary warning that lawyers required. Now, I figured, the process of cleaning the lentils during production likely was efficient and accurate enough now (in the direct contradiction to what the warning tells me). A good self-reflection example of how my prior experience incorrectly outweighs expert knowledge.

I'll be back babe no baby

Thu, 08 Feb 2024 00:00:00 +0000

In the past six months I’ve started to have finger, wrist, and forearm pain. I previously was using the Logitech Mx Mouse and keyboard for business. But due to the pronation of my wrists I wasn’t able to type at all without experience severe pain that would continue through the evening. so recently I’ve been using the Windows voice axis. To try and perform as much typing and as many actions on the computer as I can. This post Is entirely written using my voice. And as you can I sit I’m still having trouble making this a usable tool.

Life on Lagging Indicators

Hosting an RSS reader on an old phone

Timelapse of properly healing cat laceration

Croissant Club

Disassembling a Nespresso Vertuo Next

I spent $16 opting out of Pearson VUE's facial comparison policy

Thoughts from first 3D print

Building a personalized wedding website

Sign Me Up, Please

Increasingly complicated attempts to sign up

Obligatory Migration Post from Wordpress to Hugo

2 years of notes from building an app I didn't release

Play 8 Red Squares

From a Mouse to a Trackball

Why (not) write online?

Replacing a mouse with a pen and tablet?

My UChicago MSCAPP Application Essay Answers (2018)

All my cultural tourism is commercial exchanges

Thoughts on Babbel Live Classes

Ridiculously Easy Origami Sunflowers (adapted)

Instructions

Glove80 Keyboard Review (3 months)

Dead Butterflies, Broken Cars

There's a stone in my lentils

I'll be back babe no baby