Well, it’s been quite some time since I last posted here. I’ve found that my velocity in learning new things over these past few weeks has decreased rather dramatically. Some issues of note:
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Software team at work has been effectively decapitated and at eight months in, I am the senior onsite web software engineer by time spent at the company (others are either focused on data science and computational geometry, or have been promoted to team lead). Growth is slowing and revenue is flatlining, and either no changes are being made to address this issue or those changes are not effective. Shifting expenditures of time and energy by me are drawing away from personal projects.
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I’ve been reading a book (or a few), including “The Design of the UNIX Operating System” by Maurice J. Bach and “The Effective Engineer” by Edmond Lau. Bach is quite difficult to read (especially for somebody who has no experience in operating systems…yea…) and I found it hard to take away much besides the first chapter. Lau is really easy to read (because it’s about reach, not writing specs), and I think the lessons there will be more applicable in my daily life.
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Made a few friends here and there, nothing too concrete but there are the beginnings of some roots. I got stuck at the Metro during July 4th as I went to see the fireworks at the National Mall and they didn’t let bikes down onto the Metro. A couple of other bikers got there and we all went to a bar nearby to wait out the crowds. We hung out the week after, going down Rock Creek Park. That was fun.
So. There’s that. It’s mostly the work stuff that’s really put a dent in my velocity.
How do I get back on track?
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I still need to have a strong routine. I keep losing track of time and that time’s wasted and not well spent (not good rest or relaxation, not productive work hours). So I’m using Todoist in order to keep track of my todos, and unlike when my friend recommended it to me, I understand why I need it now and will use it going forward.
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Personal projects are twisting in the wind, so I need to refocus efforts on the things that will provide maximum value in the near short to medium term. Displaying a strong grasp of algorithms and data structures would be a start, as well as a firm grasp of web technologies (Ruby, Elixir, Python, Elm, etc.) and general software engineering (C/C++, Java).
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Yeah that last point is going to be hell.
I think I want to transition away from this weird React.js application, and move towards Hugo. Making AJAX calls in your local directory is so weird. I’m already just using a HTML5 template anyways, and I know how to deploy Hugo webpages, and Forestry.io would allow me to write much more consistently. I had this one goal of writing every day at the beginning of the year, and that has not happened (like at all). Files are getting more difficult to organize as well.
So that should be that. Next blog post should / will be made using a port of this site to Hugo.