---
title: "Dispatch #12 (February 2024)"
date: 2024-01-24T22:48:09-05:00
draft: false
tags:
- dispatch
references:
- title: "My iPhone Taught Me How to Grieve - The Atlantic"
  url: https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2024/01/iphone-grief-dynamic-wallpaper/677034/
  date: 2024-01-30T03:57:19Z
  file: www-theatlantic-com-lww5au.txt
- title: "Grief and a Photo Shuffle – Six Colors"
  url: https://sixcolors.com/link/2024/01/grief-and-a-photo-shuffle/
  date: 2024-01-30T03:57:45Z
  file: sixcolors-com-xx0plp.txt
- title: "Periodical 14 – v DIY - Christopher Butler ☼"
  url: https://www.chrbutler.com/2024-01-21
  date: 2024-01-30T04:10:23Z
  file: www-chrbutler-com-gbjxba.txt
- title: "Changes Aren’t Permanent, But Change Is – The New Oil"
  url: https://blog.thenewoil.org/changes-arent-permanent-but-change-is
  date: 2024-01-30T15:04:20Z
  file: blog-thenewoil-org-1zbu4k.txt
- title: "Stop Everything You're Doing and Enable Stolen Device Protection on Your iPhone"
  url: https://gizmodo.com/stop-everything-enable-stolen-device-protection-iphone-1851188262
  date: 2024-01-30T15:05:31Z
  file: gizmodo-com-mbuz73.txt
- title: "Stride by Stride – iRunFar"
  url: https://www.irunfar.com/stride-by-stride
  date: 2024-01-30T15:07:24Z
  file: www-irunfar-com-ueqpx0.txt
- title: "Kimberly Hirsh · Now"
  url: https://kimberlyhirsh.com/now/
  date: 2024-01-30T15:08:36Z
  file: kimberlyhirsh-com-z4tqvg.txt
- title: "Hypercritical: I Made This"
  url: https://hypercritical.co/2024/01/11/i-made-this
  date: 2024-01-30T14:48:57Z
  file: hypercritical-co-uicpgh.txt
- title: "The Rise and Fall of Getting Things Done | The New Yorker"
  url: https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/the-rise-and-fall-of-getting-things-done
  date: 2024-01-30T14:48:58Z
  file: www-newyorker-com-tw2aqv.txt
- title: "Cold-blooded software"
  url: https://dubroy.com/blog/cold-blooded-software/
  date: 2024-01-30T14:48:59Z
  file: dubroy-com-23dgbm.txt
- title: "Cold-blooded Software - Jim Nielsen’s Blog"
  url: https://blog.jim-nielsen.com/2024/cold-blooded-software/
  date: 2024-01-30T14:48:59Z
  file: blog-jim-nielsen-com-hqckqj.txt
- title: "How I Pocket Notebook | cygnoir.net"
  url: https://www.cygnoir.net/2024/01/20/how-i-pocket.html
  date: 2024-01-30T14:49:00Z
  file: www-cygnoir-net-9nlp2w.txt
- title: "How I Pocket Notebook | cygnoir.net - The Cramped"
  url: https://www.thecramped.com/how-i-pocket-notebook-cygnoir-net/
  date: 2024-01-30T15:13:18Z
  file: www-thecramped-com-7kxkcb.txt
- title: "Paper notes - macwright.com"
  url: https://macwright.com/2019/01/02/paper-notes
  date: 2024-01-30T14:49:00Z
  file: macwright-com-tpk6dj.txt
- title: "Paper notes - Tim Hårek"
  url: https://timharek.no/blog/paper-notes
  date: 2024-01-30T14:49:02Z
  file: timharek-no-enssiy.txt
- title: "Work hard and take everything really seriously - macwright.com"
  url: https://macwright.com/2024/01/28/work-hard-and-take-everything-seriously
  date: 2024-01-30T14:49:02Z
  file: macwright-com-ovx2h6.txt
---

We spent MLK weekend with my folks in the Shennandoah Valley, and visited [Luray Caverns][1], something I'd done as a kid and still rips 30 years later. Neat place, highly recommended if you're ever in that area. We also got some snow at our cabin, which was pretty fun for Nev.

[1]: https://luraycaverns.com/

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I signed up for the [Wrightsville Beach Valentine Run][2] 10K in early February, which has added a little bit of focus to my running without the commitment of half-marathon training and gives us a good excuse to spend a weekend with Claire's sister in Wilmington. Might try to keep that going, finding organized 10Ks in places we want to visit.

[2]: https://runsignup.com/Race/NC/WrightsvilleBeach/WrightsvilleBeachValentineRun

I stumbled on [this article][3] ([via][4]) about an iOS feature that periodically updates your lock screen to a random photo of a selected person. It is ... delightful.

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[3]: https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2024/01/iphone-grief-dynamic-wallpaper/677034/
[4]: https://sixcolors.com/link/2024/01/grief-and-a-photo-shuffle/

Here's a new track called "Altocumulus":

<audio controls src="/journal/dispatch-12-february-2024/Altocumulus.mp3"></audio>

I really set out to make a track that didn't have a bass hit on one and three and snare on two and four, but some things you just can't resist, though you can tell I tried for the first 90 or so seconds. I also found a [really nice app][5] for practicing scales -- Apple catches a lot of shit (perhaps deservedly so) for its app store policies, but as a consumer, it's hard to complain.

[5]: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/piano-chords-and-scales/id714086944

I traded a couple emails with my buddy [Prayash][6]. He's a super talented musician (among other things) and has a new track out called ["Weightless"][7] that's worth a listen. He also put a [video on Instagram][8] of his production process which is neat.

[6]: https://prayash.io/links/
[7]: https://music.apple.com/us/album/weightless/1722942938?i=1722942941
[8]: https://www.instagram.com/p/C2bWin4rSLG/

I installed [these crossbars][9] on our car in the hopes that we can avoid replacing it with something bigger for a while longer. I get a real kick out of DIY upgrades and fixes like this -- using your brain and hands to adapt the things you have to better suit your needs is so, so satisfying. Fellow Durham blogger [Christopher Butler][10] put up a [good post][11] that speaks to this same idea:

> One thing I hope my children learn is to nurture the balance of curiosity, creativity, and willingness to mess-up that is needed to make the world your own while you’re here.

[9]: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0045V8CKU
[10]: https://www.chrbutler.com/
[11]: https://www.chrbutler.com/2024-01-21

Couple security updates: my favorite [TOTP][12] app, Raivo, [got bought up by a shady-looking company][13], so I switched over to to [2FAS][14]. Super smooth onboarding experience, and I actually prefer its authentication flow (browser plugin ➡️  push notification ➡️  Face ID ➡️  "Approve" ➡️  autofill). Also, I listened to [a podcast][15] some months back that described the damage a thief can do with a stolen iPhone, so when I learned about this new [Stolen Device Protection][16] feature, I enabled it immediately.

[12]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time-based_one-time_password
[13]: https://blog.thenewoil.org/changes-arent-permanent-but-change-is
[14]: https://2fas.com/
[15]: https://daringfireball.net/thetalkshow/2023/07/11/ep-381
[16]: https://gizmodo.com/stop-everything-enable-stolen-device-protection-iphone-1851188262

I finished [_Revenge: Eleven Dark Tales_][17] and decided to stay on the short story collection train with [_Story of Your Life and Others_][18].

[17]: #
[18]: #

I make plaintext backups of the things I link to on this site, at least the text-heavy stuff I might want to refer to later (you can see them down below in the "references" section). I'd been using [Lynx][19] to get the text, but I wasn't super happy with some of the results, so I switched over to [w3m][20] after finding the right command-line flag[^1] to include link URLs in the output. I've got some ideas around building a more robust archiving solution but I'm gonna let it marinate for a bit.

[19]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynx_(web_browser)
[20]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W3m

This month:

* Adventure: head down to Wilmington for the aforementioned 10K, otherwise laying pretty low -- big stuff coming in the next few months
* Project: gonna keep this music/hobby table on here until I actually get it done (gear acquisition pause still in effect); I'm also delinquent on an art table for Nev
* Skill:

Reading:

* Fiction: [_Story of Your Life and Others_][21], Ted Chiang
* Non-fiction: [_Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life_][22], Anne Lamott (recommended [here][23] and [here][24])

[21]: https://bookshop.org/p/books/stories-of-your-life-and-others-lib-e-ted-chiang/16687839
[22]: https://bookshop.org/p/books/bird-by-bird-some-instructions-on-writing-and-life-anne-lamott/8649952?ean=9780385480017
[23]: https://www.irunfar.com/stride-by-stride
[24]: https://kimberlyhirsh.com/now/

Links:

* [I Made This][25]

  > I’m not sure what the right answer is, but I think I’m getting closer to the right question. It’s a question I think we’re all going to encounter a lot more frequently in the future: Who made this?

* [The Rise and Fall of Getting Things Done][26]

  > To move forward, we must step away from Drucker’s commitment to total autonomy—allowing for freedom in how we execute tasks without also allowing for chaos in how these tasks are assigned. We must, in other words, acknowledge the futility of trying to tame our frenzied work lives all on our own, and instead ask, collectively, whether there’s a better way to get things done.

* [Cold-blooded software][27] ([via][28])

  > Some projects are different. You work alone, make some changes when you’re inspired, and then don’t touch it again for another year, or two, or three. You can’t run something like that as a warm-blooded project. There’s not enough activity to keep the temperature up.

* [How I Pocket Notebook][29] ([via][30])

  > Though we exist in an age where technology has wrested the “frictionless and ubiquitous” narrative away from analog tools, I maintain that the old ways can be the best ones in this case. Enter the pocket notebook.

  This inspired me to start carrying a Field Notes in my sling bag; see also: [Tom MacWright][31], [Tim Hårek][32].

* [Work hard and take everything really seriously][33]

  > You can burn out by going too fast, or your flame can dim because you don’t let yourself spend silly amounts of time on silly projects to satisfy your intellectual curiosity. Beware of both outcomes: cultivate your enthusiasm for the things you want to hang onto.

[25]: https://hypercritical.co/2024/01/11/i-made-this
[26]: https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/the-rise-and-fall-of-getting-things-done
[27]: https://dubroy.com/blog/cold-blooded-software/
[28]: https://blog.jim-nielsen.com/2024/cold-blooded-software/
[29]: https://www.cygnoir.net/2024/01/20/how-i-pocket.html
[30]: https://www.thecramped.com/how-i-pocket-notebook-cygnoir-net/
[31]: https://macwright.com/2019/01/02/paper-notes
[32]: https://timharek.no/blog/paper-notes
[33]: https://macwright.com/2024/01/28/work-hard-and-take-everything-seriously

[^1]: Running `w3m -dump -o display_link_number=1 <url>` gives a nice plaintext version of a webpage with numbered link references (via this [helpful StackOverflow link][34])

[34]: https://askubuntu.com/questions/805014/getting-text-and-links-from-a-web-page/1493418#1493418
