You can either scroll down for a straight archive or all my archive, or click one of the below tags to see writing from a specific category. Or surprise yourself with a totally random blog post.
Four Ways to Defend Your Identity Against Distractions (and Mental Goblins)
Life is full of distractions that threaten our sense of identity, especially in quarantine. Keeping our identities it means learning to embrace quiet and solitude.
The Ambiguities as Nazi Germany Rose To Power
Nazi Germany is universally seen as bad now, but it happened much later than many today would have expected.
What A Steeled Soup Kitchen Manager can Teach about Giving
Sheltering in place made me realize how much I miss many people in my life. One of them a woman whose unyielding personality helps fuel her selfless work in a soup kitchen.
Don't Abdicate Work to the 'Heroes'
Giving thanks to others should not be an excuse to avoid your share of work in a pandemic.
Spotlighting a Man in the Street
A man leaving a car in the middle of the road to greet someone reminded me how to handle a stressful cognitive bias.
Restyling my Site's Code Snippets in Quarantine
Working on my personal site has helped keep me sane in quarantine. This includes a long-overdue style update for my site's code snippets to make them sleeker and clearer.
How I Debugged a Ruby Program by Stripping
A Ruby program I wrote hit a tough snag when trying to download info online. But thanks to the program's dubious nature, I can't reveal the full context so easily.
We Are More Than Our Work
In a culture hyperfocused on productivity and economics, we should remember humans are more than their work. Especially when a pandemic takes it away.
The Rails Model Introduction I Wish I Had
Ruby on Rails is a great web app framework, but it's tough to learn for a front-end developer. These are the foundations to one part of rails I wish I learned more about sooner: the Models.
You Can Steal Design Ideas
Making good web designs is not easier. That's why the best starting point for them is usually stealing another design.
Remember What We Control Amid the Chaos
With the number of confirmed coronovirus cases accelerating, I try to remember what I can and can't control .
Feeling the Coronavirus Fear
Fear isn't in short supply with Coronavirus hitting the United States. For me, hygiene and social distancing are easier than managing the fear.
Lessons from Nickel and Dimed
Nickel and Dimed is a must-read looking at the struggles the working poor face every day. These are the best lessons I pulled from it and don't want to forget, for my empathy's sake.
Watching Others on the Highway
Watching cars pass on a highway captures one of the most important, if also the most damaging, mental shortcuts our minds make.
The Innate Danger of Moderates
If you think moderate positions are the 'high ground,' know that civil rights leaders thought it was a bigger threat than extremists.