Subscribe via email or RSS I added a new page to my blog in the header showing all the specifications of my homelab and self-hosted services. It will be updated as I continue to update my services or infrastructure. Fixed misspellings in Overview of My Homelab post.
I've had a homelab for quite some time now, although it hasn't been a linear process. I first got into it when I heard about Plex, which at first, I was under the impression of it being a free streaming service with everything. I set it up with the installer on my computer and was frustrated and confused to learn that it I gave up on it for who knows how long. Then, I heard about Jellyfin, which is an open-source version that a lot of people seemed to like. I wanted to learn more. I set up Jellyfin on my computer and loaded some movies onto it, then streamed them from the same PC hosting it. Okay, I thought. So it provides a video player basically. Big deal. I have no idea how to access it from other devices or anything interesting. So again I gave up. It wasn't until me and my brother went halfsies on a Synology NAS on June 14, 2024 1 and I had a few years of university and self-tinkering knowledge under my belt that I truly got into homelabbing and self-hosting. At that point, I knew full well what a server and client was, and all about networking. 2 I set up the Synology NAS, at the time living with my parents, and installed both the 8TB HDD that I had bought for my items, and the 16TB HDD that my brother bought for his. 3 I used it as a network-attached storage, as intended at first. Backups and all that. However, I really wanted to get into hosting services . I had been following technical blogs at that point as well as r/selfhosted and really wanted to sink my teeth into it. The Synology NAS has limited resources, being mainly for storage. That didn't stop me from hosting some basic items. I started with Plex, then moved on to Jellyfin. I hosted both at the same time so that if Jellyfin didn't work, I could just use Plex. To this day I use Infuse on my Apple TV and other devices and have it hooked up to my Jellyfin server. Next, I tried Mealie, then switched to Tandoor, since I love to cook and bake at home. I also set up Actual Budget, which is probably one of my top-used services now. It completely changed the way I handle my money. Eventually, I went in on a used Dell PowerEdge R730, which is a 2U rack-mounted enterprise server designed for data center and business-critical workloads. For me, it's a great noise-making machine that has lots of upgrade potential! Here is the boring technical details: A year into using it, and it does exactly what I need it to do every time, no questions asked. Over time, I connected it to an APC UPS to protect it from power outages, and hooked up a used Dell Optiplex I had sitting around to the same UPS. I used to call the Optiplex my "Minecraft Machine," because all it did was run Minecraft servers (and worked excellently). At this point, I've moved all my servers to the PowerEdge, managed by the service CraftyController for easy setup and server start-and-stop. The Optiplex now serves as a remote desktop solution, since my lab is at my parents', 4 allowing me to access the network easily. I also use Tailscale to access serveral services remotely without fully exposing them. When I want to expose a service normally, I use free cloudflare tunnels . For my hypervisor, I have Proxmox installed on the PowerEdge, and all of my services run in their own LXC containers. In the future, I hope to migrate most services to a more energy-efficient and compact mini computer running Ubuntu or Debian Server and managed with Docker instead. For now, Proxmox is very powerful and intuitive, and made it incredibly easy for me to set up snapshots and backups as well as monitor resource usage. Finally, here is a list of my services: It's quite easy to get started yourself making a homelab or self-hosting services. Buying a VPS can make it even easier, like Hostinger's one-click deployment options. You can also simply install Linux with docker containers on an old laptop or other computer you don't use anymore. I know it's been more than worth it for me. Check out r/selfhosted , self.hst newsletter, and YouTube if you want to learn more about selfhosting. Subscribe via email or RSS I went through my Amazon order history for this date. ↩ I would say my first experience hosting a server was hosting multiple Minecraft servers over the years for me and my friends. This is also where I learned basic networking concepts, like what a LAN is, what TCP/UDP is, port forwarding, etc. ↩ I thought this was enough storage to last a lifetime at the time. Scroll through r/DataHoarder and think again. ↩ My parents' house is powered by solar panels, making this a much cheaper and more manageable option for my poor student situation. ↩ Wouldn't work unless my PC stayed on, Didn't really have ad-free subscription-free streaming. Apparently you had to acquire the content yourself. 8 Bay 2.5" SFF H730 Raid Adapter Dual Xeon Processors Dual 750W PSU Total PCI Express X8 Slots: 3 Optical Drive Type: DVD Player Number of Processor Cores: 16 Total PCI Express X16 Slots: 1 Memory Type: DDR4 Memory Frequencies Supported: 1333, 1600, 1866, 2133 Total USB Ports: 4 Processor Series: Intel Xeon E5 Total Serial Ports: 1 Server CPU Model: E5-2667 v4 Maximum # of Hard Drives: 8 Total Memory Slots Available: 24 Server Series: PowerEdge R730 LAN Compatibility: 10/100/1000 Gigabit Maximum Hard Drive Size Supported (GB): 43200 CPU Socket: Dual LGA 2011 Front USB 2.0 Ports: 2 Total Hot-Swap Bays: 8 Total RAM (GB): 16 Maximum Memory Supported (GB): 768 I went through my Amazon order history for this date. ↩ I would say my first experience hosting a server was hosting multiple Minecraft servers over the years for me and my friends. This is also where I learned basic networking concepts, like what a LAN is, what TCP/UDP is, port forwarding, etc. ↩ I thought this was enough storage to last a lifetime at the time. Scroll through r/DataHoarder and think again. ↩ My parents' house is powered by solar panels, making this a much cheaper and more manageable option for my poor student situation. ↩
I initially explored Matrix several years ago. It seemed promising, yet about as active as your average IRC channel and lacking most features one would like in a chat platform. Since Discord's relatively recent announcement about age-verification , and their more long-standing problem of slowly boiling their users like frogs with more and more paywalling basic features, I have revisited any and all alternatives for the platform. Out of all the ones I've tried so far, Matrix is the most promising to me. It can be self-hosted, it is federated so that I can communicate with communities outside of my server, and moderation has improved significantly. There are also more features and better clients since I last checked on it; even more clients are getting an increase of attention due to Discord expats. Because of its improvements, I would say it has reached a point that it fits my needs. I have also learned so much and can confidently handle hosting this sort of thing now. I have been socializing on some great spaces so far, starting from Matrix United (#matrixunited-space:matrix.org) and MatrixRooms.info . The Apple room is especially active and has a lot of nice people. I recently finished starting my own server, called snowberry.social, home page on https://snowberry.social with a guide on what Matrix is and the focus of my server. Registration is currently restricted out of respect to my own time and energy, 1 and I have a few friends on there who have been open to the idea of leaving Discord, or at least trying something else. Recently, I have been open to making a completely public space for like-minded people focused on making a better social life on the internet. Topics include hosting your own software and applications, blogging, RSS, federated platforms, gaming, and more. Despite (or maybe because?) my server has been so stable and easy to manage so far, I am hesitant to allow registration on my server, but am open to using federation for people to join this space. However, I am torn since I know the majority of users join the general matrix.org server, further centralizing Matrix, not to mention that Matrix may introduce their own age-verification to comply with future laws(?) . I can't say I have a solid decision as of the writing of this post, but am open to discussion, and people who I have talked to before can request a registration token from me to join my homeserver. Feel free to join my newly created space with any Matrix account at #community:snowberry.social . I should note that when using matrix.to or mobile clients, you may be prompted to make an account at matrix.org by default. If you want to use/register under a different homeserver, you have to change it to your preferred one. Why is it called "Snowberry Social"? I am a huge Skyrim/Elder Scrolls fan, and one of the alchemical ingredients is a snowberry . It's cute. Setting up the full-featured stack for Matrix seemed incredibly daunting at first. It still is, although much less so now that I have it already made. The guide I followed, and that I recommend to anyone, is the matrix docker ansible deploy repo . Using an ansible playbook, you can easily set up a server with optional configurations and services. From the GitHub page, This Ansible playbook is meant to help you run your own Matrix homeserver, along with the various services related to that. That is, it lets you join the Matrix network using your own user ID like @alice:example.com, all hosted on your own server (see prerequisites). We run all supported services in Docker containers (see the container images we use), which lets us have a predictable and up-to-date setup, across multiple supported distros (see prerequisites) and architectures (x86/amd64 being recommended). Installation (upgrades) and some maintenance tasks are automated using Ansible (see our Ansible guide). If you are interested in pursuing this, I highly recommend reading and re-reading every instruction , or you might get horribly frustrated depending on your technical experience. Follow every little pre-requisite, learn what in the world an ansible playbook is, learn what DNS is, and maybe be ready to wipe your VPS/container/whatever after screwing things up. 2 Some things I ran into while trying this: What files to configure, SSH key permission issues, ports being closed. This is why I went with a VPS instead of my usual hardware, since port forwarding is simple and easy. This playbook even starts a web server for you in order to serve files, needed for federation capabilities. I highly recommend checking it out and reading through everything you can do with it. What everyone wants to know: can I use it on a daily basis without ripping my hair out? Sure. If you're a disgruntled Discord user, Matrix is not Discord. The layout (depends on client) and features are much more geared toward a WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, or even Slack alternative. By default, it does not support custom emotes/stickers and does not have "servers" with "channels" in "categories" like the average Discord user prefers. However, you can have spaces with rooms in subspaces . Furthermore, the client you choose can greatly affect your experience. The official client, and the most user-friendly in my opinion, is Element/Element X. 3 Available on the web, or as an app on iOS, Android, macOS, Linux, and Windows. It is developed and maintained by the same team who developed and maintained the Matrix protocol. Other options are shown in the comparison table below, and a few image showcases can be found under the same table on https://snowberry.social . If you like Discord, Cinny and Commet are great desktop options. I personally use Cinny on macOS, and FluffyChat on my iPhone. They both support custom emotes/stickers, which my friends also value. No limits on custom emoji use like Discord's paywalls! Does FluffyChat's choice of gradients and color themes for their app drive me a little insane because it's ugly? Yes, lol. Give Matrix a spin on matrix.org and move to a different homeserver if you prefer later. Join my space and see if we can make a community that's federated, decentralized, and private. I had a lot of fun setting this up and I have a lot of fun talking to others using it! There are whole communities out there waiting for discussions to blossom. Subscribe via email or RSS Registration is token-based using matrix-registration-bot . This means that users can only register when given a randomly generated string of characters and entering it upon account creation. ↩ You do have a VPS , right? (See also this Reddit discussion on why self-hosters use them). ↩ Element X is the newest version of Element. ↩ Registration is token-based using matrix-registration-bot . This means that users can only register when given a randomly generated string of characters and entering it upon account creation. ↩ You do have a VPS , right? (See also this Reddit discussion on why self-hosters use them). ↩ Element X is the newest version of Element. ↩
Java was my first programming language I learned, it’s my baby. Well also HTML and CSS. But for scripting, I’ve always enjoyed writing Java code. I’ve become pretty familiar with Python at this point, and haven’t touched Java in ages, but really feel the itch to pick it up seriously again since it is what taught me programming and computer science concepts to begin with. I actually still recommend Java as a first programming language over Python, since it touches a lot of concepts that I think are good to start with from the beginning. It’s easier to move to Python than to move to Java or C++ from Python. Anyone have project ideas or recommendations for writing more Java? Let me know :) Subscribe via email or RSS
Subscribe via email or RSS Updated Feeds page to format feeds list as a table instead of bulleted list for a cleaner appearance. Updated conversion script to use this change.
Pictures from the freeze this past weekend. The grub is an ox beetle found in our yard :) Subscribe via email or RSS
Today I received the email from Bandcamp that Grandmaster II was released . I believe this is their second full album, besides the live album. I've been listening to it today after purchasing it and the vinyl on Bandcamp, and already love it. Just as great as the first album. I first learned about this band when I was at an eastern-style teahouse I frequent in Austin (gong-fu method tea) called West China Tea House . Their music was playing in the background, and the server was saying how it's her boyfriend's local band. Then, I found that the lead singer, the boyfriend in question, was sitting next to me this whole time. We talked about his band, and my fiancé especially enjoyed talking music since he has his own band, albeit a hobby one. They both share a quirky sort of "roleplaying" aspect for their bands, although I think my fiancé's band is a tad less serious. The Galacian Web, a vast system of universes, each one containing a realm unknown. Within this web lies an intergalactic traveler of time and space. He has made a name for himself collecting sacred artifacts across the lands of gods and men. Many call him The Grandmaster . He is a lord of both chaos and order. He has endured the grand stare of Alutian, The Holy Star. He has held The Holy Flame of Titunus. But most of all, he has written the Sacred Prophecy; an ancient text containing all that he has witnessed. After traveling for centuries, he finds himself in a new realm known as “Earth”. His journey is far from complete, but in order to finish his quest he must first gather the minds of the faithful. He must pass his powerful knowledge onto the Loyal Zealots of The Grandmaster . — " Meet Austin’s grooviest intergalactic-musical cult ," KUTX The article from KUTX then explains that the band was inspired by a scammer who called himself Grandmaster. The lore only bubbled up from there. I love all their music, and have it all downloaded. Never been able to attend a live show due to my distance from Austin, but that would be nice someday. I recommend checking them out. Subscribe via email or RSS
Admittedly, I don’t go on my town’s main street much. It’s not the most exciting place, and I don’t have fun money most of the time. But this morning, before I go in for work, I met up with a friend for some coffee and breakfast. The food and coffee were overpriced, but what can you do I suppose. I don’t mind spending more for a nice outing sometimes. It’s so peaceful to simply talk to a friend over coffee, part ways, and then sit in the sun by the ducks by the river. Surprisingly, I saw ducklings tottering around in mid January. Subscribe via email or RSS
Kingdom: Two Crowns is the third, and definitive, installment in a game series, released in 2018 by Raw Fury and now available on Android and iOS, among other platforms. The gist is that you play a monarch in medieval Europe, with the option to co-op with a friend, and build your kingdom from the ground up. Hire villagers and employ them as archers, builders, farmers, knights, and others, then expand continuously to upgrade your kingdom and move to other islands. The catch is that there is a monster called the Greed, which manifests at night as these little purple guys who want to break down your defenses and steal your gold and crown. If you lose your crown, you “die.” Death in the game is not too bad; sent back to Island One with no money, you can simply work your way back to your island you were on before and keep most progress. Additionally, it can be beneficial to die, as that also resets the difficulty counter. As each day passes, the Greed gets, well, greedier. More of them spawn, they’re harder to defeat, and in late stages more powerful versions appear, such as the Breeder, which spawns more little Greeds and takes a long while to kill. When you die, the global day count resets by 100, meaning you get to keep a lot of progress and things are easier for a while. There are multiple skins of the game available to choose from. This guide focuses on the base game, or Europe. Different skins have different variations in where things are located and how they work. Since the difficulty has not ramped up yet in the start, it’s best to focus on unlocking technologies and expanding to other islands rather than maxing out on upgrades for defenses. Which ages you’ve unlocked determines what you’re able to build and accomplish: In Wooden Age , all things buildable are wood, and only wood. This age is particularly limiting in buildings and upgrades, and while passable in defense this age notable lacks any way to retaliate against the Greed . While the Kingdom may be capable of holding against the Greed, these will adapt, urging the Kingdom to advance into the Stone Age. Notable wooden purchases available in New Lands and Two Crowns : — Kingdom Wiki - Technology You will start out here, and the best way to progress is to focus on 1. Basic walls and archer tower defenses, and 2. income, so you can head to Island Two as soon as possible. Why go to Island Two? On the first island, there are great things to unlock, but you will not have progressed enough yet to unlock them. For example, the griffin needs gems to unlock (only on Island Two and onwards), as well as the Ballista Hermit and the Archery statue. The boat is much easier to get up and running on Island Two, so it makes sense to leave as soon as you are able. This also gives you an easier start on the second island because your Global Day Count, which affects difficulty, will be lower when you arrive because less days have passed. Income can be achieved in a few ways. The first main one is archers, who hunt animals and defend the kingdom from the Greed. Next, you can hire farmers, the vendor of which requires a sector with a wooden back wall (expanding to have more upgraded walls further out makes more sectors of the kingdom). Farmers remain one of the most lucrative sources of income in the game, being able to harvest crops every day and foraging plants in the winter. It is best to ensure there is a wall in front of a farm before building a farm so that the Greed don't simply walk up and attack your farmers, though. Something I've noticed is that building archer towers out into the fields where wildlife are can be an efficient way to make archers hunt more. Instead of wandering around as much, an archer in a tower will shoot any animals that come near. Staggering them out into hunt-able areas leads to more animals shot. Clearing the trees to let grass grow, leading to more rabbit burrows, is also advisable. Additionally, obtaining the Stag Mount on Island Two allows you to attract deer to your hunters to shoot. For workers, It may be good to avoid expanding into recruitment camps until you need to, as at all stages in the game it's good to maximize workers. Destroying all trees between your base and the campsite will get rid of it. If you find an open area past the camps that allows wall construction, you can extend the kingdom past the camps and chop down all trees except the two immediately flanking the camp. — Kingdom Wiki - Starting, surviving, & winning And another tip from the same guide concerning efficiently using your mount: Remember, if you completely run your horse dry of stamina, it'll take longer before you can run again. It's a good idea to stop running & walk as soon as the horse starts puffing, to maximize speed. If you stop the horse in a grassy area, the horse will eat some grass and fully recover within a second or two. Another notable source of income only available on the first two islands is the Merchant. He walks to the middle of the Kingdom, near the Town Center, and pays you eight coins. In return, you pay him back one coin, and he will return the next day with a new shipment. With a net gain of seven coins, this can be a reliable source of coins in the starting islands. Concerning the Town Center: when you upgrade to the highest wood tier, you unlock the banker, which can remain incredibly useful, as he can deposit coins for you and accrue interest on them. Interest earnings are daily and depend on the number of coins stored. If a total of only one or two coins have been deposited, there will be no interest, and that amount won't change with time. If at least three, up to one hundred coins are stored, the Banker increases the funds by seven percent (rounded up) per day. When more than one hundred coins are stored, the interest rate becomes a solid eight coins per day. Technically speaking, once this condition is met, every five days the Monarch can refill their coin purse completely. This will work every five days indefinitely by utilizing the earnings from interest alone. — Kingdom Wiki - Banker Once you leave to Island Two, you can unlock Stone Age. Stone Age is the first obtainable technology. It's a defining moment in the fight against the Greed, as with squires, the Kingdom may now assault portals, and upon their ruins build powerful teleporters. Notable stone purchases: — Kingdom Wiki - Technology As mentioned, Stone Age is required for what is in my opinion the meat of the game. Once you start destroying portals, you can deal with less Greed and expand more, eventually being able to eliminate the Greed from a given island once you reach Iron Age. You can also hire Pikemen once you have a stone walled sector, which are incredible subjects that can fish to produce income (including during the winter) and effectively defend the kingdom from the Greed at the walls. Once the Town Center has been upgraded to Stone, you can pay for four shields on it, which act as sort of "job vendors," where unemployed subjects can be hired as Squad Leaders at the Town Center. Once someone has picked up a shield, it is replaced with a banner of the same colors, and you will know they've been employed. When a Squad Leader/Knight dies, you will see a ripped banner, which you can pay to replace with a shield in order to make a new Squad Leader. This leader brings a squad of archers to the end of the kingdom walls, ready to be ordered to attack and destroy a Greed portal. While it is common for the squad leaders to be defeated and have to be re-employed while attacking a portal, damage to the portal is permanent, so you can keep trying until it is fully demolished. To get stronger leaders, you can upgrade them to a Knight, which requires a forge. To get a forge, you need the town center last tier, the iron keep; additionally, it requires a large enough empty space protected by an iron wall, that is, with an iron back wall. For this you need Iron Technology, found on the Fourth Island. Also on the Second Island is three gem chests, meaning you can start collecting gems to use on new mounts, statues, and Hermits. 1 The Stag mount, Scythe Statue, Dog, and Stable Hermit are also on the island. I recommend getting any statue when you can, as it gives a blessing that applies across all islands, until a monarch loses their crown, after which you can pay a coin fee to reactivate the statue. For example, the blessing the Scythe Statue gives is increasing the number of supported farm plots. Once you have worked on the Second Island enough to want to unlock Iron Age, head to the Third Island. The boat will take a bit more time to build now, and something to consider is expanding the Kingdom walls past the boat remnants while your builders work on it. If you purchase new parts but they have not been built yet, Greed can steal your parts. Also, if you're wondering how to not crash your boat every time you go to an island, you do need to destroy the dock portal of a given island in order to build a Lighthouse. This structure will ensure the boat will not be destroyed when you land on an island containing a Lighthouse. You can then upgrade the Lighthouses to prevent it from decaying like the rest of the island when you are gone from it for too long. The Third Island is not too exciting, although there are some important considerations on it. There's another mount, more gems, the Builder Statue (increases maximum wall HP), and the Bakery Hermit. The Bakery Hermit allows high tier archer towers to be upgraded into bakeries for six coins; the bakery is an unmanned structure that produces treats designed to lure vagrants out of their camps. This makes recruiting them easier, especially on larger islands. You don't want to put a bakery out in the wilderness though, since Greed can steal the treats. Hermits can also be brought with you to new islands, so the Bakery Hermit is probably most useful on Islands Four and Five. Island Four has the Iron Mine, to bring you into the Iron Age. It also has offensive mounts, such as the Bear and Lizard, and the Warrior hermit, which can turn high tier archer towers into a Warrior Tower. This tower allows you to recruit additional squad leaders by paying for more shields. The Iron Age brings the best weapons and defences the Kingdom has ever seen. To gain access to iron Monarchs must locate and construct the iron mine . Reaching iron will gradually shift the Kingdom's strategy from defense to offense. Notable things made possible through iron: — Kingdom Wiki - Technology The benefits of Iron Age (the final technology) are much stronger fortifications, forges to turn squad leaders into knights, and the Bomb, which is the final step to eliminate the Greed from a given island. Once enough portals are destroyed to reach the cave, you can launch the ultimate attack against the Greed hive. The steps you need to ideally take are: In late game, focus on upgrading everything to iron and destroying portals, as well as making catapults and fire barrels to defend yourself. Rinse and repeat on all your islands, and you're golden. Subscribe via email or RSS Hermits are potential subjects who know how to build useful, specialized structures in the Kingdom. ↩ I would ensure you have a mount with considerable speed/stamina for this. Even the default horse will do. ↩ boat – the way off the island bank – a place for storing spare coins. Shield – the equipment for squires Catapult – an area-effect weapon Teleporter – to travel long distances or spy from afar Pikes Europe Iron wall – the strongest type of wall Forge – where swords turn squires into knights Bomb – the ultimate anti-greed weapon. Hire as many squad leaders and supporting archers as possible, upgrading to knights where possible. Purchase a bomb March to the portal at the crack of dawn with the squads and builders pushing the bomb Pay coins to the builders and bomb to initiate entering the portal (remember that both members in a co-op game need to enter the portal) Fight your way through the Greed hordes inside until you reach the center of the hive Pay coins to ignite the bomb Run as fast as you can to the exit, as you have 15-30 seconds to escape with your crown intact. 2 Hermits are potential subjects who know how to build useful, specialized structures in the Kingdom. ↩ I would ensure you have a mount with considerable speed/stamina for this. Even the default horse will do. ↩
Hello all. I just finished the Core 2 part of the CompTIA A+ exam, and I can finally breathe. School has also been out for winter break, but between moving, parties, and holiday cheer, I have yet to post. No doubt I've been thinking about posting. I have two posts in drafts and more ideas on the shelf to visit. I have in fact been reading the posts of everyone on my feed as well, even if I haven't been replying. We'll see how long I can find time to post when my Spring semester rolls around 👀 Subscribe via email or RSS
Today I made a Python script to make my life a little easier when it comes to updating my Feeds page. I follow and un-follow blogs occasionally, so exporting that and then writing it up in Markdown is kind of a bummer. Instead, I have this script, which extracts the name of the blog, the URL, and the feed URL, then outputs it in the terminal so you can copy and paste it as markdown. Easy to share! Note that I made this specifically for how my .opml file works (I exported mine from Unread). YMMV. The syntax is: That last argument is because I have a tagging system. All of my personal blogs are under that tag I created in my reader. That way, readers of this blog who are interested in social blogging aren't getting stuff like The Verge or Ars Technica on my Feeds page. Only personal, indie blogs. opml_to_markdown.py Subscribe via email or RSS
I'm not dead, although I have been busy. Working, learning, dog-sitting, reading, the works. I'm trying incredibly hard to learn more about web development without burning out, while also doing school, and reading my books, and studying for a CLEP exam, and studying for my CompTIA A+ exam, and working, and buying my first house, and yeah... I've been continuing to read A Game of Thrones, recently during my work commute (30 min each way). I am finally over the halfway point, lol. I also finished Like a Mother by Angela Garbes on the 30th, which is a book about navigating the culture and science of pregnancy. I didn't know exactly what to expect when I got into it; I am mainly reading to learn more about the science behind it as well as learning parenting advice in preparation for having a family in the next 5 years. What I found was an incredibly written book that is emotional, evidence-based, anecdotal, eye-opening, blunt, raw, disgusting, and beautiful. I never thought one book could throw me around between really looking forward to pregnancy one day and being entirely grossed out by it. It's explicitly feminist (only occasionally in the annoying way), and shows me what a parent could be, and also what one could go through. Next, my fiancé is in a book club with our church, and they're reading For the Life of the World by Alexander Schmemann . He is an excellent writer and has a lot of deep things to say, but oh man I am not ready. It's about the sacramental life of the church, of life, really, and its contrast with secular life. I decided to switch over to Journey to Reality by Zachary Porcu , which has a lot of the same concepts but at a much higher level, almost too high for where I am as a catechumen. That doesn't matter at all, though, because this book completely changed my relationship with and in Orthodoxy. It answered some of my greatest problems and struggles with religion, God's nature, and Christianity in such a concise and simple way that I feel like a child who has learned to walk. I will probably write more in-depth on that eventually, but wow!! I would recommend this book to anyone who is considering Christianity at all, and especially to new Orthodox people. Zachary does not beat around the bush. I'll be heading home from dog-sitting for my sister tomorrow, and probably go to this one bar in San Antonio with my fiancé and his friend. This morning I finally set up Crafty Controller on my homelab, which is an administrator panel for managing and configuring Minecraft servers very easily. It's been so relieving and I love having it already. More Minecraft to be played later, then. Subscribe via email or RSS
In the latest email from Terminal Trove , I spotted a tool called Reddix . It's a terminal user interface for reddit, where you can set up your account and browse distraction-free through a simple reddit interface using the keyboard and keyboard shortcuts. You can upvote, downvote, and even view images using the kitty graphics protocol. The setup isn't hard. If you have eget, you can run to install it. You can also install the latest release from GitHub using . You also need kitty graphics if you want to show images and videos. You can use homebrew on macOS to do this with The more technical part appears to be actually signing in, but it's still not that hard. Here are the instructions on the Reddix GitHub: Create a Reddit “script” at https://www.reddit.com/prefs/apps and set the redirect URI to . Launch reddix, press m, and follow the guided menu for setup. Prefer to configure things manually? Copy into and fill in your credentials. Your "User ID" is the App ID you get emailed after creating the script from your account, and it gives you the secret to input on Reddix as well. Then, you authorize Reddix to use your account and you're all set. It probably won't be my daily driver, but it's certainly fun to use :) Subscribe via email or RSS Create a Reddit “script” at https://www.reddit.com/prefs/apps and set the redirect URI to . Launch reddix, press m, and follow the guided menu for setup. Prefer to configure things manually? Copy into and fill in your credentials.
The following is general advice and thoughts on how to cultivate more "coziness" in one's life. This is purely my own experience and not applicable to everyone everywhere. Coziness has almost become a bit of a buzzword lately. There are cozy aesthetics, cozy games, cozycore(?), and others, so I understand if this term has become tiresome to some people. But for me, this post is a bit of a moodboard for what I consider "cozy" to be. Hygge has also been thrown around a bit. I was first introduced to the term by my mom, who was raised by my Swedish grandmother and Danish grandfather. Because of this background, this is one value I hold close to my heart. Denmark.dk defines it this way: Hard to pronounce, hygge ("hooga") is difficult to explain, too. In brief, hygge is about taking time away from the daily rush to be together with people you care about - or even by yourself - to relax and enjoy life's quieter pleasures. The word hygge dates back to around 1800, at least in the meaning it has today. However, various definitions of hygge can be traced back to the Middle Ages, where a similar Old Norse word meant "protected from the outside world." Hygge is often about informal time together with family or close friends. Typically, the setting is at home or another quiet location, or perhaps a picnic during the summer months. It usually involves sharing a meal and wine or beer, or hot chocolate and a bowl of candy if children are included. There is no agenda. You celebrate the small joys of life, or maybe discuss deeper topics. It is an opportunity to unwind and take things slow. This is certainly when I am happiest, as someone who loves being alone, sharing food, and enjoying small things, and especially as we enter my favorite season. What follows are further stream-of-consciousness thoughts about it. Soft lighting. I try to not turn lights on when possible. Lamps, fairy lights, candles, and most importantly, natural lighting during the day from windows. Textural comfort. Soft throws, blankets, fleece, knit sweaters, rugs, things that invite comforting touch. Natural elements. Plants (even fake ones!), stones, wood. Scent. I am actually pretty particular about what scents; not those disgusting $10 candles from hobby lobby or Walmart that smell like cinnamon-flavored detergent. Usually a little bit more of a natural candle, or even baking something like bread or a dessert can make a natural nice scent in the space. Sound, or lack thereof. Sometimes while reading, I put on an ambient playlist depending on time of day, or prefer silence so I can hear my own thoughts. The best is definitely rain outside, although I only get that rarely. Listening to calming and groovy music also does the trick, and sometimes it's good to do absolutely nothing else but soak in it. Hot drinks. Carefully prepared, fresh-ground coffee in the morning, or a brisk English tea such as English Breakfast or Earl Grey. Enjoy it slowly and thoughtfully, hopefully with light reading. ONLY before 12:00-13:00, which brings me to the next point, Sleep. Reduce screen usage before bed, go to sleep by 22:00 or at the latest 23:00, and ideally read in the last hour before closing my eyes and falling asleep. My reading is done on an e-reader, specifically the Kobo Libra (B&W), for a closer experience to a regular book. Cooking at home. Stews, hearty meals, baked goods. Crafting or making, using your hands to crochet or knit or sew, journal or even painting. Speaking of reading, create a little nook for it. The couch with a tall glass of water or tea, a chair by the window or a lamp, anything. Board games or puzzles with others. Walking and exercise. While having a delightful, calm walk outside in the beautiful weather might seem intuitive here, and pumping oneself up to crank out a crazy cardio workout might not, I would argue that the feeling of a very difficult workout once you're done is absolutely priceless. Not to mention undeniably cozy once you've showered and dressed into nicer clothes. Small gatherings. Invite friends to a little movie night or to have tea and play board games. Keep it small. Silence. Doing nothing. Traditions that anchor you. Planning a specific thing once a week to unwind and look forward to. Slowing down and not putting pressure on oneself to be productive. Being imperfect. I am a perfectionist to the bone, so I have to remind myself that what I create or do can suck sometimes. Being grateful for small things like noticing a bug or having access to clean water. Seasonal appreciation, such as eating seasonally or doing seasonally-specific activities. Devaluing money and career progress. This might seem appalling to some, but my mental health and time are more important than having new furniture, clothes, appliances, technology, or eating out every week. Sometimes eating rice and beans or shoveling raw tomatoes into my mouth brings me so much happiness and gratitude because of how little sensation I receive from it. Shopping used things that are a little shitty is freeing. Adding items I want to my wishlist and forgetting about it instead of impulse buying feels amazing. Till next time. Subscribe via email or RSS Soft lighting. I try to not turn lights on when possible. Lamps, fairy lights, candles, and most importantly, natural lighting during the day from windows. Textural comfort. Soft throws, blankets, fleece, knit sweaters, rugs, things that invite comforting touch. Natural elements. Plants (even fake ones!), stones, wood. Scent. I am actually pretty particular about what scents; not those disgusting $10 candles from hobby lobby or Walmart that smell like cinnamon-flavored detergent. Usually a little bit more of a natural candle, or even baking something like bread or a dessert can make a natural nice scent in the space. Sound, or lack thereof. Sometimes while reading, I put on an ambient playlist depending on time of day, or prefer silence so I can hear my own thoughts. The best is definitely rain outside, although I only get that rarely. Listening to calming and groovy music also does the trick, and sometimes it's good to do absolutely nothing else but soak in it. Hot drinks. Carefully prepared, fresh-ground coffee in the morning, or a brisk English tea such as English Breakfast or Earl Grey. Enjoy it slowly and thoughtfully, hopefully with light reading. ONLY before 12:00-13:00, which brings me to the next point, Sleep. Reduce screen usage before bed, go to sleep by 22:00 or at the latest 23:00, and ideally read in the last hour before closing my eyes and falling asleep. My reading is done on an e-reader, specifically the Kobo Libra (B&W), for a closer experience to a regular book. Cooking at home. Stews, hearty meals, baked goods. Crafting or making, using your hands to crochet or knit or sew, journal or even painting. Speaking of reading, create a little nook for it. The couch with a tall glass of water or tea, a chair by the window or a lamp, anything. Board games or puzzles with others. Walking and exercise. While having a delightful, calm walk outside in the beautiful weather might seem intuitive here, and pumping oneself up to crank out a crazy cardio workout might not, I would argue that the feeling of a very difficult workout once you're done is absolutely priceless. Not to mention undeniably cozy once you've showered and dressed into nicer clothes. Small gatherings. Invite friends to a little movie night or to have tea and play board games. Keep it small. Silence. Doing nothing. Traditions that anchor you. Planning a specific thing once a week to unwind and look forward to. Slowing down and not putting pressure on oneself to be productive. Being imperfect. I am a perfectionist to the bone, so I have to remind myself that what I create or do can suck sometimes. Being grateful for small things like noticing a bug or having access to clean water. Seasonal appreciation, such as eating seasonally or doing seasonally-specific activities. Devaluing money and career progress. This might seem appalling to some, but my mental health and time are more important than having new furniture, clothes, appliances, technology, or eating out every week. Sometimes eating rice and beans or shoveling raw tomatoes into my mouth brings me so much happiness and gratitude because of how little sensation I receive from it. Shopping used things that are a little shitty is freeing. Adding items I want to my wishlist and forgetting about it instead of impulse buying feels amazing.
My history with IRC is spotty. I've explored it a couple different times, but I always struggled with 1. understanding it, 2. setting it up, and 3. finding channels that I actually enjoy. I thought I would give it another go recently. I saw a mention of a modern client called Halloy on HackerNews the other day, and it has a beautiful interface. I'm not a huge fan of how the windows open and arrange, as it becomes very confusing very fast, but I enjoy the appearance and theme selections. Overall, it's very functional. IRC, or Internet Relay Chat, is one of the oldest forms of online communication, created back in 1988, long before social media or modern messaging apps existed. Think of it as a giant network of chat rooms (called channels) where people can talk in real time about shared interests, ask questions, or just hang out. Each channel usually focuses on a specific topic. This is anything from technology and gaming to books or music, and you can join any that interest you. Although it might look simple compared to apps like Discord or Slack, IRC remains popular among certain communities for a few key reasons. It’s fast, lightweight, and distraction-free: there are no ads, algorithms, or constant notifications (unless you want to be notified of new messages by your client). You connect, chat, and leave when you want. Many developers, hobbyists, and open-source communities especially still use IRC because it works everywhere, even on very old or low-power devices, and doesn’t rely on any one company’s servers or apps. It's decentralized . If you know me, you know I love decentralization. IRC works using a simple client–server model. When you connect to IRC, you use a client , which is a piece of software on your computer or phone, to join an IRC server. That server is part of a larger network made up of many connected servers that share messages between each other. When you send a message in a channel (a public chat room that usually starts with a “#”, like or ), your client sends it to the server you’re connected to. The server then relays that message to all other servers on the same network, which deliver it to everyone else currently in that channel. Each person on IRC has a nickname , or colloquially referred to as a nick , and messages can be sent either to an entire channel or directly to another user in private (DM or direct message). Communication happens entirely in plain text, and commands, like joining a channel, changing your nickname, or setting up your status, are typed manually, usually starting with a slash (for example, , like Minecraft commands lol). Because the system is decentralized, there’s no single company controlling IRC. Anyone can set up their own server or network, and clients simply connect using the IRC protocol, which runs over standard internet ports (usually 6667 or 6697 for encrypted connections). This design makes IRC lightweight, flexible, and still functional decades after it was first created. Check out the Basics of IRC from Libera Chat . Libera Chat is a Swedish nonprofit organisation... Libera Chat’s purpose is to provide services such as a community platform for free open-source software and peer directed projects on a volunteer basis. -- About Libera Chat page So, how do I know what network and channels to join? Uh, I don't know. Well, I do know, but I haven't found anything super intriguing yet. You kind of have to find your niche, and a lot of channels have very few people or not much conversation going on. I think your best bet is Find a channel that is somewhat active and start talking, asking questions, and answering questions. If you're in , ask for thoughts on something you're coding, or help a new programmer if you're a Python expert. I don't use my real name on IRC channels, so that makes it a bit easier to explore chatting publicly with strangers, not to mention keeping my identity a little safer. Also, Find or create an invite-only channel/network. This leads to more tight-knit and active communities sometimes, like a Discord server. Starting your own IRC network is a bit more difficult, especially considering security hardening and uptime, but most people can make a channel on an existing network such as Libera Chat without too much issue. And maybe you're a self-hosting wizard who wants to tinker with a network, then do it!! It's cool! It also gives you full control over your chats, in the same way self-hosting anything does. If you just want to make a channel, you can very easily do so on a network like Libera Chat. They have a guide to check out at their Creating Channels page. To stay safe and secure while using IRC, it’s important to treat it much like any other public online space. First, always connect using SSL/TLS encryption (usually by using port 6697) to protect your messages from being intercepted. Choose a strong, unique nickname and avoid sharing personal information like your real name, location, or email address in public channels or profiles. Because IRC is open and often anonymous, anyone can join a channel, so it’s best to assume everything you say is public. Many networks let you register your nickname with a service like NickServ , which helps prevent others from impersonating you. If someone is bothering or harassing you, you can use the command to block them or contact a network operator for help. Finally, use a trusted client (software used to connect to IRC) and avoid clicking suspicious links shared in chat, since IRC usually has no built-in spam or malware protection. Here is what I used to find the most active channels and networks. Libera.Chat channels sorted by number of users and Top 100 IRC networks . You can use the in whatever network you're already in to see all (discoverable) channels. In general, check out this list of awesome IRC sources . It has client recommendations, both hosted and self-hosted, a collection of networks and links for other ways to find channels and networks, frameworks for bots and managing your own channel or network, and more. I would say clients are even more intimidating than trying to find channels and networks. Usability, appearance, features... so much to balance. I would still check awesome-irc for client research, but also Libera Chat's little guide about choosing a client. I tried Halloy briefly and enjoyed it, and frankly haven't tried too many clients but I went with TheLounge. It's self-hosted and has modern features like Push notifications, link previews, and file uploads. Always connected to your servers while you're offline, removing the need for bouncers and allowing you to reconnect from any device. Free and open-source under the MIT license. Works wherever Node.js runs. I have it running on my Proxmox-running home server in an LXC container I spun up in like 30 minutes. Multi-user support, so you can share it with friends without intersecting chats and server connections. Theme selection. There are custom, user-made themes, and two generic "light" and "dark" themes you can choose. If you enjoy IRC for the retro feel, then you can still choose a retro-looking theme for TheLounge if you want. I enjoy visual customization quite a bit. It looks nice, it feels nice to use, it's organized, and I really like always being connected. Hey, check out this game I found on Rizon.Net. It's an "idle RPG", where the aim is to always idle. This means no chatting, try not to run commands, anything. This is the only way to level up. Then, random little events can happen. You can choose your character name, class, and alignment, which affects your gameplay. It's a really fun start if you're nervous about actually chatting but want to get into IRC a bit. The Idle RPG is just what it sounds like: an RPG in which the players idle. In addition to merely gaining levels, players can find items and battle other players. However, this is all done for you; you just idle. There are no set classes; you can name your character anything you like, and have its class be anything you like, as well. -- #rizonirpg Idle RPG: Game Info Let's say you already have a client. I'm using mine as an example. To join something like Idle RPG, it's simple. As you can see, my character Kagrenak, who is a Sorcerer, is struggling a bit. Oh well. I was going to write a guide on setting up TheLounge as self-hosted but the docs really have everything you need. TheLounge docs is basically what I used. Mine is a Debian-based LXC container with 2 CPU cores, 2GB of RAM, and 4GB of storage. You can also set up a VPS with a reverse proxy, or use an old computer laying around, whatever you want to containerize and run it. You can actually use Docker too I believe. I personally used Cloudflare tunnels to expose it safely. To close, have fun, try out cool platforms, and please let me know if you have a cool channel or would be interested in an invite-only one to hang out! If you have trouble or questions with setting up, feel free to email me as well. Subscribe via email or RSS Find a channel that is somewhat active and start talking, asking questions, and answering questions. If you're in , ask for thoughts on something you're coding, or help a new programmer if you're a Python expert. I don't use my real name on IRC channels, so that makes it a bit easier to explore chatting publicly with strangers, not to mention keeping my identity a little safer. Also, Find or create an invite-only channel/network. This leads to more tight-knit and active communities sometimes, like a Discord server. Starting your own IRC network is a bit more difficult, especially considering security hardening and uptime, but most people can make a channel on an existing network such as Libera Chat without too much issue. Libera.Chat channels sorted by number of users and Top 100 IRC networks . You can use the in whatever network you're already in to see all (discoverable) channels. Push notifications, link previews, and file uploads. Always connected to your servers while you're offline, removing the need for bouncers and allowing you to reconnect from any device. Free and open-source under the MIT license. Works wherever Node.js runs. I have it running on my Proxmox-running home server in an LXC container I spun up in like 30 minutes. Multi-user support, so you can share it with friends without intersecting chats and server connections. Theme selection. There are custom, user-made themes, and two generic "light" and "dark" themes you can choose. Connect to a network. TheLounge has these nice "+" signs you can just click to add, but it will vary on your client. In the image above, I added the channel to connect to automatically. However, you can add other channels using either a UI button like a "+" sign or usually just running a command like or whatever the channel name is.
It was my first time preparing a whole butternut squash from scratch recently. On Friday, I wanted a classic fall dinner: butternut squash soup, and some mashed potatoes with St Arnold Oktoberfest beer. It was delicious and amazing, but turns out that peeling and dicing a whole squash takes like 45 minutes and some elbow grease. Mine was a 3 lb squash. Luckily, I recently was gifted some suitable, sharp knives as an engagement gift, otherwise I would not have tried to attempt this with my prior, awful dull knife set. I chopped off each end, painstakingly peeled all of the skin off, chopped it in half, and continued chopping it down into little cubes. Since I wasn’t making the soup until that night, I stored the cubes in some Tupperware with about 1/4 inch of water and a damp paper towel over the top in the fridge. Sounds simple enough, but it took a lot of chopping and the worst part was gutting the goop and seeds. YouTube kept me company. I felt terrible about wasting anything, so I roasted the peels and seeds with some spices in the oven for a snack. Apparently, you can make homemade vegetable broth with the goop, but I really didn’t have time for that. That night, I was actually so tired from other stuff that day that my fiancé cooked the actual soup for me 🫠 but I did boil some potatoes, mash them, and make a side to go with the soup. It was so incredibly filling, I had no idea it would be so satiating. Then, the next day, we went to go see a house we’re looking to buy, and came home to make a dinner of shepherd’s pie and mulled wine with a pumpkin roll. We watched Over The Garden Wall, as we do every year in October, and overall had a jolly time. Tonight is a Margherita pizza from homemade dough, so I’m very excited :) I love making pizzas. Subscribe via email or RSS
Hello hello, I don't have much going on today, or recently for that matter. I got employed again (finally), and start next week, so I'll have less time for fun projects but more money for important life things. I might be getting my first house soon? Just starting with that. I have been playing more Kingdom: Two Crowns, and it's been super fun!! I actually reset my save once I learned more about the game, and have progressed to island two since then. I unlocked the stag mount and enemies are getting more difficult, by a little. I've been trying to convince my betrothed to play it to no avail. I've been working on a book about the history of the web, personal websites, blogs, individual publications and expressive thought via the internet, stuff like that. Definitely Bear Blog user adjacent as a topic, although it's mainly a historical timeline. I have the full outline and up to Chapter 3 drafted, since I've been in the hyper-motivated headspace lately for it. I might ask for feedback here once it's fully drafted. My guinea pig Pina may have a bladder stone according to the vet, and she got prescribed antibiotics and painkillers. Since then, she's been doing a lot better actually, and may not need surgery (which would be prohibitively expensive for me). I found this Lo-Fi cover channel that does video game and other media as Lo-Fi. I like the Elder Scrolls one a lot, and the art they made for it is really cute :) makes me want to boot up Skyrim again. I tried the Halloy IRC client that came up on HackerNews the other day. It's really nice and easy to use in my opinion, I recommend checking it out. I've been having a hard time finding IRC chats I care enough about to use it, though, lol. The one I found a recommendation for seemed too 4chan-y for my taste. Till next time. Subscribe via email or RSS I have been playing more Kingdom: Two Crowns, and it's been super fun!! I actually reset my save once I learned more about the game, and have progressed to island two since then. I unlocked the stag mount and enemies are getting more difficult, by a little. I've been trying to convince my betrothed to play it to no avail. I've been working on a book about the history of the web, personal websites, blogs, individual publications and expressive thought via the internet, stuff like that. Definitely Bear Blog user adjacent as a topic, although it's mainly a historical timeline. I have the full outline and up to Chapter 3 drafted, since I've been in the hyper-motivated headspace lately for it. I might ask for feedback here once it's fully drafted. My guinea pig Pina may have a bladder stone according to the vet, and she got prescribed antibiotics and painkillers. Since then, she's been doing a lot better actually, and may not need surgery (which would be prohibitively expensive for me). I found this Lo-Fi cover channel that does video game and other media as Lo-Fi. I like the Elder Scrolls one a lot, and the art they made for it is really cute :) makes me want to boot up Skyrim again. I tried the Halloy IRC client that came up on HackerNews the other day. It's really nice and easy to use in my opinion, I recommend checking it out. I've been having a hard time finding IRC chats I care enough about to use it, though, lol. The one I found a recommendation for seemed too 4chan-y for my taste.
Just a quick BlogLog: Added resources for further Bear Blog customization and tips and tricks to the post (Guide) Intro To Social Blogging Fixed the Reply via email section in the post (Guide) Intro To Social Blogging to actually use the post_title attribute so that it automatically fills the subject line. Wish someone had pointed this out to me 😅 Subscribe via email or RSS Added resources for further Bear Blog customization and tips and tricks to the post (Guide) Intro To Social Blogging Fixed the Reply via email section in the post (Guide) Intro To Social Blogging to actually use the post_title attribute so that it automatically fills the subject line. Wish someone had pointed this out to me 😅
A few months ago, I started exercising regularly. I mean, I've been "exercising regularly" on and off for years, to no one's surprise, but I have been actually consistently doing it for probably my longest streak yet now. Also to no one's surprise, this has improved by mental and physical health, made me feel more confident, and expelled anxious energy. Here's a timeline of exercising in my life thus far: As a teen, my brother and his wife had a membership to a really bougie gym . I went sometimes, skinny as a twig, and thought it was pretty fun. They had a sauna, climbing wall, pool, hot yoga, guided cycling, the works. Eventually it cost too much money for my brother to continue going, and I didn't even attend that much anyway after a while. Use parents' home gym to work out every other weekday. Helped to be at home, as I have agoraphobic-adjacent tendencies, especially related to driving. Eventually they dismantled their home gym to use the room for something else. I used the free app Caliber to track and plan workouts, which I still recommend for people new to working out who don't know where to start. Lower standards for exercising and do it solely in my bedroom. I found that if I saw exercising as something you need a bunch of equipment and a gym for, it actually kept me from exercising more. I kept one pair of dumbbells in my room as my only equipment, and started working out every weekday. I was also off-put by having to change clothes to work out every day, since I get all sweaty, so I simply didn't wear clothes. That's uh, not something you can do at the gym. This is also when I started using the app Hevy , which I still use to this day. You can find curated workout routines for free and track them easily, with little videos on how to do sets. Get membership at Planet Fitness, because my job at the time covered gym expenses. This showed me the power of gyms, and how much easier they make working out. Having an actual treadmill, weights, and cycling machinery was awesome, and I started running the most I ever had since high school P.E class. I didn't do much strength training because I was (am) socially anxious and scared of people nearby. This was ultimately the downside of having a gym, because I had to drive to it. It wasn't that far, I just really am that anxious about driving. Present day, I use my fiancé's parents' home gym because it's on the same property. It has everything I need: dumbbells, treadmill, air conditioning. This means I now work out 4 days a week for an hour, which has been fantastic. I'm still working on being able to run longer and faster, and lifting more than 30 lbs. I do about 30-40 minutes strength training, and 20-30 minutes running usually. When I'm really feeling unmotivated, sometimes I only run, or I do high-incline walking instead of running if my leg muscles are feeling sensitive. From the beginning, the point was very much just doing some exercise each day, no matter how small. A walk, 10 minutes at the gym, whatever, just go do it . I can't really say it has gotten much easier to exercise; I'm procrastinating going to work out this second, writing this post... Something that helps me go do something I am mentally resisting doing, such as working out, has been to-do lists. This doesn't work for everyone, but I've found that having an annoying notification on my phone, set to repeat every day, gets me to Do The Thing. The satisfaction of clearing that day's tasks is phenomenal as well. I use Todoist for this. The free plan is more than enough for me, personally, and I even have a shared to-do list I share with my fiancé. This includes a grocery list, upcoming plans with friends and family, and a whole shared project just for wedding planning. My routines include simple stuff for now, such as working out, reading scriptures for 30 minutes 1 , and attending catechumen class every Wednesday at 20:00. Having a to-do list for my habits has been immensely useful, especially sorting them by day of the week, and having individual Home/School/Work projects. Hopefully I'll keep exercising like I am, and maybe even more, with more motivation. Subscribe via email or RSS If you're curious, I use the Orthodox Study Bible , and am a catechumen of the Eastern Orthodox Christian Church currently, under the OCA jurisdiction. My religious journey/life is a whole thing that I'm not sure I'll post much about besides references, but feel free to email/Signal me about it if you're interested. ↩ As a teen, my brother and his wife had a membership to a really bougie gym . I went sometimes, skinny as a twig, and thought it was pretty fun. They had a sauna, climbing wall, pool, hot yoga, guided cycling, the works. Eventually it cost too much money for my brother to continue going, and I didn't even attend that much anyway after a while. Use parents' home gym to work out every other weekday. Helped to be at home, as I have agoraphobic-adjacent tendencies, especially related to driving. Eventually they dismantled their home gym to use the room for something else. I used the free app Caliber to track and plan workouts, which I still recommend for people new to working out who don't know where to start. Lower standards for exercising and do it solely in my bedroom. I found that if I saw exercising as something you need a bunch of equipment and a gym for, it actually kept me from exercising more. I kept one pair of dumbbells in my room as my only equipment, and started working out every weekday. I was also off-put by having to change clothes to work out every day, since I get all sweaty, so I simply didn't wear clothes. That's uh, not something you can do at the gym. This is also when I started using the app Hevy , which I still use to this day. You can find curated workout routines for free and track them easily, with little videos on how to do sets. Get membership at Planet Fitness, because my job at the time covered gym expenses. This showed me the power of gyms, and how much easier they make working out. Having an actual treadmill, weights, and cycling machinery was awesome, and I started running the most I ever had since high school P.E class. I didn't do much strength training because I was (am) socially anxious and scared of people nearby. This was ultimately the downside of having a gym, because I had to drive to it. It wasn't that far, I just really am that anxious about driving. Present day, I use my fiancé's parents' home gym because it's on the same property. It has everything I need: dumbbells, treadmill, air conditioning. This means I now work out 4 days a week for an hour, which has been fantastic. I'm still working on being able to run longer and faster, and lifting more than 30 lbs. I do about 30-40 minutes strength training, and 20-30 minutes running usually. When I'm really feeling unmotivated, sometimes I only run, or I do high-incline walking instead of running if my leg muscles are feeling sensitive. If you're curious, I use the Orthodox Study Bible , and am a catechumen of the Eastern Orthodox Christian Church currently, under the OCA jurisdiction. My religious journey/life is a whole thing that I'm not sure I'll post much about besides references, but feel free to email/Signal me about it if you're interested. ↩
Goodmorning everyone 😪 it's 10:00 here. Going to be taking my guinea pig Pina to the vet today, I think she has a UTI... She stays cute though. Subscribe via email or RSS
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