I have multiple computers in my house, a couple desktops and a couple laptops which I use normally. I also have a file server, and a couple other servers for various things. I have a couple IP cameras which are isolated from the rest of the network, but don't really have any “Internet of Things” things. In other words, no network-enabled light bulbs. I do have some things controlled by X10 controllers connected to one computer, but no commercial embedded IoT.
Having a file server, as well as an LDAP directory to sync UIDs and GIDs, I have the makings of an infrastructure you might use in some sort of organization, not for one person. This is convenient when it comes to things like NFS or making backups, but there is a degree of overkill here.
It is kind of a hobby that happens to be useful. Things get frustrating as they often do with computers, but I don't mind being in control. Granted, a big part of maintaining sanity has been getting things to work simply and reliably, so that most of the time I'm not trying to fix things. Sometimes it's inevitable, of course.
Time moves a lot quicker these days, it seems. When I was in high school, a friend (who was about the age I am now) pointed out that when you're younger, a week is much longer in relation to your life than it is when you get older. I can relate to that now, since weeks seem to fly by a lot quicker than they did back then.
On one hand, I still have plenty of ideas and projects I want to attack. Things for the house, life goals, and projects, electrical, musical, etc., that I want to attack. It's actually still quite easy for me to think of things to put on the mental queue. On the other hand, after a long work day, it's nice to just settle down after dinner and watch Star Trek with a cat on one's lap. I fit chores in here and there, and work on little things, but when in that state it's hard to think about the loftier goals.
Finishing something, getting some kind of milestone, keeps me going. Even if it's nothing huge, just getting some kind of finished product is a great motivator. And at least I can say I made it part of the way.
Today there is a total solar eclipse across North America. I traveled to be with family in the path of totality, and... It's cloudy. This is too bad, since I was hoping to see some of the eclipse itself (through glasses), and yesterday was actually pretty clear. People have come a long way to this area as well. Different parts of the path are clear, but this is just what we risk in April in this area.
On the other hand, it should still be interesting in an hour when we actually get totality, since of course even with the clouds there's still some sunlight. It might actually be kind of interesting.
This is sort of a once-in-a-lifetime thing, not necessarily the eclipse itself but just coming through this area. I'm not the biggest space nerd, but it's a neat natural phenomenon that you may as well try to witness.
I've been up tonight watching some old Star Trek TNG episodes. I'm working my way through all seven seasons. I used to watch them with my family back in the 90s, but didn't really remember much of it.
Now it's late. It's peaceful here at night, and the sky is beautiful when it's clear out. There's light pollution, but not too much.
I don't always have something to write about, but I try to do it now and then because it feels good. I try to have something to say, to put down, but I like to keep it brief. I'm mainly thinking of this place.
I've always treated this as something a little more formal than microblogging, in the way of Mastodon. Yet not quite as involved as something I would publish on my Wordpress site. But part of me feels like I should just give one of them up – this place or Wordpress – and focus on one.
I actually don't think I will do that. I've decided that it's a decision I should make when I actually know what will work out, and I don't think I'm there quite yet. I do like that this is federated, and lightweight.
I technically have another blog at my site, my “main” one. This one just started because I wanted to play around with WriteFreely. I like it, it's simple, and plays well with the Fediverse. I treat it as something between the microblogging of something like Mastodon or Gotosocial, and the full-out Wordpress experience.
Truthfully, when I log into my Wordpress install, it feels like more of a project. Writing and publishing a post feels like writing a mini paper as opposed to just putting something down, which this seems more conducive to. I was thinking about whether or not I should just switch to one and stop doing the other, but I don't think I will.
I do want to play around with the ActivityPub plugin for Wordpress. It looks interesting, and is probably a logical step. I also still toy with the idea of a static site, although I'm going to do that with my own static site generator... Which I haven't written yet. I looked at the countless ones in existence already, and just decided that if/when I make that leap it will be with my own project.
I also have a Mediawiki install, which to me was a way to organize things like howtos and stuff that didn't feel right as a blog post... Although those could also be static pages I guess. I don't know.
Web development isn't my profession, and while it's something I want to learn more about I don't have a terribly constant web presence, or reason to have one outside of social media reasons. I have stuff I want to share, eventually, and I may just have to publish them by whatever means I can actually get content put down.
I'd like to move toward static pages, and maybe that will happen someday. I'll keep playing in the Fediverse, though.
It's cold, but calm and clear outside. I was putting air in my car tires earlier, which was king of a pain. But other than messing around with that this is kind of a neat time of year.
I have some traveling to do soon, but the weather should hold out. A little bit of snow, but nothing too bad, I think.
The days have started getting longer, but today it's cloudy, rainy, and unseasonably warm. It's winter now since the Solstice, but it doesn't exactly feel like it. Still, it feels like we're slowly clawing back more light, which is a tiny nugget of optimism I enjoy.
Christmas lights help, as does proper indoor lighting. I guess if going to a warmer climate is your thing, that's another option. The thing about winter is that back in the day, we usually had a decent amount of snow right now. I'm thinking about the 90s. Now, this seems like the new normal.
Snow could be a pain sometimes, even dangerous, but a tasteful amount of it added a unique glow to this time of year.
I wouldn't say it's pouring out, but it's raining pretty good. It's cloudy and dreary, and warm for this time of year. When I was younger, maybe 20 years ago, we got quite a bit more snow in this region.
I am now a homeowner, and have to shovel snow when enough accumulates. When I've had to do that it's obvious I may have romanticized snow more when I was younger. I mean, I did have to help shovel back then, but I also got snow days and did things like hike and build snow forts with friends. Now I have work to drive to (although I can work from home sometimes), and other stuff I need to commute to. Snow has different implications.
Still, I actually like getting a nice layer of snow each winter. It would be nice to have it around the holidays, but if it hits come January or February that's still something.
I bought a cat perch for George years ago. It didn't appear to be the greatest quality, but it held up at first. Now, years later, it's still holding up, although it's a little shaky. He can still jump on it, hop around on the platforms, and curl up in the little cylindrical cubby hole.
On the other hand, one of the posts was wrapped with jute twine, and that's more or less come undone. There's enough there that he can still claw and shred it, but it could use a re-twining. I think you can buy it at various home improvement-type stores.
Actually, cats tend to love that kind of twine, or similar surfaces. I'm not sure what it is but scratching it must feel good. It's advisable to have something like that, so that they don't find something else in your home to scratch and shred.