Personal Projects & Interests is my sandbox for life outside the office—where spreadsheets, sensors, and code tackle real-world chores and passions. Here you’ll see data models guiding gear buys, DIY automations that make the house (and gate) smarter, endurance training logged like an experiment, and reflections that tie it all together.
I love history, but raw history can be a bit boring and so I look for books that peer into the past with a different lens or narrative. Here, Tom Standage tells a popular history of the world through six beverages: beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea and Coca Cola. Full of the anecdotes and stories […] read more
Stephen Johnson loves making broad and interdisciplinary connections. He describes the complex evolution of technology, and the interactions of events leading to our modern world with an emphasis on understanding the true nature of role of innovation. In 289 pages, he surveys history, through the lens of the causal factors for science and technology in […] read more
As computers become powerful and solve more problems, the possibility that computers could evolve into a capability that could rise up against us and pose an existential threat is of increasing concern. After reading a recent book on artificial intelligence (AI), Superintelligence, Elon Musk recently said: I think we should be very careful about artificial […] read more
Tonight, I just finished Francis Collins’ book “The Language of God” where he lays out the basic facts of genetics and the human genome, denounces Creationism and rejects Intelligent Design theory, rebukes Richard Dawkins, and generally sets a tone for reasonableness between Christians and scientists. This is a lot of disjoint topics, and while he […] read more
Quick post, just to help others who might find themselves in a similar situation regarding a front-end loader washer with a door latch that doesn’t close Big trouble . . . door latch broke on our amana front end loader. First thing I do when I need to fix something is look for ownership so […] read more
From a one-star review on Amazon: The content was obvious and the tone was judgmental. The complete lack of nuance is painful. Apparently receiving an MD over 25 years ago makes this Dr. Laura-style author an expert in child psychology? Let’s leave the psychology topics to those professionally trained in that discipline. I’ve always enjoyed […] read more
If you ever have to replace your under the sink GE filter (specifically the GE GXULQR), be ready for a frustrating ride. It looks like this: You can find the manual here and the ge product page here. It is billed as the “Twist and Lock” Replacement Filter, the inside female hex socket sometimes rotates […] read more
Chrissy and I review our spending on a quarterly basis. Updating every 90 days isn’t too long to correct mistakes and remember purchases, but it also allows for the busy multi-week sprints that life presents us. While we have used every financial management program available, I’ve found the most straightforward and flexible solution is to […] read more
“My commitment must be to truth, not to consistency.” — Ghandi Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when […] read more
I, for one, am tired of arguing. I’m tired of trying to defend evangelicalism when its leaders behave indefensibly. Is there a problem with hypocrisy in the modern church? Yes, just as there was in the ancient, medieval and renaissance churches. Fortunately, Christian doctrine and practice accounts for the fact that all of the churches […] read more