Not Quite Back to Normal (Weeknotes

It was kind of a blur of a week, but things are getting back to normal

I didn’t take any photos this week. Instead, I stole this one from my daughter, who is studying abroad in Florence.

Here’s what happened during the week of May 20 to May 26, 2024. A few items are from week 20 but were omitted from last week’s update.

⛏️ I returned to work on Monday morning and started to dig through nearly a week’s worth of old emails and figure out what the heck I was doing before I left.

❌ I canceled my father’s Amateur Radio Service license with the FCC.

✅ I came across a post pointing out that the Apple Reminders app can be configured to view tasks in columns like a Kanban board. It’s not as fully featured as Notion, but I like that it’s built in and already exists on all my devices.

The wheels fell off this week on #WeblogPoMo2024. I missed two days! But I’ll be honest it still didn’t feel like a “normal” week. I’m optimistic that things will get closer to “normal” in week 22.

📜 I accompanied my mother to a meeting with her attorney to discuss my father’s estate and next steps. It looks like things won’t be as complicated as we thought. Good news!

🗣️ My employer held an internal data conference this week, and I was one of the speakers. My talk was on the subject how our technology modernization strategy and data architecture approaches are interrelated. (That sentence bored me too.) I’m glad that’s over with.

🛏️ This is a long holiday weekend here in the States, and I spent the first day of it (Saturday) doing chores around the house. One of the big jobs was disassembling and removing beds from two bedrooms in preparation to bring in and assemble two new beds. I think another Ikea trip is in my future.

🪭 Also climbed up into the attic so I could take some measurements for a new motor for the attic fan, which has been out of service since we bought the house. I ordered a new motor, pulley, and belt so now it’s a matter of waiting for them to show up so I can see whether it all fits.

🟰 Received this nice thank you card from Human Rights Campaign for being members these last 21 years.

Links and Apps

I wonder if I can repurpose one of my really old iPads using the Photo Frame app.

🎵 Bandle is like Wordle but you have to guess the popular song/artist. I’ve played it a few times but I don’t imagine I’ll stick with it.

💻 HTMHell Tips is a nice collection, but not something I want to subscribe to. It reminds me that I need to get my bookmarks or digital garden (or whatever) organized so I can find stuff when I need it.

♊️ I’m not really into horoscopes but I do find them occasionally entertaining.

Reading

“Know What You Want. How to feel a little less lost” by Thomas Westenberg

“The Collapse Is Coming. Will Humanity Adapt?” by Peter Watts (The MIT Press Reader)

”Italian teenage computer wizard set to become the first saint of the Millennial generation” (AP News)

”The Death of Critical Thinking Will Kill Us Long Before AI” by Joan Westenberg

“No, You Can’t Recycle a Bowling Ball (But People Sure Keep Trying)” by Eleanor Cummins (Curbed/New York)

Movies

Unfrosted was a lot better—and funnier—than I expected it to be.

Mother of the Bride was totally predictable, but that’s not why we watch rom-coms is it?

Television

I started (and quickly stopped) watching Acapulco when it first came out. I returned to it this week though, and have been getting a lot of enjoyment from it. I’m just finishing up season 1 so I’ve still got some catching up to do.

Listening

Sunkissed (Apple Music)

Sport

⚽ Columbus Crew vs. Orlando City

Cheers!