What I’ve been up to

I haven’t posted a personal blog post on here for several years! Basically because I’ve been posting stuff on Facebook and Twitter instead, both of which I’ve soured on for rather obvious reasons.

It’s possible that this is all a low point in the world of social media, and we’ll all bounce back and continue to put up with these massive, monolithic, attention-hogging, ad-funded, billionaire-controlled health hazards – or maybe we won’t! But at least for me, what’s consistent has been this site, which I’ve been running in various forms for about 25 years.

So, since last time I checked in, I’ve become a father of three. My oldest is now five years old and in kindergarten. And then Anna and I went and had twins, who just turned a year old last week. People often joke that children are a full-time job, but it’s absolutely not a joke. In addition to our full-time jobs that make us money, the rest of our waking hours (minus about two at the end of each day) are spent feeding, cleaning, transporting, changing, napping, and simply just being there for the kids. It’s rewarding, life-changing work, but it is still work.

I’m still at Lab Zero, pretty much doing what I’ve been doing there for over 12 years now. I’m working with my 30th client (I keep count), putting together a really damn good Next– and Ant-based front-end for an internal content management system. Since the pandemic, I’ve been working from home, and while I miss seeing my coworkers on a daily basis, I do not miss the trans-bay commute, and appreciate being that much closer to the family when (not if) I’m needed. LZ keeps us connected with regular Zoom meetups via Donut, other team-building events, and occasional lunch get-togethers, so I don’t feel like I’m working in a vacuum.

During those couple of hours that I’m not working, I’m often playing dance games. The only thing this blog’s been updated with over the past few years has been guides on DanceDanceRevolution machines, in part because I now own one myself, and it’s sitting in our recently rebuilt garage. I’ve played DDR for over two decades now, but ever since I got my machine I’ve greatly improved. The highlights from my Twitch channel illustrate my progress pretty plainly. The DDR community is tight-knit as always, and while I’m definitely senior to most people who still play, I like to consider myself a part of it.

That said, being part of a community nowadays really requires time and dedication, which I honestly don’t have a lot of. While I wish I could show my face at more in-person events, post more about my progress, or regularly chat on Discord or elsewhere, I’m far too busy. This is a good thing! But it’s still hard not to experience FOMO.

Honestly, the reason I’m posting here is because I feel like I’ve turned a corner in my effort to be a Citizen of the Internet. It’s something I’ve strived to be ever since 1994. But I think that feeling stems from a desire to feel like I belong to something notable. But the fact is that everyone is an Internet citizen now, so I find the value of maintaining a constant Internet presence somewhat questionable. It’s a symptom of age – I “belong” to my family first and foremost. And I realize this sense of peer pressure I feel isn’t actually coming from anyone other than myself. So while it’s important to have friends with whom you can speak your mind and keep up to date on the latest happenings, social media isn’t a necessary component of that.

Does this mean I’ll be posting here more often? I dunno. Probably not! But it makes more sense for this to be the place for long-form thoughts I’d like to share, than having them siloed on a platform that doesn’t have my best interests in mind.

Take it easy out there! If any of this resonated with you, let me know, and keep in touch!