Learning Log, January 2026

Work~Life

Work picked up in January after a planning and strategy-filled December.

I picked up a new office chair. It’s been on my wishlist for a while and a use-it-or-list-it flexible spending account balance gave a good excuse to finally get it.

I started a new art project that I hope to finish this month.

And despite the bitter cold, I’ve kept up with daily walks (layering works!). After healing from a dumb knee injury early last year, I’ve been diligent about walking or cycling nearly every day. I’ve found it’s a great way to clear my mind, especially after a long day of work.

Projects

• Started creating an ambient drone generator. I’m a big fan of Fred again’s music, and I wanted to create a browser-based version of the drones he uses under some of his music. The prototype works well, so now I’m working through ways to refine the sound and introduce more randomness.
• Converted my professional portfolio to Astro. This will make it easier to redesign—a project for a future month.
• Wrote a quick til on adding project hints to your terminal.

Workflow

I’ve been using LeaderKey for a while and I’ve been finding more and more uses for it. It’s an endlessly-flexible launcher for macOS made by the entertaining Mikkel Malmberg. It can launch almost anything—apps, links, folders, scripts, even other launchers like Raycast.

Digital gardening

Bookshelf

• Hum by Helen Phillips. Near-future dystopian vibes with an interesting premise involving AI, intelligent robots, and who can afford to escape it all. The ending fell flat for me, but I enjoyed reading it.
• The Courage to Start by John Bingham. Reads like a long blog post (meh), but I did save this bit: “I was able to develop a dynamic definition of success that took into account the reality of the moment. On some days, I succeeded just by getting out the door for a run. On others, success was measured by how hard I pushed myself during a tempo run or track workout. The side effect of focusing on what I was feeling was that words like “winning” and “losing” were replaced by words like “doing” and “becoming” in my vocabulary.”
• The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley. Really enjoyed this one. The gist: a government ministry in London recruits “expats” from across history to study the effects of time travel and how they adapt to modern life. I’d be surprised if this isn’t adapted for streaming.

Other reading

• Won’t Get Fooled Again: On aesthetic morality and neo-luddism I agreed with many of the points in this post by Sam Valenti (founder of Ghostly International). He has a thoughtful take on artists, AI, and whether we should judge art by how it’s made or by what artists do with the tools.
• Speed is never just speed a post on management seen through the lens of rugby. Highlighted this bit: “you don’t play fast by telling people to move faster, you earn speed by building the conditions that allow it”
• Your Life is the Sum Total of 2,000 Mondays. Shared by Chris Glass – great post on architecting ordinary days.

MEMEX

A few favorite visuals that I’ve added to MEMEX, my ever-growing swipe file:

• MINI × DEUS – might have saved every image from this case study
• Shape of Words — I like how the handwritten type brings out the texture
• Vintage price stickers — from Flickr!
• diarte . brand – the offset dot (and the meaning behind it) caught my eye