Rach Smith's notes & nuggets

Rach Smith's notes & nuggets https://rachsmith.com The online musings of Rach Smith. The new site https://rachsmith.com/the-new-site https://rachsmith.com/the-new-site/ Thu, 12 Nov 2026 00:00:00 +0000 meta golang <p>In recent years rachsmith.com has been an <a href="https://astro.build/" class="external">Astro</a> static site, hosted on Netlify. Astro is awesome, and I would recommend it to anyone for creating a personal site!</p> <p>I've been really enjoying using <a href="https://go.dev/" class="external">Go</a> since we brought it in to the <a href="https://codepen.io/" class="external">CodePen</a> stack. I decided I wanted to run a site on my own Go web server where I had 100% control and could do <em>anything</em> I wanted.</p> <p>So that's what this site is now. A Go binary, with a SQLite db, sitting on a Digital Ocean droplet, with <a href="https://bunny.net/cdn/" class="external">Bunny CDN</a> and Cloudflare for asset delivery and caching.</p> <p>In terms of authoring, my posts still start in my <a href="https://obsidian.md/" class="external">Obsidian</a> vault, and I've built another local Go web app that I use to keep the vault "in sync" with the posts on prod.</p> <p>Even though it took an age to fully rewrite the site from scratch, I am <em>loving</em> this new stack. With Go, anything is possible. A cool example is the social card images for each note: they are just some Go logic rendering out a .png file - there's no need for a setup where a headless browser takes a screenshot of anything. The Go logic creates and serves the file, and it is cached by Bunny.</p> <p>I will keep adding to the site and tooling around it. I would love to bring commenting back, but it's just such a PITA having to deal with and filter AI-powered spam 🫠. Next, I'm thinking I might build some sort of nugget-blasting mechanism which posts the same nugget on here, Bluesky and Mastodon.</p> <p>Oh, and the rainbow flecks: I painted them myself in Procreate on the iPad, and then used them in HTML canvas. Daniel Shiffman's <a href="https://natureofcode.com/" class="external">Nature Of Code</a> inspired the "perlin noised" wave across the header. I wanted something that would be truly unique and personal to me, in a sea of same same Claude-designed websites. I'm pretty happy with where it landed 🌈.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20The%20new%20site">Reply by email</a></p> A return and a redesign https://rachsmith.com/return-and-redesign https://rachsmith.com/return-and-redesign/ Wed, 11 Nov 2026 10:15:00 +0000 meta writing <p>It's hard to believe I haven't added to my site in a year. There's a few reasons why:</p> <ol> <li> <p>Life got busy.</p> </li> <li> <p>I started feeling pretty cynical about sharing on the web in general. What is the point of writing here when it's just going to get slurped up and repurposed in a chat UI, and generate a tonne of spam email to my inbox?</p> </li> <li> <p>I decided I wanted to fully rebuild and redesign the site from scratch, and didn't want to post until it was done. It took a long-ass time, probably because I wrote most of the code myself.</p> </li> </ol> <p>I've been itching to get back to sharing again. I've kept up the writing in my journals, but I want to return to writing online. The spam is only increasing<sup id="return-and-redesign-fnref:1"><a href="#return-and-redesign-fn:1" class="footnote-ref" role="doc-noteref">1</a></sup>, but every now and then a real human being does find this site, and we have a nice interaction. I don't want us (the indie web) to lose that!</p> <p>There will be more posts with details to follow, for sure, but here's a quick recap of the year:</p> <ul> <li>My husband and I turned 40.</li> <li>We got a puppy - truly the best/worst decision of my life.</li> <li>I got an autism diagnosis.</li> <li>The nature of my job has <em>completely</em> changed, and I'm still coming to terms with it.</li> <li>My kids are both in school now. They need much less from me physically but so much more from me mentally. Also there's a lot of driving people to and from places.</li> </ul> <p><img src="https://rachsmith-assets.b-cdn.net/images/teddy.gif" alt="A puppy holding a roll of toilet paper"></p> <p>Talk soon x</p> <div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes"> <p class="footnotes-label">Footnotes</p> <ol> <li id="return-and-redesign-fn:1"> <p>I now have agents cold emailing me, asking me to "teach" them how to make a "unique" website. God help us. <a href="#return-and-redesign-fnref:1" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink">↩︎</a></p> </li> </ol> </div> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20A%20return%20and%20a%20redesign">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-11-22-14-29 https://rachsmith.com/2025-11-22-14-29/ Sat, 22 Nov 2025 14:29:00 +0000 how good <p>How good is being a full-stacker? You can make anything you want!!!</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2022%20November%202025%2C%202%3A29%20pm">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-10-27-12-33 https://rachsmith.com/2025-10-27-12-33/ Mon, 27 Oct 2025 12:33:00 +0000 development golang <p>I’ve been rewriting one of my home-cooked <a href="https://svelte.dev/docs/kit/introduction" class="external">SvelteKit</a> apps with Go and <a href="https://data-star.dev" class="external">DataStar</a>. Had to wrap my head around the paradigm shift (I’ve never tried HTMX) and deepen my understanding of Go templates… but now that’s done, I’m loving the simplicity of this stack!! I think it will be my go-to for future personal web apps.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2027%20October%202025%2C%2012%3A33%20pm">Reply by email</a></p> Who needs a flying car when you have display: grid https://rachsmith.com/who-needs-a-flying-car https://rachsmith.com/who-needs-a-flying-car/ Fri, 10 Oct 2025 09:10:00 +0000 development css <p>A friend asked me if I could build him a simple website for his new Mechanical Engineering business: just a few pages showing off what they’re about and what they can do. </p> <p>This is the sort of work I did when I was just starting out with web dev - marketing sites. It’s been 14 years since I worked a gig like this, and I was so struck by how much easier everything is now. </p> <p>First of all, the capabilities of CSS are absolutely magical. I needed to <a href="https://css-for-js.dev/" class="external">do a course</a> to catch up on my knowledge and feel confident again but once I did… putting together layouts is a dream. </p> <p>At one point my friend asked if I could change all the places where they had yellow to blue… back in the day this would have been annoying but all I had to do was update a single custom property! I made multiple Netlify Deploy previews for him to look at with different shades of blue and it all took me under 10 minutes.</p> <p>And because of improvements to CSS and the native platform you need so much less JavaScript to achieve specific layouts and functionality. When you do need JS, you can just use the regular JavaScript API, no need for third party libraries like jQuery or MooTools (lol).</p> <p>Look, I am old and I am comparing this to the Dark Ages when we were still on CSS 2, but I just can't move past how much better and easier everything is!</p> <p>At the same time I’m cognisant of the fact this isn’t really a job anymore. My friend had no interest in messing with a Squarespace and was willing to pay my hourly rate to build a static site because he knew he could trust me to do a good job. Most clients probably feel differently, and would prefer to either choose these low or no-code tools to make the websites themselves, or employ devs to build bloated React projects. My own day job is building an incredibly complex Web Application.</p> <p>What a shame that is, as the technology has never been better for developers to build lean, accessible and attractive websites.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20Who%20needs%20a%20flying%20car%20when%20you%20have%20display%3A%20grid">Reply by email</a></p> A letter to myself: Strategies https://rachsmith.com/strategies https://rachsmith.com/strategies/ Sun, 05 Oct 2025 14:30:00 +0000 productivity neurodivergence <ol> <li>When you put something in the oven and need to remember to take it out, or put washing in the machine and need to remember to hang it out, or need to do anything else time-sensitive like take medication, set a reminder for it. And not just any alarm or reminder, the kind that <a href="https://www.dueapp.com/" class="external">bugs you over and over</a> until you do it.</li> <li>When packing for family trips, use your lists. Keep the lists updated. Refer back to the lists every time you pack. Don't assume it will be fine because you've done it 20 times before. You <em>will</em> forget to pack yourself underwear or worst of all, one of the 5 sleep aids your child needs to fall asleep.</li> <li>Any important appointment/meeting needs 4 alerts: the day before, the morning of, one hour before and when you need to get in the car/get on the Zoom. Especially on work days, when you are most likely to get sucked in to a focus in which you forget everything else in your life.</li> </ol> <p>Do you recall all those years you were a hot mess? Life was a series of chaotic mistakes and mishaps until out of necessity (having dependants) you developed an extensive set of strategies. The strategies work well, but are annoying to manage, so you are sometimes tempted in to thinking you're a fully functional adult now who can "just remember" to do important things. This is folly, and will only lead to disappointment and burnt potatoes.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20A%20letter%20to%20myself%3A%20Strategies">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-10-03-11-56 https://rachsmith.com/2025-10-03-11-56/ Fri, 03 Oct 2025 11:56:00 +0000 shouts <p>Shouts to the <a href="https://www.ynab.com/" class="external">YNAB</a> team for making some top quality web software. I've been using the site for 8 years, have not run in to anything buggy or broken even <em>once</em>. I can do everything with the keyboard! And they blessedly haven't added any bullshit AI "features". Mad respect. Here are your flowers 💐.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%203%20October%202025%2C%2011%3A56%20am">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-09-25-10-08 https://rachsmith.com/2025-09-25-10-08/ Thu, 25 Sep 2025 10:08:00 +0000 development <p>Anybody else compulsively hit ⌘+S no less than 5 times per save?</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2025%20September%202025%2C%2010%3A08%20am">Reply by email</a></p> Month notes & numbers No. 16 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-16 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-16/ Mon, 01 Sep 2025 05:22:00 +0000 month notes <p class="date">August 2025</p> <h2 class="highlighter pink">Notable</h2> <p><strong>I turned 39!</strong>. A pretty low-key birthday, but overall I'm feeling really good about things in my life at the moment. I went to watch <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freakier_Friday" class="external">Freakier Friday</a> at the cinema with my sister to celebrate, lol.</p> <p><strong>I completed my goal running time</strong>. I had a goal to (comfortably) run 5km in under 30 minutes, and I did it this month! Training is underway for the next goal: 10km in under an hour.</p> <p><strong>I got an iPad mini</strong> for my birthday, with an Apple Pencil Pro. I've been using it for <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/rachsmith.com/post/3lvwhvfjmi32q" class="external">drawing</a> and (digital) colouring. I'm low-key obsessed with this device. It's perfect as a digital notebook.</p> <p><strong>Swapped gaming for website making</strong>. A friend asked if I could make his business a simple brochure site. It's not like I have any spare time for a second job but I decided I'll just spend the time I normally would spend playing Switch, designing and building the site. I think I'll make a separate post about this experience but I'm really enjoying myself!</p> <h2 class="highlighter yellow">Work</h2> <p>Mostly dealing lots of bugs / <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ninety%E2%80%93ninety_rule" class="external">that last 10%</a>.</p> <h2 class="highlighter blue">Watched</h2> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt22091076/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1" class="external">High Potential</a> Season 1. I was invested by the end of the season. They ended on quite a cliff-hanger! I think I like this show because it is reminiscent of <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0433309/" class="external">Numb3rs</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Family_Next_Door_(Australian_TV_series)" class="external">The Family Next Door</a>. Another Australian mystery-drama set in a Coastal Town. Worth it just for the beach shots.</p> <h2 class="highlighter green">Read</h2> <p><a href="https://sarahjmaas.com/throne-of-glass-series/" class="external">Crown of Midnight</a> (Throne of Glass series, Book 2) by Sarah J. Maas. Enjoying this more than Book 1!</p> <h2 class="highlighter orange">The numbers</h2> <h3>Fitness</h3> <ul> <li class="rebounder">7 <span class="x">✕</span> rebounder</li> <li class="strength">7 <span class="x">✕</span> strength</li> <li class="walk">15 <span class="x">✕</span> walk</li> <li class="pilates">7 <span class="x">✕</span> pilates</li> <li class="yoga">5 <span class="x">✕</span> yoga</li> <li class="run">8 <span class="x">✕</span> run</li> </ul> <h3>Creative</h3> <ul> <li class="coding">7 <span class="x">✕</span> coding for fun</li> <li class="journal">25 <span class="x">✕</span> journal</li> <li class="piano">0 <span class="x">✕</span> piano</li> <li class="read">14 <span class="x">✕</span> read (book)</li> <li class="write">1 <span class="x">✕</span> write</li> <li class="colouring">8 <span class="x">✕</span> colouring</li> <li class="drawing">4 <span class="x">✕</span> drawing</li> </ul> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20Month%20notes%20%26%20numbers%20No.%2016">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-08-26-05-30 https://rachsmith.com/2025-08-26-05-30/ Tue, 26 Aug 2025 05:30:00 +0000 music <p>As a kid I was resentful about being made to learn classical piano while other kids got to play pop songs. Now I’m like why would I want to play pop when Beethoven is lit.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2026%20August%202025%2C%205%3A30%20am">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-08-23-08-38 https://rachsmith.com/2025-08-23-08-38/ Sat, 23 Aug 2025 08:38:00 +0000 development golang <p>When I go back to a dynamically typed language (Ruby) after working in a statically typed language (Go) I wonder how I even built <em>anything</em> with this thing. Golang has ruined dynamically typed languages for me.</p> <p>(except for JavaScript of course… my ride or die.)</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2023%20August%202025%2C%208%3A38%20am">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-08-10-13-23 https://rachsmith.com/2025-08-10-13-23/ Sun, 10 Aug 2025 13:23:00 +0000 whinge <p>I think this might make me officially old and crotchety but I think iOS/iPadOS 26 looks terrible and I hate it 👵🏻😭</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2010%20August%202025%2C%201%3A23%20pm">Reply by email</a></p> Month notes & numbers No. 15 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-15 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-15/ Sun, 10 Aug 2025 07:48:00 +0000 month notes <p class="date">June & July 2025</p> <p>It's funny that in the <a href="https://rachsmith.com/mnan/14/">last update</a> I wrote about how great my journaling practice is for remembering things, and then life got so busy I stopped the daily journaling. Now two months have passed somehow and I don't know how it happened so fast or what occurred. Thankfully I'm back in the habit this month!</p> <h2 class="highlighter pink">Notable</h2> <p><strong>The June/July period of the year is hectic</strong>. Family/social/school commitments ramp up and there's a stretch of school holidays in there as well. It's all great but doesn't leave much time for updating this site or noodling on the computer.</p> <p><strong>I had a new-found burst of work motivation</strong>. I've been working on the same product for 4 years, wondering if it will ever ship. And for the first time I can see a release at the end of the tunnel. So that has got me jazzed for work again.</p> <p><strong>I joined a social netball team</strong> It is really fun, except for when we play 13 year old girls and I just about die trying to keep up.</p> <p><strong>My sleep has randomly gone to shit</strong>. I'm waking up in the night overthinking things all of a sudden?! I'm gonna guess it is some hormonal/perimenopause bullshit because the only other time in my life I've experienced this when I was pregnant. It sucks!!</p> <h2 class="highlighter yellow">Work</h2> <p>I'm not sure if we've talked much about this publicly yet but the new CodePen Editor will have a Version history feature. Saving every version of every Pen is a LOT of data to keep, so I've mostly be concerned with the rollup algorithm and background jobs that clean up data and leaves something useful behind.</p> <h2 class="highlighter blue">Watched</h2> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt22091076/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1" class="external">High Potential</a>, <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt30252752/" class="external">Dying for Sex</a> and <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14879018/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1" class="external">Running Point</a>. Watched some episodes of all of these. They were... just fine. Happy to keep putting them on when I feel like a show at the end of the day but it's not like I'm desperate to finish the Season for any of them.</p> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt31868189/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1" class="external">Happy Gilmore 2</a>. Loved the original, and this one was great too. I like when they shamelessly just make the same movie again for sequels of comedies: like <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1229340/?ref_=fn_all_ttl_1" class="external">Anchorman 2</a> or <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2294449/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_6_nm_2_in_0_q_22%2520" class="external">22 Jump Street</a>. I liked the first version, so definitely just give me more of the same!</p> <h2 class="highlighter green">Played</h2> <p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario_%26_Luigi:_Brothership" class="external">Mario & Luigi: Brothership</a>. It took me soooo long to finish the story of this game!! I wasn't even enjoying myself for the last 20 hours, but I couldn't walk away from it because I'm a completionist who can't move on from sunk costs.</p> <p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Mario_3D_World" class="external">Super Mario 3D World</a> + Bowser's Fury. Super fun game, might be up there in my top 5 Switch games!</p> <h2 class="highlighter orange">Read</h2> <p><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57931617-baggage" class="external">Baggage</a> by Alan Cumming. Great memoir in which Alan drops some quite profound observations about life and relationships. I think if you work in the biz you would be annoyed by how blessed/lucky his career trajectory was lol.</p> <p><a href="https://www.taraswart.com/the-source/" class="external">The Source</a> by Tara Swart. I was intrigued after hearing Tara on a podcast, but this book turned out to be [[The diminishing returns of self development content|mostly all the things I've read before]].</p> <p><a href="https://sarahjmaas.com/throne-of-glass-series/" class="external">Throne of Glass</a> by Sarah J. Maas. I decided it was time to delve in to another fantasy series after reading the Mistborn Trilogy last year. This is YA I think so a bit easier to read, and easier to read a chapter or two at a time.</p> <p><strong>No numbers this month</strong> as they are part of my journaling habit. When that dropped, so did the tracking.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20Month%20notes%20%26%20numbers%20No.%2015">Reply by email</a></p> A stack of browsers https://rachsmith.com/a-stack-of-browsers https://rachsmith.com/a-stack-of-browsers/ Sun, 01 Jun 2025 13:06:00 +0000 development browsers <p>I was a very happy <a href="https://arc.net/" class="external">Arc</a> user for a couple of years, but after The Browser Company announced they would <a href="https://browsercompany.substack.com/p/letter-to-arc-members-2025" class="external">no longer be working on it</a>, I started to assess alternatives.</p> <p>Now I've ended up with a stack of browsers, instead of reaching for a single browser to do all the things.</p> <h2><a href="https://polypane.app/" class="external">Polypane</a></h2> <p>For dev work involving designing, layout and styling.</p> <h2><a href="https://www.google.com/intl/en_au/chrome/" class="external">Chrome</a></h2> <p>For all other dev work.</p> <h2><a href="https://gethorse.com/" class="external">Horse</a></h2> <p>For general internet usage. Horse is a niche one that I imagine is only appealing to a small subset of people, of which I just happen to be a part of. If you are [[Less typical|less typical]], always open links in a new tab, and have about 200 tabs open at a time "just in case" you want to go back to one... Horse might appeal to you.</p> <p>Polypane and Horse both require subscriptions, but [[Paying for software subscriptions is my passion|I'm cool with that]]. Especially for indie apps.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20A%20stack%20of%20browsers">Reply by email</a></p> Pages CMS https://rachsmith.com/pages-cms https://rachsmith.com/pages-cms/ Sun, 01 Jun 2025 07:40:00 +0000 meta pages cms <p>Recently I've been experimenting with adding title-less notes to this site, for thoughts the length of a microblog or social post.</p> <p>Around the same time, I saw <a href="https://pagescms.org/" class="external">Pages CMS</a> popping up in my communities. I decided to give it a try, for adding these micro posts (I call them nuggets) to my Astro content.</p> <p>I didn't want to replace the authoring flow for my regular notes with Pages, because I quite like the [[Automating the process for moving notes from my Obsidian vault to my Astro site|Obsidian-vault-to-site-repo pipeline]] I had created for those. But these notes are written and published while I'm sitting at my computer. They take more time and attention, so I'm cool with the "slow" and manual process it takes to publish them.</p> <p>Now I've got Pages set up, all I need to do is add the thought I have into a text box and boom! It's sitting as content in my repo. And I can do it from anywhere, from my phone.</p> <p>It only took me 20 minutes to read the docs and get it set up. Granted, I have the most basic config ever: just text, no media. But I would recommend it as an extremely handy tool!</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20Pages%20CMS">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-05-22-10-06 https://rachsmith.com/2025-05-22-10-06/ Thu, 22 May 2025 10:06:00 +0000 clip <p>This movie really had 12-year-old me thinking this is how American High School Proms actually worked.</p> <lite-youtube videoid="HYD6xw0yUaU" style="background-image: url('https://i.ytimg.com/vi/HYD6xw0yUaU/hqdefault.jpg');" title="She's All That: Dance Off"> <a href="https://youtube.com/watch?v=HYD6xw0yUaU" class="lty-playbtn" title="Play Video"> <span class="lyt-visually-hidden">Play Video: She's All That: Dance Off</span> </a> </lite-youtube> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2022%20May%202025%2C%2010%3A06%20am">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-05-16-06-34 https://rachsmith.com/2025-05-16-06-34/ Fri, 16 May 2025 06:34:00 +0000 whinge <p>Spotify streaming quality has completely gone to pot. It does this thing where it skips (kind of like an old CD would) and then tries to make up for it by playing the track super fast? It sounds like dog shit and makes my four year old absolutely furious.</p> <p>I've paid for Spotify for 12 years. I wonder why, in 2025 with 5G and an iPhone 14 Pro Max the streaming playback quality is the worst its ever been? Are they cheaping out on servers? Is the software just worse now?</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2016%20May%202025%2C%206%3A34%20am">Reply by email</a></p> Month notes & numbers No. 14 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-14 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-14/ Sun, 11 May 2025 06:20:00 +0000 month notes <p class="date">May 2025</p> <p>This month's update is a little ode to the practice of journaling. Part way through April I caught gastro 😭 and in this moment of weakness [[A not so casual gamer|I downloaded Royal Kingdom from the App Store]]. I got sucked in to the matching vortex and went in to the ol' shame spiral about all the hours lost, again.</p> <p>So when it came to the end of the month I didn't want to even make this note because according to my brain I had frittered the entire thing away building a Royal Kingdom. However, after consulting my (very brief) journal entries I recalled that we went on a whole-ass holiday to the Gold Coast, created lots of mems with extended family at Easter time, and I deep cleaned whole sections of the house. It felt like all of that happened months ago, not weeks! I probably got less creative practice in, but I had not in fact ruined my life.</p> <p>So, shout out to my journal. And, NO THANKS to my catastrophising, hyper-critical inner narrative.</p> <h2 class="highlighter yellow">Work</h2> <p>Squashing bugs.</p> <p><strong>The work soundtrack:</strong> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1E8OKLKVsZRmdI?si=109641a891db428c" class="external">Forever (with Kid Cudi) Radio</a></p> <h2 class="highlighter blue">Watched</h2> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13406094/" class="external">The White Lotus</a> Season 3. Disappointed with this one. Felt like the decisions made by key characters in the last two episodes were just too stupid.</p> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt30150289/" class="external">The Last Anniversary</a>. Really enjoyed the Australian-ness of this show after watching a lot of US-based series lately.</p> <h2 class="highlighter green">Played</h2> <p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donkey_Kong_Country:_Tropical_Freeze" class="external">Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze</a>. I was looking for another 2D platformer, as they are my favourite kind of game to play. This was really fun!</p> <h2 class="highlighter orange">The numbers</h2> <h3>Fitness</h3> <ul> <li class="rebounder">3 <span class="x">✕</span> rebounder</li> <li class="strength">6 <span class="x">✕</span> strength</li> <li class="walk">12 <span class="x">✕</span> walk</li> <li class="pilates">4 <span class="x">✕</span> pilates</li> <li class="yoga">3 <span class="x">✕</span> yoga</li> <li class="run">5 <span class="x">✕</span> run</li> </ul> <h3>Creative</h3> <ul> <li class="coding">0 <span class="x">✕</span> coding for fun</li> <li class="journal">14 <span class="x">✕</span> journal</li> <li class="piano">8 <span class="x">✕</span> piano</li> <li class="read">10 <span class="x">✕</span> read (book)</li> <li class="write">6 <span class="x">✕</span> write</li> <li class="colouring">0 <span class="x">✕</span> colouring</li> </ul> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20Month%20notes%20%26%20numbers%20No.%2014">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-04-18-05-58 https://rachsmith.com/2025-04-18-05-58/ Fri, 18 Apr 2025 05:58:00 +0000 whinge <p>Not me getting the warm and fuzzies from a lovely compliment about my writing, until I realise its just AI-generated bot activity posting for backlinks 😭</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2018%20April%202025%2C%205%3A58%20am">Reply by email</a></p> The difference between programs and products https://rachsmith.com/the-difference-between-programs-and-products https://rachsmith.com/the-difference-between-programs-and-products/ Thu, 17 Apr 2025 23:04:00 +0000 development engineering <blockquote>The whole “vibe coding” thing is another reminder that quite a lot of people working in tech don’t understand the difference between programs and products -- <cite>Dylan Beattie in <a href="https://dylanbeattie.net/2025/04/11/the-problem-with-vibe-coding.html">The Problem with “Vibe Coding”</a></cite></blockquote> <p>Love the distinction made by Dylan in this post. I am still as in love with programming as I was 15 years ago. Product development, on the other hand, brings me to tears on a weekly basis.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20The%20difference%20between%20programs%20and%20products">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-04-15-17-36 https://rachsmith.com/2025-04-15-17-36/ Tue, 15 Apr 2025 17:36:00 +0000 whinge <p>I would be so happy to never have to see an image of Mark Zuckerberg again.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2015%20April%202025%2C%205%3A36%20pm">Reply by email</a></p> A lack of frequency increases the pressure to deliver quality https://rachsmith.com/a-lack-of-frequency https://rachsmith.com/a-lack-of-frequency/ Tue, 15 Apr 2025 07:53:00 +0000 writing perfectionism <p>I have this story in my head, that the longer I go without writing a note here, the better that note has to be when I do eventually come back and post again.</p> <p>I was looking on the internet to see if this is a common thought pattern - that if something is infrequent, it must be excellent.</p> <p>I couldn't find anything like that on the psych blogs, so I have to assume that I've taken the phrases "quality over quantity" or "quantity over quality" and turned that in to believing "quantity" and "quality" must be mutually exclusive.</p> <p>You can <a href="https://www.oliverburkeman.com/the-imperfectionist" class="external">post infrequently, and have each of those posts be an absolute banger</a>, or you <a href="https://seths.blog/" class="external">can regularly put out stuff that's okay</a>.</p> <p>You can't post average shit every now and then.<sup id="a-lack-of-frequency-fnref:1"><a href="#a-lack-of-frequency-fn:1" class="footnote-ref" role="doc-noteref">1</a></sup></p> <div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes"> <p class="footnotes-label">Footnotes</p> <ol> <li id="a-lack-of-frequency-fn:1"> <p>You can, of course. And so can I, as long as I ignore the voice in my head telling me I can't. <a href="#a-lack-of-frequency-fnref:1" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink">↩︎</a></p> </li> </ol> </div> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20A%20lack%20of%20frequency%20increases%20the%20pressure%20to%20deliver%20quality">Reply by email</a></p> Month notes & numbers No. 13 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-13 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-13/ Sun, 30 Mar 2025 10:17:00 +0000 month notes <p class="date">March 2025</p> <p>The latter half of this month was ruined by me catching Covid (my second time). Boooooooo.</p> <h2 class="highlighter pink">Notable</h2> <p><strong>It was looking like my town was going to be hit by a cyclone</strong> at the start of the month. Thankfully, it downgraded in to a Tropical low before crossing us. We don't typically get cyclones in this part of Queensland, so people were freaking out. Climate change, man.</p> <p><strong>I tried a new thing</strong> where I added shorter notes to this site, without a real title. Sometimes I feel like coming up with a title is a barrier to posting, especially if the post is just a little insignificant thought. I feel like my site needs a re-org to accomodate these micro-notes, but for now they just live with the regular ones. It did help me with getting out of a posting drought (before I got sick).</p> <p><strong>Covid freaking sucks</strong>. Last time it took me months to get back to normal re: cardiovascular performance. I'm not flu-ey anymore, thank God, but still run down and suffering from the damn brain fog. I am terrified of getting long Covid so I'll put off getting back in to running or anything like that for a bit, incase failing to rest properly increases the chances of prolonging it.</p> <h2 class="highlighter yellow">Work</h2> <p>Fixing final bugs and issues for the CodePen Editor. Private beta is so close, I can almost touch it.</p> <p><strong>The work soundtrack:</strong> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1E8Neb4FiTNzlA?si=702265dcbb5f412a" class="external">blade bird Radio</a></p> <h2 class="highlighter blue">Watched</h2> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11280740/" class="external">Severance</a> Season 2. <details></p> <summary>Spoiler:</summary> After finishing the Season 2 finale it occurred to me that I want Gemma to get her happy ending (Outtie Mark), but I also want Mark S to get his happy ending (Helly, and to exist). But there's no way they can both get what they want?! And I guess this unique predicament is what makes the show so good. </details> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13406094/" class="external">The White Lotus</a> Season 3. Finding this season a bit slow. There's a lot of build up/tension without much dramatic pay-off yet. Hope it's all leading to a big satisfying ending.</p> <h2 class="highlighter orange">The numbers - (trash thanks to illness)</h2> <h3>Fitness</h3> <ul> <li class="rebounder">5 <span class="x">✕</span> rebounder</li> <li class="strength">4 <span class="x">✕</span> strength</li> <li class="walk">7 <span class="x">✕</span> walk</li> <li class="pilates">4 <span class="x">✕</span> pilates</li> <li class="yoga">1 <span class="x">✕</span> yoga</li> <li class="run">3 <span class="x">✕</span> run</li> <li class="dance">3 <span class="x">✕</span> dance</li> </ul> <h3>Creative</h3> <ul> <li class="coding">0 <span class="x">✕</span> coding for fun</li> <li class="journal">9 <span class="x">✕</span> journal</li> <li class="piano">3 <span class="x">✕</span> piano</li> <li class="read">10 <span class="x">✕</span> read (book)</li> <li class="write">6 <span class="x">✕</span> write</li> <li class="colouring">0 <span class="x">✕</span> colouring</li> </ul> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20Month%20notes%20%26%20numbers%20No.%2013">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-03-19-17-29 https://rachsmith.com/2025-03-19-17-29/ Wed, 19 Mar 2025 17:29:00 +0000 screens <p>Virginia Woolf in her diary, 1920:<sup id="2025-03-19-17-29-fnref:1"><a href="#2025-03-19-17-29-fn:1" class="footnote-ref" role="doc-noteref">1</a></sup></p> <blockquote> <p>Such a good morning’s writing I’d planned, and wasted the cream of my brain on the telephone.</p> </blockquote> <p>Girl, same.</p> <div class="footnotes" role="doc-endnotes"> <p class="footnotes-label">Footnotes</p> <ol> <li id="2025-03-19-17-29-fn:1"> <p>Quote pulled from <a href="https://nesslabs.com/book" class="external">Tiny Experiments</a>. <a href="#2025-03-19-17-29-fnref:1" class="footnote-backref" role="doc-backlink">↩︎</a></p> </li> </ol> </div> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2019%20March%202025%2C%205%3A29%20pm">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-03-13-10-03 https://rachsmith.com/2025-03-13-10-03/ Thu, 13 Mar 2025 10:03:00 +0000 music <p>Every now and then Spotify will throw a song in a generated playlist for a band I've never heard of before. Sometimes I'll look them up and discover that they're quite new, or they are really really new. Like one song new. No wikipedia entry new. 2000 Instagram followers new. It's a bit thrilling, to think that if they blow up, I can say I was a fan from the beginning, for real.</p> <p>Anyway, this song slaps. Can't wait for more!</p> <lite-youtube videoid="1jYEDPx6d2s" style="background-image: url('https://i.ytimg.com/vi/1jYEDPx6d2s/hqdefault.jpg');" title="PUNCHBAG - Fuck It (Official Video)"> <a href="https://youtube.com/watch?v=1jYEDPx6d2s" class="lty-playbtn" title="Play Video"> <span class="lyt-visually-hidden">Play Video: PUNCHBAG - Fuck It (Official Video)</span> </a> </lite-youtube> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2013%20March%202025%2C%2010%3A03%20am">Reply by email</a></p> In the way https://rachsmith.com/in-the-way https://rachsmith.com/in-the-way/ Tue, 11 Mar 2025 22:43:00 +0000 whinge ai <p>I was texting with my best friend. Her mum has cancer, and my friend is going through the brutality of watching it take her piece by piece, just as I did with my own mum 13 years ago.</p> <p>I was thinking about how to respond to the latest message, too personal to relay here, when a suggested reply, animated in glowing colours to let me know it was "intelligent" popped up: <em>Hang in there!</em></p> <p>My thought process was immediately broken as I contemplated what an absolutely obscene thing it would be to send in that moment.</p> <p>This sums up my experience of companies and products trying to inject AI in to the products I use to communicate with other people. It's always just in the way, making stupid suggestions. How could it possibly come up with a better thing to say when it is completely devoid of the context: the relationship I have with the person I'm writing something to. 2, 10, or 23 years of friendship. 9 years of working together. 36 years of being sisters. The audacity of the Product Designers! To think a text-predicting machine would be helpful outside of any situation other than generating some slop or business blathering.</p> <p>What was already a tough moment, was somehow made worse, by what is supposed to be a messaging utility. Good job everyone.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20In%20the%20way">Reply by email</a></p> https://rachsmith.com/2025-03-11-14-52 https://rachsmith.com/2025-03-11-14-52/ Tue, 11 Mar 2025 14:52:00 +0000 screens <p>I was listening to a <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DXcG4kXwIFULb?si=50a8faa936494e6a" class="external">Chillout Classics</a> playlist when I was hit with a sense memory from 2006: just lying in my bed listening to Moby, in the middle of the day. I remembered that I would often do this on days where I was hungover, or just feeling a bit lazy. Lie around and listen to music.</p> <p>It also struck me how it wouldn't even occur to me today to do such a thing, given I get a moment to myself. Or such a "nothing". And even if it did, it would feel like I would need a monastic level of self-restraint not to go ahead and add a screen to the mix.</p> <p>Moments like this want me to run down to the beach and throw my phone in to the ocean.</p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20your%20nugget%20from%2011%20March%202025%2C%202%3A52%20pm">Reply by email</a></p> Month notes & numbers No. 12 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-12 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-12/ Sun, 09 Mar 2025 10:30:00 +0000 month notes <p class="date">February 2025</p> <h2 class="highlighter pink">Notable</h2> <p>February is always the month of getting settled back in to the school routine, and so it flies past and yet feels like nothing much happened?</p> <p><strong>My experiment of avoiding too much sugar</strong> has largely been a success. I've been feeling much more stable mood and mental health wise. I feel like the final disruptive dopamine-chasing behaviour to be conquered is consuming too much shit on my phone. I've dabbled with strings of [[No Inputs Day|no input days]] but always end up back on a binge. This is like, the final boss in my unhealthy coping mechanisms.</p> <p><strong>My kid loves school</strong>. He's in his third year now and I often reflect on how lucky we are this is the case. I was an absolute frother for primary school: give me all the gold stars, I'll show you what a good student I can be. Our oldest is exactly the same and it makes sending him off so easy. Shoutout to parents who have to deal with morning battles or the stressful all-out school refusal.</p> <h2 class="highlighter yellow">Work</h2> <p>Fixing final bugs and issues for the CodePen Editor private beta. We're so close!!</p> <p><strong>The work soundtrack:</strong> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4cyc9ZJbvXsMFZiGjO8lrL?si=75a42161d2fc4b2c" class="external">Feb 2024</a></p> <h2 class="highlighter blue">Watched</h2> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11280740/" class="external">Severance</a> Season 1 & 2: Fully obsessed at this point.</p> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11212276/" class="external">Sex Lives of College Girls</a> Season 3: it was fine</p> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13925142/" class="external">The Newsreader</a> Final Season: Maybe not as good as Seasons 1 and 2, but still a great Australian show with absolute top-tier acting.</p> <h2 class="highlighter orange">The numbers</h2> <h3>Fitness</h3> <ul> <li class="rebounder">5 <span class="x">✕</span> rebounder</li> <li class="strength">6 <span class="x">✕</span> strength</li> <li class="walk">12 <span class="x">✕</span> walk</li> <li class="pilates">7 <span class="x">✕</span> pilates</li> <li class="yoga">5 <span class="x">✕</span> yoga</li> <li class="run">6 <span class="x">✕</span> run</li> <li class="dance">4 <span class="x">✕</span> dance</li> </ul> <h3>Creative</h3> <ul> <li class="coding">6 <span class="x">✕</span> coding for fun</li> <li class="journal">22 <span class="x">✕</span> journal</li> <li class="piano">10 <span class="x">✕</span> piano</li> <li class="read">10 <span class="x">✕</span> read (book)</li> <li class="write">1 <span class="x">✕</span> write</li> <li class="colouring">4 <span class="x">✕</span> colouring</li> </ul> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20Month%20notes%20%26%20numbers%20No.%2012">Reply by email</a></p> Month notes & numbers No. 11 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-11 https://rachsmith.com/mnan-11/ Sat, 01 Feb 2025 10:30:00 +0000 month notes <p class="date">January 2025</p> <h2 class="highlighter pink">Notable</h2> <p><strong>Extremely offline</strong> could be the theme for this month. While some Australians like to follow find the news coming out of the USA for entertainment or even to satisfy some kind of morbid curiosity, I find it really difficult to read/hear about. After spending some years living there the country and Los Angeles in particular holds such a special place in my heart. I'm finding myself staying offline for the most part in the interest of mental health. It's not like I'm ignorant to what's going on, but I'm not marinating in it.</p> <p><strong>Soaking up the summer</strong>. A lot of time was spent with family and friends. Some extra time with my kids who weren't in school/daycare. BBQs, trips to the beach and the lake, all the typical wholesome Coastal town activities. It's been wonderful.</p> <p><strong>January fitness shenanigans</strong>. I've done the typical new year new me thing and been super consistent with exercising every day. I think I've landed on a good mix of walking, rebounding, strength, pilates and running and have had no niggles or injuries crop up so far. Crossed fingers it continues!</p> <p><strong>I finally saw Wicked!</strong> I saw the musical in Brisbane many years ago and thought it was fine. But something about the movie or maybe seeing it at this stage in my life, I feel like I get now why people are so fanatical about this musical. I loved it!!!</p> <h2 class="highlighter yellow">Work</h2> <p>Geez I really hope people use the collaboration feature on the New CodePen Editor because its been a real PITA to get it working smoothly.</p> <p><strong>The work soundtrack:</strong> <a href="https://open.spotify.com/album/3JUrJP460nFIqwjxM19slT?si=sB1arErKQe-KMkP7riicRg" class="external">Wicked: The Soundtrack</a></p> <h2 class="highlighter blue">Watched</h2> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8888540/" class="external">Palm Royale</a>. Kristen Wiig is my all-time favourite SNL alum so I really wanted to love this show. I just couldn't care enough about the characters or story. Gave up after 2 episodes.</p> <p><a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11280740/" class="external">Severance</a> Season 1: Finally got around to starting this show after hearing so many people recommend it. Only a few eps in but finding it interesting so far.</p> <h2 class="highlighter orange">The numbers</h2> <h3>Fitness</h3> <ul> <li class="rebounder">8 <span class="x">✕</span> rebounder</li> <li class="strength">9 <span class="x">✕</span> strength</li> <li class="walk">13 <span class="x">✕</span> walk</li> <li class="pilates">7 <span class="x">✕</span> pilates</li> <li class="yoga">9 <span class="x">✕</span> yoga</li> <li class="run">8 <span class="x">✕</span> run</li> </ul> <h3>Creative</h3> <ul> <li class="coding">8 <span class="x">✕</span> coding for fun</li> <li class="journal">34 <span class="x">✕</span> journal</li> <li class="piano">17 <span class="x">✕</span> piano</li> <li class="read">27 <span class="x">✕</span> read (book)</li> <li class="write">4 <span class="x">✕</span> write</li> <li class="lettering">0 <span class="x">✕</span> lettering</li> </ul> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%20Month%20notes%20%26%20numbers%20No.%2011">Reply by email</a></p> 2024 https://rachsmith.com/2024 https://rachsmith.com/2024/ Wed, 01 Jan 2025 05:01:00 +0000 year notes <p>This year I set a goal to [[My goal for 2024 to remember it|journal every day]] in the hope I can write one of these 2024 year-in-review notes for my site. I didn't get to it every single day but I did it enough that I can look back and remember the year that was!</p> <p>There was a lot that happened this year so I've tried to pull out some threads/themes that particularly stood out or came up over and over again. Most of my focus throughout the year is on my kids, but I don't like to share much about them (for their privacy) so this a just review of my stuff.</p> <h1>This was the most active year I've had in a long time.</h1> <p>I don't think I've moved this much since I was in my early 20s. I'm pretty proud of how consistent I was with exercise as a whole. I found <a href="https://www.healthline.com/health/exercise-fitness/rebounding" class="external">rebounding</a>, started reformer pilates, and got back in to running.</p> <p>Unfortunately, there were also numerous setbacks due to injury. It turns out I can't do the all-or-nothing thing that I did when I was younger, I just break my body. But I feel like I've learned A LOT about how to improve strength where I need it, pacing myself and injury prevention this year. I'm excited to take the knowledge in to 2025 and have the best year for fitness yet.</p> <h1>Buying the family a piano was the right call</h1> <p>We've all loved having this in the house. Andy and I are already back playing at the level we were when we left high school, after a 20 year break! It's a pretty cool little brain-break from coding work as well.</p> <h1>I got in to reading books again</h1> <p>It had also been a long time since I'd been regularly reading fiction books. I LOVED books when I was younger, before social media was a thing. I never regret choosing to read a story over watching YouTube or some other internet thing. Hoping to increase the number of books I read in 2025.</p> <h1>The highlight of the year was our big USA trip</h1> <p>There was months of preparations pulling this trip together: Anaheim (Disneyland), Seattle and LA. But it went so amazingly well I'm feeling much more open to further overseas holidays. Honestly compared to that, Bali will feel like a walk in the park.</p> <h1>I tried really hard to make connections and form relationships at our School</h1> <p>I've never been great at making new friends. I'm pretty shy and find meeting new people awkward and hard. But I made a conscious effort to push past the discomfort and really try to get to know the other parents of my kids' class. I've met some great people and attending sports and other events is way more fun now that I have people to chat and laugh with.</p> <h1>I made some progress with my mood cycles</h1> <p>For years now I've struggled with a cycle where I move between feeling super freaking great (and productive), and then back to super apathetic and not giving a shit about anything. It is honestly reminiscent of Bipolar Disorder (which many family members have) except like a mild version where I wouldn't call the highs mania and the lows depression, but like a step on the way to either of those states.</p> <p>I've been trying to solve the puzzle of which lifestyle factors trigger (or speed up) the "spiral down", as it's harder to tell if it is alcohol, hormones, illness, going to bed late, diet, or dopamine chasing (screens) use that then creates more of the same until I feel worse and worse.</p> <p>I've gone through multiple experiments on myself, cutting various activities out, and whenever I stuck to low-in-added-sugar food I would feel a lot better. I didn't want to believe this was it though, because I freaking love chocolate and sweets. Especially sugary baked goods, oh my God. But after a low that was so bad I could tell my whole family was effected by it, I decided to change what I eat for good. I didn't even let loose at Christmas 😭 but it's been about 8 weeks on an even-(good)-keel which is the longest I've gone without a dip since I had my kids. The pavlova just ain't worth it.</p> <h1>Faves</h1> <h2>TV</h2> <p>It's a tie between <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5788792/" class="external">The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel</a> and <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt20782190/" class="external">English Teacher</a>.</p> <h2>Book</h2> <p>Fiction: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58784475-tomorrow-and-tomorrow-and-tomorrow" class="external">Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow</a> Non-Fiction: <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Aret%C3%A9-Activate-Your-Heroic-Potential/dp/B0C75GW5X3" class="external">Areté</a></p> <h2>Game</h2> <p><a href="https://www.nintendo.com/au/games/nintendo-switch/pikmin-4/" class="external">Pikmin 4</a></p> <h2>Podcast</h2> <p><a href="https://www.instagram.com/shamelesspodcast/?hl=en" class="external">Shameless</a></p> <p><a href="mailto:contact@rachsmith.com?subject=re%3A%202024">Reply by email</a></p>