I had my first legitimate staycation this month where I took a week of vacation without any travel plans. We had to abandon the trip we had planned due to the hurricanes last month, but I decided to still take vacation since I haven't taken much time off this year. The staycation was a ton of fun! We planned an activity each day to do as a family. Picking apples, pumpkin patches, exploring some local towns, festivals, just a lot of stuff around the community we may not always be able to enjoy on the weekends. All the while the littlest one started walking! It was really special being home to see her figure that out!
Anyways, having that stress free time with the family let me recharge and get back after it!
🛠️ What I'm building
I've been tinkering with an AI powered RSS reader for the past couple weeks. RSS feeds are where I get a lot of information from, but I haven't found a RSS reader I really enjoy. So, I'm building my own as a fun project implementing some AI-powered features where it makes sense. With limited time I want to be able to easily browse my feeds and determine what is worth investing time to read.
I'm in the process of scoping the initial project to determine what value-add features I want to include in the first iteration. One thing I want to learn more about through this project is designing an effective hybrid search system. My goal is by the end of the month to have a functioning RSS reader to replace the current application I use.
In the workshop I did some minor repairs on a couple wooden chairs. I'm nearly complete with the playhouse I built last month. Before it gets too cold I need to finish the last couple of pieces. A couple of months ago I read Christopher Schwarz's new book American Peasant. One idea that's been in my head is building the girls heirloom quality toyboxes. Using good materials, taking time to do the joinery, doing the finishing. Something that will grow with them. In the book, Christopher has plans for a small and large coffers that are largely built with tongue and groove joinery. Since I have leftover lumber from the playhouse these boxes are great practice before I jump into building the toyboxes.
📚 What I'm reading
Ordinary Monsters- I picked this up on a recommendation from someone at The Bookstore Plus when I was in Lake Placid last month. Since I finished reading The Three Body Problem last year I've struggled to find a good series to get into. Halfway through I've been enjoying the book enough to order the second volume that was just released. I'm getting big Scholomance Series vibes, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.
How to Win Friends and Influence People- I'm investing more time improving "soft skills". Largely around improving my effective communicating skills. This book has been enjoyable. I appreciate books approaching a century in print and are still relevant.
Foundation's Edge- Momentum in this series for me is waning. Now and then I pick this up. By the end of this book a decision will be made about whether to finish the last three books of the series or to cut my losses.
💪 Peloton Stats
Ugh. A poor showing this month for my fitness. No excuses for this lapse. My 10k goal for the year is now almost certainly not attainable. The one positive trend is I ended the month workout out ten of the past eleven days with momentum going into next month. While I won't meet my 10k goal this year I'm still on track to set a PR for annual Peloton minutes. Let's keep it going!
Active Days: 14
Total Classes: 26
Workout Time: 419 minutes