Whoo, that snow. Coming down hard. Might need to put on… a brimmed hat soon.

Related: a Great Horned owl has taken roost in the palm trees out back, and I am delighted.

I can think of places I’d rather be.

I’m about to travel again. I’m attempting to travel lightly. I’m torn about packing a physical book, even though I have many ebooks to read. This one is calling to me far more loudly than the others.

What a great problem to have.

My home life as a kid was difficult. It wasn’t bad, it was difficult.

I responded by staying at school each day until it closed, often even later. I would finish my homework and explore the off-limits areas.

My home life sucked, yet my homework was done, my grades were great, I learned a lot. I loved school and learning. I loved the refuge that school gave me.

My success in life was built on the foundation of those after school routines of front-loading my work; on those habits of working every day instead of intense single sessions; on the opportunities that arrived because I wasn’t at home with mind-numbing distractions, questionable associates, and no adult guidance.

Would I have been as successful had my home life been easier?

Might have I needed the chaos to become a better me than I could have / would have been without the chaos?

Do I have that difficulty to thank for today’s relative ease?

I have to say, likely not, yes, and yes.

OH: “Sometimes it’s hard to continue to love what you do through all the bad moments.”

OH: “You can’t change what you can tolerate. If you can tolerate it, it won’t change.”

Fun asteroid mining fact of the day: m-class asteroids contain platinum-group metals, nickel, cobalt, etc. If you tear apart a 1-km m-type asteroid, you’d have ~ 20 trillion dollars worth of metal at current market prices. The main belt has m-type objects that are 100 km across.

So, the only place I have found in the UK that makes a London Fog is… a Starbucks. 😒

Both of us sick managed to walk to the closest Bone Daddies for ramen. I wish I had ordered a chicken soup dish, but the Tonkatsu was still delicious. /cc @snookca #adventureswithsnookca

OMG @joshsullivan! You sent me a Field Notes notebook along with the calendar! Thank you! <3

Micro Monday, we doing this? Oh yes, yes, we are. By following @jwhevans!

“You been stretching or doing yoga?”

“Eh? Why do you ask?”

“Because you haven’t lost the ability to put your foot in your mouth.”

”…”

Current status.

OH: “There’s no such thing as a prototype, it’s all just bad production code.”

Wheeeee! GitHub is down. Didn’t want to work today anyway.

/me goes to play

🎶 A long December and there’s reason to believe maybe this year will be better than the last 🎶

Micro Monday follow Tim Gray @tgray - he’s talking plasma physics today, “meandering science and space topics” otherwise.

@11ty/eleventy@0.5.4: wanted: {"node":">=8"} (current: {"node":"0.12.7","npm":"2.11.3"}

Dying!

/me heads off to update The World™

Anyone have an extra 2019 field notes pocket size calendar card that would be tossed anyway? Will send SASE to take that extra one off your hands.

I’m guessing part # FNFC-19

New neighbors saying hello.

Only the 29th… plenty of time to finish two more books before the year’s end.

Am thinking after this, I will go back to a year of no alcohol. It (tawny port in general) tastes dangerously good to me.

I’m starting The Mathematics Lover’s Companion. It recommends reading with a partner, someone to talk through the ideas with. Anyone interested in a math book club? 📚

haaaaaaaaaate backerkit.