live laugh blog

candle math

a couple of weeks ago i started spending a lot more time on candle-making, which had me working on a couple of apps to help me, and perhaps other candle-makers, to do their craft.

ten years of cattoo, or a comparison of a tattoo i got 10 years ago and what it looks like today

*that's going to age poorly* is a common refrain that's projected by people - who themselves are probably aging poorly - in the comments of any videos or photos of tattoos. or *you'll regret that* and (my favorite) *what does your mother think of those*. my tattoos are pretty innocent, i only have a handful of them, and they're all on my shoulders and above the elbow so they're often not even visible. i love them and i'll get more.

the pee-hole post or a quick fix if your air compressor's drain valve is leaking and other sidequests

i mentioned having drama with my air compressor in my last post. the issue was that the compressor's drain cock valve - the pee-hole, on this blog - was leaking air. notice how i said 'the issue was' and that's because i fixed it. to celebrate, as well as deliver on my promise to jenn nation, here's...

my airbrush library

if you ever read anything about airbrushing on a technical level, you'll be told that it requires immense patience. there is nothing more truer in this world! it can be quite unforgiving and needs a lot of setup and cleanup, but the results are really beautiful and it's such a versatile tool. one of the things testing my patience with airbrush right now is that my compressor is leaking air from the drain valve. instead of shutting a window onto my neck about it, i figured to step away from the tank and show you my humble library of airbrush books. i've been collecting them for education, inspiration, and to feed my innate urge to buy used hardcover books that cover my somewhat niche and outdated hobbies.

that tfw when the world ends again

after the election loss last week, i've spent a lot of time on my screens watching people spiral, activate, argue, plan, fight, grieve, celebrate, move on…all the things. it’s very human yet overwhelming and i don’t want to contribute more to it, but idid need to get some of the thoughts swirling in my head down to make room for what’s next. i am going to tell a very personal story, but it dominates my mind whenever i feel the world is ending so the perspective may be helpful to those who feel alone in their grief right now.

photos from 2004

the verge's allison johnson recently asked 'where did our 2004 photos go?'' and i know exactly where mine are: they're on my computer. i'll share some that i think best show the essence of what my life was like in 2004.

brighton boobs

november the first be with you, my friends. i have done a lot these past few weeks, and naturally i have started to feel crushed by the five unfinished drafts of blog posts i've been writing on paper, screen and in my mind. because i caught myself feeling bad for not publishing anything, here i am 31 minutes before a zoom call sharing with you some of my bathroom art.

i made a very hard decision this year

a month ago i left a job i held for several years, a job that took me through a winding road of launching a product, going through an acquisition, lots of high points and lows...but ultimately i got to end the journey on my own terms, on my own time. i couldn't have asked for anything more, especially given the state of the world. i'm so very proud of my work at glitch and fastly, and it's special how i got to be one of just a handful of people who can say they have grown and lead millions of developers in creating the web and community! it was a lot of fucking work, though, and i need a break.

ten years ago i let people fuck up my 8-bit art

releasing an editable document on the web for anyone to edit in any way is terrifying but exciting. that's in part why i worked on glitch for so long - letting millions of developers run arbitrary code, more often than not for free, allows incredible viral moments to happen that shine brighter than any of the bad stuff (spam, phishing). this facilitation of web building always comes with its moments of noticing someone is doing something you didn't intend and you immediately thinking 'oh, that's it, we're fucked' but more often than not the next moment you're tearing up because the web can be so beautiful.

all good posts