After three years of trying other daily planners, I’m back on the Hobonichi Techo bandwagon.

I finally ended up pulling the trigger on a standing desk. Until recently I didn’t have the space for one, but now I do and figured it was a good time. Ended up going with the Moss Green Ply Jarvis desk from Fully with an ErgoDriven Topo standing mat (the Moss Green color is almost identical to the wall color I painted my office, so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity for making it a match).

Little in this world is as refreshing as beachside autumns in northwest Michigan.

Well, that’s one way to spell faucet.

You know you’ve hit peak parenthood when you can tell what Hot Wheels car you’ve stepped on by the feeling of the metal and plastic bits that dig into the bottom of your feet.

Little victories

After self-publishing her first poetry book and debating whether or not to do the same for her second—which is about 80% complete—my wife informed me today she sent off her first proposal to a publisher. As so many are, this particular publisher severely backlogged, but it’s a reason for celebration regardless of the outcome. I couldn’t be more proud of her and the effort she’s put into this second book.

Until I take the time to build a proper little station for my Prusa Mini+ 3D printer rig, it’s current spot is next to my desk atop an IKEA Alex drawer on wheels. I also have a Eufy home security camera recording through a magnified ring light so I can keep tabs while I’m away.

Spent some time this past week shooting an assignment for the Michigan Department of Education. The farm tour proved to be a great location for testing out the iPhone 13 Pro review unit I have on loan from Apple for DPReview. Lovely morning light.

After years of successfully ignoring my itch to purchase a 3D printer, I finally caved to my geeky desires and purchased a Prusa Mini+ a few weeks ago. I’m a bit late to the 3D printing party, but after making a handful of prints and even dabbling in a smidge of CAD, I can’t help but be amazed at the potential of additive manufacturing technology, particularly at-home methods, going forward.

Many of the first items I printed are novel designs made for the hell of it to calibrate your printer and ensure everything is up and running smoothly. But after those, I started getting into more functional designs, such as planters, desk organizers, and even a working carabiner that can hold ~30lbs. One of my most recent prints was a four-inch drain cap for a French drain our home’s previous owners put in place and failed to cover appropriately. Sure, I had to wait four hours for the piece to be made, but for $1.55 worth of filament and a bit of time I was doing other work, I was able to make an on-demand piece that would’ve cost twice as much at the home supply store and taken up even more resources in the form of gasoline and emissions.

One thing I don’t necessarily appreciate about 3D printing is that it’s only further contributing to the issue of plastics and micro-plastics. But, one of the most common and easy-to-print filament types is PLA (Polylactic acid), which is made from renewable resources and biodegradable in commercial facilities. As it stands, I’m using mostly PolyTerra PLA filament from PolyMaker, which is both biodegradeable and comes rolled on a cardboard tube (most other filament comes rolled on 200g spools).

I still have plenty to learn, but the possibilities are exciting. Thingiverse, Cults, and other websites with slicer-ready files make it incredibly easy to get started, but I can’t help but feel the real magic in 3D printing lies in being able to make your own 3D models to print.

It’s been a while, Micro.blog. After nearly two years away I’m hoping to get back to posting here. It’s been too long since I’ve had a consistent personal place to share life’s journey that isn’t Twitter.