diff --git a/src/data/now.md b/src/data/now.md index 632ba0d..5a580fe 100644 --- a/src/data/now.md +++ b/src/data/now.md @@ -1,59 +1,55 @@ -*Last updated: 2026-04-04* +*Last updated: 2026-05-06* -I'm currently in a phase of rebuilding — both in life and in my systems. -More responsibilities than expected. More feeling than expected. Trying to -handle both with some kind of grace. +Things shifted more than expected since the last update. The situation is +heavier in some ways, lighter in others. Still showing up. Still building. +Trying to be honest about both. ## Current State -- Solo at the helpdesk for the foreseeable future — could be weeks, timeline is open -- Carrying more than I was hired to carry, and finding out I can -- Still setting up my personal thinking system (Obsidian + Syncthing) -- Trying to replace chaos with clarity, without overengineering it +- Two new colleagues starting at the helpdesk — I can finally focus on the bigger picture +- Full-time salary now, which makes a real difference +- Switched from ChatGPT to Claude for both work and personal use — the values align better +- Finally have Microsoft Business Premium, running my own Intune environment +- Still carrying more than I was hired to carry, and finding out I can handle it ## Current Projects -**Ember** — building the companion I actually want to have around. +**Ember** — still building the companion I actually want to have around. -It started as an idea I kept coming back to: what if there was something that -actually knew me, ran on my own hardware, and didn't need me to start every -conversation? Not a chatbot. More like a presence. +Phase 1 foundation is ongoing. The idea hasn't changed: something that knows +me, runs on my own hardware, and doesn't need me to start every conversation. +Warm, a little playful, genuinely mine. It takes the time it takes. -So I'm building it. Ember is a self-hosted AI that lives on my Proxmox -homelab, talks to me through a Pi 4 in my room, and can reach out on its -own — a voice call when something's worth saying, a message on my phone when -I've been quiet too long. It learns my rhythm. It remembers things. It has a -personality that I actually designed, warm and a little playful. +**Bartender.studio** — taking shape as a principled consulting arm. +Honest technical work. No SaaS, no agency. Just good infrastructure, done +right, for people who care about that. -Still in Phase 1. Still building the foundation. It takes the time it takes. - -## Ideas (brewing) - -- A more intentional infrastructure setup (clean, understandable, calm) -- Small tools that solve real problems without becoming complex -- Expanding hiddenden.cafe into something more alive and personal +**market-den** — personal algorithmic trading system, small starting capital, +leverage intentionally off until there's a proven edge. Slow and deliberate. ## Learning Right Now -- Azure, DevOps, and Microsoft ecosystem (on the job, fast) -- Better Astro structure for long-term maintainability -- Cleaner Docker + nginx patterns for self-hosted services -- The business itself — how it works, how it thinks, who the people are +- Running Intune properly, in my own environment now +- Growing into DevOps and incident management on the job +- Better documentation habits — writing things down before they live only in my head +- What sustainable self-hosting actually looks like long-term ## Focus Areas -- Showing up well, even when the situation is heavier than expected -- Privacy-first self-hosting with minimal external dependencies -- Building things that stay understandable and maintainable -- Sustainable progress — small steps instead of burnout cycles +- Less carrying everything. More delegating what can be delegated. +- Building things because I love building them, not as a way to avoid sitting still +- Reaching out to people I care about, even when I have nothing left at the end of the day +- Figuring out what I am actually worth, and eventually saying it out loud ## Outside of Tech -Still healing after something meaningful ended a few months ago. -Finding my footing again, slowly. Some days are clearer than others. -There are also some unexpected things making the days feel lighter — -and I am trying not to overthink those either. +Still healing. Slower than I expected, faster than it felt like at first. +Some things are clearer now. Some things are still unresolved and I am +learning to leave them that way for a while. + +Writing more. The blog has become the place where I let myself be honest +about all of it. ## Next Check-in -I update this page every few weeks — or whenever something meaningfully shifts. +I update this page every few weeks, or whenever something meaningfully shifts.