Hello, it has been several months since my last update. I have become one of those bloggers who have seemingly abandoned their blogs. It is in the middle of a series as well. I’m not going to make excuses but I do want to explain where I’ve been.
Life is stressful. I don’t talk much about it but I’m a full-time caretaker for my mother who has had two strokes. That already takes up much of my time. I’m also getting us help through Medicaid. I’m not sure when that will happen but most likely sometime in the New Year.
I’m not currently working because of this and that isn’t good. My focus right now is on fixing that. Once I can get help for my mom, I want to transition to frontend development. My work with Astro has taught me that I have real skills and talent for building websites. I would like to turn this into a career. Hopefully, one in which I will be able to work remotely.
My plan for the New Year is to collapse my projects to focus on two goals to complete by the end of 2025.
Career Skill Tree
I have started a journey to improve my frontend skills. Part of that is completing the freeCodeCamp certifications in JavaScript and JavaScript frameworks. I don’t know if I will complete them all but that is an eventual goal. I’ve already completed the certification in Responsive Design.
After that, I am going to focus on building a mock corporate website for my portfolio. This is to show off all that I know. I typically build minimal websites. But, I have the skills to make something more complex. This will give me a chance to write some JavaScript for things like a theme switcher toggle. I also want to do things like create a password-protected page. So that I can practice authentication. Lastly, use Astro’s content layer to import some YouTube videos from the YouTube API. That would be so much fun.
After that, my goal is to get an internship.
If you want to follow along, check out my website where I document my progress working with Astro. It is a static site generator. I use it to build all my websites.
I’m not abandoning mathematics at all!
Completing My Manuscript
It’s been about a decade since I first wrote a 30,000-word manuscript about my love of mathematics. It didn’t expect that at that time. Inspired by my viewership of Numberphile. Emotions were pouring out of me and I had to get them down on the page. I was writing 2,000 words a day or more. But, when that period ended. I let it sit. I have not returned to it since.
Well, I would like to complete it. That means re-writing and editing the whole thing. Much of the content written isn’t acceptable for a first draft. It is full of raw text that isn’t focused on any particular topic. It needs a narrative. That is going to take time and some work. So, that is why I haven’t been publishing on the blog. I’ve started the process of completing a workable draft.
Please consider supporting me on Patreon if you would like updates on my progress. The lowest tier is $1 and you will get all posts when they go up.
Focusing my time on two things might make those things happen.
Other Plans
I will need some free time for myself for self-care. That still involves watching Numberphile videos and Dimension 20. They are my go-to comfort entertainment. So, I’m going to try to complete the other two projects that I started this year. I’m not going to focus on them though. They will be there in the background when I need to take a break and want to watch something.
Annotated Numberphile
This series will get done eventually. I want to catch up on all the episodes until November 2024.This is doable by the end of next year. I have a head start already completing the first four years. I’m not going to focus on trying to get this done month to month. Taking it easy and not rushing it.
Dimension 20: Neverafter Review
I started a fansite dedicated to Dimension 20 on Dropout.tv . It is a Dungeons & Dragons Actual Play show. This website is a way for me to talk about mental health. The website is aptly titled Trauma Dump. I’m going to review all the different campaigns in whatever order I choose. I wanted to start with Neverafter because it has a lot to say about childhood trauma. As you might expect from a Grimm’s Fairytale-inspired season. I am also hoping to complete this by next year but I’m going to take a lazy approach to it.
These are both nice to have things but I’m not going to try to do them every day.
Where You Can Find Me
I’m still around if you want to talk. I spend most of my time in two places.
Finite Group Discord
I’ve talked about the Finite Group before. Some popular math communicators run it. including Katie Steckles and Peter Rowlett of the Aperiodical. It used to be that only paying members of the Patreon had access to Discord, but this has changed.
Now anyone on the free tier can also join us! So, please sign up, and let’s have a chat.
The only perk you won’t have access to is the monthly live streams. You can always upgrade your membership at any time. They might make those recordings available for a price if you don’t want to support them monthly.
Mathstodon
Mastodon is still a thing for people leaving Twitter. It is my preferred alternative. I’m not keen to join Bluesky or Threads. I don’t trust the people/companies in charge of them. Christian Lawson-Perfect and Colin Wright run Mathstodon. Wwho are people that I know from the math community. So, that feels a lot better to me as a place to hang out. Here is a thread with math accounts you can follow.
Feel free to follow me there.