How are you? (Patreon)

Hey everyone. Sorry for being so antisocial during this long world crisis. I've been facing challenges in health and well-being, driving myself a little too hard and not keeping up the best habits or sleep. In fact, right now I'm on this weird 3pm-6am waking schedule, but I have to admit that I prefer the peace and silence of the small hours to the sun's loud glare.

This is a transitional time here at the Austin, TX student apartment I call "The Bunker" in homage to William S. Burroughs. A couple years ago I asked my longtime friend Lưu to come out and help me deal with the physical details of 3D printers, lasers, and testing so that I could focus on the day-to-day maintenance of the project.

Well, the time has come and Lưu is moving on to explore new opportunities in Fort Worth. We accomplished a lot of cool things before and during the quarantine, and Lưu is a truly rare and generous person, so the place feels a lot emptier without his great presence. I'm going to keep hitting him up for designs and to help with K-40 laser support, so don't worry, we've not seen the last of Lưu.

I've decided to keep the apartment for another 6-8 months to take advantage of the extra space, get things organized, and contemplate the next chapter. I've always preferred to live modestly and at times nomadically, and since I can travel and take the work with me wherever I go, I'm going to visit friends, do more collaboration, and spend more quality time with organic beings who share the same affinities. There might even be musical jams!

So, I just wanted to let you know that I haven't forgotten about you, the wonderful people who make my daily existence possible. Quite the opposite. Your generosity inspires me to keep trying to do better in every way. If the fuel of life is gratitude, this must be the high-octane variety. So, from the bottom of my still-beating heart, thank you.

Oh, before I go back to tasks, one nice improvement you will see is more regular releases. There will be minor versions released about every 2 weeks. The next version is actually going to be 2.0.9, so keep an eye out for that.

Anyway, I will put out a video soon with more thoughts and details, probably some complaints to keep things interesting. Send me a message or write to me on Discord if you have any questions that you want me to answer in the livestream. Suggestions and unsolicited advice are also welcome, especially if it pertains to organization, productivity, and time-management.

How are you??