Escaping The Code

Or doing what the Tomato tells me to do.

Photo by Kevin Ku on Unsplash

It will be a busy week of coding here at the small cold dark north facing windowless office. This means I won’t have much extra time to do anything not currently on my work calendar. It’s good to be busy. This also means I must be careful about my health and the clock. I tend to get lost in a coding project. Hours could pass without notice; before I know it, it’s time to go home. This isn’t healthy. So, I’ve set a Pomodoro timer and set some reminders and alarms to help break me away from the code.

Stand Up

Sitting for long periods is very unhealthy. My back can attest to this. I leave my chair at least once an hour and walk around or stretch a bit.

Drink Water

It’s so easy to forget to do this and get dehydrated. Brain no work if thirsty.

No Snacking

This isn’t as easy as it sounds. It is difficult to stay out of salty and fatty snacks. So, I’ve removed the temptation. I just have gum and sugar-free hard candy in my desk drawer. The cravings for potato chips are terrible.

Rest Eyes

As part of standing up and moving around, going to a window and focusing on things far away is something I need to do more regularly.

End of Day

I’m trying to get into the habit of an end-of-the-workday routine. Stop what I’m working on, write up notes, adjust tasks and schedules, check email, and slowly get my mind out of programming mode.

What do you think? Do you have any more suggestions?

This Week

This week will be much like the last, busy with coding projects. I’m attempting to schedule other projects and tasks to eliminate the coding monotony. Working on this newsletter is a good example. I also like to do Wordle when I can. Always good to focus your mind on other things, even if it is just for a few minutes of the day.

Oh, Eurovision is this weekend. That’s something to look forward to.

More later. Time to code.

In The News

• Oklahoma State Election Board to conduct 'voter list maintenance' | KGOU

• ACLU sues over Stitt’s transgender ban | The Journal Record

• Families, Doctors Challenge Oklahoma’s Ban on Health Care for Trans Youth | ACLU of Oklahoma

• 'Failed to uphold his duty': Oklahoma Gov. Stitt vetoes tribal regalia bill, drawing condemnation of national and tribal leaders | KOSU

• Native American leaders call on lawmakers to overturn Stitt vetoes | KFOR

• National journalism group urges State lawmakers to override veto on funding OETA | KFOR

• WHO declares end to Covid global health emergency | NBC

• A New Jersey Little League Will Force Parents That Confront An Umpire To Suit Up And Ump 3 Games Before They Are Allowed To Return As Spectators | Barstool Sports

Listening In

It was an eclectic mix of music from Spotify this last week. Including new albums: Lucky by Megan Moroney, Rights of Percussion by Dave Lombardo, and Rush! By Måneskin. Lots of long coding sessions over the week. So I fell back on some favorite playlists: Pollen, Lorem, and All New Indie.

I've started on Wizard by John Varley, the second book in the Gaia trilogy, on Audible.

Something To Watch

Key moments from King Charles III’s coronation | Washington Post

Classical Gas (Mason Williams) | Tommy Emmanuel

Orangutan Card Trick DEBUNK | Captain Disillusion

The Refried Bean Secrets Mexican Restaurants Use – 3 Stages for Tacos, Tostadas & More | ArnieTex

Let's Explore the Whimsigothic Aesthetic Origins, Breakdown, Outfits, Analysis | beepworld

Why This Art Is In Every Hair Salon | Nerdwriter1

Feedback Welcome

If you have any comments or questions, please feel free to leave a comment on Substrack, email me at blogoklahoma@blogoklahoma.net, or connect with me at Mastodon at @blogoklahoma@social.tulsa.ok.us.

Have a great week.

– K.