It can be easy to lose sight of one’s values, when surrounded by a culture that doesn’t share them. Living in the SF Bay Area, I’ve met a lot of hyper-ambitious people with visions of the changing the world, who live and breathe their missions. It’s impressive and inspiring, and I have nothing but respect for them – but it’s not who I am. I began to try to mold myself into one, to sell myself as one, but lately I’ve been reflecting that I felt unnaturally contorted, and it showed in the half-heartedness of my efforts. I wrote this essay for myself, to clarify my values so I can fully align my actions behind them. Now, I’m publishing it to share that clear, honest picture with you. ...

I have become increasingly convinced that you, dear reader, will never actually die. What could I mean by this, you ask? In this essay, I’ll explain how our modern understanding of physics might give rise to immortality, and explore some practical and philosophical considerations of immortality. Multiverse In the history of science, we have often found that the world is not as it seems. Although the Earth appears flat to the senses, measurements tell us it is round. While the course charted by the sun and stars is plain to see, we know now that it is we who move as the heavens stand still. More recently, Einstein showed us that time and space are not the unchanging stage we intuit, but bend with the events of the universe. The case I’m about to present relies on the dissolution by science of one more illusion: that the universe follows only one true storyline. ...

I’ve been intrigued by the world of quantitative trading for many years, so when ex-Jane Street trader Ricki Heicklen ran a trading bootcamp at Manifest recently, I jumped at the opportunity! The bootcamp was a two-day intensive program designed to teach the fundamentals of quantitative trading and provide a glimpse into the experience of being a professional trader. Using a play currency, we went through various hands-on exercises to solidify concepts taught in energetically-delivered lectures. I learned a lot and made friends, and had so much fun that I’m considering a career pivot to quant trading. So, this post has two purposes: to give interested readers some background in trading concepts and a sense of my bootcamp experience, and to serve as a proof of work showing potential employers what I learned. ...

It’s halfway through Quiethaven at LessOnline, an hour where conversation is forbidden to encourage writing. I’ve been meaning to publish more content here, but often find myself bottlenecked on writing speed. The ideas bounce around my head, but it’s daunting to sit down and write a whole post, so the posts don’t get written and the blog stays more barren than I’d like. I’ve been thinking and talking about how to publish more, and this post will both describe and apply my conclusions. I intend to occasionally read this post as a reminder to myself, and if you enjoy it as well, so much the better. Here’s how I’ll publish more content on my blog: ...

I brewed a Historic deck recently that I call Ritual of Change. It’s a lot of fun to play, and it’s taken me to Diamond in Best-of-1 Ranked! In this post, I’ll share the decklist and some notes on building/playing the deck. The Decklist Creatures (32) 4 Birds of Paradise 4 Burning‑Tree Emissary 2 Charming Prince 4 Fear of Change 4 Prosperous Innkeeper 2 Abhorrent Oculus 4 Extraction Specialist 4 Renegade Rallier 4 Skyclave Apparition Enchantments (4) 4 Birthing Ritual Instants (4) 4 Collected Company Lands (20) 1 Boseiju, Who Endures 2 Botanical Sanctum 2 Breeding Pool 4 Brushland 1 Forest 1 Island 1 Mana Confluence 1 Plains 1 Prismatic Vista 1 Razorverge Thicket 3 Temple Garden 2 Yavimaya Coast The Design This deck is originally based on a Pioneer deck by my friend Josh, but it’s gone through several iterations from that starting point. Since I’m playing Historic rather than Pioneer, I have access to a couple of key cards that pushed the deck in a different direction (and gave the deck its name): Birthing Ritual and Fear of Change. ...

Inspired by some other blogs I like, I decided I wanted to add hovering previews to the footnotes on my own site1. This turned out to be surprisingly complex! First, I asked ChatGPT for a simple plug-and-play solution. When it didn’t have one and the code it suggested didn’t work, I turned to Manicode. Sadly for me, Manicode also struggled; despite several iterations of prompting and troubleshooting, Manicode couldn’t find a solution that worked. I was going to have to dive into the issue myself. ...

I’ve been making fried rice for several years, and it’s gotten a lot better since I started. Here are my tips for a delicious fried rice. 1. Use a Wok: The high edges of a wok make vigorous stirring easier and reducing spillage. 2. High Heat: In Asian kitchens, chefs use special high-heat burners for cooking, so use the maximum heat on your home stove. 3. Lots of Butter: Butter gives a better flavor than oil, as well as keeping the wok greased. Add butter before most ingredients and more whenever you feel like it. ...

In my life, I have spent three years working full-time as a software engineer. Before that, I spent almost twenty as a student in formal education. My education prepared me in many ways for my life and career, and on the whole has been a great advantage. However, the structure of formal education taught me a pattern of thinking that I realized has held me back as a professional. In this post, I’ll examine this pattern, which I name “school mindset”, and how it can be a hindrance in the professional world. I’ll delve into my personal experiences and offer my insights on how to transition from a school mindset to a more effective professional mindset. ...

This blog is built with Hugo and hosted on Netlify (free tier). I also bought the domain name from Netlify for $13, the only monetary expense in the process. I’m using Abricotine to write this post.