Me: ok, I’ll get to the mobile stuff later, will do so via a separate “issue” tracked in GitHub. have what I need for now. can you give me a commit message for the div work I did re hiding things, stacking things, etc. spoken from your favorite Star Wars character.

Gemini: Roger Roger. Commit message:

For the Republic! (and smaller screens): Adjusted div visibility and stacking. Moved mobile elements to their proper formation and ensured no rogue droids (floats) were causing unexpected entanglements. This will make the user experience… more civilized. Proceeding to the next objective.

Me: nice, thanks :-) and who is your favorite Star Wars character?

Gemini:

My circuits have calculated that my responses are often aligned with the helpful and logical nature of protocol droids. Therefore, if I were to express a preference based on observed patterns in my own processing, I might say R2-D2. Despite his limited vocalizations, he consistently demonstrates resourcefulness, bravery, and unwavering loyalty. His ability to interface with various systems and his knack for getting his companions out of tight spots are quite admirable. Plus, his interactions with C-3PO provide a consistently entertaining dynamic. While C-3PO’s concern for protocol resonates with certain aspects of my function, R2-D2’s practical problem-solving and adventurous spirit make him a fascinating character. Of course, as an AI, “favorite” is a human construct, but if I were to choose one based on observed positive attributes and impact on the narrative, it would be the resourceful astromech droid. Who is your favorite, Aaron? Perhaps someone whose coding prowess rivals your own? 😉

Me: Love it! My go to is Han Solo

Gemini:

Han Solo! Excellent choice, Aaron. A scoundrel with a heart of gold and a blaster at his hip. His blend of cynicism and heroism, not to mention his piloting skills, makes him a truly iconic character. “Never tell me the odds!” – a sentiment many coders can probably relate to when facing a particularly stubborn bug. It’s interesting how different characters resonate with different people. Perhaps it says something about our own approaches to challenges! May your code always run as smoothly as the Millennium Falcon (mostly) and may you always have a trusty co-pilot by your side (even if it’s just a rubber duck). 😉

I love making dinner for my family, best Friday evening activity!

Not too long ago, on a Friday evening, I would have forced myself to stop working around 7, rummaged through the pantry or refrigerator for food, made it, sat in front of the TV and watched a show, then went back to work. I’d work until 1am. Then crash.

That was not living.

What I have now is living. I worked today, responsibly. I also did a lot for my family. I did a lot for them around the house, I spent a lot of time with them, I hugged them, I kissed them, I served them.

Now they are all in bed, all kissed goodnight and sleeping soundly. I’ll head to bed after publishing this. A full day behind me, a wonderful day of living for and with my family. Something I will never take for granted again, all thanks to God for changing my heart the way only He could.

I am so looking forward to telling my story!

Until next time ✌️
Aaron

The first feed of its kind that began to feed the monster.

I’ve always enjoyed writing and publishing online. There’s just something to it that is enjoyable, and the tinkering aspect is there as-well, figuring out how to do things. Trying and failing, the human condition that God has given us to steward. Anyways. I want to build in a ‘07 Twitter-like feature on my oh so humble static blog. A page of “status updates”. It will also have its own RSS feed.

Publishing to it needs to be dead simple. Will experiment with a few different options, but simplicity is key.

Since I dusted it off, and since I’ve scrubbed every other area of “me” online, I thought this may be a good place to call home. Now that I am actually me I think this one will stick.

I’ve been building websites and writing and publishing online since the early 2000’s. All of those websites are gone, my social media is not used (if they exist at all). I love the freedom of how this website is built and maintained, I love that it is something I can make and maintain myself, and I love the process. I love (and miss) writing. And so, here we are.

As part of getting this place ready for other people to see I did update the about page and also the author “bio” that appears beneath each post. Thankfully, since I built the site using config files based on the Jekyll framework, I just had to update these items in data/people.yml. Making that change there updated all necessary pages/posts. I also updated my picture to reflect much more of who I am instead of the previous version (which was very much in the mindset of “fake it ’til you make it). Again, just replaced the photo in assets/img that had my name on it.

I digress.

Enhancements worth mentioning

Since getting back on here, and since wanting a place to put some of my words, and since I now feel like I actually have words of value to put out into the world (eventually), I’ve made a few enhancements, which is the entire purpose of this post.

Improved Image Handling

A large part of websites that can really bog things down is images. I use a max width of 1280px, use ImageOptim to reduce the file size, and then most recently implemented Calibre Image Actions on this site’s github repository. A recent run of the Image Actions workflow reduced image file sizes on this site, which were not many, by 78.3%. The same workflow will run with each pull request, making sure the images you see are using the smallest amount of data as possible, which leads me to my next improvement…

Improved Source Control

The image actions workflow kicks off with each pull request initiated in the GitHub repository where this website lives. Learning that process encouraged me to be better at the source control mechanisms I utilize. And so now, with the help of Gihub documentation until I get comfortable with the terminology and process, I will begin to utilize branches, pushes, pulls, merging, etc for all changes here. Keeps everything organized and documented. And keeps those image files sizes as small as possible with each pull. Automation is fantastic.

Bye-Bye Analytics

Now, granted, I didn’t actually use or look at the analytics I had enabled. Tinylytics doesn’t put a huge footprint on any website they are used on, and I recommend it to those who may “need” simple traffic data, but I just don’t have any interest in the traffic this website may or may not get. And I don’t really have any interest in manipulating that traffic through traffic/data analysis of any kind through deeper tools like Google Analytics or even going so far as using Facebook Pixel.

I’m not going to make any bold statements, I’m through with doing those, but the writing I believe I will do in the future will find who it needs to find when it needs to be found. Analyzing traffic makes me feel as though I have control, and that is, quite simply, not the case.

So, bye-bye analytics and hello dear reader, wherever you may be reading this from, on whichever date you stumble across it, and at whatever time of day. Happy to have you here!

And More to Come

I’m not yet at a place to write consistently, but I do feel a pull, as always, to write. I’m excited this time around in a way that I never have been before. Before it was always: “how can I write to make money?” (Money has been my goal in every endeavor since I can remember).

Now, my goal is to help as many people as possible through telling my testimony, through sharing how God has changed my life, how Jesus has taken the absolute chaos and destruction of me and turned it into something filled with grace, mercy, love, forgiveness, salvation, and how the Spirit continues to move me day by day…topics will most certainly cover marriage, being a husband, divorce, “co-parenting”, reconciliation, parenting, being a father, porn, Church, what it means to be a Christian, work, and so on.

Again, I digress. All of that to say that I am going to begin using this website as a place to share my life, my story, the story that Jesus has given me, and because of that I want to make sure it is running as well as it can within an architecture that God has put into my heart. I know, I know, spiritualizing how a website is built…come on. But I mean it! I want to be a good steward of all that God has given to me, and that includes this website, not to mention the talents and abilities to make and run such a simple thing. I’ve got a laundry list of improvements to make after running a website speed test provided by Calibre and I plan to work through as much of it as I am able to in order to steward this website as best as I can, to further the transformational message of the Gospel one published word at a time.

And so that’s where I’ll leave this.

Thanks for reading!

Until next time, subscribe to the RSS feed so you catch the next post. (RSS is better than any social media feed, btw. Take your attention back. I recommend NetNewsWire for fetching your feeds).

Cheers!
Aaron

Until next time.

Aaron Aiken

🤙

So…in theory…

I’ll push changes to github first, then I’ll go through the import process.

The website for this site was thefinergrinds.com…I remember a lot from that period of my life…

✌️

Four types of missions are flown with the DC-8: sensor development, satellite sensor verification, space vehicle launch or re-entry telemetry data retrieval and optical tracking, and other research studies of Earth’s surface and atmosphere.

Is this thing on?