Cinco de Mayo - Taco Tuesday

07:50 am

I’m going to try another timestamp entry today. It’s Cinco de Mayo and Taco Tuesday! This is a rare convergence. The last one occurred in 2020…**shudders** The next one happens in 2037. The only celebration I’ll actually be doing is having tacos…LOL But it’s a fun little thing to think about. I’m not Mexican. But I’m happy to celebrate with them in heart. I sort of do the same with England on November 5th…LOL I have friends from both countries…hehehe

I started working on a note taking app yesterday. I’m currently calling it NoteSprout. It is inspired by the handwritten notes and journaling I do everyday. There are things I like and don’t like about all the e-ink note apps on my tablets. I’ve thought about creating my own for months now. Well, I finally started the process. So far, I’ve fleshed out the concept and started working out the data-model. My next step is to create the minimal viable product for the proof of concept. Basically, a notebook with pages and the ability to write on the pages and erase parts of what is written. All saving to a file that I can then reopen later. Basic starter, “it’s just paper” sort of app. And then grow from there…hehehe

11:45 am

Okay…well…I forgot I was doing a timestamp entry today…LOL My morning went really well. My day is full of meetings. But they are mostly necessary meetings. So far, none of them have been “should have been an email” meetings. One in particular was very insightful and I’m glad I scheduled it. Yeah, it was my meeting. But it was to do knowledge transfer from someone else into my brain…hehehe I think they liked having the meeting too. Oddly, it was with the person I have the most trouble with who always seems to interrupt me. I mentioned them in last week’s Bible study on Patience…LOL After the call today, I praised God for helping change my heart last week. Today’s meeting went really well and I was glad to be talking with them ❤️

I also had a meaningful 1:1 with my super. He’s a super supervisor…hehehe We actually ran long on our regroup meeting…LOL I’m grateful for him 🥰

Today, Cherie and I are starting a weekly movie “night” to watch the classic Disney animated films “together.” The quotes are because we may not both watch them at night and we are 2k miles apart…LOL This week, we start with the animated feature length film…the one that started all feature length animated films…hehehe “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” is the film that started them all. It is also my personal favorite. That’s because it was the first. I love the film itself. But I’m fond of beginnings and seeing where things go from there. It has been my favorite for many years.

Coincidently, there is an important connection with Cherie as well. We met a little over 4 years ago because she made a Twitter post about those Disney animated film fairytale openings where you see the classic book page turn leading into the film. That got the attention of DisTwitter and brought her to my attention. We became social media mutuals and a friendship eventually grew and blossomed. So, it seems very fitting that we start this “movie night” tradition with the classic that started it all…hehehe

I’ll be starting the film here in a few at lunch. I’ll finish it tonight at dinner 🤭

04:30 pm

All of my afternoon meetings were quick. They didn’t take up the full allotted time slots. I like it when meeting organizers get to the point and then close it out if everything is accomplished quickly 😁

I’ve done production support a little today as well. I always enjoy that. People like it when their issues are resolved quickly…hehehe I would too!

I’ve also done some “fire off and forget” communications. I am juggling a few projects/tasks. Everyone seems busy these days. So, I’ll send a message about the work I’m doing with or for them, without expecting an immediate response. Then I move on to the next thing. When they finally do respond, I work it back into my day. Ever since I started using my note taking routine, that workflow has been effective.

Interestingly, it just so happens that I started my note taking routine a year ago this coming Thursday 🤩 It has evolved over the course of the year. But it all began on May 7th last year when I walked into Best Buy and bought my Kindle Scribe; 2024 edition. I still have it, but rarely use it now. I mostly use the Supernotes that I got in July. The Scribe gave me an appetite for electronic handwritten note taking that it simply couldn’t satisfy…LOL

My note taking workflow is what inspired my ideas for NoteSprout. It seems serendipitous that this new app is being born a year after I started using e-ink 🥰

06:45 pm

I really enjoyed watching “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” today 🥰 I’ve seen it a dozen times at least. But it still felt new this time…hehehe I even noticed a few things I don’t recall ever paying attention to. Such as the little blue bird she sees just before the huntsman goes after her is likely the same blue bird we see later with its parents. And the little fly that falls asleep when everyone else goes to sleep…LOL

The tacos were divine…LOL j/k They were good. That’s all I did for Cinco de Mayo. Basically a normal Taco Tuesday 🤷‍♂️

I’m enjoying this week’s Bible study once again. It’s on Kindness. I’ve already learned a bit more about kindness than I thought I knew. I’m also realizing I’m not always kind with myself. I’m looking forward to all that I’ll experience this week as the study progresses.

I’m going to work on NoteSprout next. I hope to get the initial MVP built and running on my BOOX Note Air 5C tonight. It’s okay if I don’t. It would just be cool to go from “hey, I have an idea” to “hey, I’m actually writing my first strokes” within a few days. Who knows, maybe I’ll have a full app by the end of the month…LOL

10:25 pm

NoteSprout: the seed has been planted, watered, and it is sprouting! The full MVP is not yet in bloom. But it is creating notebook files, accepting input with the stylus, and saving the stroke data. When I go back to open a notebook, the drawing/writing is still there. Yay!!! This is my first time creating anything like this…hehehe My heart is so happy 🥰 To go from idea 💡 to a working example 🌱 in a day is a major accomplishment 🤩 I literally drew shapes and wrote words on an e-ink tablet in my own app, NoteSprout, tonight ❤️

I would love to continue, but the late hour tells me the day is over…LOL There was a day when I would just keep chugging along and deal with lack of sleep the next day. But I’m older and wiser now…meaning, I need my sleep more than I need to make more progress…LOL You know, because I’m not as young as I used to be…LOL j/k In reality, I’m not old yet. But I am wise enough to understand the value of rest ❤️