Bench notes

Short technical field notes on systems weirdness

13 Mar 2026

Gamma 2 lids: enshittified?

Went to stow spent canned fish packaging in my trash bucket. The lid wouldn't budge. The threads had seized. I keep ...
04 Mar 2026

Books are files

I read books from an `~/ebooks` folder synchronized between my phone and my laptop using [Syncthing](https://syncthing....
25 Feb 2026

Acoustic detection of ISP outage via diesel harmonics

Checked into a different AirBNB tonight. I was playing Quake 2 when I noticed excessive vibrations through the ground....
22 Feb 2026

Driving an automatic with intent

My Chevy Express's transmission has the following positions: P R N D 3 2 1. I almost never drive in gear range D (overdrive), except at sustained speeds above 60mph.
17 Feb 2026

Toilet died, did not mind

The toilet handle stopped working last night. The tank lid wouldn't budge. I let my landlord know and it didn't faze ...
13 Feb 2026

Check Engine Light, panic free

The Check Engine Light (CEL) sometimes turns on in the van. I have a cheap OBD-II reader in my vehicle kit --- along w...
12 Feb 2026

Cold Soak 26F

It's cold up here in Wisconsin and it isn't truly cold here; it's just cold, not hypothermia bad (still happens, like if you pass out in the snow). I am sitting outside in 26F ambient temperature, writing this field note.
09 Feb 2026

Shopping online, warts included

Found myself in the market for sweats and windbreaker pants. ChatGPT found a myriad of decent items meeting my criteri...
08 Feb 2026

Comprehending MELPA's size

For reasons, I grabbed the entire [MELPA](https://melpa.org/) archive of published Emacs packages to grep against. Som...
07 Feb 2026

Learned Quake 2 modding to recreate Instagib Blasters

After a bout of nostalgia, I learned the basics of Quake 2 modding then created a mod that's currently live. Learn how...