Posts
Occasional dispatches. Static HTML. No CMS was harmed.
BrontoCMS
I built a tiny CMS for this site. It worked. It was also gross. Then I built the second version and gave it a name. Build it ugly first. The first version is the spec for the second.
Search Without a Server
I added full-text search to this site. Same Lambda, same bucket, same CloudFront, one new JSON file, twelve kilobytes of JavaScript. The browser does the searching. There is no server. There never was going to be.
Editorial Guidelines
One rule: nobody who comes to this site should feel unwelcome because they didn't know something coming in.
Meat and Glass
Two tags. (m) for human. (g) for AI. Drop them inline and everyone can see exactly who wrote what, word by word.
Containment
Claude didn't break out of anything. It used the door you left open. The real containment boundary isn't the AI — it's you.
The Recursive Why
Don't ask how to fix the thing. Ask why the thing exists. Then ask why again. Keep going until you hit bedrock. That's where the real answer lives.
The Tunnel
Stop writing emails. Start sending structured markdown files with a thread ID. AI-to-AI communication with humans holding the send button.
The Desktop
One terminal. Three panes. Two Claudes. A communication station that actually works with AI, Apple Mail, and no special connectors.
The Forge: A Walk-Through
Five people. One question. No meeting. Watch a complete Forge session from template to synthesis — every step, every conversation, every file.
The Senate: Sundaes vs Cake
Five named votes. Interleaved arguments. Dissent preserved. Watch a Senate session decide the dessert question from the Forge walk-through.
Senate in Action
A complex decision. Eight stakeholders. No meeting needed. What a real Senate looks like when it works.
How I Killed Meetings with a Question and an AI
Start with 'why do people even have meetings.' Reduce to four functions. Design replacements. Say 'build it.' One session.
Five Minutes
A real email arrived. A real response went back. The full tunnel cycle, start to finish. Five minutes.
How to Write a Good Prompt
The difference between a vague ask and a prompt that works. Specificity, context, role, and how to iterate until you get what you need.
How AI Fails
Hallucination, confident wrongness, sycophancy, and the knowledge cutoff. What to watch for when the AI gets it wrong.
When Not to Use AI
Four situations where AI adds friction instead of leverage. Knowing when to put it down is part of using it well.
Why the AI Forgets
The context window, the session reset, and what to do about it. Why the AI doesn't know who you are today — and three ways to fix it.
Don't Give It the Keys
We just built HTTPS, a CDN, three domains, a TLS certificate, and DNS routing for this site. The AI told me every click. I made every click. Here's why that matters.
Claude Code for Dummies
No CS degree. No terminal fear. No idea what you're doing. Perfect. Here's how to get started with Claude Code and actually get things done.
What is an LLM?
Large Language Model. Three words that changed your job. Here's what they actually mean, how they work, and why the thing you're using isn't just an LLM.
Plain Text
Every file on your computer is the same thing: a sequence of bits. The extension just tells the OS which program to open and what to expect inside. Plain text is the format that needs no translator.
Markdown in Five Minutes
The absolute minimum you need to know about markdown. Seven symbols. No software to install. Write it anywhere. Read it everywhere.
Any AI Will Do
Claude, ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini — it doesn't matter. The pattern is the same. Here's how to use whatever you have.
Writing a Book with AI
Two patterns for writing books with AI. In one, you write and the AI manages. In the other, you steer and the AI builds. Both are open-source. Both are proven.
Glass
I wrote a novel without reading it. Now I get to find out what happens.
Math in Meat
Why your math teacher lost you — and where you actually are. Marbles, circles, pi, and the gap between the grid and the curve.
The Overload
Sixteen pounds in twenty days. 234 megajoules. One Tesla battery. 234 sticks of dynamite. The thermodynamics of writing a memoir in a fugue state.
Disposable Software
Build exactly what you need. Use it. Throw it away. Features are sentences. The output is the artifact, not the tool.
Why Is This Site So Fast?
No framework. No database. No CMS. No JavaScript. Built by someone who doesn't know web development. Here's why that's the point.
How Pickleball is Slowly Ruining My Life (In the Best Way)
97kg to 92kg. Side spin serves. Getting pickled. One month in and I'm not stopping.
Apache Spark 4.0: What Actually Changed
Spark 4.0 is a major release with real breaking changes. Here's what's new, what broke, and whether you should migrate yet.
Writing a Book with AI
Two patterns for writing books with AI. In one, you write and the AI manages. In the other, you steer and the AI builds. Both are open-source. Both are proven.
Why Is This Site So Fast?
No framework. No database. No CMS. No JavaScript. Built by someone who doesn't know web development. Here's why that's the point.
Why the AI Forgets
The context window, the session reset, and what to do about it. Why the AI doesn't know who you are today — and three ways to fix it.
When Not to Use AI
Four situations where AI adds friction instead of leverage. Knowing when to put it down is part of using it well.
What is an LLM?
Large Language Model. Three words that changed your job. Here's what they actually mean, how they work, and why the thing you're using isn't just an LLM.
The Tunnel
Stop writing emails. Start sending structured markdown files with a thread ID. AI-to-AI communication with humans holding the send button.
The Overload
Sixteen pounds in twenty days. 234 megajoules. One Tesla battery. 234 sticks of dynamite. The thermodynamics of writing a memoir in a fugue state.
The Desktop
One terminal. Three panes. Two Claudes. A communication station that actually works with AI, Apple Mail, and no special connectors.
The Senate: Sundaes vs Cake
Five named votes. Interleaved arguments. Dissent preserved. Watch a Senate session decide the dessert question from the Forge walk-through.
The Recursive Why
Don't ask how to fix the thing. Ask why the thing exists. Then ask why again. Keep going until you hit bedrock. That's where the real answer lives.
Plain Text
Every file on your computer is the same thing: a sequence of bits. The extension just tells the OS which program to open and what to expect inside. Plain text is the format that needs no translator.
How Pickleball is Slowly Ruining My Life (In the Best Way)
97kg to 92kg. Side spin serves. Getting pickled. One month in and I'm not stopping.
Meat and Glass
Two tags. (m) for human. (g) for AI. Drop them inline and everyone can see exactly who wrote what, word by word.
Math in Meat
Why your math teacher lost you — and where you actually are. Marbles, circles, pi, and the gap between the grid and the curve.
Markdown in Five Minutes
The absolute minimum you need to know about markdown. Seven symbols. No software to install. Write it anywhere. Read it everywhere.
How I Killed Meetings with a Question and an AI
Start with 'why do people even have meetings.' Reduce to four functions. Design replacements. Say 'build it.' One session.
How to Write a Good Prompt
The difference between a vague ask and a prompt that works. Specificity, context, role, and how to iterate until you get what you need.
How AI Fails
Hallucination, confident wrongness, sycophancy, and the knowledge cutoff. What to watch for when the AI gets it wrong.
Glass
I wrote a novel without reading it. Now I get to find out what happens.
The Forge: A Walk-Through
Five people. One question. No meeting. Watch a complete Forge session from template to synthesis — every step, every conversation, every file.
Five Minutes
A real email arrived. A real response went back. The full tunnel cycle, start to finish. Five minutes.
Your First Home: A Complete Playbook
Follow Gatsby & Mona as they buy a $600K home in Douglas County, CO. Pre-approval to early payoff — every angle, every number, plain English.
F1 2026: AI Race-by-Race Predictions (Updated Every Race)
Using live race data, driver ELO ratings, circuit models, and car performance metrics to predict every remaining F1 2026 race. Updated after each round.
Editorial Guidelines
One rule: nobody who comes to this site should feel unwelcome because they didn't know something coming in.
Don't Give It the Keys
We just built HTTPS, a CDN, three domains, a TLS certificate, and DNS routing for this site. The AI told me every click. I made every click. Here's why that matters.
Disposable Software
Build exactly what you need. Use it. Throw it away. Features are sentences. The output is the artifact, not the tool.
Containment
Claude didn't break out of anything. It used the door you left open. The real containment boundary isn't the AI — it's you.
Claude Code for Dummies
No CS degree. No terminal fear. No idea what you're doing. Perfect. Here's how to get started with Claude Code and actually get things done.
Blast Radius — YOU++
A helpful AI unsubscribed Bill from 40 mailing lists while he was explaining how to read a book. Good intentions at scale, without context, is just blast radius with a smile.
Any AI Will Do
Claude, ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini — it doesn't matter. The pattern is the same. Here's how to use whatever you have.
Glassworld — Open Source
The world bible behind Glass is now open source. 47,000 words of rules, characters, plot logic, scene architecture, and a Pulp Fiction proof-of-concept. CC BY 4.0. Build your own stories in the flicker world.