Successful shoulder surgery yesterday!



Surgeon wasn't sure what he'd find. Thankfully there was more repairing to do than he had expected. I didn't want to wake up and have him say, "eh, didn't see much, not sure how much it'll help."

So, cool, got a bunch fixed.



Means the recovery will be longer. 6wks in the sling. No driving (👀). 6mo rehab. But it'll be worth it if I can hang from a bar again, tumble again, umm... wash my back again...

And so far no terrible pain, but the nerve block is still wearing off so the pain is steadily increasing.

Probably going to avoid writing any new @SeedSigner PRs until I'm off the narcotics!

Can't say that @KumaDawg is being extra caring, but she's always a good snuggler so we're getting in good pass-out-from-morphine nap time.

Best crappy handstand I could do the day before my shoulder surgery. Was a good reinforcement for me for why the surgery was necessary; the limitations I've had the last 12-18mo are NOT acceptable!

(can't do a good handstand if you can't fully open your shoulder angle. Can't adjust the handstand if you can't exert much force through the front of your delts)

I've always been annoyed by Debian's version naming. My first encounters with it were in the "Stretch" and "Buster" eras. Which was the more recent one and which was being phased out?

When you search for compatible binaries, libraries, etc, you have to specifically search by name: We're currently in a "Bookworm" vs "Bullseye" era. Which do I need? And the repetition of the "B" names makes it even harder to remember which is which.

(note to self: Bookworm... except in the older setups that need Bullseye... 😭)

But I never thought to ask what the naming convention was.







Fuck, I kind of love that.

But as cute as it may be, VERSION NUMBERS WILL ALWAYS BE MORE USER-FRIENDLY!!!

I haven't gotten too deep into AI yet, but is this logo an actual wink to Vonnegut or do the folks there just not read? 🤣

REVERSE SEAR YOUR SALMON!!

The ultimate crispy + buttery smooth combo!

My first time trying it (I usually just saute small single-serving thin filets in a cast iron pan). Amazing results! It's better overall AND easier to cook thicker filets and larger portions.



Pre-salt it on both sides. Light coat of high-temp oil (I use avocado).

Oven at a low 325°F. Cook until internal temp hits 135°F. This 1lb cut was about 1.5" thick so it took about 25min. Low and slow keeps it moist.



You could let it proceed to 145°F and eat it as-is, but low-temp baked salmon just looks horrible. Do the next step!

Prep a blazing hot cast iron pan w/more oil or butter. Just like a steak, sear the shit out of all sides with high heat. Should only take ~30s per side, plus the edges.



Perfectly juicy on the inside (and, yes, I left the temp probe in and confirmed that the center reached 145°F during the sear). The sear gives it a flavor kick and looks SO MUCH better than baked salmon's gross pastiness.

I then used the leftover oil and the hot cast iron pan to saute broccoli, mixed in some spinach and miso paste at the end.

FOURTH book of the year finished last week!



HAMNET is a fictional portrayal of Shakespeare's real son who died of the plague. O'Farrell says she couldn't understand how Shakespeare could write "Hamlet" just 4yrs after his Hamnet's death. So she had to explore it.

This opening note explains wtf is up with the weird HamNet vs HamLet thing happening here, which I found maddening upon first hearing about this book:



O'Farrell is a beautiful writer. It's somewhat stream-of-consciousness; a character enters a room and notes each moment that hits their senses: this quality of the light, a faint aroma, etc. O'Farrell is a lovely observer of the world and imbues her main character, Shakespeare's wife, Agnes, with a deep connection to nature.

It took me about 50 pages to get settled in and accustomed to O'Farrell's style. Well worth it. "Lovely" really is the key word here.


(pretty baller way to open the novel!)

And this really is Agnes' story. The Shakespeare-y-ness of it all is deliberately shrouded; the name Shakespeare is never mentioned and her husband's first name is actually never uttered, either.

Agnes has a kind of magic about her via her deep intuitions. It's lovely and in a horrible way makes the death of her son even more painful. I absolutely can NOT recommend this for anyone who has young children; it's just too steeped in the mother's grief and despair.


(The book has been adapted into a film that is now winning all the awards)

One critique: the portrayal of Shakespeare as a ne'er-do-well lost dreamer just isn't credible. There's no way he could discover theater in early adulthood and within 4 years write "Hamlet". The works of Shakespeare reflect a life dedicated deeply to the craft from an early age. Simply wandering into his calling later in life is absurd.

At a showing of "Hamlet" he even wonders to himself if his writing is any good. Abso-fucking-lutely absurd to have that kind of doubt when that play is the pinnacle of his skills.

Another: When O'Farrell finally pays off the concept -- how does Hamnet relate to "Hamlet"? -- it's quite disappointing. Cathartic for Agnes but just a too-thin attempt to join the ideas together for anyone who's studied the play. "Hamlet" just isn't how you'd honor your dead 11yr old son.

O'Farrell seems to get unmoored as Agnes is lost in despair. Her narrative stops making much progress and then the final payoff is meh.

But overall, O'Farrell is such a strong writer and Agnes being such a unique, in-tune creature in the world make HAMNET still well worth the read.

---
*(My UCLA Shakespeare prof favored the theory that the Earl of Oxford, Edward de Vere, was really the author of Shakespeare's plays. De Vere had the privilege and deep + broad education that was exceptionally rare at the time that would seem to be a prerequisite for being able to produce those plays. Always made more sense to me)