Matt's Journey

Foundations

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 03:22:00 +0000

Every journey needs foundational principles. Here are mine.

1. Don't feed the sheep.

This one probably sounds odd to most of you, but familiar to some. Typically, 'sheep' refers to sheeple, or a conformist. I use the term slightly differently. To me, a sheep is someone who does not actively work toward giving their lives meaning. Some people are kept from living their lives through adversity, but they are not necessarily sheep. Non-sheep are those who fight for their right to live their lives their way, for good or ill. That's not to say that all non-sheep are good, of course. Al Capone wasn't a sheep, but he wasn't a good man, either. I'm also not calling sheep bad. Sheep don't take journeys, they simply graze. Get enough of them together, though, and you won't be able to get around them to progress on your journey.

2. Make your meaning.

My philosophy is that the only meaning in our lives is what we give it. Maybe we choose to focus on family, supporting our spouse, raising our children, and having a few hobbies. Or maybe we choose to be great leaders, deep-thinking scientists, writers, adventurers, philosophers, money-makers, inventors, or socialites. The meaning gives the journey direction, way points, and a purpose.

3. Never stop dreaming.

Our dreams is what gives out journey depth. It allows us to accomplish things that we otherwise would not have. Dreams led us to new continents, walking on the moon, the internet, and social equality. Dreams give you the motivation to take each step in your journey.

4. Never stop learning.

Many times, our journeys become difficult. The path gets steep, rugged, or down right dangerous. There are ways around most obstacles in our path, as many of them have been circumvented before by others. Want to write an app for a phone, but don't know how to code? There are books for that. Want to lose a few pounds to make the journey a bit easier? There is almost too much advice for that. Want to learn a new language? There are books, videos, podcasts, and blogs all over. Learning gives us ways around most obstacles in our journey.

5. Never stop thinking.

Every journey has choices. Do you go left or right? To college or straight to employment? Some choices are easier to make than others. Some paths are 'worn about the same'. Not taking the time to think (or improving our ability to think) can lead us to taking a bad path, one that may end the journey prematurely. Thinking can (but not always) help us take the better path.

6. Never stop loving.

No worthwhile journey is completely alone. There will be others crossing your path, or even journeying with you. And you'll constantly run into flocks of sheep. Journeys never happen if you keep stopping for the sheep. And a journey can be made better with a good traveling partner. Being able to love and feel love, both platonic and romantic, will help you find the best traveling partners. Nearly every journey is better if shared with others.

7. Never stop making the effort.

Any journey can be broken up to a series of smaller moments. A physical journey is the combination of a great many single steps. An intellectual journey is a combination of a lot of facts and relationships between them. A journey in writing requires just one letter types or written after another. The effort goes into each of those small moments. Without effort, our journey will never happen.

There you have it. My foundation is currently maintained by six principles that work together to make my journey both possible and eventful. They don't guide my choices during the journey, that's for my five values, but they do give me the chance to put those values into practice.

Circuits and Electronics

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 23:55:00 +0000

MIT is offering a free online course in circuits and electronics through their MITx program. It's the first course they're offering and perfect timing for me. I've already signed up. This will bring a lot of stuff I'm learning together.

Studies

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 02:33:00 +0000

I mentioned previously that I'm moving into a new career: embedded systems development. While I'm still uncertain on the timing of the move, I'm pushing forward as quickly as I can. I'm breaking this down into four general areas: C programming, Assembly programming, Linux, and electronics. As a fair warning, all Amazon links ahead are affiliate links.

C programming is almost a given, as it's been the best language for the job for many years. It's low level enough to get the performance necessary, high enough to build substantial software, and old enough to have a wealth of knowledge available. And I have a little knowledge of it. I'm relearning C by reading through the classic C Programming Language (2nd Edition) by Kernighan and Ritchie. This is the canonical C text that any C developer needs to read, and was the text for a class I took in college. To gain some experience, I'm first developing programs to solve various puzzles, such as sudoku, sum total/kakuro, and ken ken. I selected these due to numerics being involved and because I can solve them up to about a hard difficulty level.

Assembly is a very low level group of languages that are different for every processor. Knowing one helps a great deal in learning others. I'm going to focus on the ARM processor starting out (not sure which one), but want to learn Assembly for the ATmega168, for reasons explained below. Knowing Assembly will help me work at the lowest levels of programmable electronics and will make me a better C programmer in general.

Linux will be my operating system of choice, as there are embedded versions that are very useful for low level devices. I have three flavors of Linux (Debian, Arch Linux, and Parabola GNU/Linux) installed through a virtual machine setup on my desktop.

Working with embedded devices requires a knowledge of both hardware and software, though developers generally focus on one over the other. As I want to build devices that operate in the real world, I want to focus more on the hardware than a typical embedded software engineer and is why I want to identify myself as a embedded systems engineer. I have two systems helping my to learn this. The first is called (ironically) the NerdKits USB Microcontroller Electronics Starter Kit. This includes everything I need to build a development platform on a solderless breadboard with an ATmega168. The second is the Make: Electronics (Learning by Discovery) book. I picked up the first parts kit and tool kit for the exercises within. So far, I've focused on the NerdKit.

I have plans for further learning of each of these, including joining an open source software project, likely through GNU. I also will be acquiring the Raspberry Pi computer, which is the size of a credit card, but holds the power to run Arch Linux and display on an HDTV. I also own the four volume set of , which I will start to work through once I have experience in both C and Assembly. Finally, I have gotten back into math, thanks to courses from The Great Courses, which is a company I HIGHLY recommend buying from.

While slowly driving myself insane with all of this, I am still (slowly) working on my Japanese and generally trying to get in better shape. While I would love to drop both of these, I owe it to myself to live a healthier life and to see my guided self-study through to the end. I'll keep writing about my progress throughout all of this and will try to give you fair warning if my mind is about to crack.

On Being a Hacker

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 02:23:00 +0000

The term 'hacker' gets a bad rap these days. Thanks to certain groups (*cough*Anonymous*cough*), the media loves talking about how hackers broke into this or that computer system and stole this or that bit of data. Unfortunately, they keep using the term 'hacker' incorrectly.

The best definition that I've found is from the Jargon File, currently in version 4.4.7. They define 'hacker' as:

A person who enjoys exploring the details of programmable systems and how to stretch their capabilities, as opposed to most users, who prefer to learn only the minimum necessary. RFC1392, the Internet Users' Glossary, usefully amplifies this as: A person who delights in having an intimate understanding of the internal workings of a system, computers and computer networks in particular.
One who programs enthusiastically (even obsessively) or who enjoys programming rather than just theorizing about programming.
A person capable of appreciating hack value.
A person who is good at programming quickly.
An expert at a particular program, or one who frequently does work using it or on it; as in ‘a Unix hacker’. (Definitions 1 through 5 are correlated, and people who fit them congregate.)
An expert or enthusiast of any kind. One might be an astronomy hacker, for example.
One who enjoys the intellectual challenge of creatively overcoming or circumventing limitations.
[deprecated] A malicious meddler who tries to discover sensitive information by poking around. Hence password hacker, network hacker. The correct term for this sense is cracker.

The media uses the eighth definition, as do most people.

What is the intrigue in being (correctly) labeled a hacker? Mostly, a common culture. This culture shares a love in deep thinking, social tolerance, science/science fiction, and technology.

Interested in becoming a true hacker? Read this. Then get to work; it's a long road.

Occupational Dilemma

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 00:50:00 +0000

I'm currently looking at moving to a new career: embedded software development. Technically, I'm currently a software developer... who hasn't actually developed software in a few years. My currently job is simply to move data from point A to point B, sometimes by paving the path between from start to finish. There's some small bit of coding, but not all that much, and not the type I prefer. I've spent a LOT of time thinking about what I want to do with my life, as many readers can attest, and now I'm moving in the general direction of embedded programming.

Right now, I have most of the tools I need to move in that direction, and a general plan. The dilemma mentioned in the title of this post is more of a matter of when than what or where. I've already decided to move into embedded development, but I don't know when.

My current lease is up in June. Recently, I had decided to pick up and get moving then and there. This would be great, as I have one more year to do what I enjoy doing. The downside is that the skills I need to handle embedded development, mostly C and Assembly programming, have atrophied over the years. I've only taken one class in college that dealt with Assembly (for Sparc processors; for those not technically inclined, Assembly is different for just about every processor) and a few with C; most of my classes required programming to be done in C++. I've done some C coding in the past month, but it's slow going as I rebuild the missing knowledge.

My other option is to wait one more year (thanks, stupid one-year leases) and move next June. This would give me a chance to get one more promotion at work, save up more money, and join one or more open source project to gain real experience in embedded development. I also own some books that, with careful study, will help me become a better embedded developer.

At the moment, I'm leaning toward the second option. This is a change from a week ago when I was looking at the first. I finally looked at the issue from a perspective of rushing things and hoping everything worked out, or being a bit more careful, gain more knowledge, experience, and resources, and have a greater chance of getting the career I want, all for the cost of one year. Thankfully, I'm not so old that the year will be too great a burden, but I'm old enough to realize the value of that year.

I'll be documenting this part of the journey, as you might have guessed. I'll list the books I'm reading, the microprocessors I'm programming, and the circuits I'm building. I'll also discuss my options for specializing in various areas, such as consumer electronics (DVD players, watches, blenders, microwaves, and such), communications (routers and phones), health care (MRI, fMRI, and PET scanners), aerospace, and automotive. I can basically discount automotive right now, as I want to leave Michigan rather than stay.

Until next time.

Hello Again, Japanese

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 03:13:00 +0000

I mentioned in my previous post that I am returning to my work on Japanese. No, I do not have some mad plan to catch up in a few weeks. As far as I'm concerned, I'm still on day 61 of the 595 day program instead of day 157. It's a bit of a hit, missing over three months, but if I try to force myself to catch up, I'll just lose enthusiasm for the language.

As of right now, I have 450 kanji in the Surusu system. As I don't have my kanji book with me to add more, I'm going to get back in the habit of reviewing those that I do have. As the new ones tend to build off of the old, this is perhaps the best way for me to do it. I'll report back in a couple of weeks with any progress that I make.

Of Mice and Men

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 02:03:00 +0000

To paraphrase a saying, if you want reality to laugh at you, make plans. I've often talked about moving this coming summer. While that will still occur, it's not quite what I had in mind.

Right now, I really want to leave the state of Michigan and settle down somewhere. That somewhere is currently Boston. I had plans to change my career to something I would enjoy doing more while at the same time getting in shape, learning Japanese, and completing several other goals, all by June. When I put it like that, I really just want to slap myself upside the head. After all, this is while working full time, which is currently includes a good bit of travel.

To change careers, I need to get established in that new field. While the field is still software development, it's of a different kind, related to Linux-based embedded systems. I need some kind of track record. As my current career won't give me it, I'm looking at getting into an open source project related to me new field. It needs to at least include C programming. Six months isn't quite long enough to get into an open source project enough to earn a respectable reputation. Granted, a year and a half isn't the best, either, but is still better.

There are move benefits to putting off my big move. I have a sister who will graduate from high school next year, so I'll now be available to go. I'll have more time to build up economic resources. I'll have the time to complete my guided self-study of Japanese (more on that later). And it gives me time to make sure that I'm moving to the right place.

The downside is more psychological than anything. I'm 31 years old and I feel my life is on hold. Now I'll be nearly 33 when I make the move. If there's one thing I want, it's to have my own family. I just don't want to do it here. If I get serious with someone, I will probably stay here in Michigan. While this isn't bad in and of itself, it makes other goals difficult. There are next to no jobs in embedded programming here. Hmmm... Ok, fine, that's mainly it. I could start a family here and do embedded programming on my own time. The downside is that it takes time away from my many other interests. I guess I need to think about it some more...

2012, The Journey Continues

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:40:00 +0000

Goodbye, 2011. We had our highs and lows, but it's time to move on. I wish you all the best.

Hello, 2012. Where have you been all my life?

It's been a fun year. A lot of things have happened, both good and bad. This blog officially went from 250 posts to just over 350. My previous post has the all-time hit count high of 57 page views. I know that's not very high, but it's not bad for a personal bog that isn't actively seeking readers. If you Google "polymath", you will see a post of mine in the number ten spot. That's not too shabby, since I wasn't working toward that, either.

Away from the blog, I took Piano II and enjoyed it. I decided not to take classes this previous semester nor this coming semester, as my job is requiring more travel than ever, and I wanted to focus on other things. Sadly, the main "other thing", Japanese, has fallen behind by a wide margin. I set up a schedule at the beginning of the year to make room for a lot of interests. That also fell behind, mostly because it was too formal; I don't do formal very well.

I spent some time trying to decide where to live. My short list currently includes Boston, Indianapolis, and Orlando, in that order, though Orlando is about to fall off the list (I enjoy having seasons far too much). Indianapolis is quite a bit lower in the standings than Boston, as Boston gives me far more opportunities. I did spent some time thinking about moving to Japan, but that put me against some of my other goals. I still want to visit, sooner rather than later, but I don't think I'll ever live there.

The coming year holds much potential, though I do say that about every year. This, though, will be the year when I move to where I might settle down. That alone makes it important. While Michigan holds much for me, namely in the way of family, it's not a place I really want to stay. Boston, or wherever I move to, will give me more opportunities. I'm also looking into moving into a different, yet related, field to what I do now. I've mentioned before about C programming in Linux, and a few related ideas. This is the year that I'm moving forward with that. I've picked out my resources, both online and off, and have a plan to move forward. I'll post more about that soon.

Finally, I wish to give thanks to all those who read this blog. It's fun to share my journey with you, even if the journey feels a bit mediocre at times. I also enjoy the occasional comment I get, as it allows me to connect with you a bit.

Here's to a new year of opportunities and progress.

Achievement Unlocked

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 04:56:00 +0000

Lately, video games, or frameworks around video games (like Steam), have been adding something called achievements. By collecting some set number of gadgets, you earn such and such an achievement. By simply reaching this or that stage in the game, yet another achievement is unlocked. I've played a bit of World of Warcraft in my time and have earned only a small number of the achievements available. I'm fine with this, as I don't have enough free time to dedicate my life to it.

However, what about real life achievements? Collect $1000000 and earn the Millionaire achievement. Say, "I do" and earn the Married achievement. Visit another country and earn the World Traveler achievement. These are but a few 'titles' that our society throws at us. But how about achievements that matter only to us? What achievements do we want to earn that society isn't prepared to recognize?

What about the Mr. Jones a few miles away with the collection of hubcaps? Epic Hubcap Collection achievement unlocked! Or Ms. Covey in Chicago with 43 cats? Epic Cat Lady achievement unlocked? Ok, these are a few off the wall ones. But what about you?

What achievements do you want to earn in your life? Use an entire season pass to see the Yankees? Walk the Appalachian Trail? Earn a PhD in underwater basket weaving? Visit the south pole? A trip to orbit with the Russians? Um, actually, I'll take that last one.

Here are my personal proposed achievements. As always, these are a work in progress. I know I won't earn all of them, as I'll continue to add and modify them.

become fluent in a second language (Japanese) and visit the country
become competent in a third language (ASL)
publish a book (kid's book first - have one in my head)
be a good father
be a competent piano player
be a competent singer (learn to sing and play piano at the same time)
be a competent ballroom dancer (start with private lessons)
be well read (pick 25 books for each year, from all subjects)
be knowledgeable on a wide variety of subjects (The Great Courses - Google it)
visit at least ten countries on four continents (5/2 down)
be a competent juggler (start practicing)
be competent at yoga (take lessons)
put on a solo Shakespeare play, record it, and put it online
earn a black belt in Akido
build a full robot
create a backyard botanical garden
help someone else achieve their dream

Some of these are probably unexpected for those that know me. Earn a black belt? I know I'm not Bruce Lee, but it's doable. Anything can be done, within physical and mental limitations, given enough time and effort. I firmly believe that. My biggest hurdle is deciding what to do and what to do first. Many of these will take years. Some will take a bit of prep work and then a one-time push. Some will take a bit of luck. And some will require a bit of time, money, and craziness.

I've spent many years trying to decide what one big thing to dedicate my life to. I've also spent time trying to force myself into a regimen of generalistic interests. Right now, I have these as long term goals that will make my journey interesting. I'm working on some right now and will hold off on others until I (finally) move to where I want to be.

How well will my journey go? Like all journeys, there will be dead ends, wrong terms, and occasional accidents. Such is life. If I were to easily achieve all of these goals, then they were too easy. If I have a 10% success rate, then they were too difficult. Life is a grand experiment in what to do and how to do it. That's part of the fun.

The Matthew Effect

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 00:11:00 +0000

I was reading a blog post by Scott Young today and thought I would write my own take on it. Basically, the post is about the Matthew Effect (see here and here), the inflection point (more on that in a minute), and getting your aimed in the direction you want after getting side tracked. The Matthew Effect is named after a statement from the bible, specifically Matthew 25:29: "For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away." While I don't agree with this in the general case (Those who have candles, more will be given???), I can easily point out how this is true in some cases.

The power of the Matthew Effect can be seen most easily by the power of compound interest. If you have invested $1000 at a set rate of 10% each year, you will earn $100 the first year, $110 the second year, and so on. Conversely, if you have $1000 worth of debt set at a rate of 10% each month (cheap by credit card standards), you will owe an extra $100 the first month, $110 the second month, and have debt collectors after you the third month. Those who have debt, more will be given. The moral of this story is to avoid debt.

The inflection point, in light of the previous example, would be where you pay off your debt and start to invest. Instead of incurring more debt each month, you gain more interest. Unfortunately, this can, and often does occur, in the opposite direction.

The Matthew Effect is not limited to money, however. As per the second second Wikipedia article I linked to above, those who are poor readers early on in school will continue to do worse and worse in later years.

Yet, all is not lost. The inflection point can be reached. Let's say you want to learn to read, speak, and generally understand Polish. The longer you speak your native tongue, the more difficult it is to learn another language. This is because our brains and vocal muscles are so used to speaking, in my case, English, that it takes a long time to retrain them. It's an uphill battle, at first, to get to the inflection point. Once we hit that point, however, our learning of Polish will take off. We won't have to learn new Polish words through our native tongue; we can use a Polish dictionary and learn new things. Compound learning. The more you know, the easier it is to learn more.

But what about non-finance and non-learning? Sure. For the anti-social, meeting new people can be very difficult. It's a challenge to just get out there and do it. So much so, in fact, that socialites can't understand the trouble. However, once you have enough experience in meeting new people, it becomes effortless.

To summarize, if you want to learn a language, start learning the language. If you want to become an expert in classical guitar, start playing classical guitar. It'll be rough at first, but once you reach the inflection point, you're golden.

Family Matters

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 04:54:00 +0000

"Family" is typically the first of my five values that I list. The reason is that I feel it's the most important. The rest aren't in any real order. I've also talked about how I want to start my own family and be a father. And I've even talked a bit about what I tend to look for in a woman.

Very recently, the best test I could ask myself about how I truly feel about a woman popped in my head: would she make a good mother to our children? As I've said, I want to be a father even more than I want to be a husband, and this is a very important question for me. Can I trust her with our childrens' lives? With all the various reports of parents killing their own kids, this question isn't all that crazy. Can I trust her to teach our kids how to do well in life? Can I trust her to raise them well if anything happens to me?

I still feel that being a parent is the most important role one can play. And that leading by example is the best method.

Should I reverse the question? Would she think I would make a good father to our children? Would she trust me with our childrens' lives? Can she trust me to teach our kids how to do well in life? Can she trust me to raise them well if anything happens to her?

I know you never know what someone would do until they're in that situation. But I still think these are very important questions.

Other questions I would ask, ones that aren't directly related to children, include the previously mentioned philosophical compatibility, common interests, and open mindedness.

My, How the Time Flies

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 01:16:00 +0000

Sorry abou being out of touch for a while; work has been insane lately with twelve hour days and weekend work. Oh, and a bunch of travel. I barely have time to relax, let alone get things done. I don't know when sanity will return.

My Japanese is in a holding pattern. I still listen to Japanese podcasts and music, but my kanji practice has stagnated. With work and the upcoming holidays, I foresee myself falling a bit further behind before catching up.

Other than work and Japanese, my mind is in turmoil. Should one follow their heart even when it's crazy? I don't know. Sometimes the heart has bad ideas in the long run. On the other hand, sometimes you just have to have faith. As ironic as that last statement is coming from me, I can see both sides. I want to follow my heart, even though the con list is as long as the pro list. Good thing I have time before I have to act.

Fun?

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 01:18:00 +0000

I was reading the post of another blogger when it hit me. When was the last time I simply had fun? Not just an enjoyable time (October 29 at the concert), but a fun time? Where were the stupid jokes that only a close friend would understand and laugh at? Where were the over-the-top stories of what happened to us in the recent past (real or imaginary)?

The more I think about it, the more I realize that I have very few friends around here. Most of my friends are online (hello, friends reading my blog!). I have some fairly close acquaintances at work, but I rarely see them outside of work. I have family, but we talk about once a week (or far less) and see each other between one and several times a year.

I'm not having fun, and I'm all the poorer for it.

Wherefore Art Thou, Self-Confidence?

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 01:04:00 +0000

Out of my five values, I decided that the one I'm failing at most is Family. Oh, not being part of my current family, but starting one of my own. I'm still hesitant in doing much about this before figuring out where I want to live, as dating eats up resources that I'll need, but I figured there is much I can do to get ready. One of those things is to increase my self-confidence.

I am not by nature a very self-confident man. This may be counter-intuitive with everything that I've done so far in my life. Part of this may actually be because of my lack of dating in recent years. Part may be to all of the question that I ask myself (and blog about). As such, I scoured the internet looking for advice and found it from a fellow blogger. I've followed Leo's posts for a while and highly recommend them. I may not agree with everything he says, but there is enough there to make you think. Here is the bit of advice I plan to follow:

Shave every day. My face is not agreeable to what the razor wants, and my fast-growing, thick, dark facial hair does not help. As such, it looks like I need to shave within a couple of hours of shaving. And during those few hours, my skin is a bit red from mild razor burn. Thanks, razor. I like a goatee and occasionally a beard, which I feel makes me look more my age, but I tend to get negative reviews. I still grow it back now and then. For right now, I'm going with a 'clean shaven' look, even if it's not.

Dress better. I'm a guy, so forgive me for not liking this one much. And I'm trying to save money, not spend it on something I don't care too much about. That said, I plan to use what I have effectively and buy new clothes only when necessary.

Be more positive in what I want to accomplish. This is another difficult one, as I'm never positive if it's actually what I want to do. However, I think I've figured some it out, and I'm trying to be positive about that.

Stop being negative about myself. This is actually easier than most people would think. I tend not to over-promote myself, and I also try to not underestimate myself. This balancing act keeps me from being too negative about myself, but has the unfortunate side affect of me being less positive about myself. I need to work on this.

Figure out what principles guide my life and live them intentionally. This is something I though I had figured out, but a search both here and in my private writings came up with nothing. For the moment, I'm going with the following:

Keep it simple
Whatever you do, make it flow
Follow your values
When faced with a choice, make one
Live

Five very simple rules that should allow me to live a good life. Of course, long time readers will observe my troubles with the fourth principle.

Speak slower. Like many people, I tend to ramble on at high speed when I get to talk. This seems to be the opposite of what I want, as I tend to sound nervous when I do it. Sounding nervous simply reinforces feeling nervous. This is the opposite of what I want. I need to practice slowing down.

Work on my posture. Like most software developers, I tend to slouch. This is a bad thing. I also tend to look down when I walk (I don't really care for tripping) instead of holding my head up and looking more confident. These need to change.

Stop complaining. This is a bad habit that I really need to stop. I tend to complain about this, that, and everything instead of standing up and changing it. Sadly, I tend to be drowned out by the other complainers.

Smile more. It may take fewer muscles to smile than it does frown, but that doesn't mean much if those smiling muscles are weaker. Sadly, these muscles have atrophied a bit. Maybe I'm too focused on what to do with my life instead of living it. Maybe I just need more people in my life. Maybe I've been waiting too long for that special someone to come into my life. Any way you look at it, I don't smile very often.

Get into a simple exercise routine. Ouch. It hurts just thinking about it. I need to look at that routine I was working on back in the spring and take some stuff out of that. Just 30 minutes a day would make a big difference in my life.

Keep a clean environment. Yes, I'm a bachelor. Yes, I'm a bit messy. I may not leave dirty clothes on the floor, but I don't sweep or vacuum as often as I should. And please don't look in the bathroom. In the last couple of days, before I started creating this list, I began a massive cleaning initiative in my apartment. I'm wiping everything down, starting in my kitchen. I plan to go through everything in the apartment and get rid of a lot that I don't want. It'll take time, but then I can settle down into the basic maintenance that I've been neglecting.

Start waking up a bit earlier. Ug. I am not a morning person. My best thinking comes from my slightly sleep-deprived mind at 2 in the morning. I wish I could find a job that allowed me to work from noon to nine.

And that's it from me. Toodles.

The Past and the Future

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:00:00 +0000

My background is software development. However, a long-standing question is if I should stay in the field or move on something else while I'm young enough to do it. After all, I haven't coded in a few years. And that wasn't even a language you've heard of (nor do you want to).

Back when I was in school, my focus was in artificial intelligence. You can still go back and look at all of my old AI posts on this blog, and there are a LOT of them. Lately, though, my focus has moved around, a bit outside of software development, but within the field as well. And I've been thinking about two things: embedded programming and data science.

Embedded programming has gotten big lately, thanks to Apple and their iPod/iPhone/iPad lineup. These are built on the popular ARM processor, which I am also a bit interested in. But is this all there is to embedded programming? Not even close. You have automotive computing, GPS devices, hi-tech watches, 'smart' thermostats, emergency control devices (such as on dams), DVD/Blu-Ray players, and so on. It's a rather large market.

But what is data science? I think O'Reilly says it best. Simply put, it's taking a massive amount of data and creating a story around it. If you don't think that's important, then why are Google, Amazon, and Facebook focusing a vast amount of resources on it? Data is at the center of their businesses.

My next question is how I cam combine the two. Well, good news: embedded programming is really built up around C and data science uses a lot of Python. The reason this is good news is that C and Python can talk and extend each other. The upcoming Raspberry Pi is built on Linux which is built on C. Even if I build up my C and Python skills and decide not to go into either embedded programming or data science, both are popular and useful languages. As the Raspberry Pi devices have an ARM processor, it's a win for learning more about that, anyway.

In a way, it all comes back to artificial intelligence. Imagine a robot built around a bunch of ARM processors, receiving and acting on a massive amount of data at a time. Or a smart house embedded with ARM processors, constantly fine tuning its routines based on the family's habits. Both examples require the use of embedded computers as well as the ability to work on massive data sets in real time.

For the moment, I'm holding off on C until the new version is released. I believe that will be next year. The Pi devices won't be out until next month at the earliest. So that leaves Python, which is a good way to get back into programming after a long hiatus.

Because of all of this, I'm (once again) reevaluating where I want to live. Indianapolis isn't the best place for software developers. Silicon Valley would be ideal, but I don't want to have to choose between buying a million dollar home versus commuting 90 minutes each way each day. Boston might be my best place, as it's very tech-friendly and is close to my ideal environment. I can deal with the cold.

The future looks interesting.

On Flow

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 04:25:00 +0000

Every now and then, I talk about flow. Flow is one of my five values, and probably one of the most difficult to define. However, it is very easy to give examples of. Flow includes physical flow, such as dance, martial arts, and simple movement. Flow includes mental flow, such as logic, imagination, vocabulary, and being in the zone. I'll even throw in traffic flow, for good measure.

But what does it mean to include flow as one of my five values?

When I talk about valuing flow, I want my body, my mind, my words, and my environment to flow. I want to move gracefully, to wrap my mind around complex ideas, to talk poetically, and to live in an environment that works with me instead of against me.

This is part of the reason I want to learn more about aikido, dance, singing, logic, system theory, poetry, and so very much more. I realize that I could turn this alone into a lifelong project, but that would be neglecting my other four values. As such, I want to focus on the flow that enriches my life the most and works with the other four values. I'll be exploring these further in later blog entries.

Where, When, and How

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 23:46:00 +0000

As I mentioned previously, I've been looking at where I wish to settle for a while. At the top of my list is Indianapolis, IN. It's not too far from my family, has a respectable population, contains everything I would want out of a city, doesn't have too many people, and is in the right environment for me.

This week, I'm on vacation, though I did have a quick phone meeting with my new boss. We were discussing my role with the next phase of the big project we're working on. I was offered what amounts to a lead developer role, in deed and possibly in name. The details should get pounded out my next week. As this is the direction I want my career to move in, I'm opting to stick around a bit longer and wait another year to move.

I'm also contemplating moving right now to where most of my coworkers would be located, which has a far lower cost of living that what I currently have. This would let me save up even more money sooner for a house. Another option is to go with my second choice of cities, Philadelphia, which I could do through my current job, making the move much easier. The downside is that Philly is far bigger than I would want, it would be a bit too far from my family, and the move would cost a fair bit. On the bright side, Philly has a LOT going on and is located relatively near DC and New York.

But Indianapolis still sounds better. I think I'm going to try to transfer closer to my coworkers.

You Are -> Here <-

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 02:54:00 +0000

The map showed up today. Needless to say, I got right to work on it. I was easily able to cross off many states, such as the Dakotas (boring enough while driving through; sorry, Dakotas), the desert states (nice to visit, but too hot), the southeast (no snow), Alaska, and Hawaii. Then I had to think through what other states I could cross off and ended with a few full states and parts of other states left. Still on the map were the west coast of Washington and Oregon, the northern coastline of California, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Colorado. From there, I picked out the following locations:

Seattle
Portland
San Francisco
Denver
Philadelphia
Indianapolis

Why these? Of the available areas, these offered me the best opportunities for jobs, culture, and entertainment. Then I started looking up each of these.

Did you know that the cost of the average house in San Francisco is $751,600? See ya.

Did you know that Denver gets an average of 61 inches of snow each year? Outta here!

I looked at the list a lot, at the map, at the research (Wikipedia and City-Data.com, mostly), and did a lot of thinking. I've spent a lot of time talking about Portland. And thinking about Portland. It was a fun place to visit and I would very much like to go back. And I'm sure that Seattle is a great place as well. But they are a long way off, and I am very close to my family. Sorry, you two.

So I'm left with Philadelphia and Indianapolis. Both have great things about them. Of the two, I have spent some time (through work) in Philadelphia and enjoyed walking around the city. But Philly is very big, and I'm not much of a city person. That's still an option, as I could actually request a transfer to there through work, making life a bit easier. But right now, I'm looking at Indianapolis. They get a couple feet of snow every year, have average weather, it's just over double the distance to a majority of my family, and the average housing value, as of 2009, was about $120k.

I even looked at apartments and housing a bit. I can get a nice apartment to start out for less than I'm paying now. And I found some nice houses that I could easily save up for. I'm going to keep looking into this, but maybe I'll be posting from Indianapolis by next summer.

Putting the 'Where' in 'Where the @%$& Am I?'

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 23:15:00 +0000

Now that my future is wide open again, I am looking to figure out where I want to live again. I spent a lot of time thinking about it in the past, but now I want to take a more systematic approach. I just ordered a large laminated wall map of the US. I'm going to be marking it up based on the following criteria:

Average Summer High Temperature
Average Winter High Temperature
Average Yearly Snowfall
Population
Cities with Universities and Community Colleges

Once I have that, I'll make a list of cities and start doing a bit of research. I'll look at nearby airports, nearby expressways, nearby parks and gardens, average housing cost, average age of the population, social climate, and such.

The map will be in tomorrow, and I look forward to working on this. I hope to move by summer.

Learning Japanese, Eleven Weeks In

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 15:37:00 +0000

Yes, eleven weeks in. No, there wasn't a post last week. I was out of town and too tired to post last weekend. Plus, there wasn't anything to post about.

If you read the previous post, I'm no longer planning on moving to Japan yet still learning my Japanese. So even though I don't have to push my Japanese skills, I still want to get caught up in the 'class'. Even after adding 100 kanji to my SRS over the last two days, I'm still 200 kanji down. As much as I'd like to get caught up, pushing myself could make me tired of learning Japanese at all. I'll try adding a few extra during the weekdays and even more on the weekends. I'd like to get caught up before we start doing anything new in the program.

That's basically it. Have a good weekend.

3... 2... 1...

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 03:20:00 +0000

Ding. It's that time again: I changed my mind.

I've spent a lot of time thinking about, and talking about, moving to Japan to teach English and eventually opening up my own school. What I failed to realize is that this works against two of my own values: Family and Community.

Yes, I could start my own family in Japan. The problem is that I would be leaving my extended family behind. I am very close to most of my family, as dysfunctional as we all are, and it would not be easy to leave them behind. Not at all. If I had been younger, this would have been easier, at least for the short term. At best, I would be very homesick after no more than a year or two, tops.

After reading more about others' experiences in Japan, I'm realizing that I would never be part of a community there. No matter how long I stayed, if I married a native, or earned a Permanent Residency status, I would always be a gaijin, an outsider. I still want to visit, and I want to learn the language, but I'm tired of being an outsider.

So what do I want to do now? I've moved back in the direction of square one. Once again, I don't know what I want to do with my life.

And don't tell me you didn't see that coming.

On Beauty

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 21:40:00 +0000

I spent a good bit of time within a philosophical mindset. I oftentimes slip back into it, but that's not exactly a bad thing. Today, I want to talk about my view on beauty.

Many would agree that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. For the most part. After all, the majority of us guys can agree that Angelina Jolie is a beautiful woman. We can probably even agree on several other women the same way a majority of women could agree that certain men are 'yummy enough to eat'. Their words, not mine.

But what else can we say about beauty? And, as this is my blog, what can I say about beauty? The Greeks, who get quoted far too often, gave us the golden ratio of beauty, where physical features built on that ratio were better, beauty-wise, than those that were not. I see beauty as two sides of a single coin: classical beauty and personal beauty.

Classical beauty is what many, possibly most, men and women work toward for the first half of their lives. This is dieting, exercising, hair styling, clothes shopping, and makeup wearing. This is the outside, the shallow side, yet a required side (to some extent).

Personal beauty, in my opinion, is more important than classical beauty. It's the character, the inner strength, the deep knowledge, the geekiness, and the habits. This is what makes a person a person. This is the inner side, the deeper side, yet the overlooked side (to some extent).

A relationship based only on classical beauty (*couch*celebrities*cough*) tend to either not last or become dangerous. A relationship where one person focuses on classical beauty and the other personal beauty, leads to cheating. A relationship based only on personal beauty doesn't make it much past 'friends'.

As much as I hate to say it, both are required. As much as I would like to look past the outer shell of a person and focus solely on the inside, biology and culture make that near impossible. I want to have some passion in a romantic relationship. But I also want it to be long term. That requires classical beauty and personal beauty. That requires total beauty.

My Journey: The Highlights

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 20:45:00 +0000

So what are some of the best moments of my life? In no particular order:

During one of my two big backpacking trips, I remember standing at the edge of a cliff and staring out over a 10-20 mile stretch of mountains, valleys, rivers, and glaciers. All sound receded into the distance. For one of the few moments of my life, I fully felt I was part of something bigger than myself. I was part of the universe, of reality, of nature. All too often we humans try to separate ourselves from our environment. I think that's a bad idea.

Nearly two decades ago, I was rocking one of my infant siblings to sleep, likely my brother. As his eyes closed, he gave me one last look of complete love and trust. That little ball of potential had no concern of what his life was about; he completely trusted me to take care of things for him. I have never found an adult who can give that look; there is always some doubt in their mind.

During one of my graduate classes, we had to write a massive program throughout the semester. To those who went through a similar experience, you'll recognize the Compiler course. There were many nights I spent many, many hours in the lab. It was one big solo (well, with a bit of help) problem solving experience. To a programmer, there is an immense amount of satisfaction when getting a program to (finally) run the way you expect it to.

More recently, I have spent a few hours in a marathon call with business partners trying to figure out why something wasn't working. Between their knowledge of the data and business log, and my knowledge of the technical aspects, we could work our way forward, pointing things out to each other until we either found how to fix it, or found that there was no problem in the first place.

These may seem like minor things, but to me, these are some (out of a moderate number) of the best moments of my life. I wish I could include getting married, holding my first born for the first time, or walking into my first house, but I'll reserve those for future highlights.

Dear Younger Matt

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 20:16:00 +0000

Dear Younger Matt,

It's time to listen to your elders. Namely, me. I remember what it was like to be you: in your eighth and final year of college, not sure what to do with your life, making some good friends. At this moment, you're 'learning' Dutch, thinking about getting a second Master's in Belgium. Good plan, poor execution. That goes for both the degree and your learning of Dutch.

But that's up to you. I'm just here to give you some advice I wish I had been given when I was your age. Unfortunately, I didn't have someone five years older who knew where I was coming from. Lucky for you, I'm here.

1. Stop screwing around. For all of the fun and amazing things you do (I highly approve of your upcoming Europe trip!), you piss around with most of your remaining time. Simplify what you do. Yes, play video games, but be selective; you appreciate games with good stories, so stick to those. Not everyone will like you, so stop trying to be everything to everyone. Get to the core of what you're studying; that's the best and most important material. If you suddenly have an interest in something, take that motivation and push, but keep your wallet closed. The way you're going, you'll end up wasting thousands of dollars over the next several years.

2. Life is a process, not a destination. You don't need to be an expert on anything. Find a group of things you enjoy doing (I currently recommend piano, aikido, Japanese) and focus on the process of learning them, not some end goal of being an expert. If life were a destination, where is it that we all end up? Death. You have one life; live it.

3. Keep your environment optimal. Habits are built from how we do things. Our environment is the setting of our journey and what pushes us toward certain habits. Keep your environment exactly how you need it, but don't obsess over it. Keep it simple, keep it clean, and keep it as near optimal as you can. If you're learning Japanese, have a lot of Japanese text and culture in your environment.

4. Build up good habits. This follows from the previous tip. Build up a habit of simple cleanliness. If something is out of place, you may as well pick it up. Do basic maintenance every day so it never overwhelms you. Build up a habit of communication. Keep in touch with your friends and family. Build up a habit of simplicity. You don't need 1000 books, which you're heading toward right now. In a few years, most of those books will never have been read.

5. Build up your family. This includes your current close family, extended family, and your closest friends. You made some good friends in the past year and will make more this coming year. Keep them close. Never lower your standards (that's just asking for punishment) and never, ever, ever give up on romance. It may take a while, but make it worth it by being choosy. Oh, and contact old friends; there's a wonderful woman back in Florida who would love to hear from you.

6. Live. Stop spending so much time in your bedroom. I know it's nice and quiet. But it's too comfortable. Go for a walk. Walk through the buildings. Smile at people. Take a seat in some random building and people watch. Read your book in the library instead of on your bed. Dress up for Halloween in a couple weeks for the entire day, including classes.

Just a few things I wish had been said to me when I was your age. Not sure if I would have listened, though. I thought I knew everything back then. I thought I knew what direction my life was heading in. Still don't. But life is an adventure. An adventure is boring if you already knew what was going to happen.

So, young grasshopper, go enjoy the next five years as they happen. Don't wait until they're over to reflect on them.

Good luck to ye.

Yet Another Japan Update This Week

noreply@blogger.com (Matt) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 00:03:00 +0000

The schedule is up for winter classes. There isn't much I care for, but two stand out: Child Development and Introduction to Education. As they're offered on two different days, I can take one, both, or neither. Let's look at the courses:

Child Development

3 Credits

The student will identify the major hereditary and environmental influences, needs, wants, and development tasks at each of the major stages of growth from conception to adolescence and interpret their significance for adulthood.

Introduction to Education

3 Credits

This course is a general and exploratory course in the field of education. Students will study topics selected from the following: current job market, teacher roles, educational philosophy, psychology, sociology, history, methods of instruction, curriculum, disciplinary practices, and current issues in education. It is suitable for students seeking instruction about professional or paraprofessional (Nursery Schools, Day Care Centers, Teacher Aides, etc.) activities in the field.

Six credits, while learning Japanese, earning a TEFL certification, and working full time. Neither is offered online. I'll have time to probably take a course during the first summer semester, but the offerings will be slim. Of the two, The education class is easily the most useful. If I take any courses, it'll be that one.

As for the TEFL certification, I'm going to stretch that out a bit. After some research, the easiest English schools to work for like to send people to Japan either with the start of the school year in April or in late summer/early fall. April is rushing things a bit, so I'm going to aim for August/September of next year.

And the best news at all: today's fortune cookie reads: "Prepare for an exciting trip soon to come your way."