lennys March 09, 2024

Automate the boring stuff...and other things.

So I'm working my way through a new coding book last week. It's named "Automate the Boring Stuff with Python", and so far I've found it to be pretty understandable. I'm on my second trip through the book now, highlighting the important parts. It's written for total beginners, which I'm not, but it explains things well enough that I don't mind. It has chapters about working with Excel and Google Forms which were interesting to work through, even though I don't have any use-case for that at this time. I'm going to work my way through the book a third time and re-practice all the code, then I think I'm going to do the same process with my other Python book, "Python Crash Course". After that I'll move on to another Python book. I enjoy writing the code, but I'm still a bit unsure of myself with creating code from scratch. I've found over the years that if I don't have a book in front of me for guidance when I try to create new code, I'm hit with a bad case of writer's block. The only way I know to fix that is through practice. In the long-term I'm planning on using Ansible on my networking gear. Ansible is written in Python, so I thought it best to work on my Python skills before I tackle that task. The work I did earlier with Django helped me understand some of the code written in the book, especially the testing code I wrote. The progress is still slow it seems, but I am making progress. The truck is running well. It needs a bath again, and I need to clean the interior, but other than that it's good. I actually used it for its intended purpose yesterday, transporting some networking equipment from one facility to another. I still haven't tried out Android Auto, I need to get on that. I also got a new pair of glasses recently, and ordered new lenses for another pair I have. I've been getting by with glasses that are good for everything within arms reach, but nothing further than about 10 feet away, so having new glasses I can actually see in detail with has been a bit of an adjustment. Mainly I need them for driving. I'm old enough now that I have to carry around both pairs with me, one for long distances and the other for up close, because I refuse to go with bifocals (I tried those several years ago and they gave me bad headaches). Some of the people I work with have gotten laser eye surgery lately, but I don't think I can go that route. It's around $6000 and I've spent enough money from my emergency fund this year already. Tax time is coming up soon. I haven't decided if I'm going to do my own taxes again like I did last year. The paperwork I got from Vanguard about the investments I have is confusing, and I also don't have a good idea of what deductions I can take for "business expenses" this year. It makes me wish I had an accountant in the family I could consult with that wouldn't cost me an arm and a leg. I expect I'll get some money back from my taxes, probably around $1000 if it's similar to past years. This "business" I started up a couple of years ago still doesn't have any customers and hasn't made a dime. I've been doing some reading about starting a business, but I can't seem to get past the idea stage. Up until now I've always thought that I'd do something IT-related so I could create something useful with the skills I've developed over the years, but lately I've been asking myself if it's even worth all the trouble. I mean, I could just settle for a regular 40-hour-a-week kind of work life and not have to hustle, but then I'd still be vulnerable to possible layoffs. My main motivation behind creating a business has always been to just provide a decent living for myself and have some security, but the amount of "marketing work" involved in starting a decent business is daunting. I'm not a marketing guy, so I'd have to either hire someone to do it for me or develop the skills to do it myself, and I already have a lot on my plate. So the whole idea is causing me some stress. I have to "figure out" what to do at every single step along the way, and that gets exhausting after a while. Well that's enough for now. I'm going to try an be more regular about posting to this blog, so hopefully I'll stick to that and it won't be weeks before my next post again.

lennys February 24, 2024

Nothing to write about...

So it's been 2 weeks since I last touched this blog. In that time, I finished working through the Django & React book I was so disappointed with, and moved on to another book that's strictly about Python. I'm close to halfway through this book now, and so far it's been a much better experience than the last book. I'm currently in the debugging chapter, having worked through the basics. I think I'll be going over this book again after finishing it, taking some notes, highlighting certain portions, etc. Hopefully the 2nd time through it things will stick in my memory. I've studied Python before, but never got past doing the basics. It seems like I jump from one project idea to the next, and never develop the expertise to build anything beyond the basics. My truck is running well. I washed it last weekend, and waxed the front half. I'll be waxing the rest of it this coming weekend. It's hard to notice the difference between the waxed and unwaxed parts, but the waxed part is a little bit shinier than the rest of it. I need to clean and vacuum the interior too. I still haven't tried out Android Auto in the truck. It does not have the navigation software installed, so I'm hoping that Android Auto will let me use Google Maps on the main display. I just haven't gotten around to trying it out yet. I'm also reading a book about starting a business. It's called "Million Dollar Weekend", and I'm currently reading it for the 2nd time. I've dreamed of having my own business, something in IT, for many years but never could come up with an idea that I thought would work. That seems to be my problem, a lack of ideas. The book has some suggestions for finding ideas, but they haven't worked for me so far. I'm hoping I can come up with something soon. I sure could use the right kind of inspiration.

lennys February 08, 2024

The frustration continues...

So I made it through Chapter 10 in my Django/react book. I'm working through the React section now, and like I mentioned in my earlier post I'm disappointed in this book. I've been able to follow the code so far, but now I'm in the part of the book where they cover testing in React, and that is not going well. I had problems in the Django testing portion too, and since I couldn't figure them out I just moved on, which is basically what I'm doing again in the React testing section. At this point the coding is just for practice, since it seems pretty obvious that the finished product, whatever it will be, won't be in working condition whenever I get to that point. I've already started over from Chapter 1 once and I don't want to do it again, so now I'm just going through the motions hoping to finish this book soon and move on to other things. I have my eye on another Python book that has pretty good reviews. But based on what I've learned about React so far, I don't think I'll be implementing it in any of my websites. It's just too complicated, and my relative inexperience with it shows me that I'll be better off just sticking to designing with basic HTML and CSS. Oh well. My truck got serviced and has a clean bill of health like I wanted. It cost around $500, but it was worth it to me. The next step is to get a second key fob made, which will cost around $450 so I'm putting it off for a little while. When the rain stops, I'll be washing and waxing it on my days off so it's nice and shiny. But I can't do that right now because of the atmospheric river that's hit California this week. But so far, so good. I've managed to get a basic understanding of most of the features the truck has ( I still haven't tried out the 4 wheel drive), and I like what I've seen so far. The first payment is due this month, so I'll need to try and do some budgeting soon so I know how much money I'll have left at the end of the month. Plus it's tax season, so I'll need to deal with that soon. Right now I'm waiting on the paperwork from Vanguard, once I have that I'll probably be making an appointment with H&R Block to get my taxes done again.

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