Truer words

December 17, 2019

“We are made to persist, to complete the whole tour.  That’s how we find out who we are.”
– Tobias Wolff

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555 Metronome

April 22, 2019
My 555 metronome, all boxed up.

I wanted to make a metronome and decided on the venerable “555” chip. In this case I used an LM555CN. I had all components needed except the IC itself, so I ordered a handful (they are only about $0.75/each) and started the process. This was my first time playing with a 555, and it was great fun!

I started with this circuit from Jameco. Then I breadboarded and made changes until I was happy. The original circuit gave roughly 25-550 BPM which was pretty wild – standard metronomes are 40-208 BPM. My circuit as adjusted gives me 35-200 BPM which is close enough for my purposes.

I used Krita to edit the original schematic after making my changes to “dial in” this metronome circuit.
This is my layout for my modified 555 metronome circuit. I created this layout using DIYLC from Bancika.
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Original iPod Shuffle – on Linux

March 14, 2019

That’s right, I’ve finally found a way to use my old 512mb Shuffle on Linux. Thanks to keyj for making a simple python script in 2006. How it works is you put whatever you want for mp3s onto the shuffle (after mounting it in linux) then move the python script onto the root of the ipod. Then run the script in terminal after navigating to the root of the mounted iPod:

$ python rebuild_db.py

Here is a link to the python file on sourceforge.

Thank you internet!

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Current thoughts

February 5, 2019

“No man ever wetted clay and then left it, as if there would be bricks by chance and fortune.”

– Plutarch

It is sometimes hard to remember that we cannot just simply start a process and then leave it be and assume it will finish of its own volition. Whether referring to child rearing, gardening, politics, or any other number of things – once you start something, you must finish it.

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Rest in peace, Ashes

December 20, 2018

Yesterday we had to lay our son, Ashes, down to rest. He was 14 years old and had been with us since we were a young couple in college. I loved that cat more than I realized. He helped me through many of my struggles with panic and anxiety over the years. We miss you, Ashes.

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