Month: November 2023

Make Bad Art

Unstick yourself by making “bad art”:

Often the problem is that they’re too tied to the outcome — too concerned with getting it right, being amazing at what they do, making pots of money or even impressing others with their achievements.
All of that keeps them stuck.
But the way forward is surprisingly — terrifyingly — simple. That’s to commit to just one thing: Make bad art.

This article rang true for me, with my TikTok adventure and even here on Uncorrected. Hell, it’s why I called it “Uncorrected” in the first place: Here’s some stuff I’m thinking about, reading, or interested in. I’m not creating anything polished, just creating. Nobody gets hurt, I have some fun, and hopefully you, dear reader, get a twinkle, however ephemeral, in your eye.

Beat Your Procrastination with One Terrifyingly Simple Commitment

Yesterday’s 10k Row

10k-row-Sunday-Nov-26

Nothing basement-shattering today; I managed to shave a fraction of a second off last week’s effort. Progress is progress I guess. I was carping for air at the end after losing focus for a few meters.

On a related note, someone asked me recently if I watched TV while I rowed. I categorically do not watch anything other than the Erg app or the PRM screen when I’m rowing, because it’s the only way to keep from drifing off into less effort. Rowing is a cruel mistress.

But I love her.

Happy Birthday to Me: Thoughts on Turning 49

I’ve got one more year before the big half-century. Some things I’ve learned:

  1. Say What You Think: Do this tactfully, but be true to yourself in dealing with others. I don’t mean the “I say what I think” coarseness of someone with a childhood wound; I mean be upfront about what you think, not in the interests of being right, but in the service of number two.
  2. Prefer your own opinion to the opinions of others: This is from Ryan Holiday/Daily Stoic; trust what you think. You don’t have to be right all the time (you won’t be). But we’re all dealing with situations that don’t have “right” answers (sure, hindsight is twenty-twenty). Corollary: honor your ambivalence. Don’t get taken in by pressure. Sometimes not making a choice is making a choice. Another corollary: choice is protective, in most cases. When you can, make a choice. Don’t let things happen to you.
  3. Don’t doubt your capacity for change: The things you think aren’t ever positions you’d back or activities you would enjoy might very well be entirely within your capacity or interest. Ride the wave sometimes. Corollary: try things when you get the chance. Don’t be a picky eater, in food and experiences. But when you find something? Commit to it. Don’t be inflexible; change it up when you’re wrong. Did I mention that I lost 70 pounds? That’s an example of something I didn’t think I could do. But here I am.
  4. Stop worrying about being wrong. It doesn’t mean you’re an awful person. Nobody’s perfect.

Sunday Serial: Raycast, Raindrop.io, and Inktank Printers

This week’s list of things to check out:

  1. Raycast: Raycast is an app launcher for macOS. It competes with apps like Launchbar (an old favorite of mine), Alfred, and even Apple’s own Spotlight. I once read that Launchbar is essentially an alternative interface for your Mac; I can’t argue with that, and Raycast is as well. It’s great for launching applications and finding files, but the real magic is in integrating with apps using their APIs. For example, I can add a to-do item to Todoist without leaving my current application using Raycast, reposition windows, and move files. All very cool. I would love to support the project with a license or subscription, as I do Launchbar (and many other applications), but their only support tier is pricey at $100 USD a year.

    2. Raycast-serial-sunday

  2. Raindrop.io: Raindrop.io is a bookmark manager. Sure, you can use your browser, but any nerd worth his salt runs a couple of browsers. Raindrop allows you to quickly bookmark and organize your bookmarks, and there’s a version for every OS, mobile and otherwise. I helped a colleague set up a Raindrop install for social bookmarking.

    3. Raindrop.io

  3. Inktank printers: Remember ink cartidges? Sure you do. These newfangled printers have bottles of ink that are easy to refill. Best of all, they don’t dry out after sitting for a bit, requiring the rubber-chicken-waving of cleaning print cartridges. Sure, a color laser would be the best way to go, but these printers are a nice intermediate step. Ours is an HP 7300.

    4. HP-Ink

Sunday’s 10k Rowing Workout

Sunday's 10k

Shaved 15 seconds off of my most recent PR 10k. Aveage power was up to 185 watts, with all but the last split coming in under 2:04. Very happy. These most recent rows show modest but steady progress (I’m shooting for a 40-minute 10k). Not hitting the law of diminishing returns just yet, but I have to start planning for that, I suppose. I’m in the middle of the pack when I rank my PRs using Concept 2’s ErgData app, and intermediate for my age comparing myself to the norms published on RowingLevel.com.

ergdata

Rowing Levels for 10k

Sunday Serial: Rittenhouse Rye, Denzel Washington’s Flight, and Mimestream Email Client for the Mac

This week’s list of things to try:

  1. Rittenhouse rye: Rye was once the dominant style of whisky in the United States, before post-prohibition tastes turned towards sweeter corn-forward brews. I like rye better, and this is a good one for your cocktail. Manhattans over here, mostly.

Rittenhouse Rye

Manhattans rittenhouse rye

  1. Flight: This is a good Denzel Washington movie.

  2. Mimestream: Fast and furious Gmail client for the Mac. It could easily be my only mail app.

You Don’t Have to Have a Plan

I’ve copped “ride the wave” in my writing here a few times inspired by this interview with Fath No More’s Mike Patton:

To me, that’s kind of fundamental. Understanding that you don’t have to have a plan. For kids out there or whatever, you don’t have to have a plan. You can make it work … I mean, my point is we don’t ever really know, and we don’t ever really have a plan, and it’s okay. It’s okay to ride the waves here and there and then kind of figure it out. That’s what I did. That’s all.

Faith No More’s Mike Patton: ‘You Create Your Own Freedom’

Rehoboth Beach 2023

This was our fourth trip to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Due to my oldest son Joe’s new college schedule, he isn’t off during teacher’s convention, so we had to wait until Friday afternoon to leave, whereas we normally took advantage of the school closure to alight for the shore.

Cape Henlopen Ferry

Being here on a weekend, it’s way more crowded than we’re used to. But still plenty nice!

I tend to plan around how we’re going to eat, so I’ll mostly discuss food:

  1. Salt Air:

This was Friday night’s dinner, and our third time to visit. It’s always been outstanding: it looks rustic and quaint but it’s a slick and professional dining experience. This time was good but not roundly great; the fries on the classic Shrimp Fry were of mixed quality, with limp and brown fries in the mix. Aaron and I both had the trout, and it was amazing: crispy and light, with a creamy sauce on the plate and a farro and quinoa mixture with beans, chorizo, and bacon. Rhonda and I split a pumpkin pie that had me puzzled: it was cooked down, almost cheesecake-like. I don’t go for desert, but I did this time and it was excellent.

Crispy Rainbow Trout
2. Drift:

Saturday night’s adventure was Drift, a new spot for us and to Rehoboth. It looked good on Yelp and had great reviews, but I was concerned with the limited selections on the menu. Fears unfounded; Drift was exceptional. Aaron got a scallop crudo that was unlike anything I had ever tasted before. The scallops were whisked in buttermilk and a vinaigrette, and tossed with salmon roe and finger lime. I think this was my first blush with finger lime and the sensation was wholly unexpected. Rhonda and I split an apple and burrata salad; she likes to make cheese plates at home and burrata is a favorite when it’s on sale. This was like what she might make at home, but the introduction of the tender-yet-firm apples, cooked enough to be jammy but crunchy, added a level of texture and sweetness that contrasted the rich creaminess of the cheese. For dinner, Joe ordered gnocchi (he’s the pickiest eater of our tribe but has opened up a great deal in the last few years, one notable holdout remaining an affinity for chicken). Aaron had the swordfish schnitzel, which was a thin fillet of swordfish, breaded and fried like a nice Maillard of veal. I haven’t ordered swordfish since getting tired of it back in my pescatarian days, and Anthony Bourdain’s story about the giant tapeworms sealed the can on that particular fish for me. But I was all set to try that dish until I heard about the scallops from the waiter. I can’t say that they are as fresh as the crudo, as that dish featured a scallop served in its own shell, and as I described to Aaron, the creature was alive moments before they brought it to the table. I’m thinking the dinner boasted similarly fresh scallops. The wait staff ask you if medium is ok as a doneness; I wasn’t anticipating the question, and don’t know what medium is relative to a scallop, but as a person who eats sashimi scallop, there can’t be a wrong answer save for “well done,” which is a no-no as with steak. My plan was to share a bit with Rhonda, who was enticed by the filet.

Drift Scallops

A word here about filet: it’s the cut I’m least likely to buy, especially at a restaurant. I like it plenty, but don’t prefer it to other cuts. I have always made it well (not well done), though; I band it up along the midsection of the individual steak, and then grill it till it has a nice char, finishing over indirect heat. I now exclusively sous vide the filet at 128 or 129 for an hour or so and then finish on the grill.

Filet

But this dish? Superb. I will henceforth sous vide mine a bit lower, shooting for something in between rare and medium rare. The rub was salty and sweet. It was a stunning entree, and generous to boot: you expect to overpay for steak at a restaurant, and like me might be loathe to order one because you make good ones at home. But this was worth it.

Drift

  1. Miyagi

I wanted to skip lunch on Saturday because of the dinner and drinks that accompany our getaways to Rehoboth Beach, but the boys would have been sorely disappointed at omitting a stop at Miyagi for ramen. It was the first place I ever had ramen (save for Nissin in college) and the best. A thin, watery Japanese beer is the thing to go with such a lunch. I had a seafood hotpot and tried to control my noodle lust. Rhonda threatens every time to get something besides ramen but then doubts herself. She regretted skipping the ramen. Aaron had chasu buns and ramen; Joe, a karage chicken appetizer and then ramen.

Orion Beer from Okinawa

Ramen Hot Pot

Other Notables

  • Kilwin’s: caramel apples. Enough said. Fudge too. And bark.
  • Thrasher’s Fries: rustic boardwalk fries
  • Outlets: dropping a few pounds makes clothes shopping fun. I didn’t gain any weight on vacation, either; I was anxious about having to skip a couple of days on the rower but fear:unfounded.
  • The car wouldn’t start in the driveway to the ferry (we always take the ferry because it’s a nice adventure and you can, you guessed it, have a drink on the boat). Now I have a battery jump pack in the trunk
  • I wouldn’t buy a Mac Pro but I did enjoy seeing one in person

Kilwins Apples

Mac Pro