Town Hall #6: Spark Joy and Conversation

Subscribe to Taylor’s Town Hall via email.

Thirty spokes are joined together in a wheel, but it is the center hole that allows the wheel to function.

We mold clay into a pot, but it is the emptiness inside that makes the vessel useful.

We fashion wood for a house, but it is the emptiness inside that makes it livable.

We work with the substantial, but the emptiness is what we use.

• Tao Te Ching

Time-management is futile if you have no time to manage.

Emptiness makes your calendar useful.

I’ve been using my time to create conversation.

If you haven’t heard, I started a tech conference! Outland 2023 tickets go on sale March 1. I’m honestly surprised at how lucky we got with our venue and speaker lineup. Let me know if your company would like information about our sponsor packages.

My Strange Loop CFP submissions have come together quite nicely. I’ve been casually writing on a new programming language for the past ~7 years, and am ready to share some insights about writing sharable software. I also drafted lectures about evolutionary computation, distrubted systems architecture, and database optimization – email me if you know of any good conferences I should put on my radar!

I’ve been using my time to create space.

First, I created space in my home. Marie Kondo is a treasure! I don’t think I’ve ever been so delighted with my closet before.

Next, I made space in my software. I’ve obliterated some crusty codebases; fresh starts feel freeing. I’ve been working on multiple secret projects and writing about my experiences. I can’t wait to share some juicy ideas with y’all over the coming months. Check out my now page to get a sense of the impending insanity.

As I train for the AIDS/Lifecycle (check out my donation page), I’m rediscovering the joy of bicycles! I love feeling one with my machine and exploring my community from a fresh perspective.

Open Questions

If you have questions or answers, send me an e-mail.

• Any tips/resources on minimalism? I’d like to trim some excess from my life.
• How have you been using ChatGPT? Any prompt tips?
• Anybody want to sponsor Outland 2023?
• I’ll be going to Zion National Park in Utah soon! Is there anything I should do while I’m in the area?

Recommendations

You may skip to books, people, images, videos, podcast episodes, or music.

You can also scour my entire history of book reviews and album ratings.

Books

• ★★★★★ The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green :: Painfully human essays; five stars.
• ★★★☆☆ Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris :: Witty and deeply personal essay collection. Great insights on parenting, grief, pets, language, and addiction.
• ★★★☆☆ Zero to One by Peter Thiel :: Solid book on the how & why of founding a startup.

People

• Brett Bejcek
• TyChi

Images

• unspeakable creature
• corn
• bubble wrap bucket hat
• elaborate cockroach costume
• lego droid crucifixion
• backwards hat
• ferret wizard
• i just noticed the phone in her pocket

Videos

• Building a Computer Controlled Loom
• Using Dirt to Form Concrete
• Good Cop, Bad Cop
• A Comparison of Pathfinding Algorithms
• A simple water heater is more clever than it seems
• Jordan Peterson enlightens Joe Rogan on BIONCLE
• Scott Steiner’s Math Promo Sacrifice 2008
• NVIDIA’s New AI: Nature Videos Will Never Be The Same!
• Amsterdam Just Got Awesomer
• Sims cat break-dancing
• Smoking cigs at 12

Podcast Episodes

Music