This first quarterly review covers July through September, 2025.
I’ll summarize what’s changed in that period.
There are two updates that are dominating over everything else: career updates and fitness shifts.
It’s exciting that I am expected to deliver different results than before; my career has made a step change in progress (I won’t mention this further).
And in the last month both A and I have dramatically changed our approach to physical fitness.
So, this is an important note marking the start of a new chapter.
It’s a turning point but also a reflection on how the grind is always turning, and that’s life.
Core Domains Review
Most of the domains, the ones I feel like publishing anyway.
Writing
What I did
I captured “Ambient Finds” in the second half of August (not published).
I continue to use 3 paper notebooks: a daily calendar for food and fitness, a main book for daily notes/research/thoughts, and a pocket waste book.
I continue to fill the 25.2 notebook. The volume of writing is lower than my expectation from 25.1.
Continued experiments with various smartphone note capturing workflows: Journelly, Shortcuts + iA Writer, Drafts.
What I learned
I have determined that I have no problem with words. What is lacking is structuring them into a larger work.
My struggle with too ephemerality of smartphone notes (they just get lost) + the doorway effect + carrying minimal things remains unsolved. The smartphone is usable when constraints limit other options, but I still prefer paper when I can use it.
What’s next
See what happens when I experiment with making a larger point, even if it feels mechanical.
Allow daily captures to include some mundane thoughts. It’s a future-me reference. The stuff that is not particularly noteworthy yet later you wonder what did I think in 2025.
Don’t stress about where ephemeral notes end up, as long as you revisit them at the end of the day.
Reading Books
What I did
I read 6 books; a mix of fiction and non-fiction. One was an audiobook.
I started and abandoned one other book.
A slow quarter for reading; other things heated up, and I had reached my yearly goal.
What I learned
Russian short stories from the masters are wild, shockingly good reading despite the distance between reader and author. Thank you, George Saunders, for introducing me to them.
Didion’s ironic but distant eye works much better for me when turned on herself than other people outside of her cohort.
What’s next
Keep reading, target some applicable reads.
Leave room for pure fun ones.
Photography
What I did
Made about 6000 pictures while just going about life.
These were family events (kid’s soccer game, dog park party), a field trip to Elkhorn slough, and a backpacking trip.
Exported several hundred and shared to the relevant small number of people.
Improved my export flow with Photos and Shortcuts and Working Copy.
Mostly shot with my Sony when I planned to, but I also experimented with Project Indigo and compared to Halide and the default Camera app.
I took down the pictures I made in Santa Barbara in January and haven’t put anything else back up. It’s pretty barren in my office right now.
What I learned
Having a good low-friction workflow really helps!
I prefer the Sony’s output.
When viewed on iPad or iPhone, the smartphone pictures aren’t obviously different. The Sony just looks better.
What’s next
Still trying to figure out how to get good non-smartphone-look pictures with iPhone; keep experimenting with LR settings.
Consider printing out a small series of photos, a la Seeing in Sixes.
Aim for one intentional session in Q4, while continuing my incidental practice.
Drawing Practice
What I did
Completed my first sketchbook!
Started a new sketchbook, which I have only drawn a little in since.
What I learned
I am quite impressed with the amount of improvement in the first sketchbook, which took about 5 months to fill. The challenge is now about compound objects and making scenes.
The long period of steady practice and slow improvement is difficult to sustain.
What’s next
Consider returning to a 15 minutes a day practice.
I should remember why I prioritized drawing this year at all: it was an alternative to spending time with screens.
Just have fun, and damn the “mistakes.”
Fitness
What I did
Maintained a steady running practice of ~2 5k runs per week.
Shifted focus during runs from pace to heart rate.
Went backpacking in Eastern WA/OR, a highlight.
Started working with a personal trainer 3 times per week on functional strength training.
Got a DEXA scan.
Refocused my diet around nutrition to support my fitness routine.
What I learned
Running slower, at a lower heart rate, is more sustainable and easier to look forward to. Who knew?
Working with an excellent trainer, one who has a good attitude and is very knowledgeable, is really great. Highly recommended, if you can afford it.
What’s next
Stick with the trainer, that’s going awesome.
When it’s right, add back in a second run each week.
Maintain cardio through the winter, even if means experimenting with using the, ugh, treadmill.
Continue iterating on the nutrition (macros, brah) to support.
Research
What I did
Research has stalled. No notes or progress on my various topics under Humans and The Algorithm interests.
What I learned
Projects that are too ambitious for my current time constraints and current skillsets are unsustainable.
The research area still fascinates me.
What’s next
Try something smaller: define a narrower scope and a reachable goal.
Highlights and Lowlights
Highs
Produced many good photos of rocks, plants, birds, or landscapes.
I am good at describing a mundane-yet-interesting or just odd scene in writing. I made several of these a day for a few weeks in August, and the practice helped me to notice the interesting and to put it on paper.
Just keeping a regular running practice going was already a win. Upgrading to functional weight training with my very own personal fitness concierge is a real treat!
Lows
Too many interests make it difficult to have enough time for them.
I did not simply continue sketching and practicing when I moved on to a new notebook. It’s a nice notebook and despite my best efforts at not worrying about that, I still don’t want to ruin or waste it.
Did I do any research at all in the last 3 months? I don’t think I did.
Metrics / Experiments Log
In the last quarter, I…
recorded two overnight field recordings out in the wilderness,
posted eleven blog posts, of which eight are photos,
ran twenty-three times for a total distance of almost one hundred and ten kilometers,
went to the gym six times for functional weight training,
collected three bag nights in two states,
noted and edited notes on thirty three different days,
vacationed in the mountains for three nights,
discovered the California delta en route to the mountains,
road tripped to the Seattle area to visit friends for a week,
completed one two week experiment on writing,
and my other things too.
Forward Questions or Hypotheses
How will AI tools continue to influence, integrate, and enable more personal growth and development? How will I avoid personal atrophy with these supports?
How can I make balance work and life and keep it natural and easy and successful?
Continuing to note noticings will eventually pay off, just maybe not in the next quarter.
Closing Reflection
Grinding on these things, rotating through them to mix it up and keep it interesting, pausing to regroup.
These strategies all lead to a payoff, sometimes smaller, sometimes bigger.
It’s been true in so many areas.
Start somewhere, work at it, level up, start over and work at it some more.
Enjoy the success, don’t worry about where it’s going.
Just follow the energy and keep your balance.