JOURNALS

Today was one of those days where I felt the satisfying crunch of making physical artifacts. I devoted most of my day to plotting out some test pages for the Filofax, watching the pen plotter bring my code to life on paper. It's a process that always reminds me why I do what I do. The sound of the machine, the smell of the ink, and the sight of crisp lines appearing on paper—it's almost therapeutic.

From the morning, it was all about the Filofax pages. I found myself completely absorbed, watching as my designs slowly transformed from digital concepts into tactile pages. There's something inherently gratifying about this part of my work—the transition from the abstract to the concrete. I spent the morning and well into the afternoon tweaking and refining, testing different grids and dot patterns to see what suits my handwriting best. It's a bit like conducting an orchestra, where I'm the conductor and the plotter, my diligent orchestra, follows my every cue.

The geek in me enjoyed every moment of it. I cranked up some tunes and let myself get lost in the rhythm of the work, surrounded by the gentle hum of machinery. Although I say it myself, I think the SVG output functionality is in a pretty good state. I’ve got my eye on Bamboo paper now, which seems to be the front runner. It's decisions like these that add layers of complexity and satisfaction to the work I do.

Despite all the focus on the tactile, I can't help but feel a twinge of concern about the current state of my workspace. It's turned a bit chaotic recently, with more stationery and books piling up. It's not ideal, and I know I need to find a solution. My studio, usually my sanctuary of creativity, is starting to feel a bit crowded.

Reflecting on the day's work, I felt a wave of satisfaction. There’s something uniquely satisfying about creating something with your hands (or, in my case, with a machine guided by my design). It brought a smile to my face, one that's been missing for a bit. Tomorrow, though, it's back to the grindstone—there are more tests to run, and the book-learning part of my brain needs some attention too. But for now, I’ll bask in the simple joy of today’s achievements, reminding myself why I embarked on this journey of art and code.