23 May 2025 #mondaylinks
Hey, there.
Here are 4 links I thought were worth sharing this week:
#1. Microsoft has made a lot of noise this week. It laid off around ~6K people. And it made the Windows Subsystem for Linux (5min) and the Copilot Chat extension (8min) open source. It seems the layoffs and the release of open source aren’t related. At least, that’s the official version.
#2. Speaking of Microsoft, they enabled Copilot on the Runtime repository. And it seems AI can’t fix simple bugs (4min).
#3. It seems I’m not the only one who doesn’t like it when web apps use my location to decide what language to use. There’s already a better alternative to using IP addresses.
#4. One of the most common mistakes when writing tests is duplicating the logic under test inside assertions. That’s what’s called circular reasoning (7min).
And in case you missed it, I wrote on my blog about stop optimizing for scale when we don’t need it (2min) and the key to survive a stressful job (2min).
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See you next time,
Cesar
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22 May 2025 #misc
I’ve heard life only guarantees two things: death and taxes.
One happens every year. The other? Just once.
As a thought experiment and writing exercise, if I only had 12 months to live, assuming I’m in good shape, mentally and physically, these are 7 actions I’d do:
#1. Transfer 50% of my retirement savings and net worth to my closest relatives. I want to make sure they don’t have to worry about covering their essential expenses for a while.
#2. Spend the other 50% of my net worth without any guilt. I’d backpack around Europe and South America. I definitely would walk El Camino de Santiago, the pilgrimage route along Spain.
#3. Share my blog and social media credentials with a loved one so my online presence outlives me and keeps generating income for my relatives.
#4. Write a book. The other day, while watching Chandler Bolt’s TED talk, I learned that “the best way you can serve humanity is to write a book.” I don’t expect it to become a best-seller. I just want to make sure part of my story is written somewhere for my relatives to read. That’s a good motivation to write a book. Hey if we’re still reading diaries from ancient Greece, maybe someone will read my blog or book centuries in the future. Who knows?!
#5. And, in the same spirit of sharing my story, take a picture every day for the remaining 12 months. Like a photo blog or something. Especially while walking El Camino de Santiago. That’s a perfect idea for a visual memoir.
#6. Write a letter to every family member, scheduled to be delivered after those 12 months. Okay, I know that sounds like the plot of a romantic movie.
#7. Get an organ donor card. My organs will help somebody else more than me by the end of those 12 months.
I just realized I don’t need to wait to do most of these things.
Oh, this list reminded me of one House M.D. episode where Dr. Wilson, an oncologist and Dr. House’s best friend, made a mistake and gave the wrong prescription to a patient. He told the patient he only had a few months to live. And when the patient was told about the mistake, he got angry because his family had already scheduled trips and celebrations. His life had already changed because of the prescription.
Why does life have to change when the clock is close to running out of batteries? Why wait?! Ok, maybe I got too philosophical. And I already got more than my 200 words for the day.
PS: This was a writing prompt from Ron Markley on Medium.
21 May 2025 #writing
I know we’re not supposed to multitask.
But recently, while doing the dishes, I listened to this YouTube interview between Ryan Holiday and Robert Greene, two best-selling writers.
Out of all the subjects they talked about, there’s one line that I still remember:
“It’s all material”
They both share how problematic people and unexpected situations end up being material for an email or a book.
And that line made me think about unexpected situations that have inspired me to write.
#1. The other day I took a loved one to a hospital. And I ended up writing about calming my mind, the future of hospital visits with AI, and random facts about health, which I learned on that visit.
#2. Another day, a cashier overheard a conversation I had with a friend, and her reaction inspired me to write about our definition of success.
#3. I used to feel guilty about watching movies and series. But when I started watching them through a creator’s lens, I realized how much they could teach about storytelling and writing. I’ve watched and written about Six Triple Eight, Scorpion, and House M.D.. No more guilt. Just writing lessons. After all, It’s all material.
20 May 2025 #writing
I decided to challenge myself: write every single day. No excuses.
I started back in November 1st, 2024. This is my daily post #200. I thought I didn’t have anything to share. If we think a post has to be 100% original, we seldom write. And the truth is there’s nothing 100% original.
I also thought I’d run out of ideas. But the first 100 daily posts proved me wrong and another 100 convinced me it’s possible.
My most-read and favorite posts
Here are some of the most-read posts from the last 100 days:
And here are some of my favorites:
What posting daily has done for me
Posting daily has:
- Made me conscious of the content I consume
- Made me think of posts as public notes
- Made me remember past stories
Some days I almost broke my streak. Some night, near mid-night, I had to rush to finish my post for the next day.
Writing 10 ideas a day to become an idea machine has helped me keep my writing goal. Some of my 10-idea lists have inspired or become posts.
Writing daily has become part of my healthy routine. It has sharpened my writing skills and helped me document ideas I would have otherwise forgotten.
19 May 2025 #career
A stressful job can take a serious toll on your mental health.
I know because I’ve had one. In that job, we were chasing our own deadlines, our clients’ expectations, and local government regulations. We were late all the time. Everyone blamed the Development team. Leaders constantly pressured us.
Working after hours was normal. We called them “Miracle Nights.” In one night, we did way more than we did in a sprint. You can imagine the amount of technical debt we were leaving behind.
While working on that job, I ate the most expensive hamburgers I’ve ever had, by the way.
But there was something that made everything easier
Our relationships and friendships made all the difference.
It was having someone who could listen, a group for Friday nights, and friends who could refer you to new jobs. That support changed everything.
Even though it was one of my most stressful jobs, I did the most to take care of my mental health while working there. It was easier because I had a “support group,” coworkers that eventually turned into friends.
If you’re working on a stressful job or not, make an extra effort to build those professional relationships. The world runs on connections. And in the end, we’re remembered not just for our work, but for how we treat those around us.