From the notebook
269 notes, newest first Software, art, and things I’m figuring out

Staticware 0.2.0: The first cut

This is an early release. Staticware does something very satisfyingly today: it serves static files with content-hashed URLs for cache busting. That means when you edit your CSS then redeploy and restart your server, visitors get the latest CSS without forcing a refresh. More will come.

Read the note

Excavating a Lost CLI Tool

I thought I had completely lost my new iteration on my notebook titler tool, but it turns out I'm finding bits and pieces in various places. Here I try to put it together again.

Read the note

Understanding FastHTML Routes, Requests, and Redirects

In this tutorial we'll look at the simplest routes and route handlers you can create with FastHTML. We'll define the handlers as little functions, and then call them as we would any other Python function. After that, we'll make simple GET requests to a simple index route/handler, a parameterized one, and a parameterized one with a redirect.

Read the note

Setting Up a Blog With nbdev

I feel like Jupyter notebooks would be really nice for blogging or publishing "Today I Learned" posts. I had heard about Fastpages before via Jeremy Howard's blog or YouTube videos, but seeing that it was deprecated in favor of nbdev, I decided to try nbdev.

Read the note

Ride a Bike Today

My husband Daniel and I created this piece together during the holidays, and I forgot to post it so I'm doing so now. It started with a pen-and-ink drawing I drew. Then we transformed it several times, alternating photocopier distortion, gouache, watercolor, house paint, more pen and ink, and collage over and over.

Ride a Bike Today Read the note

Butterflies

Daniel and I painted these butterflies with gouache, pastels, and a brush pen. Originally my intent was to experiment with butterfly shapes for republishing my butterfly book, but then I decided to play around with brush shapes and mark-making. Daniel joined in the fun of giving the butterflies their beautiful coloration with me.

Butterflies Read the note

Impossible Hero Books Logo

We're moving all five of our fantasy novels to a new publishing imprint! Daniel and I came up with the name "Impossible Hero Books" and created this logo together on the plane ride back home.

Impossible Hero Books Logo Read the note

My Baby Is One Year Old!

I'm so proud of my daughter, Uma. She's so strong, smart, and lovely. Here she is at her first birthday party in her spacesuit. She's only been with me and Daniel for a short time, but it feels like our lives have just begun. She makes every new day so meaningful.

Read the note

Rediscovery

This painting represents my recent experiences. Paths in various uncertain directions are overlapped with spiraling curves revisiting the past and building upon it. Along the way, beauty shows up in the most unexpected places.

Rediscovery Read the note

Watercolor and Stenciled Paper Mandalas

I love using recycled materials. I cut out these snowflakes from the heavy cardstock backing piece of a pack of markers. I estimate it as 120-150lb cardstock. The 3-inch piece cut well, but the 2-inch one didn't cut cleanly.

Watercolor and Stenciled Paper Mandalas Read the note

Land of Five Suns

This is another piece inspired by Tolkien's illustrations. I wanted it to be a scene from another planet, though, so I gave it five suns and tried to make the land a bit otherworldly.

Land of Five Suns Read the note

Simple Garden

I have a confession to make. Sometimes when I work on my paintings for the 100 day project, I do them at night right before bed when I'm completely exhausted. My state of mind in these situations is wanting to get the painting over with as quickly as possible so I can get to bed.

Simple Garden Read the note

Palace Dome, From the Presidio

The Presidio is a large area of parkland on the northwest side San Francisco. It used to be a military base, but now it's occupied by a mixture of residential and commercial buildings. I woke up early today to try painting from a coffee shop there, which turned out to be filled with employees of Intel, ILM, and other Presidio corporate tenants.

Palace Dome, From the Presidio Read the note

Golden Gate Bridge II

The other day, while I was painting the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance, I kept thinking about how I wanted to get closer to it and then do another painting.

Golden Gate Bridge II Read the note

Golden Gate Bridge I

The Golden Gate Bridge is one of those landmarks that's irresistible to watercolor painters, especially me. Even with all the other closer, brighter scenery around, the bridge and hills of in the far distance lured me to paint them.

Golden Gate Bridge I Read the note

The Boatyard

Last year, Danny and I spent almost a month in Split, Croatia. It was the end of the summer, so it was pretty quiet.

The Boatyard Read the note

I'm Back Home!

After three months in China, I am back in the United States, this time in sunny southern California where oranges roll around playfully in grassy backyards.

Read the note

Website buttons

Here are a few buttons that you can use for your websites or blogs. Feel free to use them however you want - it does not matter whether or not you link to this blog, and you do not have to credit me. They are a present for you.

Website buttons Read the note

Orange County

Orange County is where a bunch of my round relatives live. The next time you visit Disneyland, stop by the grocery store and tell the oranges that I said hi.

Read the note