manu

Against Humanity

Japan I ❤ you

(Still in progress) I love you because you in Japan you are entitled to the general feeling that, in general, companies and other people aren’t out to try screwing you every way and whenever they can. I love you because for two weeks every year, when cherry trees blossom, you are virtually indistinguishable from heaven. I love you because your traditional eating habits are both healthy and yummy.…

A Short Stint at KOMODO & horizontal/vertical development

Table of Contents Disclaimer Reason #1: Basil Reason #4: Infantilization Reason #2: Horizontal, vertical, and over-engineering Reason #3: Hiring Profile Valve Coda I really wanted to like KOMODO. A small, friendly company, based in both the US and Japan, who hired me to work on a product, NIUHI (yes, also all-uppercase), really well-aligned with my own interests and professional experience.…

26 Golden Rules of Ensemble Playing

By Walter Bergmann (1902-1988) Never worry whether you play the same piece as the others; they will soon find out. Stop at every repeat sign and enter into a palaver about whether you should, should not, would, would not, could, could not, want, or want not, to repeat. Which is the most important part in an ensemble? The other one. Always aim for the highest number of n.p.s. (notes per second). If…

Overwashing

I think our modern society has veered into overwashing. Obviously, basic hygiene is extremely important for preventing diseases. Several efforts for teaching hospital doctors in emerging countries, for example, have significantly decreased the morbidity and mortality rate, especially for surgical procedures. But how do we know how much is too much? We have specific products for washing our hands,…

This is why I hate flying (but apparently I can bluff)

It’s weird to declare that I hate flying, for someone who does it as much as I do. Here’s my travel log for a pre-pandemic year (2018): (the “San José” in there is the one in Costa Rica, not California). At least more recently I try a lot harder to ride trains more. But it’s often not an option. Besides feeling increasingly terrible about all the burned kerosene (I buy carbon credits, but that…

Bait-and-bore TV shows

Some American TV shows start with an interesting angle. For example, “Sex and the City”: New York City and sex. “Shrinking”: therapists. I find it disappointing that they very soon abandon the uniqueness of their approach and revert to a more classic sitcom plot that’s just about the characters. “Sex and City” broaches some interesting sexual topics in its first season, as well as specific New…

Building a queen-sized foldable bed

This is still 🚧 ! When I got myself (lucky me!) a teeny tiny apartment in Tokyo, I had the Western reflex of buying a queen-sized bed. Actually, since I took that photo I expanded a little bit on the headboard/shelf: A Japanese person may have, instead, got themselves a rollable futon. I realized that a little too late, and now I’d like to find a solution to 1) regain some of that precious space…

Bye Twitter 💙

Disclaimer I hereafter relate the facts from my point of view, but the interpretation is speculation and educated guesses. Short version Since I was one of the early layoffs after the Oct 2022 acquisition of Twitter, some people have been curious about the reasons. My current understanding is that I was too much of a potential troublemaker for the new management. Main story Most likely direct…

Not Going Anywhere

In light of the recent events, many Twitter employees are fearing a brain drain. Well, guess what, we get to decide that collectively — and as far as I’m concerned, I’m not going anywhere. (Plus, I don’t carry a whole lot of brains in the first place.) I know I am not the type of employee who has the most to fear from any potential incoming changes, and I’m very privileged in many ways. Still,…