I’ve been doing Vim + aider, and now Claude Code. Those tools I understood. I never got into Cursor because I’m too old to give up Vim.
Clawd.bot really annoyed me at first. The setup is super tedious and broken and not fun. That’s mostly because I’m too impatient to tinker like I used to.
However, once you tinker, it’s so-so. I don’t think it’s a lot better than Claude Code or anything, but I think it’s just a focused vector for the same AI model, one focused on being your personal assistant. It’s like Claude Code vs. Claude Cowork. They’re the same thing. But given the low cost of creating custom tools, why not give people something that Clawd.bot that gives them focused guardrails?
Anyway, I could end up abandoning all of this too. And it’s all a kludge around things that should really be an API. But I do like that I can run it on my Mac Mini and have it control my desktop. It’ll be a cold day if I let it message for me; I’d rather it write deterministic code that does that, rather than do it directly.
Maybe this is the issue I’m facing. I’m already using Claude, Claude projects, Claude cowork, and Claude code a lot.
I used Claude projects for an entire proposal. That was one of the best proposals I think I’ve ever written.
I’ve been using cowork to help organize my downloads folder, which had 1500 files and I just didn’t have the patience to organize them.
So maybe the differences with Claude bought not as big because I’m able to vibe code my way into things like like integrations and other things that I’ve already been using?
For the app that I wrote to help manage my business, I exposed everything over MCP so I’m able to do things like timesheets and adding and removing people and purchase orders and all that stuff using MCP. So which is why I’m already kind of feeling the magic with my existing stuff maybe?
The one thing in ClawdBot’s favor is the scheduled stuff maybe?
Aider isn't abandoned, but it feels like it's basically in maintenance mode at this point. Updates over the last year
were limited to small improvements and fixes. There are some forks aimed at making it more "agentic" (more like Claude Code, etc). I haven't tried them personally.
Amazing project and write up, very good timing too! I’ve been into amateur astronomy since I was 13, owning a few telescopes and spending many hours with family at star parties.
This week I pulled out our big Meade 10” SCT and our small Meade 4” Newtonian to show my 7yo son the moon and Saturn from my parents Bortle 8 backyard. It was wonderful seeing his awe and surprise, and the fact that my parents were there to see it too.
That 10” SCT is on an old fork mount which is motorized but has no GOTO capabilities at all. I’ve also gone down the rabbit hole of researching mount options, thinking I could just buy my way out of it. However, as much as I like the idea of GOTO, a big part of the fun is finding the objects. So I’ve never been able to pull the trigger. I did buy a ZWO 585MC though, I’ve always wanted a dedicated cooled camera.
That said, we have lost way too many hours to trying to find objects. The Telrad isn’t always enough!
I’ve been looking into using my 3D printer and electronics know-how to build my way out of this. I was even thinking of swapping the motors for NEMA 17 steppers.
Then I stumbled upon PiFinder, and I think this project is going to be the exact balance of automation and Push-to guidance that I would like.
It’s a wonderful hobby and I think the latest in 3D printing and PCB manufacturing does mean we’re going to be able to solve a lot of these problems soon.
>However, as much as I like the idea of GOTO, a big part of the fun is finding the objects.
I love reading this because it shows how different people are and how much room there is in the hobby for different interests. I am grateful for goto mounts specifically because finding the object is one of my least favorite parts of it. :D
Irony: I have a 1960s 100mm "Goto" refractor made by what is now the Goto planetarium company of Fuchu City, Tokyo. It's a headache to search for online.
https://www.goto.co.jp/english/about/
Thanks! If you hook your ZWO up to Kstars/EKOS you can use plate-solving in software to find out exactly where your scope is pointed at and then adjust accordingly.
Unfortunately, most people you’re going to encounter don’t have the depth or maturity to be good interviewers.
Some do though, and they know the truth. There is rarely a job in the world where everything is positive. If you can communicate the negatives in a way that I can understand, empathize with, and that demonstrates your ability to handle it with grace, maturity, and humility, I would probably value that more. At the same time, if you’re someone that harbours a grudge over it, like if someone decided against your advice and you’re bitter over it, I’ll take notice too.
Basically, you need to be a team player, but not an automaton. If we wanted that, we have AI now.
I have had a slow metabolism since I was a teenager. I don't think I've ever experienced a day in my life where I haven't thought about my weight, body composition, or felt guilty about eating food. And I'm not even that big. I've just never had the physique I wanted, and I always attributed it to having a slow metabolism.
I'm turning 40 in May, so since the start of February, I've finally pulled up my bootstraps and started taking my health seriously. I was likely 225 lbs at 5'10". Easily 32+% body fat.
The first thing I did was a deep extended fast, drinking only water, electrolytes, supplements, bone broth, and black coffee. I was able to shed a good amount of weight, fast. However, the longest I could fast for was 6 days; No matter what I tried, I could not figure out how to get good sleep. I tried once more for 4 days, and saw no improvement, so I stopped trying to fast. Mentally I could handle it, but without quality sleep, there was no way I could continue. This was mid-March, and I was at 204.5 lbs.
Also in mid-March, I did a VO2 max test, while fasted for 72 hours. It was very apparent that my metabolism was fat adapted. My VO2 max was very low at 33.8 ml/kg, which was to be expected. My RMR was found to be 1998 kcal/day, and my fat max HR was 161 bpm. Crossover to 100% carbs was at 179 bpm.
Since then, I've done a 180, and started eating about 1800-2000 kcal per day. My first goal is to ensure I eat 170-200g of protein per day, through as much whole food as possible, using whey or protein when needed. The rest of my diet is very clean, with no real restrictions on fats, and keeping carbs as low as possible. It's a fairly ketogenic diet, but I don't get worked up if my net carbs go to 50+g. Foods are usually Greek yogurt, flax, pumpkin seeds, nuts, eggs, berries, fish, poultry, and green vegetables/salads. If I ever add fat to anything, it's extra virgin olive oil first, then maybe butter/cream (i.e. in coffee). I take a number of supplements like Omega-3 fish oils, multivitamins, magnesium, and make my own electrolyte drink. Creatine as well.
I find that by the time I've done all of this, I have a very difficult time eating, and even trying to fit anything else in. I am never hungry, nor do I feel cravings for other foods. We just came back from Miami, and I had some ice cream with the kids, and some baked goods. I enjoyed them, but I was very excited to be back to my normal foods.
Since then, I've been running 3-4 times a week, focusing on Zone 2 training. I do 4 days a week of weightlifting, focusing on the big compound lifts. I have a 10K race on May 11, and a sprint distance triathlon on July 27 that I'm training for.
For this entire month, I have stayed at a constant 207.5 lbs +/- 0.5 lbs. I have been tracking other measurements like circumferences and body fat (using calibers and BIA scale), and it's apparent that I have gained strength, regained muscle mass, and improved my overall fitness. Running is still at a slow pace, but actually enjoyable now. My wearables estimate that my VO2 max is 37 ml/kg; they did show 33 ml/kg last month when I had the test, so they seem to be correlated.
I think the hardest part of the last month has been the sheer amount of work I've put in, only to watch the scale stay steady. I track my intake rigorously, weighing everything I can and using MyFitnessPal to track it all. How are people able to eat anything else? I couldn't add rice or grains to my diet even if I wanted to, I would easily hit 2500+ kcal per day.
People eat that much? Or rather, burn that much? I burn 2000 kcal per rest day, and maybe 2800-3200 kcal on workout days.
I will stick with this, since it is working to improve my health and fitness. It would just be nice to see the scale move without having to fast for multiple days. Cursed slow metabolism.
In terms of where carbs fit in, you're eating 200g of protein a day, which at a guess is 2x to 4x your lean body mass in kg. I'm not saying that it's wrong, it's probably very effective, but the average diet probably swaps that (historically very expensive) protein out for (historically very cheap) bread and rice.
Which we now know is suboptimal. Humans need more protein than we’ve been eating on the SAD. This is especially true as you age and you start losing muscle mass.
I aim for 1g per lbs of weight. There’s so many numbers out there for what’s the right amount, based on lean mass vs total mass, so I figure my number is close enough.
You aren't cursed with a slow metabolism, you have just been having too many calories. If you are truly never hungry but still not losing weight, then why not reduce your calories by 200-300 a day?
I’ve thought the same, but then my food intake would truly be just plain chicken breast, fish, protein shakes, and green veggies. Which is basically what it is now, but I’d have to cut out the Greek yogurt, berries, and handful of nuts, and maybe the eggs. Remember, I weigh everything.
I can find the calories to cut, it just makes it difficult to sustain for longer than 2 weeks due to the mental load. Plus, I would bet my lifts in the gym would suffer after a while too.
Frankly, it’s probably easier to just go for an extra 20 minutes run.
How's your light environment/sunlight exposure? What's your waking body temperature (under arm for 10 minutes)? Have you had a thyroid panel done? (TSH, Free T3, Free T4, Reverse T3)
Nice. Mexico and Miami are great for the sun. Catch at least 20m at sunrise and sunset (sunrise is most important). Also midday sun for as much as you can tolerate without burning and your schedule allows. As much skin exposed as possible and never with sunglasses.
Your waking body temperature should be around >= 97.8 and raise to 98.6 or higher by midday. Low waking body temperature can be indicative of low thyroid function even with normal labs.
TSH range is too high, you want it under 2. T4 is converted to either T3 or rT3. You want the majority going to T3. So if you have low normal T3 and high normal rT3, your thyroid is not working well. Low T4 means less to convert to T3.
This was really good. The Hassan version was “better.” It picked up the background behind me and commented about how cool my models looked on the wall, and mentioned how great they looked to spruce up my workshop. We had a conversation about how they were actually LEGO, and we went on to talk about how cool some of the sets were.
Glad you had a good conversation :) The Hassaan version has a lot more background filled in- actually my entire website is it's context, so he has more interesting things to say!
I believe they want a minimum order of $1000 and only allow me to print it in a single color. Honestly, providing a physical good is a whole other set of issues with which I have no experience at all.
Completely agree. I can't imagine being lead on a wild goose chase looking for a loved one only to be told by police that said party lied to me. I guess there's a lesson here: talk with nurses. I'm sure some would toe the line but if something smells fishy, I'm sure someone will crack. Then again, maybe only one nurse would know the truth so it's may not be easy.
It's worse than that, it's like burying a double or even triple lede:
- it's not just that the hospital told her family totally the wrong thing for a day or a year...
- or even negligently cremated or buried her in a pauper's grave...
- but they also mishandled the corpse, which IIUC is a misdemeanor (corpse desecration, which is a felony, might not apply), by shipping her decomposing body to an off-site warehouse morgue.
- and failing to timely issue a death certificate or do an autopsy prevents determining whether there had been medical malpractice associated with her death.
Clawd.bot really annoyed me at first. The setup is super tedious and broken and not fun. That’s mostly because I’m too impatient to tinker like I used to.
However, once you tinker, it’s so-so. I don’t think it’s a lot better than Claude Code or anything, but I think it’s just a focused vector for the same AI model, one focused on being your personal assistant. It’s like Claude Code vs. Claude Cowork. They’re the same thing. But given the low cost of creating custom tools, why not give people something that Clawd.bot that gives them focused guardrails?
Anyway, I could end up abandoning all of this too. And it’s all a kludge around things that should really be an API. But I do like that I can run it on my Mac Mini and have it control my desktop. It’ll be a cold day if I let it message for me; I’d rather it write deterministic code that does that, rather than do it directly.
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