Twin boys. Toddler daughter. Hospital Tech Support. Writer. Runner. Gamer. Creating in public again.*

HELLO // TRIBUNE // BACKSTAGE // ARCHIVES

You’re Three

Dear Rose,

You’re turning three today, and I wanted to write you a letter like I did last year, simply to create a snapshot of how you’re processing the world at three. Just like I mentioned last year, time is moving way too fast, and as I try to balance the busyness of life, staying present with you is always at the top of my mind. I don’t want to miss a single moment of you growing up.

You started school recently, and I told you that I’d be sad now that you’re away from home, but you tried to comfort me by saying, “Don’t worry Dad, Mom will protect you.” These are the little sentences you bless me with throughout the week. Like when your brother got in the car recently, and right away, you asked him, “Isaac, how’s your day going?” And after he responded, you replied, “Well, mine is going great.”

I’m constantly fascinated by your mind and how much you’re learning already. You like dancing now, and putting puzzles together. You know all the days of the week, and you’re starting to learn time. Lately you’ve been randomly telling me you’d like a hug. Or as you’re falling asleep, you ask if I can rub your back.

Before each meal, you lead in prayer, even if you’re the only one at the table. It’s the same prayer each meal: “Dear Jesus, thank you for this food. Thank you for mommy and daddy, Isaac and Rose, and all the people. Keep us safe, in your name we pray. Amen.”

This is just a glimpse of my days with you, and there’s not enough words to describe how special all of this feels.

Happy Birthday.

The Lock Screen Is My Home Screen

For most of the day, I interact with my watch and phone at a glance, thanks to widgets providing the information I need. Or with just a tap, I’m brought into the respective app that’s tied to the widget or complication.

The very top of my phone’s Lock Screen shows me the weather. Underneath that is the time, and underneath that is a calendar of the month, chance of rain, the temperature inside our house. The bottom left is a shortcut to write notes. Bottom right is a shortcut to add a task. Swiping left opens up the camera. Swiping right shows me a page full of widgets.

Most people don’t adjust these widgets and complications on these screens, but they’re missing the secret weapon that makes the phone so much more useful and seamless. Those widgets and complications speed up my phone usage and allow me to get in and out of the phone without hardly ever leaving the Lock Screen.

OmniFocus For Work

I’ve started using OmniFocus again for my new job. I was noticing the assignments that were issued to us take about fifty steps to complete. So instead of relying on memory to finish these tasks, I’ll be leaning on Sequential Projects inside of OmniFocus. The vision for this is when a new ticket shows up in my inbox, I’ll use one of these templates to start checking off all the boxes until that assignment is complete.

The beauty of the sequential project is that every task in that project is hidden except for that very next action. Once that box is checked, only then does the next step appear. Using this setup will make my life much easier with new tickets.

I’m also utilizing the tagging system in OmniFocus. There’s often tasks that can’t be completed until someone else is involved. By using the tagging system, the next time I’m in a meeting with that person, I can press their name and it’ll show me everything that’s waiting for their attention, regardless of what project or area it’s in.

I’m thankful that I’ve learned OmniFocus, Getting Things Done, and project management over the years, because it’s really paying off already with this new position.

A Challenge Note

As I was going through older notes from the last few years, I stumbled on one titled “Current Challenges”. This note was me documenting whatever obstacles I was up against at that time. And as I went through each list, 99% of those challenges are no longer there. From the small ones to the big ones. All gone. I recommend you do the same. Take the time every few months and make a dated list of anything that’s bothering you. This small list is a simple way to steer your life in the direction you want to go. Identify. Document. Adjust.

Switched to Visible

When I stopped working for AT&T I also lost all of those benefits. Perfect opportunity to finally switch to a different carrier. I went with Visible. The process of porting out took me five minutes, thanks to their app. Was a very seamless experience. Visible uses Verizon’s towers, so I’m getting a very strong signal. Unlimited data and hotspot, all for $25 a month. I highly recommend Visible. So far so good.

Preparing for the Party

Rose turns three in just a few weeks, and it’s time to start planning. A Peppa Pig party at a gymnasium with trampolines and bounce houses. Time to prepare the invitations, order a cake, decorations, and decide on a present. How is she three already?

Hospital Visit

The journey starts with a quiet walk to the hospital. Fifteen minutes of solitude to gather my thoughts and prepare for this new chapter. This is much different than my previous work-from-home job, where I was isolated from the world and stationary as I answered calls.

At the hospital, I’m given an office that’s completely empty, along with a key to a big storage room with lots of furniture to choose from. I selected a desk, a television on the wall, two tables, and an office chair. I also brought a few things from home to personalize the office. A white HomePod, a white desk fan, a plant, and a few books.

With this new position, a lot of my day revolves around meetings and being at certain rooms of the hospital at specific times of the day, so one of the first things I did was connect my new Microsoft Exchange account to my phone. Now my calendar events for work show up on my wrist with the Fantastical widget.

While going down the elevator, my Watch buzzes, and it’s a notification from Rose’s new preschool. I get about ten of these updates a day from her school now. “She just had her morning snack. She went potty. She just started her nap. She was happy.” These little notification are helpful because I can keep working with the peace of mind that she’s ok.

When returning home each day, my Watch averages about 15,000 steps. That’s before any exercises. And now that I’m home before five during the week, I can hunt down the basketball gym that everyone’s playing at. I expect to consistently be in great basketball shape now, thanks to this new schedule (and salad bar in the hospital cafeteria).

At night (and some Remote Play throughout the day), I’ve been making progress in Metaphor, a fantasy JRPG that’s like nothing I’ve ever played before. It’s currently my game of the year.

Diablo IV

For gaming this month, I’ll be focusing completely on Diablo IV. It matches the mood of October. What is Diablo? An action role-playing dungeon crawler. Create a character, explore, fight, collect loot (weapons and gear), and level up as you progress through the world. I’m learning why Diablo is so popular. The gameplay loop, customization, and progression feels like it’ll never end. My favorite part is that whether I play on the PlayStation 5 or the Steam Deck, my character and progress is carried over. This allows me to play on the go or on the big screen.

Apps I’m Using

Ulysses for writing. ChatGPT for collaborating on my novel. Things for projects. Sofa for list tracking. Plex for movies and tv shows. Reeder for daily news. YouTube Premium for daily videos. Facebook Messenger (unfortunately) for a basketball group to know what local gym everyone’s going to. Croissant for a new social media experiment. Procare for Rose’s new preschool. Reddit for following small communities.

A New Chapter

Today’s the first day at my new job. A tech support position at our local hospital. Rose is also starting her first day of preschool today. I went tour the school with her last week and she has been talking about it ever since. This new job, and my daughter now going to school, will completely change our family’s daily routine, and I’m excited for this new chapter. I feel rejuvenated, and I’m ready to build on this momentum.