Productivity is like a flower, it needs nurturing and dies if salted. For me, the fertilizer is knowing the meaning of work, how to do it, being on a good team, and feeling enthusiasm. I feel most productive in the mornings, late afternoons, and early evenings, and least producti … | Continue reading
Flower shop on the corner of Shipka and San Stefano. Saw many students with robes and funny hats today in the area. No photos because I don’t feel comfortable taking photos or strangers. | Continue reading
I’ve noticed that the two most common sources of regret for my last 20-30 years of experience are: The risks taken that paid off – what would I regret? For example, when taking my first mortgage, it felt like a great risk. The payment was a significant portion of my salary at the … | Continue reading
W wouldn’t have noticed this beautiful tree without the blog. | Continue reading
The character is a freelance tank driver, roaming the desert with the tank on a square map. He enters a competition. What does he need to do? Solve a bunch of riddles! Anagrams, basic math, and the music kids listened to in the 80s. Here’s a riddle from the book. You have two 6-s … | Continue reading
This book was unremarkable in the beginning but then very satisfying in many ways until the end. I enjoyed the exploding taxidermy and the overall improved independence of Stephanie. She is chasing a criminal mystery because she could be framed for murder. She does it, not Ranger … | Continue reading
I got a surprise new book. This one was sent to me by the publisher. I was pleasantly surprised and will write a review once I reread it. I’m very thankful for the nice surprise! I find it very nice that people are republishing these old books. The old ones are collectibles and p … | Continue reading
Mladost 2, Sofia. There’s a facebook group dedicated to removing items like this but I find it interesting. Probably because I don’t see it very often. | Continue reading
I’m happy with the show. The music and execution were fantastic. It’s one of those events that sticks with you and leaves a lasting memory. The team managed to sneak in some Bulgarian jokes and contemporary puns and localize the experience, particularly with Phantom’s signature. … | Continue reading
The photo is from a few days ago when it was summer. We are temporarily back to the winter today. | Continue reading
In the early 2000s, I was a new and ambitious software engineer with very little theoretical knowledge. Worked as a webmaster, which included front-end, back-end, databases, and a bit of systems work, all with Microsoft products. My confidence didn’t match the realities of my act … | Continue reading
Parts 4 and 5 of the Sand Wars series were back to the roots of what was enjoyable in the first part – battles, new worlds, spaceships, and mild mystery. Part 6 went into the torture territory and was off-putting to me. I would rate the books 4/5/2 for an average of about 3. The … | Continue reading
I do many calls and my environment is often noisy – coffee shops, kids around, and ninja turtles on TV. I’ve tried finding headphones that have a good microphone and are comfortable for my ears. I believe the headphones need to be wired so I don’t charge them. I like retractable … | Continue reading
Sofia has many restaurants where you can sit, spend hours, and eat well. The city center is transitioning from an office center to a tourist center, with airlines delivering thousands of tourists every day. Consequently, as offices relocate from the center, restaurants witness a … | Continue reading
In November 2023, newly registered electric cars in Sofia began receiving license plates starting with EA (Electric Automobile). Electric vehicles have the right to park for free in the city center and this change probably makes it easier for everyone who uses the benefit. Me and … | Continue reading
Electric cars don’t need to be big to function. ICE cars have big engines and tons of components. Spotted this gem today. REVA G-Wiz. Labelled one of the ugliest cars, one of the worst and so on, and here it is. | Continue reading
I found this wonderful blog about photography and it currently only has 11 subscribers. I’m not a photographer but I think I can recognize great content when I see it. Check https://streetshooters.blog/ | Continue reading
The Guardian has a nice article on the curious case of Amazon’s AI-powered shops. Customers would go to the Amazon shops, pick whatever they wanted, and leave, and Amazon would charge them using AI. According to the article, the AI was in the form of human data labelers in India. … | Continue reading
The elite battlesuit carrier and a walking tank Jack Storm goes to a new planet. He’ll face prophecies, miracles, magic, and a human nemesis. Or at least the nemesis he thinks he has. I’m sure there will be no shortage of future nemeses to Jack and his sentient suit. One of the m … | Continue reading
The iPhone 15 camera makes it way too easy for me to create image posts. I feel ready to generate enough content to confuse the AI scrapers and the image generators. The actual colour was white. | Continue reading
Had no idea that the church windows could open. | Continue reading
Jack Storm is kidnapped to a forced labor colony and his friends will try to save him. Needless to say, if the suit and the owner are connected, things will not be looking good for the kidnappers. Until then, Jack needs to be creative. The story doesn’t matter much. I liked the s … | Continue reading
Took a bit of a detour from Thraxas and Stephanie Plum today with Solar Kill by Charles Ingrid. This is a hard sci-fi space opera with spaceships, aliens, and difficult-to-explain powers in the (rough) spirit of the Foundation. The main protagonist is an ultra-soldier, skilled in … | Continue reading
Took a bit of a detour from Thraxas and Stephanie Plum today with Solar Kill by Charles Ingrid. This is a hard sci-fi space opera with spaceships, aliens, and difficult-to-explain powers in the (rough) spirit of the Foundation. The main protagonist is an ultra-soldier, skilled in … | Continue reading
From my only walk this week but it was a fine walk. | Continue reading
It’s a simple challenge – walk 2 hours per day on average. Do 10K steps. It combines cardio fitness with meditation. Having dedicated off-screen time is at least as helpful as the benefits of walking. It burns stress hormones instead of building more from whatever the screen is p … | Continue reading
My kids would watch the same TV episode over and over, knowing every scene by heart, and still enjoy it. I used to be like that with books until my late teenage years. I’ve read The Three Musketeers, Foundation, and Starship Troopers many times, perhaps 10+ times each, and the li … | Continue reading
We have the saying in Bulgaria “Chavka drunk your brain” meaning you did something stupid. Chavka sounds better for a post title than jackdaw, otherwise same bird. 🐦 | Continue reading
I finished 13 books in March. The only big one was White Sand Omnibus (which can count as 3). The best ones were Thraxas and the Sorcerers, White Sand, and Avenger! 3 out of these books were written by writers I met in person. I feel like I will slow down reading given that I … C … | Continue reading
Here’s my simple, direct, and plausible fix for my city that could be wrong. Remove most cars. I’m sure there will be people who can’t do it without cars but most people can. Fewer cars can improve the air quality and the average health of the population. The health benefits of w … | Continue reading
Thraxas, an oversized former “battle mage” with dubious magic skills and incredibly powerful liver, has to lobby for his friend to become the global chief magician. Makri will be the bodyguard. There are a few tiny issues. A murder. It’s cold. Makri seems to be unable to fight wh … | Continue reading
Whoever landscaped relied on flowers like their life depends on it. I like the flowers more than the cathedral. Something with the symbolic around it doesn’t sit right with me. Perhaps it needs a couple of hundred years of service to get there. The nearby St. Sofia church looks m … | Continue reading
Today is the first true t-shirt day of the year. It’s 23° C and the city is quick to toss the jackets in the closet. | Continue reading
I wouldn’t mind a great-grandchild named after me. My name is cool and means happy, or happyin. Not sure where the in came from but it appeared at least a century ago. Apart from that, perhaps the rule is to not deploy important software changes last thing on Friday. Some things … | Continue reading
Iron Man’s heart got patched with duct tape. Creative fellow, knows how to fix things. | Continue reading
It’s good to be back to Sofia where the water tastes like home and the food won’t make you explode. | Continue reading
I awarded 3* to Brandon Sanderson’s Warbreaker with a few harsh sentences and a couple of weeks later, it was announced he’ll visit Bulgaria. He did and I met him. Felt so embarrassed. But why was that? When it comes to criticism, Dale Carnegie has been my ultimate guide. He wrot … | Continue reading
Over the last decade, my goal has been to not shoot an immediate “No” to things. “No” used to be my default. The things can be opportunities, they deserve to be evaluated. “No” is easy. Nothing changes, it’s conservative. “Yes”, however, is the sun breaking through the clouds. It … | Continue reading
The Catalan people know how to make you eat too much with the never ending flow of tapas and cheese. Bye, Castelldefels. I’m on a diet now 🥦 And yes, I had steamed broccoli for lunch. | Continue reading
I feel privileged to have encountered many exceptional and inspiring teachers throughout my life. Perhaps most influential were the early-day childhood teachers, whose guidance potentially changed the course of my life. Kaka Ani was the computer class teacher in 4th-5th grade. We … | Continue reading
I blogged about this book because it’s heavy and impressive due to its size. I read it today. It was quite an adventure. I only had rough memories from White Sand part 1, and the Omnibus contains parts 1, 2, and 3, so it’s technically 3 books. Reading the first part didn’t mess u … | Continue reading
I achieved my goal of reading the first 10 books in the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. The series is about a hot formerly unemployed bounty hunter who chases evil folks and loses them 10 times per book to only capture them on the 11th attempt. This is usually funny and … | Continue reading
After a month of passionate reading, I got the honorable 14.0 place for Bulgaria. My goal for the next month would be to reach at least 13.7th place. | Continue reading