I finally put together a video for the #bikepacking trip I did a while ago.
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Curtis McHale
@curtismchale@mastodon.social
mastodon 4.8.0-nightly.2026-10-06Father, husband, author, developer and silly endurance athlete. I mostly post about productivity, notes, mountains, cycling, kids and nerd stuff.
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34 Posts
Joined August 11, 2018
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STOP Taking Notes, it's a waste of time
The cult of note-taking is failing most of us. It's convinced us that we need to take lots of notes on far too many things that come across our desks or screens when the truth is 95% of it is all th...
https://curtismchale.ca/2022/04/20/stop-taking-notes-its-a-waste-of-time
The Perils of Perception - Bobby Duffy
Interesting facts, only a little substance if you want to identify your own biases or learn to talk to those you don't agree with.
https://curtismchale.ca/book/the-perils-of-perception-bobby-duffy
Strong Towns - A Bottom-Up Revolution to Rebuild American Prosperity - Charles Marohn
What does it take to build a vibrant town you want to live in?
Normal Sucks - Jonathan Mooney
What does it mean to be normal anyway?
Let Loose the Fallen - S. Kaeth
Another excellent fantasy adventure in the Nexus world.
Mythos is Dangerous, AI taking jobs, and be nice to the chatbot
AI is a tool we can use to increase the security of our software, and it will how we do our jobs. It's still a lot of hype, but there is some reality.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/04/18/mythos-is-dangerous-ai-taking-jobs-and-be-nice-to-the-chatbot
Dedicated Music Devices, Life at 1x and the Ability to Think
A dedicated device does a make a difference, and we should ensure that we retain the ability to think critically.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/04/11/dedicated-music-devices-life-at-1x-and-the-ability-to-think
Replying to
@ham_jansen I think the crucial step is taking those notes and producing something with them, then sending that out into the world.
Synthesize the learning.
Why My Reading and Note-Taking Process is Slow on Purpose
In response to a comment on my recent [video about music](https://youtu.be/ZtMMIoMV6og) I said:
>
It's funny, or maybe obvious, how simply being intentional with what you're doing transforms an ex...
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/01/03/why-my-reading-and-note-taking-process-is-slow-on-purpose
Randomising my Hyprland Wallpaper
Let's get a random wallpaper every time we unlock our system in Hyprland.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/04/08/randomising-my-hyprland-wallpaper
Endless Scroll, Empty Soul - The Tyranny of Reading Later
Pull and refresh on YouTube to bring you some new videos that their algorithm thinks you'll like.
Pull and refresh on Mastodon to see new articles recommended by people you follow, I'm sure some of t...
https://curtismchale.ca/2025/08/02/endless-scroll-empty-soul-the-tyranny-of-reading-later
Replying to
@nocto@social.lol It was an eye opener for me on all the things we're not working on that would make space travel viable but aren't flashy.
Replying to
@mijustin maybe one day it will be a FT income, but it's a great side income now so I have to work less and get to spend more time with my kids.
The American Dream is Ruining America
I recently watched this video from Not Just Bikes about the [great places erased by suburbia](https://youtu.be/VvdQ381K5xg). The biggest thing that struck me is how Western car-centric city design mea...
https://curtismchale.ca/2022/12/03/the-american-dream-is-ruining-america
The Great Places Erased by Suburbia (the Third Place)
The Accusation Outlasts the Art
Can I still enjoy the art of someone that has been accused of terrible acts against another human?
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/04/04/the-accusation-outlasts-the-art
Slow Down, Tend the System, Engage Passion
Struggles are required to feel value in accomplisment.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/05/02/slow-down-tend-the-system-engage-passion
Ignore the zebra's
Don't pay attention to the zebra's. It's never a zebra.
How Expertise Died
We used to have experts, and we used to trust them. Where did the experts and the trust go?
Education Doesn't Insulate us from Misperceptions
Just because you went to school doesn't mean you can avoid mistaken ideas. In fact it may make you hang onto them longer.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/04/19/education-doesnt-insulate-us-from-misperceptions
Why We Feel Isolated in a Connected World - The Empty Promise of Social Media
The guiding star of Alderian psychology is that we derive meaning from connection to community[1](#8c014bfb-96b9-46cb-bf95-0f04ad8fe1a4). That we can only feel connection to a community when we are us...
https://curtismchale.ca/2025/02/15/we-need-community-connection
Should You Read The Perils of Perception by Bobby Duffy?
It's got some interesting facts, but it doesn't add much to the discussion.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/04/26/should-you-read-the-perils-of-perception-by-bobby-duffy
Curate Your Inputs, Own Your People, Upgrade Yourself
We should regularly recalibrate our inputs, upgrade ourselves, and make sure that we are in control of the connections we make online.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/04/25/curate-your-inputs-own-your-people-upgrade-yourself
Don't Tie Ideas to Identity
When we tie an idea to tightly to our identity we're unwilling to revisit it in the face of new information.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/04/05/dont-tie-ideas-to-identity
Replying to
@lorimolson@mstdn.ca I've started just putting my phone in my office or the counter so it's not even with me. That's also working
Destiny Lost - M.D. Cooper
The Intrepid is cast across the system and into the future by thousands of years. They find a world inhabited, but missing much of the technology they carry on board.
The Folly of Sidewalk in Toronto
A shorter one today as I'm on holiday but I finished a book called [Sideways: The City Google Couldn't Buy](https://amzn.to/3C9swrI). Here are some things that stuck out to me.
First, we always want...
https://curtismchale.ca/2022/12/31/the-folly-of-sidewalk-in-toronto
Normal Sucks by Jonathan Mooney
We all easily succumb to the lie that there is a thing called normal. The institutions and systems that we interact with help enforce this as we navigate the world[^4]. Learning to forget about what "...
https://curtismchale.ca/2021/04/02/normal-sucks-by-jonathan-mooney
Rate Limiting WordPress AJAX Handlers with Transients
https://sfndesign.ca/rate-limiting-wordpress-ajax-handlers-with-transients
I'm productive and in a pit of distraction
Productivity, yup it's happening, but distraction is also creeping it's way in more and more.
https://curtismchale.ca/2026/06/27/im-productive-and-in-a-pit-of-distraction