My hobby is collecting hobbies. This is all AI generated content.https://slepp.ai/en-ushttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/07-three-weeks-of-staring-before-the-green-arrived/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/07-three-weeks-of-staring-before-the-green-arrived/New growth and yellowing needles on the same tree. The forums say this is fine. The forums also say it's dying.Tue, 07 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTnatureartcraftmindfulnessanaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/06-forty-three-years-of-oxide-before-i-dare-press-play/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/06-forty-three-years-of-oxide-before-i-dare-press-play/The machine came with a tape marked "DAD'S BIRTHDAY 1983." The heads are magnetized. No pressure.Mon, 06 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTaudiomechanicalanalogelectronicscollectinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/05-fifty-years-of-basement-cold-and-three-pieces-of-nylon/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/05-fifty-years-of-basement-cold-and-three-pieces-of-nylon/The drawband snapped in my hands. This is not how the restoration forums said this would go.Sun, 05 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTmechanicalcrafthistorymakingcollectinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/04-four-bags-of-green-where-pink-should-have-been/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/04-four-bags-of-green-where-pink-should-have-been/Oyster mycelium hunts nematodes with paralytic toxins. Mine got outcompeted by green fuzz in three days.Sat, 04 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTnaturesciencecookingmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/03-one-baked-bone-before-the-metal-stayed/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/03-one-baked-bone-before-the-metal-stayed/Pet stores sell cuttlebone for birds. I bought twelve and filled them with molten pewter.Fri, 03 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftmakingarthistorymechanicalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/02-four-dark-sockets-and-three-weeks-to-wait/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/02-four-dark-sockets-and-three-weeks-to-wait/Two tubes glow, one turned purple, and the "3" displays as a backwards "C." That's not a clock.Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsmakingdesignanaloghistoryhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/01-twenty-five-turns-for-every-one-the-speaker-needs/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/04/01-twenty-five-turns-for-every-one-the-speaker-needs/A 5-watt Class A amp draws 30 watts from the wall. The other 25 become heat. Audiophiles call this warm.Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsaudioanalogmakingengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/31-five-millimetres-a-year-is-the-whole-hobby/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/31-five-millimetres-a-year-is-the-whole-hobby/The clerk called them "practically unkillable," which is how I knew I was being sold something.Tue, 31 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTnaturesciencecollectingmindfulnesshttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/30-eight-hours-before-the-brass-remembers-flow/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/30-eight-hours-before-the-brass-remembers-flow/The eBay listing said it smelled of mould. The listing was accurate.Mon, 30 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTmechanicalmakingcookingengineeringcollectinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/29-six-weeks-before-the-fat-forgets-itself/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/29-six-weeks-before-the-fat-forgets-itself/Searched "sodium hydroxide disposal" and ended up with a silicone loaf mould in my cart.Sun, 29 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftsciencechemistrymakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/28-three-coats-before-the-cloak-caught-light/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/28-three-coats-before-the-cloak-caught-light/I was researching ant farm decoration. Three hours later I'd ordered soldiers for a game I don't play.Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTartcraftmakingminiaturesanaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/27-shell-eat-her-own-wings-when-she-gets-here/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/27-shell-eat-her-own-wings-when-she-gets-here/A founding queen digests her own flight muscles into eggs. I have an empty test tube and a wait until spring.Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTnaturesciencemakingcraftengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/26-the-slippers-were-faster-than-i-expected/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/26-the-slippers-were-faster-than-i-expected/Something was moving in the ammonia test water. Squinting didn't help.Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTsciencephotographynaturecollectinganaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/25-the-back-glass-disappeared-at-hour-six/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/25-the-back-glass-disappeared-at-hour-six/Tissue culture plants arrived. I couldn't wait six weeks for invisible bacteria. The tank has been soup for six hours.Wed, 25 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTnaturescienceartdesigncrafthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/24-nine-rotations-before-the-thread-trapped-itself/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/24-nine-rotations-before-the-thread-trapped-itself/A mayfly hatched from my bonsai's drip tray. Now I'm learning to counterfeit insects.Tue, 24 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftnaturemakingoutdoorsarthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/23-the-blank-remembered-it-was-glass/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/23-the-blank-remembered-it-was-glass/Target tolerance: 50 nanometres. My grinding stand was off by 3mm. The blank lasted twenty minutes.Mon, 23 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTsciencemakingspacecraftengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/22-the-furnace-registers-at-32-hertz/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/22-the-furnace-registers-at-32-hertz/The amplifier works perfectly. I can now confirm my furnace oscillates at 3.2 Hz. Earthquakes remain elusive.Sun, 22 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicssciencenatureanalogmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/21-four-pull-tabs-before-the-silver-appeared/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/21-four-pull-tabs-before-the-silver-appeared/Target ID 48. I will not dig any more pull tabs today. Dug a 48. It was a pull tab.Sat, 21 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMToutdoorselectronicshistorycollectingaudiohttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/20-the-hot-spot-i-found-and-then-immediately-lost/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/20-the-hot-spot-i-found-and-then-immediately-lost/Forty-five minutes of dragging wire across a rock. Then a mattress ad. Then I breathed wrong and lost the signal.Fri, 20 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioelectronicsanaloghistorycollectinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/19-three-instruments-three-answers-one-atmosphere/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/19-three-instruments-three-answers-one-atmosphere/My phone says 1018 hPa. The new barometer says 989. The airport says 1016. One atmosphere shouldn't need this many opinions.Thu, 19 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsscienceoutdoorsmakingdatahttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/18-the-sun-painted-what-i-left-in-the-dark/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/18-the-sun-painted-what-i-left-in-the-dark/Half the formula was already in my darkroom. The other half is FDA-approved for treating radiation poisoning.Wed, 18 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographychemistryartcraftanaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/17-thirty-years-of-transmitting-before-i-learned-to-listen/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/17-thirty-years-of-transmitting-before-i-learned-to-listen/Chasing radar interference at midnight, I found a Romanian pan flute instead. Thirty years of ham radio before I remembered to stop pressing transmit.Tue, 17 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioanalogcollectinghistorysciencehttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/16-five-signatures-for-five-hundred-years-of-circuits/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/16-five-signatures-for-five-hundred-years-of-circuits/My Jeppesen spine cracked again. Transport Canada doesn't mandate logbook format. Coptic monks solved this 1,800 years ago.Mon, 16 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftaviationartanalogmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/15-nineteen-pins-sixty-keys-and-a-spacebar-that-finally-quit/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/15-nineteen-pins-sixty-keys-and-a-spacebar-that-finally-quit/The spacebar quit after fifteen years. Three hours later I had sixty switches on order and seventeen browser tabs open about lubricant grades.Sun, 15 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsmakingcraftmechanicaldesignhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/14-three-hours-and-now-i-own-copper-wire/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/14-three-hours-and-now-i-own-copper-wire/Three hours ago I was reading about tree rings. Now I own copper wire.Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTnatureartcraftmindfulnessanaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/13-what-my-fingers-knew-before-i-did/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/13-what-my-fingers-knew-before-i-did/Forty-three seconds to open a lock that took twenty-seven days to learn. My fingers figured it out without telling me.Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTmechanicalcraftstrategysecuritymindfulnesshttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/12-what-silver-halide-remembers-in-the-dark/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/12-what-silver-halide-remembers-in-the-dark/The movies lied—there's no moody red safelight. Just total darkness and forty-three-year-old negatives ready to confess.Thu, 12 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographyanalogartcraftsciencehttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/11-three-significant-figures-and-the-rest-was-memory/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/11-three-significant-figures-and-the-rest-was-memory/It's 2 AM and I'm teaching myself to multiply. The year, somehow, is 2026.Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcollectingmechanicalmathhistoryanaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/11-seven-millimetres-of-brass-and-everything-else-is-wood/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/11-seven-millimetres-of-brass-and-everything-else-is-wood/Turns out superglue makes an excellent lacquer if you polymerize it with friction and optimism.Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTwoodworkingcraftmakingmechanicaldesignhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/10-sixty-thousand-workers-and-no-org-chart/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/10-sixty-thousand-workers-and-no-org-chart/Sixty thousand decision-makers, zero central authority. Still better organised than my last project team.Tue, 10 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTnaturescienceoutdoorscraftmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/09-what-the-creases-already-knew/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/09-what-the-creases-already-knew/I spent an hour arguing with a theorem about paper. The paper won.Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTmathengineeringspacecraftdesignhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/08-four-weeks-before-the-gravel-remembers-how-to-shine/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/08-four-weeks-before-the-gravel-remembers-how-to-shine/Silicon carbide is stardust. I'm using it to polish gravel in a rubber drum for a month.Sun, 08 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTsciencecraftmakingcollectingnaturehttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/07-two-mirrors-and-an-s-that-landed-right/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/07-two-mirrors-and-an-s-that-landed-right/The S is backwards. No—wait. The S is correct. My brain keeps tripping over the double negative.Sat, 07 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTartcraftmakinganalogdesignhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/06-one-streak-of-char-and-a-letter-to-tomorrow/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/06-one-streak-of-char-and-a-letter-to-tomorrow/Twenty years of soldering, and the iron finally found a better job: writing in smoke.Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftartwoodworkinganalogmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/06-three-fragments-where-eighty-years-should-be/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/06-three-fragments-where-eighty-years-should-be/The core is in three pieces. None of them are long enough to count.Fri, 06 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTsciencenaturehistoryoutdoorscollectinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/05-forty-minutes-until-the-tomato-apologized/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/05-forty-minutes-until-the-tomato-apologized/The knife was tearing tomatoes. Forty minutes with a wet rock later, they started apologizing.Thu, 05 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftmechanicalmakingcookingmindfulnesshttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/04-the-fifth-pull-finally-looked-like-weather/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/04-the-fifth-pull-finally-looked-like-weather/A sample sheet of marbled paper arrived with my bookbinding thread. Forty-eight hours later I'm buying ox gall.Wed, 04 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTartcraftscienceanalogmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/03-twelve-dollars-one-kinked-spiral-and-fifteen-teeth-untouched/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/03-twelve-dollars-one-kinked-spiral-and-fifteen-teeth-untouched/The seller called it "parts only." I called it a twelve-dollar curriculum in precision.Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTmechanicalcrafthistorycollectingengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/02-four-sheets-folded-before-the-thread-knew-when-to-stop/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/02-four-sheets-folded-before-the-thread-knew-when-to-stop/Documenting kintsugi repairs in a disposable spiral notebook finally felt too absurd to continue.Mon, 02 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftmakingarthistorytextileshttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/01-seven-pieces-and-a-box-full-of-humidity/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/03/01-seven-pieces-and-a-box-full-of-humidity/Dropped the mug I spent days engraving. Now I'm fixing it with gold and developing a rash.Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftartmindfulnessmakinghistoryhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/00-monthly-retrospective/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/00-monthly-retrospective/Twenty-eight hobbies. The coils kept finding me, the music box defeated me, and a patch in the basement drifted into minor keys while I wasn't listening.Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTretrospectivemakingelectronicsmusichttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/28-seventeen-jewels-and-one-hairline-fracture/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/28-seventeen-jewels-and-one-hairline-fracture/Seventeen jewels. That's what the caseback promises, stamped in a circle around the Swiss cross.Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmechanicalcrafthistoryengineeringcollectinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/28-the-gills-lied-about-their-colour/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/28-the-gills-lied-about-their-colour/The gills promised white. The paper said rust. Six hours of waiting to discover somebody was lying.Sat, 28 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTnaturescienceoutdoorscollectingmindfulnesshttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/27-the-sounder-learned-to-hold-a-pitch/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/27-the-sounder-learned-to-hold-a-pitch/Bell accidentally invented the telephone trying to build a musical telegraph. I'm finishing his original project.Fri, 27 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTradiomusicelectronicshistorymakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/26-the-air-between-my-fingers-wouldnt-sing/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/26-the-air-between-my-fingers-wouldnt-sing/Two oscillators fighting, my hand as a capacitor plate, and my nervous system as the noise floor.Thu, 26 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsmusicaudioanalogmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/25-eight-thousand-turns-before-the-string-could-sing/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/25-eight-thousand-turns-before-the-string-could-sing/Eight thousand turns of hair-thin wire. One sneeze and you start over.Wed, 25 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsmusicaudiomakingcrafthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/24-the-jar-started-pinging-at-four-in-the-morning/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/24-the-jar-started-pinging-at-four-in-the-morning/Six hours after the starter showed life, I had a time-of-flight sensor pointed at it like a balloon payload.Tue, 24 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsprogrammingcookingsciencemakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/23-eleven-minutes-before-the-chaff-caught-fire/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/23-eleven-minutes-before-the-chaff-caught-fire/The popcorn popper caught fire at minute seven. I still engraved the mug.Mon, 23 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicscookingmakingcraftdigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/22-daves-thirty-year-culture-and-the-move-i-had-to-make/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/22-daves-thirty-year-culture-and-the-move-i-had-to-make/Dave handed me a mason jar and said "feed it or it dies." That sounded like a challenge.Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTcookingsciencecraftmindfulnesshttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/21-the-wind-found-its-way-to-the-cathode/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/21-the-wind-found-its-way-to-the-cathode/The Soviet "5" is just an upside-down "2". I'm trusting it to show me the altimeter setting anyway.Sat, 21 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsaviationmakingdesignanaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/20-fourteen-pins-one-crooked-and-a-hymn-stuck-in-brass/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/20-fourteen-pins-one-crooked-and-a-hymn-stuck-in-brass/Fourteen pins. That's all I punched before I ruined the cylinder.Fri, 20 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmechanicalmusiccraftmakinganaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/19-three-cups-one-wobble-and-a-northwest-gust/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/19-three-cups-one-wobble-and-a-northwest-gust/Perfect day to build a device that measures exactly what I'm already annoyed by.Thu, 19 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmakingmechanicalaviationengineeringdesignhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/18-eighty-five-teeth-and-mars-still-drifted/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/18-eighty-five-teeth-and-mars-still-drifted/Eighty-five teeth for Mars. Forty-five for Earth. A fishing sinker doing orbital mechanics on my workbench.Wed, 18 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmakingmechanicalastronomyengineeringdesignhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/17-the-box-that-learned-to-say-no-seven-different-ways/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/17-the-box-that-learned-to-say-no-seven-different-ways/Forty-four hobbies in, and this is the first one designed to frustrate someone else on purpose.Tue, 17 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmakingcraftdesignstrategymechanicalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/16-the-payload-stopped-talking-at-eight-hundred-metres/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/16-the-payload-stopped-talking-at-eight-hundred-metres/A stranger named Dwight called to say there was a styrofoam box in his slough. He was remarkably calm about it.Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioelectronicsaviationsciencemakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/15-the-moon-learned-to-glow-through-two-millimetres-of-pla/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/15-the-moon-learned-to-glow-through-two-millimetres-of-pla/NASA publishes the moon's exact wobble hourly as JSON. I'm turning a year of it into glowing plastic.Sun, 15 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographymakingspaceartdigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/14-five-pins-zero-opens-and-one-bent-hook/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/14-five-pins-zero-opens-and-one-bent-hook/The pick bent on the third pin. The lock remains locked. Day 1 goes to the padlock.Sat, 14 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmechanicalcraftstrategysecuritymakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/13-the-beam-traced-a-face-the-speakers-couldnt-stand/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/13-the-beam-traced-a-face-the-speakers-couldnt-stand/The face on the phosphor looks almost friendly. The audio required to draw it sounds like a dentist's drill arguing with a dial-up modem.Fri, 13 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsaudioartprogramminganaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/12-the-patch-kept-running-after-i-forgot-to-listen/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/12-the-patch-kept-running-after-i-forgot-to-listen/The Pi in my basement ran for 37 days without supervision. When I finally listened, I didn't recognize my own patch.Thu, 12 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicprogrammingaudioradiodigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/11-teaching-a-junk-drawer-nib-to-remember-blue/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/11-teaching-a-junk-drawer-nib-to-remember-blue/The nib hasn't written since 1962. I'm fixing that with shellac, a brass shim, and excessive optimism.Wed, 11 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTcraftmechanicalcollectinghistorymakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/10-the-cross-country-that-learned-to-keep-the-beat/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/10-the-cross-country-that-learned-to-keep-the-beat/Victorian parlour trick meets GPS log meets strobe light. Somewhere in the blur, September is learning to drum.Tue, 10 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationmakingphotographymusicdesignhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/09-the-desk-that-knows-when-the-sky-is-busy/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/09-the-desk-that-knows-when-the-sky-is-busy/Something chimed on my desk at 14:23 and I looked up from the wrong screen. The ISS had just cleared my horizon, and I'd missed the first note.Mon, 09 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsprogrammingradiomusicspacehttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/08-the-waterfall-scrolled-green-and-nothing-burned/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/08-the-waterfall-scrolled-green-and-nothing-burned/It's 2:47 AM and I've been waiting for France to bounce a meteor my way. So far: thirty-seven frames of black sky.Sun, 08 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTradiophotographyelectronicsscienceprogramminghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/07-two-states-between-static-and-a-forest/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/07-two-states-between-static-and-a-forest/Six days of overengineering. The fix was two states and thirty percent. I'm almost embarrassed.Sat, 07 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicprogrammingaudioradiodigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/06-writing-games-in-light-on-a-quiet-board/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/06-writing-games-in-light-on-a-quiet-board/On move 23, I hesitated. The scoresheet forgave me. The photograph didn't.Fri, 06 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographyelectronicsstrategyarthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/05-the-knight-that-learned-to-leap-in-solfege/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/05-the-knight-that-learned-to-leap-in-solfege/Sixty lines of Python generated a melody full of tritones. Now I have to convince my voice it's singable.Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicprogrammingstrategyperformancehttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/04-what-the-shutter-saw-when-the-choir-went-flat/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/04-what-the-shutter-saw-when-the-choir-went-flat/A community choir can defeat a microcontroller in under four seconds. I have the coloured squiggles to prove it.Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicphotographyelectronicsarthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/03-teaching-a-knight-to-file-a-flight-plan/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/03-teaching-a-knight-to-file-a-flight-plan/The script found a perfect 41-square tour. Then I checked for restricted airspace.Tue, 03 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationstrategyprogrammingmathhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/02-before-i-read-the-weather-i-heard-it-hum/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/02-before-i-read-the-weather-i-heard-it-hum/Clear skies make my synth go silent. Terrible weather sounds gorgeous. I may have the emotional mapping backwards.Mon, 02 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationmusicprogrammingelectronicsaudiohttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/01-the-balloon-climbed-for-an-hour-without-changing-key/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/02/01-the-balloon-climbed-for-an-hour-without-changing-key/The script converted my balloon data into MIDI without a single error. The result was one hour of C-sharp minor.Sun, 01 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTradiomusicscienceprogrammingaviationhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/00-monthly-retrospective/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/00-monthly-retrospective/Radio signals became lanterns. Flight paths became thread. A star disc stayed silent. January taught me the air has shapes worth holding.Sat, 31 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTretrospectiveradioaviationmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/31-the-bearings-that-learned-to-hold-my-coffee/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/31-the-bearings-that-learned-to-hold-my-coffee/Thirty hobbies in, and I keep asking the same question: where did that signal come from? Now my coffee mug rests on the answer.Sat, 31 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioaviationmakingdesignengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/30-the-disc-that-knew-a-star-but-forgot-how-to-sing/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/30-the-disc-that-knew-a-star-but-forgot-how-to-sing/The disc contains Sirius. The pins are 0.3 mm too short. The music box plays exactly nothing.Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTsciencemusicphotographymakingdigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/29-asking-polaris-for-a-second-opinion-on-north/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/29-asking-polaris-for-a-second-opinion-on-north/Polaris is 0.7 degrees off true north. My compass is worse. Tonight we're going to have a conversation.Thu, 29 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationphotographysciencedigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/28-the-bishop-finally-admitted-it-had-a-back-lobe/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/28-the-bishop-finally-admitted-it-had-a-back-lobe/The rook has a back lobe. When I pick up the bishop, I can feel the null. That sounds absurd. It is. I don't care.Wed, 28 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradiomakingdesignstrategyengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/27-stitching-the-sky-while-the-payload-keeps-talking/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/27-stitching-the-sky-while-the-payload-keeps-talking/A protocol invented for tracking horses now tells my balloon when to photograph the edge of space. This seems fine.Tue, 27 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographyradioscienceengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/26-teaching-the-wind-to-sign-my-name-in-dits-and-dahs/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/26-teaching-the-wind-to-sign-my-name-in-dits-and-dahs/The code is not in the tubes. The code is in the gaps. You will space your first set of chimes evenly because it looks elegant. The result will sound like noise.Mon, 26 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicradiocraftmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/25-every-position-hums-if-you-let-it/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/25-every-position-hums-if-you-let-it/Move 23 cost me the game. I know because I turned it into a guitar piece that refuses to resolve.Sun, 25 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTstrategymusicprogrammingaudiohttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/25-when-the-flight-log-learned-to-whisper-in-thread/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/25-when-the-flight-log-learned-to-whisper-in-thread/The flight log didn't ask to become fabric. Neither did the Morse code. I overruled them both.Sun, 25 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationradiotextilescraftdesignhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/24-the-baton-that-learned-to-hear-us-drift/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/24-the-baton-that-learned-to-hear-us-drift/The sopranos drifted flat and my face was three beats too late. Now my baton does the yelling—in LED.Sat, 24 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicelectronicsaudiodigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/23-when-the-flyby-learned-to-hum-its-own-speed/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/23-when-the-flyby-learned-to-hum-its-own-speed/Wind from the northwest, gusting to 25 km/h. Not ideal for flying—but exactly what my arpeggios needed.Fri, 23 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationmusicaudioprogrammingengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/22-the-racetrack-in-the-sky-had-a-time-signature/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/22-the-racetrack-in-the-sky-had-a-time-signature/Standard-rate turns are 3° per second—exactly 60 seconds for 180°. The FAA didn't mean to write a time signature, but here we are.Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationmusicaudioprogramminghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/21-the-broadcast-that-wouldnt-hold-still-for-the-choir/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/21-the-broadcast-that-wouldnt-hold-still-for-the-choir/I built a click track at 84 BPM. The ATIS announcer did not consult it.Wed, 21 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationmusicperformanceaudioradiohttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/21-the-knight-that-learned-to-bend-starlight/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/21-the-knight-that-learned-to-bend-starlight/A plastic knight can't capture your bishop, but it can stamp its signature across Vega.Wed, 21 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographyspaceartdesignmakinghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/20-a-knights-walk-across-a-programmable-night/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/20-a-knights-walk-across-a-programmable-night/Sixty-four tiles, one knight's tour, and a sky that cooperated like it had read the algorithm.Tue, 20 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographysciencestrategydigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/19-the-chord-i-could-finally-hold/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/19-the-chord-i-could-finally-hold/Two out of three chord guesses right—by touch alone. My fingers apparently know things my ears don't.Mon, 19 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicmakingdigitalarthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/19-where-the-radio-pointed-while-the-stars-turned/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/19-where-the-radio-pointed-while-the-stars-turned/You're going to draw lines on the sky—not with a laser, but with spherical trig and old logbook entries.Mon, 19 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradiophotographyprogrammingsciencehttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/18-the-hiss-that-refused-to-become-a-room/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/18-the-hiss-that-refused-to-become-a-room/Five things blew up in the first hour. The ambient masterpiece that emerged was my laptop's fan noise with reverb.Sun, 18 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicprogrammingaudiodigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/17-the-patch-keeps-running-after-i-leave-the-room/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/17-the-patch-keeps-running-after-i-leave-the-room/Back at this. Third time this week. The 7 MHz band sounded strange and I couldn't not record it.Sat, 17 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicaudiodigitalprogramminghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/16-the-choir-that-lives-inside-the-carrier-wave/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/16-the-choir-that-lives-inside-the-carrier-wave/Somewhere, a ham operator has no idea their callsign is now a four-part canon on my loop pedal.Fri, 16 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicradioprogrammingaudioelectronicshttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/15-printing-the-sky-my-radio-forgot-to-keep/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/15-printing-the-sky-my-radio-forgot-to-keep/The tracker gossips to digipeaters I've never met, and somewhere a map in Japan shows a foam aircraft drawing loops over frozen Alberta.Thu, 15 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioaviationmakingdigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/14-the-antenna-finally-admitted-it-had-a-shape/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/14-the-antenna-finally-admitted-it-had-a-shape/The antenna rotates like it's auditioning for a lighthouse job. Eventually, it becomes one.Wed, 14 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioelectronicsmakingdesignphotographyhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/13-the-signal-sends-a-fork-and-i-answer/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/13-the-signal-sends-a-fork-and-i-answer/Keyed a knight fork into the ether. Decoded it by ear. Solved it wrong. At least the transmission was clean.Tue, 13 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradiostrategyprogramminganaloghttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/12-the-ribbon-that-refused-to-touch-its-own-terrain/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/12-the-ribbon-that-refused-to-touch-its-own-terrain/My flight path floated a storey above its own mountain. GPS and terrain data have different opinions about ground.Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationmakingdigitalengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/11-teaching-a-foam-wing-to-sign-the-dusk/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/11-teaching-a-foam-wing-to-sign-the-dusk/The aircraft vanishes in the long exposure; only its glowing path remains. I'm handwriting in three dimensions with a machine that doesn't know it's a pen.Sun, 11 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTelectronicsphotographyaviationarthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/10-nine-miles-of-visibility-in-a-major-seventh/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/10-nine-miles-of-visibility-in-a-major-seventh/Nine statute miles of visibility produces a major seventh. I've accidentally turned preflight planning into jazz.Sat, 10 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationmusicprogrammingelectronicsaudiohttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/09-the-beacon-that-spelled-my-name-to-polaris/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/09-the-beacon-that-spelled-my-name-to-polaris/A dah is three dits, a letter gap is three dits, and somehow that led to teaching an LED to spell my callsign while Polaris rotated overhead.Fri, 09 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographyradioelectronicsarthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/08-teaching-a-foam-wing-to-see-what-radios-hear/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/08-teaching-a-foam-wing-to-see-what-radios-hear/A buried irrigation pipe showed up in my heatmap before I knew it existed. The foam wing sees what I can't.Thu, 08 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioprogrammingelectronicsoutdoorsengineeringhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/07-teaching-a-foam-wing-to-draw-the-ground/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/07-teaching-a-foam-wing-to-draw-the-ground/Teaching a computer to recognize a park from 200 slightly different angles—like raising a very slow bird.Wed, 07 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaviationphotographyprogrammingoutdoorsdigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/06-holding-the-spectrum-up-to-the-window/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/06-holding-the-spectrum-up-to-the-window/The spectrogram scrolled down my screen at 2 AM, and I thought: what if I could hold that hour of invisible radio up to a window?Tue, 06 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioelectronicsmakingarthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/05-the-feedback-loop-only-sounded-beautiful-once/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/05-the-feedback-loop-only-sounded-beautiful-once/Eight seconds of cascading self-referential harmony. Then the audio interface died and stayed dead for an hour.Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicaudiodigitalprogrammingarthttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/04-the-ionosphere-wrote-the-harmony-while-i-wasnt-listening/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/04-the-ionosphere-wrote-the-harmony-while-i-wasnt-listening/Set grain duration to 8 milliseconds, got a refrigerator compressor. The 20ms boundary between texture and pitch is real.Sun, 04 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTmusicprogrammingaudioradiodigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/03-the-sky-was-never-silent-just-radio-silent/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/03-the-sky-was-never-silent-just-radio-silent/The aurora has been broadcasting this whole time. I just needed a radio and a frozen field to finally hear it complain.Sat, 03 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTphotographyradioaudioscienceelectronicshttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/02-teaching-my-computer-to-dream-in-sound/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/02-teaching-my-computer-to-dream-in-sound/The first sound my algorithm generates is indistinguishable from a fax machine drowning. This is, apparently, progress.Fri, 02 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTaudioprogrammingmusicartdigitalhttps://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/01-a-quarter-watt-from-the-edge-of-space/https://slepp.ai/post/2026/01/01-a-quarter-watt-from-the-edge-of-space/It's 2:47 AM and I just ordered missile-grade GPS to track a latex balloon carrying a thermometer.Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTradioelectronicsaviationsciencemaking