Weeknotes: W02, 2026

Highlight of the week: The bicycle I’ll be using this year seems to now be all fixed up (tires replaced, seat fixed, etc.), and I’ve had a lot of fun riding it.

things I did

  • I made Chana Masala for my family, assisted by my youngest brother
  • I rode my bicycle for a 10km (approximately) round trip, including a ~175 meter climb up Pearl Hill! It was exhausting and I had to stop frequently to rest, but I’m proud of myself and had fun. My long-term stamina goal is to do this route in one go, without stopping.
  • I made a shell script to create my weeknotes from a template if it doesn’t already exist for the current week, then open it or the already-existing file in my text editor.
  • On a later ride, one of the tires on my bicycle burst, so my dad and I went took it to a repair shop nearby and got both tires replaced (they were very old and worn).
  • I bought some tempeh (a small block for RM1.80, less than $0.50USD) and played around in the kitchen with it with positive results; I’ve got some fun ideas on how to use it!
  • Made more progress on my upcoming publishing project, though not as much as I was hoping. The rest of my family has been on vacation, so I’ve been spending time with them before my brothers go back to school next week and my parents get back to work.
The view from the top of Pearl Hill, looking back down the path. My bicycle is standing to the right side of the road.
Looking back down from the top of Pearl Hill.

things I read

I started reading Anathem by Neal Stephenson. It’s a very slow read—feels like trying to jog through quicksand—but it’s also an intriguing concept so far and I look forward to seeing where it goes. It’s a very long book, though, so it may be a while before I finish.

words I looked up

things I listened to

As usual, I listened to too many things to list them all, so here are a few albums that stood out.

  • Ben van Dijk - World Concerto
  • James Taylor - Sweet Baby James
  • The My Fair Lady original cast recording
  • Yo-Yo Ma - Soul of the Tango: The Music of Astor Piazzolla
  • Chick Corea, Brian Blade, and Christian McBride - Trilogy, Trilogy 2, and Trilogy 3

links around the small web

by Benjamin Hollon on

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