cariad.fyi

Sunday, December 1, 2024

The penultimate Autodesk update

My final day at Autodesk turned out to be my busiest day at Autodesk, with offboarding and actually getting some work assigned. There’s even a good chance that the PowerShell I wrote in those final hours will make it into Production! I’ll never know either way, but it would be neat!

But anyway, that’s all done now. My laptop’s been returned, my timesheet (all 8 days of it) has been signed off, and hopefully I’ll get paid before Christmas. I’ll let you know when the money lands, and that’ll be my final update on this little adventure.

The job hunt

My interview on Monday went great! Super great! Honestly, I can’t remember the last time an interview was that much fun. The atmosphere was absolutely positive, absolutely buzzing, and I got to gush about IAM policies and state machines.

I really hope I get this, but I don’t know if I fancy my chances. They still have a few more folks to interview, and I’m boned if any of them have more recent AI experience than I do. I’ve got a fourth-round interview next week which must be a good sign, right? But I’m terrified of getting my hopes up.

Exmouth sea wall

The sea wall replacement is back in full swing!

The footpath and cycle path are closed, and there’s already been a couple of close-calls from cyclists who don’t like to share the path behind Sideshore. You could use the road, or you could dismount, or you could race on through and yell at folks to get out of the way. The latter’s very popular around here.

A photograph of Exmouth seafront with barriers across the footpath and signs indicating it's closed.
Exmouth seafront (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of Exmouth seafront with barriers across the footpath. Signs direct pedestrians to cross the road and say "footpath closed".
Footpath closed (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of Sideshore on Exmouth seafront. Workers in high-visibility jackets and a crane are unpacking the components of the replacement sea wall.
Preparing the replacement sea wall (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of The Mallow at Sideshore on Exmouth seafront. A sign reads "The Mallow @ Sideshore" and "Blue badge holders must pay and display" with The Mallow (a field) behind it. The furthest area of The Mallow is fenced off for the sea wall replacement works.
The Mallow and sea wall replacement (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of Sideshore on Exmouth seafront. The footpath is fenced across with a crane in the background. A sign reads "footpath closed".
The footpath is closed at both ends (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)

Travels

I didn’t go to Exmouth’s Winter Festival yesterday. Alex needed to jump to Exeter for more Christmas shopping, and I didn’t fancy pinning my hopes on the train getting them back in time for an afternoon out. Sometimes it’s just less stress to bone out than hope.

But I had a neat time in Exeter on Monday!

I got an early train and had a few hours to kill before my interview, so I had lunch at Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market and got coffee at the Antiques Centre on the Quay. And good lord, I wish I was in a better mood today, because I’d love to talk about that antiques centre. A large portion of it is postcards from around the world – but written postcards. Thousands of messages to friends and families and, shit, it got to me. It’s beautiful! The coffee’s fantastic, too.

I also got attacked by a flock of pigeons, and I’m pretty sure a street photographer caught it. I’m still hoping to track down a copy. And Martin gave me a wave at Generator Hub!

I enjoy taking photos when I go out, but I hate processing them. I’m not sure if it’s a skill beyond me or if it’s just boring, but I hate it. So, I’ve been experimenting with shooting my GR III directly to JPEG with custom image recipes, then sharing the shots directly out of the camera. It’s way more fun than processing raw!

A photograph of Exmouth's war memorial.
Exmouth’s war memorial (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of pigeons in palm trees on Exmouth seafront.
Pigeons (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of a black bird perched on Exmouth's sea wall. A fishing boat sails away in the background.
Exmouth beach (Wednesday 27th November, 2024)
A photograph of a black bird perched on Exmouth's sea wall.
Exmouth beach (Wednesday 27th November, 2024)
A photograph of a road sign obscured by plants. Only the final word "Hill" is visible.
… Hill (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of the field outside The Pavilion on Exmouth seafront.
Outside The Pavilion (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of The Pavilion on Exmouth seafront.
The Pavilion (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)
A photograph of a gardener blowing away leaves in Manor Gardens.
Manor Gardens (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)

I shared a few shots on Mastodon, but shit, there’s no better place to lose your love for creation. When I add too much alt text, I get moaned at. When I add too little alt text, I get moaned at. Just by saying this out loud, I know folks on there are going to claim I don’t care about accessibility – and I don’t have the energy to defend myself against those accusations any more. It reminds me of all the folks who attacked me because wa11y.co wasn’t “good enough”, or who were “insulted” that I didn’t try harder.

Accessibility’s the toughest game online. You get attacked for anything less than perfection, but you’ll never get agreement on what “perfect” is anyway. So don’t you dare try then fall short, because you may as well just delete your account. Mastodon deserves every ounce of its reputation, and I’m putting my camera away again. Fuck it.

Heydays

Looks like the rebranding is still cracking on inside! I wonder how long until the launch party…?

A photograph of the restaurant formerly known as Mickey's on Exmouth seafront.
Not-Mickey’s (Tuesday 26th November, 2024)

Music

Bath Philharmonia Young Carers’ Choir (and Ed Davey)’s Love is Enough is fucking beautiful, and I love Ed Davey. We could’ve have a Prime Minister with a heart, and we blew it.

For an OK Go fan, I have to admit there are a lot of holes in my library. Apple Music recommended their symphonic version of This, and it’s bloody brilliant.

…and also, just all the songs from episodes 7, 8 and 9 from the second season of Helluva Boss.

Video

Right, then. I’ve crossed the midpoint of the second season of Helluva Boss, and finished episode 9 this week. And I need to stop. Just for a little bit, but I need to stop. It’s so good, but it makes me so sad. And it reminds me of things I’d forgotten. And I feel like… if a TV show makes you want to cry all the time, it’s time to take a break and work on your resilience. So there we go.

Perturbations

The week ahead