Pull-Request [ariasae-10-19-2023] from Obsidian (#33)

* PUSH NOTE : on-burning-out.md

* PUSH NOTE : unlock-firefox-sidebar.md

* PUSH NOTE : monkey-brain.md

* PUSH NOTE : hello-world.md

* PUSH NOTE : Public Journal.md

* PUSH NOTE : Consistency.md

* PUSH NOTE : Free Facts.md

* PUSH NOTE : About.md

* PUSH NOTE : Emmet Cheat Sheet.md

content/About.md

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 ---
 title: About
 compartir: true
-updated: 2023-10-12
+updated: 2023-10-19
 tags: [meta]
 ---
 ## Hi! I'm Miguel 👋🏼
@@ -10,10 +10,7 @@ Problem solver, hobby developer, music enjoyer, and public infrastructure enthus
 
 I think a lot, work a lot, have existential crises, and know just enough about making websites to make me dangerous. I enjoy writing, reading, coding, listening to music, and love having a problem to solve.
 
-If you are aching for more:
+If you are aching for more, check out what [[./Tools|tools]] I use daily, or read my [[./Public Journal|public journal]].
-
-* Check out what [[./Budding/Tools|tools]] I use daily.
-* Read my [[./Public Journal|public journal]].
 
 ### As of October 2023, I am…
 
@@ -24,7 +21,7 @@ If you are aching for more:
 … compiling [configuration files](https://github.com/semanticdata/dotfiles) in [GitHub](https://github.com/).  
 … developing both a [theme](https://github.com/semanticdata/obsidian-sample-theme), and a [starter vault](https://github.com/semanticdata/obsidian-starter-vault) for [Obsidian](https://obsidian.md/).  
 
-### Reaching Out
+### Reach Out
 
 Here are some places you can find me on the web. You'll probably be able to find me in other places too, provided you look hard enough.
 

content/Archive/Emmet Cheat Sheet.md

@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ category: Archive
 tags: [archived]
 compartir: true
 ---
-# Emmet Cheat Sheet
 
 * [Documentation](https://docs.emmet.io/)
 * [Documentation](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/editor/emmet) for Emmet in VS Code

content/Consistency.md

@@ -4,4 +4,4 @@ compartir: true
 updated: 2023-10-19
 tags: [stub]
 ---
-**Show up.** **Do the work.** **Be consistent.**
+Show up. Do the work. Be consistent.

content/Free Facts.md

@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ compartir: true
 updated: 2023-10-19
 enableToc: true
 ---
+They are not fun, but they are free.
+
 ### Disney Aladdin
 
 There is a [Willhelm scream](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilhelm_scream) in the movie Aladdin.

content/Posts/hello-world.md

@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+---
+title: "Hello World!"
+description: "This must be the fourth time I have started a blog. I haven't been very successful at being a consistent content producer. That changes today."
+date: 2023-03-18
+compartir: true
+category: [Posts]
+tags: ["blogging"]
+updated: 2023-10-19
+---
+This must be the fourth time I have started a blog. I haven't been very successful at being a consistent content producer. That changes today. I made a promise I can't break. I have made a real commitment to someone in my life, who I rather not disappoint.
+
+The past few years have been difficult for me. I am privileged enough to have access to the resources I do. It is a scary thought; wondering where I would be without therapy and all the other resources I'm able to use.
+
+Since June 2022, I have been pushing myself to journal more often. Note-taking has changed the way I digest information. I've experienced the "productivity app rodeo". Jumping from productivity app to productivity app. Never settling, never producing content, just focused on the "workflow". I think I'm past that. It's time I sit down and type.
+
+I can't go on without mentioning some inspiring people I have had the pleasure of coming across. When it comes to blogging and just being great overall, I highly recommend following the likes of:
+
+* [Andy Bell](https://andy-bell.co.uk/)
+* [Derek Sivers](https://sive.rs/)
+* [Drew DeVault](https://drewdevault.com/)
+* [Eric Bower](https://erock.prose.sh/)
+* [Herman Martinus](https://herman.bearblog.dev/)
+
+Hope you found reading this worthwhile. If you take anything from this post, let it be:
+
+> "Better done than perfect."
+
+Take care, and maybe I'll see you in the next post.

content/Posts/monkey-brain.md

@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+---
+title: Blogging to Tame the Monkey Mind
+description: "The term monkey mind is a Buddhist term meaning: restless, unsettled, incontrollable. The original analogy comes from describing the human mind as being full of drunken monkeys, constantly screeching, fighting, distracting, and creating general mental chaos. I'll go over what helps me keep the monkeys at bay. I hope some of this resonates with you and your monkeys as well."
+date: 2023-04-12
+compartir: true
+category: [Posts]
+tags: ["mental-health"]
+updated: 2023-10-19
+---
+The term [monkey mind](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkey_mind) is a Buddhist term meaning: restless, unsettled, incontrollable. The original analogy comes from describing the human mind as being full of drunken monkeys, constantly screeching, fighting, distracting, and creating general mental chaos. I'll go over what helps _me_ keep the monkeys at bay. I hope some of this resonates with you and your monkeys as well.
+
+## Clear My Mind
+
+My brain seems to always find distractions for me to tangent off to. Sitting down and making an effort to write everything rushing through my head has been an important mechanism to reduce my stress levels. This concept of dumping your brain by writing isn't new, but it was to me.
+
+It took me some time to mold the raw output into something I could use. In my case, it started within my journal. Using the left page for brain dump, and the right page to process it down to simple tasks, references, and other tagged entries. Small details like leaving space between entries allow me to go back and add an entry in a much closer position relative to other similar ones.
+
+## Share Knowledge
+
+When I think of sharing knowledge, the image of me boring my friends to death on a topic they aren't interested in comes to mind. It is my goal to minimize those kinds of situations. I find it easier to talk about a topic in person if I have already "talked" about it on the blog. I can actually debate the idea, without feeling the need to interject at every interaction.
+
+A sure way to tell whether you know a topic, comes from being able to teach it to someone else. I am _horrible_ at keeping explanations simple. I am _terrible_ at controlling my impulse to talk when engaged in conversation. Sharing _knowledge_ via these posts helps my overall mental state. It reduces the amount of fleeting ideas going back and forth, and provides me with an opportunity to turn those into actionable ideas instead of letting them grow old and irrelevant.
+
+## Document My Learning
+
+Recently, I have been down the rabbit-hole that is Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) tools and apps. Jumping from app to app, looking for something that "_works_" for you. It's fun! But, it is stupid easy to lose sight of your initial goal and turn that curiosity into wasted efforts.
+
+By making a public commitment (even if nobody reads it), I am imposing a healthy amount of pressure on myself to be more open and honest about how I use my time. Keeping yourself accountable is _hard work_. Any amount of effort to curb "mindless wonder" helps tremendously.
+
+## Starting a Blog
+
+Blogging pushes me to refine my better ideas. Expanding a fleeting thought into a blog post has a liberating feeling. It's not even related to others reading your post. You don't need an audience to start. The same way you should _just_ journal, you should _just_ blog.
+
+Comes from the same idea that producing content is and should be a priority over consuming it. Find what topics make you want to write. Compile your reference material. List articles you've read, blogs you have enjoyed, reference that weird website you know and talk about why.
+
+Avoid getting stuck on details. You can change your hosting provider later. The first thing you'd need to consider is whether you'll be using a custom domain. I highly suggest you do so, as it makes for easier _platform changes_. My personal recommendation is to start writing anywhere. Pick a platform and focus on writing about things you are interested in.
+
+Here are a few places to start:
+
+* [WordPress](https://wordpress.com/)
+* [Blogger](https://www.blogger.com/)
+* [Medium](https://medium.com/)
+* [Bear](https://bearblog.dev/)
+* [Mataroa](https://mataroa.blog/)
+* [Prose.sh](https://prose.sh/)
+* [DEV Community](https://dev.to/)

content/Posts/on-burning-out.md

@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+---
+title: Being a Firefighter Does Not Save You From Burnout
+description: "My life took a sharp turn early last year. I am a very private person. You will not find me sharing my personal life on social media. That said, these last 18 months have changed me profoundly, and I feel like I need to write these feelings down."
+date: 2023-07-06
+compartir: true
+category: [Posts]
+tags: ["burnout"]
+updated: 2023-10-19
+---
+My life took a sharp turn early last year. I am a very private person. You will not find me sharing my personal life on social media. That said, these last 18 months have changed me profoundly, and I feel like I need to write these feelings down. This post's threshold of success is helping one other person navigate difficult times.
+
+Burning out is something I had little experience with. A mental image of what it looks like when you burn out was all I had. My only context coming from watching online influencers post articles/videos about how bad it can be. I never really learned what it looks like before you burn out, how you get to there, what the signs are. After three and a half years of being a volunteer firefighter, I burned out. It did not catch me by surprise; I had been struggling mentally for some time. Every day, telling myself that it would be different, that it would change. That feeling went away eventually, leaving me with too much to handle.
+
+## What Being a Volunteer Firefighter Means
+
+Depends on where the question is being asked. Volunteer, or sometimes paid-on-call firefighters make up more than 70% of registered fire departments. Minnesota sits at more than 85% volunteer fire departments, according to the [National Fire Department Registry](https://apps.usfa.fema.gov/registry/summary). Our setting is Bloomington, Minnesota in the US.
+
+Here are some quick facts on being a volunteer/paid-on-call firefighter for the fourth-largest city (by population) in Minnesota a few of years before:
+
+* Bloomington has 6 fire stations spread somewhat evenly over the city.
+* To be eligible, you need to live within 4 minutes of your nearest fire station.
+* You carry a pager around, when specific tones play, you are being asked to respond. This meant stopping anything you were doing, driving to the station, and responding to the incident in a fire vehicle.
+* Depending on incident time, one, two, three, or all six stations can be paged together to respond. For example, medicals calls involve 1 station responding with 1 truck, while residential fire calls start a 3 station response immediately.
+* You need to respond to at least 30% of the calls that were assigned to your station. These meant emergency calls during your work hours, weekends, holidays count against you.
+
+## Learning What Being Homesick Was All About
+
+During the pandemic, the emergency medical calls went through the roof. The Police Department was unable to keep up with the large number of incidents, so the city came to rely on the approximate 100 volunteer Fire Department to pick up the slack. This meant those working normal 8 to 5 jobs had a harder time keeping up with their 30% minimum. Without going into details, it was difficult.
+
+At the time, I was not in a good place mentally. Lots of things were lingering in the back of my mind. Everything has been made worse since I became woefully aware that I was homesick. I had planned to go visit for winter in 2020, but that option was quickly taken off the table. For context, I moved to the United States in Summer 2015, and to this day, due to one reason or another, I have yet to return.
+
+The later half of 2021 overwhelmed me. Several things accumulated over time, some went under the radar and were never addressed until it was too late, and others were willfully ignored. Struggling to maintain my sanity and mental health, I decided to take a 90-day leave of absence from the fire department. My plans were to spend the extra time looking after my mental health. Unfortunately, nothing improved.
+
+When the time came to rejoin, I opted to extend my leave as much as I could. I opted for another 90-day leave of absence, the maximum time allowed before needing to rejoin or separate. Again, nothing improved. I was just not in a good place mentally. A few days before needing to rejoin after 6 months of leave, I broke a bone in my hand.
+
+## How Did This Happen
+
+Distracted, I went to move a glass/ceramic base from my desk to the kitchen. It made it a good foot before I accidentally dropped it on a dog bowl on the floor. (we fed the dogs in weird places back them) It slipped from my hands and fell on the bowl and shattered. This was _not_ the first time this had happened. I… struggle to describe what my feelings at the time were. My brain approved the decision to punch something. When tasked with finding something to punch, once again, my regretful train of thought took me outside, to the patio where I proceeded to turn around and punch the side of the house. The factors considered at the time were overwritten by rage.
+
+## Being Stubborn is Not the Same as Being Naive
+
+So it happened. I punched the side of the house. _**Pain.**_ Broke a bone in my hand, unbeknownst to me, of course. I managed to convince myself that it was a minor injury and I didn't need to be seen by a doctor. The hand hurt, but I chose to ignore it because my pride was in danger! (it wasn't) I went about my business for _three days_ before the pain overtook my pride. After the initial triage, and x-rays were completed, the doctor returned to the room with x-rays of my hand and informed me that I had a boxer's fracture in my right hand. My brain could no longer hold the spell it had me under. I wasn't being naive, I was being stubborn.
+
+Unfortunately, having used all the time permitted for a leave of absence, and lacking the ability to rejoin due to my right hand being broken, I quit the fire department.
+
+## Accepting Help is the Hardest Part
+
+It does get tough sometimes, life can weight a lot more than what you can handle. What we often forget is to look around, to look for the people that are willing and lovingly ready to help. My biggest mistake was thinking I had no support, when it really was the complete opposite. I am in a **much** better place now. I have others to thank for that. The road back is long, but I have friends and family right beside me. It has been a long time, but I finally feel like I am moving forward.

content/Posts/unlock-firefox-sidebar.md

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+---
+title: Unlock the Sidebar Width in Firefox
+description: "How-to guide about unlocking the max-width of Firefox's sidebar. Doing so net's you a better experience when using extensions within the sidebar."
+date: 2023-06-26
+compartir: true
+category: [Posts]
+tags: [firefox, tutorial]
+updated: 2023-10-19
+---
+
+This post will guide you through unlocking the sidebar width in Firefox. It will let you resize it beyond what is possible by default. We will be setting both the maximum, and the minimum width. You will have a chance to customize these values once at the right step.
+
+## Why Would Anyone Want to Do This?
+
+* To enhance the use of the Firefox [Side View](https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/side-view/) extension.
+* To compliment the use of one of my Firefox sidebar [extensions](https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/user/17772574/).
+
+## Step-by-Step Instructions
+
+1. In a new tab, navigate to `about:support`.
+2. Under `Application Basics`, find `Profile Folder`.
+3. Locate and click the `Open Folder` button next to it. It will be next to an address similar to:  
+`%appdata%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\{profile-id}.default`[^1]
+4. Inside your Firefox Profile Folder, create a new folder named: `chrome`.
+5. Inside the newly created chrome folder, create a new file named: `userChrome.css`.
+6. Copy the following code,[^2] paste as content and save:
+
+```css
+/* You may change the units to any length you find more convenient. */
+#sidebar-box {
+  max-width: 40% !important;
+  min-width: 300px !important;
+}
+```
+
+1. Finally, in a new tab, navigate to `about:config`, search for `toolkit.legacyUserProfileCustomizations.stylesheets`, and change its value to `true`.
+2. Restart Firefox and test it out!

content/Public Journal.md

@@ -5,16 +5,18 @@ compartir: true
 enableToc: true
 updated: 2023-10-19
 ---
-## 2023-10-18
+## 2023-10-19
 
 ### Notes
 
 * Created new CSS snippets for Obsidian. Changes appearance of list items in menus, and reduces font size for the [BMO Chabot](https://github.com/longy2k/obsidian-bmo-chatbot).
+* Updated my [dotfiles](https://github.com/semanticdata/dotfiles) in GitHub. Added some new ones I have been using.
 
 ### Digital Garden
 
 * Fixed stylesheet loop. Quartz changed how to address stylesheet order in sass. This broke my previous implementation adding custom and explorer stylesheets. It's all good now. The website looks as it should again.
 * Removed categories from all notes eliminating the folders that were created for Budding, Evergreen, and Seedlings. The Archive remains.
+* Removed the Garden from the 512kb Club. It is now hosted on a different URL, and the size has surpassed 512kb.
 
 > [Link Of The Day](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Chad)
 
@@ -24,6 +26,11 @@ updated: 2023-10-19
 
 * Attended a Boys Like Girls concert at The Fillmore in Minneapolis. Had a blast! The line-up was very good. LØLØ opened the night, followed by The Summer Set, continued by State Champs and of course, ended with Boys Like Girls. We arrived at 5:20PM, doors opened at 5:30PM, show started at 6:30PM, We were out by 10:45PM.
 
+### Blog
+
+* Updated my [About](https://miguelpimentel.do/about/) page. Now matches what's on the Garden.
+* Updated the Blog's [GTmetrix](https://gtmetrix.com/reports/miguelpimentel.do/hSnfOuWH/) results within the [512kb Club Repo](https://github.com/semanticdata/512kb.club/edit/main/_data/sites.yml).
+
 > [Link Of The Day](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirabal_sisters)
 
 ## 2023-10-06