This is a “Now page”. It is a page that I update regularly to give an overview of what I’m doing at the moment in life and work.
- nownownow.com provides a list of websites and blogs with a Now page
I update this page roughly every three to six months. I find that life moves a bit more slowly for me now, so it doesn’t need updating much more than that. The entries are dated, so previous “now” statuses are available further down the page.
2025-03-04
Home
- D is nearly a year old and wow, my parental leave has just flown by. I was really intimidated at first being D’s primary caregiver during the week but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it.
- Our Handfasting grows closer and closer. Most of the things are booked in and jobs are slowly being ticked off.
- Our animals are all healthy, thankfully.
- We’ve been able to do more hiking lately which we’re thoroughly enjoying.
- I’ve been reading a nice amount, and am enjoying my re-read of “The Wheel of Time”. I’ve also had time to watch a few movies here and there which has been lovely.
Work and Projects
- I’ve been off of work so there’s not too much to say. I had a KIT day with a few colleagues and really enjoyed it. I plan to make much better use of my training budget and allowances from the co-operative when I get back to upskill in a few things.
- I’ve tweaked this site a bit, adding a Projects page and moving the changelog to a textfile.
- I’ve finally got off of Gitlab and onto Sourcehut. I’m very happy with this.
Work and Projects
2024-10-25
Home
- D is now approximately seven months old and is becoming more and more of a person every day. A and I are really enjoying watching her grow up but it’s true what they say – it does go too fast.
- I have started the remainder of my Parental Leave, which sees me off of work until late March to become D’s primary looker-afterer during the week as A is returning to work.
- We’re finally planning our Handfasting next year. We had a legal procedure when A was still pregnant with D, to make things with D smoother from a legal perspective but we held off on the proper ceremony. The invites have went out now and the majority of everything is booked, and it’s just the fun details left to plan.
- I passed my driving test and have started taking over most of the household driving. I enjoy the act of piloting a car, but still hate cars and wish that public transport was better in this country. I like giving A a break from driving, though.
- The cat has had a few more seizures but her epilepsy is largely under control.
Work and Projects
- As noted I am off work for a while but I managed to tie a few things up nicely. I staged HSDS 3.1 ready for release after a long few months of working with the Open Referral community to: establish the governance procedure, develop a proposal mechanism, write a bunch of proposal papers, seek feedback and participation, iterate on them, and then finally get them in front of the committee for approval.
- On an Open Referral note, I wrote a very barebones HSDS API Validator in only 163 lines of Python. The tool is 50% love letter to my colleagues (and myself, if I’m being cheeky) for producing such an excellent data standard and profiling mechanism that such a thing is possible using such little code. The other 50% is a bit of a “screw you” to predatory consultants who would charge through the nose for building a validator back-end which didn’t work for different versions of the standard and profiles flexibly.
- I wrote some UNIX style CLI tools to help me work with our CRM system at work better and more cozily. Ticketsnake is a Python CLI built to interact with Redmine instances which has minimal dependencies. Ticketbasher is a Bash script wrapper around some common things you want to do with such a tool, and makes it easier by presenting you lists of things in menu applications like
fzf. I enjoyed making them and they made my life easier. - I’ve started learning Rust very casually. I have a notion to implement some of the software I wish existed, specifically some of my dream Calibre-replacement-suite. I’ve always wanted to move back to a strongly typed language and also I’ve never had the chance to write in a compiled language. Rust seems to be the given thing these days. I find it fun learning how to be a better programmer by having the compiler moan at me for being unsafe with memory.
2024-05-24
Home
- Our daughter, D, was born in late March and we are adjusting to being parents (and loving it!)
- In the first few weeks of being parents, we binge-watched a bunch of shows to stay awake at the odd hours but that seems to have settled now
- After some initial disruption I have been able to start strength training again thanks to my amazing partner giving me that space, although I haven’t started running again yet!
- I am approaching my driving test soon, and although don’t expect to pass in the first few attempts I hope to pass before midwinter!
- I still haven’t been able to use my new bow, since every time we plan to visit the archery field our daughter has other plans and disrupts the day but we don’t mind
- I haven’t been able to read much but am listening to music while at work and during “Daddy dancing” sessions with my daughter in the morning
Work and Projects
- I have returned to work at Open Data Services Co-operative. I was on parental leave when version 1.4 of the 360Giving standard was released but our hard work paid off and my colleagues ensured that the release went smoothly. I am also “on-call” for when the Cabinet Office need support with their Open Contracting data, and am also prepping for developing version 3.1 of the Human Services Data Specification with colleagues at Open Referral.
- I stopped developing my Minetest mods for a bit because I’m not really playing the game much; instead I finished a quick-and-dirty CLI application in Python, which means I can interact with our time tracking system at work without needing to open a web browser. It represents the latest in what I am calling the “Matt really doesn’t want to open a browser for this” series of small utilities.
- I need to touch base with The Patchwork Project, as I haven’t seen them since the birth of D.
2024-03-06
Home
- We are eagerly awaiting the birth of our child in a few days
- We have been exploring my late Father-In-Law’s LP collection instead of watching shows
- I bought a new board/card game, Dominion
- I am on Parental leave and spending time with my partner, A, before the baby arrives
- I am finally learning how to drive a car
- I am reading where I can but do not expect to be doing as much historically
- I’m exercising lots but also experimenting with a new fasting regime to improve some metabolic health
- I’ve bought my first bow and kit but need to visit the Cleadon Archers to get measured for my draw length and to receive help assembling and tuning some parts of the bow
Work and Projects
- I still thoroughly enjoy my work at Open Data Services Co-operative where I have been preparing version 1.4 of the 360Giving data standard, helping the UK Cabinet Office team with their upcoming OCDS publication, and giving governance and technical consultancy to Open Referral with regards to HSDS
- On the side, I worked on my Minetest mods a bit; getting the Alchemicka modpack into a “playable” shape
- I had some great catch-ups with team at The Patchwork Project and I’m really pleased with the current management and work team there
2023-07-07
Work
- I continue to work 5 days a week at Open Data Services Co-operative and throroughly enjoy my work there.
- I split my time between supporting 360Giving with standard development on the 360Giving Standard, supporting the UK Cabinet Office and The Welsh Government with their OCDS implementations in response to the UK Procurement Reforms, and supporting Open Referral on various aspects of the HSDS standard.
- I continue to be a trustee of The Patchwork Project and support them where possible with technical expertise.
- I have joined UTAW as an act of solidarity, but I do not attend meetings because I do not have anything to contribute due to my status as a worker-owner of a co-operative.
Home
- I’ve recently joined The Cleadon Archers as a new member and I’m hopefully getting involved in my new sport.
- I’m focusing on my strength training and putting my running into maintenance mode.
- We’re enjoying our new home in South Tyneside, and are planning the various repairs it needs across the next few years.
- I’m doing some creative writing where I can.
- We’re looking after our pets: Fröyja the cat, Ash and Pika the rabbits.
- We’re hiking and exploring in Northumberland and Teeside whenever we can.
- Reading lots of fiction.
- Learning about languages and using my Esperanto wherever possible.