Pursuits (Hobbies) — BurbridgeBuilds Wiki

A NOTE ON "HOBBIES"
The wiki prefers the word pursuits. "Hobby" implies casual. None of the following are casual. They are done with conviction, usually inconveniently, and often expensively. Enjoy.

OUTDOORS

Soccer — The beautiful game. Deliberate practice applied to a sphere.
Mountain Biking — Trails, suspension, and calculated risk.
Skiing — Gravity, properly harnessed.

CRAFT & CAPTURE

Photography — Composition, light, and waiting.
3D Printing — Building, at smaller scale, with more supports.
Woodworking — Carpentry with the clock off.
Cooking — Another kind of building. Faster iteration.

READING LIST

Reading (as a practice) — Preferred titles, avoided ones.
The Lord of the Rings — Tolkien. Canon. Frequently reread.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy — Adams. A style as much as a book.
Tolkien & Craftsmanship — Elves, dwarves, and the ethics of making things.

DAILY

Coffee — Load-bearing. Not optional.
The Notebook — Always in the pocket.
The Toolbox — Portable context.

PHRASES TO LIVE BY

Don't Panic — The most useful two words in distributed systems.
42 — The answer. The question remains open.
Know Where Your Towel Is — On preparation.
The Fellowship — On the right team.
The One Ring — A cautionary tale.

WHY "PURSUITS"

A recurring observation across Burbridge's work — paid and otherwise — is that quality is fractal. You can tell how someone frames a wall by how they eat a sandwich. You can tell how someone ships software by how they ski a run. The pursuits listed here are not separate from Burbridge's work — they are evidence of it.

BUILD ONE THING WELL, YOU BUILD EVERYTHING WELL