Day 4: Not so dumb after all
Did very little today. I tried to do more, but the day was filled with adult stuff (and not the fun kind). Spent two hours fixing a light, drilling holes and installing a soap rack, and putting up IKEA Algot shelves in one of the rooms. We’re preparing for my mother-in-law to come stay with us for a couple of weeks.
In a sudden spur of inspiration, I decided to make lunch at home instead of buying takeout from the nearby food court. The recipe was some spaghetti with a lot of olive oil and onions that I found in a old cookbook I had around called Easy Student Dinners. Haven’t cooked in a while, so the wholemeal spaghetti (the only type I had around the house) was a little uncooked when I was done. I finished my serving and Mei ate less than half of hers.
Before I realised it, it was already 4pm. Mei had a client to serve at 5pm at the Mandarin Orchard hotel so we went there. I had a cup of teh at Toast Box and did some administrative things for my GA WDI course admission. They asked me to consent to cooperating with them in finding me a job once the course is over. Considering that the course hasn’t even started, I think made the right decision to choose them over other technical course providers.
Bought my first rotary tool!
One thing that went according to plan today was my purchase of a used Black & Decker RTX rotary tool from someone on Carousell. Paid $80 SGD for it — much cheaper than what I would’ve had to pay for a second hand Dremel. Tested it first thing when I got home. Worked like a charm. This is a tool that’s going to unlock a lot of home DIY projects for me and I’m looking forward to our lasting partnership!
With my ‘new’ RTX, I cut up parts of the empty CCTV shell that I got from China for my mum a few years ago to prepare it for my own home surveillance project — the same one I was working on yesterday. Managed to use a few different bits to cut and sand the plastic shell and fit the Raspberry Pi Camera module through crevices after a few bends of the ribbon cable.
When I powered up the Pi computer and it worked as it’s supposed to, I felt, for a brief moment, on top of the world. I made it!
So I went ahead to tape the Raspberry Pi to the ‘dummy’ CCTV, essentially packaging my first home-made electronic product. I was really excited. Mei was sitting beside me watching a movie on her laptop while I did it, and I almost forgot she was there. It was just me and the project in my hands in the room. I get this trance of total immersion once in a while when making something new (as in, new to me). It’s a feeling like no other that I thoroughly enjoy.
Then I took it out to the living room to test it one last time. In our living room the WiFi signal is a lot weaker, and I suspected that might be a problem. Turns out, that wasn’t the problem. Somehow the Pi couldn’t initiate the camera anymore!
I suspect there’s a loose physical connection. Maybe I didn’t insert the ribbon deep enough into the connector on the Pi. Or perhaps the slight twist and multiple bends might be disrupting the connection. In any case, I don’t expect to lose any sleep over it. Sure it sucks to not be able to hail it a finished project, but whatever. I’m much more interested in making a lasting project with minimal maintenance. Do it once, do it good.
Even though I did considerably little today (that is aligned with my goals), I’m happy with how it turned out. Some days it’s ok to have everything go according to plan. The way I think about it is as long as I’m helping others (like preparing a room for my mother-in-law) or making someone feel better by being present (like having dinner with wife and mum and sister), then the time isn’t wasted, and if time isn’t wasted, the day can’t be bad.
Tomorrow I’ll be waking up early to fix the camera, even though it’s already past midnight (and way past my bedtime) now. I’ll probably throw into the mix a few hours to do the pre-work sent by GA. There’s plenty to look forward to, and much to learn.
While I was out I thought it’d be fun to go take a few photos on the streets of Orchard Road…
