Jerry Jones

Category: Thoughts

  • Incremental Simplicity

    I just finished reading Code Simplicity, and, as someone who has a tendency for perfectionism, one thing that stood out to me was the idea of not worrying about building something perfect.

    It’s OK to not aim for perfection on version one. Or any version. You don’t even know what perfection looks like at when first starting a project. Instead, aim for a simple solution to your current problem, not a perfect solution to a future problem that may never exist.

    If you keep striving for simplicity with each new addition, your system will gain as much complexity as it needs, while still maintaining enough flexibility and simplicity for the next addition.

  • It’s OK to Move On

    It’s OK to Move On

    As a joke (with some seriousness), I bought a glass-like impossible puzzle. It’s made of clear acrylic, has eight corners for extra trickiness, and it’s impossible to see which side is “up.” My wife is much better at puzzles than I am, and I thought this might be finally be her match.

    After an hour or two of combined work, we had 15 pieces together. It’s hard to even look at it for too long – your eyes don’t know how to focus on the edges and the pieces become a double-vision ghost of themselves.

    My best success came from sorting pieces by the way the angles of the edges slanted. It wasn’t very fun to methodically go through each piece, and only mildly satisfying when two pieces snapped into place.

    My wife gave in. Even with zero consequences for abandoning, I had a strong urge to push through to the end. It’s a problem to be solved. This drive to solve whatever problem is in front of me makes me a good programmer, but at times like this, the benefit is questionable.

    What problems need solving, and which are we working on simply because they’re here in front of us? Which should we allow ourselves, guilt-free, to abandon?

    Doing something like a puzzle, that @ghosthoney on TikTok described as, “too much work for a wrinkly version of an image I don’t really care about1,” isn’t inherently worthwhile. If you enjoy it or get satisfaction from it, go for it! But if it feels like a chore, then it’s OK to skip it. Leave the feeling of being a chore for things that are actually chores.

    Starting doesn’t mean I need to finish. My friend Jonathan Vieker talks about how it’s better to stop reading a book once you understand the point, rather than slogging through to the end: “we’re best off using that time to read something that will benefit us.” With this in mind, I’m giving in and giving myself permission to simply be,2 and see what I become when I don’t attach my self-worth to my accomplishments.

    That said, I won’t be surprised if someday I find myself, pausing with appreciation, as I place the final piece into a wrinkly, transparent rectangle.

    1. I’m very proud of myself for working that line into this post.
    2. Trying to, at least.

  • Flickering Lights and Simple Fixes

    For months, our bedroom light would not turn on. Well, at times it would, randomly illuminating the room whenever it seemed fit. And at others, turn off without warning. As far as we could tell, there were no signs of ghosts.

    We were having our attic turned into livable space and the contractors had recently put in subflooring. We figured they nicked a wire and that was causing the flickering.

    I read up on how to find where the wire might be compromised, thinking through how to identify potential causes and learning electrical diagrams. All I can recall now is something about tracing the neutral using some metering device I don’t have.

    A couple months later, we had an electrician come out for something else and asked him about it. He suggested we try changing the lightbulb. Really? That’s it?

    He explained that CFL lightbulbs, the ones that look like the spiral staircase of some futuristic space habitation, have a wire inside them. The jolting of the nail gun on the subfloor installation right above it probably caused that wire connection to come loose. The expansion and contraction of heat from the bulb would cause the wire to connect then detach in a slow cycle. On and off.

    He was right. We switched out the light bulb and it has been working as a light should ever since.

    Next time, whether it’s a light or a web development project, I’ll try the simple fix first.

  • More than a Seat at the Table

    Pre-COVID when we could go to restaurants, there were times I’d sit down at the table unnoticed. The servers would walk by. After a few minutes, I’d wave to get their attention as they passed by again.

    It’s happened to all of us. It’s not a big deal.

    But what if the server continues to go to other tables? They never acknowledge you.

    You wave. You speak up. You’re there. You need help too.

    Maybe they eventually look over and nod a little sign of recognition. But they still don’t do anything. They never come by.

    Maybe they eventually briefly stop to tell you they can’t serve you. They don’t have the time. They don’t have the resources.

    I recently read Disability Visibility, and so many of the personal stories in the book shout out, “I’m here. I don’t need to be fixed. The world around me is broken.”

    Our world could be radically different and inclusive if it hadn’t been built by and for able-bodied people. But, for now, we live in an ableist world that ignores and hides away disability. Maybe those with disabilities can sit at the table, sometimes, but that doesn’t mean they’re acknowledged or that their needs are served by these ableist systems and structures.

    All this time, you’re still sitting at the table. Waving, speaking-up, doing your best to draw attention. This isn’t the first time, and it won’t be the last.

    Now imagine being reminded everyday that you live in a world that doesn’t consider you. A world that doesn’t value you. A world that says your needs aren’t important enough. A world that tries to contort you to fit inside it.

    This is the world we’ve built.

    I don’t have any answers, and I am not trying, as an able-bodied person, to speak on behalf of those with disabilities. I’m trying to share an idea that resonated with me in order to hopefully create more empathy and action amongst other able-bodied folks. We need a table where all are welcomed, included, and respected. Rather than listen to me, please check out Disability Visibility and follow disabled activists on Twitter like Alice Wong and Imani Barbarin.