Why I Blog: Pixels, Projects, and a Bit of Chaos
Wouldn’t life be so much easier if we had debugging tools for everything? Imagine being able to hook up a logic analyzer to your brain after a particularly awkward conversation and figure out exactly where you went wrong. Or running a metaphorical multimeter across a relationship to measure its "resistance" and figure out if you're short-circuiting or sparking harmony. If only emotional debugging were as straightforward as decoding UART signals, right?
This thought hit me while working on PixTone, my attempt to bring a little bit of pixel art magic to the world of ham radio. For those who are new here (and welcome, by the way), PixTone is all about transmitting personality, not just data. Imagine FT8, but instead of sterile text, you’re sending tiny 8x8 grids of customizable, colorful pixel art. It’s quirky. It’s fun. It’s me.
The idea for PixTone came out of the same mindset that got me into blogging: a need to make sense of the chaos. Blogging started as a way to debug my own thoughts. Sometimes life feels like a messy half-finished project, no clear way to track down what’s actually important. Writing, like working on a project, helps me map it all out. Each post is a little like tracing a signal, isolating the noise, and finding clarity in the hum of daily life.
When I first started blogging, it wasn’t because I had grand plans or thought anyone would actually read my posts. It was more like writing to myself, a way to document all the weird, wonderful, and frustrating things that make up my world—like fixing old radios or ranting about why used MacBooks can cost as much as a small car. But somewhere along the way, people started reading. Maybe they saw a bit of themselves in my posts. Or maybe they were just entertained by the sheer randomness of it all.
The same thing happened with PixTone. On the surface, it’s just a fun experiment—ham radio meets pixel art. But for me, it’s also a way for me to express my (limited) creativity, of finding new ways to connect. Sure, FT8 is efficient, but it’s also kind of... soulless. PixTone is my way of asking, “What if radios could transmit personality?” What if the airwaves weren’t just a place for data, but for art, for playfulness, for little bursts of joy?
Of course, the journey hasn’t been without its bugs. Debugging life and projects is never straightforward. There was the time my pixel art editor refused to render the color green, and I spent two hours troubleshooting before realizing I’d accidentally commented out half the code (and nearly a month later, I have made next to no progress in actually encoding the data to FSK.)
Looking back, I think that’s why I started blogging in the first place. To share the magic. To remind myself—and anyone who stumbles across my posts—that even in the chaos, there’s something worth tuning into. Whether it’s a quirky radio mode, a random rant about used laptops, or a subtle nod to someone who inspires me, it all comes back to this concept of "finding resonance".
So here’s to PixTone, blogging, and the endless process of debugging life. Whether you’re tinkering with a radio project, sorting through your thoughts, or just trying to figure out why your code won’t compile, remember: the tools might not be perfect, but the journey is what makes it all worthwhile.
And if you ever feel lost, maybe send a little piece of yourself out into the world—whether it’s a blog post, a pixel art transmission, or even just a kind word. You never know who might be listening.
73,
Daniel