So, here we are in 2020. A few things have changed since my last update in… 2018??

On COVID-19 & the novel coronavirus: what’s there to be said? It sucks. Most of us will get through this. Our president is a freaking moron.

In February, after four years at AMD, I started a new gig on the AI performance team at Unity. So far, the team is amazing as are the projects. It’s great to work on projects in which I’m interested and capable of delivering great results. (Writing PowerPoint presentations about GPUView traces is not what I’d call thrilling.)

Here in Texas, as in other parts of the world, we’re in a sort of lockdown-lite mode. Restaurants are open for takeaway orders only. Most other businesses are following the same model. Our neighboring county is enforcing a more strict mode where only “essential” businesses are open, which makes a lot more sense. But, for that to really be as effective as it should, all of the neighboring counties should follow the same policy.

Oh, well. No one asked for my input.

The kids are stuck at home since the schools are closed. Gwen(5)’s autism program has been shut down for weeks which isn’t doing her any good. It’s nearly impossible to get the boys to do their school work. Google Classroom does not have the most intuitive UI. Asking a 10- and 7-year-old on the spectrum to sit at a computer for hours each day is just ridiculous. We’re doing the best we can, with limited success.

All race events have been pushed to later in the year. Which is fine, since I need a clutch and a timing chain. When the weather clears up, I’ll do the chain (it’s really not difficult on this car). A friend is going to do the clutch for me since he has, among other things, a lift. Clutch swaps also aren’t complex, but they’re a horrendous pain to do on jackstands.

My next garage will have 10′ ceilings and a two-post lift.

Speaking of which, we’re spooling up a remodel and house addition. It’ll likely be months before actual construction can start, though. Having more space for the kids, a real workshop and more than two bathrooms will be great. I am NOT looking forward to the inevitable property tax increase. Our city has the highest effective tax rate in the state. It sucks. But, the schools are amazing, the people are nice and the traffic is statistical noise.

Cheers! Stay safe, everyone.