Nate's journal. https://n8.engineer/rss.xml 7hESNejmEEOKXzBEhz0QXH https://n8.engineer/maple Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT 3qXnfTHyrLk6NIBR5SOeKg https://n8.engineer/daddy-where-did-i-come-from Preface I wrote this for my daughter. I hope we get to talk about all of this together as she grows up — where she came from, where we came from, and how we think the whole universe came to be. But if something were to happen to me before she's old…]]> Sun, 16 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT K2FDfpA8lSfJbPtnfCGxy https://n8.engineer/how-i-bought-a-frank-lloyd-wright-house-at-31 I own a home designed by Frank Lloyd Wright: the Goetsch–Winckler house, an early, pre-war Usonian built in 1940 for two women art professors located near Lansing, Michigan. I bought it in part to enjoy it, sure, but moreso with the intent to share…]]> Thu, 13 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT 2vPeIw2SIdDHmATkGMO03M https://n8.engineer/nest-aware-confuse-birdsong-carbon-monoxide-alarm I have an external Google Home security camera, and on several occasions now I've received a notification that it's heard a carbon monoxide alarm. This more advanced functionality is available through a premium Nest Aware plan. The first time it…]]> Tue, 25 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT 1ldB1I2uklEW09grjGHNQo https://n8.engineer/on-violating-international-trade-law It was just like any other Thursday afternoon... well, except that I had accidentally violated U.S. foreign trade sanctions and, in so doing, may have inadvertently sponsored terrorism. Whoops ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. I was on my lunch break playing a game of ping…]]> Tue, 14 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT 5sSid6C2jyo9AIunVvsgHs https://n8.engineer/md-support Mon, 13 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT 1Hvc4gryKDsXzQWajRQ24K https://n8.engineer/why-i-took-my-wifes-last-name I've been Nate Meyer for two years. Before that, I was Nate Buchar. But there are still some remnants of my former name here and there. I did decide to keep my GitHub username @nathanbuchar so as not to break links to a couple of my popular open…]]> Thu, 09 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT 7HlYBL50R5HGm80rN5LkUm https://n8.engineer/u1f968dotcom Mon, 30 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT 6bYRru2iRPtZxxWGjidkw5 https://n8.engineer/the-geopolitical-consequences-of-national-symbolism-and-9-11 I firmly believe that 9/11 would have never happened if the turkey, rather than the bald eagle, was chosen as the national symbol of the United States, as was originally proposed by Benjamin Franklin. Here's a lazy argument to support my claim,…]]> Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT 6Q0VFyx2rY4o0bdJhFtI4C https://n8.engineer/how-site-iconic-windows-xp-wallpaper-bliss-looks-today The site of the iconic "Bliss" image, photographed in January 1996 by Charles O'Rear. You know it. Everyone knows it. A few years back, my girlfriend and I were on a birthday road trip and we visited a few different places around the Bay…]]> Tue, 25 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMT 8NEwCjWM6nhcLVNAEATf7 https://n8.engineer/repository-all-audubon-bird-plates-github I've created a GitHub repository which compiles all 435 full-resolution illustrations of John James Audubon's Birds of America for the purposes of education, research, and free and fair use. Courtesy of the John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove,…]]> Tue, 21 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT 30q879zXSnd8pTI9tvrH7L https://n8.engineer/dont-buy-adjutable-desk-invest-in-a-stool-instead Love them or hate them, standing desks are everywhere in tech. And I'd like to argue that one doesn't need an adjustable desk, but rather just a tall chair. I pose the following question to the reader: why must a desk be low to the ground for you to…]]> Thu, 16 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT 2DVdzANA5yuWZlWqgnnJIL https://n8.engineer/how-to-get-long-lived-access-token-dropbox-developer-apps In 2021, Dropbox announced they were deprecating long-lived access tokens for developer apps. For whatever reason, the documentation on how to solve this problem is pretty scant, especially from Dropbox's side (and I work there!). I spent the better…]]> Wed, 15 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT 786lhpgGYBcgWRAugnivGr https://n8.engineer/css-hyphens-auto Wed, 15 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT 2Pd2h1kOpBz7zcXL2Uw1jx https://n8.engineer/how-to-automatically-upload-daily-nyt-crossword-dropbox-2023 This guide will walk you through the steps to automatically upload the daily NYT to your personal Dropbox account so that it can be synced with devices like the Ratta Supernote e-ink tablet. Throughout the course of this tutorial, you will create a…]]> Mon, 13 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT 5urhMhs43G7vEdnQxdPa02 https://n8.engineer/how-to-build-lightweight-static-microsite-node-nunjucks-contentful In this guide, I will walk you through using Node and Nunjucks to create a minimal system for generating ultra-lightweight static microsites entirely from data hosted for free on Contentful.com—just like this one! But why? Have you ever come back to…]]> Sun, 12 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT 5CTvzvQLF2mbrCHOZL8XfW https://n8.engineer/how-we-found-our-house I've always been interested in architecture. I remember that, as a kid, my dad and I took a few trips driving around New England visiting some of Frank Lloyd Wright's most iconic homes, including Fallingwater. Nowadays I work as a web developer. It's…]]> Sat, 11 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT RMYqUilL16pQNe72YzG6z https://n8.engineer/i-have-a-pet-pigeon Update: Sophia passed away peacefully on October 16, 2025. We will miss her dearly. I have a pet pigeon. Her name is Sophia, and she's one of the best things that's ever happened to me. Many people raise and breed domestic pigeons for a variety of…]]> Mon, 16 May 2022 00:00:00 GMT 1py28vBOSzp4CQO9rM2hcp https://n8.engineer/i-created-custom-crossword-puzzle-for-anniversary Mon, 11 Apr 2022 00:00:00 GMT 6C5uOZHWI3mUZwsXeHLgdv https://n8.engineer/wingspan-pigeons Sat, 02 Apr 2022 00:00:00 GMT 2uwkhEH0ENrxigoMNqyz7R https://n8.engineer/do-i-sound-like-crap Thu, 31 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT 6k1xQM9e7Zhz8zCWPjutQh https://n8.engineer/electron-settings-v4 Mon, 25 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT 4EfnscCHvMPoHhQdAleZ8N https://n8.engineer/the-math-of-wheeler-dealer Sat, 09 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT 1kbHi5j5DMOqp3Nk43byxl https://n8.engineer/hennesy-us Odopod, a digital agency I spent a few years at after college, has been the digital partner for the U.S. website for Hennessy Cognac since 2012. The site went through a major revamp in 2017, focusing on speed, stability, and visual design. As the…]]> Tue, 21 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT 1RkjmeJURwdZBC4BR3qgwJ https://n8.engineer/thunk-support-react Sat, 09 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT 2lsEoLI8M24MHlQ3U00qWP https://n8.engineer/a-place-in-the-alphabet Fri, 09 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT ESl0dJwKvNUKlGQEsSXnm https://n8.engineer/iterate Wed, 10 Feb 2016 00:00:00 GMT