This is a page where I transparently share a bunch of information about how I work on my little projects, the tools I use, and how things are going financially with the.
tools
writing, marketing & admin
This site is built with Blot in plain text and Markdown, hosted in a private Dropbox folder.
- The newsletter is powered by RSS and Buttondown.
- I use Simple Analytics for simple, privacy-focused, transparent site analytics. Here’s the analytics for this site.
- I use Carrd to run the Kid Lightbulbs landing site and spin up landing pages for random ideas and friends of mine.
- I use Bandcamp, Ampwall and LANDR to distribute my music.
- I capture my thoughts in Apple Notes, flesh them out in IA Writer, and repurpose them for social promotion with Buffer.
music production tools
I make music on a Macbook Pro w/ M2 Max, primarily using the stock capabilities of Logic Pro & Reason 12. I consider Logic Pro (purchased in 2013 for $200) the single best value purchase of everything noted on this page.
I record (& occasionally perform) with:
- a MXL 990 condenser mic
- a Yamaha P-115 digital piano
- a G&L L-1000 bass I inherited from a family friend
- a Schecter Stiletto Studio 5-string bass
- a PRS SE Custom 24 guitar
- JBL 104 reference monitors
- Sony MDR-7506 reference headphones
- Apple AirPods Pro 2
I mostly browse the internet on said MacBook Pro & an iPhone 16 Pro.
finances
I aim to my hobbies and creative endeavors to be self-funding. That is, my goal is for every dollar spent on the tools here to be paid for by the stuff I make with the tools.
income
Outside of my Buffer salary, I make money via my side projects in the following ways:
- Bandcamp subscriptions (6 subscribers, $196 ARR)
- Bandcamp sales (in 2024: $1352.73 gross, $1114.83 net)
- Occasional small royalty checks from ASCAP (last one: 11.18.2024, $1.10)
expenses
Here is a table of everything I’ve spent money on since establishing this goal in mid-2023 (excluding taxes):
| product/service | category | cost |
|---|---|---|
| blot | website | $55/year |
| carrd pro | website | $19/year |
| simple analytics | analytics | $0/year |
| dropbox (free) | storage | $0/year1 |
| landr | distribution | $45/year |
| bandcamp | distribution | $0/year + 15% of sales |
| ampwall | distribution | $10/year + 5% of sales |
| buttondown | marketing | $90/year |
| buffer | marketing | $0/year2 |
| zapier | marketing | $0/year |
| ia writer | software | $49.99 |
| JBL reference monitors | hardware | $149.99 |
| AirPods Pro 2 | hardware | $2493 |
As of Nov 2024, I have moved off Dropbox’s paid plan and now store my working files in iCloud Drive as part of my family’s Apple One subscription. This is both for cost savings and due to Dropbox’s frustrating incessant nudges to keep upgrading, recent investments into enterprise solutions I don’t need and layoffs to appease shareholders. I continue to use the free Dropbox service for sharing with collaborators and to host my website, though I will likely move the latter to a private Git repository.↩︎
I am an employee of Buffer Inc. ↩︎
My employer (Buffer Inc) covered this expense as part of its remote workspace stipend benefit.↩︎
