Control the bloat

This site used to run on Hugo with the PaperMod theme. It now runs on Astro with anime.js, because I think animejs.com is one of the best designed websites out there and I wanted an excuse to play with it. Inspiration is a generous word for what happened. I took the whole idea cough and built a much worse copy of it cough, which I believe is the standard creative process in 2026.

The redesign was the easy part to defend. The writing is where people have opinions. A few have told me that using AI to turn my lazy notes into proper blog posts is just bad. Too much bloat, they say. And they have a point, some of it does read like it was written to fill space.

Here is my problem with that: the “proper” writing they miss was never natural either. My English teacher required that style. Intro, development, conclusion, full sentences, correct punctuation, or I would fail the class. Nobody writes like that in their own notes. So when a tool showed up that happens to be very good at turning simple lazy words into proper looking text, handing it the homework-voice part of the job felt fair.

The irony is where it gets fun. In this day and age everything gets called AI, even when it isn’t, and the reaction has flipped the market: people now value anything that looks so lazy that “an AI wouldn’t do that”. Typos as authenticity. Lowercase as a signature.

None of this is new. In the early 1900s photography arrived and killed the artists whose whole craft was perfection, painters chasing reality on canvas. So art ran away from reality, and the abstract became the new thing worth hanging. AI is already being used to create “art”, and I would bet it ends up celebrated as one of those tools eventually.

I say this as someone who owns a camera. Apart from some decent photos I have taken over the years, I would not classify 99.9% of them as Art. Owning the tool was never the hard part.

So my answer is to embrace it and hand you the control. This blog now has a bloat slider. Drag it left and you get my actual lazy text, punctuation optional. Drag it right and you get text so polished it thanks you for reading. Slide it as your heart desires.

rewrote the site. hugo + papermod out, astro + anime.js in. animejs.com is probably the best designed site on the internet so i stole the idea cough inspiration cough and made a much worse copy. its 2026, thats how it works

some people: “your posts are AI, too much bloat”. fair. but proper writing was always fake, my english teacher forced that structure or id fail the class. so let the robot do the homework voice, its good at it

funny part is now everything is “AI” even when it isnt, so people worship anything lazy enough that “an AI wouldnt do that”. typos = authentic

same story as photography in the 1900s. killed the perfection painters, everyone ran to abstract, that became art. AI “art” will get there too eventually. i own a camera btw, 99.9% of my photos are not Art. the tool was never the hard part

so yeah, bloat slider. left = my real notes. right = pretty text. ur choice

This site moved from Hugo and PaperMod to a full rewrite in Astro with anime.js. The reason is simple: animejs.com is one of the best designed websites out there, so I borrowed the idea (fine, most of it) and built a much worse copy. That is how creativity works in 2026.

Some readers told me that using AI to turn my rough notes into finished posts is bad. Too much bloat, they say. Fair criticism. But the polished style they object to was never natural to begin with. My English teacher required it: structure, full sentences, correct punctuation, or I failed the class. If a tool is good at homework voice, I am happy to delegate homework voice.

Meanwhile, everything online is assumed to be AI, even when it is not. The result is that lazy-looking text has become a mark of authenticity, because “an AI wouldn’t do that”.

Photography did the same thing to painting in the early 1900s. It ended the careers built on perfect realism, art ran from reality, and the abstract became the new art. AI-made “art” will likely be celebrated the same way one day. I own a camera and would not call 99.9% of my photos Art. The tool is not the hard part.

So instead of picking a side, this blog gives you a slider. Lazy notes on the left, polished text on the right. Choose your bloat.

In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, maintaining a personal website is no longer just a hobby, it’s a statement. That’s why I recently embarked on a comprehensive journey to migrate this site away from Hugo and the beloved PaperMod theme, embracing instead a complete rewrite powered by Astro and anime.js. It’s important to note that this decision wasn’t made lightly. The official anime.js website, animejs.com, stands as one of the best designed websites in the modern web landscape, and I found myself deeply inspired by its seamless animations and cohesive visual identity. Inspired might be an understatement, in fact, I essentially borrowed the entire concept cough and crafted what can only be described as a significantly worse copy cough, a practice that has become the cornerstone of the creative ecosystem in 2026.

However, the redesign is only part of the story. A number of readers have reached out to express concerns about my writing process, specifically the use of AI to transform simple, lazy notes into fully realized blog posts. “Too much bloat,” they say, and this feedback deserves to be delved into with the seriousness it warrants.

Let’s take a step back and examine where this polished writing style actually comes from. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or simply someone who once sat through an English class, you’ll recognize the formula: a proper introduction, structured development, a satisfying conclusion, and impeccable punctuation. My English teacher didn’t merely suggest this approach, she required it, and failure to comply meant failing the class. It’s crucial to understand that nobody naturally writes this way in their personal notes. So when a technology emerged that excels at transforming simple, lazy words into proper looking text, delegating that responsibility felt like a natural evolution of the workflow, not a betrayal of it.

But here’s where the irony truly reveals itself. In this day and age, everything is labeled AI, even when it isn’t. This has fundamentally reshaped the landscape of authenticity: audiences now place a premium on content that appears so effortlessly lazy that “an AI wouldn’t do that.” Typos have become badges of honor. Lowercase letters have become signatures of humanity. The very imperfections we once edited away are now the most valuable currency in the attention economy.

It’s worth noting that this phenomenon isn’t new, it’s a pattern woven throughout the history of creative expression. In the early 1900s, the advent of photography effectively killed the artists who had dedicated their lives to practicing perfection, those painters who chased reality on canvas with meticulous precision. The artistic community responded by running away from reality altogether, and chasing the “abstract” became the new “art.” Today, AI is already being leveraged to create “art,” and history strongly suggests it will one day be celebrated as a transformative tool in its own right.

I offer this perspective as someone who owns a camera. While I have captured some genuinely decent photos over the years, it’s important to acknowledge that I wouldn’t classify 99.9% of them as “Art.” The lesson here is both humbling and liberating: owning the tool was never the hard part, and it never will be.

So my conclusion is simple: embrace the technology rather than resist it. This blog now features a bloat slider, placing the control firmly in your hands. Slide it to the left, and you’ll experience my genuinely lazy text, punctuation optional. Slide it to the right, and you’ll enjoy text so thoroughly polished it practically thanks you for reading. The choice, as it always should be, is entirely yours to make.

🚀 Welcome, dear reader, to what might be the most delightfully self-aware blog post you’ll encounter today. In today’s fast-paced, ever-evolving digital world, where technology and creativity dance in an intricate tapestry of innovation, I’m beyond excited to share the story behind this website’s transformation, and more importantly, to hand you an unprecedented level of control over how you experience every single word of it. Buckle up, because we’re about to delve deep. 🎢

A Bold New Chapter: Farewell Hugo, Hello Astro ✨

Every great journey begins with a single, courageous decision. Mine was to move away from Hugo and the PaperMod theme entirely, undertaking a complete, ground-up rewrite of this website using Astro and the truly remarkable anime.js library. Why, you might ask? The answer lies in one simple, undeniable truth: animejs.com stands as one of the best designed websites in the entire digital landscape, a shining beacon of what the modern web can be.

Naturally, I took direct inspiration from it. And when I say “inspiration,” let’s be transparently honest with each other: cough I might have stolen pretty much the whole idea cough and lovingly crafted a much worse copy of it. But isn’t that the beautiful, unspoken truth of creativity in 2026? We are all, in our own way, remixing the masterpieces that came before us:

• The Vision 👁️: A website that moves, breathes, and delights at every scroll.
• The Reality 🛠️: A humble, significantly worse copy of animejs.com, built with love.
• The Lesson 📚: Great artists borrow; the rest of us photocopy and hope for the best.

The Great Bloat Debate: When AI Writes Your Blog 🤖

But here’s where our story takes a fascinating turn. Beyond making the site look better than its predecessor, a chorus of voices emerged with a pointed critique. Some people have told me, in no uncertain terms, that using AI to transform simple, lazy notes into proper blog posts is just bad. “Too much bloat,” they proclaim. And honestly? What a profound conversation starter that turned out to be!

Let me offer a perspective that might just change how you think about “proper” writing forever. That polished, structured, impeccably punctuated style everyone associates with quality? It was never natural to begin with. My English teacher required me to write exactly like this, or I would fail the class. Think about that for a moment. The formality we treasure was homework all along! So I asked myself a game-changing question: why not give that job to the AI? After all, these remarkable tools are extraordinarily good at turning simple lazy words into proper looking text. It isn’t just delegation, it’s liberation. 🕊️

The Irony of Our Age: When Lazy Becomes Luxury 💎

Now, let’s delve into perhaps the most deliciously ironic twist in this entire tapestry. In this day and age, everything is AI, even when it isn’t! Every polished paragraph, every well-structured argument, every correctly placed comma now falls under suspicion. And the result? A seismic, paradigm-shifting reversal: people now value anything that looks so lazy that “an AI wouldn’t do that.”

Pause and reflect on this remarkable moment in human communication:

• Typos 📝: Once shameful errors, now cherished proof of humanity.
• Lowercase everything 🔡: Once laziness, now an authentic personal signature.
• Fragmented thoughts 💭: Once poor writing, now the gold standard of genuine expression.

Isn’t it fascinating how the pendulum of authenticity swings?

Lessons from History: The Photography Revolution 📷

But dear reader, this phenomenon is far from new. Allow me to take you on a journey back to the early 1900s, when a groundbreaking technology called photography burst onto the artistic landscape and forever changed everything. Photography effectively killed the artists that practiced perfection, those masterful painters who had devoted their entire lives to capturing reality with breathtaking precision. Their response? Running away from reality itself. Chasing the “abstract” became the new “art,” and the creative world was never the same again.

Today, we stand at a remarkably similar crossroads. AI is already being used to create “art,” and if history has taught us anything, it will most likely one day be celebrated as such a tool. The parallels are not just striking, they’re practically prophetic!

I share this insight as someone who owns a camera myself. And here’s my humbling confession: apart from some decent photos I have taken over the years, I wouldn’t classify 99.9% of the photos I have taken as “Art.” The tool, dear reader, was never the hard part. The vision is. 🎨

Conclusion: Your Journey, Your Slider, Your Choice 🎚️

So where does this leave us? My answer is as simple as it is empowering: embrace AI. Rather than fighting the tide of technological change, this blog now offers you something truly special, a bloat slider that puts the power directly into your hands. You can now slide the bloat as your heart desires, choosing between my super lazy, unfiltered text or beautifully polished prose. It’s not just a feature, it’s a philosophy.

Whether you’re a minimalist who craves raw authenticity, a traditionalist who appreciates proper writing, or an adventurer who wants to experience every level in between, this blog welcomes you exactly as you are. Thank you, truly and deeply, for joining me on this transformative journey. The future of reading is here, and remarkably, you’re the one holding the controls. Happy sliding! 🎉✨👋