Okay, so let me tell you about this thing that happened recently. Felt kinda weird, but good weird, you know? Like being high on balloons, but without, well, the actual balloons and stuff.
It started a few weeks back. I was feeling pretty blah. Just dragging myself through the days, felt like nothing was really clicking. Work was work, evenings were just… scrolling, watching stuff, not really doing anything. Felt like I was stuck in mud.
Getting Hands Dirty
Then, last weekend, I dunno, something just snapped. I saw this old box of electronic bits I’d bought ages ago. Motors, sensors, wires, the whole deal. Planned to build some stupid little robot arm, never got around to it.
So, I just dumped it all out on the kitchen table. Total mess. My partner looked at me like I was crazy. Didn’t even have a clear plan, just started connecting things. Trying to remember stuff I learned ages ago.
- Plugged in the power. Nothing.
- Swapped some wires. Still nothing.
- Tried a different controller board. Smoke! Okay, maybe not smoke, but that definite ‘uh oh’ smell.
- Went back to the first board. Read the dusty manual online (on my phone, balanced on a mug).
Spent basically all Saturday just fiddling. Getting frustrated, thinking ‘why am I even doing this?’. Went to bed annoyed.
The ‘Lift Off’ Moment
Sunday morning, got up, had coffee, and just stared at the mess again. Almost packed it away. But then I saw this one connection I hadn’t tried. A really obvious one, actually. Felt dumb for missing it.
Plugged it in. Uploaded some basic test code I’d written late Saturday night. Held my breath.
And the damn thing moved.
Just a little servo twitching back and forth. Nothing spectacular. But man, seeing it actually respond after all that hassle? It was like a switch flipped in my head. Suddenly, I wasn’t tired or bored anymore. I was buzzing.
Seriously, it felt like my chest got lighter. Like all that ‘stuck in the mud’ feeling just evaporated. I spent the next few hours just making it do different things, adding another motor, making them move together. It was clumsy, jerky, nothing impressive. But it was mine. I made it work.
That’s the feeling. Like being high on balloons. Just this giddy, floaty feeling because I pushed through the crap and made something happen. Didn’t solve world hunger, didn’t make me rich. Just connected some wires and made a little robot arm twitch.
But yeah. Felt damn good. Better than just scrolling, anyway. Still kinda riding that wave now, actually. Maybe I should build stuff more often.