• Tuesday, 08/08/23 ** 15:18 What have I learned about planning vacations?

Like refactoring - carefully limit the number of variables you're working with. I was playing a weighted interval scheduling problem - collecting all of these different ideas, determining what might fit in the schedule and what might not, evaluating budgetary constraints - but I hadn't pinned anything down.

1. Establish constraints. What's the vacation budget? Are there any must-see events? When are those happening? How much time do I have off of work? Solidify any plans with friends; you have to be in X place at time Y.
2. Use hard constraints to make a first decision. Book the first thing chronologically - train trip, hostel, flight, etc. Months in advance if possible.
3. Dedicate time every day to booking a couple more things. Taking a break to think about the decision is healthy - take one step at a time. Time spent per place doesn't really matter as long as it fits in your constraints - you can find things to do almost anywhere in the world at any time, really. You can spend those extra days however you'd like. Being rushed is cool too - you can see a city in a couple hours with the right mode of transportation - and can always go back!

Don't stress. Impossible to plan fun things when planning the thing isn't a fun experience - you can't imagine yourself interested when you're stressed about it. Plan a couple of things a day and chill. Don't disrupt your daily routine for it. ** 18:03 Things I need to think about when taking photos:

• Space. For a photo to 'tell a clear message, have a clear story', whatever - for that photo to fit my style, whatever that style is - the photo needs lots of negative space. Subjects need room to breathe.
• Honest expression. I don't want to catch people off-guard, but it's important that people are not posing, or poised, or acted. To take a good photo of someone, I have to talk to them for at least an hour - enough for them to become comfortable with their environment. That's the only way to see someone honestly.
• What's the third one?