22 lines
2.8 KiB
Markdown
22 lines
2.8 KiB
Markdown
pubdate: Thu Apr 13 05:06:39 UTC 2023
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title: smudge
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slug: smudge
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I made a new piece of (LINK https://github.com/vilmibm/smudge software) . It's a command line piece of art.
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(IMG https://raw.githubusercontent.com/vilmibm/smudge/trunk/smudge.gif a recording of a terminal running the smudge program. a grid of characters in grey turns orange from the top town, eventually dissipating into smoke)
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The software accepts any number of filenames as arguments. each file is then interleaved, character by character, into a grid. the grid of characters is then ignited and the fire spreads downward. characters eventually become smoke particles that float upward and wisp away into nothing.
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You can read about the practice that inspired this project on (LINK https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smudging on wikipedia) .
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I made this program because I wanted something I could run ritualistically. Initially, it was to run on a computer as a way to make it feel like a home. I've been using it, however, as a meditation aid. Before commiting to a potentially stressful task, I get a related text file and then watch it burn away. It's comforting and gives me some space and time to breathe.
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Ritual is important. It can help nudge the brain into certain states. It can provide structure to a day or event which in turn can help focus a mind in turmoil. It provides an intentional space for reflection. I don't get much out of rituals involving physical objects, however. I think living in America my whole life has made me consider many physical goods as a form of (LINK https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=kipple kipple) . This was less true growing up when I lived in a forest since I could wander out and find a weird stick or rock or curious leaf covered in gall; but since then, even if I go out and obtain something from the natural world to use ritualistically, I am distracted by how shallow and capitalist it feels. It's also frowned on to be seen burning things in an urban environment.
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the smudge program is a way to address this for me. Text files feel like special objects. They occur organically and have a shape to them that is incidental, like something from a forest floor. And digital conflagration can't burn down my house. I have found this program to be highly satisfying for its intended end.
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It is written in Go. I have been slowly adding to a tiny "framework" for doing this kind of programming in Go on the command line based on a library I really like called (LINK https://github.com/gdamore/tcell tcell) . If you are interested in that code, you can see it (LINK https://github.com/vilmibm/smudge/blob/trunk/game/game.go on github). I might split it out into its own library. Let me know if that seems useful.
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If you want to download and use smudge, you can get a binary from (LINK https://github.com/vilmibm/smudge/releases/tag/v1.0.0 its release page) for your OS.
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