Last update: 11th May 2025
About me
Zak's the name. I like the outdoors - running's my jam - trails and hills are my fav. I can keep a trot all day, more if I'm on a mish. I like to garden too, grow my own food, save a few bob. I do a bit of mountain biking, skiing and paragliding when time, money and nerves permit.
I grew up in Australia, but now reside in the Queenstown Lakes District in New Zealand. Traded the beaches for the mountains. I'm much more at home here. Recently became a NZ citizen and passport holder.
My career has predominantly been in geographic information systems (GIS), surveying, and asset management. In late 2024 I made a significant career shift into installation and upgrades of integrated home smart systems - audio, visual, security, heating/cooling, access etc. It's a new field for me, and I'm enjoying the journey.
I like computery things too - data vis, web building, coding, systematic trading, PKM, linux, de-googling, FOSS, permacomputing. I'm not great at any of them, but they're interesting and I enjoy learning about them.
About the site
I'm fairly new to this web building thing. This is a bit of a testing ground while I learn the ropes. At the moment I am using the zola static site generator and the neocities CLI utility to publish to Neocities. I am simultaneously learning about Linux and the command line on my old laptop, so most of this is built from there.
I don't write many deep things. It's more of a log than anything. And a place to tinker. It's varied, which I guess is a good reflection of who I am. It's nice to have a place to let rip anything I want. I don't expect everything to resonate with any one reader. That's ok. Maybe there's one or two things. I'm always keen to hear from folk via email. Reach out if you want a yarn.
Quick-posts
2025-06-21 17:11
Not sure of best process practices for coding. I can't help but copying files over and over until I've got the code I want, then I come up with some n…
2025-06-21 10:10
Some things I want to self-host on my Raspberry Pi:
FreshRSS
Gitea
Some things I am already hosting:
gmi.zkbro.com Gemini capsule
notes.zkbro.com N…
2025-06-21 10:02
Currently working through the MOTIVATE 21 Day Challenge to get some more movement and strengthening exercises into my routine to fast track some niggl…
2025-06-20 11:17
Trying some coding in public. Found a pub with wifi, decent coffee breaky rolls, and ah a nice dark beer. Also found the library carpark has free park…
2025-06-17 07:04
Winter Solstice coming up on Saturday. Feels like it. Very short days. -3°C yesterday morning. -1°C today. Later in the day it is nice. White frosty t…
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Blog
💡 Self-host something new day 2 - Forgejo
2025-06-24 20:02
Today I've set up a git forge on my Pi. I went with Forgejo because it was under my nose, and it seems ok. I wanted to do this so I could host some mo…
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💡 Self-host something new every day for a week
2025-06-23 18:30
Yeah I'm a sucker for punishment. It's how I avoid doing important, less fun stuff, like studying for an exam I may or may not have coming up in two w…
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🗓️ Weeknote 2025-W25
2025-06-22 16:06
🏃 Ran 12.2km / 124m - Only the one run this week. It was a route I hadn't taken for a while. It winds up the Shotover River through some pretty nice e…
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Mr Robot
2025-06-20 16:23
I just finished watching the Mr Robot series in its entirety for the first time. It took me just under a month for 4 seasons. At 35 episodes, that's a…
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Blogging platform agnostic
2025-06-19 22:27
Note: I wrote this as a gemlog originally at gmi.zkbro.com, so this may be confusing. I've confused myself. Help.
I've found lately that I'm not a ver…
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