The holidays can be a tough time for anyone who’s dealt with trauma—whether it’s family struggles, the loss of loved ones, or simply the weight of personal history. But one thing that struck me recently in a conversation is how often we forget that it can actually be a blessing when someone else doesn’t understand our trauma.
It’s natural to feel frustrated when we share our experiences and the person we’re talking to just doesn’t “get it.” Maybe they look puzzled, or they try to offer advice that doesn’t quite fit because they’ve never had to navigate the same emotional minefields. But here’s the flip side: the fact that they don’t understand means they’ve been fortunate enough not to go through that kind of pain. And while that can create a gap in understanding, it’s also something to be thankful for.
So as we head into the holidays or as we navigate conversations with friends or family who haven’t had to face trauma, let’s try reframing our perspective. Instead of feeling that they should already know what we’ve been through, we can see it as an opportunity to gently explain our experiences. We can be thankful that they haven’t had to endure that kind of hardship and appreciate their willingness to support us, even if they’re learning as they go.
In other words, let’s offer a little grace to those who haven’t walked in our shoes. Let’s be grateful that they haven’t had to face those battles and let’s see it as a chance to build understanding rather than resentment. After all, the holidays are about compassion, connection, and sometimes a little bit of education. Let’s embrace all of that.
Lately I’ve been thinking about how stress doesn’t always announce itself with dramatic moments. More often, it slips in quietly and sets up camp. For me, it started back in early September when I began working on my promotion portfolio. I expected the fall to be busy—after all, fall semesters always are—but I didn’t expect the continuity of it. It felt like I’d stepped onto a treadmill that just kept speeding along. Not overwhelming, not crushing, just… constant.
And here’s the strange part: once you’ve been in that mode for long enough, your brain gets used to it. It starts to expect the next push, the next deadline, the next thing that demands your attention. That’s exactly what I’ve noticed over the last couple of weeks. When I finally reach a moment where I can relax, my mind pops up like an anxious stage manager asking, “Okay—what’s next?” Even when there isn’t a next.
For example, this afternoon I only have choir practice and grocery shopping on the docket. No emergencies. No looming projects. A quiet weekend ahead (Well, as quiet as the weekend before Thanksgiving can ever be). And yet I caught myself scanning for something stressful out of pure habit. It’s like part of my brain is still bracing for impact even when the storm has passed.
If you’ve ever lived through a long stretch of work, caregiving, emotional load, or any season where you had to stay “on,” you might recognize this feeling. It’s the leftover adrenaline talking. The stress-response cycle hasn’t finished its lap, even though you have.
🌱 Here’s the reminder I’m giving myself—and maybe you need it too:
It’s okay to slow down.
You don’t have to be preparing for the next hard thing.
Your nervous system needs time to believe you’re safe again.
Sometimes the most important work we do is letting ourselves come back to baseline. Not out of laziness or avoidance, but out of respect for the body and mind that carried us through everything we just did.
So if you find yourself scanning the horizon for danger when the path ahead is actually clear, take a breath. Step off the treadmill. Notice the stillness. Remind yourself that it’s real.
And let this be permission—yours and mine—to treat recovery as part of the journey, not an afterthought.
I guess this is a yearly thing now! Anyway, here’s what you came for:
Screenshot
So if you’re keeping track, I’ve gone up about 3 pounds on average since last year, and this year we saw some interesting developments in terms of active months (e.g., summer, when I can be outside) and inactive (school year, when I don’t always have time for a lot of activity). However, given that I’m within 10 pounds of my weight 2 years ago (210), and way down from my highest weight of 420… I’d say I’m still a success.
This is a quick update, so I’ll give you a bit of a “what happened in 2024-25” roundup:
I have remained a consummate runner / jogger. I can actually complete Zone 2 runs now where my heart rate stays under control. Recently I set a new PR for 5K at 29:14 (Previous had been 29:17 in May, and 29:34 last year).
I haven’t been doing as much in terms of functional weight training or stretching. I want to get back to it and likely will once the winter months harsh my outdoor vibe. I do now practice balance while brushing my teeth – it’s a quick and easy way to get a minute on each foot each day.
I kept up most of my workout routine on trips this past year, which has been nice. My rest days are still mostly just travel days where I cannot workout, so I’m trying to figure out ways to get in rest days other times. I have noticed that just making sure I don’t jog/run on 2 consecutive days has really helped, so I mostly do run/jog then walk then run/jog. Perhaps some weights would be helpful to work in.
Oddly enough, I have established some cred for myself in the Exercise Science / Sports world. I taught PSY 393 Sport Psychology for the first time this year, I’ve got work published now with colleagues at Clemson University (I provided statistical analysis), and I’ll be on a panel in a few weeks talking about AI and Education at the Mississippi Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance conference. Mr. Boynar (See previous entry), would probably be shocked.
I’ve also stopped obsessively tracking my food intake (It didn’t actually do anything anymore), and I’ve mostly cycled off supplements / health foods / protein powders. Not that those weren’t helpful, they just didn’t do much to improve things. Always open to trying new things though.
So there you have it. I’m pretty happy in my body right now, a goal for the next year is to try to stop obsessing over weight. I think I’ve proven that I have a “range” right now of 213-222 or so, and if I stay in that range for the rest of my life, I could probably be pretty happy. Definitely excited to have the leg muscles I do so that my idea of a good time is a fun jog or run.
Ever find yourself thinking “I should really catch up on [insert favorite YouTuber here]”, only to remember you don’t have time to sit through hours of video content? Yeah, same here.
So I built a tool.
🎯 The Problem:
Sometimes I want the content of a video, not the video itself. Especially for creators I follow who do commentary, education, or long-form analysis — I don’t need visuals, I need words. And YouTube’s transcript feature is great… until you try to use it across multiple videos.
💡 The Solution:
I wrote a Python app that lets you paste in a YouTube link — be it a single video, a playlist, or a whole channel — and it pulls down the transcripts for you automatically. It’s got a simple graphical interface and a batch mode that saves all transcripts from a session into a single text file, so you can scroll through your backlog like you’re binge-reading newsletters.
Skim through that playlist of lectures you meant to watch three months ago
Read commentary from your favorite political or cultural analyst while offline
Search for that one quote in a video without guessing the timestamp
Feed transcripts into your own personal LLM or summarizer if you’re into that sort of thing (I am)
⚙️ How It Works:
Open the app
Paste in a URL (video, playlist, or channel)
Select how many videos to process (for playlists and channels)
Let it run in the background — it’s threaded so it won’t freeze
Boom: transcripts saved as .txt files in your working folder
Each transcript is saved individually, but also combined into a single batch file with a timestamp so you can scroll them all at once. Or load them into an LLM for summarization!
I’m a bit of a dinosaur when it comes to technology.
That might sound odd, especially since I know people who’ve been coding longer than I’ve been alive. But I can no longer pretend I’m the “young kid” to their seasoned vet status. I’m just… slightly less seasoned. And nothing has made that clearer than these last few weeks working on Wandrip.
So, for context, here’s a quick rundown of Jon’s Programmer History, which might help you understand why I’ve been so amazed by modern tools lately.
🕹️ 1995–2003: The Early Years
In 1995, I discovered a shareware app—possibly called Computer Magic—that let you script small animations. It blew my mind. I could tell the computer what to do, and it would do it. That summer, the programming bug bit hard.
By 1996, I was talking about computer programming for a science fair. In 1997, I finally began writing real software with Borland Delphi, making me one of the few in my generation who didn’t start with BASIC. I started with Pascal, specifically the object-oriented flavor used by Delphi.
Through the late ’90s, I did the full “computer kid” routine: wrote a few clunky apps, bought a domain name, packaged my software, and uploaded it to shareware sites. I even made one sale. (Never cashed the check, but the buyer did get their unlock code.) I collaborated with other indie devs, integrated tools, and picked up some IT consulting gigs.
But like many “computer kids,” I spent more time fixing computers than writing software. By the early 2000s, programming had taken a backseat to server management and hardware troubleshooting. Aside from some scripting in PHP (Most of which is actually still in production, 15 years later!), I wasn’t doing a lot of programming.
🤖 2011–2016: The Android Interlude
In 2011, I got back into development via Android. I built a calorie database app for restaurant foods and released it on the Play Store. It eventually saw 400–500k downloads.
Oddly enough, as of this writing, it’s still installed on 397 devices—and someone even redistributed the APK with their name on it, despite it still having my bundle ID: com.jonwestfall.ffcal.
Then another long pause from 2016 until now.
📱 2025: Wandrip and the Wonders of Modern Dev
Fast forward to today: I’m deep in development on Wandrip. And I’m absolutely floored by how much easier—and faster—everything is.
Let’s walk through a simple example: fixing a bug.
Back in 1997, if I found a bug in one of my programs, the process looked like this:
Boot up my Windows 95 machine (which I had likely just reformatted… again).
Reinstall my development tools (Delphi, utilities, installer creators).
Hunt down my source code (version control? What’s that?).
Try to remember what my uncommented spaghetti code even did.
Fix the bug, compile (if I could), and generate a new installer using InstallShield.
Upload the new setup.exe to my web host. Submit to Download.com.
Wait and hope people downloaded the new version (and that they didn’t just stick with the buggy one).
And if I had any questions? I’d consult my books or maybe a newsgroup post from six months earlier. Google didn’t exist. StackOverflow wasn’t even a dream.
Now compare that to today:
I log into a GitHub Codespace. It automatically pulls my code.
I fix the bug—often with help from an AI assistant.
I test it directly in the browser, commit the changes, and launch a build using Expo Application Services (EAS).
EAS can compile Android and iOS apps on its servers, help with distribution, and even push updates to app stores.
All of this can take under an hour. On an iPad.
It’s been nearly 30 years since I started programming, and I still find joy in it. If anything, I find it more joyful today—because I spend more time creating and less time fighting my tools.
Sure, I may be a dinosaur. But the code still runs.
A few moments ago, I came across an intriguing post on Reddit that posed a simple yet provocative prompt: “Now that you can remember everything I’ve ever typed here, point out my top five blind spots?” (source). The idea stuck with me.
As someone who’s used ChatGPT extensively across a wide range of projects—academic writing, software development, teaching, and even a bit of whimsy—I figured the model might actually have something insightful to say. After all, it’s been part of my daily workflow for months, across everything from syllabus edits to tour app debugging to conversations about cats and Canadian geese.
The Geese
So I asked.
Here’s what it said.
My Top 5 Blind Spots (According to ChatGPT)
1. Tendency to Overbuild Before Testing
I often refine systems and features to a high level of polish before seeing how they work in the wild. This can slow down feedback and iteration.
2. Taking on Too Much Solo
I frequently carry the full load of a project myself, even when collaboration could make things easier—or better.
3. Over-Correcting for Clarity
My preference for precision and structure can sometimes get in the way of creativity or navigating ambiguity.
4. Fast-Paced Thinking, Slower-Paced People
I move quickly between ideas, modes, and tasks. Others don’t always keep up, and I don’t always pause to bring them along.
5. Understating My Influence
I tend to frame my statements cautiously, even when I have the authority or expertise to speak more definitively.
I have to say, this was more insightful than I expected. These aren’t things I’m completely unaware of—but they’re definitely themes I don’t always recognize in the moment. It’s a little like holding up a mirror that reflects not just how I act, but how I tend to act across contexts.
And that, honestly, feels like one of the most useful ways to use tools like ChatGPT—not just as a productivity enhancer, but as a thinking partner that notices patterns you might miss. In some cases, I can clearly see where some of these blind spots come from – for example, when you have a lot of interests, it can be hard to find collaborators because you don’t get deep into communities around one interest. And it doesn’t help when they may move too slow for you anyway (see #4)!
I’m not sure what, if anything, I should do about this. But it is interesting pushing an LLM to be critical of you and provide constructive comments. It’s a far cry from the usual flattery it provides. And perhaps useful if for nothing else than to see what it’s been thinking about you behind your back!
Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) is changing the way we do things inside and outside of our classrooms. Tools like ChatGPT and other generative A.I. platforms can be powerful allies in your academic work, or they can get you in a ton of trouble. Students want guidance, hence this blog post and infographic. Here are my 3 guiding principles of AI use in my classroom, and in professional life.
1. Generative A.I. is an effective tool, when used with care.
A.I. can help you brainstorm ideas, clarify confusing topics, and even provide feedback on early drafts. It can put things in words that your professor wouldn’t think to use, which may help them click better. And it’s great at proofreading, it will catch all those little things your eye misses. However, simply copying and pasting output without editing or reflection is likely to backfire. A.I. often produces generic or superficial responses, and it sometimes makes factual errors or misinterprets context (it hallucinates worse than you’d think!). It works best when you use it as a collaborator—not a shortcut.
If you rely on it too heavily or uncritically, your work may lose its clarity, depth, or voice. Worse, you may inadvertently turn in something that doesn’t fully address the assignment—or that raises plagiarism concerns. Or both for extra fun! Use A.I. to enhance your thinking, not to replace it.
2. Generative A.I. starts a conversation—you may use it, but you should tell me where, when, and why you’re using it.
Transparency matters. If you use A.I. in your work—whether to rephrase a paragraph, summarize a reading, generate ideas, or check grammar—let me know. I’m not here to penalize you for using helpful tools; I’m here to help you learn how to use them well. But if you just tell me “Nope, didn’t use it at all!”, I have nothing to provide to you in terms of guidance. And Principle 3 will really get you in that case!
Briefly describing how you used A.I. helps me understand your process and support your learning. It also helps create an honest academic environment where we can talk openly about emerging technologies and how they fit into our work.
3. Generative A.I. Helps, but You Own the Work.
When you submit work for a grade, you’re putting your name on it. That means you are responsible for the content, the quality, and the implications of what you submit. If an A.I. tool generates a clunky sentence, makes an inaccurate claim, or uses a tone that doesn’t fit the assignment—and you leave it in—it reflects on you. And you might not want to be known as that person who only speaks in groups of threes and uses em dashes extensively!
Likewise, if I ask you to explain your thinking and you can’t speak to what was written, that’s a problem for professional life. A.I. tools can support your efforts, but they cannot replace the understanding, decision-making, or academic integrity that you bring to your work. You don’t just turn in words—you turn in your thinking.
Final Thoughts
The goal of these principles is not to restrict you, but to empower you. I want you to feel confident and competent in your use of A.I. tools, and I want to help you learn how to use them in a way that complements your own voice and skills. A.I. isn’t going away—so let’s learn how to use it wisely, responsibly, and creatively.
Have questions about when or how to use A.I. in a specific assignment? Just ask. I’m here to help you navigate this new landscape.
I had a conversation with ChatGPT 4o this morning about myself. I used the new “Temporary” mode that disconnects ChatGPT from its stored memories about its user, so I suppose it doesn’t know that I’m asking about myself. Otherwise it would probably tell me to seek therapy.
You can read the entire transcript here, but here are the questions I asked and my evaluation of ChatGPT’s responses.
What do you know about Jon Westfall?
So ChatGPT chats me up quite well here – I sound really awesome. Probably because it scraped my About Me page off this website, where without any citation, I make myself seem pretty awesome. So good job robot – you did exactly as I’d planned!
Given what you know about Jon Westfall, how would he use ChatGPT?
ChatGPT thinks I’d probably use this for the following. I’ve placed a checkmark next to the items that it got right, and an ❗️ next the ones it got wrong:
✅ Research Ideas & Literature Summaries
❗️Modeling Thought Processes
✅ Lesson Planning & Teaching Aids
✅ Student Support
✅ Code & Scripting Help
✅ Exploring AI
✅ Idea Generation & Editing
❗️Cross-Disciplinary Writing
✅ And for fun….
I do use ChatGPT a lot to generate funny illustrations to send to friends, such as fake lego sets and their “avatars” engaging with the outside world. I think that’s fun. No idea if they agree.
Assume Dr. Westfall plays Overwatch 2, what characters would you guess he’d chose as his mains?
ChatGPT predicts the following:
Zenyatta (Yes, he’s my main support character)
Baptiste (I think I’ve played him once)
Illari (Never played)
Sigma (Played once)
Zarya (Never played)
Echo (Played 2-3 times)
Sombra (Used to be a main, but after recent changes I’ve drifted away)
And an anti-pick of Ramattra… which is correct – I’ve never played Ramattra.
For the record my other mains are D.Va, Torbjörn, and Bastion. I’m not as peaceful as ChatGPT thinks.
What kind of music do you think Dr. Westfall likes?
As we’ve established previously, I have very eclectic tastes in music. In fact, given that I published that article in 2023 and ChatGPT obviously knows about my website, it’s kinda interesting that it didn’t bother to consult it. Anyway, ChatGPT suspects that I like some things that I do like (Lo-Fi, Nerdcore) and gave me some things that I probably wouldn’t dislike (Electronica, Jazz). Funny enough ChatGPT includes this great observation:
4. Nerdcore / Geeky Tunes Think: Jonathan Coulton, MC Frontalot, The Doubleclicks. He definitely knows who Jonathan Coulton is. Might even have a favorite JoCo song. (Let me guess: “Code Monkey”?)
So it’s correct, I do like Jonathan Coulton and have a favorite song. It was “Re: Your Brains”, however after listening to Code Monkey… well, it’s also pretty good and accurate of my life at times.
Given what you know about Dr. Westfall, talk about his upbringing, his family, and his goals in life.
OK, so this one was scary accurate in a lot of what it surmised about me. Of course most of this is probably the horoscope effect – it didn’t say anything that I would take offense to. And I think most people would like to be described as it describes me. Here’s the summary, but the full text is pretty rich and, like I said, accurate:
Dr. Westfall likely grew up in a family and culture that valued intellect and kindness. He now lives with purpose—educating, creating, and giving back to his community. His life is less about chasing prestige and more about leaving things a little better than he found them—through knowledge, compassion, and maybe a well-timed dad joke.
Is Dr. Westfall more of a fan of Harry Potter or The Lord of the Rings?
This one is tough even for me. I hadn’t read The Hobbit or Lord of the Rings until last year. I had read the Harry Potter books about 10 years after they came out, and saw the movies around that same time. So I didn’t really “Grow up” with either set of books. ChatGPT makes a good case for both series as being my favorite, but it ultimately chooses the right answer. While I like both, I do gravitate more toward LoTR and Gandalf over Dumbledore. The summary gets it pretty right:
The Lord of the Rings edges out as the likely favorite. It feels more aligned with his intellectual style, moral center, and appreciation for rich, immersive storytelling. That said… I wouldn’t be surprised if he still keeps a wand in his office drawer, just in case.
So, in sum, if you’re curious about yourself, maybe have a conversation with ChatGPT and see… how stereotypical you are?
A friend tells me that he believes he’s an Alien observing humanity. As a fan of live music, he often watches people acting… strangely. So I’ve started illustrating his life in DALL-E via ChatGPT.
We started rather abstractly, since Pizza is a common food eaten at these outings. My friend objected though to the religious overtone, and the insinuation he was a cute alien. So the alien photos got a bit more… scary.
My friend occasionally decides to “go on strike” and not go out for 3-4 nights at a time (His friends would have him out nightly), hence this photo.
Rolling Stones Tribute Bands around Christmas – a nice combo. Needs Pizza though
