Archive • Oscar Funes • Buttondown

Release like no one is watching

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a restorative weekend. We returned some items with my wife, and we can finally close the moving...

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. Was this forwarded to you? You can subscribe here! Things I discovered in the past week Thrive in obscurity, a...

Organizational Alignment

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I spent my weekend resting, which made me feel a bit anxious on Sunday. I hope you had a restorative weekend...

Comparison is the thief of joy

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. Today is Memorial Day in the US, so I'm probably walking around the city and enjoying a dog park. I hope your...

Clear Expectations Higher Fun

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. This past weekend, I ran the Bay to Breakers. It was my first race in a long time and my first since living in...

Good Work Takes Time

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. As you read this, I'm exhausted from a weekend spent moving apartments. Hopefully, your weekend was uneventful!...

Divergence and Convergence

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. The Warriors moved to the next phase of the Playoffs, and we spent some time taking our senior dog to a park...

Software Maintenance

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. It's another week, and it's the last of April. We made it! If you have time, I hope you spend your weekend...

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a restorative weekend! We spent the weekend visiting some friends and attending the Cherry...

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. We had some high-temperature days here in the bay the past week, and we enjoyed going for walks and spending...

Long Term Goals

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had an uneventful weekend. Welcome to baseball season! I'll be going to the stadium today. Was this...

Corporate Software Estimates

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a peaceful weekend and were able to relax. This week, we might see the "SF Henge." With the...

First Principles

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. A few friends from Guatemala visited the city for GDC, and it's always nice to catch up and compare experiences...

Engineering Tenets

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. It's been raining here in the Bay Area lately. I had a few walks in the rain. I hope you had a restorative...

Shaping Reality

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a restorative weekend. This week, we had the Daylight Savings Time change in California. Was...

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a good weekend, and managed to restore your energy for the first week of March! Was this...

February 24, 2025

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had an uneventful weekend and managed to rest! I did some rest, and we spend the weekend playing...

February 17, 2025

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. As you're receiving this issue, we're observing President's Day in the US. I hope you had a restorative...

Observations on Ownership

February 10, 2025

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. We're done with the NFL Football season, and the Eagles won the Superbowl. Anyhow, I hope you had a restorative...

Trade-offs of Change

February 3, 2025

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. We're in the middle of an atmospheric river in the Bay Area, so lot of rain for us, stay at home and drinking...

Established Practices

January 27, 2025

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. Last week was a short week for me, and this past Sunday, we had the finals before the Super Bowl. I hope you...

Careers are long-term, and Jobs are temporary

January 20, 2025

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. As you read this, we’re observing MLK Day in the US. I hope you had a restorative weekend or enjoying your long...

January 13, 2025

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. This was my first week back at work, so I spent much time catching up. Between updating meeting invites,...

2024 Year in Review

January 6, 2025

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings and the first issue of 2025! I hope you had a great end-of-year and spent time with your loved ones. While the...

December 16, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. This will be my last newsletter of the year! I'll leave you to rest for the remaining two weeks. We'll see each...

Look into the Future

December 9, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. Was this forwarded to you? You can subscribe here! Things I discovered in the past week In the spirit of gifts...

Community Building

December 2, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. This past weekend was Thanksgiving, and today, if you're looking for tech stuff, we have Cyber Monday offers....

The 20% that matters

November 25, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I’m writing this using the airplane WiFi, hopefully it worked as you’re probably reading this. After a hectic...

The power of optics

November 18, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. As you’re reading this, I’m visiting my home country in a work trip, so a very quick operation. I hope you had...

A time for everything

November 11, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. It's Veteran's Day when you're reading this. I hope you had a good weekend and managed to get a good rest! Was...

Good Stories drive progress

November 4, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. This past weekend, we had the end of daylight saving time, and with that, the "it's too dark to be sitting by...

The hard thing about change agency

October 28, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a restorative weekend, I spent the weekend watching sunsets and seeing the day end earlier and...

What's stopping us?

October 21, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I recently took two days off to spend a long weekend with my wife. I hope you had a relaxing weekend as well....

Progress over perfection

October 14, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. Was this forwarded to you? You can subscribe here! Things I discovered in the past week Tools for Systems...

Can requirements be clear at all?

October 7, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I've been knee-deep in a project that requires my full attention, and I've been lacking proper exercise and...

Why is it hard to keep lights on?

September 30, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. These past couple of weeks, I've been knee-deep in a migration project that has consumed most of my time, so I...

Improve your questions, and help your team

September 23, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings! I've been knee-deep in a migration project and haven't gotten enough sleep. But I do hope that you had a...

Talk is Cheap, show me the code

September 16, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a great weekend, I’m writing this on the Caltrain going back from a comedy show in San Jose. Was...

Consensus as Staff Engineer

September 9, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a good rest during this weekend. Was this forwarded to you? You can subscribe here! Things I...

Reinventing the Wheel

September 2, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I hope you had a refreshing weekend. Also, it's a long weekend here in the US, and I might be enjoying a mimosa...

Does this code sparks joy?

August 26, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. Back with more ideas around tech debt, how you had a restorative weekend! Was this forwarded to you? You can...

Incidents are the friends we made along the way

August 19, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. I've had a few hectic weeks, traveling and having guests over. I think I'm also getting into a rhythm and...

It's not my job

August 12, 2024

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. This week has been pretty chill for a change of pace! I hope you had a restorative weekend, and let's get on...

Show what you care about

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings! Last week, I was out due to some time off in my home country (Guatemala). After some restorative time, I'm back...

Rest Here Weary Traveler

Hello! I’m out this week, as I had some planned vacations with my wife back in Guatemala! Was this forwarded to you? [You can subscribe...

Focus on Strengths

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. It was a cool week, with celebrations and gifts. I always reflect on what I've learned in the past year after...

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. This is my "birthday week," if that's a thing. Regardless, I hope you had a good weekend and managed to rest....

Ship of Theseus

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. The past week has been very hot around North California. I hope the weather is better where you are! And that...

Analysis Paralysis

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. Was this forwarded to you? You can subscribe here! Things I discovered in the past week The Tacit Knowledge...

Influence at Work

Hey! Welcome back to another week of musings. This week was very busy. The org observed Juneteenth, creating a gap in my weekly schedule. But always grateful...