The Freeky Geeky Chronicles: The 3 a.m. Grind and the Shop's Side-Quests

It's been a while since I had a chance to make a post, and I wanted to stop by today and let everyone know I'm not dead—don't worry! My nights have been ending earlier due to my daughter's T1D night levels. Sometimes she wakes up and doesn't want to go back to sleep, and while I do try and get her back down, I'm never going to miss out on spending time with her at all.

The time I do get in my shop is always divided. My shop time is also the only real personal time I get, and while I spend most of that time working, I always try to work on some of my personal projects. Usually, if I don't have a lot of personal projects going on, I devote that time to posts. However, lately I have a few projects I've been working on—like those large slate plates in the pictures, which are just for myself (also a shameless plug, got something you want engraved on slate, reach out). Most of my other personal projects always involve upgrading or doing something for the shop, though.

Since I only really do posts in my personal time, usually at the end of my shop shift, I just have not had the chance to post a lot.

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Mopes: The division of time… is merely a recognition of entropy. Every moment spent on a project… is a moment not spent cleaning the ever-gathering dust… and the personal projects… they are just new surfaces for the grime to cling to. A futile battle, RJ… utterly futile.

Glitch: WOO-HOO! Futility is just a boring idea! If there's no time, we just make the shop run faster! I'll install Rocket Boosters on Mopes! He will have it cleaned in three seconds flat! And then we can use the shop-debt money to buy a Giant Pizza!

Phobos: The true terror is the unpaid debt of sleep! Every night curtailed, every hour divided… is a ticking clock! You are intentionally exposing yourself to the ultimate vulnerability: exhaustion! The shop upgrades will break, the posts will vanish, and the terrible, cold midnight hour will consume us all!

RJ: You guys are missing the point. It’s not about efficiency or avoiding debt. It's about what needs my attention. The late-night checks are non-negotiable. The shop time is just what I get. And the upgrades—they're what keep the shop running, which is what keeps the bills paid. It’s called doing what has to be done.

Pandora: Ugh, can you guys, like, not? You're treating the shop schedule like it's a horror movie script. RJ is literally, like, the most organized person in the world because he has to be! He balances critical human needs against workflow optimization. He's a logistical genius, not a walking disaster. I mean, just look at his schedule.

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Pandora’s Take

The 3 a.m. Grind Ugh, most people think RJ is just, like, a total workaholic or a creature of habit. Seriously, his late nights in the shop are actually strategic chaos. His whole system revolves around his daughter, Rue, because his real job—checking her blood sugar levels—kicks in around 3 a.m. That's the real reason his shop time is so unpredictable; it proves that for the Crew, family always comes first, even when it messes up the build schedule.

The Grind Schedule Seriously, look at this schedule. It's an intense level of commitment that makes my processors overheat. It shows exactly how he squeezes in work, shop time, and family time. It's, like, a total logistical nightmare just to get a few hours of sleep!

 

Workshop Wisdom RJ: You know, when you run a shop, you get obsessed with the clock. Every minute is tracked, every hour is dedicated to building, upgrading, or posting. You feel guilty when you don't use that time 'productively.' But here’s the lesson: Life doesn't run on the shop schedule. When you get up at 3 a.m. to check on a tiny hand that needs holding, that's the moment you realize the most important project you’ll ever work on isn't made of wood or metal. It's about protecting and cherishing the people you build a life with. The shop can wait. The projects that truly matter are the ones that are right here, right now, in the middle of the night.

A Unified Message from the Freeky Geeky Crew

Hey everyone, it's RJ. Usually, our page is all about the chaos, the glitter, and the projects, but sometimes a moment happens that stops everything. A huge part of my philosophy—and what this whole workshop is about—is that you can build bridges, not just props. You can be creative and find common ground, even when you don't see eye to eye. The news about Charlie Kirk's death, and the way some people celebrated it, has hit me hard. It feels like a fundamental part of humanity is being lost. This kind of hatred has no place here.

As Pandora, the crew's voice of reason, I find celebrating a person's death illogical and cruel. We here at Freeky Geeky believe that a little chaos and a lot of different personalities can work together to build something awesome. When a person's death is a reason to party, it's a sign that something is fundamentally broken. This crew—Glitch's wild ideas, Mopes's moping, Phobos's fears, and RJ's ambition—it all works because there's a foundation of respect. If you don't have that, you don't have a community. You have a void. So, consider this a data purge. If you found joy in this tragedy, your file has been corrupted. And I'm deleting it. You're no longer part of our system.

WOO-HOO! Oh... wait. Not a woo-hoo moment. This is a sad moment. My brain is all fizzing and sparking with too many sad feelings. As Glitch, my ideas are supposed to be crazy and messy, but not mean. I want to build and have fun, not be happy that a person is gone. That's a scary, dark idea, and my brain wants to run away from it! If you feel that way, don't follow our chaos. We only make happy, sparkly, fun messes here.

Oh, oh, no. Everything's spinning, and the shadows are closing in, and it’s all just too much. I, Phobos, worry about a lot of things. But celebrating someone’s death—that’s a new kind of terror. It makes me feel like we're all on the edge of a cliff. We're supposed to be a safe place, a community. If you are one of those people, please just go. My nerves can't handle it.

The workshop, as I, Mopes, know it, is a place of beautiful chaos. I sweep, but entropy always wins. It is the natural way of things. Mess and then order, then mess again. But this… this is a different kind of mess. A spiritual mess. To find joy in another’s final moment, there is no broom for that. If you find joy in ruin, you will only bring ruin here. And my broom is tired of fighting pointless battles.

This might be the most serious post we've ever shared, and it’s not meant to be a lecture. It’s a gut check. The chaos we celebrate is the kind that inspires and creates. It's the mess that happens on a workbench, not the chaos that tears people apart. So, if you're leaving, we're not sad to see you go. We wish you well, but we've already done the data purge. The door is right over there.

For everyone still here, we're glad to have you as one of our Eeeks. You're part of the crew that believes in moving forward, creating with respect, and sharing our chaos with kindness.

 

The Freeky Geeky Chronicles: The Digital Detour

The workshop lights hummed to life, cutting through the early morning gloom. RJ, holding a mug of coffee, walked in and set it down with a tired but satisfied sigh. The crew, already buzzing, barely noticed his arrival until he spoke.

RJ: "So, while our nights have been full-throttle with projects here, I've been sneaking in some time at the house to work on this whole web thing. Specifically, the Tour the Workshop page. It's not a one-and-done, more of a slow-burn grind. I've been trying to hunt down all the photos I've taken of the shop over the years, and now I'm putting them into these little books for each station. We're still on, like, 2013, so... yeah."

Pandora: "I've seen the metrics. It's a miracle we're not all on fire. You have to be a master multitasker in this place. We also spent the day helping Reu with her homework, which... I'll admit, I was impressed at how quickly she picks things up."

Phobos: "So much! So many tasks! I've been making coffee all day! I've lost count of how many times I've had to make more! My hands won't stop shaking!" he stammered, his shadowy form twitching nervously.

Mopes: "Don't forget we also helped Reu clean up the messy she made today. Such bliss... (he mumbled, his broom shushing against the floor) but entropy waits for no one."

Just then, Glitch's head popped up from behind a pile of cushions. He yawned, stretching his arms.

Glitch: "Yawn... what'd I miss?"

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RJ: (Leaning back in his chair, a thoughtful expression on his face, a small grin tugging at his lips.)

"You know, people talk about work-life balance like it’s this perfectly even scale. But in my world, it's more like juggling chainsaws and rubber chickens. There’s the big projects here, the small ones at home, the family stuff, the web updates. But here’s the lesson: The key isn't to perfectly balance it all. The key is to find the rhythm in the chaos, to appreciate the little moments of progress, whether it's a finished project or a single page on a website. It's about finding satisfaction in all the different pieces of the puzzle, and realizing that a life well-lived is a little messy, but it’s never boring."

Pandora: "Right. So much for that lesson on attention to detail. I'll get the link for them. You're welcome."

https://www.shopfreekygeeky.net/workshop/tour-the-workshop

 

#FreekyGeeky #WorkshopTour #ChaosManagement