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19/06 — 2023
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<h1>
Plain Text Journaling
</h1>
<div class="post-text">
<p>I cobbled together a journaling system with {neo,}vim, coreutils and
<a href="http://www.fresse.org/dateutils">dateutils</a>. This system is
loosely based on <a href="https://www.rydercarroll.com/">Ryder
Caroll’s</a> Bullet Journal method.</p>
<p><a href="https://u.peppe.rs/SpF.png"><img
src="https://u.peppe.rs/SpF.png" /></a></p>
<h3 id="the-format">The format</h3>
<p>The journal for a given year is a directory:</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb1"><pre
class="sourceCode bash"><code class="sourceCode bash"><span id="cb1-1"><a href="#cb1-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">λ</span> ls journal/</span>
<span id="cb1-2"><a href="#cb1-2" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">2022/</span> 2023/</span></code></pre></div>
<p>In each directory are 12 files, one for each month of the year,
numbered like so:</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb2"><pre
class="sourceCode bash"><code class="sourceCode bash"><span id="cb2-1"><a href="#cb2-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">λ</span> ls journal/2023/</span>
<span id="cb2-2"><a href="#cb2-2" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">01</span> 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12</span></code></pre></div>
<p>We can now begin writing stuff down:</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb3"><pre
class="sourceCode bash"><code class="sourceCode bash"><span id="cb3-1"><a href="#cb3-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">λ</span> vim journal/2023/1</span></code></pre></div>
<p>Every month must start with a calendar of course, fill that in
with:</p>
<pre class="vim"><code>:read !cal -m</code></pre>
<p>Your entry for January might look like this:</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb5"><pre
class="sourceCode bash"><code class="sourceCode bash"><span id="cb5-1"><a href="#cb5-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">λ</span> cat journal/2023/01</span>
<span id="cb5-2"><a href="#cb5-2" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="ex">January</span> 2023</span>
<span id="cb5-3"><a href="#cb5-3" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">Mo</span> Tu We Th Fr Sa Su</span>
<span id="cb5-4"><a href="#cb5-4" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="ex">1</span></span>
<span id="cb5-5"><a href="#cb5-5" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="ex">2</span> 3 4 5 6 7 8</span>
<span id="cb5-6"><a href="#cb5-6" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="ex">9</span> 10 11 12 13 14 15</span>
<span id="cb5-7"><a href="#cb5-7" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">16</span> 17 18 19 20 21 22</span>
<span id="cb5-8"><a href="#cb5-8" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">23</span> 24 25 26 27 28 29</span>
<span id="cb5-9"><a href="#cb5-9" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">30</span> 31</span></code></pre></div>
<p>I prefer planning week by week, as opposed to creating a task-list
every day, here’s what I have for the first couple of weeks:</p>
<pre><code> January 2023
Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa Su
1
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
9 10 11 12 13 14 15
16 17 18 19 20 21 22
23 24 25 26 27 28 29
30 31
week 1
done apply leaves
done dload boarding pass
moved reply to dan
week 2
todo reply to dan
todo pack bags
done travel insurance
todo weigh luggage</code></pre>
<p>I start the week by writing a header and each item that week is
placed on its own line. The items are prefixed with a <code>todo</code>
or a <code>done</code> signifier.</p>
<h3 id="form-over-function">Form over function</h3>
<p>Right off the bat, the signifiers look very noisy, Even more so once
we start introducing variety (I use “event”, “note” and “moved”):</p>
<pre><code>week 1
todo apply leaves
done dload boarding pass
todo reply to dan
event fr trip
note weight 68.6</code></pre>
<p>We can clean this up with “abbreviations”
(<code>:h abbreviations</code>):</p>
<pre class="vim"><code>:iabbrev todo ·
:iabbrev done ×</code></pre>
<p>Now, typing this:</p>
<pre><code>todo apply leaves</code></pre>
<p>Automatically inserts:</p>
<pre><code>· apply leaves</code></pre>
<p>You can use <code>x</code> and <code>o</code> as well, but
<code>×</code> (U+00D7, MULTIPLICATION SIGN) and <code>·</code> (U+00B7,
MIDDLE DOT) are more … <em>gourmet</em>.</p>
<p>The other signifiers I use are:</p>
<ul>
<li><code>-</code> for note</li>
<li><code>o</code> for event</li>
<li><code>></code> for moved.</li>
</ul>
<p>Nit #2 is the lack of order. We can employ vim to introduce grouping
and sorting. Select the list of entries for this week:</p>
<pre class="vim"><code>vip " line-wise select inner paragraph
:'<,'>sort " the markers '< and '> are automatically inserted,
" they mark the start and end of the selection</code></pre>
<p>We end up with:</p>
<pre><code>week 1
· apply leaves
· reply to dan
× dload boarding pass</code></pre>
<p>The lines are grouped by their signifiers, segregating todo items
from completed items. Luckily, MIDDLE DOT is lesser than MULTIPLICATION
SIGN, so todo items are placed at the top. The same goes for
<code>o</code> and <code>x</code> symbols, either set of signifiers will
result in the same sorting order.</p>
<p>We can shorten this select-paragraph-invoke-sort dance by setting the
<code>formatprg</code> variable:</p>
<pre class="vim"><code>:set formatprg=sort\ -V</code></pre>
<p>Now, hitting <code>gqip</code> should automatically group and sort
the items for the week under the cursor, moving todo items to the top.
Finding signifier glyphs that suit your sorting preference is a fun
exercise.</p>
<h3 id="syntax-highlighting">Syntax highlighting</h3>
<p>Adding color to items introduces another layer of visual distinction.
In truth, I like to deck it out just because.</p>
<p>First, create a few syntax groups:</p>
<pre class="vim"><code>:syntax match JournalAll /.*/ " captures the entire buffer
:syntax match JournalDone /^×.*/ " lines containing 'done' items: ×
:syntax match JournalTodo /^·.*/ " lines containing 'todo' items: ·
:syntax match JournalEvent /^o.*/ " lines containing 'event' items: o
:syntax match JournalNote /^- .*/ " lines containing 'note' items: -
:syntax match JournalMoved /^>.*/ " lines containing 'moved' items: ></code></pre>
<p>Add highlights to each group:</p>
<pre class="vim"><code>:highlight JournalAll ctermfg=12 " bright black
:highlight JournalDone ctermfg=12 " bright black
:highlight JournalEvent ctermfg=6 " cyan
:highlight JournalMoved ctermfg=5 " magenta
:highlight JournalNote ctermfg=3 " yellow</code></pre>
<p>In my terminal, this is rendered like so:</p>
<p><a href="https://u.peppe.rs/Du6.png"><img
src="https://u.peppe.rs/Du6.png" /></a></p>
<h3 id="habit-tracking">Habit tracking</h3>
<p>While this is not a part of my journaling system anymore, a few
headers and an awk script is all it takes to track habits. My weekly
entries would include a couple of habit headers like so:</p>
<pre><code>week 1 --------------
× wake up on time
× water the plants
spend 7.5 7 10
---------------------
week 2 --------------
· make the bed
· go to bed
spend 30 2.75 6
---------------------</code></pre>
<p>Here, under the <code>spend</code> header in week 1, are a list of
expenditures accumulated over the week. The monthly spend is calculated
with this awk script:</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb17"><pre
class="sourceCode awk"><code class="sourceCode awk"><span id="cb17-1"><a href="#cb17-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="cf">BEGIN</span> <span class="op">{</span>spend<span class="op">=</span><span class="dv">0</span><span class="op">;}</span></span>
<span id="cb17-2"><a href="#cb17-2" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ot">/</span><span class="ss">spend</span><span class="ot">/</span> <span class="op">{</span><span class="cf">for</span><span class="op">(</span>i<span class="op">=</span><span class="dv">1</span><span class="op">;</span>i<span class="op"><=</span><span class="dt">$NF</span><span class="op">;</span>i<span class="op">++)</span> spend<span class="op">+=</span><span class="dt">$i</span><span class="op">;}</span></span>
<span id="cb17-3"><a href="#cb17-3" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="cf">END</span> <span class="op">{</span> <span class="kw">printf</span> spend <span class="st">"eur"</span><span class="op">}</span></span></code></pre></div>
<p>And invoked like so:</p>
<pre><code>λ awk -f spend.awk journal/2023/01
63.25eur</code></pre>
<h3 id="reflection">Reflection</h3>
<p>Journaling is not just about planning what is to come, but also
reflecting on what has passed. It would make sense to simultaneously
look at the past few weeks’ entries while making your current one. To
open multiple months of entries at the same time:</p>
<pre><code>λ vim -O journal/2023/0{1,2,3}</code></pre>
<p>Opens 3 months, side-by-side, in vertical splits:</p>
<pre><code>JANUARY ------------ │ FEBRUARY ----------- │ MARCH --------------
│ │
Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa Su │ Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa Su │ Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa Su
1 │ 1 2 3 4 5 │ 1 2 3 4 5
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 │ 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 │ 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
9 10 11 12 13 14 15 │ 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 │ 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
16 17 18 19 20 21 22 │ 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 │ 20 21 22 23 24 25 26
23 24 25 26 27 28 29 │ 27 28 │ 27 28 29 30 31
30 31 │ │
│ │
│ │
WEEK 1 ------------- │ WEEK 1 ------------- │ WEEK 1 -------------
│ │
> latex setup │ > forex │ - weight: 64
× make the bed │ × clean shoes │ > close sg-pr
× 03: dentist │ × buy clothes │ × facewash
× integrate tsg │ × draw │ × groceries
│ │
│ │
WEEK 2 ------------- │ WEEK 2 ------------- │ WEEK 2 -------------
│ │
× latex setup │ - viral fever │ > close sg-pr
× send invoice │ × forex │ × plan meet
× stack-graph pr │ × activate sim │ × sg storage
│ × bitlbee │</code></pre>
<h3 id="reducing-friction">Reducing friction</h3>
<p>Journaling already requires a solid amount of discipline and
consistency. The added friction of typing
<code>vim journal/$CURRENT_YEAR/$CURRENT_MONTH</code> each time is doing
no favors.</p>
<p>To open the current month based on system time:</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb21"><pre
class="sourceCode bash"><code class="sourceCode bash"><span id="cb21-1"><a href="#cb21-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">λ</span> vim <span class="va">$(</span><span class="fu">date</span> +<span class="st">"%Y/%m"</span><span class="va">)</span></span></code></pre></div>
<p>To open all the months within a 2 month window of today, is a little
trickier. The command we wish to generate is (if today is 2023/12):</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb22"><pre
class="sourceCode bash"><code class="sourceCode bash"><span id="cb22-1"><a href="#cb22-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">λ</span> vim <span class="at">-O</span> 2023/10 2023/11 2023/12 2024/01 2024/02</span></code></pre></div>
<p>And that is where <code>dateseq</code> from <a
href="http://www.fresse.org/dateutils">dateutils</a> comes in handy, for
example:</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb23"><pre
class="sourceCode bash"><code class="sourceCode bash"><span id="cb23-1"><a href="#cb23-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">λ</span> dateseq 2012-02-01 2012-03-01</span>
<span id="cb23-2"><a href="#cb23-2" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">2012-02-01</span></span>
<span id="cb23-3"><a href="#cb23-3" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">2012-02-02</span></span>
<span id="cb23-4"><a href="#cb23-4" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">2012-02-03</span></span>
<span id="cb23-5"><a href="#cb23-5" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">...</span></span>
<span id="cb23-6"><a href="#cb23-6" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">2012-02-28</span></span>
<span id="cb23-7"><a href="#cb23-7" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">2012-02-29</span></span>
<span id="cb23-8"><a href="#cb23-8" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">2012-03-01</span></span></code></pre></div>
<p>This script opens all months within a 2 month window of today:</p>
<div class="sourceCode" id="cb24"><pre
class="sourceCode bash"><code class="sourceCode bash"><span id="cb24-1"><a href="#cb24-1" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="ex">λ</span> vim <span class="at">-O</span> <span class="va">$(</span></span>
<span id="cb24-2"><a href="#cb24-2" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="ex">dateseq</span> <span class="dt">\</span></span>
<span id="cb24-3"><a href="#cb24-3" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="st">"</span><span class="va">$(</span><span class="fu">date</span> <span class="at">--date</span> <span class="st">"2 months ago"</span> +%Y/%m<span class="va">)</span><span class="st">"</span> <span class="dt">\</span></span>
<span id="cb24-4"><a href="#cb24-4" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="st">"</span><span class="va">$(</span><span class="fu">date</span> <span class="at">--date</span> <span class="st">"2 months"</span> +%Y/%m<span class="va">)</span><span class="st">"</span> <span class="dt">\</span></span>
<span id="cb24-5"><a href="#cb24-5" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="at">-i</span> %Y/%m <span class="dt">\</span></span>
<span id="cb24-6"><a href="#cb24-6" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a> <span class="at">-f</span> %Y/%m</span>
<span id="cb24-7"><a href="#cb24-7" aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1"></a><span class="va">)</span></span></code></pre></div>
<h3 id="fin">Fin</h3>
<p>You can find a sample vimrc file here: <a
href="https://git.peppe.rs/cli/journal/tree">cli/journal</a>, along with
a nix flake file to kick things off.</p>
<p>Plain text journaling can be just as much fun as a pen and paper.
Throw in some ASCII art for each month, use swankier signifiers, or
louder syntax highlighting. Don’t expect forgiveness from org-mode users
though.</p>
<p><a href="https://u.peppe.rs/ZCK.png"><img
src="https://u.peppe.rs/ZCK.png" /></a></p>
</div>
<div class="intro">
Hi.
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<p>I'm Akshay, programmer and pixel-artist.
I write <a href="https://git.peppe.rs">open-source stuff</a>.
I also design fonts:
<a href="https://git.peppe.rs/fonts/scientifica/about">scientifica</a>,
<a href="https://git.peppe.rs/fonts/curie/about">curie</a>.
</p>
<p>Reach out at oppili@irc.rizon.net.</p>
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