digital garden

README.md

@@ -1,13 +1,13 @@
 # Alkamauss garden <img align="right" src="./workspace/apex/static/favicon.svg" alt="logo" height="40" />
 
-a monorepo for the Alkamauss digital garden — my personal site and some projects on subdomains. the _garden_ metaphor is a way of treating the site as something that grows and changes over time, rather than a fixed publication. this is mostly for myself, but kept public so anyone can browse around.
+a monorepo for the Alkamauss [digital garden](https://mauss.dev/posts/digital-garden) — my personal site and some projects on subdomains. this is mostly for myself, but kept public so anyone can browse around.
 
 | workspace                                | description         | URL                         |
 | ---------------------------------------- | ------------------- | --------------------------- |
 | [workspace/apex](./workspace/apex)       | the digital atelier | <https://mauss.dev>         |
 | [workspace/content](./workspace/content) | markdown sources    | <https://mauss.dev/help>    |
 | [workspace/favicon](./workspace/favicon) | SVG to favicon app  | <https://favicon.mauss.dev> |
 
-contributions aren't expected, but issues and discussions are welcome. each workspace has its own readme with more details.
+contributions are not expected, but issues and discussions are welcome. each workspace includes its own readme with more details.
 
 unless otherwise specified, code is under [MIT](./LICENSE) and content is under [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).

workspace/apex/src/lib/components/Piece.svelte

@@ -26,11 +26,16 @@
 	{#if post}
 		<header>
 			<aside>
-				<time datetime={post.date}>{date(post.date).format('DD MMMM YYYY')}</time>
-				{#if post.theme && post.theme !== 'pending'}
-					<span class="separator">❃</span>
-					<span style:text-transform="capitalize">{post.theme}</span>
+				{#if post.theme}
+					<span>a{post.theme === 'essay' ? 'n' : ''} {post.theme}</span>
+					{#if post.theme !== 'essay' && post.theme !== 'reflection'}
+						<time datetime={post.date}>{date(post.date).format('DD MMMM YYYY')}</time>
+					{/if}
+				{:else if post.series?.title === 'The Harvest'}
+					<time datetime={post.date}>{date(post.date).format('DD MMMM YYYY')}</time>
 				{/if}
+
+				{#if post.series}<span>{post.series.title}</span>{/if}
 			</aside>
 
 			<h1>{post.title}</h1>
@@ -90,6 +95,12 @@
 			gap: 0.5rem;
 			grid-auto-flow: column;
 			align-items: center;
+
+			:not(:first-child)::before {
+				content: '❃';
+				margin-right: 0.5rem;
+				color: var(--color-accent-secondary);
+			}
 		}
 	}
 
@@ -409,9 +420,5 @@
 				border-color: oklch(0.4 0.0084 286) transparent transparent transparent;
 			}
 		}
-
-		.separator {
-			color: var(--color-accent-secondary);
-		}
 	}
 </style>

workspace/apex/src/routes/about/+page.svelte

@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@
 	{@html write(
 		"i'm currently clearing my notes and backlog of to-dos — a never-ending task, but i try to keep it manageable. most of it is a dump of my mind that i'm shaping into personal projects; finished MVPs and ongoing projects can be found in [/atelier](/atelier).",
 		'',
-		"my most daunting task right now is building a spec-compliant markdown parser for [Aubade](https://github.com/ignatiusmb/aubade), which is *deceptively simple* on the surface. under the hood, it's a nasty beast of a text format to parse cleanly. i probably should've started with something simpler like JSON or YAML, but i'm already halfway through, so i might as well finish it. the goal is to have a solid foundation for future projects and make it easier to write and share content across my sites (could also be sunk cost fallacy at play, but oh well).",
+		"my most daunting task right now is building a spec-compliant markdown parser for [Aubade](https://github.com/ignatiusmb/aubade), which is *deceptively simple* on the surface. under the hood, it's a nasty beast of a text format to parse cleanly. i probably should've started with something easier like JSON or YAML, but i'm already halfway through, so i might as well finish it. the goal is to have a solid foundation for future projects and make it easier to write and share content across my sites (could also be sunk cost fallacy at play, but oh well).",
 		'',
 		"introspectively, i'm trying to write more often. i'm working on series and collections for [/curated](/curated) while also dumping thoughts into [/posts](/posts). i still love immersing myself in another world through many mediums. it's pretty hard to pour my thoughts and feelings coherently, so there are more drafts in [/reviews](/reviews) than published ones, but i try to keep it up.",
 		'',

workspace/apex/src/routes/help/+page.svelte

@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@
 
 <Piece>
 	{@html write(
-		"**welcome** — you've made port at the harbor of my digital garden, a kind of virtual abode nestled in a quiet corner of the internet. i hope this page can be your guiding compass, should you lose your bearings or wonder where to go next.",
+		"**welcome** — you've made port at the harbor of my [digital garden](/posts/digital-garden), a kind of virtual abode nestled in a quiet corner of the internet. i hope this page can be your guiding compass, should you lose your bearings or wonder where to go next.",
 		'',
 		'the garden is always *under construction*, slowly taking shape as i plant new seeds and tend old growth. in time, whether wandered by many or none, it may become a garden worth returning to.',
 		'***',
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@
 		<a href="/atelier">/atelier</a>
 	</h2>
 	{@html write(
-		"the gallery for my digital garden. it's still sparse at the moment — there are seedlings i'm still tending to behind the scenes; some are just beginning to root, and a few shy ones are waiting for their time to open. for now, these are the ones that have bloomed.",
+		`the "art gallery" section. it's still sparse at the moment — there are seedlings i'm still tending to behind the scenes; some are just beginning to root, and a few shy ones are waiting for their time to open. for now, these are the ones that have bloomed.`,
 	)}
 
 	<h2 id="curated">

workspace/content/routes/posts/digital-garden/+article.md

@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+---
+date: 2025-10-15
+title: Digital Garden
+theme: reflection
+description: on tending a garden as a way of cultivating knowledge and ideas over time.
+tags: [writing]
+---
+
+a garden is, by nature, a place of growth and change. a digital garden builds on that idea — cultivating knowledge and treating your site as something that evolves over time. instead of the linear nature of traditional blogs, it encourages pieces to be interconnected.
+
+just like a physical garden, it's filled with a collection of "plants" that are inherently exploratory. they aren't strictly organized by publication date; some may bloom faster than others, and some may need more time to develop. all of them contribute to the overall ecosystem of the garden.
+
+## ideas
+
+the "plants" in a digital garden are a collection of notes, essays, and articles, all grouped as *ideas*. they aren't required to be polished or complete; ideas can be in various stages of development. this allows for a more organic growth of knowledge, evolving as you revisit and refine your thoughts.
+
+these ideas are interconnected through hyperlinks, forming a web of knowledge rather than isolated entries or chronological archives. this encourages the exploration and discovery of related concepts. emphasis is placed on the process and contextual understanding rather than on polished presentation.
+
+## cultivation
+
+we want the things we consume to also increase our creation, rather than mindlessly scrolling and getting lost in the noise. a digital garden encourages active engagement with ideas, fostering deeper understanding and long-term retention. by collecting insights and "planting" them in the garden, we give shade to our future selves.
+
+> the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. the second best time is now.
+
+the site's structure is more fluid and often reflects the author's mental model. it is a record of thinking processes that invites readers into someone's evolving understanding rather than a finished body of work — a reminder that growth takes time, and ideas too deserve patience and care.
+
+## structural
+
+our brains are powerful, but even they have their limits — especially in this age of abundance, where we often consume more than we create and everything competes for our attention. mindless consumption leads to shallow understanding and forgetfulness, yet even active engagement can overwhelm the mind when information piles up faster than it can be processed. this is where taking notes and "planting" ideas becomes essential.
+
+one of the best things about having an idea that finally *blooms* is that it can now act as the base for other ideas to grow from. the hard part of collecting, organizing, cultivating, and making everything coherent is done. bloomed ideas don't need to be perfect or complete, but they are fully formed thoughts — structured and ready to be shared or linked back to when needed.
+
+## audience
+
+be selfish and write for yourself — for personal growth, for your own satisfaction. a digital garden is a space to explore and develop ideas without the pressure of external validation. it's a place to nurture your thoughts and watch them evolve over time. focus on the joy of creation and discovery, not on how others might perceive it.
+
+> don't waste time chasing butterflies. tend to the garden, and they will come. even if the butterflies never arrive, you'll still have a beautiful garden to enjoy.
+
+anything we create should be for ourselves first; it should be driven by motive rather than incentive. even if no one else ever sees it, the act of creation has its own merit. art without an audience is still art.

workspace/content/routes/posts/fractured-memories/+article.md

@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ most tests for aphantasia involve imagining an apple and describing how vividly
 
 still, i don't know if that counts as "seeing" an image in my mind. when i close my eyes, there's only darkness. i can imagine an apple, but it feels more like viewing a picture on a screen in front of me, like a screenshot. yet i can alter everything about it — from its color to its shape, and even the environment around it.
 
-perhaps i'm overthinking it. from the way i describe things, i might even lean toward hyperphantasia, especially after reading about the [comorbidity of hyperphantasia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperphantasia#Co-morbidity). i'm also not lacking an inner dialogue; i can "hear" and converse with myself without uttering a word.
+perhaps i'm overthinking it. from the way i describe things, i might even lean toward hyperphantasia, especially after reading about the [comorbidity of hyperphantasia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperphantasia#Co-morbidity). i'm not lacking an inner dialogue either; i can "hear" and converse with myself, play and singalong to songs in my head, and also imagine entire scenarios and conversations.
 
 ## acceptance