2025
Lifetime Checkpoint – Reimagining Key Moments
The goal of this experiment was to visually represent the significant milestones in a person's life, allowing for a quick view of the days between key events.
Context & Objective
This project was born as part of the refactoring of my blog. When adding various navigation sub-elements to the "About Me" section, such as /now and others, I thought it would be a good idea to visually display the important milestones in my life that I wanted to share publicly.
Procedure
Step 1: Wrestling with ChatGPT
My first attempt involved enlisting ChatGPT as my D3 co-pilot. Having not touched D3 in ages, I needed a jumpstart. ChatGPT got the basics right, but the code felt like trying to build a house with someone else's blueprint—fundamentally sound but missing my architectural vision.
Step 2: Claude to the rescue!
When I switched to Claude, everything changed. The code wasn't just functional—it was elegant. Claude seemed to understand not just what I was asking for, but why I was asking for it. With this foundation, I could actually build something that reflected my personal aesthetic and technical standards.
Curiosities
Testing both AI assistants revealed a clear winner: Claude consistently produced more thoughtful, adaptable code. But even the best AI-generated foundation needed significant human refinement. I ended up rewriting roughly 900 lines of code to match my coding philosophy and future-proof the implementation. It was like having an apprentice draft the initial sketches before the master takes over with the fine brushwork.
⏳ Time investment: A surprisingly efficient 6 hours from concept to completion.