Guys, I'm not gonna lie, it's been tough for me to enjoy programming lately. I get bored and distracted way too easily. It's not like I'm laser focused all the time, but I don't suffer from ADHD either.

But yeah, I just can't get into a good creative flow lately. You know, those times where you're cranking away on a project, and you look up, and a couple of hours have ticked by.

Well, that's been missing... And, without it, it's just kinda choppy and mundane, and frankly boring. To be fair, I've always had a few days where my cup of coding motivation didn't runneth over, but this year is definitely worse. So, I thought maybe it's my diet, or message apps pinging me all day, or one too many cups of coffee (that can't be a thing, right?)... And, maybe to some degree those things are an issue.

But what I really think it comes down to is... AI is a kill joy.

Think about it. We don't think nearly as much. We throw in a few prompts and let our AI coding agent of choice do the dirty work. Sure, there's a bit of engineering in there, but I'm a glorified supervisor, doing nothing but code reviews. Worse yet, I'm not even managing a person. I'm managing a bot, like some shady character from a sci-fi novel.

Lost are the days of satisfaction of solving problems, of finding creative solutions, of enjoying the process. I never thought I'd miss Stack Overflow so dearly.

Sure, it's easier, but is it better?

Is it more enjoyable? Is it better for us? No, of course not. But it's a bit like walking to the store instead of driving. Maybe the walk would be better exercise, and clear my head, but ain't no one got time for that.

I dunno guys... I think I need to walk more. I think I need to code more.