ADHD Homelab

09/27/2026

Uptime Kuma worked great for me… until my homelab grew to the point where “just add another monitor” started becoming a full-time hobby. 😅

I switched to Gatus for YAML-based monitoring, easier bulk changes, smarter alerting, and a setup that fits the way I already manage the rest of the Neon Sanctum.

I also built in n8n + Valkey + ntfy so alerts can escalate in priority the longer something stays down.

If you’re deciding between Gatus and Uptime Kuma, I broke down why I switched and where each one still makes sense:

https://s.adhdhomelab.com/10Mn8

Why I switched from Uptime Kuma to Gatus for scalable, YAML-based homelab monitoring with smarter alerts and less clicking.

09/26/2026

🤖🏠 I may have slightly overengineered checking for updates.

And by "slightly," I mean ChatGPT, Google Sheets, n8n, Home Assistant, and OpenAI TTS are now working together so I don't have to remember to check things manually. 😂

The workflow is pretty simple:

🤖 ChatGPT researches and summarizes things I care about.
📊 Google Sheets stores new updates and acts as a queue.
⚙️ n8n bundles everything together and sends it to Home Assistant.
🔊 Home Assistant announces the updates when the house's notification conditions allow it.
✅ Then Home Assistant tells n8n the announcement was accepted, and only THEN are those updates marked as processed.

That acknowledgement loop turned out to be the most important part.

Sending something isn't the same as delivering it.

I wrote up the entire workflow—including the n8n logic, Home Assistant YAML, webhooks, acknowledgement workflow, troubleshooting, and the mistakes I made along the way:

🔗 https://s.adhdhomelab.com/10N2Y

Turn scheduled ChatGPT research into spoken Home Assistant updates using Google Sheets, n8n, webhooks, and OpenAI TTS.

09/04/2026

🧠⏰ I gave one of my favorite ADHD Home Assistant automations a pretty major upgrade.

The original version used Fastmail + Home Assistant + Alexa to announce upcoming calendar events.

Alexa has now been politely escorted out of this particular automation. 👋😂

I'm now using:

📅 Fastmail → 🏠 Home Assistant → 🤖 OpenAI TTS → 🗣️ Home Assistant Voice

Home Assistant reminds me 1 hour, 30 minutes, 15 minutes, and 5 minutes before an event.

If I'm home, it plays a short attention sound and uses OpenAI TTS to announce the reminder through Home Assistant Voice.

If I'm away, my self-hosted ntfy instance still sends it to my phone. 📱

I even randomized the announcements because hearing the same notification repeatedly is an excellent way to teach my ADHD brain to completely ignore it.

One of them is:

"Plot twist: you have plans." 😂

That's really the philosophy behind this project:

Let the infrastructure handle awareness so my brain can handle action.

I've updated the full article with the new setup and current Home Assistant YAML:

🔗 https://s.adhdhomelab.com/_ObQ

Use Fastmail, Home Assistant Voice, and OpenAI TTS to build spoken calendar reminders that help make ADHD time blindness easier to manage.

09/01/2026

I have a habit of building automations for things I technically could do manually.

The problem is that "check manually" requires me to remember the thing exists. My ADHD brain has declined this responsibility. 😂

So I built a pipeline where ChatGPT researches updates I care about, Google Sheets keeps track of them, n8n handles the workflow, and Home Assistant announces what's actually worth hearing.

The fun part was making the whole thing reliable so updates don't disappear - or repeat until I want to throw a smart speaker out the window.

I wrote up the entire build, including the n8n code and Home Assistant YAML:

https://adhdhomelab.com/chatgpt-n8n-home-assistant-automation/

08/30/2026

My ADHD brain: "I'll remember to check that later."

Narrator: He absolutely would not. 💀

So I automated "later."

ChatGPT finds the updates. Google Sheets queues them. n8n handles the workflow. Home Assistant announces what actually matters. 🧠⚡

Because apparently checking a website was too easy. 😂

See how I built it 👇
https://s.adhdhomelab.com/_OWi

08/07/2026

Personal Projects and Experimentation: You can work on personal projects like spinning up a to-do application (that you may or may not forget about) or running Visual Studio in the browser.

Read more 👉 https://lttr.ai/At3O6

05/09/2026

Virtualization is a cornerstone of a homelab, enabling you to run multiple virtual machines (VMs) and containers on a single physical machine.

Read more 👉 https://lttr.ai/Aq6kp

Explore homelab fundamentals including virtualization, storage, networking, and automation—plus lessons learned from real-world setups.

03/10/2026

Somewhere along the way, a “smart home” turned into a collection of devices politely asking the internet for permission to turn on a light. That works… until it doesn’t. When the cloud hiccups, your house suddenly forgets how to house.

That realization triggered a very familiar ADHD moment: hyperfocus optimization mode.

So I’ve decided to start replacing every Wi-Fi outlet, motion sensor, and contact sensor in my house with Zigbee or Z-Wave versions and connect them all to Hubitat.

Why?

Because local protocols are faster, more reliable, and don’t depend on the internet to do basic things like detect motion or turn on a light. Zigbee and Z-Wave also create mesh networks, which means the more devices you add, the stronger and more reliable the network becomes.

The goal is simple:

⚡ Lights that respond instantly
📡 Sensors that stay connected
🧠 Automations that keep working even if the internet goes down

Is this level of infrastructure overhaul strictly necessary?

Probably not.

But if you’ve ever fallen down a late-night rabbit hole researching mesh repeaters, device pairing rituals, and optimal sensor placement… you understand exactly how this happens.

I’ll be sharing what works (and what inevitably breaks) along the way.

If you enjoy smart homes, homelabs, and the occasional ADHD-fueled tech experiment, follow along and check out what I’m building at:

👉 https://s.adhdhomelab.com/sRA_

Visit cloudflare.com for more information.

03/10/2026

What are good beginner services to self-host? Great starters include: a password manager, DNS/ad blocking, a dashboard/homepage, a file service, a wiki/notes app, and a task manager—stuff you’ll actually use.

Read more 👉 https://lttr.ai/Ao9Uf

03/05/2026

🧠⏰ ADHD + Smart Home = Actually Showing Up On Time?!

Okay but hear me out... what if your HOUSE could be your executive function? 👀

I went down a rabbit hole at 1 a.m. (classic) and accidentally built something that actually WORKS for my ADHD brain — and now I can't stop talking about it. 🐿️☕ (Yes, I used the hyperactive espresso squirrel analogy. No, I don't regret it.)

Here's what I built and why it's kind of changing everything:

⏰ The Problem:
Time blindness is REAL
"One hour" feels the same as "five minutes"
Google's reminders helped... but I wanted OFF the Google train 🚂

🤖 The Fix:
Home Assistant + Fastmail Calendar + Alexa
4 countdown warnings: 1 hour → 30 min → 15 min → 5 min
It actually SAYS the event name (because "event starting soon" is useless anxiety fuel)
No 3 a.m. jump scares (there's a time window condition because I'm not a monster 😂)
Phone notifications via self-hosted ntfy — even when I'm not home

🧠 Why this actually works for ADHD brains:
Converts "2:30 PM" → "15 minutes until Project Sync" (ACTIONABLE)
Removes the background mental math of constantly tracking time
Your brain handles action — the system handles awareness
No shame, no discipline lectures, just good scaffolding 🏗️

💡 Bonus nerd stuff:
Ditched Google Calendar entirely → Fastmail ICS sync
Self-hosted privacy win 🔐
Hit a wild Zenarmor firewall gotcha along the way (the post has the fix!)

Full automation YAML included — just copy, paste, and tweak 🎉

The whole post is packed with real ADHD brain notes, the full Home Assistant automation code, and zero judgment for being the person who needed this in the first place. 💜

👇 Read the full post here:
🔗 https://s.adhdhomelab.com/s4q_

💬 Drop your answer in the comments:
What's ONE reminder, routine, or automation keeping your ADHD brain on track?
Built it yourself? Stole it? Found it at 1 a.m. while fixing something totally unrelated? 👇 Tell me everything.

ADHD time blindness is real. Here’s how I use Home Assistant and Alexa to automate reminders and stay (almost) on time.