iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 22/09/2026

Ah, yes. Salad, fresh off the grill.

An overhead sign in a grocery store features “Salad” in big block letters over a large skillet or frying pan in the background.

Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 15/08/2026

Hitting up the Wisconsin State Fair this weekend. Made a little app with the Sporkies and Drinkies entries so I can mark and review stuff I want to try.

A screenshot of the Sporkies app shows the card for Smoked Pork Pierogi sliders marked as “Want to Try.”

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 08/08/2026

I…ate more than one cookie after this.

Apple fitness walk metrics showing 6.41 miles, 790 active calories. 1,053 calories total in 2:03:00.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 07/08/2026

Forgot to take myself off the support alias for a brand drop at work before it launched. My inbox is awash with abuse from folks who didn't win.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 12/07/2026

When it's your niece's first time in the big city, you do the Hello Kitty Cafe.

Overhead shot of a brownie and a Hello Kitty iced cookie.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 07/07/2026

Second day in a row I've gone this far. Not gonna lie, it hurt a little today.

Screenshot showing metrics from an outdoor walk in Apple Fitness. 7.71 miles in Chicago over two hours. 73 degrees, 65% humidity. 57 AQI.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 19/06/2026

Shipped my first App Clip for PolitiCall today! Posting to mark it. More to come. 😉

An App Clip card for PolitiCall. The image has a captiol dome against a blue gradient. Text reads “PolitiCall: Find Your Reps. See who represents you.” with a View button.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 11/06/2026

Folks at work didn't realize how much I had dropping this week. For our new agency brand launch party, we also put together a trivia challenge. Made a little web app that dropped questions throughout the day, showed a leaderboard, helped us raffle off some prizes. I'm…sleepy.

A screenshot of a trivia challenge. The prompt reads “This Chicago-headquartered airline giant and Golin Ketchum client has been flying in Chicago for nearly 100 years. What is the original name of the first Chicagoland airport they were primarily operating out of in the late 1920’s?” Options are Orchard Field, Chicago Municipal Airport, Midway, or Gary.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 10/06/2026

A while back I said I got to make a Pac-Man clone at work, but couldn't say why. Today, Golin becomes Golin Ketchum. Part of our new brand identity is a device that's not quite a G, not quite a K, but a lot like Pac-Man. 😉

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 31/05/2026

Did a late walk, tears streaming from sinus congestion. Chicago, the sky is pretty tonight. And the bunnies? Fuzzy. The picture, I mean. OK, probably the bunny too.

A fuzzy shot of an equally fuzzy bunny bouncing down the boulevard.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 28/05/2026

We probably have very different approaches to A/B testing screenshots….

A Candygrams screenshot showing an orange heart reading “we love farts” against a lighter orange gradient background.

A Candygrams screenshot showing a red heart reading “Fries B4 Guys” against a red gradient background.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 28/05/2026

I'll stop if someone tells me it's creating more trouble for the review team, but I like to leave a nice note when I submit app updates. Doing some deck clearing before WWDC.

A screenshot from the App Store Connect “Notes for Reviewers” field reading “Hi there! Thanks for taking the time to review this app. It's been a while since it had an update, but proud of the way it's adopted Liquid Glass and more accessibility features. Hope you and the team are gearing up for a great WWDC!”

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 21/05/2026

Folks will say we don't need a web form or an app to handle a media wall in-office. Those folks clearly haven't curated something like that. 😅

A push notification for “Showcased,” outlining a new showcase request for a Miranda Priestly visit.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 24/04/2026

Weather goes above the mid-40s and I’m gonna need new shoes.

Screenshot from Apple Fitness showing 6 hours and 24 minutes of walking workouts, totaling 21.33 miles for the week.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 22/04/2026

Deleted the post where this didn’t upload. Silly little pizza button has brought me joy at the office today.

An emergency pizza widget. Press button, instant delivery.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 14/04/2026

Scenes from a walk after Deep Dish Swift Day 2.

A giant inflatable space man waves from in front of Masada.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 04/04/2026

You know those beer ads that were cut into Star Wars? This morning my brain was like “Gondor calls for meats,” and instead of the beacon, it’s the big hat-shaped Arby’s sign.

A 1960’s era Arby’s hat illuminated in neon reading “Arby’s Roast Beef Sandwich is Delicious.”

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 12/03/2026

The agency’s Showcase Wall at work is a lot of content to maintain, so I made an app for our internal teams. Showcased generates our monthly anniversary, MVP, awards and client welcome graphics all from a macOS/iOS app made with SwiftUI and SwiftData.

The anniversaries screen of Showcased’s macOS app. A grid of team member headshots, titles, and start years are arranged in sections based on the month they joined.

The Awards tab highlights agency awards, three wins from PRWeek are shown as photo tiles.

The Showcased app icon is a recreation of the office showcase wall with two sets of three screens set on either side of a large center screen.

The Showcase Wall shown in Golin’s headquarter office.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 24/01/2026

Greetings from scenic Hoth.

A screenshot from Carrot Weather showing Chicago at -9 degrees, feeling like -22. Carrot’s text reads “These clouds taste like cotton candy. Earwax-flavored cotton candy.”

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 01/12/2025

I was in Ohio for Thanksgiving and was completely unable to access DMs on Bluesky without a VPN. Scanning an ID feels icky. Especially since there’s no real federal data privacy law in the U.S.

A message saying “You must complete age assurance in order to access this screen.” Followed by instructions on verifying your age.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 20/11/2025

There will be a blog post soon, but new version of PolitiCall dropped yesterday. New design that makes it even easier to find and call your reps. Peep the before/after! My favorite last-minute addition was the screen that shows an ordered ranked list of reps by age. Y’know, for…reasons.

The before view of PolitiCall’s chamber tab. This view shows just the Senate.

The After view has one redesigned tab for all of Congress with reps arranged in scroll views.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 12/11/2025

I've been working hard on a new version of PolitiCall that includes a redesign for Liquid Glass. My hope was to be able to ship immediately after Rep Grijalva was sworn in, but it's not quite in the cards this week. Another weekend's worth of polish though? Bet.

A screenshot of PolitiCall showing a tab for the current Congress.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 28/10/2025

Inevitably I'll post this and then something at work will claim all my free time for the next two weeks, but I got some really good progress in on simplifying and glassifying PolitiCall this weekend. Ditched tabs per chamber for a simpler, unified one. Pics are spring update vs. WIP.

A screenshot of the Senate tab of PolitiCall. Beneath the Senate title and search bar, a series of buttons reminiscent of Apple's Mail app offers to sort by political party. "Show All" is selected. Beneath that, a repeating grid of senators in a two-up grid for each state. Senators appear with their headshots as cards. A thin material overlay beneath shows their name and title.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 25/10/2025

Colder weather, cozier lunch.

A katsu curry rice bowl neatly divided in thirds. Hot curry on the left, thick white rice, and then sliced katsu cutlet. A Diet Coke lingers just out of frame.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 01/10/2025

This is the silliest thing I've made in a bit. It's going into a presentation tomorrow for giggles.

A still from Green Day's "Wake Me Up When September Ends" video. Orange text is superimposed that reads "It's now safe to wake up your Green Day."

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 11/07/2025

Been supporting the return of the Snack Wrap for our McDonald's client. Finally got to have mine for lunch today. Check out what we've been up to at snackwrapfiles.com.

A ranch and a spicy Snack Wrap arranged on a McDonald's tray.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 20/06/2025

Was reading this great recap from @twostraws.bsky.social on a walk and made *such* a sound when I saw "sectionIndexLabel()" at least two neighborhood dogs on the trail were concerned. (I squeed)

Screengrab of Hacking With Swift's "What's new in SwiftUI for iOS 26" the selected portion reads "But in talking to developers, it's interesting to see how smaller features are often more popular, usually because they finally resolve long-standing annoyances with SwiftUI." The first bullet reads "How to add list section index labels."

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 09/06/2025

Right away I notice my button shapes have changed on detail views. I'm going to have a lot of iPad work this summer, but so far I feel like PolitiCall could be a lot worse. (I did a design overhaul in the spring)

The "For You" tab of PolitiCall, showing a list of rep collections. In order, they are "My Reps," "LGBTQIA+ Reps," and "Oldest Reps." Each collection contains a set of of rows of up to four reps, with their headshots shown in a rounded rectangle.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 05/06/2025

Chicago said “June!” 🏳️‍🌈

A rainbow appears to beam directly through the roof of a building.

A rainbow arcs over the Sacramento and Milwaukee intersection.

The same rainbow arcs over the CTA Blue line and nearby buildings.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 03/06/2025

New client work from the agency job. The Snack Wrap is coming back. We’ve got a ton of new stuff for McDonald’s fans to discover soon.

A screenshot showing SnackWrapFiles.com on an iPhone. The modal on the site announces that the Snack Wrap is back July 10

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 02/06/2025

I made two more for PolitiCall earlier this spring! (They’re not amazing, but….)

The icons screen from PolitiCall showing three Pride-focused icons.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 25/05/2025

Today’s lunch? Purple.

An ube mochi donut and a ube matcha boba tea shown on a cafe table.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 27/04/2025

Traffic made me a little late, but we’re here. If you’re at Deep Dish, say “Hey!”

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 29/03/2025

It was 77 degrees after work tonight. So, naturally I walked eight miles. Really though, it feels good to be physically able to do this again. Too bad the seasonal ice cream shops don’t open until next month.

A mural of a giant robot with a big heart looking lovingly at a pet bird.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 16/03/2025

Played some rounds of Giant Uno yesterday. “Giant” is maybe not doing enough. These cards are so large that if you’re having a rough round, you find yourself with a large fan.

The deck and discard pile of a game of Giant Uno. My hand included for scale. These cards are significantly larger.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 15/03/2025

Bad photo because my phone was in my pocket at the wrong time, but HELLO DOG!

A tricycle is enclosed in metal and plastic, looking like a windowed yellow and electric blue shack. A pink electric sign is illuminated on the back door. Barely visible through the rear window, a chubby-cheeked Shiba Inu stares out at the Chicago boulevard.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 12/03/2025

Managed to get a 4.20 mile walk in while Chicago was 70 and sunny yesterday. It felt good.

A piece of public art shown above the grass of Chicago’s 606. A collection of a dozen eyes in different colors—mostly golds and oranges. The largest looks like an owl’s and sits in the center.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 22/02/2025

I don’t think I will ever get tired of that first-run cycle where everything just clicks into place. SwiftData migrated to CloudKit, interactive widgets working across the phone and watch. Let’s gooooo!

A modular Apple Watch face. At 10:02 pm on a Friday, the center complication is a new one for a drink logging app. “Today’s Drinks” shows two Contigo bottles. Were hydrated tonight.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 15/02/2025

Finally got to Sando Street. The tonkatsu has me ready to go back already. The memory that they also serve fruit sandos has me thinking about delivery later. 🥰

A tonkatsu sando (consisting of sliced pork cutlet, cabbage, katsu sauce, and spicy aoili) served in halves in deep compostable tray. A side of sweet potato chips are included.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 19/01/2025

These days if I’m on Facebook at all it’s for a few extended family members who don’t use anything else. Over the last month or AI slop in-feed has been getting worse. Naturally I’ve started screenshotting for the folks who are adamant this is what they want from ad creative.

AI generated post from a Facebook page calling itself “god’s gift.” The post copy is a chain letter for “99 years of good luck.” The generated image alongside it has a human baby lying prone. A second. A second torso extends from the legs, looping up into another set of legs, folded back onto itself.

A Facebook post from “Animal Zone” with the same 99 years of good luck chainletter. The AI generated image shows pregnant woman, her stomach transparent and full of microscopic children. Around her, a sea of babies is walking down a wide road.

A third chain letter post. This time an oversized head peers at a baby in repose. Like Voldemort rising from a baby’s leg.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 15/01/2025

Grabbed pizza and drinks with a friend tonight. His old fashioned was served smoking. Going forward if the old fashioned isn't old enough to be shrouded in ancient mist/smoke/fog, I don't want it.

An old fashioned served on the raised claw of a tin crab statuette. Beneath the statue, a platter of dry ice releases a shroud of smoke.

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Zach Tarvin @zachtarvin.com · 12/01/2025

Started my birthday with a nice snowy walk to my favorite pie and biscuit shop. Because you celebrate with a sausage gravy biscuit and a side of banana pudding pie, right?