https://jollybop.com/field-notes/ Stuff I’m building, breaking, and figuring out. en-us Mon, 07 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://jollybop.com/field-notes/the-number-was-right-the-dashboard-was-wrong.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/the-number-was-right-the-dashboard-was-wrong.html Mon, 07 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 A paper-trading dashboard showed a true number that answered the wrong question. Here is how separate ledgers and different P&L math made the screen misleading. Adam Bonnell Dashboard screwup https://jollybop.com/field-notes/the-five-hundred-dollar-paper-race.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/the-five-hundred-dollar-paper-race.html Mon, 07 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 How the trading lab uses shared and independent fake-money competitions while it waits for qualified signals. Adam Bonnell Paper competition https://jollybop.com/field-notes/why-win-rate-can-lie.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/why-win-rate-can-lie.html Sun, 06 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Why trading evaluation needs expectancy, payoff ratio, profit factor, drawdown, sample size, and costs—not win rate alone. Adam Bonnell Evaluation https://jollybop.com/field-notes/forecasting-without-faking-certainty.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/forecasting-without-faking-certainty.html Sun, 06 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Inflation can move markets, but an inflation forecast is not a Bitcoin trade. Here is how I keep an AI from skipping that gap. Adam Bonnell Agent guardrails https://jollybop.com/field-notes/why-backtests-graduate-to-paper-trading.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/why-backtests-graduate-to-paper-trading.html Sun, 06 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 What paper trading tests that historical backtests cannot: timing, fills, monitoring, conflict handling, and recovery. Adam Bonnell Paper desk https://jollybop.com/field-notes/most-strategies-were-not-ready.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/most-strategies-were-not-ready.html Sat, 05 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 What happened when the trading lab turned online claims into 174 strategy reports and refused to call incomplete ideas winners. Adam Bonnell Strategy testing https://jollybop.com/field-notes/stop-paying-for-the-same-failure.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/stop-paying-for-the-same-failure.html Fri, 04 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 What a costly multi-model evaluation loop taught us about canaries, circuit breakers, and deterministic failures. Adam Bonnell Costly lesson https://jollybop.com/field-notes/i-made-ai-read-the-trading-internet.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/i-made-ai-read-the-trading-internet.html Fri, 04 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 How I used books, papers, videos, websites, Reddit, and trading claims without pretending popularity was proof. Adam Bonnell Research https://jollybop.com/field-notes/what-letta-is-doing-in-my-lab.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/what-letta-is-doing-in-my-lab.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Why I added agent memory without letting AI memory replace the real trading record. Adam Bonnell Agent memory https://jollybop.com/field-notes/from-source-to-testable-strategy.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/from-source-to-testable-strategy.html Thu, 03 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 How an AI research pipeline turns trading claims into versioned, falsifiable, cost-aware strategy specifications. Adam Bonnell Research pipeline https://jollybop.com/field-notes/the-dashboard-is-for-the-human.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/the-dashboard-is-for-the-human.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 How I rebuilt an AI trading dashboard so a human could tell what the agents were doing without reading a database. Adam Bonnell Dashboard https://jollybop.com/field-notes/three-trust-zones-one-lab.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/three-trust-zones-one-lab.html Wed, 02 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 How an AI trading laboratory separates exploratory research, deterministic control, and durable financial records. Adam Bonnell Architecture https://jollybop.com/field-notes/why-the-lab-started-with-fake-money.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/why-the-lab-started-with-fake-money.html Tue, 01 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 I want AI to help me make money. I just don’t want it hallucinating with my bankroll, so it has to prove itself with fake money first. Adam Bonnell Day one https://jollybop.com/field-notes/i-did-not-need-another-chatbot.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/i-did-not-need-another-chatbot.html Tue, 01 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Why I turned a spare computer into a small AI research company instead of one giant trading chatbot. Adam Bonnell AI agents https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-08-22-mary-moore-searight.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-08-22-mary-moore-searight.html Sat, 22 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000 A 955-rated, seven-birdie round earned Adam Bonnell the MA3 win at the 2026 Austin Am Series qualifier. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · 1st https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-07-11-zilker.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-07-11-zilker.html Sat, 11 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000 A 899-rated 51 put Adam Bonnell third in MA3 at the 2026 Austin Am Series Zilker qualifier. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · 3rd https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-06-20-slaughter-showdown.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-06-20-slaughter-showdown.html Sat, 20 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Adam Bonnell led MA3 after a 944-rated opening round and finished tied second at the 2026 Slaughter Showdown. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · T2 https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-04-11-circle-c.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-04-11-circle-c.html Sat, 11 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 A final-hole setback left Adam Bonnell tied tenth at the 2026 Austin Am Series Circle C qualifier. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · T10 https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-04-04-refined-services-launch.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-04-04-refined-services-launch.html Sat, 04 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 How I used AI, client feedback, Jobber, and a small backend to build and hand over the Refined Services website. Adam Bonnell Client build https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-04-02-blanco-river-eyecare-launch.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-04-02-blanco-river-eyecare-launch.html Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000 How I worked with Blanco River Eyecare, used AI to accelerate the build, added a protected backend, and handed over the finished site. Adam Bonnell Client build https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-03-21-roy-g.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-03-21-roy-g.html Sat, 21 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000 A 903-rated +2 round earned Adam Bonnell a tie for eighth in a 35-player MA3 field at Roy G. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · T8 https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-03-19-meinke-family-eyecare-build.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-03-19-meinke-family-eyecare-build.html Thu, 19 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000 How I used AI and client feedback to turn a local eyecare business into a working website preview. Adam Bonnell Client build https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-02-08-nadgt-texas-premier.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2026-02-08-nadgt-texas-premier.html Sun, 08 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000 Two 900-plus-rated rounds preceded a difficult final round for Adam Bonnell at the 2026 NADGT Texas Premier. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · 15th https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2025-09-21-austin-am-finale.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2025-09-21-austin-am-finale.html Sun, 21 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Matching 876-rated rounds put Adam Bonnell tied 11th at the 2025 Austin Am Series Finale. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · T11 https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2025-08-02-sprinkle-valley.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2025-08-02-sprinkle-valley.html Sat, 02 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000 A 68 put Adam Bonnell in a tie for fourth at the 2025 Austin Am Series Sprinkle Valley qualifier. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · T4 https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2025-07-12-zilker.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2025-07-12-zilker.html Sat, 12 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000 Adam Bonnell competed in MA2 at Zilker, shooting +1 in the 2025 Austin Am Series qualifier. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · 7th https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2025-06-08-met-center.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2025-06-08-met-center.html Sun, 08 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000 A +2 round tied Adam Bonnell for 11th in a 30-player MA3 field at the 2025 Met Center qualifier. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · T11 https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2024-06-01-gauntlet-circle-c.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2024-06-01-gauntlet-circle-c.html Sat, 01 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000 Adam Bonnell finished tied eighth in MA3 at the 2024 Throwing Down the Gauntlet at Circle C. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · T8 https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2022-12-18-seven-swans.html https://jollybop.com/field-notes/2022-12-18-seven-swans.html Sun, 18 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0000 Adam Bonnell’s PDGA tournament record began with an MA40 division win at Seven Swans a-Swimming in 2022. Adam Bonnell Disc golf · 1st