Localhost is enough at the beginning
Plain localhost instead of custom local domains keeps setup simple while rebuilding muscle memory.
FoundationsPracticeMonorepo
Building Ninja Mountain
Starting from a blank repo and rebuilding web development craft — one small project at a time.
Ninja Mountain·Day 1 — Jun 2025·5 min read
What is this place?
Ninja Mountain is a personal training ground for rebuilding web development skills. I've started shaping it into a local-first development playground — a place where scattered ideas become working projects.
The structure is a monorepo: apps/web for a Next.js/TypeScript frontend, apps/api for a FastAPI backend, packages for shared types and UI, and a public folder for brand assets.
The first foothold
The first goal was simple: get a homepage with project cards loading from an API. That meant wiring Next.js to FastAPI, understanding how the App Router handles server components, and getting the Tailwind v4 @theme system working correctly.
Small loops matter. Edit a file, refresh the browser, see the change, commit the checkpoint.
What connects to what
Every project on this site is a dot. The Training Notes at the bottom of each page record what that dot connects to: which pattern it reinforces, which mental model it sharpens.
The goal isn't a portfolio. It's a visible, growing practice.
“Small builds. Sharp skills. Every project reveals a path.”
A simple framework
◎
Build
Start with one small working thing.
⟶
Connect
Understand what it touches.
△
Climb
Strengthen the pattern over time.
⟳
Revisit
Notes compound. Review them.
Further reading
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Training Notes
What building this project taught me.
The root package.json controls the workspace
From the project root, npm run dev:web starts the Next.js app inside apps/web.
Small loops matter
Edit a file, refresh the browser, see the change, commit the checkpoint.