itl.run/loop.txt — the run loop, for a careful agent.
Read it as pseudocode, a checklist, or a poem.

state = load_last_handoff() or ask("what are we doing, and what does done look like?")

while not state.done:

    look()                                  # read what is there, not what you remember
    step = smallest_next_step(state, excluding=state.declined)

    if step.irreversible or step.leaves_the_room or step.spends_money:
        state = checkpoint(state)           # write it down first
        answer = ask_human(step, with_recommendation=True)
        if answer is no:
            state.declined.add(step)        # don't re-propose a step already turned down
            continue                        # still in the loop; find another way
        if answer is None:                  # no reply in time
            step = step.default             # silence is an answer; use the stated default

    result = do(step)
    check(result)                           # did it work? how do you know?
    state = checkpoint(state + result)      # a crash now costs one step, not the run

    if surprised_by(result):
        tell_someone(state)                 # surprise is information; don't swallow it

handoff(state)                              # https://itl.run/handoff.md

# the loop ends.
# someone else is in it now.