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From now on, I'm writing all my code on a legal pad first.

[I'm sorry for decreasing the signal-to-noise ratio.] Andre is the man.

i actually write a lot of code on paper, when i'm figuring out how to do something algorithmy or otherwise tricky

I use a prompt (usually python), which amounts to the same: scratch paper. The nice parts one can copy-paste and edit as needed.

Real scratch paper I use only for drawing angles and lines when dealing with geometry.

I recall Donald Knuth stating he programs by sitting next to a big trash bin and writing down all code in pieces of paper, most of which he discards.