It’s almost unbelievable that three months have come and gone already in 2016. 3 months, 13 weeks, 90 days. 90 fracking days. Time is that paradox where it feels both short and long at the same time. A lot has already happened during that time and yet it also feels like there wasn’t enough time to accomplish things. And accomplishing things is what one usually sets out to do when the year starts. IOW, new year’s resolutions. Everyone has them, yes especially me. And, sadly, like everyone, I quickly veered off the path faster than you can spell supercalifragilistic… you get the picture. I’ll get back to that later.
I’d be lying if the last three months weren’t filled with memories. They were. Sadly, my brain isn’t exactly the most reliable record keeper (we’ve got apps for that!). Thankfully, the Hobonichi Techo (not so fresh from Japan!) helped me keep at least some notes to help me remember for times like this.
January was, sadly, terrible. The best laid plans come to naught when faced with Upper Respiratory Tract Infection and Allergic Bronchitis. Suffice it to say, I practically spent half the month coughing my innards out. Didn’t help that January happens to be one of the busiest months, both for work and at home. Highlights of the month include finishing the latest Book in Dreamfall Chapters (and falling in love with it!) and making a whimsical purchase of an 8-inch Windows/Android dual boot tablet. Maybe I’ll tell that sordid tale some other day.
February is usually associated with love, but it was anything but for me. It’s also the worst time to be depressed (and admit it) because everyone will simply presume it’s related to your lovelife (or the distinct lack of it). There was a lot of struggling involved. At least this was the month I finally got my personal projects in order, enough to actually start one of them. Little did I know what lied ahead. Highlights are few but included catching up with Fairy Tail and, yes, starting top sekrit software project. Oh, and buying the Samsung Gear VR.
Ah March! In stark contrast to February, this was probably the loveliest month. It’s the month I got stuff done, or so I thought. Progress was easy and sweet, which induced a false sense of comfort and confidence. But mostly it was because of friends that I got to hook up with again after nearly a year. Those were really some sweet days. But even, or especially, good things must come to an end and we had to say good bye eventually. Highlights of March include hanging out with the “barkada” and discovering an authentic Nagoya-worthy Miso Katsu nearby.
Well, that’s sort of the Cliff Notes version of the first quarter. But a retrospective (should I call it postmortem?) won’t be complete without “lessons learned”, would it? To prevent this post from being a novella, I’ll just list them out instead.
- I suck terribly at staying on track, whether that be new year’s resolutions, schedules, todos, or promises. I know I share that malady with majority of the human race, but should it be accepted as the norm and an excuse for complacency? I start out well enough and, for a few days, even weeks, it all works out. And then the energy and motivation sizzles …
- Speaking of excuses, I am apparently an expert at making them, to escape the above.
- I need more energy management than time management. Come to think of it, someone said, you don’t manage time. You manage yourself. Exercise and diet. Those two were on my list for this year. Guess what happened (see first bullet)
- Expecting, preparing, and telling yourself there will be challenges is peanuts compared to actually crashing into them. Corollary, I perhaps give up too easily. Again, see point #1.
- I still believe in the merits of open source, especially the technical ones, but, lately, things have rather been painful and poignant for me. Yes, that applies to Linux and even KDE. I now split my time between different worlds, not really feeling at home in either one anymore. On the upside, at least I’m flexible that way. Or so I tell myself.
Lessons learned are pointless if one can’t actually put them into practice. Not that I’m saying I will be able to this month, this quarter, or even this year. But hey, at least that’s better than not having learnt anything in 90 days at all, right?