An apology
For the readers of this tiny and niche blog, I apologize for baiting you with my proposed daily posting scheduling. It’s been 22 days and I’ve returned from the dead. Part of this blog is for me to document what I’ve been up to and where I want to go. So let me just sum up what I’ve been up to.
School
The last few weeks were definitely a grind. Problem sets, group projects, and final exams. I’d like to attribute my inactivity on this blog to this combination of heavy hitters but then again that would just be an excuse. All things considered, I am satisifed with what I’ve been able to accomplish this semester. My big focus this semester was to meet more people. I did this pretty successfully: meeting smart and cool hackers at various hackathons, stressing with new and old friends at pseting sessions, and talking with a bunch of senior friends I met this year. Also got to hang out and really get to know my blockmates. Late night eats with Kev, Derek, Eric, and Max were a hallmark of this semester. I found my favorite food on campus: Felipe’s Quesadilla’s. These quesadillas are truly remarkable and a work of art. The hot crispy exterior paired with the soft, smooth, and cool interior comes together to confuse yet delight. Jefe’s flops in comparison
On top of this I took two hard-hitting CS classes: CS124 and CS181. I definitely could’ve been a better student but overall pretty happy with how things turned out. I like algorithms and prove them, surprisingly so. I’ve always told myself that I’ve hated proofs and more of the theoretical aspects of CS. I learned that a large part of this hatred stemmed from a fear I had of algorithms and inexperience in this area of CS. Taking this class has taught me how to get out of my comfort zone and deal with it. As for CS181, it was fun and I learned a lot about machine learning. Would’ve probably been a better experience if I knew some statistics beforehand but I got some value in learning how to learn rapidly.
Some other stuff: played a bunch of basketball this semester and got some of my old skills back, started biking some more this semester, and went to an MIT documentary (thanks Daniela!) that was fun.
Personal Development
Had a lot of personal development this semester. I stopped running away from “complicated” (i.e. blockmates fighting) situations and learned to embrace and help solve the problem. I also learned this semester to truly relax and have fun at times. In addition, I’ve learned to just embrace and live in the moment.
What’s Next
I’ve been itching to get to this part because I’m excited! Currently on a flight to SF and watching Anthony Bourdain. Part of this blog is inspired by him. Specifically I was on another flight watching an Anthony Bourdain episode and realized just how powerful words (and being able to put words together) is. Anthony has a way of describing food that ties it into a story, a larger context. He is also able to instill his words with the slightest bit of mystery that hangs readers at the edege of his tongue. I will admit that watching the delicious food in his episodes while starving on this flight is probably not a good idea.
I’ve been learning smart contract security. Smart contract security is expansive; there are intricacies everywhere that you have to look out for. There’s also a reassuring (but also daunting) amount of information out there regarding the topic. I’m currently looking at the basics and also gathering a guide for my learnings. Will keep at it. Goal here is to be good enough to contribute to open source contracts and then freelancing.
I also want to start contributing to open source Web3 projects. I believe that Web3 is the future and with the recent crash of crypto, I think its the best time to enter the space and build something valuable and useful and not just because of the hype.
This summer I’m also working for a stealth startup with a really smart and talented team. I will admit that I should’ve taken an one week break before starting to just hang out with friends but its been a lot of fun so far. I’ve never worked at any other company besides Amazon, let alone a startup in its early stages. It’s a completely different experience. I can move a lot faster and do a lot more. I also am more responsible for my work and projects. This is stressful at times but very satisfying. I’ve always wanted to found a startup and these past two weeks have been formulative in cementing that desire. This combination of satisfcation, feeling of accomplishment, stress, constant push to do as much as you can, and the responsibility feels natural and what I was missing at Amazon. I also realize that there is a lot that I can and will learn from the other members of the team who are mind-blowingly talented. Excited to see where this takes me!
In my free time, I’ve also been slowly building an inspiration folder and doing LeetCode problems.
PS
I think a lot of this blog post will sound rushed and disorganized. A large part of this rush and disorganization is because I wanna get back to my book. I know that in my previous (and only other post) I mentioned that these posts will be causal and will have a general IDGAF tone. That still holds true but I think it’s important to put out good work that is as fun for me to write as it is for you to read. Another reason is that I think the reason why I didn’t want to edit my work (as mentioned in the previous post) is because I’m afraid of critisizing myself and pointing out the flaws in my writing. Going over and editing my work will get me out of my comfort zone and make me a better writer.