Year-end again—time for the yearly recap. This is the second year I’m doing it; I hope I can keep the habit and look back each year.

Timeline

First half was mostly CS fundamentals for the entrance exam: data structures & algorithms, computer networks, OS, and computer architecture.

I ran Arch Linux for two months—bugs everywhere but mostly Googled through. For a course lab I needed MATLAB; every step threw errors and it took three full days before it worked. The last straw was Discord (web and app) not loading—I really wanted Midjourney but couldn’t open Discord, so I switched OS.

I also spent time on the “One Student One Chip” project for a while, but paused because grad-exam prep was tight.

Got through the dull exams of junior spring. The only course worth mentioning was communication modeling & simulation—a passionate, energetic instructor who actually wanted us to learn; exams weren’t brutal (though the final needed a tiny hint from the TA to look decent), grading was fair. If you want to go deeper in comms, that course deserves serious study—I was busy with CS though.

In May (I thought it was later; I had to search to pin it down) Haohao Chen passed away. His writing and words still motivate me. I want to be that kind of programmer; long road ahead—keep going.

Summer I studied harder for the exam—daily study room near home with a childhood friend, even visited his campus once; buildings and cafeteria beat my rundown school.

The month before term I was on 408 and advanced math, prepping seriously. Then the new engineering master–PhD track opened and I got recommended admission. I found an advisor and locked in a thesis topic, then focused on foundations through year-end. Sometimes anxious—limited time, too much to learn—but I kept telling myself the path is right; don’t look back, just walk.

Second half I went home for family matters—over half a month total. The sad parts I won’t detail.

Fediverse

I created an account early this year; heavy use came a few months later—daily life and rants. I moved from defcon.social to o3o.ca to vnil.de before settling. On Fedi I’m more spontaneous, less pressure, and I made friends—happy about that. I’ll keep hanging out there.

Culture

Anime, film, books—all lighter this year; energy went to school.

PyCon China offline

Probably my only event this year—same venue as last year’s open-source meetup, Microsoft tower. Swag, talks, met Manjusaka.

Closing

Looking back, I did grow—I didn’t stall. That’s good; really good.

Next year I want a clear jump in professional skills and to grow faster, faster still.