2025 Reflections and 2026 Goals

Okay, I actually built it in 2024, but I used it a lot this year and had a lot of fun setting up VMs with Proxmox. I keep all of my notes there, a gaming VM, and various media containers too. It may be recency bias, but I installed immich and have had a great experience with it, and even started a photo frame project that has been a lot of fun.

I’m happy I invested in it, and it feels good to have a playground for random server projects or self-hosting shenanigans.

I traveled so much this year, it was awesome. My best friend and I like to do a big trip every year, and this year it was Iceland!

I also went on a roadtrip, camping along the way, for the first time. It has been a long time since I camped, so it’s nice to ease into it as an adult.

This year I continued with existing hobbies, like parkour and flips, but also found some new ones! Letterboxing has been a fun way to spend time with friends carving stamps and getting outside. I also took a synth class and learned about generating noise that sometimes sounds like music. I took an intro to drawing class and started doodling more to try and improve my abilities, and ultimately got some printed as stickers.

I started dating in 2024 and met my current partner this past year. I have a lot of thoughts on dating in the world of apps that maybe deserves a longer post, but I’ve found the best way to think about dating apps is that they are simply a way to meet strangers. You won’t always get along or be looking for the same things and that’s okay. That’s why the cliché advice to “just be yourself” is the best advice. But you need to set expectations that not everyone will like you and that can be hard. It’s only natural to want to be liked, but those emotions can get in the way of being yourself.

Luckily, I eventually learned that, found a partner, and got out with my sanity still intact!