💭 Life

This newsletter brings together and reworks three of my October notes, Build me in public, Putting in the Reps to Ease My Anxiety, and A Note of Thanks.

A disastrous August, out of work again, and reclaiming some empty space.

At 29, I made it to Japan, the dream I had been chasing. But reality often turns out a little different from what I imagined.

After starting work, I returned to Taiwan for two weeks to switch visas. This time I stayed in hostels, returning to my own country like a tourist. Changing visas felt like graduation, with a sense of ceremony before seriously beginning my life in Japan.

A slightly emo diary entry about my fourth week at a new job in Japan after nearly a year away from the software industry, and getting ready to return to Taiwan to sort out my visa.

A Now page I finally made after putting it off for two years: why now, and an invitation for everyone to make one too.

A quick life update, a years-old essay I wanted to share after watching The Return, and what I think about that essay now.

My life in Japan has moved one step forward. It does not feel like reaching the destination in one go, but more like entering the next stage, so calling it an updated save point feels more accurate.

Taipei, Brisbane, Kusatsu, and the fleeting thoughts in between. If I could give a faint smile the moment I step out the door, perhaps that would be my ideal life.

My 2025 annual review and 2026 expectations.

Documenting my life working at Kusatsu Onsen Ski Resort, the feelings of the past month and a half, and the process of slowly getting better.

I didn't live that well, but I was afraid of living well. When I received a message from my mother at Christmas, I finally figured out why I was so afraid.

The Australian working holiday ended in just four months. After going around in a circle, I returned to the original starting point. About why I left early, the change in thinking in between, and a review of this trip.

Having worked in an Australian vegetable and fruit factory for almost two months, labor work, which is at the opposite end of the scale from brain-using software engineers, unexpectedly gave me a lot of insights. This article will share the aspects I hope to pursue in work in the future, such as identity that can be stayed, money that can be saved, easy-to-get-along partners, peace of mind, and accumulating influence, etc.

Being in a foreign land makes the idea of "home" particularly strong, but actually I don't have a "home" to return to in Taiwan either. I might still be able to stay at relatives' or friends' houses, but those won't be my home. In this article, I will share my current imagination of home through self-questioning and answering, and how I hope to pursue my "home" in the future.

I have been in Australia for a full month! I have also been working on the factory assembly line for a week. Turning from a software engineer who could work from home or sit in the office typing on the keyboard, to cutting pumpkins on the factory assembly line until my hands hurt. In this article, I will share the difficulties of finding the first job for a working holiday in Australia, Australia's treasure libraries and pumpkin cutting assembly line work, and question again why I am here.

In the first week on the Gold Coast, Australia, recording the mood after saying goodbye to friends and Taiwan, reflecting on software engineer career burnout, progress of job hunting, and miscellaneous thoughts on arriving in Australia.

A software engineer pressed the career pause button and decided to leave Taiwan temporarily. From career bottlenecks, housing justice to struggles with the original family, this is my true journey of leaving for Australia and Japan to find a different way of life.

A three-day trip to Tokyo chasing stars that I didn't want to go initially, allowed me to detach from daily life, rediscover the vastness and relaxation of the world. Also chatting about Tsubame-yu, Kawazu Sakura and Aimer's concert.

2024 Year in Review, a year where the spring loosened, briefly mentioned what I completed and what I didn't, and my pain. Discussed my expectations for 2025 from life, career, finance, and interpersonal relationships, and decided to take good care of myself before exerting influence.

My Facebook account was suspended without warning, losing all past posts, photos, chat history, and groups. I recorded the incident, lost connections and memories, reflections on social media, and future plans here: ensuring data autonomy, actively managing information sources, formulating social media usage guidelines, and focusing on building small and close communities.

Discussing in detail "Draw Your Own Map" mentioned in the 2023->2024 Annual Review, how the map helped me, how to draw it, and my map version records and current status.

One year after building my personal website, I only wrote six articles. Why didn't I write more? This article records some thoughts during this period and before, including difficulties encountered in writing, mindset adjustments afterwards, and current goals.

2023 Year in Review, discussed my views on annual reviews, last year's insights, decisions, things completed, expectations for next year, and why we should exert influence.

Methodology and mindset about how I build my workout habits as an office workers

About "Why set up a personal website", "why write" and "how to choose the tech stack"

2022 Year in Review

2021 Year in Review

Atomic Habits Reading Notes