2021 Year in Review
This is an excerpt from my journal's annual review which I share with close friends. Links have been added where relevant and some details have been omitted in this version.
I am writing this dispatch from a picturesque cabin in the Great Smoky Mountains and I can’t express how grateful and privileged I am to be in this position. Now that the merriment and partying of New Year’s Eve have passed and my clock now says the year is 2022, I think this is a great opportunity to reflect on the revolution around the sun. 2021 was way better than 2020 - I think we can all agree on that.
Major themes throughout the year were adaptions to the pandemic, expanding my worldview with new travel and experiences, putting my head down and focusing on work, and in general, becoming more comfortable with the idea of adulting.
A "Layover" in Detroit
Since my return to Michigan in September 2020 after joining Whisker, I opted to live in the suburbs to be closer to my office. I disliked living in suburbia and decided to move to the “big city”. In January, I moved to Detroit proper and my first stop was a month-to-month lease in a co-living cooperative. Coming from the isolation of 2020 and the lack of social gatherings or relationships, the co-living concept was a welcome change. The co-op was nice but empty and devoid of the community it promised so I left early. In hindsight, the co-living experience would have improved if I had stayed (perhaps a signal of how things improve and compound over time).
It was the search for a community that led me to Woodbridge, and it became my small corner of the city - a vibrant community filled with young people and elderly alike, with people from all walks of life living in ancient Victorian houses on tree-lined rectilinear Detroit streets. I moved in with 3 random people. Living with strangers is not new to me (multiple scenarios in college) but I enjoyed the lifestyle as I transition out of college and into proper adulthood. It’s amazing to be able to build a sense of community, however small, with complete strangers.
Woodbridge was walkable and neighbors came out on their porches and contributed to a traditional neighborhood feel. However, the freeways built in the 1950s and 1960s cut off the neighborhood from the vibrant core of Midtown. Despite this, I experienced a tight-knit community and a shared sense of ownership, a strong contrast from my 4 months of suburbia between September - December 2020 where I didn’t even interact with a single neighbor.
With the vaccination campaign in full swing by early spring, I rolled into Ford Field in March & April with a sense of relief, gratitude, and appreciation for what people, modern science, and technology can accomplish. Things started to open up again and socialization started again yet I found it very hard to break into the established social groups in the Detroit area. It felt like there were cliques that existed and I very much was an outsider. I focused my attention on new pursuits like rock climbing at Dyno Detroit in Eastern Market, trivia around the suburbs, and mentoring for a local incubator. The idyllic summer was filled with coffee shops, art galleries, and museum strolls. With the respite in making new friends, old friends come out of the woodwork - people I hadn’t seen in years. Backyard barbecues in the pleasant summer months facilitated catching up.
Detroit is a city of contradictions - perhaps most places are. Friends who visited from out of town experienced my driving tour (complete with the “8 Mile” soundtrack) in which we passed the gentrified and blighted areas alike. The Motor City was the birthplace of the American automobile yet poor roads and inadequate public transit exacerbated inequality. For all the wealth in the surrounding areas, little of it propagates to the inner city. The city government has made efforts to clean blight but it is sad to see classic architecture give way to the brightly colored cladding of the “five over ones” and the gentrification they represent. Amidst the change I felt conflicted, at times I felt like an outsider even: a techie urban hipster contributing to the city's gentrification.
Ultimately, the people & community make a place and by late summer I decided it was time to move on. I spent a considerable amount of time & energy searching for a new home and resolved I would depart Detroit by the end of the year. I find it ironic that I started to foster deeper connections and relationships - like my trivia group and new work friends - at the start of the autumn. One foot in, one foot out. Perhaps the realization is that it takes time and investment to make a place home - good things take time to compound. While I cherish what Detroit taught me, I look forward to never braving the Michigan winter again.
A Year of Travel & Exploration
Lack of travel early in 2020, more disposable income, and the monotonous life in Detroit all led me to travel significantly in 2021. With remote work and post-vaccination, my travel plans (sponsored by Pfizer™️) started materializing. Feel free to skip this section as below I go into detail about some of my most meaningful destinations.
I started the year off with a small family gathering along the emerald coast in the Florida Panhandle but I wouldn’t consider it “travel” because it was a small pandemic-style outing (no mixing with strangers, etc). A family visit is also a more intimate affair than my typical itinerary.
In May I flew to the San Francisco Bay Area to visit my best friend and rendezvous with two high school friends I had not seen in 5 years. Trip highlights included spending time in Berkley and Oakland, and some insane hikes at Muir Woods and Point Reyes. San Francisco was very much still in pandemic mode but I had a great time. This trip was much needed I must note that every time I visit the Bay Area, the very visible inequality - the juxtaposition of immense wealth and extreme poverty - leaves me with mixed feelings.
Several weeks later, I spent a week in Chicago with some college friends and explored the allure of living in a true urban environment. The desire to leave Detroit solidified on the drive back from Chicago. My time in the Windy City reminded me that Detroit was too small and I started planning a strategic exploration of potential future homes, which largely influenced travel for the rest of the year.
In August, a quick stay near the Boston Commons sold me the joys of well-planned urban dwellings. I appreciated the vibrant streetscape and wealth of transit options (for an American city). The luxury of a car-free lifestyle meant a 5-minute walk to any cafe, restaurant, grocery, or entertainment. I walked the human-scale streets of Boston, enjoying the proximity of basic amenities promised by a stellar Walk Score. Each nook and cranny had something new to show.
I rounded out the summer with a soiree in Southern California, hitting both San Diego and then Los Angeles. My friend got COVID and so I booked a hostel last minute - my first hostel experience - along the beach in sunny San Diego. The laid-back lifestyle, hostel atmosphere, new friends, and pleasant weather were a boost for my mental health and rejuvenated my soul. A scenic train ride along the beach on the iconic Amtrak Pacific Surfliner led me to the chaos and noise-filled streets of Los Angeles. A week in west side LA really convinced me to narrow my focus to Southern California.
Next up on the West Coast was a week-long excursion into the majesty that is Alaska. I can't recommend it enough. I met my sister and her now fiance (he proposed on the trip) and we did a one-week circuit covering Anchorage, Denali National Park, and the Kenai Peninsula. The immense sense of smallness in front of the glaciers was quite astounding; reminding me of the finitude of life: despite the everyday worry and fears, remember to enjoy the moment because one day it will all end.
My last planned trip to explore a new potential home was to Denver, Colorado. The trip offered an opportunity to catch up with some old friends and explore the iconic Rocky Mountains National Park and Colorado Springs.
In my last month in Michigan, I managed to sneak a weekend trip to Ontario, Canada to visit some distant relatives I met for the first time. I absolutely love the Greater Toronto Area - the cosmopolitan atmosphere, tree-lined streets, and robust transit. As a bonus, I made a pit stop by Niagra Falls and I must say the view is way better from the Canadian side. Canada impressed me with their pragmatic management of COVID-19; everywhere you displayed a QR code - quick, easy, and safe.
As the nostalgia of leaving Michigan dawned upon me, I wrapped up my time in the mitten by exploring what Northern Michigan had to offer. I was able to drive through heavy snow, cross the Mighty Mac to the Upper Peninsula, enjoy a pasty (a local delicacy), and witness a freighter cross the legendary "Soo Locks" in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. The natural beauty akin to a Thomas Kincaid painting made my departure bittersweet.
My last "trip" of the year was nostalgic as I packed up all my belongings in my Subaru Outback and after six years, finally left the state of Michigan and drove back home to Alabama.
Reevaluating relationships
If 2020 was a year of receding, 2021 was a year of evaluating my priorities and the people in my orbit. The saying "you are an average of the five people around you" has some truth to it.
Community is important.
In the ups and downs, whether it's on Zoom with long-distance friends or relatives or simply a weekly meetup with neighbors, community anchors the daily experience. People come from many walks of life and moving to a new city doesn't guarantee community - you have to work to build it.
Intentional relationships are more rewarding than obligatory ones.
Relationships are an investment and can enhance the quality of life if maintained correctly. I don't owe anything to anyone and nobody owes me anything - this is a liberating feeling. One of the hardest things I had to do was let go of past relationships. People who anchored my day-to-day one day and suddenly became nonexistent the next. While it is painful to let go, (at the risk of sounding cliche) I must say that evaluating my priorities forced me to get some clarity on what's next.
Be kind to yourself.
This process of mapping intentionality led to some very tough conversations with myself. With the hustle and bustle, I was forced to reconcile the negative thoughts and perceptions I held about myself. There are a plethora of people ready to dismiss me and my potential - so why add my own name to that list? I learned the difference between debilitating my growth with aggressive, non-constructive self-talk vs. a constructive dialogue with my inner self.
Professional Developments
Challenges lead to growth.
In the backdrop of the moves and travels, work was a good source of stability (mildly ironic considering the constant chaos in my role). My company AutoPets rebranded to Whisker (the culmination of a multi-year process) and I’m happy to report some remarkable things are around the corner. This past year, my software engineering team quadrupled in size with significant hires made in product and design in addition to bolstering our software competencies.
I personally stretched my skillset and learned a lot while juggling multiple roles and responsibilities. In the realm of native cloud development, I picked up paradigms like infrastructure as code which increased delivery time on projects. I also dabbled in different types of serverless databases and kicked off a new greenfield project from scratch for a next-generation product at Whisker (more on this next year).
As the team grows, I find myself wearing the PM hat and making product-level decisions. In the near future, I'll be transitioning away from day-to-day software engineering so that will be an exciting challenge. I have ended the year with onsite work and will continue my role at Whisker remotely moving forward.
Growth can be painful but has silver linings.
Change, even positive change, can stretch and push an organization to the point where it needs to update its process. One of the biggest takeaways for me has been that frustration comes from a source of care & passion and learning to navigate that has been a rewarding experience. This was a valuable lesson as I am sure I will witness these growth cycles in the future too.
There is joy in teaching others.
In May I started teaching a full-stack coding boot camp part-time. I taught my first cohort at Michigan State University and then started my second cohort 2 months ago at the University of Minnesota. My typical student is a retail or service industry professional transitioning into the technology industry. I genuinely enjoy teaching, seeing my students succeed, and transcending barriers that have traditionally prevented upward economic mobility. Besides emotional fulfillment, teaching helped me improve my communication skills and stay up to date on the latest trends. The instructor community is helpful too and it's a great feeling when a former student lets me know they got hired. Ultimately it's one small way I can make a dent in the universe.
Onwards to 2022
As we go into this new year, there are a few key things on my mind.
Human relationships matter.
As I age and become farther removed from the collegiate lifestyle and experience of being surrounded by multiple friends all the time I recognize the power of friendships. This year more than ever, I learned that life is transitory and the people around you can truly make or break a place. If 2020 was the year where I distanced myself from many, 2021 was a year marked with reconnecting and reconciling. I am grateful for my relationships (including those that ended) and look forward to genuine connections moving forward. I am incredibly thankful for my travel companions - their perspectives challenged my worldviews and I cherished their company.
Travel is a privilege and I should travel more.
As we all navigate a world of changing pandemic regulations, travel is a privilege I am grateful for. Travel has allowed me to experience new perspectives, make new friends & reconnect with old ones, and find community in faraway places. I hope to expand my horizons and become awestruck by natural wonders, establish new friendships, and experience new cultures. Stay tuned for travel updates… and if you want me to swing by your way, please give me a shout!
Balancing my health & wellness into my daily routine.
Partially living a car-dependent lifestyle and partially just frustrated with the amount of discipline required to keep my gym habits, I am trying to scale back and focus on the small ways I can incorporate health & wellness. Please share any tips if you have them. What works for you?
Leverage is important.
Fresh off of reading “The Effective Engineer” by Edmond Lau, I am thinking a lot about the concept of leverage - impact per unit of effort - and how I spend my time & resources on various activities. Quite literally, what levers exist or what levers can I create? This is a roundabout analytical way of saying "how can I live intentionally with my limited time on Earth". I don't have all the answers but I am hopeful this concept will guide me in 2022.
Closing Thoughts.
In this day and age, it is a bit foolish to stick to a rigid plan so as I did last year, I will focus on “a strong vision loosely held”. I don't know what challenges or calamities lie ahead but it's not my job to predict the frequency or strength of the waves, just ride them. I know 2022 will bring some new family (my older sister is getting married) but beyond that, I look forward to working remotely and focusing on improving the day-to-day - all these small pieces add up to the big picture.
