🍂 2026 Year End Reflection

The year is coming to a close, so I'm writing this in November since I know December is a wash for me anyway.

🔋 Resting Firmware Update 1.0

In my last blog post, I wrote about being a bit lost on how to rest. Now that I've been working through it, I've found a few things that have started helping me.

🛋️ Therapy

Therapy initially felt like I was just talking to someone else and not getting what I needed. After several therapists, I think I found one that clicks, and one who works with a modality that helps me make sense of my rants and frustrations, and gives me clarity on how my brain works and thinks.
It took a while. Like many people say, shopping for a therapist is a job in itself, always having to restart from zero. Trusting in that process helped me more than I thought, and I'm glad it slowly paid off.

One important thing I learned was the connection between logic and emotion for me. I know resting is productive. I've written about it, and it makes logical sense. But there was a disconnect between my body and my mental state that I didn't realize I had: I really had to mean it.

Otherwise, knowing something is about as useful as knowing that water is wet. That fact only goes so far until you actually feel water and know what it means to be in it.

If you don't connect the emotional part, then the idea of rest is kind of meaningless, less fulfilling, or not as satisfying. That disconnect probably comes from feeling burnt out, which I happen to know well, and figuring out how to reset was probably the most important and humbling life skill I needed to work on.

I'm not saying I've developed the perfect rest formula. In fact, I'm actually still working on it, so this is just a small firmware update. A work in progress, and more learnings to come in my 30s.

🌱 Life Updates

🎮 Gaming, but more relaxing

I replaced competitive CS2 with something more relaxing. I played a ton of Forza Horizon 6 and then eventually bought myself a Nintendo Switch 2.

Playing Pokopia

This worked for me. I'm still playing this game because it's low stakes, with high dopamine daily hits from completing an activity, finding a Pokémon randomly, or just straight up building whatever I want. It combines Minecraft with Animal Crossing in the best way possible.
The fact that it's completely handheld has removed so much friction. No more going down to my gaming setup just to turn it on, scroll through my Steam library, and realize I don't want to play anything.
There's just something effortless about picking up a handheld and sitting on the couch with my significant other and my furry animals, playing a game.

👋 Reconnecting with friends

Making the effort to see friends more. As we get older, we end up doing other things. Friends get busy, some are starting families, others are moving or growing their careers. Things get busy, and it's hard to stay connected sometimes since we no longer have gaming as our way of staying connected.
Reconnected with a friend in Taiwan after 15 years. It was surreal to see his growth, where he is now, and what he's been up to. Hopefully I'll be going back to see him again soon.

🩻 Physical pain

I'm still having issues with my back despite conservative methods with physio and seeing a physiatrist, and the imaging has come back with empty results. I'm visiting a pain clinic fairly soon to explore other options.
Ideally, I'd like to resolve this as soon as possible going into 2027, as my physical well-being is probably the most important thing alongside my mental health.

✈️ Travel

We went to Hong Kong and Taiwan, then returned to Japan and did a ton of shopping. I built myself a capsule wardrobe, indulged in made-in-Japan loopwheel cotton t-shirts, and became a pyjama convert after staying at hotels that provided them.

Almost an entire month of just being in a new environment really replenished my motivation and energy.

🏆 Highlights and Wins

📚 Read 14 books this year
🌏 Travelled to Asia to visit Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan
💼 Got let go from my main job (a highlight? is this even a win?)
🧘 Diverted all my energy to my well-being and finally trying to resolve my back pain
🕶️ Wearing rose-tinted glasses, literally, and also bought 2 completely new pairs of glasses outside my comfort zone in Japan, just to try out a new look
💇 Got myself a perm, my hair does not look the same as it did 2 years ago
🧹 Cleaned out my basement (again)
🎶 Doubled our vinyl collection
🏥 Learned Microsoft Fabric and became a proficient data engineer at a hospital
🧖 Went to a spa for the first time in my life and loved it. I experienced cold plunges, hot saunas, dry, wet, infrared... I didn't even know so many different saunas existed

🧠 Lessons Learned

🛌 Wear PJs for sleeping. I didn't realize how much better it is for my skin during the cold winter or in super dry air. I highly recommend double gauze PJs for breathability if you sleep warm, and flannel for lounging. I bought a ridiculous amount from Muji. It's such a great way to reset yourself for relaxation and protect your skin barrier.
⌚ I no longer want a Rolex for my watch collection. I feel like I've grown out of this hobby. Something about it just doesn't click with me anymore, maybe I'm just getting older.
💸 Spend more on convenience and creature comforts. As I get older, the less I care for deals or waiting for something to go on sale. Sometimes the waiting or timing isn't worth it for me, and I've realized my time is just more important than the savings. This isn't to flex, it's just something I've realized as time goes by. I spend the money wisely, but intentionally, to live life the way I want it to be. Examples:
- 🛣️ I take the 407 if I want. It saves me 15 minutes, and a more peaceful drive is way worth it over gambling on the QEW.
- 📦 When I shop, I won't flinch at paying for shipping, because the cost of me going to a store and picking it up might even be more expensive than just having it delivered (especially with a large SUV that guzzles gas).

🎯 2027 Goals

💪 Fix my back in its entirety and get back to the gym 3 times a week
🇻🇳 Visit Vietnam in April, and maybe stop in Singapore or Korea on the way back home
🚗 Take the car out on more road trips
🍿 Go to the movies more often
📀 Expand my 4K Blu-ray collection
🧭 Maybe continue the dual income? Or do something entirely risky and start a business instead. Software engineering jobs feel pretty thin right now with how much AI tools like Claude Code have changed the work, so I might have to reinvent myself again, though I'll admit, reinventing myself is getting a little tiring 🥱