Retrospective 2024

What went well

Work. I believe, that in 2024, I was able to perform well and delivered what was expected. We experienced a bit of reshuffling and I'm now reporting to Hydie E. That's fortunate because Hydie and I have worked together on many things and have a lot of common ground. That makes having honest communications very easy. In our last performance review, I was told that I've had an, overall, positive impact not only on our techincal requirements but also on the people I've had a chance to work with. I continue to feel good about where I am, doing what I do, and working with the same people.

Life. 2024 was full of activities with Heidi— we've done so many things, been to a lot of places, and eaten very good food. As I've been saying in the blog series that I started (but never finished), travelling to Thailand and to Singapore was an amazing experience. I think, that I've now overcome my fear of flying. We have just actually come back from Japan where we spent 10 days between Tokyo and Osaka, and visiting several other prefectures, towns, and cities in between. But that story is for the 2025 retrospective.

Aside from that travel abroad, Heidi and I travelled by land to several places as well— primarily in Central and Southern Luzon. I guess that's when we started falling in love with Pampanga where we returned several times for staycations and gastronomic adventures. People who say that Kapampangan food is probably the best aren't kidding— still, nothing beats Melmac's pinakbet but that's another story...

What can be improved

Balance. I started missing doing the old creative stuff last year. But I didn't really act upon whatever I was feeling about it. Not until early 2025. It was only this year when I took myself back to the market for new hardware. For several weeks, I window shopped for new synthesizers; at first limiting myself to what Korg has to offer, then considering the new stuff from Roland. I didn't get any, though.

I did get an Akai MPC Key 37. Not exactly a hardware synthesizer but a fully stand-alone music production work station. While in 2024, I didn't really "make a lot of noise", I am now using the MPC as often as I can. I'm still not at the point where I'm confident enough to post any work online but I'm sure I'll get there.

Drawing. Writing. Not really on the radar right now. I'm at a place where I would rather have real conversations rather than just putting things out there, pretending that people are listening and falsely hoping for feedback. I don't need it anyway. I haven't needed it in a while— the false hope.

Action Items

1. make more noise
2. get an international driver's permit
3. revisit Japan but explore in a car rental

In other areas:

Raquel has been fully paid since August. That has made my cashflow a lot more fluid so I've been able to direct more funds towards savings. By April, I've saved enough to make a downpayment for a house and lot. The developer will start building it by October and, if all goes well, will be ready for occupancy by this time in 2026.

It's going to be awesome!