Preface
This piece is a record and reflection of my life from 2023-03-14 to 2023-03-23.
If it weren’t for xLog’s incentive, I might have skipped this weekly review.
In the past week or so, a series of events unfolded: Nini fell ill, my parents drove to Beijing to pick up the cat (and me), I accompanied them sightseeing (though it was my first time at all the attractions too), met with friends before parting ways, endured a 15-hour cross-city journey, found a new apartment (though it only took an hour to sign the lease), moved and decorated the new place, and started a new job. It seemed as if everything was happening in quick succession, leaving no time to catch my breath.
Perhaps due to my tendency to immerse myself in aspects of work and life that I care about, I often don’t perceive changes very clearly. Even though almost every facet of my life and state of being has changed in less than a week, I only truly felt it when I typed out the paragraph above.
However, not coding for nearly three weeks does make one rusty (and looking at the blank contribution chart is a bit unsettling). I need to get back into the groove. There are still many interesting things to discuss.
Featured in the Newspaper
Perhaps the most meaningful event this week was the publication of an interview with me in the “China Daily · 21st Century English Edition.” It’s not a significant achievement in itself, as it’s not a technical contribution, and I still have a long way to go in various aspects. But for me, it holds a unique significance, or rather, it feels like a curious twist of fate.
In early 2018, as a junior English major, I was in a period of extreme confusion. My attempts to change majors and apply for a minor were unsuccessful, and due to the vast difference in my academic background, I was repeatedly advised against technical positions when interviewing for frontend roles at small startups. They would say, “Your abilities are quite good, but technical positions require a relevant background. Would you consider product/operations roles instead? We can arrange an additional interview.” It seemed I had hit a bottleneck in my self-study, feeling as though I had learned many things without direction but didn’t know how to proceed in the future.
Mustering up courage, I added a computer science major English learning blogger (?) “LearnAndRecord” as a friend to seek his opinion and advice on my choices. Initially, I didn’t have high hopes, but he patiently replied with a lot of information, including specific directions. It can be said that at that stage, he became my biggest motivation to continue on this path.
Later, I progressed step by step - applying to schools, receiving offers, transitioning to coding, and engaging in work I enjoyed. Of course, there were many setbacks and joys along the way, which is quite emotional to reflect upon. Coincidentally, the timing of this publication aligns with my desired move to join RSS3, allowing me to explore future possibilities and lifestyles more freely. It’s like a milestone, telling me that everything before had meaning, that I really did it, and that it was truly worthwhile.
Borrowing the title of a friend’s blog post, “I Shall Sail Far,” there are still many interesting things worth pursuing in the future, and I seem to be at this juncture, neither too early nor too late.
Additionally, after knowing “LR” for so many years, I finally managed to meet him for a meal. I guess that counts as successful fan behavior!!!
Moving to a New Home
The place I’ve spent the most time in these past two years has been at my desk, so I pay a lot of attention to its organization and arrangement. Because there was less than a week between my last day at the previous company and the onboarding for the new job, I only had two days to handle various matters when I returned to Hangzhou. So, I quickly chose a rental place not far from home, signed the lease, set up internet, moved, and decorated - all completed in two days. Although some household items are still missing, it’s a preliminary achievement.
The desk and chair were left by the property management, and I plan to replace them once everything else is settled. I’ll adjust other things gradually! The south-facing floor-to-ceiling windows are really amazing!
By the way, here’s a memorial to my previous desk setup in Beijing.
Moving is quite an energy-consuming affair. This time, I was fortunate to have my parents help with the move, making it relatively smooth overall. I’m quite satisfied with various aspects of the new home.
It also marks my official departure from Beijing, leaving behind a place where I’ve created many memories and experiences. I’ve moved between quite a few cities, and one would think I should be used to goodbyes by now, but it’s still saddening. Wishing all the best.
Nini Fell Ill
Starting from Saturday, Nini suddenly began vomiting. After observing for a while, we immediately took her to the vet for a check-up. It turned out to be a Helicobacter pylori infection. The vet said it wasn’t a major issue, but it would require a period of treatment. We were still quite worried, especially since we had to take a 15-hour car ride back to Hangzhou.
While we were out, I kept checking the home camera, but she was so active that she managed to knock out the mobile monitoring robot’s battery. She seemed fine.
Fortunately, her symptoms improved after taking medication for a day, and her appetite and overall condition recovered later. She was also very well-behaved during the journey.
There’s about a week left in the treatment course. Hoping for a speedy recovery!
She’s officially transformed from a Northern cat to a Southern kitty!
Interesting Things and Objects
Input
Although most interesting inputs are automatically synced to the “Yu’s Life” Telegram channel, I’ll still select a few to list here, making it feel more like a newsletter.
Articles
- ERC 4337: account abstraction without Ethereum protocol changes | by Vitalik Buterin
- Reliable Distributed Systems - An Intuitive Explanation of Paxos - OpenACID Blog
- Cloud Wind’s BLOG: Learning Begins with History
- Surge Ponte Development Notes | by Yachen Liu
- ReLIFE | Back to Seventeen · Tianxianzi
- Some Records of Four Years of Open Source
- GitHub Copilot X: The AI-powered developer experience | The GitHub Blog
Videos
Similarly, I’ve also recorded some interesting videos I’ve watched:
- BAT is Already Outdated, Understanding the New Landscape of Internet Giants in 2023
- GPT-4 Developer Livestream
- The Future of Work With AI - Microsoft March 2023 Event
- Understanding the Silicon Valley Bank Collapse Crisis in One Go
Podcasts
I’ve recorded some podcasts I’ve been listening to:
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