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Now

This is my “now” page.  This page tells you what’s going on in my life: What I’m doing, what I’m thinking, what I’m working on, what my priorities are, and generally what’s on my  mind.  This is not a blog post, nor is there a history kept. The intention of this page is to give you a snapshot of what’s going on with me right now.

Updated 22-January-2021

In one sentence

I’m extremely happy to be in New Zealand because my family and I are safe and healthy and I’m making progress on a lot of life goals!

What I’m doing right now

  • We’ve been living in Auckland, New Zealand for almost 10 months now. We arrived here on 28 January, and so far we are loving it!  New Zealand is handling the pandemic especially well, and we are very happy to be in this country that has welcomed us.
  • I love the people of New Zealand. While there has been a lot of craziness in the USA and in Mexico (and pretty much the rest of the world, for that matter), the people of New Zealand are far better people as a whole. I know I’m putting down people in the USA and in Mexico y saying this, but it’s true. New Zealanders are better people as a whole. I’m very happy for us to live alongside them.
  • I’m working for Parallo as an Azure Solutions Architect. The learning curve is steep, but so far I’m loving learning so many things!
  • I’m learning as much as I can about Microsoft Azure and I’m studying to become a certified Azure Architect.
  • I’ve been running a lot this year so far. I run about 5k five times a week. I’m doing it for the health and for losing weight, though I seem to be stuck at 91.5 kg (202 lbs) for several months now.
  • Learning a ton from TikTok! TikTok is amazing if you train the algorithm right an follow the right people. I follow people who teach me grammar, astronomy, astrology and metaphysical mumbo jumbo (some of it’s quite interesting, even it it may not be true!). I learn about surgery, anatomy, and medicine. I learn about auto mechanics, woodworking, bathroom repair, and I learn about welding. I learn how to be a nice person and also about self-defense.  I learn about psychology, and about people whose lives are very different than mine.  I absolutely love TikTok, haha.
  • Amélie has run with me a couple of times, I hope we keep it going for a long time.
  • We’ve finally paid off our credit cards. I’m thinking about how to better invest our money.
  • I’m continuing to take photos. I really enjoy all aspects about it. Check out my photos page.

What I’m Reading and Learning

  • I learn a ton from TikTok, you just need to train TikTok to show the stuff you’re after.
  • I’ve started reading a lot on finance and money and tax themes. I’ve always been lazy about this to my detriment. I intend to catch up.

What I’m thinking about

  • I’m very happy Biden won the presidency of the USA and transferred power peacefully. The USA was really on the brink of insanity. Racists seem to be crawling back under their rock. Hopefully it stays that way.
  • I’m extremely thankful to be a welcomed guest in New Zealand, especially during the pandemic going on. I’m very happy to be here, and I’m happy to not feel like an outcast in a country that has welcomed my family and I. I’m just grateful.
  • Worried for relatives in Mexico and the USA. Our other “home countries”, Mexico and the USA, have mismanaged their response to the pandemic to a huge degree. I’m glad we are not there. I’m very worried for our relatives and friends. I wish we could bring them here, where it’s safe, but that’s not possible.
  • Our cats, Sal and Pepper. It would cost $8000 USD to bring them here. We simply cannot spend that amount of money right now. This is not how we planned things. I do not like to leave them behind.
  • Saying no. Letting go of opportunities I don’t 100% want. If there is a weakness in how I’ve lived my adult life, it’s not being able to say no to opportunities that come my way. When you’re hungry to grow as a person, you have to take any opportunity that holds promise, simply because you cannot choose. If you work hard enough, you’ll get to a point where you don’t need to do this anymore. You’ve “made it”. You’ve achieved enough that you actually have too many opportunities coming your way and you need to choose only the ones that you actually really want to do. I need to do a LOT of work on this.
  • I’m realizing I’m an entrepreneur. A startup guy. I cannot be still professionally. Normal professional life with a job moves too slow for me.

My priorities

Things I’m taking action on. In no particular order:

  • Finding balance. Getting away from the USA was a big part of that. My new job is extremely busy, but even in that case, I’m not slaving to it (nor am I expected to). So with regards to work, it’s about being effective during work hours, and then the harder part is actually being able to hit the brakes and switch attention away from work. I’m making progress, but I’m not there yet.
  • Family. I’m having success in my effort to get away from chasing money for the sake of chasing money.
  • Declutter. I’ve been working on this for some time. Coming to New Zealand and forcing myself to leave things behind was a big part of that. I still have some activities wasting my time, but I’m making progress.
  • Physical fitness. I’m happy to have turned running into a habit, and the next thing I need to do is to eat better. Now that I’m in New Zealand, I’m actually getting medical checkups and monitoring. I’m very happy about my health these days. I’m making progress.

Reflecting on this list of priorities, and seeing how I’m really making progress on all of them, I’m happy with this year. I’m not sure if coming to New Zealand was an excuse to change my life or was merely an excuse, but I’m happy it’s happening.