Olympics 2024

For those who are new to this website, every Olympics I pretend it's a joke to reflect on my own life since the last one, and not the successes and memes of the actual Olympics.

You would think that having one year less between Olympics would mean one year less of accomplishments and adventures. And you would be right. In that time I've only managed to have four employers and two major injuries. It feels like I've been living in the same house for as long as Patty Mills has been representing the Boomers.

Despite all of this, I still made it to Paris... Last year, on a holiday, where I didn't get any medals but I did get to stare whimsically down the Seine from a spot on the Pont Neuf. And just like that evening, it's now time for me to reflect on the shit that's constantly flowing by every time it rains. (Metaphorically).

Life is not a sprint, it's a marathon, but like the Olympics there's actually both and in the past three years I have not won any sprints but I'm doing okay in the marathon, I think.

My family life is a private paradise. I'm married to my best friend, we communicate well, support each other through everything, have our own independent pastimes but also a shared collection of routines and happies that make life worth living.

I've broadened my technical skills across many disciplines, notably architecture, software development, and understanding generative AI. I've contributed to a lot of projects and organisations, as well as my own side projects.

Despite big and small issues affecting my body, I've recovered from injuries and recovered from setbacks during those recoveries, and fought on a daily basis to keep myself from turning forty without actually dying.

I've managed the finances relatively well, mostly by not buying a new house or a new car or a new computer or a new couch in the past three years, and by cancelling Netflix. I did buy a new camera after 13 years of the Canon 500D and that camera did then motivate me to spend many thousands more on holidays and road trips. I did buy new headphones after 16 years of the HD-515s. I did buy a coffee like five times every week, but I never regretted it once.

Creatively I have done more between Olympics. I wrote 75% of a novel in 2022 and then dropped it. I wrote one short story. I don't really like a lot of my photos. I tried DJing again for a few minutes.

I spent more time on video games this Olympics than I can recall any other. Which is not saying much. I finished three games in three years. That's mostly because my house is super cold in winter and at times my wrist has been too sore to write stories or build side projects.

My goals for the last Olympics were: to be vaccinated, on my way to financial independence, travel overseas, live in a house that isn’t cold in winter, and go camping.

I am vaccinated against Covid, flu, whooping cough and tetanus. Did it stop me from getting Covid? Not every time! But the experience was pretty mild and left me only with a weird metallic taste when I snort my nose in the shower.

Retirement finances seem likely to depend more on interest rates than savvy investments, based on my recent history of unsavvy, yet thankfully small investments.

I did travel overseas, and it was amazing. If I'm creative, I can also claim this as living in a house that wasn't cold during Winter, because that Air BNB I booked in Colmar last June was not chill.

I did not go camping. Well, maybe in Hyrule.

The next Olympics are in the USA and maybe my goal should be to make it back there too. Or at least somewhere cool and not in Australia for a while. I'd also like to configure a private GPT agent to make my life easier. Plus make a DJ Mix to commemorate twenty years - or five Olympics - worth of seasonal mix tapes. And maybe this time I will actually go camping properly, as I bought RDR2 last summer sale. But mainly, my goal is to keep steady on the marathon, with maybe some side-quest sprints for a medal along the way. And no breaking…

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