third year retro

December 2024

highlights:

• skiing the final red with Olivia and listening to RHCP
• stinson Beach with N, J, OB-4 and E
• ICML party on the balcony with Laura, Tim, Rob, Micah, Jelena & many more
• maid of honour speech at R+A's wedding
• running from Coldplay to Shangri-La at Glasto with Aengus
• jumping off a moving bus with Yams at BM
• listening to Usmaan's new beat
• CAIF summer retreat/brunch with fruitflies
• sunset waves on Ipanema Beach with I, A and Co
• CTRL NeurIPs paper push with Jaixin and Caleb (and not understanding timezones)

lowlights:

• getting too blazed with WA
• having an allergic reaction to antibiotics / being ill in Berkeley for 2 weeks
• rejected for the 5th time by GDM
• bombing my OAI interview
• arguments with U

things i've improved on:

• listening to my body
• academic writing
• journaling for myself and distilling my thoughts
• over commiting to work

things i still need to learn:

• take holidays and breaks between projects
• be confident in my ability
• focus in highly stimulating places (such as ant)
• to not be consumed by my work

I've also written some memorable personal blogs this year. I'm going to just put the titles as they feel a bit too intimate to share:

• To Whom I Will Become
• The Path Less Travelled, Again
• An Ode to London
• Rain in Berkeley