This is a now page. I will update the page roughly once a month to share where I am, what I'm focusing on, and what I don't do.

It's a beautiful season in Ottawa! The city is so green, flowers are blooming, and the temperature is moderate.

Search for a new (remote) opportunity

It's been 8 months without big trips (very unusual for me, except the COVID period), and the eventless life is likely to continue for a while for personal reasons. Even though I like maintaining daily routines in quietness, the condition also brings me a subtle sense of boredom and dissatisfaction. My freelancing work is also more stable nowadays, which is good and bad. So, I'm now open to work. I genuinely miss the exposure to complex problems and the serendipitous interactions with others in customer-facing work.

5 months of practicing French

I've consistently spent 3+ hours per day in learning French since January, and I think it has been improving at a decent pace. In particular, reading online articles, writing blog posts, and listening to not-too-fast podcasts (like this and this) have become more effortless. Speaking, on the other hand, is still far from conversational fluency. Even though I'm working with an amazing tutor on italki multiple times a week, I'm feeling the plateau, and I definitely need more opportunities to talk with people in the real world.

Failed attempt for sub-1:30 half marathon

This year's Ottawa Half Marathon ended, and I finished in 1:32:02, which was a little slower than my PB. Although it was wet on the race day, the temperature was perfectly cool in the breeze. So, the problem was my pace and the lack of long-distance practice due to the prolonged winter. Honestly, I'm feeling sad and disappointed, but I'll take advantage of the summer weather to stay active and possibly make another attempt in September.