What I’m Up To Now
Last Updated: 2025-11-19
Work
In November, Roboflow and I parted ways. I’m glad to have gained a new perspective on computer vision use cases and wish the team the best of luck.
Through the experience, I gained a better perspective about what I value and what I want out of my next role:
- I want an advocate that challenges me with large problems and the task of “go figure it out”.
- I want to be able to lead and coach. I enjoy strategizing, building a plan, and orchestrating the work to accomplish a much larger goal more than being 100% responsible for the implementation.
- I think I enjoy product work more than data work. That doesn’t mean that I don’t like data work - I just see it as a means to an end to power effective internal automation or product development.
- I want to work with teams that value long-term thinking and take pride in crafting well-built, intentionally-designed solutions.
- I do my best work when I’m deeply connected to the people I’m working with and invested in them as individuals, inside and outside of work. Relationships matter a lot.
I’m open to new roles, so if my experience and interests seem like a fit, please reach out!
Travel
In October, my wife and I visited Italy for 2.5 weeks. We traveled from north to south by train, stopping in Venice, Florence, Rome, and Naples. Overall, the experience in Italy was pleasant.
Naples itself (not Capri or the Amalfi coast) felt the most authentic and charming of all the regions, despite our many tour guides along the way that were surprised we were heading there and warning us that it was “wild” and “rough”. The Venice Biennale for Architecture was probably my favorite surprise of the entire trip. Walking around in Rome and just seeing ancient history alongside modernity was surreal. In general, the art in Italy was incredible and sparked so many new ideas for me to work on.
However, it felt like a large portion of Italy catered far too much to the swarm of tourists. I eventually got exhausted with the Italian food and other cuisine options were more difficult to come by (I’ve never really had that happen on a trip). Since we had been in European countries many times before, I think Italy didn’t quite come with the wonder and amazement, but rather “regularity” - a very privileged thing to say. I came away feeling that because many Americans have their first overseas experience in France or Italy, they experience a lot more wonder in those areas which comes with a bit of nostalgia. As with every international trip, I took daily notes in my Remarkable to relive and remember my excursions down the road. I’ve done this for the past 4 years and think it’s finally time to start revisiting them for insights and comparisons.
As I update this, I’m on my first ever Amtrak ride going to my first ever BGG Con - Fall Edition.
- I’ve gone to the spring convention for nearly 10 years, so it will be interesting to compare the two.
- I’ve been on plenty of trains around the world so I’m curious how the experience will compare.
What I’m Thinking About
In general, I’m trying to plan out what I want for myself in 2026 and beyond. An idea I’m floating is to optimize my time for “enjoyment-based income” by the time I’m 40. Thoughts so far:
- Since July, I’ve played drums for three different improv shows - “Villain”, “An Evening With…” and “U.S.S. Improvise”. I’d love to continue playing for more groups and have a long-term goal of getting to play with Zach and Jess of Offbook, so if you have any opportunities - please contact me!
- I’m interested in taking a stab at wedding gigs. I think it would be fun to play music more for some side income.
- I may take up assistant teaching for some improv classes.
- I want to start my own musical improv troupe with monthly shows and a full marketing plan for building up a social following.
- I want to start creating and posting music online. Small jingles, full songs, you name it.
- I want to create a few smaller modern art pieces! My favorite idea that borders on kitschy is creating 3d art pieces with dice.
So many options, so the main thing is just starting, seeing what sticks, and what sparks the most enjoyment.
Other Activities
- Still running a weekly board game meetup at Pinthouse Brewing in South Austin.
- Continuing with level 3 of musical improv classes.
- Auditioning for local improv shows when the chance arises
- Enjoying some great entertainment:
- Bashing my head against the bosses in Silksong.
- Watching Pluribus in awe at the idea of a connected “hivemind”.
This page is an inspiration from Derek Sivers and follows the principles listed on nownownow.
See an archive of this page: