My Year in Review: 2024
2024 was an eventful year for me. So in no particular order, here’s what I’ve been up to.
I officially graduated with my Bachelor’s in IT from WGU. I finished my last class in December of 2023, but all the paperwork was finalized in January of 2024. It took a fair amount of work, but my experience was very positive overall. Traditional schooling has never been for me, I’ve always followed the beat of my own drum, which online schooling allowed me to do. It also helps that certifications were included in the curriculum.
I’ve found the perfect job for my career as an “IT System Administrator” and moved to Lander, WY! Through a mixture of luck, timing, and a little dedication, my job hunt took less than a month, with my start date being Feb 6th. I sent out God knows how many applications, and I had ~7 different interviews. Lucky for me, the job I wanted the most was the one I got.
Through my job, I’ve made lots friends and connections. I attended a work conference in Park City, UT. I’ve become a jack-of-all-trades, as my jobs responsibilities include managing backups, servers, computers, software patching, deployments, onboarding - offboarding, helpdesk, and more.
My brother got married!!!
I read a total of 7 books - The Rememberance of Earth’s Past Trilogy (also known as the Three-Body trilogy), Millionaire Fastlane, Forever War, Industrial Society and It’s Future, The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea, Childhood’s End. I enjoyed every single one, but my favorite would have to be Forever War by Joe Haldeman. His use of time dilation to compare his own experiences with his return home from the Vietnam War was incredibly tragic, and with the rate of which society moves today I find quite relatable.
I didn’t watch too many movies this year, but I’ll list the one that I believe has artistic merit. Perfect Days (2023) - a Japanese film by a German director. It follows the routine of an intelligent janitor for public restrooms in Tokyo. The themes touch on zen, happiness, choosing the life you wish to live. If you can tolerate slower films, I’d highly recommend it.
I’ve built my dream computer and have fully switched to the Linux desktop for home use. I decided that any game worth playing would let me use the operating system of my choice. Not that I play games as much anymore.
I’ve continued to lift weights, walk, and I’ve started running in December. Health is incredibly important to me, so I have no plans on stopping.
The main video games I’ve played were the following: Donkey Kong Country 1 and 2, A Link to the Past, Goemon’s Great Adventure, Stardew Valley, Jet Force Gemini, Yakuza Kiwami 2, Lethal Company, Team Fortress 2. Despite the size of this list, I’ve cut back significantly on gaming. It’s lost most of it’s appeal to me if I’m being honest, I play probably ~5 hours a week now.
I’ve played around more with game development. It’s a very arduous process, and because of that I’m not sure if it will make a good side hustle, considering how busy I have become. I put it on hold for now, it’s a hobby that I will pursue once I’m able to retire or soft retire.
My financial goal this year was to save up a fully funded (6 month) emergency fund. I did so by saving little by little each week.
I went camping with my sister and her family here in Lander.
I’m happy with how the year turned out, my life is on the up and up. I know 2025 will be a great year for me. To anyone who has read this far, thank you, and have a wonderful life.