First Anniversary

Dec 4, 2023

I created this blog one year back, when I was about to get out of 23 years of full-time work. Just realized that there have been no posts here since then. Now that I am nearing my first anniversary of being officially "retired" at 45, it is time to bring it to life.

So, how has this year been? I get asked this question a lot. Also, so now, what do you do? Honestly, I have been more active and energetic than ever before, and I have no idea where the last year went. But to put it in black and white, here are some data points:

Cooking, cooking and cooking. I have done a whole lot of it this year. But my cooking style has changed a lot, or should I say evolved, from earlier. I have done far less baking, in fact, made hardly any cakes.  Most of my baking involves baking cookies now. I have done very little fancy cooking. So, no pies, no fancy desserts, no fancy meals from another country. But I have done a whole lot of everyday cooking, breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Planning ahead to make sure they can be as good and healthy as possible, reading up on nutrition, organizing my recipes blog - that is very content-rich now, and really helps me plan my meals. 

A couple of months back, I shifted to an almost gluten-free diet. Initially, it was very hard. I missed eating wheat, and even more, I missed cooking and baking with wheat. But now, I have got reasonably comfortable with grain-less meals, as well as millet-meals. In fact, I would consider learning about millets my biggest achievement of the year.

Another biggie is definitely trading. Considering where I was 12 months back, I feel I have come a long way, have learnt a lot, and am now in the place where I can bona fide call myself a derivatives trader, since I am depending on it on for my monthly income. I am doing it seriously, and this is a space I expect to grow to the next level in the next 1 year.

The next in this list, but not in the order of importance, is Yoga. Or physical fitness. This year has been crazy but I have gotten tons better. Just to summarize, I got out of job in Jan, and immediately got sick for a month. Detoxing, maybe? I still remember the day I felt better, and then immediately enrolled for yoga classes. That was 21st of Feb, 2023. I was so bad, it is unbelievable. But I improved by leaps and bounds, and by May, I was at least respectable. Then June happened with the frozen shoulder. Which has still not gone away, is much better though. Then September happened with the ankle injury. Which put me on a no-exercise regime for almost 2 months. So, with all these ups and downs, I think I have done ok, have pushed myself, and am now able to do a one-hour yoga class without an issue. Though every day, I realize how far I need to go yet. But I love where I am. I also remember that in March I used to need a long nap just to recover from a yoga class, so I have definitely come a long way.

There are so many other things I have been up to. Trying out OpenAI code, experimenting with algorithmic trading, attending Kathak classes, teaching Agni, following a nutritionist's diet plan (which takes some effort, trust me), organizing stuff, organizing life. Now that I am writing it down, it does feel like a year well spent.