What I’m Doing Now
This is a now page.
I’m Getting Back Into A Routine
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I have just returned from three months of travelling across Japan, Bali and Australia, a wonderful trip from which I’ve created many fantastic memories. I am now rebuilding my routine, getting back to programming and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and catching up on miscellaneous life-admin tasks, like preparing to move house next month.
I’m Looking For A Software Developer Role
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In the lead up to my three-month trip mentioned above I left my job and so now, having returned, am looking for another. It would be natural for me to continue in the field of data analytics, in which I’ve worked for five years now, but would prefer a switch to software development as I find it both more engaging and better aligned with the skillset I want to build.
As a data analyst I have used programming, primarily Python and its data manipulation, numerical computation and machine learning libraries, to excel in reporting creation and automation with an oft-recognised high level of attention to detail.
I have also, in my spare time, developed my ability with other programming languages and technologies. I have created websites with HTML, CSS and Javascript, and explored functional programming with Haskell and Racket, a Lisp dialect. For the last few years I have been using Linux exclusively on my home computer, from which I have built proficiency using Command Line Interface (CLI) tools and some Bash scripting.
More recently, I have become interested in the history of computing. I have read M. Mitchell Waldrop’s The Dream Machine and Steven Levy’s Hackers. I have visited Manchester’s Science and Industry Museum to see the Manchester Baby and Cambridge’s Centre for Computing History to see a variety of artifacts, from Magnetic Core Memory to the Apple-1 motherboard. Inspired by these, I’ve since designed, printed and framed an ASCII art rendition of the Xerox Alto as a reminder of computing’s origins and as inspiration for further growth.
I then believe I have both the ability and interest that would allow me to succeed in a software development role. In acceptance of my lack of relevant work experience and formal education, I’d be looking for an entry-level position with ample opportunity for growth.
I’m Thinking About Going To University
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I never went to University when all my friends did. I had built up a disdain for formal education by then. I didn’t like how my college course of Games Development was taught and I was left uninterested in pursuing higher education.
But recently I’ve been thinking I would now enjoy it. I’d study Computer Science. I want to pursue mastery in this, and a few years of full-time directed study would greatly enhance my capability.
I’d undoubtedly get a lot more out of it now than previously, as I can better rely on myself to take it seriously and do the necessary work.
I don’t necessarily need to go to University for this, just to study full-time. There is such an enormous amount of material available online and through textbooks that you could achieve the same result without formal education. But then I’d need to solely finance my not working for a long span, and that’s much more prohibitive. Student loans would make it possible where it likely otherwise wouldn’t be.
The qualification would also be beneficial to have, all things being equal.
The big blockade is deciding whether or not the opportunity cost is worthwhile. When taking into account the forgone salary, tuition loans, maintenance loans, and additional living expenses, the opportunity cost is looking to be £50,000 for each year of tuition. And that’s without taking into account salary increases or potential investment returns.
I’m also thinking that, if I was to go through all the preparation and effort required to get a Bachelor’s Degree, I may as well go one step further and get a Master’s Degree as well. I’d do an Integrated Master’s Course which would take 4 or 5 years, depending on where I went. That’s a high opportunity cost!
But does the opportunity cost even matter? Do I want to structure my life in the pursuit of optimal financial gain? Surely there are better things to optimise for, like the pursuit of mastery of craft.
Would the cost even be that bad a loss? If my going to University were to lead to an additional £10,000 compensation each year for the entirety of my career, it would likely be a net-profit anyway - and that seems quite plausible.
I don’t have to decide now anyway. I wouldn’t enroll for another 2 or 3 years, so that I have time to prepare my finances and prerequisite knowledge. I’ll sit with it for a while.
I’m Figuring Out What It Means To Be Autistic
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I don’t know what led me to reading Annie Kotowicz’s What I Mean When I Say I’m Autistic and Devon Price’s Unmasking Autism, but I found myself relating to the autistic experience as described by them.
Does that mean I’m autistic? I don’t know.
Previously I knew of autism but didn’t really know what it was. I hadn’t realised it is so pervasive as to affect all of your being; that it’s a different way of experiencing the world. I’m still trying to figure out what that means for me.
Would formal diagnosis help? It’s said to be a complex process because autism is very diverse, in symptoms and severity, and not well understood. Many people tend to be undiagnosed or misdiagnosed as a result.
I’m less bothered about formal diagnosis or confirmation. I don’t care about whether or not the label autistic accurately describes me. I’m more interested in gaining a better understanding of how I experience the world and why. Viewing things through the lens of autism seems to help that, and that’s good enough for me.