on writing
I miss writing. This comes as a big surprise to myself. Last year, every quarter I had at least one course that demanded regular writing. At the time, I despised it. For me, writing is not one of those things that comes naturally. But even then the benefits of the chore were obvious to me. I actually feel a bit dumber now that I haven’t been writing at all.
Instead of writing, I’ve been doing all the stuff that I always thought I prefer to do. I’ve been programming on two different mobile platforms. I’m learning about logistic regression, Gaussian mixture models, and other machine learning topics, doing mathematical proofs and learning Matlab along the way. I developed a search engine. I worked with microcontrollers and soldered electronic components and sensors. I did some MIG welding and learned to sew (with a manly industrial sewing machine.) I even made my own laptop sleeve, a rare case of tangible productivity on my behalf. I enjoyed doing all these. A lot. Yet I’m starting to realize I miss writing.
I miss focusing on a specific subject and thinking about it intensively. I miss trying to convey vague ideas I didn’t fully understand on paper. I might even miss b.s.ing my way through the remaining 800 required words of a 2000 word assignment. I know I definitely miss the sensation of typing in that final period.
