I really, really didn’t want to acknowledge my birthday this year. There has been a stark, slow-but-definitely-there shift in life as I’ve aged past 20. Maybe it’s because I’ve had an unfair proportion of opportunity handed to me at a very young age, or maybe its simply a function of getting older.
I was always the youngest. Youngest in my grade, youngest in my group, youngest at work, etc.. There’s a certain care that surrounds the youngest. People take care of you. They look out for you. They look at you in a certain light when you are the youngest… like you can do no wrong. On top of this, anything you do achieve is made even more incredible by the fact that you’re “only # years old.”
At this point, I unfortunately have to acknowledge a difficult truth: I no longer have the ‘youth bias’ that I became oh so used to. The things I do are not perceived as impressive, but rather expected for ‘someone my age.’ This is what it must feel like for really attractive people to get old and lose all the social perks of being hot.
24 is not where I imagined myself to be. As young Maika would proclaim, at 24 I should be a multi-billionaire with dominating businesses in multiple industries, a fleet of private jets, and 3 shirtless butlers that clean my mansion. Where am I actually? I’m stuck in the, “land of [dreary] enchantment,” Albuquerque, NM, in the middle of a pandemic. I have an entry-level job at a behemoth of a tech company (at least it’s a “good” one). My adventurous, international persona is suddenly crippled by travel policies, and even if I did fly, I would fly economy and that person who you really don’t want to sit next to you will sit right next to me and start a conversation. To young Maika, I apologize. Alas, all we can do is move forward.
One thing that I find solace in is my father. His birthday is quite close to mine, and I called him the other day to tell him congratulations. Here’s how the conversation went (in Japanese):
“Hi dad! Good morning!”
“Hi Mai.”
“How’s it going?”
“Good. Why are you calling? This is rare.”
(At this point I was starting to question whether I had mixed up the date)
“…isn’t it your birthday?”
“Huh? Oh, wow you’re right. Today is my birthday. Wow I’m getting old I didn’t even realize.”
“So how are you going to celebrate?!”
“I’m going to work”
That’s the mood I’d like to achieve.
But in reality, I love any reason to celebrate. So I’m just going to have to suck up the fact that I’m getting old and take it as another reason to treat myself to a really nice dinner. Hooray.
To celebrate the passage of another year of survival, I’ve compiled a list of 24 various things that have stuck in my mind this year. The list is all over the place and really doesn’t have an order, or any organization at all (very fitting for 2020 I think). Enjoy!
P.S. None of this is sponsored 🙂
1. Go to the party
“Every party has the power to change your whole life. It might not happen, but this could be the one.” I can’t recall where this quote came from. It might’ve been a TV show, or a podcast, but as soon as I heard it, I felt it was some real hard-hitting truth. When you watch a really amazing movie, or hear about how a couple-in-love first met, have you noticed how many times a party is involved? When the heroine of a movie walks into a grand ball, you know something BIG is about to go down. That’s how I feel about parties. Yes, staying at home in your sweatpants, comfortably watching a documentary sounds really, really nice to me. Yet, I truly believe that a single party has the possibility of changing your life. It’s really a matter of the frequency. The more parties you go to, the greater the chance something is going to happen.
I mainly have this on the list because I went to a great new years eve party in the middle of Manhattan to bring in 2020. Little did I know, It would be months and maybe even years before I would be able to go out like that again. For this, I am grateful. So go to the party, live without regrets, kiss the girl, and rally.
2. “To Shake the Sleeping Self”
This book by Jedidiah Jenkins (what a name) is part coming-of-age-story, part adventure narrative that will make you question your sanity and think, “hey, maybe I want to ride a bike across the continent too!” I typically don’t trend towards nonfiction stories. If I’m going to read about a story, I’d rather it take me somewhere like sci-fi or fantasy; something not of this world. However, the way this guy narrates his cycling journey from Oregon to Patagonia leaves you itching for travel and new environments… and even yearning for that type 2 kind of fun. I’ve read a lot of books and this one sticks out.
3. Weekly email subscriptions
When it comes to signing up for mailing lists, I’m definitely on the modest side. I don’t like my inbox filling up with things that I end up just archiving, letting it get cluttered and disengaged. Despite this, I’ve found a few mailing lists that I enjoy reading day after day. Keep in mind that my sphere of interests floats around tech, entrepreneurship, health, and fitness, so if that’s not up your alley, these might not be interesting to you. I find that some of the mailing lists overlap in terms of content (big news events, etc.) so no need to sign up for all of them.
- The Hustle – business and tech
- Morning Brew (+ the Essentials) – news and fun stuff
- The Skimm – big stories
- Tech Crunch – startup and tech news
- Andreeson Horowitz – bunch of separate subject newsletters to choose from
- James Clear – wisdom and tips
4. “The Social Dilemma”
Documentaries are the perfect blend of entertainment and learning. I’ve been watching a lot of them in quarantine, and “The Social Dilemma” is a timely 2020 film. Separately, if you care about wine at all, check out the tale of a brilliant scheme in Sour Grapes. I do not (completely) condone illegal activity, but there is a reason why bank heists and grand robberies make for popular action movies.
5. How to make a pour-over
To save myself thousands of dollars on over-expensive cups of joe from various aesthetic cafes, I’ve switched to making pour-overs. Surprise surprise, a bunch of coffee snobs quickly informed me that there is a ‘proper’ way to make a pour-over. The exact grams of bean, the right filters for the shape of your ceramic, the motion of pouring the water, even the exact temperature of water matters. Unfortunately I lack many of the tools necessary to get this science right (a kettle that heats to the perfect temperature, a kitchen scale, etc.), but I’ve been dabbling in how to pour in a circle. #skills
Despite my sarcastic comments, you can actually taste the difference between a cup that was poured properly, and one that was not. I now look forward to making coffee at home. Upgrade your coffee game here.
6. Music production
When I was a wrecked piece of sad immobility after my knee surgery, I decided to dive back into my music background. Apple’s Logic Pro X has a great free trial, and I decided, hey, I’m going to make an EP before this trial ends so that I don’t have to pay for this ridiculously expensive software. I did, and here it is. I ended up buying the software anyways, so I’ll continue to make music, although at a much slower pace. Find me on your favorite music streaming platform (make sure to follow!) and find my artist’s instagram here. I’ll be updating my website with some more detailed information about this a little later.
7. Salt : critical mass
Cooking is the best! Even better when you have someone to cook with 🙂 I’ve been watching a lot of cooking series on Netflix, and one thing to spend some time on is the short series “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat.” Beyond just making me hungry and appreciative of the beauty of food, the salt episode in particular tickled my fancy. There’s a lot of different kinds of salt, and all of it tastes different. Simple techniques in the application of salt (when, how much, what kind, etc.) can dramatically alter the way your food tastes. I have to admit, my cooking tastes better now.
8. My list of 10 things
In an exercise of minimalism, prompted by the frustration of lugging all of my items across the country after getting kicked out of my living quarters because of the pandemic, I tried an exercise: List the 10 most important items you own (physical items here, don’t get all mushy gushy and deep here), then try to slim down your belongings. In my head I thought, “yeah Imma make this list and get rid of EVERYTHING ELSE!!!” But that didn’t happen. Anyways here is my list of 10. Some things I consolidated into one “item” because it’s basically one entity that always sticks together:
- iPhone
- Laptop
- Wallet
- A quality travel backpack (must have laptop sleeve)
- Water bottle (guys, I lost my nice copper water bottle and I am sad)
- Paperwork (passports, legal documents, diploma, etc)
- Bag of toiletries
- Pencil case & notebook
- Earphones (AirPods)
- Purple stuffed animal (iykyk)
In times of true terror I think I could survive on this list..what’s on yours? It’s a great exercise if you want to try it! There’s also a great channel on YouTube where celebrities go through their essential items too. Those are fun to watch.
Chances are, if you’re lucky enough to have a job, you’re probably working from home in some respect. Quarantine was even more challenging because my major source of stress relief, working out, was stripped away with the closing of gyms and fitness studios. Then came Downdog to save the day. This app is amazing. I utilize the Yoga and HIIT courses almost every day, and it’s kept me sane. Also, the people who work on it are brilliant, visionary creators who’ve built an app that’s become a lifestyle for me. I’m anticipating some great updates in the coming months… and can’t wait to see a very special someone rocking the videos 🙂
I still don’t like Albuquerque. However, after spending a few consecutive months here with people who know it much better than I, I realized there are some areas of New Mexico that are really, really wonderful. I visited White Sands a while ago with some great friends. There is something really magical about being outside. Go outside when you can, and visit White Sands if you can. Follow my personal Instagram and you’ll see some great content from there in the coming months.
11. Art is Work
It’s a sad realization that people even have to defend this, but art is work. In my meager knowledge of world history, there has never been a time where artists and their work have been so undervalued. What are the things people go see when they travel? Museums, famous buildings, etc.? All made by ARTISTS. Yes, it’s a weird time, but art is, and forever will be, essential to our culture as human beings. Let’s value that.
I saw these images on my media feed, and I’ll just leave them here.
12. Music Top Picks
I started diving into the depths of obscure Spotify playlists and Youtube music videos… and emerged with quite a diverse palette of new finds. There’s so much out there, and so much underrated talent. Here’s some of my favorites, but this doesn’t even begin to touch the gems I’ve come across.
- SYML – “Fear of the Water”
- DPR Live – “Cheese & Wine”
- The Head and the Heart – “Honeybee”
- Cyn – “I’ll still have me” (only watch if you’re ready to cry)
- Joji – “Ew”
- Tora – “Too Much”
- Verzache – “Talk”
13. Forgiveness
What a beast forgiveness is. It’s essential, yet sometimes it can be so hard. I had to forgive a lot of things, especially this year. I’m not really referring to forgiving others. That, is a bit of an essential, since everyone lives their own lives as they want. Even if you don’t forgive someone else, they’re going to go on with their lives regardless. I’m talking about forgiveness for yourself, or something with no-one to blame. It can be hard to forgive yourself, because it means first acknowledging that whatever belief or habit you are forgiving yourself for, is no longer good for you. It includes admitting that you’ve overlooked some part of your life, or have become complacent in something that has been hurting you.
I had to forgive myself for hurting my knee. I had to forgive myself for not ‘doing enough’ during the time between graduation and work starting. I had to forgive myself for holding on to a false hope that certain things would change, when deep down I knew they never would. I had to forgive myself for defense habits that ended up hurting others. The list goes on. What do you need to forgive yourself for?
14. How to be Productive, According to Ancient Philosophy
I’m really into studying ancient thinkers. I hold this belief that a lot of the human-centric problems that we all grapple with today are essentially the same problems that have plagued human psyche forever. So, instead of starting from scratch every single time, I think that there is a lot to learn from the records of people who didn’t have Netflix and instead spent those hours thinking about life (could you imagine how much individual work would get done if we didn’t have modern technology…).
Topics on ‘productivity’ have been squeezed dry by all kinds of media, so I was hesitant to include this. I also don’t even read up on productivity (not really an issue for me), but this article still included some great, short wisdom on things that are applicable on a wide variety of subjects.
15. 80/20 rule (or the ‘Pareto Principle’)
Basically, this is the idea that 80% of the results come from 20% of the causes. For example, Pareto, whenever he was alive, noticed that 80% of Italy’s land was owned by 20% of the population. But the reason this rule is on the list is because it’s a principle that can be applied to anything. Your life, your work, etc.. You just have to ask yourself, what 20% of efforts is having 80% of impact?=
Take my college career for example. One day, I asked myself, what 20% of my actions and activities has 80% of the impact on my health, happiness, and feelings of fulfillment at Stanford? Those things were friends, working out, and adventures (notice that studying is not included in there). So, I drastically slashed the amount of time I was ‘studying.’ However, that being said, I still completed all of my coursework, attended all of my lectures, etc, etc.. The key was that the ‘studying’ I was doing did very little to actually improve my test scores or my understanding of the concepts. My stress significantly decreased, I had a lot more time to spend on things I actually wanted to do, and I (basically) still got the same grades. Boom.
What 20% of your actions have the marginally greatest impact in your life?
16. Short-form poetry
Maybe it’s because of the characteristically dwindling attention span of my generation, but I’m a big fan of short-bursts of content. For example, short-form poetry. Not here to promote my own work, but my recent publication is a tiny book of short-form poetry. I also think that these two books are great:
- ‘milk and honey’ by Rupi Kaur
- ‘salt’ – Nayyirah Waheed
17. Open source ML/AI
Machine learning and AI tools are becoming insanely sophisticated, and easy to use. This nugget still requires some technical background, but it’s well worth it to check out regardless. One great thing about the AI/ML community is that there is a ton of open-source (aka: made free to use by other people) projects to utilize for your endeavors. Here are some standout things:
- Lalala.ai – this tool splits vocal and instrumental tracks using AI
- IdeasAI – business idea generator
- openAI – one API to get started
I am so sorry to put this here because it is behind a paywall and I hate paywalls. Microsoft has an enterprise subscription to a lot of great news websites, so luckily I have access through them, but if you’re going to get a subscription somewhere, the NYT is a great deal. You get access to all of their articles, but more importantly, to their NYT Cooking app (I think you get access to their app games, like the crossword one, as well – but correct me if I’m wrong). This little guy is a budding chef’s dream with tabs on tabs of recipes. I think it’s sentient and learning my tastes, because all of the recommendations it shows me sounds like my next favorite dish.
19. Umeshu Martini
For those who don’t know, one of my dream jobs is a bartender, and I’m really into cocktails. One of the best ones I’ve created at home is a mish-mosh of inspiration. I was in a Japanese mood, so this is what I got. I’m still working on a cool-sounding name. I also can’t remember exactly what’s in it but this is as close as I got to recalling the ingredients. I’ll leave it to you to add the finishing touches and please let me know if it turned out well.
- A small container umeshu (60ml?) – ‘umeshu’ is a Japanese plum wine
- 1 oz sake of choice (I used an unfiltered cloudy sweet sake)
- ½ oz gin
- Something else I can’t remember
- Directions: shake really well with ice, find a Bond-esque martini glass, drop the ume in there and serve cold
I’ve included this card game in one of my posts before, but I’m including it again because it’s such a staple in my life now. This easy-to-play card game can accommodate 2-6 players comfortably. It’s so nice to play that I play it at breweries, on planes, at restaurants… you name it, I play it. Another great thing is that you can bet on an overall winner for the game (play to a certain number of points). Loser has to do something. I haven’t lost yet so you can see why I love this game so much. Games with honorable mentions include Code Names and Catan.
For some reason, the last 4 series I’ve watched on Netflix have all been foreign shows. They’ve all been really good though. By far the best is Money Heist, a series about an elaborate bank heist. It’s so good I’m going to be one of the characters for Halloween. Also check out Giri/Haji.
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In all honesty I have run out of time so the last 3 are phrases I like! They’re all from somewhere (not original) but unfortunately I don’t remember their origin / didn’t write it down.
22. “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”
23. “Two words to live by: plausible deniability.”
24. “Entrepreneur’s mind, Athlete’s body, Artist’s soul”
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Apologies if there are typos / errors in this document. I decided to write this very last-minute, and wanted to publish on this particular day. Regardless, I hope you got something out of it! Let me know if there was anything in particular that was interesting, or that you’d like to talk about. I’m always available for a conversation so shoot me an email or message me on on social media.