Last modified: Monday – August 26, 2024
This page is largely inspired by Derek Siver’s “How and why to make a /now page on your site” and the premise is to share an overview of what you’d tell a friend you hadn’t seen in a year.
In short, I’m currently:
- Living in London as of April 2024
- Moving through a divorce that started in November 2023
- Dancing for physical activity, mental health, curiosity, and community
- Posting life recap videos on Instagram and YouTube
- Reducing the priority of my career with the goal to sustain part-time work
- Being the dad I always wanted by investing in learning more mental health and emotional intelligence
- Practicing stretching and Pilates in order to become a supple leopard
Problems I am currently trying to solve
| Problem | Description |
| Eliminate and/or reduce body pain | Tight (sometimes sharp pain) left hip flexor during hip adduction; right shoulder rotation when throwing the ball (and breakdance, which I’ve stopped); right side of neck when rotating head to the right; right IT band during squats |
| Want to be able accurately describe and articulate my emotions to both myself and others | Reduce shame not only for self. In addition, being a sturdy parent for Elliott, one she can rely on |
| How to keep track of ideas that pop up at times | An idea will pop up in my head that I sometimes think is “amazing” and sometimes I learn that I’ve had the same idea in the past (sometimes years ago). Also, another source of frustration is when I want to recall an idea and cannot retrieve it |
| Be part of and build and contribute to one or more communities | Though social contact is low, still want to build relationships in London as to increase probability (and enjoyment) of living in London long term |
| Short term contract with Fox | This project is keeping the lights on (KTLO) and I’m working as a consultant for the media company |
Living in London
I moved to London 🇬🇧 — more specifically Morden (right by Wimbledon) – on April 13th, 2024 to single dad raise Elliott (currently 4.5 years old). Me and the two pups — Metric is 12, Mushroom is 13 — and Elliott live in a 2 bedroom flat that’s located about 10 minutes away (by public transport) from Elliott’s school. This flat has been a perfect (I use the word “perfect” reluctantly) for me and love downsizing from the Seattle house that was just sold (on May 13th).
Divorce
Although Jess and I have been more or less estranged since January 2023 (perhaps even longer than that), we officially separated on November 24th, 2023. And as of right now, we’re in the middle of a rather contentious divorce, unable to reach an agreement on either a financial settlement nor long term custody arrangements.
It’s been an extremely challenging times, perhaps the most challenging experience to date.
Dance
Dance became a major part of my life as of March 2023. Around the same time, when I started my dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) program, I signed up for my first breaking class at The Beacon, a dance studio I consider a second home, where I also ended up taking Waacking and House Dance classes. The latter (House) has taken a life on its own and I practice, train, and compete in this dance form. Why dance? This activity ticks off many values of mine, including: social contact (just the right dose of connecting with others throughout the week), curiosity (constantly learning more about myself), physical activity (vigorous muscle activation), beauty (love the aesthetic of the dance), acceptance (introduces a mechanism for me to continually work through my sensitivity to rejection), power (excellence)
Content Creation on Social Media
I am now back on social media. I capture, credit, edit and post videos on my Instagram and trying out the whole YouTube thing by posting Shorts and Videos
Career
As a result of the divorce and relocation, I more or less redirected my efforts away from Crossbill. Although building the business was a major focus of mine, I no longer want to devote as much time to the business as before, after getting more clarity on my long term values and goals. For years, I’ve been wanting to live a more moderate, minimalist lifestyle and now that I’m no longer married to someone whose values are different than mine, I not only can re-explore that life style, but actively pursue it
Pursuing non tech related activities
I started practicing Pilates about 7 weeks ago on (or about) April 29th. I completed the Reiss Motivation Profile (RMP) certification on March 25th and was motivated (pun not intended) after feeling so validated and seen. Knowledge of RMP combined with going through the dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) full model program (over at Greenlake Therapy) has transformed my life. I have a renewed interest in emotional intelligence and reading Brené Brown’s “Atlas of the heart” — recommended by my therapist — as if it is bible: slowly, diligently, frequently.
Changelog
August 26, 2024 –
July 08, 2024 – Updated table to include (contract) work with Fox
July 1, 2024 – Finished completing the table of “problems” I am currently trying to solve
June 28, 2024 – Updating after reading “Ten Lessons I wish I had been taught” and the idea of tracking the dozen (or less) problems I am currently working on