Feb 2026
Ricoh GR IV, Cinema G
Wandering Lights
Life in the Pacific Northwest
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I saw this book called ‘Life after Ambition‘ by Amil Niazi at Powell’s the other day. I haven’t read it yet, but the title alone resonated with me. It sounds like the life I have now, a post-ambition life.
I left tech in October 2022. I thought I would take a brief break, a sabbatical. And then back to the daily grind, right? I went to school for far too long to really quit. To use my engineering Ph.D. for only 11 years seemed like a poor return on investment. Okay, those years burnt me out and gave me cancer. But I was certain I would recover, come back to my senses, and go back. Because that’s what ambitious Asian kids were supposed to do. I WAS one.
Well, I never went back. A lifetime has passed by tech industry standards. Here’s what I traded in, along with the shiny job title and a stupid amount of stock. Proving the value of my existence daily. Explaining why humans matter more than the accuracy of a prediction model. Daily dose of microaggressions. And the morning ritual of putting on a thick armor of plastic smile, sarcastic hitback, and a veneer of confidence.
I now live a sheltered life. I simply exist. And that’s good enough for now.
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Summer 2025.
I never get tired of seeing the light filtering through the leaves. I learned there’s a word for this in Japanese, 木漏れ日 (ko-mo-re-bi).
iPhone 14 Pro.
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Yesterday, I went to a writing workshop for the first time. There were 8 people in the group. We had a wide range of writing experiences in the room. I had none while others had published magazine articles. Being given just 2 or 5 minutes to freewrite was scary. Desperately grasping for the right words was nerve-racking. Reading what I scribbled down aloud was terrifying. Getting feedback from the group? Mortifying.
Still, it was interesting. Because I had no time to ponder, the only things I could write about were the topics that had already been gnawing at me. In front of the 7 complete strangers, I wrote about my latest obsessions, dearest memories, biggest fears, and shakiest thoughts. And there’s definitely something real there.
I don’t know where I’m headed. But, I guess I’m finally ready to start writing into the void. More than 140 characters at a time.
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Yesterday.
Ricoh GR IV, Cinema Y
Wandering Lights 