2020.
This year was one full of surprises. Not a single earthling could have predicted the global pandemic that the infamous COVID-19 brought or the release of Taylor Swift's surprise sister album Evermore, but we made it through. 366 long days later, we're sitting in our sequined tops and slouchiest of sweatpants, ready to ring in the year of hope, 2021.
I thought I'd make my first blog post an introspective piece, to share what this historic year felt like through my lens.
Exploring Cities & New Interests
I spent the first month of the year exploring Los Angeles with a friend. I went to The Broad, walked around Beverly Hills, went on every ride at Universal Studios (I know, remember theme parks), chilled in The Last Bookstore, ate through Grand Central Market, and saw Rex Orange County at the Shrine Auditorium. Little did I know that this would be the last time I could freely frolic around in a major city.
I also ate a ton of good food.
Back on campus, I decided to start working towards my goal of becoming healthier and signed up for a spin class with my roommate. I was pleasantly surprised to find myself enjoying the environment, and by February, I became a regular at the studio.
Building A Community
Right before the pandemic, I was elected president of WINC, which was a huge honor. I am truly grateful for the students and faculty that elected me! I spent most of February building up the E-Board and brainstorming for the year. Shortly, we launched our new website, a growing podcast, and a mentorship program. Seeing more students join our community makes my heart so full 😊
Moving Back Home & Looking Outside of the Classroom
In March, I flew back home on short notice thanks to Miss Rona and while being immersed in schoolwork, I realized I wanted to educate myself on what a computer science degree may look like outside of a university setting.
In May, I was a part of Twitter's #EarlyBird program and learned so much from the incredible Tweeps and friends I made during my time in the program. My team and I built a super neat feature of animated hashtags and seeing Twitter roll out with a similar feature was a huge jaw-drop moment for us!
Throughout the summer, I started my first internship with a fintech startup and attended events including Greylock Techfair and MongoDB WiCS Summit. These events helped me learn an immense amount of information on what industry is like and helped me realize where my interests lie.
Zoom University
In October, I had to cancel my lease (a huge bummer since I would have been in my first apartment then) as a result of virtual school. Students across the world traded in coffee shop dates and library all-nighters for Among Us and Discord parties. I won't lie, it was (and is) difficult to define the lines between home and school, but one good thing that came out of this situation was that I no longer needed to get up at 6:30 AM for an 8 AM!
I spent December baking lava cakes and hiking — a lot.
Final Thoughts
2020 was tough and tested many of us. But we did it. You did it. We all made it through the year and hopefully have grown and matured, and one step closer to the versions of us we all dream to be ☁️