Growing Roots

So much new

I think I overwhelmed myself a bit when we moved into this house. So many things are starting from the beginning: I have so many new subjects to learn (programming, gardening, preserving, D.I.Y., etc) and so many spaces to build up long term (the house, the garage, the study). A few months ago it all felt too much. 

I was trying my hardest to enjoy everything because the setup only happens once and it is definitely an enjoyable stage, but so many decisions had to be made, and so much information soaked in, that I was really struggling.

Junior Developer

I'm officially a Junior Developer, yay!

I completed the entry tasks and was moved into the role immediately. It's a huge amount of pressure, my brain feels saturated all the time, but I'm so grateful and excited. It's a similar feeling to when I started as a Software Tester, there's so much I don't know. Every day, I just have to feel ok with not knowing a load of stuff, being patient and letting the information trickle in a bit at a time.

I had a little break from personal study time after I'd switched to the new role. I've been putting together a plan to pick it all up again though, dedicate some evenings and weekends to improving my developer skills. I just need as much code writing practice as possible.

Settling in

It always amazes me how long it takes to properly 'move in' to a house. I'd say you have to give it at least a year before you've found solutions for most things. We've been here for about 5 months now and I'm really starting to extend my roots. I've got my desk in a way that I want it, I've got a nice computer set-up, I've started going to work back in the office again. Things feel like they're becoming more rhythmical. (Though they're about to get turned upside-down again when the electrician comes!) 

I really enjoy rhythm, repetition, solidarity, routine in my personal life. When I lived on the smallholding, the animals made that routine for me, they needed to be let out or put away, attended to at specific times of the day. Their needs gave me a skeleton to build my own around. I still have cats but they're not so invasive with their needs.

I do feel like I managed to achieve a great many things over the past two years, so I know I'm being overly hard on myself when I say: I haven't managed to get into a good routine with my own projects yet. I've done my Maths GCSE, I've worked from home during lockdown whilst part-time home schooling, I've read a load of books, I've learned about UX, I've run a team at work,