Back in February 2021, I decided to create my “Idea Note.” I’m not entirely sure what were the circumstances that led me to do such a thing, although if I had to bet, I was bored so I started watching Netflix, and I got tired that every time I got bored I would watch Netflix, so I decided to start an idea note that I could look at whenever I felt bored and do some of the things I had suggested to myself in the past, rather than watch Netflix. Granted, this is a completely made up story, but it is pretty consistent with the way I know I act, and it sounds plausible enough to me to believe it, so let’s go with it.
Regardless of what its initial purpose could’ve been, I now strive to use it like that. Whenever I’m bored, I look at my idea note and work on one of the things I suggested. Or well, at least that’s what I try to do: but given that my last modification to my idea note is from May 2022, I don’t think I’m actually using it that well.
Let’s take a look at some of the things I have written in my idea note:
Continue with my graph theory shit
If you’re in my blog, I’m guessing you probably already know who I am. Regardless, if you don’t know, I really like algorithms, and I would really love to know more math. Graph theory is that sort of intersection between the two, were you have a lot of graph algorithms (think searching, maps, recommendations, social media; all graphs) and also a lot of graph theory (embeddings, Ramsey, random walks; all math). I know a bit about the algorithms side, but I know almost no theory. And thus the Idea, I want to learn graph theory. I’ve got a textbook on Introduction To Graph Theory and lecture notes with psets by Benjamin Sudakov, I just have never opened either for reasons unknown to me.
Learn how to play the piano/any instrument for that matter.
Okay, I’ve actually made progress on this one. I’ve been learning how to play the violin with Tomas, although it’s mostly at random/sporadic times, without any set or defined schedule. Maybe I should try and do that more consistently, maybe if he’s got time we could set a specific hour a week in which I could learn how to play the violin. One of my “bucket list items” is to be able to play Violin Concert in D Major, I. by Tchaikovsky, not to an orchestra level, and maybe not at the timing, but to at least be able to get something that sounds good.
Continue with my BOTW and Mario Odyssey campaign.
Okay, this is just to confirm that I’m an actual human being, rather than just a (non-) productivity machine. I’m not really a video game person, but I really like playing them and progressing through the story. There’s only been one video game that I’ve fully 100%-ed, Lego Batman, and only a handful which I’ve completed (but not to 100%), Super Paper Mario, Super Smash Bros Brawl, Lego Star Wars The Complete Saga (notice these are all Wii games). I’d love to complete Odyssey/BOTW, they’re pretty fun and I enjoy playing them occasionally.
Learn new programming languages
I’ve stuck to the same two programming languages all my life, C++ and Python, but there’s so much out there! Haskell and Lisp for one, they offer another thinking paradigm (I associate the idea of your programming language of choice shaping what you think is possible or not from one of Paul Graham’s essays, but I don’t remember which one/if he actually said this or not edit: found it).
Make videos on programming
It seems that most of the time I spent on the programming olympiad I was looking for resources where I could learn things. I mean, it seems that I got as far as I did, and now that I give trainings, I keep coming back to the same resources I used while practicing. So, I might as well create another resource, perhaps so that people spend less time jumping around and I could explain things in Spanish for those in the olympiad who don’t speak English (eventually it becomes necessary to actually speak English, but in the meantime, let’s make Spanish a force to be reckoned with).
Learn quantum mechanics
Okay, maybe this was a phase, it’s really a lot of math to try and explain what happens at the very very small scale (I think), and I still want to learn it, but I’m definitely less excited about it now compared to how I probably was when I wrote this.
Learn how to make an app and a website
Okay, I really need to continue with Ramen; the only thing it needs is a lot of work. I’m definitely getting nowhere if I don’t grind it out, and I don’t think it’s about a lack of skill, but rather a lack of time. It doesn’t need to be the octava maravilla, it just need to be a functional collaborative math training website, it surely can’t be that hard?
I’m not entirely sure how to describe this, but I somehow feel less excited about the things I have in my Idea note. It used to be the case that I opened my idea note and felt a rush of possibility flowing through me. This time however, it felt normal? Maybe it is that I’m overall too tired, or maybe it seems that all of these things that seemed “unattainable” in a way when I wrote them, while now seem look like very real possibility with a very clear action plan that I should follow if I really want to learn them. I don’t really know what I’m trying to describe. Regardless, I will brainstorm a couple more ideas to add to my idea note. Maybe more “unattainability” that I’ll look at in a few years and realize “hey, I can actually do this pretty easily.”