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+Document: WM-044                                                 P. Webb
+Category: Life                                                2019.12.31
+
+                         2030: The next decade
+
+Abstract
+
+   New decade, who dis?
+
+Body
+
+   The year 2020 is upon us and while it is merely a number change it
+   feels like it bears significance. My wife joked that she was "going
+   into 2020 with clear vision" and you can be *sure* that's not the
+   last time you'll hear such jokes/puns this upcoming year. So, what
+   does this new year mean to me? A couple things come to mind.
+
+   I am currently 31 years old and from what I've read in my 20s, your
+   30s is when you *finally* get your shit together. I certainly *feel*
+   more confident in my professional skills and my propensity to create
+   whatever comes to mind with dexterity. But rather than make
+   resolutions or plans for next year I am drawn to the idea of doing so
+   for the next *decade*. Where do I want to be at 41, physically and
+   mentally? What skills will I possess? What habits will I break and
+   what habits will be formed?
+
+   It may sound cliché but, to forecast my future I look to my past;
+   introspection, basically. It's a powerful tool that I believe
+   everyone should employ frequently.
+
+   When I was in 5th grade there was a "Career Day" and four adults came
+   to my class to talk about their respective careers. After explaining
+   what they did for work, every kid in my class stood up and said what
+   they imagined their future career to be. When it was my turn I
+   mentioned *several* career paths I wanted in life. The demographic
+   makeup of the adults in the room were four White women (one of them
+   being my teacher) and one Black man. I feel this detail is necessary
+   because all the women chuckled in disbelief (some with incredulous
+   looks on their faces), which encouraged some of my classmates to
+   laugh as well. The man only smiled and listened intently which gave
+   me the courage to continue. In the moment it didn't seem notable but
+   in hindsight it certainly does. I think I'll save my thoughts on this
+   matter for a future post as I've had other similar interactions
+   in life.
+
+   The point is, thinking back to your dreams and aspirations from your
+   childhood can help steer you when you feel you've lost direction in
+   your life. For this next decade I'd like to make the 5th grade
+   version of the most fantabulous Paul Anthony Webb feel proud about
+   the man he's become. Here's a non-exhaustive list of things I'd like
+   to attain/obtain, followed by reasons why I chose these items:
+
+   - author
+   - cooking
+   - driving license
+   - filmmaker
+   - fitness
+   - fluency in (conversational) Japanese
+   - hardware product (kimoyo beads?)
+   - home ownership
+   - media network
+     - publishing house
+     - record label
+   - musician
+   - podcast
+   - revenue generating businesses
+   - teacher
+
+   1. Author
+
+      I enjoy writing and feel I should do it a LOT more. A couple weeks
+      ago I decided to try journaling and have been pretty consistent.
+      The past week hasn't been eventful in any way but I think I should
+      still make an effort to put in an entry at least once a week. I
+      use an application called Standard Notes[1] to keep track of all
+      my ideas. It has a "pin" feature so whenever I go to the "All
+      Notes" section I can see my journal there. Anyhoo, I've had
+      concepts for novels and screenplays since high school and I
+      *thankfully* scanned most of those documents…I don't know where
+      they are but the core concepts are still in my mind. There's
+      enough content for a trilogy.
+
+      Another book idea I've had for some years is titled "How to be
+      Awesome" and is based on how I see obstacles and overcome them.
+      For whatever reason I have been able to stick to my guns[2] in the
+      face of negativity and adversity no matter the source: family,
+      friends, life, whatever, AND unassisted by drugs or alcohol (the
+      only casualty has been my hairline)! I'm not sure why I'm the way
+      I am but private conversations throughout my life indicate that
+      others would benefit from my story. Maybe I would benefit from
+      in-depth introspection too.
+
+   2. Cooking
+
+      My wife would *love* if I took up cooking, especially because my
+      culinary interests are largely Asian-based. She's already pretty
+      good at cooking regular/soul food and is not trying to learn other
+      cuisines. I am interested in replicating the amazing ramen I had
+      on my last day in Japan. Woks are a fascinating tool to me so I'd
+      like to learn how to use it efficiently. One of my buddies got me
+      a cookbook from one of my favorite food trucks in Boston (Mei
+      Mei). The main food item I ordered from them is dubbed, "The
+      Double Awesome". It's a scallion pancake sandwich with ham and a
+      scrambled egg in it, with pesto and other things. Add Sriracha and
+      you're all set! Mei Mei's Haymaker's Punch was perfect for chilly
+      days and a good pair for the sandwich. I tried making a Double
+      Awesome while on vacation at Disney World and…it was quite crispy
+      (burnt). One day at a time!
+
+   3. Driving License
+
+      Growing up in the Boston area, I had no need for a license. Public
+      transportation is pretty good, even though the MBTA (we just call
+      it "the T") regularly has issues. Moving to Tennessee means I lost
+      my mobility and basically became a homebody, much to the chagrin
+      of my wife. It's not a big deal to me (right now) but I know I'll
+      need a license *eventually*. Also, now that Tesla's Cybertruck
+      exists I think I'll *accelerate* 🤣 my plans to obtain one.
+
+   4. Filmmaker
+
+      I'm a big fan of doing things myself, which is why I self-host a
+      lot of things (including my own email server). For my
+      space-centric novels I always imagined how they'd look
+      cinematically and what changes I'd need to make to the story to
+      allow the reader to visualize what *I* see in my mind. It only
+      makes sense that I'd film my stories to ensure correctness. To
+      flesh out the world of my novels I'd need to film faux commercials
+      and recently have jotted down some humorous concepts.
+
+   5. Fitness
+
+      I've been roughly 145 pounds since high school thanks to a fast
+      metabolism and sporadic eating/sleeping habits. While I have good
+      body positivity I've always been curious to see how I'd look with
+      muscle and more meat on my bones. I'Robot is one of my favorite
+      films and with Will Smith being one of my favorite actors (and
+      rapper, don't @ me), his home workout scene[3] solidified the body
+      type I want to achieve. My dad was in the Army and jogged
+      shirtless in way too short shorts that were tight so you *know* he
+      was fit. Physical fitness also improves mental health and mood so
+      *why not* delve into this?
+
+   6. Fluency in Japanese
+
+      A couple things from my high school years influenced my desire to
+      visit Japan and absorb the culture.
+
+      - Anime: Samurai Champloo, Tenchi Muyo, Yuyu Hakusho, Dragonball
+        Z, Rockman.EXE, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex,
+        Cowboy Bebop
+      - Games: Megaman Battle Network
+      - Music: Samurai Champloo and GITS:SAC OSTs
+
+      I often watched fan-subbed versions of anime when they weren't
+      officially available in English (sometimes for *years*). Every now
+      and then I would think about learning Japanese so I could skip
+      over all that and well, something else was always more
+      "important". In hindsight, it'd be easier to learn then due to
+      better brain elasticity but my work ethic/dedication/diligence is
+      stronger now.
+
+      Fun fact! I learned how to use chopsticks from watching the
+      Rockman.EXE anime. I also learned a couple phrases like, "Roger
+      that" (Batou from Ghost in the Shell says that a *lot* to Major),
+      "Cool/Awesome", "What?!", "Excuse me", "Damn you", and so on. Most
+      anime l̶o̶v̶e̶r̶s̶ connoisseurs know these phrases too.
+
+   7. Hardware Product
+
+      I think I'm pretty good with software but *hardware* is something
+      I have zero knowledge about. I own probably every Raspberry Pi
+      that has been released thus far and have done NOTHING with them.
+      At ALL. For me to really get into something I need to have an
+      ambitious goal. Creating functioning kimoyo beads is definitely
+      ambitious and would require sourcing research and probably
+      microcontroller programming. I just made that up, not sure if
+      that's necessary but that goes to show that I don't know what I
+      don't know. What I learn along the way is gonna open up so many
+      more mental pathways and that excites me.
+
+   8. Home Ownership
+
+      Ownership is something that is becoming increasingly important to
+      me as the years go on. Having a landlord absolves you of certain
+      responsibilities but you are also not the master of your domain.
+      In high school I used to daydream about having a custom home built
+      (and recently I learned of a startup[4] in that space). I would
+      like my kids to have a "childhood home" to grow up in, move out
+      of, and visit.
+
+   9. Media Network
+
+      Y'know that space novel series I mentioned above? Over the years
+      it has evolved into something that spans many creative
+      disciplines. 2000s-era Toonami is what I have in mind for this
+      network. A series of shows with space-centric idents between them.
+      Video content is expensive and time-consuming to create so
+      initially the network would have the music I create on shuffle
+      (essentially) with generative visuals. Naturally, having a record
+      label and publishing house under this umbrella makes sense and
+      would fund the content creation. What if it was part incubator?
+      Seems like a great way to curate content for licensing. HMM.
+
+   10. Musician
+
+      When I was actively making music I did so under a number of
+      aliases and in different genres, namely, rap/hip-hop and
+      house/lounge with some experimental EPs. The rap content was
+      semi-conscious, braggadocious, and space-centric. The lounge
+      content was mostly instrumental but when there were lyrics I
+      focused on topics of love and longing. I made my own beats and
+      attempted to make them sound mastered but uh, to my ears now they
+      sound kinda terrible.
+
+      My DAW of choice was Acid Pro, which is a Windows-exclusive
+      application. When I entered the web industry full-time I
+      transitioned to macOS and haven't looked back. Acid Pro is still
+      in active development and the latest features are *incredible* but
+      sadly (for me), it remains Windows-exclusive. I could always learn
+      how to use another DAW but every one I've tried since just don't
+      *feel* right so a custom PC build is in my future.
+
+   11. Podcast
+
+      While working at the flagship Converse store in Boston many years
+      ago, a middle-aged woman followed me around the store asking
+      questions about virtually anything; just to hear me speak. She
+      said I had a nice radio voice and that's when I knew a rap career
+      could work for me. Can you imagine?
+
+      > "Boy, his lyrics are hot *garBAGE* but his voice is smooth AF!"
+
+      I like making money so that's why I didn't pursue rap as strongly
+      as web design.
+
+      Anyhoo, I get into fascinating discussions with friends and family
+      and some of those conversations would make for excellent podcast
+      content. I have a dope name in mind for it too, all I need is a
+      home office again. Because my interests are so varied my podcast
+      would probably be in the "lifestyle" category. Gaming, design,
+      technology, animation, Blackness, &c; I'm passionate about a lot
+      of things. I'd make good use of the drum machine I currently have
+      in a box as a soundboard.
+
+   12. Revenue Generating Businesses
+
+      I come from an entrepreneurial family and I have *way* too many
+      side projects to not have any of them generating income. Then
+      again, all of them are in alpha/beta status and in varying states
+      of neglect. An immediate change I am making in the new year is
+      seeing my projects to completion or out of test status. One of my
+      services has been in operation and virtually unchanged for more
+      than two years. It's amazing I was able to hack together something
+      that still works, haha! It certainly *feels* like hacks compared
+      to my knowledge now.
+
+      *SIGH*
+
+      The struggle of a creative. Everything you ever made is absolute
+      trash almost immediately, no matter how much time you spent on it
+      before releasing it onto the world.
+
+   13. Teacher
+
+      I like sharing what I know, and figuring out how to distill high
+      level concepts to easily understandable concepts is an interesting
+      challenge. About a month ago I had a dream where I was teaching
+      middle-/high-school kids about web development. And they were
+      listening! Seems to bode well for the future. In terms of industry
+      titles, I could be considered a senior front-end/ux developer and
+      the next step up is managerial. I just call myself an architech;
+      someone who designs and builds technology (there's no ego tied to
+      it and is a better descriptor for me). It'd be nice to have a
+      mentor in 2020 though, I've been teaching myself everything I know
+      since the recession of '08. 👨🏾‍🦳
+
+   FIN
+
+      The beautiful thing about the Internet is that it has democratized
+      a *lot* of industries so I *could* complete several things on my
+      list within the next year no problem…well, the only problem being
+      me half-assing things just to say I did them. Barring that, I will
+      seriously attempt to accomplish everything within the decade. The
+      main trait I lack is *discipline* and it will be difficult to
+      instill greater levels of accountability into myself. 😥 But
+      not impossible!
+
+      The other benefit of being in my 30s is having the financial means
+      to invest a bit more into my ventures. With a decade of experience
+      in the web space I can fetch a pretty good salary and put
+      non-trivial amounts of money away for more ambitious projects.
+
+      What a ride life has been thus far. A decade ago I had no kids and
+      could barely code my way out of a paper bag. The services and
+      sites I've created in that time since were mere thoughts scribbled
+      in a notebook on my lunch break. Wild! I can only imagine what my
+      2040 blog post will contain. 🕸
+
+References
+
+   [1] <https://standardnotes.org>
+   [2] <https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/stick+to+my+guns>
+   [3] <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uv83ZKIZSoI>
+   [4] <https://www.homebound.com>