What is something in the past year that makes you happy or proud? Maybe you learned something new, finally got that thing you wanted for ages, managed to make a hard decision with a good outcome. etc etc.
No pressure to share if you don’t want to. Hope you all have a good new years eve :)
I got a lot better at guitar and even recorded a song.
It’s been a goal of mine for a while to keep up with practicing and get good at fingerpicking. Just for myself, more of a therapy than anything. I did pretty good with it this year.
Almost ten years ago I got into a fight with a cop and some ER nurses after a suicide attempt and spent the next 48 hours twitching with EPS on the floor of a state hospital psych ward and thought I could probably do a better job of that. This year I’m considered enough of an expert in the management of violent patients that they’ve got me teaching verbal deescalation and physical disengagement skills, teaching people how to use restraints correctly, and precepting new nurses.
I started going to therapy which has done insane wonders for my anxiety and ability to make progress in life.
👍
I moved out from my dysfunctional family, which has helped me heal or come to terms with a lot of childhood trauma. I definitely feel I’ve grown a lot more, and become much more social and confident in myself.
I asked someone out for the first time, and while I was turned down, that was still a huge step for me.
Did my first successful hard drive recovery including chip swapover while soldering on a microscope. Also started saving for retirement the first time in my life. I’m 38.
I stepped up my nerd game to start trying to land an IT job of some kind. I learned computer networking to set up my own website on recycled hardware and began writing about it. I started developing on a game engine making modules and making art assets to maybe one day make a commercial product. I released like a dozen open source projects under open source licenses.
It all kind of culminated with Christmas. The kids in my life have been begging for multiplayer Minecraft server but Microsoft destroyed the he so hard with money grabbing we refused to pay for realms or make a bunch of Microsoft accounts or whatever.
So, I rolled up my sleeves and got to work on creating a mineclonia server built on luanti/minetest engine, patching in all the Minecraft assets like textures, sounds, music that I legally own with python tools I built myself and released,
I really wanted an in game fullscreen map and nobody had ever figured out how to make one on luanti engine so I so spent a few weeks developing one from the ground up. I released the map mod two days ago and people quickly noticed saying I had changed the game forever, congratulating me on my technological achievement or whatever.
Its just a little frustrating because it feels like I’m somewhat competent at the nerd professions but I have no idea how to advertise my talents or if what I’m doing even translates to real Dev work. How Does creating universal map colorizer + generator for proceeduraly generated voxel worlds or designing a full model animation interpolation system for an engine from scratch or hosting public services on my own network built from scratch powered by solar turn into resume stuffs? That’d what I guess new years focus needs to be
Finally moving into my own apartment (away from my dad)
Hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.
Didn’t give in to my demons. So far so good…
I wrote a one man play! I am not a professional writer, even though i have tried, and not at all an actor, and the play touches some things in me, i get both angry and sad for real while playing – 13.1 is the date, and i’m both super stoked and super anxious. but proud! a real achievement in my world.
Literal zero usage of Windows or any Microsoft software or hardware. Also 99% no Google.
Went vegan.
Started my masters.
Didn’t kill myself that week when I was fired a day after getting into a lot of credit card debt to treat the newly found cancer in my cat.
Said cat is alive and well, which is already a few months more than what the first vet said he would have.
I got invited to a furry convention, but still had to pay my own way and only had a month to make up the money so I took all the extra hours I could just to be able to go and barely have food the whole 5 days.
But it was worth it. BLFC was awesome. 😃
Having a photo I took accepted into a public gallery exhibit for the first time.
2025 was awful so… I would say I am happy and proud to still be alive.
You’re not the only one! Congrats on remaining vertical and warm.
Sorry to hear that. Here is to you making it another rotation around the sun. Hopefully the next year will be better! 🥂
It took two years but I finally achieved a 1000lb powerlifting total. It’s not a huge number but I do feel proud of myself, and physically I have never felt better. Outgrew my wardrobe twice, and can’t find jeans that fit but otherwise 10/10 would recommend lifting to anyone
I was going to post about having lifted consistently for four months going from a 20lbs dumbbell press to 45lbs and seeing results. Then I see your 1,000lbs and it blows my mind that you don’t think that’s impressive!
Great work! My one rep max on a deadlift is 200 and right now I am over the moon that I have lost my beer gut. Let’s keep the momentum!
Dude four months is fantastic. You built the habit and now it’s just a matter of time. You keep doing what you’re doing and your gains will blow your mind. I’ve switched to dumbbell for overhead press and it feels great for strength and longevity, I started off with a questionable shoulder and now it feels rock solid because of these, you’re on the right track!
1000lb powerlifting total
not a huge number
Seems huge to me man. Congrats
You know I think that’s the social media influence showing. Fitness influencers post these incredible lifts and physiques that are seriously impressive, it’s important to keep in mind that these are genetically gifted people posting their highlight reels, in their prime, and on gear
mostly the gear, which can be misleading people.
holy crap
