Turning my life around

(TLDR:  I read a cool article about turning your life around.  I feel like my life has been turning around over the last 21 months.)


   I just read a short article (paywalled) called, "13 Ways I Completely Changed My Life in a Year and So Can You."  I feel like I have been changing over the last 21 months and today I feel pretty positive about those changes.  The article reminded me about my own struggles.

   Somewhere around 2006, I found that I had become a clock-watcher at work.  Before 2006, I would be mostly excited about work and I would have to set an alarm so that I did not accidentally stay for 9 or 10 hours at work.  After 2006, I started watching the clock at around 2 or 3 pm waiting for my work day to end.  Often I was very tired in the afternoon.  I think I had developed a health problem, but I don't know what that the health problem is.  (I have found that I do have blood sugar problems (type II diabetes), sleep apnea, and I had low vitamin D levels.)  Anyway, around 8 years ago, I went through a divorce and my son had a lot of serious health problems.  The divorce caused me to lose my secret security clearance and my job at the university in 2017.  I did end up getting a job at D.E. Shaw in 2017 which is probably the best possible job for me, but I could not hack living in New York City.

   Now, I think a lot of things started to turn around for me on October 31, 2018 (Halloween).  I woke up that day with crossed eyes!  I waited a day and my eyes did not uncross, so I went to the ER.  They found out that I had high blood sugar---type II diabetes.   Over the next 4 months, I exercised a lot and lost about 20 pounds.  My energy level improved somewhat.  I occasionally get injuries to my feet or legs, but mostly I have been exercising since the Halloween incident.

   So, this brings us to the coronavirus.  For most of the last three years, I have been commuting between Los Angeles and State College, PA where I live.  I have been spending about 3 weeks working in LA followed by three weeks working from home in PA.  All the traveling was tiring.  That all stopped in March 2020 because of the coronavirus.   Nowadays, I work from home.  I put on about 8 pounds between March and June.

   I've still been struggling with low energy and on June 10th of this year (2020), my eyes were crossed again and again I was in the ER.  Since then, I have been much more committed to exercise (mostly jogging very slowly for around 45 min per day) and I've lost 5 pounds.  I think that my problem is a fatty liver and I think the best thing I could do is lose about 20 additional pounds.

   About a week ago, two things changed for me.  I started writing a lot of computer code for work and I started playing "Slay the Spire".  I find programming to be both fulfilling and mentally tiring.  It gives a lot of meaning to my work day.  I also really enjoyed the game "Slay the Spire".  I love to analyze games mathematically, and yesterday I wrote a two page article about the mathematics of the game.  I am quite excited about programming, the game, the math, and the writing.  I have been feeling more energetic.

   I'm hoping that these changes will be long term and that I will become a more energetic person after I lose the weight.




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