I’ve resumed the coding practice – once more, with feeling!
I’m writing from an airport (it feels so good to say that again!), with the awareness that I’m going to be staying away from the computer this weekend. I’ll be with family and friends, and wanting to be present away from a screen (to some extent… I mean, my best friend and I are going to a place that is BEGGING for an Instagram photoshoot)!
What does that mean? Not a lot of room to write a Saturday post! I should plan better for weekend posts when I want to be away from my computer. Scheduled posts are a thing! They’re great!
I actually feel a bit torn with my intentions. Of course I want to be present with the people I love most, that I don’t get to see often, but I have happily reinvigorated my ambitions for coding! As a result, I want to spend my whole weekend under a blanket building my websites, reading UX articles, and flexing those muscles again.
It truly does help to think of my ability to code as a muscle. To be healthy and strong, you have to train those muscles. You have to work out, to work, to have muscles worthy of flexing!
Keeping with the metaphor, it has been a minute since I, ahem, “went to the gym.” I was too focused on the REAL muscles. It’s hard to dedicate yourself to workouts and… mental workouts. My time management skills and ability to balance are what REALLY need a makeover! Do it all, with eight hours of sleep.
I digress! In better news, I have made an invigorated new push towards learning more about coding. I have my developer ambitions (to polish Javascript, re-learn Python and PHP, and learn C++), but I’m also keeping my writing muscles flexed. UX Writing is a more advanced version of what I do now. I’m excited for the chance to grow that skill!
With all that in mind, I’ve started to refine and rebuild my portfolio website. I actually already have a design in mind! I just need to find a way to code it out to look just how my brain has it pictured. Unfortunately, my brain only has the vaguest, champagne memories of what it should look like (champagne memories is an expression that I just made up and will be using as an aesthetic name immediately). UX writing will come in to bridge that gap! To be a UX writer, you should have experience with Figma and Sketch, which are basically visual design tools to help create the display/layout of a website (or app) for the user.
It all feeds into each other! I just have to put in the work to get it done. By committing to this goal, I will come out with a polished portfolio website, and a better portfolio of work to send to employers! I’ll have that fulfilling life yet.
The skies have opened up, so I’m anticipating a travel delay. I’ve got a few ideas on how to keep me occupied until boarding time.