Post in 2024

Hello everyone!

I feel that I owe you at least one post in 2024. It’s been a while since I last posted, but rest assured—I haven’t abandoned this channel.

Writing a post about a whole year can be tricky (and it’s totally my fault for putting it off), but I’ll try. It might be a bit disjointed or incomplete.

I’ve realized that once I stopped writing updates, all the months of the year seemed to merge into one big blur, and the year itself went by in a flash. Even the stories that many of you saw didn’t stick in my memory; they quickly faded, blending into a single impression. But after sorting all of this year’s photos into albums and events (thanks to the Photos app on macOS), it turned out it wasn’t such a monotonous year after all.

Retrospectives are powerful!

For me, 2024 started off a bit tough, but later it got really enjoyable.

In January 2024, I was sick (cough, runny nose). For the first time ever, I got an official sick leave note—and it was German. In Russia, I never once saw a sick note in my life. Finally got one!

Anyway, being sick is awful. Whenever possible, avoid it in the new year.

Moving on… The most important thing that happened this year is that I studied German. Semi-intensively: three-hour classes, twice a week, with a group of 8 to 12 people. I worked my way up to A2 level, which took about eight calendar months. Three hours of study after work, on top of speaking a foreign language, was not easy—stress built up. But I had a really good teacher, which helped me stay on track.

At the end of August, I passed the A1 exam and got my certificate.

Right after passing, I felt a huge sense of relief, and life became brighter. You could even see the change in my mood chart in the Health app.

Some people might say this is impressive, others might disagree: “You’ve been in Germany for 2.5 years, you could have learned more by now.” Well, it is what it is. I joke that I had to sacrifice some of my Russian to make room for German and to improve my English!

Right now, I don’t have a lot of motivation to keep learning German at that same pace, but we’ll see how it goes.

I needed the A1 certificate in German to apply for permanent residency, which I did. This was also my second big goal for 2024.

Mission accomplished.

This year I actually went to Portugal twice: once in March—driving from Lisbon up north—and the second time in November, visiting Madeira. Both trips were with my lifelong friend (and fellow townsman) plus his family. It was awesome. Portugal, one love!

I’ve realized that traveling with someone often boosts the experience, even if sometimes you feel like being alone (quite the paradox). Traveling solo is convenient and comfortable, but with two, three, or four people, it’s more fun. When there’s a group, you get spontaneous jokes and shared tasks, and it makes everyday things so much easier.

I’ll wrap up with a quick rundown.

People I saw in person in 2024:

E. Shulman, A. Vilenskaya, D. Bykov, A. Panchin, I. Kolmanovsky, Idrak Mirzalizade.

People I heard with my own ears:

Metallica, Coldplay (incredible energy, the entire Olympic Park sang along), Adele (who gave 16 shows in August right in my neighborhood), and Fontaines DC.

Misses of 2024:

1. I barely rode my bike—only once (summer was devoted to German, and sometimes I just wanted to do nothing). I’ll fix this mistake in 2025!
2. I hardly went hiking in the mountains, despite all the amazing spots around here…

Plans for 2025:

• Definitely get permanent residency.
• Maintain my current level of German, at least by using apps or practicing occasionally.
• Exchange my driver’s license for a German one.

That’s it.

2024 is ending, and I say good riddance! Happy New Year to everyone!

I wish you all:

• Figure out your personal goals so life feels more meaningful (even just write down all your wishes on paper).
• Practice self-reflection and do retrospectives not only for work but also for your personal life (keep a journal, try therapy, or start a Telegram channel).

Peace to everyone!