hello there! i just graduated :)

at the turn of the year, when one habitually sits down to write their new years resolutions, i did too. in previous years my goals were more or less always concrete. i wanted to read more books, i wanted to exercise more, hit a certain grade climbing, become more educated. this january i sat on my carpet in my dimmed room, back home in lima, and ended up writing only one thing in my new years resolution, and it was to spend time meaningfully.

it is a vague resolution, i concede. everyone wants to spend their time meaningfully. of course its meaning to me is crystal clear. i wanted to spend time building a good future or living a good present, in approximately equal parts.

and so i headed into my last semester with that in mind.

i did a lot of things this semester. it's time to get sappy.

for one, i wrote a first first author paper with eddie, and went through the whole rebuttal process, and got it published (at icml!!! see you there if you're going :D). then i took a hiatus from research and spent some time filling out gaps in my knowledge. i took a theory course, and took away as much from it as the time i sunk into it (thank you paul hand for two wonderful classes). i also audited a partial differential equations class and a programming languages class (thank you jekel and holtzen for generously letting me sit in!), both were fascinating, and reminded me of why i love what i study. my summer plans are reading textbooks, off the top of my head: artin's algebra, lehninger's biochemistry, elements of information theory, ostep, and parts of the bishop deep learning book. the goal is mostly breadth in general computer science, and some more depth in the math.

i also went through the entire graduate school interview and visiting process. incredibly stressful, let me tell you. big shoutout to jake, eddie, adam, sofi, chris, jess and of course robin for helping me navigate the storm and turbulence. after going through this whole process and experiencing just how disorienting and nerve-racking it was, i am happy to help anyone out. if we have talked before and you are applying to grad school, or even if we have not talked before and you're a friend of a friend and think you would benefit from my help, reach out!

i travelled. went on two very budget ski trips with lovely people to dartmouth skiway (and shredded!!!). each time coming back with a billion bruises and a renewed sense of gratitude for the outdoors and friends. i went to puerto rico for spring break, like everyone else, and had some precious sunny days of bumming on the beach reading franzen's crossroads, piña colada in hand.

i started climbing again, almost entirely worry-free for the first time post wrist injury. my palms are once again covered in callouses and my knees in scrapes, but i cannot be happier. i'm pushing myself in many styles of climbing i would never even attempt previously. i'm consistently sending dynamic and coordination moves, and seeing myself improve is so addictive. i also biked a lot and all around boston. exercise has always been a good way for me to regulate emotions, and i certainly did my fair share of late night biking this year.

i'm reading more. this year way out of my usual sphere. i might seriously publish a book review again later this year, so i won't bother with the details. but ishmael by daniel quinn, the plague by albert camus, the secret history by donna tarte, and crossroads by jonathan franzen all sparked significant reflection in me about my assumptions of the world and my guiding principles. please talk to me about literature, i would love to have your thoughts and your recommendations (and add them to my list). i've also started and am halfway through knitting a sweater, so i am, as the kids say, hobbymaxxing.

i finally broke off social media for good, minus infrequent posts on the gram. at the start of college i had tiktok and instagram, at some point tiktok got banned and i deleted it, only to never redownload it again. i held onto instagram for a long time, convinced that i needed it for messaging people. a year ago i started deleting the app off my phone during school terms, but kept frequenting the browser version. the doomscroll experience was so poor on safari i never scrolled for too long, but eventually it still too got addictive. muscle memory would kick in before bed and i would open it on safari, hit the bypass on time limit, and consume content i did not even like for god knows how long. a couple months ago i finally just logged out on browser, and because i don't remember my own passwords i have not logged in since.

the highlight of my semester is undoubtedly the time i spent with friends. the walks, dinners, ski trips, drive-by hellos, trivia nights, climbing sessions, work sessions, night outs, cooking sessions, grocery trips, coffee dates, i have cherished every moment, and i am eternally grateful for the love i receive from everyone in my life. sending lots of hugs and kisses, unless you're not into that. in that case, sending lots of firm back pats.

where i am going next? great question! well i am first going to take a four months vacation, going to hawaii, california, cuzco, lima, seoul and parts of china. and then, i will be moving to baltimore, and starting a phd at johns hopkins (yes, two s's, i got it wrong in my statement of purpose, don't tell them).

it's the end of an era, but don't fret! as a wise man once said, our lives stretch far out ahead of us, and the trend is pitched towards confrontation. so we will meet again. or as a wise woman once said -- don't cry, it's a wild time to be alive.