WatchDevRun

Summer has begun and with that comes warmth, ideas and of course goals!  Realizing it's been almost a full year since we've moved back to the US is kind of wild and to think how much my life has changed in the last year.  I mean I'm contemplating a marathon, I like my job again but the part of me that wants to look and analyze data hasn't left.  Instead it has definitely gotten stronger! In the last week I've been taking a more in-depth look at Numpy and Pandas, both libraries that work with Python.  The more I learn of how these two work together the more intrigued I am. The ability to work with numerous libraries is what helps to make Python interesting and insightful. As I dig deeper into the various libraries Python uses, the more I realize it really can be somewhat intuitive to work with. This doesn't mean I don't make mistakes but in order to fix these mistakes it is much easier as I have a greater understanding of what the code means and how to adjust...

Wow that's it -- school is over and summer is here...crazy to think this whole pandemic/quarantine started in March and now in June, we have riots and protests breaking out all over the nation and the world.  What a different place we're in now than when I moved back in July.  I'm pretty sure no one could have predicted what would happen and what is happening, I know I couldn't and wouldn't.  But now on to new goals and a new way of life.  School always comes and we learn what we learn. This year has been a lot of growth for all of us but now we're moving on to a summer we didn't expect but gives us a variety of opportunities to try.   Time to set the goals for the summer!  I'm a planner so setting up the goals is crucial for me to get work done. So here are my preliminary goals for the summer: 1. Work through the DataQuest curriculum to focus on data analysis work. 2. Find a part-time job to help the transition to the US a bit easier. 3. RUN - my mile...

I've never been as grateful for this image on my morning run as I was after the news was released that Michigan will not be re-opening the schools this academic year.  As a parent, it's going to be rough. I have an only child so her whole social world will, and has been me, for the last 3 weeks already.  Add in we just moved back to the US so a lot of her friends are still overseas makes this a bit harder.  As a teacher, knowing my students are home and not sure how they're doing, except the ones who email me back, that is just as difficult.  Not knowing how to provide the right instruction to help them stay as successful as they've been this year is going to be difficult but we'll manage.  How do I know we'll manage?  We're teachers.  We walk into a classroom every day not knowing if our kids have eaten, slept much less gotten any work done.  We don't know who is getting abused at home or struggling to get electricity or internet s...

Well, we've made it through another week and this time quarantine got real with a Stay Home Executive Order in place for all in the State of Michigan and other places across the US and the world.  I've been able to keep the child's anxiety in check, mainly because I've worked incredibly hard to keep mine in check with her during the day. But it's hard, we all know it's not just for the greater good but for the health of everyone around us.  I don't want to be the one to make a decision on who gets medical services and who doesn't.  No one else should either so I can stay home.  Now, we do leave the house and for that I'm grateful.  I've gotten the child to start a Couch to 5k program as we were supposed to do Girls on the Run this Spring but that, like most things, has been cancelled so now we're doing it together.  She complains and whines but she does enjoy it...or at least has me believing she enjoys it.  Trying to keep her occupied has ...

I'm a teacher, this homeschooling thing should feel kind of comfortable right?  Oh wait, just like my first year of teaching this kind of sucks. I'm trying to figure it out and it's been a slow process.  Wednesday we started a list/schedule of to-dos.  And we did pretty well.  Still not as efficient as I'd like but hey it's a start.  Too bad it's Wednesday so still a bit off from the goal of Monday. But to be fair Monday I had my nephews and we did get some school work done.  We actually had an amazing day where I thought, yeah I can do this.  Tuesday was different as I was outnumbered 6:1 on the kid thing and we just did our best.  But Wednesday, now that was a day that could show the way everyday could work. Thankfully those that are runners know that the last thing any of us are able to give up is the run.  So we didn't.  I ran 25 miles last and was ever so grateful for it.  If I wasn't running via social distancing then Stra...

  Wow - getting back into coding is exciting and exhausting all at the same time. I've worked my new learning into my morning schedule -- up between 4:30 and 4:55 to wake up, get some water and get started by 5 am. And I've done it.  I've accomplished the goal everyday this week which is huge for me. Plus I've ben able to run 22 miles (36k) too.  So a pretty productive 5 days I'd say.  But what have I learned?  That's always the key to figuring things out right?  So let's work it out:   Coding:       * I need some more help with GitHub.       * Dictionaries in Python don't quite make sense yet...at least not counting them to code.       * I need to work with Visual Studio more to get comfortable with it -- wondering if there's a                   tutorial course that may help (things to look into for the future...).       * I really mis...

  In July of 2019, I ended my overseas adventure and moved back to my hometown to start a new adventure.  This adventure involves living and working the US while raising my daughter but it also entails a desire to move towards the tech field and see what I can become while pushing myself in ways I hadn't before.   First and foremost, running has continued to be an important part of my day to day functioning.  It helps me settle and be balanced and for that I am grateful.  The joys of running begins with the run but always ends with friends.  Moving to a new place is hard, thankfully finding people who run isn't as hard as finding friends in general.   But since I need a challenge, I signed up for Gazelle Girl 2020 Half Marathon and RiverBank 2020 (25k).  Then on a whim, I found out that New York City was celebrating the 50th anniversary of its marathon.  The next thing I knew, after a conversation with my biggest supporter, I was signed up ...