Week 1, Summer 2023

'Warming' up

“Summer is officially here!!”

I cannot tell you how long I have waited to finally say these words out loud. It almost reminds me of my school days when I would eagerly wait for the last bell to ring, eyes fixated on the clock, with all of our bags packed and bodies ready to spring into action.

We would all get ice cream¹ before going home and would have already made elaborate plans to play in the evening. The energy and excitement surrounding the whole ordeal were simply unmatched. Back then, summer equated to freedom.

I feel something similar today. It is as if I have been granted the freedom to finally do the things that I have been wanting to for a while. Times like these are rare, which is what makes them so special. I want to bring that childlike energy and motivation to do things back and that is what I intend this summer to be all about.

I asked myself, “What would I do if I had all the time in the world?”

For the past month, I have been making a comprehensive list of goals (maybe too many) for myself for the next 14 weeks. It is a collection of all the projects that I started but never finished, new projects that I want to work on, and ideas that I wish to explore further (starting with the Midwest Hackers)². I want to get back to doing everything that I had to give up during school: from music to art, to reading to tinkering.

However, I want to be very intentional about what I do, which is what will set this summer apart from all the ones before. I am going in with a plan with the hope that I will be able to connect the dots by the end of it.

Starting this week, I will be publishing weekly updates to keep track of my progress (and to keep myself accountable), which will be divided into the following sections:

1. Music 🎵 - my weekly progress on the music that I am composing and learning to play

2. Reading 📚- lessons learned from the book(s) I am reading + more words of wisdom

3. Learning Spanish 💃🏽- Yes! I am going to be learning Spanish this summer and sharing my journey as I learn a new language

4. (Surprise section 🎲) - Hushhh

5. Photo of the week 📸- To end it all, a picture I have taken that encapsulates and describes the week perfectly

Let’s get into it.

Music

Going through my Voice Memos this week, I realized how many unfinished songs and ideas I had. It was finally time I showed them the light of the day.

I (re)started working on a song with my friend and artist, Vyom, that we had been composing last December. We both got busy with college and never got the chance to finish it. Plus the 8000 mile difference between us doesn’t help.

However, it never lost our sight.

Listening to it today, it might be one of the best pieces of music that I have ever composed and I am very excited to share it with everyone once it is ready. The goal is to publish it by next week. Here’s a little teaser 🌌

I will be publishing it on my SoundCloud and (hopefully) Spotify. So, stay tuned.

(Single cover artwork dropping soon!)

Reading

"Return to the sanctuary where knowledge prevails, Rekindle the fire, as reading unveils."

IT IS TIME TO READ!!

I wasn’t able to read many books this semester. Most of my reading came from articles, blogs, and newsletters, with the occasional light reading of a book. It is time we bring balance to this equation.

This summer I want to learn from the shoulders of giants. I want to understand the context behind a lot of the things that have shaped modern society and try to approach today’s problems from a new lens.

What lies at the end of it all? I do not know. But I am sure as hell very excited to get there.

I have already checked out three books from the library:

Time to dive into them.

Learning Spanish

What would be a good way to stimulate a part of my brain that hasn’t been stimulated or challenged for a while now? By learning a new language, of course.

I have been wanting to learn Spanish for some time now and I thought that this summer would be the perfect time to do it. After attending a fabulous Venezuelan dinner earlier this week, I finally got the nudge I needed to download Duolingo and start my Spanish-learning journey.

So far, I have been making good progress on the app (thanks to Duo, the green bird, and the streak rooting for me)³. Current progress: I am getting around the city.

Status: Rookie

While it is an ambitious goal to be proficient in Spanish by the end of 3 months, I will be trying my best to get there. If you have any recommendations on what should I do, please let me know.

My favorite sentence from the week has been “Tú comes pan”, which translates to “You eat bread” (No particular reason, I just like the way it sounds).

Photo of the Week

“The Hive Mind”

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This week was the start of a journey of endless explorations and, what I can only see, to be the start of something exciting. Some things found an end⁴ while others found a new beginning.

This summer is going to be all about discovering myself, my strengths, meeting new people, creating new projects, and honing new skills. And I could not be more excited about this.

Hasta la vista,
Aaryaman

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1. We did something similar this week to celebrate the onset of summer and the end of finals. Follow along the journey here.

2. If you are going to be working on something cool this summer, you should consider signing up for the Midwest Hackers. Reach out to me through this form.

3. Duolingo, if you are reading this, por favor I DO NOT want ‘Super Duolingo’. Showing the same ad over and over again is not going to change my mind. At least spice it up a little.

4. This week was bittersweet because a lot of my friends left campus to work at their internships. I wish them the very best as they courageously pursue their aspirations and hope that this summer excites and inspires them to achieve great things.