I need to start organizing a reunion for the university alumni (class of 1990), and the first challenge that arises is: how can we communicate with each other if I don’t want to use a Meta service (WhatsApp, Messenger) and I want to reach as many people as possible without everyone having to become ‘friends’ on Facebook? ☹️

Forty years ago, before the Internet, we used the phone to talk to each other, a service often owned by a single nationwide company. We were okay with that, even if, in some jurisdictions, people talked about a monopoly. Now, it’s very different. What makes this less acceptable to me today? 🤔

For now, we will use Messenger because some people don’t have iPhones and can’t use FaceTime. 🙄

When I Retire...

One of my nieces’ friends works in IT and recently contacted me for advice about his career in this field. This isn’t the first time I’ve received this kind of request. Over the past year, two other colleagues have also asked me for similar career advice. I have to admit, I really enjoy it. I like listening to the concerns of the younger generation and, to the best of my knowledge, advising them to help them flourish even more.

I have over 30 years of experience in IT, and I’m starting to think about retirement and what I will do once my career is over. I have to admit, offering my advice for free to younger people is something I would really love to do.

This weekend, I wanted to work on my next YouTube video, but I fell into this “photo-sharing website for my close family and friends” rabbit hole. It took most of the day to refine that I completely forgot about my video. 🤦🏻‍♂️

Ten days into 2026, I have achieved much more than I anticipated. If I maintain this pace, I will complete my list of wild ideas soon. It’s not just about checking items off the list, but also about learning a lot along the way. It’s very fulfilling.

I can confidently say I’ve learned at least one significant new concept every day over the past two to three weeks. It is not only satisfying but also quite stimulating. This will keep me from aging, that’s for sure.

Let's Start 2026!

This is my first post of the year on Micro.blog. Despite the overall global, political, and economic challenges that don’t seem very promising, I am personally looking forward to 2026.

Travel-wise, I have four planned: Egypt, Mexico, France & Thailand. This could also be a productive year for photography. I’m looking forward to those trips as we celebrate our 20-year relationship, my wife and I. 😊

Tech-wise, it’s the year of the iPhone upgrade. After skipping the iPhone 16 and iPhone 17, it’s time to upgrade my capable but aging iPhone 15 Pro Max. I expect to stay on the Max. It could also be the year when I replace my M2 MacBook Air with the M5 version. It will depend on the available money and other factors. Lastly, if Apple finally release a HomePod with a screen, I might get one, too. 💻

I wish you a good one!

I have a one-day holiday vacation on Thursday, right in the middle of the week, and I still have no plans. 🤨 Weather should be perfect, though. 🍁🍂🚲👀

As a blogger and someone curious about many topics, I often feel I miss opportunities to become an expert in certain fields. Generative AI is one example. It gained public attention in the fall of 2022. At that time, when generative AI started to gather attention in the public, I should have recognized this important moment. I should have taken the chance to gather knowledge and organize it like a true researcher. I’m very analytical in general. I ask good questions. I have the tools and the motivation to do this work. Now, it feels overwhelming to catch up.

I’m spending a lot of time online and on my computer each week for my blogs, probably around 10 to 25 hours. I wonder how skilled I could become if I dedicated those hours to learning a new field like psychology or music.