Ah, 2024—what a beast of a year. It stumbled into my life like a drunken pirate at last call, swinging chaos in one hand and existential dread in the other. And yet, here I am, bruised but unbowed, recounting the skirmishes with a sort of grim satisfaction. Let’s break it down.

The good: small victories, big revelations

• A health breakthrough: October brought an unexpected gift—a solution to a health problem that had been dogging me for years. I wasn’t looking for it; it just fell into my lap like some cosmic joke. But it’s still holding strong as I write this, and for that, I’m endlessly grateful.
• Beach bliss: I made it to the beach in July—a rare escape. Sitting on the sand, doing absolutely nothing, is probably the only time I feel truly at peace. For a week, I let the waves wash away the weight of everything, and damn, it was glorious.
• Speaking out against ageism: This year, I finally got to call out the ageism that plagues the IT industry. It felt good to raise my voice against a system that treats experience like a liability instead of an asset.
• Finding my voice on AI: 2024 was the year I found my footing in the generative AI conversation. Its impact on my field and beyond is impossible to ignore, and I’ve become part of the growing chorus demanding we take a harder look at what’s coming.

The bad: the year’s sharp edges

• Freelancing woes: Freelancing treated me well for the most part, but October hit like a freight train. I slammed into a wall, hard. It took me a while to recover, but I made it through—though not without some scars.
• Family crisis management: This year, I spent way too much time managing a family crisis from afar. It felt like fighting a war on three fronts, and I was always outnumbered. The stress was relentless, and some days, it nearly broke me.
• Missed work opportunities: The crisis forced me to pass on work earlier in the year, and that decision came back to bite me when things slowed down in October. It’s a bitter pill to swallow—sacrificing income for family, only to be punished twice for it.
• IT industry disillusionment: I’ve known for a while that the IT industry is broken, but this year solidified it. Short-term thinking rules everything, and it’s maddening to watch. The difference now is that I’m no longer afraid to call it out for the mess it is.

Final thoughts

2024 wasn’t a year—it was a crucible. I found clarity in some places, chaos in others, and I’m still standing. The world is still mad, and the fights aren’t over, but I’ve made it through one more round. Here’s hoping 2025 brings a little less turmoil and a lot more triumph. Cheers to surviving.