Doing What You Love

Hi,

It’s late Friday afternoon, and I’m sitting quietly in my car, just waiting for my boy’s swimming lesson to wrap up. To be completely honest, I’ve been feeling pretty under the weather all week, battling a stubborn headache and running on very little sleep. But when you have a family to look after and a full schedule waiting for you, you don't really have the luxury of pressing pause. You just take a deep breath, tap into your willpower, and keep moving forward one step at a time.

And looking at my calendar right now, there are definitely a lot of moving parts to juggle. Classes for the new semester start next week, and I’ve decided to push myself out of my usual comfort zone. Instead of teaching Ordinary Differential Equations like I usually do, I am taking on Partial Differential Equations this time around. It is a fresh challenge, and I am actually quite excited to dive into it with the students.

Checking in on my favorite lecture hall. You want to know why? Because it’s located a whole 20 feet away from my office 😉

Right alongside my lecture prep, I’ve also committed to running a series of workshops on eLearn@USM. Even though I’ve been teaching these sessions for years, the demand never really slows down. We always have new lecturers joining us, and let's face it, watching Moodle randomly update its interface and move all the buttons around can send anyone into a panic.

Coming real soon. I definitely have some prep work to do.

I totally get why technology stresses people out. Digging into backend settings and configuring online platforms isn’t everyone's idea of fun. For me, though, it comes naturally because I just love clicking around and figuring out how things work. So, helping colleagues untangle those tech knots feels less like a chore and more like solving a fun little puzzle.

Some people assume I take on these extra workshops purely for the money. But honestly, that’s never why I say yes. I only ever agree to things if I genuinely enjoy doing them. The honorarium is just a nice, unexpected bonus at the end of the day, kind of like passive income that I rarely even track, right alongside grading papers or serving as thesis examiner.

It really is a good reminder for all of us: if you focus your energy on doing things you love without constantly keeping score or expecting a reward, you actually find deep joy in the process. And whatever financial blessing comes out of it? That's just the cherry on top.

So that’s a quick look into my world lately. Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend ahead. Bye! 💕