2020. Wow I can’t believe we are into a new decade! The last year and a half at college has absolutely flown by and it shocks me that I am a sophomore already. I know I haven’t made a post in a while, and I’m sorry for that. The flurry of finals and winter break swept the time away, but I’m back now and ready to type. I actually want to talk about my winter break trip and what it meant to me in this post. I was back home in Caldwell, NJ and it was one of the best weeks of my life.

Fall quarter of my sophomore year was quite a crazy one. Finally I’ve been taking many more upper division courses in subjects that really excite me like quantum engineering, solid state physics, and thermodynamics. I achieved my goal of joining a research lab which has been one of my best decisions! I learn so much, and I am working on some really interesting projects at the intersection of Materials Science, Computer Science, and Electrical Engineering. Also, I’ve been making some significant progress in Bruin Racing on various projects within my Research and Development subteam. On top of it all, the pressure to find a summer internship and figure out the rest of my life has been quite a burden. Considering all of these things, its understandable that I haven’t really had much time to think about much else.

This is why going back home for winter break was such a blessing. I finished up my finals at UCLA and took the first flight to New Jersey where I stayed at my best friend’s house for a little over a week. I know how much of a nuisance I must have been for my hosts, and I am so thankful that they took me in anyway. They made me feel like part of the family. From that moment, I was free to sleep in and let go of some responsibility for a while. I slept in, drove around town with high school friends, ate unheathy food, and watched movies until 3am.

I loved hearing about how everyone is doing at college: radio ambassador, research on computer graphics, frat parties, smart IoT mousetraps, and so many other random things. My friends were always the sort of nerdy ones in high school. It’s so heartening to see that everyone has found a place where they fit in and contribute in a meaningul way. More than succeeding, my friends are thriving. In the busyness of college, it possible that a few weeks or even months go by without catching up with everyone, but everything is immediately back to normal, and we are laughing over some ridiculous story.

Getting on the plane back to the Bay for the remainder of my winter break was a tragic experience. It took so much self control to walk away from the best vacation ever.

I moved to Los Angeles, CA for college. My parents now live in San Jose, CA. My brother lives in Sunnyvale, CA. My childhood home is being rented and my childhood friends are 3,000 miles away. Somehow in the course of a few months, California took over my life. There is definitely so much to love about it like tech culture, Hindu temples, Tesla superchargers, and amazing weather, but I don’t know if it will feel like home anytime soon.

Chances are good that I’ll end up finding a job somewhere in California and be in this state for a few more years. That doesn’t mean that New Jersey will ever stop being my home though. As long as my friends are there, I’m always going to want to visit and catch up. But, I also need to accept the beauty in the palm trees and grassy hills here in California. It’s easier said than done, but this state is already slowly growing on me.

I am surrounded by likeminded people and I am so happy. I could see my college friends sticking together for years and years to come which is so exhilarating. I am learning at the feet of masters and practicing the skills of industry leaders. UCLA is an amazing fit for me, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to have come here.

Homesickness hurts, but I’m glad for it sometimes. It reflects my fond memories of my birthplace and encourages me to reach out to family and friends. Eager to make new memories in this new, strange, exciting place.