Starting a New Quest : Gardening

About

I am both excited and nervous as I embark on a new journey into the world of gardening. The wonders of nature, including wildlife and plants, have always fascinated me deeply. During my childhood, I gained some exposure to gardening through pots, containers, and small gardens.

Professionally, I am a software engineer (Data Engineer) employed at high-tech companies in the Bay Area, California. Over the past five years, I have been a passive follower of gardening, primarily through YouTube channels dedicated to gardening. I have spent countless hours watching gardening content whenever time permits, and I’ve been particularly impressed by the work of Laura, who runs a gardening channel on YouTube called Garden Answer. Her passion for plants is contagious, and her knowledge is impeccable. Here is the link to her work — please check it out if you share a love for gardening.

Impact of social media

As a software engineer in the early 2000s, I used to question the usefulness of platforms like YouTube and Facebook. As a young engineer, I often wondered, ‘Why are we doing this?’ I felt like a very small cog in the vast IT industry. My role thus far has primarily involved executing projects in various capacities — developer, lead, and design. However, I’ve always been fascinated by the individuals or groups behind groundbreaking ideas, whether it’s designing compact computers in the form of smartphones or conceptualizing social media and microblogging sites.

If you peel back the layers of hardware or software innovations like smartphones or social media, you’ll find that at the heart of these things are “people”. These big ideas revolve around people and how to connect them or enable them to do things more efficiently (in the case of smartphones). To me, the innovation of smartphones paved the way for social media because having the ability to carry a device that allows you to connect to the internet anytime, anywhere opened up opportunities for connectivity. Social media visionaries recognized this potential and capitalized on it.

Fast forward a decade later, someone like me, who once questioned the usage of social media, finds inspiration in the work of another individual. I am now inspired enough to invest money, energy, and time into gardening, which has the potential to become a significant part of my life moving forward — a journey I fully intend to pursue. This is a testament to the positive impact and transformative power of social media, changing lives of individuals across the world.

Procrastinations

I admit it’s a real struggle, and I’ve been guilty of it too, especially when it comes to hobbies, exercise, and overall well-being. It’s like I’ll have these ideas, and then I’ll put them off for another day. In my head, I’ll convince myself that if XYZ happens, then I’ll do it.

The past five years of my life have been incredibly interesting, and I’ve emerged as a different person. One of the many changes I’ve made in my new life is adopting a ‘now or never’ mindset. No more procrastination — if I want to do something, I’ll go ahead and do it without listening to excuses or internal chatter.

With my new hobby of gardening, I faced thoughts of procrastination. I’d tell myself, ‘Aruna, you’re renting an apartment — wait until you buy a house to try this hobby.’ But I decided to oppose this idea. I chose to work with my current circumstances and start building on my passion. As other events unfold, I’ll simply pivot accordingly.

I’ll be documenting my learning journey on gardening, including budgeting and landscape design considerations. If any of this interests you, please follow along with me.

Additionally, I write technical articles, especially in the area of Data Engineering. You can find those here…