My other hobbies

I'm a nerd at heart, this will always be true. When I love something I truly come to obsess over it. Contrary to popular belief, I don't spend 100% of my life either sleeping or coding, but I have an array of other hobbies too!

I'd like to share some of those hobbies here.

Music

“Music really is a way to reach out and hold on to each other in a healthy way.” - Stevie Ray Vaughan

• I'm not a massively creative person. My big creative outlet is music, I play a variety of instruments, but have a softspot for stringed instruments.
• I first picked up an instrument when I learnt the guitar as a child, but my big musical passion finds its roots in the Ocarina. The Ocarina is a vessel flute instrument hailing from ancient china, but perfected and named by the Italians, with a name roughly translating to "Little Goose" taking for it's shape looking like that of a goose.
• The ocarina introduced me to the greater world of music theory, is the original reason I learnt to read sheet music, and allowed me to build the foundation of musical skill I have today. As a result of learning the ocarina, I picked up the ukulele, because the two instruments compliment each other beautifully.
• Nowadays I mostly play the bass guitar, with a fondness for either early 00's emo, rock, and pop punk. But I also play the guitar, keys, and drums.

Skateboarding

“Skateboarding is as much, or more, an art of mode of expression than it is a sport.” - Rodney Mullen

• Skateboarding is likely the hobby that I've spent the most amount of my life creating my identity around.
• I first started learning to Skateboard when I was about 15, and I did it until I was around 19. During these 4 years I was undoubtedly the "Skater Kid" of my friend group, and it was the thing I dedicated myself to most. If you could ask 16 year old Aya what she wanted to do with her life? She'd tell you she wanted to be a pro skater.
• After finishing college and starting to work, I no longer had the time to skate. However in July of 2024 I picked it up again and immediately fell in love. It just felt right.
• It is currently my "primary" hobby, and the thing I obsess over the most. I may be in my 30's and unable to take a fall as well as I once did, but my more mature mind has allowed me to learn faster and surpass my younger self, in terms of raw ability. (Even if I am maybe not quite as fearless as I once was!)