I grew up in a half-Chinese, half Norwegian household in the freezing icicle called Minnesota. I learned to hate lutefisk and down lots on congee. We’d throw snowballs in the shape of Char siu bao. Our version of hyggelig (cozy) was watching kung-fu movies on the couch while eating heaps of oranges and nuts. We’d go to the public library almost every day; I read a plethora of books about ducks, WWII airplanes, and tornadoes while also helping other kids get on the internet. That was my first real exposure to systems and networking, both technologically and socially.
In my transition into adulthood, I took up many opportunities that placed me out of my comfort zone. While studying abroad in Norway I was asked to take a research position at the University of Oslo’s department of chemistry which I accepted. I only blew up the lab once. In college, I had an unhealthy obsession with watching real giant squid videos online which turned into a job hunting bigfoot for the History Channel. I even got to dress up as bigfoot (it was a real Cinderella moment).
That was all before my tech career started. I still sometimes flirt with a Sasquatch short film and still keep my chemistry texts was laptop stands, but now I channel the past skills of flirting with Nessie or derivative organic compounds into make systems and processes more efficient. I’m still working on my wok skills, and you’ll find me out on the ice on a freezing cold day. 哎呀 (uffda).