If you’d like to see the original list, you can find it here: 26 Things To Do In 2026.
This year’s Things To Do list was a part-continuation, part re-attempt of last year’s list. I felt cautiously optimistic when I drew up this year’s list because I had chosen what I felt were more attainable goals. It’s only halfway through 2026 and so much has happened, from rebuilding my savings to the very real possibility of re-entering the job market.
Looking back over the list, I’ve realised that some goals were more important than I expected, while others have quietly evolved into something completely different.
It’s as good a time as any to take a few minutes to revisit that list and see how things are going.
What Went Well
8. Check the fridge/cabinets/etc before going grocery shopping. And stick to a shopping list.
This one was definitely more of a work in progress than anything else. I say this because there were periods where I’d remember to poke through the cabinets and fridge on Thursday or Friday while updating the grocery list. And then there’d be periods where I would completely forget and just add things that I thought I needed.
This one is even more important to me at this point in the year, as I have a pressing need to make sure that I am in a truly secure financial position.
9. Purge the house of stuff that doesn’t “spark joy”
This was another work in progress. But, compared to #8’s very jagged progress line, #9’s was a smoother, albeit very shallow slope.
My main limitations are that I am mostly on my own for this. Especially where hauling stuff to the op shops is concerned.
The goal was never really about owning less. It was about creating a home that felt easier to maintain and navigate.
I am aiming to clear out a significant chunk prior to the Marathon Staycation when I hire a skip in a month.
What Could’ve Been Better
22. Fill up a sketchbook
The inspiration for this goal was the small, but growing collection of sketchbooks sitting in my craft room. I told myself in December that I was going to properly fill up one of them.
It’s June 2026, and there have been crickets in that department. This can be primarily attributed to how my days out typically flow. I get into the city, I do my errands/go shopping, I have lunch and then I head home.
Going forward, the plan is going to be to use the commute into the CBD to get in some sketching. As my travel sketchbooks are on the smaller side, securing them shouldn’t be an issue.
What Could Be Done Differently Going Forward
1. Rebuild my savings
I went into 2026 with a stubborn determination to brute-force my savings back to a healthier level. Six months in, I’ve found that life wasn’t terribly fond of the brute-force approach. Rather, it seemed to prefer the gentle, but firm shepherding of extra funds into my savings account.
For the remainder of 2026, I want to continue pivoting my life firmly towards a more low-spend path. Splurge where it matters and save where it doesn’t.
3. Learn 8 new recipes
When I wrote this point down last December, I had pictured myself learning 8 completely different recipes and I’d be mixing and matching throughout the week.
Fast forward to June 2026 and I’ve got a reliable pickled salad base that I’ve been having in meals at home.
Going forward, I think that the approach should be to learn a mix of recipes and techniques, rather than limiting myself to just recipes.
4. Bake a batch of cupcakes with frosting
I did get into baking last year. Even got a KitchenAid for the purpose.
I have hardly done any baking in the first half of the year, but I really want to pick it up again in the second half.
A more realistic plan would be to aim for 1 batch of my usual muffins and perhaps 2-3 “baked” treats for one if I feel up to it.
What Surprised Me
The prospect of re-entering the job market
The biggest surprise so far is undoubtedly the very real prospect of re-entering the job market within the year.
Prior to this, life had settled into a comfortable rhythm. There was work, weekends out, and the occasional holiday. While there were always projects and goals to work towards, there was always a sense of stability that comes from spending more than a decade with the same employer.
The possibility of changing that has forced me to take a step back and think about my career in a way that I haven’t had to for quite some time.
What kind of developer do I want to be? Which skills do I want to strengthen? What sort of work do I enjoy most? These are all questions that have occupied far more of my attention than I expected at the start of the year.
While the prospect is admittedly daunting, it has also prompted a level of reflection that I suspect would not have happened otherwise.
Relaunching the blog
Relaunching (or resurrecting) the blog had always been on my to do list, but had continuously been pushed further down by a combination of major life events and a simple lack of emotional bandwidth to do anything outside of my existing routine.
When I was suddenly faced with the prospect of possibly re-entering the job market within the year, relaunching the blog got bumped up to the top 5 of the list. This was due in large part to me learning that having a voice online allows people an insight into the developer that is me.
More importantly, it has given me a place to explore the parts of my life that exist outside software development. The hobbies, interests and experiences that have quietly shaped who I am over the years.
In many ways, relaunching the blog has become less about building an online presence and more about rediscovering my own voice.
If I have learnt anything from the first half of 2026, it’s that goals rarely unfold exactly as planned. Some have evolved, some have stalled, and some have become more important than I ever expected.
Rather than fighting that reality, I’m choosing to work with it. For the second half of the year, my focus is simple: rebuilding my savings, making space for creativity, and continuing to move forward one step at a time.
