Log of a Bootcamper in their Final Project
Monday
First thing today - go into the opposite direction that I was used to in the past 12 weeks. I came prepared for the freezing Hopper: blanket, scarf, and Mom's homemade cozy socks. <img>
I continued working on a difficult lab on Redux that I started on the weekend. I felt relieved when I heard that I was only one of many who had trouble with it. Even during 3 hours of lab review lecture we were not able to finish half of it.
At lunch I found food. Free food for bootcampers is like truffels for truffel pigs. <img truffel pigs>
I had expected the week to start off much more stressed or more pressure. Instead I am waiting for our instructors to approve my project proposal. At the end of the day I felt relaxed, optimistic, and happy.
Tuesday
My proposal finally got approved! This was at 3 pm. At 10 am I am supposed to present my MVP with
data models,
users stories,
wire frames,
component structure
Planning out the backend and frontend structure in such detail before even writing out a single line of code is surprisingly challenging. But I think that just thinking about the architecture of the broad project skeleton is time well spent. It will prevent me from going down rabbit holes. Honestly I feel a bit stressed out that I have so little time. I was even skipping a lecture on Redux Authentication (something that I will really need) in order to work on my presentation. Hopefully this will not be a wrong decision.
Wednesday
Now I understand what writers must feel when they start a book and stare at the blank screen.
WHERE TO START?
Just setting up the basic functionality took much longer than expected. It did not seem like rocket science as we have done this before in our last project. The reason is maybe the fact that this time we are working alone, not in a group.
Today's accomplishments include:
Create the frontend skeleton with React: the actual web components that will be visible on the screen
Set up the backend/API: create database models and their tables
Connect backend and frontend: data from the frontend needs to be passed to my database, and the frontend needs to be able to grab the data from the backend by calling the API
The connection is still funky, but I will figure this out...
Thursday
I am so much slower than I thought I would be. I thought I could complete all the CRUD actions, but I have not even finished the "R" yet. At the end of the day, the user can now view a single habit and see the dates of the current week. For half the day I was fighting with a bug in my HTTP request to my API It feels like I am not progressing at all. Especially hearing from others that their MVPs are already finished.
Friday
The past few days have been a blow for my confidence. I got so much less done than I had expected. Every little thing takes so long. Just getting my backend set up and displaying dummy data on the screen has taken two full days.
But today I was able to get the Update method working! This small success is starting to boost my self confidence back up. Hopefully things will speed up from here...
I have scaled back alot on my MVP (take out User Auth, Calendar styling). On Monday we are already deploying on Heroku.
There are three things that will hinder me to get things done on the weekend:
1./ Flatiron Students Present => Need to create the presentation
2./ Blog Post
3./ Going out for lunch on Sunday
This means I have to drop stuff from my To Do List so I will not be surprised on where the time went: no laundry/cleaning, no meal prep, no gym.
Today we had the second to last "Feelings" Friday, where our class sits in a circle with our instructors and comments about their week. It looks like I am not the only one who is surprised with the slowness of progress during the project. I had to scale down my MVP to a reduced MVP. They announced that we are going to deploy our project on Monday afternoon, and I am prepared to work hard to get my MVP done by then. But it is a struggle. It feels like 70% of the time I am stuck with debugging something and not really moving forward. Even if my MVP is just a matter of getting a simple CRUD app live without any extra features.
It was one of our classmate's last Friday though and we felt a first waft of goodbye feelings. He expressed his gratitude of learning in a community like this, and that he appreciated the people, the environment, and the knowledge he had gained. I could relate much to what he was saying... Less than two weeks to go...
Saturday
I got up early, had a hearty breakfast, took the bike and arrived at school at 8.30 am. That is even earlier than on my regular weekdays. Determined to get s*** done!
So weird to be at school, when nobody is around! After a while some of my classmates also dropped by, one after another, which made it more fun to work.
By lunchtime I had completed the update functionality of my CRUD. And by the end of the day I had finished my blog post and the presentation, which are due on Monday and Tuesday. It feels like a very productive day! I still have so many things to build out and it will take a lot of time, so I have to remind myself, that it is one step at a time. And that this experience is for my learning curve and supposed to be fun!
So I rewarded myself with going to bed earlier than usual and some relaxing time with Netflix. A few people recommended "Cowspiracy" to me and it does encourage me to be vegan. Next on the list: "Earthlings".
Sunday
Woke up refreshed at 6 am, ready to have another productive day! It still feels so different to be at school, when nobody is there. It is like being in a forbidden place because it is so quiet... And Financial District is dead on the weekends, especially in the mornings. It reminds me of my first months in NY at my new job. I would feel overwhelmed with the workload and spend the weekends in the office to catch up on things. Not nice memories, but now life is different. I chose to get away from what makes me unhappy and working towards something that I genuinely enjoy. Best life decision ever!
Did not get as much done as yesterday, as I met up with good friends for a long lunch at a vegan Dim Sum restaurant in Chinatown. Tried to be more productive when I got home in the afternoon, but it was a long week and ended up browsing the internet (latest obsession vegan recipes) and going to sleep early.
Empty School on Saturday Morning
Like a ghost town - but awesome for concentration and get stuff done
My view for three weeks
See the little exit sign? No can do. We stay here and work!
Did I mention that Hopper was cold?
Day 1 in our project room and I am prepared:
Warm sozy socks, knitted by Mom, a fluffy scarf and a cozy blanket...
Happy Coding!
Well, debugging does get frustrating at times...
Sunday Brunch: Dim Sum
Buddha Bodai: Vegan restaurant in Chinatown
Taste not bad but a bit flavorless...
Best Sushi Ever!
Beyond Sushi's creations are well rounded and perfect pleasers for your taste buds
I never thought I would say this but I like them better than the sushi I had in Japan...
Having Dinner at the Water
A perfect place to breathe some fresh air while enjoying your meal...
Having Fall Food in the Summer
First time to try out Spaghetti Squash and Butternut Squash. I cut them up, tossed them with a bit of olive oil and roasted them at 400 degrees in the oven. Came out so sweet!
German Name, German Quality
It is not German though. I think they are Korean.
It is our preferred breakfast place as they have a HUGE buffet
A Reason To Celebrate
Happy Birthday, Ahmed!
