In previous journals, I mostly reported updates and reflections on my strategies in crypto and betting. Today, I want to write about something different.

Yesterday, I met Zoey for lunch. She had just returned from studying in Japan during her summer break. It had been over three years since we last met, and we ended up talking for almost two hours about everything and nothing. Zoey is one of my closest friends in the city, and our history goes back to 2019.

We first met during one of the lowest points in my life. I had just returned to Hangzhou from Chengdu, where I met old friends from our shared time in Berlin in 2013. At the time, I was broke, having lost over ¥1 million in crypto, and I was drowning in self-doubt about my career as a crypto investor.

Time flies. Now it’s 2025—Zoey has pursued her education in Japan, and I’m married. I can’t recall exactly what we talked about yesterday, but I walked away feeling lighter, as if a weight had been lifted. It reminded me that I should socialize more often—it’s good for my mental health.

As a Pattern Strategist who spends most of his time buried in data and charts, I’ve realized that having a social life is not just a distraction; it’s a necessary form of grounding. It reconnects the mind and body to the physical world and to human society—a way of touching grass, in the truest sense.

In previous journals, I mostly reported updates and reflections on my strategies in crypto and betting. Today, I want to write about something different.

Yesterday, I met Zoey for lunch. She had just returned from studying in Japan during her summer break. It had been over three years since we last met, and we ended up talking for almost two hours about everything and nothing. Zoey is one of my closest friends in the city, and our history goes back to 2019.

We first met during one of the lowest points in my life. I had just returned to Hangzhou from Chengdu, where I met old friends from our shared time in Berlin in 2013. At the time, I was broke, having lost over ¥1 million in crypto, and I was drowning in self-doubt about my career as a crypto investor.

Time flies. Now it’s 2025—Zoey has pursued her education in Japan, and I’m married. I can’t recall exactly what we talked about yesterday, but I walked away feeling lighter, as if a weight had been lifted. It reminded me that I should socialize more often—it’s good for my mental health.

As a Pattern Strategist who spends most of his time buried in data and charts, I’ve realized that having a social life is not just a distraction; it’s a necessary form of grounding. It reconnects the mind and body to the physical world and to human society—a way of touching grass, in the truest sense.