---
date: 2023-07-04
---

This was a light week for my work schedule, which created the space to consider priorities and lay some groundwork. It was already clear that building up the team was my top objective, but now I feel more confident in how to approach it. My allergy to empire-building has probably made me less aggressive than I should be.

We went out to celebrate a friend's birthday, which was a little surreal since she's here without family for a short stint to prepare for them moving here. Their situation brings back a lot of memories of moving here and, later, deciding to stay.

On Saturday I elected not to ride with no rationale except laziness. This triggered some toxic self-evaluation so I got out on Sunday.