Personal reflections and insights on software engineering, life, and everything in betweenhttps://itsmeray.com/en-ushttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/a-letter-from-kawaguchiko/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/a-letter-from-kawaguchiko/A letter left behind for the next wanderer — on solitude, searching, and how much life offers those who keep looking even when they feel lost.Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTlifetravelhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/the-quiet-grief-of-adult-friendship/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/the-quiet-grief-of-adult-friendship/Somewhere between "Let's catch up soon" and "Sorry, life has been hectic", adult friendship became one of the most emotionally significant and least discussed losses of modern life.Sun, 24 May 2026 00:00:00 GMTliferelationshipshttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/the-loneliness-of-depth/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/the-loneliness-of-depth/A reflection on loving deeply in a world that often only stays at the surface.Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 GMTliferelationshipshttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/floater-friend/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/floater-friend/Friendship, I learned, rarely exists in such absolute forms.Mon, 11 May 2026 00:00:00 GMTliferelationshipshttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/to-framework-or-not-to-framework/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/to-framework-or-not-to-framework/If you were a team lead assigned to a new frontend project, which would you choose and why?Mon, 13 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTengineeringop-edhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/rendering-strategies-explained/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/rendering-strategies-explained/A compilation of my understanding on different frontend rendering strategies as part of my interview prepSun, 12 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTengineeringhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/building-itsmeray-v6/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/building-itsmeray-v6/A behind-the-scenes look at how I rebuilt my personal site from scratch—and the 300+ commits it took to make every pixel, sound, and interaction feel intentional.Fri, 20 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTengineeringhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/2026-03-13-somewhere-in-the-middle/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/2026-03-13-somewhere-in-the-middle/Do you think you have what it takes to be a senior?Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTcareerengineeringhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/skating-on-her-own-terms/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/skating-on-her-own-terms/Alysa Liu, freedom, and the difference ownership makes.Tue, 24 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTlifehttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/futile-devices/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/futile-devices/Sufjan Stevens, the man that you are.Sat, 21 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTpersonalhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/conflict-avoided-conflict-multiplied/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/conflict-avoided-conflict-multiplied/I don't like Jordan Peterson, but he's right on this one.Tue, 17 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTrelationshipslifeop-edhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/your-commits-not-enough/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/your-commits-not-enough/A reflection on why invisible excellence is fragile, and how engineers build durable impact by documenting and sharing their thinking.Sun, 11 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTengineeringcareerhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/workaholism/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/workaholism/Is relentless hustle a sign of strength, or a slow surrender of self?Thu, 30 Oct 2025 00:00:00 GMTcareermental-healthhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/henyak-sampai-lunyai/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/henyak-sampai-lunyai/To what extent should one dedicate one's life to work?Tue, 23 May 2023 00:00:00 GMTcareerop-edhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/anecdotal-dilemma/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/anecdotal-dilemma/The hidden struggle and anecdotal dilemma of becoming a first-time employeeFri, 28 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMTcareerpersonalhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/how-we-hacked-our-way/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/how-we-hacked-our-way/A detailed walkthrough of my experience in participating in RHB's Get Your Hack On 2023 Virtual Hackathon: ASEAN Edition.Sun, 05 Feb 2023 00:00:00 GMTengineeringcareerhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/work-ethical-dilemma/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/work-ethical-dilemma/A thought experiment on where you should draw the line on the ethicality of job opportunities.Thu, 18 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMTcareerlifeop-edhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/good-job/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/good-job/There are no two words in the English language more harmful than 'good job.' — Terence Fletcher, WhiplashSun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMTcareerlifeop-edhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/and-then-what/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/and-then-what/A mental model on how to be a better decision-maker.Wed, 22 Jun 2022 00:00:00 GMTlifeop-edhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/self-compartmentalisation/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/self-compartmentalisation/A psychological concept of mentally separate conflicting thoughts, emotions, or experiences depending on the occasion.Wed, 08 Jun 2022 00:00:00 GMTmental-healthhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/six-domains-self-care/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/six-domains-self-care/My reader's digest on this interesting article related to self-careFri, 27 May 2022 00:00:00 GMTmental-healthlifehttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/ledv/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/ledv/A summary of a takeaway I got from my 1-on-1 session with my team lead.Tue, 24 May 2022 00:00:00 GMTcareerhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/fyp-101/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/fyp-101/A comprehensive guide and walkthrough of my Final Year Project (FYP) experience for the past 2 semesters as a Software Engineering student.Thu, 17 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMTengineeringcareerhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/ambivalence/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/ambivalence/A personal write-up on handling ambivalence or conflict of emotions: being genuinely happy for others while pushing past your personal setbacks.Wed, 17 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMTmental-healthpersonalhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/hackathon-newbie-experience/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/hackathon-newbie-experience/Detailed look into arguably one of the wildest roller-coaster rides of my entire student life: My first-time experience in joining hackathon!Mon, 15 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMTengineeringcareerhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/amanah/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/amanah/Everyone can learn and strive to be a leader, but should everyone be one?Thu, 12 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMTcareerlifeop-edhttps://itsmeray.com/thoughts/locus-of-control/https://itsmeray.com/thoughts/locus-of-control/An in-depth analysis into locus of control and how understanding it can help improve our lives.Mon, 20 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMTlife