My May ‘26 in Review

And just like that, another month has flown by. Time for my usual look back.

The month started with my longest single-day bike tour ever: 136 km from Braunschweig to Gifhorn, Celle, and back. It was pretty exhausting, but that didn’t stop me from trying again at Pentecost. I had planned to ride various national and international cycling routes from near Hildesheim all the way to Kassel. 220 km over two days. But the heat, the effort, and my heavy bike made me reconsider, and in the end I only managed one day, riding just over 100 km to Holzminden.

Then I turned 27 this month. Unfortunately, that means the time when I could still use Deutsche Bahn’s (Super) Sparpreis YOUNG discounts is now over, and I’ll have to pay the full price from now on. My MyBahnCard 50 will also need to be renewed as a regular BahnCard 50 next time, which will cost significantly more. Oh well, that’s just how it goes as you get older; all the discounts slowly disappear.

There was also plenty of wedding planning this month: meeting with the officiant, another visit to the venue, a test shoot with the photographer, and learning a dance. Only a few weeks left until the big day! My grandma keeps telling me on the phone that my grandpa was also 27 when they got married.

May also marked the end of my probation period at my new job, and I’m very happy with it. There’s always something new to learn, and I can fully contribute with the experience I already have. In June, I’ll be heading to Schwäbisch Hall for the second time.

Yesterday, we were in Hamburg because my fiancée wanted to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in the theater before its summer run ends. The effects were really impressive. Even though I’m not as deep into the Harry Potter universe as she is, I could still follow the story well, and the three and a half hours flew by pretty quickly.

Last but not least, I’ve also been tinkering with software in my free time. I’ve switched to NetBird for connecting to my servers, listed my favorite Flatpak apps, and used AI to improve media optimization in GoBlog. I’m also still working on migrating from the old system, which will allow me to share more photos in the future, even if I’m not taking many at the moment.