The Theory of Everything

While science accurately argues that humans are among the most complex forms in the universe, given that the universe and its vast system are even more complex, we tend to find joy in very simple things. The human brain contains more than 89 billion neurons, each connected to around 7,000 other neurons, sending between 10 and 100 signals every second. Yet, we humans are mostly stuck, searching for the meaning of everything. So all those signals might be tangled somewhere along the way. 🙃

Interstellar

The meaning of everything, and life in general, is not something that we'll answer here, but the thought does visit us often. Maybe the best thing in life is waiting. The anticipation behind it, the quiet hope it carries, and the time leading up to this blog post being written might be an example of that.

The Pursuit of Happyness

You experience different feelings and situations with the people you spend most of your time with. Family is one part of it, but another grows quietly at work. It's often the people with whom you share your routines, the morning coffee, the balcony talk, the wins, the frustrations, the silent glances that say I know something’s wrong with you, and the moments of laughter that make your long days a bit lighter.

The Usual Suspects

Now look around…yup, those are the people you spend most of your waking hours with. The ones who’ve seen you celebrate a bug fix like it's a world record, survive another sprint, and stare at your screen in quiet confusion before the third coffee kicks in, wondering how something that worked yesterday suddenly doesn't today. They've heard your “just one more thing to finish” speech more times than you'd like to admit, and they’re probably the reason you laugh at least once a day, even when a deadline refuses to play nice.

About Time

After 9 months of calls, commits, and quick lunch breaks this year that never lasted long enough, it was time to hit pause. We decided to replace Discord messages for honest conversations and code reviews with something else, and that’s how our team building began.

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

Skopje sat under heavy clouds that morning. Two buses stood outside our office, surrounded by suitcases, backpacks, and people still negotiating with their eyelids to stay open. 😴 For a moment, it looked like a big group heading off on a vacation. In a way, we were not to rest, but to reconnect. It marked the start of our team building.

These are the moments to remind us to slow down, listen, care more, share a little deeper, and to dare a little more too, because somewhere between the bus ride and the beach, we kept coming back to those values. They were the quiet thread running through everything.

The Road

This year, our team had doubled, but “surprisingly,” somehow our chaos hadn’t. 😆 There were fewer forgotten passports, fewer “wait, did I take my charger?” moments, and everything moved smoothly than expected. We were headed to Olympic Beach in Greece, and despite the terribly cloudy weather, it seemed nothing could get in our way!

The Grand Budapest Hotel

The three-hour trip went by in a blink of an eye because there were games like Guess the Song and Two Truths and a Lie, along with some casual music, all accompanied by Nikolaj's dancing like he was warming up for a world tour. No one complained, as we couldn't, it was too funny.

The Arrival

Once you enter Greece, the first thing your eyes land on is the sea. It stretches out like it owns the whole horizon. When we arrived, we checked into the hotel and instantly switched into our special mode. We inspected everything: the dining area, the pool, the rooms… even the most minor details that normal people would never bother with.😆🙈

After the official opening, where Costa (Zelenskyy's doppelganger) said a few words, and the Simbiotika crew handed out the bracelets, that’s where our team building officially began, with us going straight to the beach.

You’ll probably ask why Zelenskyy, well, check this out:

The Opening Act

Not sure who thought of the name, but it completely resonates with us, so congrats, you did it once again… now let's go through the festival activities!

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

We were divided into teams, and our task was to build sandcastles using specific elements and following the rules Simbiotika gave us. For instance, some of the castles should have included gates, decorations, bridges, and so on. It was great to see how the teams are divided, how competitive everyone is (not that we don't know this), and how we understood the assignment from our team leads by getting specific roles.

The end of the game was great, seeing all those medieval castles made from sand, a few sticks, stones, and other materials that looked like they were built straight from James of Saint George. The first three, including the winning team, really stood out. Their castles seemed so impressive, you'd think they were hiding an architect somewhere. 👀 The second thing that stood out was the names of the teams: Komunalci, Barbie and Ken, The Pyrates from Gevgelija, A Yellow Van, Loto 7, and so on…

Pirates of the Caribbean

As the day faded and the night stepped in, it continued with a pirate party at the bar near the swimming pool. Everyone was supposed to dress like a pirate, and we had some pirate games, some sips here and there, and a lot of fun. To be honest, there were some pretty awesome costumes! Not sure how, but "rrrrrrrrrr!" came out as a pirate voice from the night, and it stayed longer than expected! Once again, all participants in these games were very competitive!

When the pirate things ended, the music kept playing, and the dance floor got really crowded. As usual, the bar closed, and the party continued at the beach under the wide, dark sky.

Edge of Tomorrow

The second day of our team building started right after the tasty breakfast we had at the hotel. We are still trying to figure out if the food was actually that good or if we were just very hungry. After that, the games began, and the whole afternoon was busy from the start.

The first game was connected to memory and running, which is a cruel combination before the coffee fully kicks in. Again, we really nailed the team names, like “Kravari”, “Perfex”, “Mamurni”, and so on. Only we would choose names that sound like they came from a late-night group chat.

Bird Box

Then we had some games with our eyes closed, like Blind Train, an activity with a rope stretcher, some associations, a world scramble, and slowly we reached the final and most challenging game. Blind Train deserves a special mention because it was so funny. Half of us were walking in the wrong direction, the other half were also confused about what to do, and the rest of the teams were laughing so hard they forgot they were supposed to play too.

Warrior

Catch the Dragon’s Tail is a game that teaches teamwork, communication, coordination, and peaceful conflict resolution. At least, that is what the description promises. In reality, we turned the hotel’s backyard into something that looked suspiciously like a battlefield where nobody remembered the “peaceful” part.

Players form a line, with the first player as the head and the last as the tail. The head must chase the tail while the rest of the line tries to stay connected. The players who act as tails wear a scarf that they must protect, and the heads try to steal it. It sounds simple until the competitiveness shows up and everyone suddenly moves like the scarf contains ancient treasure.

Sometimes we forget how competitive we can get, and it becomes a little scary. After a long session of cautious running, suspicious strategies, dramatic slides, and at least one move nobody has been able to explain since, one of the teams finally declared their win.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

After lunch and an hour of free time, we continued with a set of workshops organized by our colleagues and by Simbiotika. It felt like the moment in a movie when everyone suddenly discovers their secret superpower.

We had a color fabrics workshop by Bojana Arizankovska, where half of us realized we barely know the difference between some colors. A caricature drawing workshop by Nikola Kostovski, where some faces were stretched, some were exaggerated, and some of us wondered if that is really how we look.

An origami workshop by Teodora Stoilovska and Todor Jovanovski, which proved that folding paper is much harder than our childhood made it seem. Salsa Cubana by Aleksandar Mirchovski, where hips tried their best and coordination politely stepped aside.

Then came Vandalism 101 by Mario Stojchevski, the basics of lettering in graffiti, types of graffiti, and history. It was the only time we were legally encouraged to learn how to make things look like vandalism.

And last but not least, Basics of Photography by Luka Krstikj. This one happened right after the team building at Base42 because it got dark, and we ran out of time. The irony of doing a photography workshop without light was not lost on anyone.

Ocean’s Eleven

Simbiotika also added their own workshops: Sip and Paint, Stress Management and Mindfulness, Communication and Active Listening, and Bushcraft Survival Skills. Truly something for every version of us, from artistic to stressed to secretly preparing for a life in the woods.

After all of these activities, we realized that we have a lot of knowledge to share, and that there is always something extra besides our everyday job that makes us feel good. We also saw how rarely we give ourselves time to learn something different.

Most importantly, we discovered that our colleagues are great at what they do, sometimes in ways we never expected.

Saturday Night Fever

If you thought that the workshops were where the night ended, you are totally wrong. We all had disco outfits, and suddenly the bar and the floor became like a Pulp Fiction dance scene. There were sparkles everywhere, some new dance moves where Nikolaj again took the spot, and Sheva made the night even better by being the DJ and adding some character to the party.

The Morning After

Even though our eyes were fighting a battle that morning, we packed everything, went downstairs, and checked out. Then we closed the team-building by reflecting on the good and the things we need to improve. Yes, we are very self-aware of that.

First, we shared some personal opinions and aspects of our approach to caring in this company, and although we shine in this value, there’s always room to improve ourselves. Then someone said that we definitely need initiative to share and dare, so we can intensify these values.

The King’s Speech

After some time and reflection on all these values, we shared certificates among ourselves and with our team, who had practically organized the whole team building “For the People,” which was applauded by everyone. It was time to say goodbye and to get back to our country, so we did.

Inside Out

You’ve probably been reading for 7 -10 minutes right now, but here’s the conclusion and what we learned from this team building…

Listen to your colleagues, listen to them to the very end, try to be patient, do not jump to conclusions about some reaction. Don’t be impulsive; our moods shift like the skies above us. A serene morning can become a stormy night, and vice versa. Remember that our thoughts aren’t just thoughts. They are sometimes shaped by hunger, by grief, by sleep deprivation, by hormones, by something totally random, like losing in Dragon’s Tail or realizing breakfast is over.

Try to understand and value someone else's opinion. You don’t have to be right sometimes, and even if you do, if you see how someone is passionate about something and they have spent their time doing it, support them, be with them. This is sharing, not sharing a burger or a coffee, although that’s also nice. Whether it is for career growth, a game in a team building, or something more personal, take the initiative and be there for the people.

The Little Things

We tend to forget these moments and how fragile we, the human beings, are. We forget so much that things become unforgettable. Again, as at the very beginning of this blog post, joy can be simple, and we may all need less than we imagine.

The Social Network

In a way, that’s the whole point for us at CodeChem. Not just writing good code and delivering projects, but making sure the people behind all of that stay connected, grounded, and actually enjoy working together. Team building made it obvious, and now the job is to keep that same energy once we get back at our desks.

Maybe I Do

Maybe that’s all we really need going forward: a little more awareness, a little more patience, and the reminder that good work always starts with good people.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Special thanks to Simbiotika, who organized our team building for the second year in a row and knows how to handle us, even though we are a lot.

Also, special thanks to Krume, our photographer, for making these amazing photos, for his charisma, and for his positive attitude. If you need photos like these, you can always contact him here: https://krumetakesphotos.com/. Plus, he is a great human and brings the fun!

Now that we come to the end of this blog post, I hope you all noticed:

Post-Credits Hint 🎥

If you recognized the section titles:

Yes, they’re all real movies. If you haven’t watched some of them yet, well… you just got a pretty solid watchlist. 😄🍿

🎬 ROLLING CREDITS: CODECHEM EDITION

CAST

Gen Z Engineers ....................... Agents of Chaos & Memes

Millennial Engineers .................. Masters of “One More Commit”

Gen X Engineers ....................... The Actual “Responsible Adults”

Designers ............................. Pixel Sorcerers & Color Psychics

QA Specialists ........................ Certified Breakers of Everything

Project Managers ...................... Professional Crisis Containment

DevOps ................................ Cloud Whisperers & Deployment Wizards

Marketing & Recruitment & Finance............The Only Reason We Function

SPECIAL CAMEOS

Nikolaj ................................ Chief Dance Officer

Sheva .................................. DJ & Energy Distributor

Costa “Zelenskyy”...................... Ceremony Opener

Simbiotika Crew ........................ Bracelet Keepers / Team Building Organizers

Hotel Staff ............................ Witnesses of Our Collective Behavior

Blind Train Participants ............... Temporarily Disoriented Adventurers

Dragon’s Tail Survivors ................ Unofficial Stunt Performers

LOCATIONS

Skopje Office .......................... Where Deadlines Are Born

Two Buses .............................. Where Bonding Became Mandatory

Olympic Beach, Greece .................. Where We Rebooted Ourselves

Hotel Backyard ......................... Battlefield #1 (RIP to the grass)

Pool Bar ............................... Battlefield #2 (RIP to our dignity)

Beach at Midnight ...................... Battlefield #3 (RIP to everyone’s shoes)

Base42 ................................ Photography Class with Luka

Till our next one,

<3, CodeChem