International Move Without a Moving Company
November 15, 2020
Over my life thus far, I’ve made nearly a dozen international moves. I’ve never hired a moving company. Like many adults in their 20s, I used to leverage my parents’ basement as storage. My parents also moved and sold our family home over the years, meaning that option no longer exists. Fortunately, I’ve since learned to live with less. I…
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Rest Better on Airplane Mode
May 26, 2020
Life in Saigon has resumed to normal from COVID-19 for several weeks now, and so has the city’s infamous hustle and bustle. This lively city felt suffocating after a month of calm. The Vietnamese government successfully kept the COVID-19 pandemic under control, in what felt like a flip of a switch. Just as suddenly as the city went quiet, it…
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Practice Cooking Meditation to Live Slower
April 23, 2020
Like many, I’ve been cooking and baking up the storm. But for me, this has been going on well before the global pandemic began. I’ve had some time to reflect on why cooking brings me so much joy, and why you, too, should practice cooking meditation. An Incapable Cook in College In college, I was a terrible cook. I often…
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A Toddler Taught Me How to Live More Intentionally
March 8, 2020
For 2020, I had set the year’s theme to “Live More Intentionally.” I wasn’t sure how I was going to achieve this other than being slightly more aware of my daily activities. Before getting a new job, I had booked a three-week trip to St. Louis to spend time with my nephew. I was looking forward to some quality family…
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Float Spa: Weightless Body and Restless Mind
May 27, 2019
A friend recently gifted us certificates to a float spa here in St. Louis, at Float STL. I adore the gift of an experience, and float spa has been on my list of things to try. In accordance with my 2019 theme to step out of comfort zone, I went for it despite not knowing what to expect. Float STL…
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Minimalism Journey
June 20, 2018
8 months ago, Xav and I got serious about becoming more minimalistic in our lives. We were very far from it. Every drawer and shelf of our 110 squared-foot apartment was filled with stuff. We were organized hoarders. As such, discipline was necessary. I had read the Marie Kondo book and had been listening to The Minimalist podcast. The Konmari…
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The Trouble of a Busy Life
December 18, 2014
It’s 9pm, and I am writing from my office. Somehow, and I am not sure how, there are only 12 days left of 2014. After putting in a 12+ hour day at the office, I wanted to stop and reflect, and think about where time has gone. Nearly two months ago, I came across a piece titled, “The Disease of…
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30 Day Challenge: Social Media
April 1, 2014
Sometime toward the end of February, I suddenly had this idea to go on a social media purge for the month of March. If you know me at all, you know I tend to make impulsive decisions. I am one of those nutty people who say crazy things, and then actually go and do them. How my impulsiveness in life…
Read MoreFacebook Hiatus, or rather, Detox
June 25, 2011
So remember that Facebook Hiatus that I went on? I went off of the Hiatus and back on Facebook a few days ago. The 68-day ban came to a close. Rather than a hiatus, I felt the experience was more like a detox – much like when people go on spa vacations or yoga retreats. It was good to remember…
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Facebook Hiatus: 41 days to go
May 10, 2011
I love these So you want to… videos on YouTube, and I just came across this one that is amazing: So you want to close your Facebook Account. I thought this is highly appropriate given my current Facebook Hiatus. I’ve lost track of how many days it’s been, but I do know there is 41 days to go. I haven’t…
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