In October 2016, I went to Austin, Texas for the first time. I spent the first two days on my own, and the next two days with my friend culminating in seeing Taylor Swift at Formula One before heading down to have lunch in San Antonio and visit another friend in Corpus Christi. It was too short a trip, but it was the perfect 6-day getaway. This is a monster post of everything to see, do, and explore if you go visit! (more…)
A few weeks ago, I listened to a Design Mornings podcast about navigating a career as a designer. One of the panelists advised young professionals to be intentional in their career choices. If you want to be a designer, your career path should be filled with jobs that get you to your goal, not just whatever is available.As someone who has been trying to find a new path for the past five years, this stuck with me. My 26th birthday is quickly approaching, and with it, the end of my parental health insurance coverage. I’ve finally found a career path – UX design – where I think I will be happy, and want to be intentional in my pursuit of the right job in the field.
As someone who has been trying to find a new path for the past five years, this stuck with me. My 26th birthday is quickly approaching, and with it, the end of my parental health insurance coverage. I’ve finally found a career path – UX design – where I think I will be happy, and want to be intentional in my pursuit of the right job in the field.
Being intentional doesn’t only apply to career goals though.
With the Jewish new year, Rosh Hashanah, just behind us, and fall bringing pumpkin spice and leather jackets back into my life, I’ve been thinking a lot about how I want to spend the next year.
Finding a job that is fulfilling, challenging, and fun is clearly a main priority. But I also want to be intentional in my down-time. I want to be intentional in my friendships, my side projects, my health. I want to set up some systems and hold myself accountable, and accept that inactive time is a choice to stand by, not hours slipped into a hole due to indecision. Instead of feeling like life and time and obligations are pulling me in every direction, I want to take back the reigns and embrace that every moment spent living is a choice.
The thing is, most of my life has been guided by intentional moves with varying results:
Being intentional means recognizing that every moment of life that you are breathing is a choice. Every minute, every second that goes by, is within your power to control. Being intentional means that you decide to let leisure time pass and fully accept the results without judgement or regret. Binge watching 8 hours of Gilmore Girls is a decision, not a lapse that happens to you, but a choice.
Being intentional means activating your mind and being aware, or actively choosing to tune out. It means showing up to work, an event, a dinner, without preoccupations, but arriving with intention, and doing your best, being the best self you can be, which really just requires being present. Accept that wherever you are, even if it feels like a choice out of your control, you still decided to be there, and so might as well BE there.
And most of all, being intentional means that if you write an article in your head on the train about living with intention, you go home and write that article.
This August, my sister and I took a trip to the U.K. to celebrate her 30th birthday and her first trip out of North America! We knew we wanted to visit Edinburgh for the annual Fringe Festival, and then spend most of our time in London. However, being over-ambitious, I looked at Google Maps for something in between Scotland and London. There was Liverpool! Kind of in the middle. -ish. A new plan was born! Less than 24 hours of Liverpudlian magic were added to our itinerary.
We took the train into Liverpool from Scotland, past a repeating montage of sheep, windmills, and cows. When we finally arrived in Liverpool in the dark of night, the train station was mostly empty – aside from some life-size statues and a long line of orange clad train workers getting into their cars one by one like Oompa Loompas. It was a pretty great sight. I knew I was going to like this place.
Our Uber driver took us to the Pullman hotel where we experienced plush luxury at a bargain, Liverpudlian hospitality by the talkative concierge, and an overpriced, room service pizza delivered right as we channel surfed to the Naked Dating reality show on TV. Nothing like accepting a food delivery with a bunch of penises on screen. This hotel was so comfortable, and spacious with a rainfall shower and tons of space to spread out. Though it was far from the central places to eat or drink, the location would have been perfect if we had time to explore the many museums on Liverpool’s pier.
Time was not something we had, however. The next day, we raced to the starting point of Sandeman’s free Liverpool walking tour. We figured, if we only had one day to see a whole city, a 2.5 hour tour would be a great use of our time. It was!
Today is the day. It’s time to vote in the New York primaries. I’ve turmoiled for months over my voting decision. (more…)
Astoria. Queens, New York. It’s not quite as “exotic” as living in Thailand, Laos, or Cambodia, but the melting pot of cultures and the traditional community-like nature of Astoria provide an extraordinary maze of hidden gems to explore in the neighborhood. There are Greek bakeries, 24/hour fresh markets, and ethnic restaurants aplenty in Astoria – but in my expeditions around the neighborhood I’ve found some truly unexpected spots nestled in between traditional Queens establishments. Here are my top 3 Astoria hidden gems so far (more…)
Big news! I have officially signed a lease. Having grown up on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, it was very difficult to get up the will to leave the nest and start paying the high price of New York City rent. However, as a 25-year-old committed to kicking off my career in the City (us jaded New Yorkers always refer to New York City, and sometimes Manhattan, as “the City”), it was time. Moving to the most desirable neighborhoods in Manhattan would be expensive, and not a far enough move from my parents’ place to be truly worth it – so the question became: Brooklyn or Queens?
Last month, I drafted at least 4 or 5 posts to publish on my birthday, November 30th, about all of the amazing things I accomplished as a 24-year-old and all my hopes and dreams for my 25th year of life.
My 24th year was rich with travel, friendship, music, art, unexpected risks and rewards, and a lot of personal growth. (more…)
I feel ecstatic that it was SO hard to narrow down this list to 25 items. I could easily list off over 50 AMAZING things I did or experienced this year. Compared to the years I spent working at a safe, corporate job in New York, my 24th year of life was beyond extraordinary. It wasn’t all exciting and happy – there were dark moments and times when I realized just how little I know about the world and about myself, times when I feared for my future and if I would ever “figure-it-out.” Even during those relatively few and far-between lost moments though, I had hope. I am much happier than I was a year ago, and incredibly excited about what my 25th year will bring.