When the government lifts its ban on going out in one short week, there will still be many barriers to navigate. The sun may be shining, but the world may look just as uninviting to some as a windy Saturday may look to a runner. We may continue to hunker down, stay at home, and wait. Just as I’m learning to face down the wind, we’ll learn to live with our barriers. … More Facing down the wind
As I near the close of a second month in quarantine, the dust has settled on the initial shock of social separation. It seems we’ve now collectively nestled into new routines. I’m beginning to loosen my tight grip on connectivity and shift my attention back into the present. As if by magic, I’m beginning to hear my own voice in my head again. Slowly but surely, my words are finding their way out. … More Quarantine Month Two: New routine, consuming less, and slowing time.
So is it the journey or the destination that counts? I would argue it’s neither. … More The age-old debate of journey vs. destination…
My week in Costa Rica was so full and rich that it felt like it could’ve been longer; each day so action packed that it could’ve been two. I’ve gotten lots of questions about how I planned my trip, so instead of simply narrating the experience, I’ve provided links and a few tips. … More COSTA RICA: How I planned my escape to paradise
I live in a world where it is normal to breathe in all the people who happen to be headed the same direction as I am on my way to work. For an hour, I am pressed against strangers. Arms I don’t know rest on my head to hang on to the pole that steadies … More Fighting for Space in the City: The Commuter’s Pains and Little Glories
After 8 fairly sleepless hours on the plane, the cabin lights clicked on and I realized they were serving breakfast. It felt like I had barely blinked since the weird chicken in some sort of creamy sauce had been served, and suddenly an unidentifiable pastry was being placed before me. I checked the time on … More How to Live in Two Time Zones
As we smiled at each other, I realized that we are really quite similar, you and I. Each for our own reasons, we have chosen to come to Paris and make a home, and suddenly there we were, in the same place, at the same time, making the most of it. … More A Letter to The Stranger in the Tent City
A little over a year ago I was in a bar celebrating the French Rugby team’s qualification for the 2016 Summer Olympics. It was monumental. Rugby 7s had never before been an olympic sport, and the French team had never set foot in an olympic arena. On the evening that I celebrated France’s qualification for the games, I celebrated … More The Olympian from Afar
I celebrated the Fourth of July in France. An American friend and I wanted to have a barbecue to celebrate, but since we both live in apartments where barbecues aren’t allowed, we decided to go for the next best thing and head to a park in Paris. We threw a picnic. I only have a … More Why I Am Happy to Celebrate America in France
I walked in and immediately dropped my stuff by the nearest table, relieved to finally be able to be in my little safe haven, tucked away from the fickle Paris weather. “Tu vas bien ?” A familiar face asked. “Ouf, oui, mais j’ai trop faim,” I replied as I plopped myself down in a chair. … More How It Feels to Be at Home
The Transition Artist 