Things to do when I feel like spending my money

I began writing this blog entry to fight a shopping urge for boots that I think I need due to this cold, rainy weather. Even as someone that calls herself a homebody, modern society has made it easy to spend money even when you're in the comforts of your own home. To hold myself accountable, …

Planning my no-buy quarter

In years past, I've tried to complete no-buy months to no avail. I think some of this failure was probably due to me not setting up any rules. This January, after doing some research on Reddit and finding great Youtube videos about no-buys, I think I'll have more success. I'm also not planning to commit …

Slowing down

Taking the time to slow down and appreciate what's in front of me has not been an easy learning experience. With access to technology and fast transportation, it's hard to simply stay in the moment and not want to move on to a different task. I'm currently reading Thich Nhat Hanh's book, "You Are Here". …

On expectations in life: postgrad

Graduating from a highly ranked university with strong internships under my belt, I expected my post-grad life to be easy. I scrolled through LinkedIn, stalking alumni from my school with a similar background, studying how their lives turned out. While it's good to have high expectations for oneself, life does not owe you anything. Yes, you …

A short getaway to Big Bear Lake

With the ease of long distance travel nowadays, sometimes we tend to miss the places that are local to us. Big Bear Lake is only 3 hours away from where I live. Despite living in California my whole life, I've never yet visited the lake. We rented a cabin in the Moonridge neighborhood for 2 …

What you learn from being away

I recently graduated and as many college grads do, decided to spend some time traveling before committing myself to a life of work. What's weird is that before embarking on these trips, I was heavily job searching in my college town er, city for a job to be lined up for me when I came …

Touring the Navajo Nation: Discovering Injustices

On my spring break road trip, my most eye-opening experience was our venture into the Navajo Nation Reservation. This was completely unplanned, as the route we meant to take to the Grand Canyon from Utah was closed. What I saw and learned on this drive opened me to the struggles and strengths of the Navajo people. I …

Southwest Road Trip; part 1

My last spring break as a college student has been a blast. I planned this trip about 3 months ago, but made sure to leave wiggle room. This trip, for me, was beautiful, spontaneous and very much eye-opening. Our trip itinerary: Sunday: Newport Beach-Catalina Island-VegasOn day 1, we left Oxnard at 5am to catch our …

Intern in the Tenderloin

In my second semester at UC Berkeley, I challenged myself to getting my first internship related to my major. I was offered an interview at a homeless organization in the heart of the Tenderloin. Before that day, I visited the area and was immediately put off. People were sleeping on the streets, some parts smelled …

Visiting the American Deep South

Growing up in southern California and living in one of the most liberal cities in America, one can imagine that visiting the rural South for me could make me uncomfortable. In my social work studies, I've been shown many negative statistics about this area. Although statistics present one side of the story, I found that …