“What is different in Malaysia?” I ask my new Korean students, carefully enunciating each word. “So hot. Ma-lay-si-a so hot. Korea have the winter. So cold. Here, always sun,” a student explains as she points out the window to the blazing afternoon sun. She…
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I’ve noticed that “life” likes to test me when I’m learning to navigate a tricky situation. Especially during an ongoing situation that seems to last weeks or months… possibly years. The initial situation triggers feelings and emotions – a lack of understanding, frustration, anger, or…
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Before my site went under construction last month, I published an honest post about what this “wonderlustful” expatriate life can sometimes feel like over 8,000 miles away from the place I would call “home.” It was a lower point on the roller coaster of my journey. Later that evening, my…
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As I was driving through the drizzling rain today, a song I didn’t recognise began playing on my Spotify station. The lyrics hit me right in my heart. Just in the spot that is so homesick I want to turn the car around and head straight for the…
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One of the most beautiful and equally challenging aspects of life is communication. We all know how assuring it is to speak or write and feel as though your words are understood by another. In contrast, we’ve all felt the confusion and humiliation of our…
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I find myself sitting here in my apartment in Hat Yai, Thailand approaching a pivotal time in my life. I have seven more school days left of teaching English in Thailand. As the soft echo of Spotify’s “Chill House” bounces from my computer…
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Some blessings come as great disguises. One of the English teachers at my school was absent for the past two days, which meant I covered all of her first and second grade classes in addition to all of mine. It also happened to be testing day…
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I just passed the midway mark of my TESOL course in Chiang Mai, Thailand. TESOL stands for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. So far the course has been packed full of adventures, full days of classroom learning, and college dorm style living. We’ve…
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I found myself feeling the first real sting of homesickness tonight. After 8 hours of class today I was exhausted and laid down for a nap, a rarity for a non-nap taker like me. I woke up to the familiar sounds of rain falling on…
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I fell in love in Bali. With the people, with the natural beauty, with the culture, with travel, and with myself. A Balinese friend told me yesterday that “everyone leaves Bali with a broken heart.” To some extent that is true, that once in Bali,…
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Hugs, kisses, dinosaur “rawwwrrrrs,” sippy cup “ahhhhs,” mosquito bite attacks, mid-day neighborhood walks, and late-night life talks have filled up the past 12 days of my life. My heart is exploding with love, tears streaming down my face as I write this blog post on…
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Yesterday, I officially moved out of Los Angeles. Just over a year in the City of Angels, and my life has forever changed. I moved to Los Angeles on a whim in late June of 2014, in search of change. My soul had finally had…
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If you follow me on social media you likely saw the recent announcement of my upcoming journey to Southeast Asia! If you don’t follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you should start! This is a wild new chapter of life that is about to unfold. …
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My relationship to avocados is akin to a new crush on a sexy, intelligent, witty man. You know the type. You pick him out, he feels quite nice, entices you with future plans, tests all your patience, and more often than not spoils it all…
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Last Tuesday evening I joined 29 others at The Larchmont on Melrose in Los Angeles, California for the “INTERSECT Salon.” A friend of mine and fellow IIN classmate, Sophie Ward, and her husband, Isaac Koren, hosted this magical dinner event. We filled the Larchmont’s intimate,…
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I was abruptly reminded this evening of just how fleeting life is. I volunteer at Marianne Williamson’s lectures every Monday night here in Los Angeles. I normally park close to the venue, but my usual spot was taken today. After the lecture, a friend dropped…
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In America we’re all looking forward to this celebrating our country’s independence this weekend. For most, you’ll be getting together with friends and family to barbecue, socialize, watch some fireworks, and reflect on what it means to be an American. For me, the meaning of…
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“The more you thank life, the more life gives you to be thankful for.” I’ve made it a point over the last year of my life to start my day by giving thanks. And to do my best to continue thoughts of thankfulness throughout the…
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My best friend, Mikaela, and I enrolled in a Hot Yoga 30-day Challenge for the month of May at Hot8 in Beverly Hills, California. It changed my life, in the most astounding, ridiculous, fulfilling ways imaginable. 1) Dehydration is the root of all evil.…