Get a weekly, digital postcard filled with topics to help you find more adventure on the trail and in daily life. You'll get gear recs, topics to ponder, and tons of inspiration for getting outdoors!
Share
ππ»ββοΈ Get to Know Me With 25 Fun Facts
Published 3 months agoΒ β’Β 7 min read
Hi Reader!
How was your week? I hope October is treating you well and you're excited for a new month. We're in the final quarter of the year!
I can't believe we've already made it to issue #25 of this weekly email (see all the previous newsletters here, if you're interested). I wanted to do something a little different to celebrate the milestone -- and maybe we'll keep it going for each 25th issue if I can keep thinking of facts about myself. π
It's always fun for me to learn a little more about the people behind the camera/keyboard of my favorite online accounts, so I figured I'd channel that same fun here. If you feel so inclined, reply to this email letting me know what facts surprised you the most or what we have in common! I'd love to learn a little more about you too π
From my Seattle days. I'm smiling through the pain (rain), but Pico's struggling.
2. I'm one of those people that thinks "I could live here" anytime I travel to someplace new. I can't, however, imagine settling down in one place permanently. Maybe one day I'll find the place that changes my mind!
3. There has never been a day in my life that I haven't had a dog in the family. πΆ My dad was a big dog-lover and had an old chocolate lab when I was born. We later brought home a blue heeler one of his friends could no longer keep. Many years later after the lab passed, my sister was working at a veterinary clinic when the owners had to give up their dog, so we of course took him in as well. We then had an adorable bichon frise to keep our heeler company. Lastly, I adopted Pico, my Aussie cattle dog mix, five years ago and he became the annoying younger brother to our bichon. We're thinking of adding a second dog to the household again once we have more space!
Baby Pico π₯Ή His ears were floppy for the first couple days after I brought him home.
4. I'm not a picky eater and am willing to try just about anything (twice), but the one food I can't stand is olives. π« Oh, and black licorice.
5. I've always liked public speaking, even though I find it to be one of the most terrifying experiences you can have. I was in class office growing up so I could speak in front of the school during assemblies. π Nowadays, I'm way less eager for the limelight.
6. My favorite teacher in elementary school was an author and being in his class convinced me that I also wanted to be an author when I grew up. Writing has been one of my favorite activities since then, both for pleasure and for work. Still TBD if any book writing is in my future. π
7. Speaking of books, reading is one of my greatest joys in life and how I spend most of my time outside work and sleep. I read over 100 books a year and started my "book reports" series on Instagram stories to help me remember everything I read.
8. My mom wanted to have the freckles on my face removed when I was a kid (Asian beauty standards), but I refused. What was once just a few freckles has since multiplied considerably, so it would have been a waste anyway. And I love my little speckles!
Living my best, freckled life in Sequoia NP.
9. Say what you will about astrology, but it's pretty spot-on for me. At work, I was known to be a "serial starter." Great at getting everything organized and kicked off for a new project, but fizzling out when it came time to wrap it all up in a bow. I'd be off to the next new thing before the i's were dotted on the last one. At least I was aware of this tendency and could plan to pass projects off to a teammate when I needed to! π
10. My most dreaded chore is vacuuming. My favorite is laundry. How can people not enjoy folding laundry to their favorite music or a good audiobook?!
11. When I was in college, I couldn't imagine life outside the education system and wanted to stay in school forever. As soon as I was out, I couldn't imagine ever going back. π
12. I have serious misophonia; I cannot stand the sound of people chewing food. Even though I know how irrational it is, that crunching and chomping absolutely drives me crazy. π«’
13. I started my first YouTube channel around 2011 and thought I'd be the next fashion guru of the internet. I think I posted two videos and had 26 subscribers before calling it quits. This was waaay back when thrift hauls, DIY videos, and makeup tutorials dominated my feed. I sometimes wonder what my life would be like now if I had stuck with it.
15. Iβm generally an optimist person and always try to look on the bright side of any situation. I feel most of the negative emotions we experience are brought on by ourselves in anticipation of events that never come to pass.
Finding all the tiled stairs in San Francisco.
16. If I had the opportunity to go back and relive my childhood, Iβd definitely say βno.β Iβm perfectly content being an adult and having all the freedom and struggles that come along with it.
17. For a while, my favorite animal was the ostrich β and itβs still one of my faves, but I havenβt thought about an absolute favorite in a while. My friends all thought it was such a funny choice and it became a running joke in our friend group. I even had a stuffed ostrich I named Oscar! One friend was interviewing for a company and their final question for her was her favorite animal. Unable to come up with anything, she blurted out βostrich!β which the interviewer found hilarious. She later referred me to the same company. I was afraid theyβd ask me the same question and think I copied my friend if I shared the same response. π
18. Iβve always preferred individual sports to team sports, but loved volleyball growing up. Although Iβm not the tallest, setter was my favorite position to play.
19. Besides volleyball, I played tennis, swam, and did track and field when I was in school. I wasnβt great at any of them (maybe besides the triple jump in field) and wasnβt particularly competitive haha.
20. Iβm a huge fan of snail mail and want to send more of it! I used to handwrite tons of notes and letters for friends and partners. Iβm reviving my love for handwritten mail by sending postcards to every member of my Adventure Aficionado tier on Patreon!
One of my favorite spots in California (so far): Alabama Hills.
21. The very first paid job I had as a teenager was selling fireworks at my neighbor's stand twice a year: the week before New Year's Eve and the 4th of July. π
22. The first legitimate, payroll job I had was as a barista on campus during college. While I was there, Seattle famously raised its minimum wage to $15/hour and I thought I was rollin' in it π° (even though I barely made enough for rent π).
23. I have the worst case of movie amnesia. After I'm finished watching any film, all memory of it fades in a few days or weeks. I once told my partner at the time I hadn't seen most of the Marvel movies, but loved the ones I'd seen. Shocked, he agreed to rewatch all of them with me. When we were nearly done getting me caught up, I confessed that when we were halfway through nearly every single movie, I realized I had, in fact, seen it before. π«
24. Overall, I'm a pretty serious person. I'm laidback and Type B and often bubbly, but lack the goofiness of most of my friends. I tend to gravitate toward people with a lot more silliness in them than me. π€ͺ
Nearly getting heat stroke in Death Valley during record high temperatures.
25. Exploring the outdoors, creating and sharing content about it, and helping others feel confident on their own adventures is my dream job. I'm still figuring it all out, but there's nothing I'd rather spend my days on. There are times when I wonder if I'm adding value or simply shoving more meaningless fluff onto the internet (especially on days like today where I'm writing an email all about myself π), and I can't deny that there's an aspect of ego to anything anyone shares online. I can only hope my content has helped or inspired at least one person out there and it will have all been worth it. π
If you've made it all the way to the bottom, I appreciate you reading all these silly tidbits about me! I'm grateful you've given this newsletter a chance and hope you get something worthwhile out of it, even if just a few minutes of relaxed reading before your weekend.
We'll be back to our usual adventures and s'more content next week, so I'll see you there βπ»
Get a weekly, digital postcard filled with topics to help you find more adventure on the trail and in daily life. You'll get gear recs, topics to ponder, and tons of inspiration for getting outdoors!
Hi Reader! Today's cover photo is from several years ago when I first started getting really into backpacking and all things outdoors. The section below had me reminiscing and going through old photos, so it felt appropriate to include. π I hope November is treating you well! Let's dive right into this week's newsletter. Adventures It's been a season of local adventures for me and I've been loving it. Funny enough, it's a throwback for me to the times that I used to travel to California to...
Hi Reader! I allowed myself to slow down and gave myself a little break last week, but we're back with a bunch of goodies. I hope you're doing amazing this week β¨ Let's dive in! Adventures With cooler weather upon us, it often feels like the time to stay indoors and cozied up with a good book and some hot cocoa. βοΈ It's easy to forget that this is the best time to visit some of our incredible National Parks! If you're looking for the perfect outdoor destinations this winter, take some...
Hi Reader! Another month done and the end of daylight savings coming this weekend. What a whirlwind week it has been! Let's dive into today's newsletter. π Adventures 'Tis the season of (over)consumption. There's not much that scares me more than witnessing the vast amounts of consumerism that happens every day, but particularly around the holidays. Perfect spooky topic for Halloween. π» With many of us starting our holiday shopping early (hooray for planning ahead!) or hoping to grab good...
β
β