DOING WHAT EXCITES
Hi, hello, welcome 👋
The first of many to come, I’d like to welcome you to my newly curated website, housing a one stop shop for everything related to yours truly. This space will mainly be used for 1) a work portfolio - what I’ve done, what I’m doing, 2) the occasional blog post, and 3) anything and everything that I’m excited about, currently doing or interested in, which includes plugging my new-ish podcast with my co-host and lovely life partner, Matthew Lam (out now on Spotify).
So, what prompted this?
I’m definitely no writer, blogger, vlogger, or influencer by any means (maybe a podcaster now though?), but I’d like to think I’m a creative thinker at best, and what better way to showcase and share my ideas than a website? I’ve always been better at articulating my thoughts, feelings, and emotions through writing anyways.
This whole thing was prompted by a single question on a job application I recently filled out. Am I looking for a new job right now? No, but do I like to passively browse here and there when an interesting opportunity comes up? Most definitely.
The question was:
“Tell us about a recent or most memorable; concert, sporting, or theatre event you’ve been to and why was it so special to you!”
To which I answered:
“I went to my first and most memorable concert at the youthful age of eleven, for a small town band, who at the time was performing at The Opera House on Queen St. East, in Toronto, ON. They were just coming off their moment in the sun and the high of opening for The Jonas Brothers’ during their 2009 world tour. Here we were, standing in line outside this venue, three pre-teenage girls, and a dad who did not love being here, but knew this was something that was important to his daughter. After all, I was blasting Honor Society in the house for weeks and months on end leading up to this concert. Little did I know at eleven years old that this band would completely change my life. This show introduced me to the world of concerts, specifically small club sized venues, and live music in general.
The years following, I became almost addicted, and went to as many concerts as I could, following artists that slowly trickled in after finding out about Honor Society (Action Item, The Summer Set, Paradise Fears, All Time Low, to name a few). This was when my love for pop-punk really flourished. I became a frequent visitor to some of the most popular club sized venues in the city such as The Axis Club (formerly The Mod Club), Rebel (formerly The Sound Academy), and The Phoenix Concert Theatre all before the legal age of 18.
I love a good stadium show at The Scotiabank Arena or the Rogers Centre as the next person, but there is truly something beautiful about sharing an intimate space with a room full of complete strangers, who shared the same love for the artist or music that you were there to see. It’s that euphoric moment in the middle of the show where you look around and everyone is singing the same lyrics, at the same time, and in that moment, that was the only thing that mattered. That first show at The Opera House opened my eyes to a sense of cohesion, togetherness, and community that I had never experienced before.”
As I wrote this, I realized that I should put this somewhere and alas, here we are. Not only will I be using this space to pour my thoughts, but it will be built as a creative outlet - one that I’ve been missing since graduating from my undergraduate degree in 2020. With the pandemic partially to blame, my life came to a halt as many others’ also did in March of 2020. I would even argue that this pandemic came at the best time for me - I was wrapping up my undergraduate degree, and if there was no pandemic, I would have most definitely tried to jump into work right away without giving myself a proper break. I started my first full time job later that year in October of 2020, giving myself ample of time to rest and recuperate. Looking back, I was too distracted with adjusting to the 9-5 life to realize that I no longer had a creative outlet, with my last one ending when I graduated back in May of 2020.
Why now?
Honestly, the simple answer is because I now have more time on my hands then ever before. I tore my ACL a couple of months back in September of 2021. Prior to that, my life revolved around ultimate frisbee, and with the pandemic putting all sports/seasons/events to a halt, so did my ultimate career. Prior to tearing it, competitive sports had just started up again that summer, and all my time was invested in getting better, and getting back into it. I’m currently awaiting surgery, and this tear has taken a huge toll on me mentally but we’ll save that story for another time. I suddenly have ample time to pour myself into this instead of ultimate, since I am physically unable to play and train (at least to the intensity that I’d like).
I have no expectations for this website, at least not right now. My only goal is to create, build, doing what excites, and see where this takes me. That’s all for now, thanks for sticking around and reading this piece! To the first of many, I hope you follow along and enjoy the ride.