Nov 29Seeding Joy: I am a Death Doula and a Children’s TV WriterOn November 16, I spoke at the End Well 2023: It’s About Time Symposium. My talk was about my work as a Death Doula and a Children’s Television Writer and the intersection where these two meet. I am grateful. End Well created a safe space for incredibly dynamic people to…Death And Dying9 min readDeath And Dying9 min read
Sep 8Untamed, Euphoric, and Wet: Surviving Burning Man 2023With half a foot of mud stuck to the bottom of my Wellies, a plastic, pink Dollar Store tablecloth tied around my head to keep rain out of my eyes, and a faux bear fur keeping me warm with the help of the tutu I’d been wearing all day and…Burning Man7 min readBurning Man7 min read
Dec 19, 2022The Thing About Reporting RacismA few days ago, before I stood, before I opened my right eye, before I checked to see if the sun made it through the clouds and blinds, a man on my Instagram screamed, “shame on you!” He’s disappointed in me for using my “platform to talk about racism when…Racism5 min readRacism5 min read
Oct 11, 2022What If I Never Make It Home? One Man’s Self-Care Tour and Your Reminder to Book The TicketLike most things in my life, this tour, now affectionately called the Treat Yo’self to Self-Care Tour, was not planned. That’s mostly due to my inability to plan anything really. I’m on a train somewhere in central Italy, headed toward the port town of Ravenna to board a ship and…Travel5 min readTravel5 min read
Mar 17, 2022The Journey Toward True Love & Vulnerability: My Ayahuasca ExperienceI borrowed a sleeping bag that had long lost its full comfort, but would do well on soft sand. I tried gaining full access to that part of my brain storing 7th through 10th grade Spanish lessons, and sent a prayer out for Ms. Saunders and Mr. Veerhoff, wherever they…Ayahuasca10 min readAyahuasca10 min read
Apr 13, 2021Travel & Street Food: The Soul of a CountryNorman, a great friend, unquenchable foodie, and hundred-proof photographer from the Philippines, says, “you know the soul of a country by eating its street food.” …Travel4 min readTravel4 min read
Apr 6, 2021Travel & Blood Clots: Staying Alive While LivingEvery March, I fly to Charlottesville, Virginia to see my hematologist in the Emily Couric Cancer Center because she wants to make sure I’m fine and I wanna make sure I won’t die in a Spanish Gothic Quarter with fartons in my hand. Again. Because I tell her everything that’s…Travel9 min readTravel9 min read
Apr 1, 2021B(L)ackpacking: Traveling the World and Not Ending Up in a DitchThe last few years saw a BOOM in Black [American] folks trekking the planet and it’s simply amazing! Especially since so many of us were raised in households where “don’t do that or you’re gonna end up in a ditch” so often poured from the mouths of our mothers, grandmothers…Travel7 min readTravel7 min read
Mar 30, 2021Must Be Kind: And 9 Other Rules for Group TravelStaring at my third passport from across the room, I realize I’ve been quite a few places with plenty of folks and so many of those foreign lands, daring adventures, and people were absolutely incredible. But every so often, I’d end up in beautifully…Travel4 min readTravel4 min read
Mar 26, 202142 Travel Movies to Watch Before the World OpensWhile we’re waiting to get back to the days where we’re grabbing our bags from the conveyor belt in a country new to our eyes, then fighting our way through the slew of insisting and aggressive taxi drivers to run to the other side of the highway to catch the…Travel12 min readTravel12 min read