The two wisest things I've ever heard my mother told me. The first about money, and the second about love. 1) You have to be willing to live how others won't so later you can live how others can't. The context for this was about putting in effort to succeed, working hard, spending time studying instead of hanging out or goofing off, saving money instead of going out all the time, living in a cheap housing situation or staying with your parents until you've saved enough for your dreams and your exit plan. Make the choice to live how other people won't in the short term, so you can live better in the long term. My mama has given me plenty of great advice when it comes to matters of the heart, but I think this was the most helpful. 2) Looking for a partner is like shopping in an outlet mall. You need to know going in that everything in there is broken in some way, you just have to find something that is broken in a way you can live with. Some things are obvious, like a sweater missing some buttons but it'll still keep you warm. Some things are broken in really hard to see ways, you might stumble onto a lovely recliner sofa and think "Why, this is here by mistake, there's nothing at all wrong with this, it's perfect!" and take it home. You don't notice until a few years go by that your perfect sofa has been leaking oil this whole time, and it's ruined your $3,000 carpet. Now, the house isn't irreparable, but the oil has caused damage and it will take time to repair. Moral of the story is - be careful of who you commit to before knowing them real well.

Over the past few years I have become enchanted with Alebrijes, beautifully hand carved and painted wooden animals from Oaxaca, Mexico. My stepfather is from the mountains near the central valley of Oaxaca, where a great assortment of alebrijes are made and sold. We have bought several to display around our house so my baby sister is surrounded with indigenous art made by her people. The more exposure I had with these incredible works of art, the more I wanted to make some of my own. Last year I began to watch videos about how to whittle, carve wood, what tools I would need, and how to care for and maintain them. After about a month of reading and watching videos, I bought a beginners kit and set to work on a little wizard. I had such a blast carving and painting him that I was off to the races to see what I could make next. Since then, I have made a handful of carvings. From a seal and dinosaur to gnomes and walking sticks. Carving is one of my favorite pass-times. Being able to make something new with my own hands is very comforting and rewarding, and gets me off my phone doing something productive.