February 29 Matt and I went to dinner at his friends’ house so we could hammer out details for the Philippines trip in May. Everyone is on board and we almost have the locations nailed down. We just need to buy the tickets. One of the friends works for Amazon like Matt, and she said…
In January, I had the pleasure of waking up very early to do an interview with Albany, New York. Liz of Postcards from the Road, a WAMC public radio podcast, chatted with me about the World Race, about my book, and about the way my family background set me up on the adventure in the…
I'm in Fremont with my brother and sister-in-law. We put eight potatoes in foil and bake them in the oven. 90 minutes later, I prod one and it is squishy. The potato burns the pad of my finger. Ashley and David prod them, and maybe the potatoes burn the pads of their fingers too, but…
In June of 2019, I had the honor of delivering the commencement speech to graduating seniors at my former elementary and high school in Tacoma. Here is its text: Concordia Christian Academy, Class of 2019, I first want to offer my congratulations to you all. Getting to graduation is hard, and it takes a long…
I have been a barista for over two years. I've written a book and traveled a lot. But what I've neglected to lay out is that for the last two years, I have spent most of my time behind the counter at a coffee shop. I have a world of knowledge about pulling espresso shots.…
On a Friday afternoon last August, I received the last of three major invoices from my editor. Along with the invoice was what I then thought was a PDF of the completed interior of Leave It All. There were a few things that needed fixing so I sent my requests back. Then I paid the…
On the fear, vulnerability, and self-doubt of reading my own published diary.
