On going live

…there is never the right moment ever to start to share your story, but now.

It starts with this very moment. When I first started writing content for Ramen Girl Don’t Hesitate, I kept thinking of many excuses why I had to have this before making it more accessible to the world. In my mind, I had to have a logo. Well, that was in November 2018, and it’s now July 2019. I still do not have one. Who cares. If I wait for the right moment, it will never happen. If I wait for things to be perfect, I will never have the right moment. I will never ever share this story. I remember thinking about how long the title of this website, but I also wanted to make it memorable and fun. Here’s my move, so I came up with this. I am getting myself out of the way. I wanted to get my ego, my pride, my mind, out of the way of my own crazy creative desire to share my silly story in the hopes that someone out there in this thing called the world wide web of stories and dreams, would find joy in it to get empowered to get out in the world and make it happen no matter what.

I have a lot to be embarrassed about if I wanted to go there and be self-deprecating. Believe me, I can make myself go there if I really wanted to make myself sad and miserable. I will share with you the vulnerable side of not having a job lined up, moving to the most expensive part of the United States. What was I thinking? My mind quickly likes to go there at times when I haven’t eaten or rested or haven’t practiced my self-care.

Imagine this. One mid-morning in May, I showed up at my parent’s house thinking it would be a lovely surprise for them. Something that would bring them happiness to finally see me here, near them. The thought of seeing my mom more brought me so much excitement. The idea of seeing my dad and finally getting a chance to go on brewery trips with him, mom and my siblings would be the ultimate dream come true and would spark joy.

I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, California, on May 2018.

You can fill in the blanks of the reality check. You can imagine the energy of this and the ripple effects a girl has caused to her friends and family, her dog Finnegan. Moving to the Bay without a job is CRAZY! Enjoy this run-on sentence stream of consciousness of her mind. “To think that I made a declaration in one evening of December 2017 that I would simplify my life manifesting things to move in the direction of purging stuff that I have accumulated through the years of creating a home and life in Columbus, Ohio; my Honda Fit getting totaled by a Subaru Forrester on my home from lunch on the lightly powdered snow day; falling down my icy front steps that one January freezing morning; Marie Kondo-ing the 3-bedroom house I love, thrive and live in; talking to my boss announcing my move and asking for my resignation. It came in three. That move inspired RGDH. I have some things I have yet to do to for the people I left who helped shape me and help me become the person I am now and continuously becoming.”

I have taken some time off for personal reasons. These pages are helping me explore what is deeply important. I don’t know where I am going. I have no answers, but for those who get a chance to discover these pages, I hope you can find inspiration and no fear to pursue something greater than yourself. Being in California, I see the day to day struggles, challenges, and fantastic impact of many incredible individuals I have encountered; of those who are in the trenches of manifesting their dreams. California is not a comfortable place to live, but one thing for sure, you will find people from many walks of life and experiences beyond what you expect, whose hearts are open and the drive to make something to observe. There will be forces out there that will test your emotions and thoughts. Stay the course, and practice resilience and gratitude. I will forever be grateful for Steve Jobs and his impact in this world. Stay weird and different. Your time will come.

So if you’re struggling with where you want to go, yourself, comparing yourself to others’ achievements, not being perfect, not being pretty; not be good enough; being ashamed; being embarrassed or being uncomfortable…this is a place where creativity happens if you stop and get time to yourself. It begins with awareness, it starts with you, only you, in the struggles and the valleys of sorrow and fear with your heart, mind and soul, there is hope and the desire to move forward, the opportunity to grow and find joy in the world around you even when things are not as you expected, imagined, planned. For this, I present to you my tiny ever-evolving wabi-sabi Ramen Girl Don’t Hesitate.

I was thinking of how space is an opportunity to get down and real. Music is space. There is no perfect time. It is now. Put yourself out there and see how it feels. Brandbeats | SE32 | The Influence of Space on Spotify kiss and celebrating music and the creative weirdos out there. With love and respect.

Experience - Less is More

I have been asked about what things I have done in the last year since I moved to California. My dream is to go out and help build a creative business where I help people thrive, untangle, unlock blocks, see themselves, get vulnerable, purge, discover the desire, pursue their dreams, get out of their comfort zone, you name it. Because people are amazing. Throughout our lives, we accumulate memories, impressions, thoughts, we are merely a heap. It is our power to create an experience that radiates what is inside us. Underneath all that, there is joy within us. Have you noticed that? I was reminded that we are, after all, makers and creators. It is inside us all.

I am knocked down and gratified to have the time, space, resources, location, opportunities to meet new people to go out for ramen and explore. My initial thought of exploring areas has expanded to a deeper level of experience spiritually. I am not getting paid for these, well at least not yet; but I am going to need some help from you, the people I meet on this journey. I am terrified. I am faced with reality checks and society’s narrative of “normal,” but really? Who wants to be so-called “normal” anyway?

My dream is I am not endorsing any places yet although there are so many incredible ramen shops here that are to be celebrated and most importantly, people to be honored and rocked. I am not again advertising, but the thought is there because I am here, after all, to help people, help business be “un-behind-the-scenes” to be honored. It has been helpful for people to ask about pictures of ramen and places. Things are brewing. Can you help?

In this present moment, though. I reflect on what life has brought to me. No job is worth more than this current experience; this opportunity to get to observe and understand to embrace my family. It is an abundant life to be able to have the time of doing nothing to learn what is there; doing absolutely nothing in the heart of Silicon Valley where every turn everywhere you look, people are coding, creating, making, doing, doing, doing. Any time you’re in doubt where the mind takes you to a place where you are comparing or misery wants to flirt with you, take time to be alone, see and watch where it stems from. If you can or if you are visual, make time to write it down on a journal or post-it notes. See it. Is it true? You decide. Remember, the mind is incredible. You can live like a miserable unpleasant human being; wallowing and whinging in self-pity; easily going down the spiral of the rabbit hole of sorriness. The choice and power are yours. The hard part or work is to take time for yourself to be silent, quiet and reflect. You are more amazing than you think. Let’s experience life. I am here. No expectations. Epic love to you. Whatever.

Current song: Monocle Twins - Breathe on Spotify

Personal Playlist: my california - an exploration on Spotify