Journal Entry 2: Teddy

Hey Journal, Ma and Pa bought me a house! I told ‘em they didn’t needta but they insisted “No son of my is gonna be stayin’ in a measly little tent. Go getcha-self a house! Dangnabit!” Gosh, I love Pops but he just don’t understand… I like the roughen, toughen kinda life. But, hey, the […]

Diary Entry 2: Cherry

Dear Diary, Today was a big day. My tent became a full-fledged house! I overheard Mr. Tom Nook speaking with both Alvin and Teddy – while I was headed over to check out the newly opened Nook’s Cranny – and the two of them agreed to upgrade their tents into houses. I didn’t want to […]

Journal Entry 1: Teddy

Hey Journal, Woo ee! That was a long plane ride. I ain’t never left home before. It was odd seein’ the Big Woods down under me gettin’ tinier and tinier. Those two dodos though, man, they nearly chatted my head off. But on the good side, that water landing was a thrill. I nearly got […]

Diary Entry 1: Cherry

Dear Diary, My first day on this new island went over really well – despite not having a lot of bells saved up for the trip like mother told me to. I was a bit nervous when Mr. Tom Nook, the raccoon, first approached me a few days ago and offered me this “trip of […]

Moving Together: A Guide on How to Navigate Moving With Your Partner into Your New Home While Keeping Your Sanity Intact

Daydreaming about moving into a beautiful, spacious new home is whimsical and fun. Actually packing up your whole house on the morning of your move, hours before the movers are supposed to arrive, is a bit of a different experience – especially if you and your partner aren’t on the same page. Recently, I moved […]

5 Tips On How You Can Cope With Your Mental Health During The Covid-19 Pandemic

These last few months have been like walking through a fog. The world has shut down. Blurry memories now haunt the streets while basked in a tainted, hazy daylight. After Covid-19 happened, it’s like we’ve all gotten swept up in a whirlwind of jigsaw emotions. Our brains have been rattled and our sanity has been […]

An Expat’s Experience After Returning Home During the Covid-19 Pandemic: When Does Home Start to Feel Like Home?

It’s a peculiar feeling when you leave your home, set out to explore the great global expanse of unknown before you. It’s even more peculiar to return to your home after being gone a while, only to return to a semblance of home which has been morphed and twisted into a fog-mirrored, shadow-reflection of its […]

An Expat’s Experience: Returning Home During the Covid-19 Pandemic

On March 19th, 2020 I received a text from my sister. She informed me that the U.S. government issued a statement asking all U.S. citizens living abroad to return home to the states immediately, or to anticipate remaining abroad indefinitely. A panic surged through me. My racing thoughts came to a halt and everything around […]

An Expat’s Response: Deciding to Return Home During The Covid-19 Virus Pandemic

I’m going home. As we all know, there is a horrendous virus plaguing the globe that is disrupting the global economy, stealing thousands of lives, and quite frankly, it’s petrifying me. Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam is where I am currently based. It has been such a pleasure and an immeasurable gift to have […]

A Guide to a Better You: How to be a Good Expat

I was not a very good expat when I first arrived in Vietnam. There were instances when I resisted and fought against opportunities to better myself and act with compassion. I ignored my privilege and viewed differences as things that were wrong instead of just different. I compared the culture which I grew up in […]