We spent time in San Diego for Anthony’s birthday this year. It was the first time either of us went and we weren’t sure what to expect. The weather was absolutely beautiful.
We did what you’re expected to do when you visit San Diego: spend a full day at the San Diego Zoo.
This past weekend, I spent time helping some friends take photos of their beautiful home for AirBnB. It was my first foray into legit architectural photography so I honestly did not know what I was doing. My only experience came from using my iPhone to capture our own home. I can’t even believe they trusted me enough to let me do it.
The first rule of thumb: believe you can do it and you might just be able to pull it off.
I took photos of angles that I reacted to the most but it was fairly tough because I’m also still learning my camera, camera techniques, and the lenses that I’ve purchased. For this photoshoot, I relied on the new Rokinon 12mm F2.0 NCS CS Ultra Wide Angle Lens that I purchased for the Sony A6300 with manual focus.
Regardless, you’ll probably be seeing a lot more interior photography from me as I try to practice honing this newfound hobby of mine.
If you’re looking for an AirBnB in Austin, you’ll have to check out their listing here.
My parents, aunt, and nephew took a 3-hour drive to come visit us in Austin last weekend. They only stayed for a quick 24 hours but I’ll take as much time with them as I can get. My mom has a pretty standard routine when they come visit: she’ll pack up the entire car with things she thinks we’ll need such as toothpaste, toilet paper, mouthwash, body soap, with a cooler full of food she thinks I’ll want to eat. When they’re here, she’s always in the kitchen trying to cook as much as she can because she wants to leave behind as much as possible.
I always love watching my mom in the kitchen. She moves back and forth in what seems like a slight panic but methodical at the same time.
This time, we prepped meatballs, sirloin, squid, and some fresh vegetables for a family hot pot night. Suffice to say, it was amazing.
I recently looked back at the timeline of my life and I realized that I’ve spent the last 20 years playing around with the internet. That’s 65% of my life. I can’t even imagine the kids who were born in 1995 and can’t remember life without the internet.
It’s a funny memory: I started my design career because of my blog on AsianAvenue.com. I say started because that was the first time I was paid to design something for someone else. When it came to my own blog, I would constantly reinvent my personal profile page with what little tools we had back then.
I’ve had a tumultuous relationship with having my own blog. We’ve been off-and-on again more than Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber. I understand that no one really reads them anymore but I don’t think readership was ever the reason why I had a blog. I just love having an outlet for the randomness that sprouts out of my brain. This hasn’t changed in 19 years. It may come and go with the passing of time but I always come back to it.
With that said, I’ve imported my very old Tumblr into a new WordPress website and will continue, as short lived as this might be, to have a home for my thoughts. There are so many things I want to do, say, and share, even if it’s only with my future self.
Follow along if you like, but I’m not sure how long this stint will last. No promises, no guarantees.
I remember hearing the sharp sounds of static billowing from the second floor of our 2-story house. I listened carefully, dancing up the stairs towards an unfamiliar sound, where I found my brother, his back turned, staring directly into a computer monitor. Then there was silence.
“Welcome to America Online”.
That’s when my life changed forever.
We adopted AOL 1.5 into our lives sometime between 1994 and 1995.
My brother had accrued $200 on Prodigy (remember Prodigy?) and decided to sign up for AOL. From there, I got addicted and it happened fast. I signed up for names that I can no longer remember but I’m certain it had either a Sanrio or Winnie the Pooh character in it. For now let’s just say it was “Pochacco817”.
When I think back on my career, that was my turning point. I’ve had numerous thoughts about changing career paths earlier in my life but then again, I’ve had trouble committing to a bottle of shampoo.
From the age of 10 onwards, my timeline goes a little something like this:
1995
The addiction to the internet begins. Thank you AOL 1.5.
1996
After witnessing my brother play with shapes, I too started playing with shapes thanks to Photoshop 3.0.
1997
I joined AsianAvenue and started blogging, while simultaneously signing up for Geocities so I could have a creative outlet for my newly found Photoshop skills (or lack thereof). I eventually, like most teenagers, ended up doing weird highly-saturated black and white self portraits like this:
1998
My love for blogging and design led me to Xanga, where I had the flexibility of designing my own blog. Because of this, I learned HTML and CSS.
2003
With 5 years of blogging, designing, and reckless coding under my belt, I was hired professionally to design and develop a website. It looked something like this:
2005
After questioning my career path as a creative, I looked in to becoming an anesthesiologist, an architect, or a pharmacist. I was grasping for any idea that would gain acceptance from my critical asian parents.
2006
With brand new clarity and a tiny rebellious streak, I decided to feed my existing love and knowledge of design and became an intern at a local Dallas design agency. After a few months and a lot of deliberation, I left college high and dry to gain real world experience.
At the end of the year, with a lot of reasons as my ammunition, I ventured off to New York City.
2008
I gained enough experience and was able to land a job at R/GA, where I had a boss that trusted me so much he gave me work in a space I’ve never touched before: mobile design. That’s where I started doing things on Blackberry and Android before ever touching iOS.
2013
After 5 years of designing for mobile, I can confidently say that this is what I want to be doing for the remainder of my life. I’ve talked a little about that here:
Mobile Design? Sure, Why Not
I want to wrap this up with one little nugget of advice for those who are young and seeking out career paths:
You might not get it right the first time but the key is to follow your passion and never give up.
I’m always on the fence when it comes to creating resolutions for the beginning of the new year. They’re always promising in theory, but in actuality, it’s a conduit for disappointment and they eventually turn into these unrealistic goals that we create for ourselves. Afterall, 3 out of 5 people drop their resolutions by June.
Rather than dictating what needs to be done, I’m going to highlight things I’d like to do this year.
Bake more (take baking classes, make cakes, learn how to make gumpaste flowers). Consistently update my blogs. Spend time with friends & family. Finish my side project. Go to the movies more often. Organize. Eat moderately. Throw a party. Go to Disneyworld. Watch movies at the drive-in. Grow an herb garden. Decorate the house. Send handwritten letters.
And with double the amount of enthusiasm, hello 2013.
Photo from Google Images
Erice & Valderice, in the province of Trapani in Sicily, Italy