Category: Experiments

My debut book is out – now the tough part begins

Loveinatimeofinternationalliving.jpg
Cover art: Dave and Les Jacobs / Getty Images

It all started with an essay posted on Medium that gathered unexpected momentum and provided a case study for the network effect on social media platforms. By the end of the month of publication the essay had made its way to more people than I loosely called friends on facebook.

And so, after more than a year of work nights and weekends, dozens of heartfelt conversations and countless revisions, Love in a Time of International Living is available on Amazon for the price of a cup of coffee!

Dotting the final ‘i’ on a debut work was difficult and nerve-racking and it helped to have a hard deadline before a trip. Since this was my first “proper” collection, I thought it was important to get it out there as soon as possible and judge by the response. I guess I am not a perfectionist. Rather, I am someone self-involved enough to believe she has something interesting to say while taking herself lightly enough to make it possible to publish.

Continue reading →

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Figure Drawing

Published in The Student Life on 3.07.2008 

Figure Drawing
Sketch by Katherine Roy

My theater teacher once said that being naked on stage is the greatest challenge for the actor. From a logical standpoint, I found it strange that a person ready to reveal emotions and share intimate truths with the audience would be intimidated by nudity for the sake of inspiration and art. However, when the bold part of me asked the timid one, “Would you do it?”, I was not so sure.

I heard about the Figure Drawing club at the very beginning of first semester and was immediately lured to show up as a model. Excited to test my courage and confidence and to become part of one of the most beautiful forms of art, I talked to the president of the club and went to the meeting. Before the first pose of the other model was finished, I was already back in my dorm. Continue reading →

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The Bus – A Bus Ride through the Inland Empire

Foothill Transit
Foothill Transit Line

Abridged version published in The Student Life on 10.14.2008 

A scene common in movies: crushed by life’s hardships, the heroine gets on a bus and spends long hours going nowhere until her internal turbulence calms down and she is again able to face the world with still determination. What takes me to the bus stop on Claremont’s First Street on a strangely autumnal day, however, is not internal torment, but pure curiosity. I want to test the popular student theory that public transportation in the Inland Empire is “sketchy,” even “scary,” and that the non-recommended use of the Foothill Transit Line might have… consequences. Continue reading →

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My Raw Food Week, an Experiment

photo: RAW
photo: RAW

Published in The Student Life on 12.07.2007

After the turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and three kinds of pie for Thanksgiving, going raw for a week doesn’t seem like such a bad idea. It does seem daunting, though. Raw food eating is the most extreme form of the vegan diet: in addition to all animal products, raw eaters say ‘no’ to anything cooked at a temperature above F 180 (C 82). Armed with the support of yogis and environmentalists who enjoy normal body functions without a warm lunch, I embark on this journey towards a cleansing and environment-friendly way of eating. Actually, I am optimistic and quite excited about a week of fresh and dry fruit, veggies, and raw nuts. Frary, have mercy! Continue reading →

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