I’m a Big Girl Now!

I remember having a conversation with a friend who'd just gotten her first academic job last year, and I remember her mentioning that it felt so lonely! And for some reason, I kind of glossed over that comment at the time. "I make friends easily, I'll be fine!", I thought. But something to consider is that when you've been a student for like... 24 years, you get used to making friends in an environment that's freaking conducive to making friends! You're put in a cohort with people from a similar age group, who study the same thing, and therefore have similar-ish interests. In the real world (not the fairy tale-school fiction version of life), that is not the case!

Surviving the pandemic-hard-days: Tips from me + the community

It's August 7th and unfortunately, things have gotten exponentially worse.... in the U.S. because the rest of the world has generally gotten their shit together. As things continue to worsen and we wait for the ticking time bomb that is K-12 schools and universities opening for F2F instruction... prior to having a vaccine, there honestly …

Identity crisis… existential questions during cuarentena

To further complicate the identity mierda, I was also 18 the first time I went to Puerto Rico; but, I've been so many times that I've literally lost track. My husband's Puerto Rican, I've been given an honorary Puerto Rican/Caribbean card by several Puerto Ricans, including my suegra. I speak Spanish fluently and have a slight Caribbean accent when doing so, I worship Marc Anthony and Hector Lavoe, my favorite dessert is flan, favorite music genere is probably reggaeton (#rachetontheinside)... así que..... What the heck am I?

Leiden, Netherlands: Conference, Stroop Waffles, and the Red Light District

What's up buds? At the beginning of January I traveled to Europe for a conference in Leiden, Netherlands. Like all of the other places I've been to in Europe so far (except Milan), it was lit. Cold AF, but lit nonetheless. My trip lasted exactly 6 days and 5 nights, and although it was mainly …