I turned 30 yesterday! A lot of people get freaked out about turning 30, but I think it’s a blessing to age! I’ve never felt stronger, more confident, wiser, or happier. I know myself and am not afraid to speak my truth! I feel like I have my life together. Life is good at 30.

I wanted to do something a little different on my blog. At first, I was thinking about writing a “30 Lessons I’ve Learned By 30” blog post, but then I thought that was kind of cheesy. Instead, I’d like to do something a little different and give you a small tour of what’s going through my mind .

Here are 30 thoughts I’m having at 30:

1. I love learning. Learning is timeless!

I love learning now more than I did when I was in school. I just recently signed up for MasterClass because my favorite photographer, Jimmy Chin, has a class on there about adventure photography. I signed up for the $180 year membership and it was one of the best things I’ve ever signed up for. The classes are beautifully produced and include homework assignments and takeaways. I binge watched Jimmy’s class and have started Annie Leibovitz’s class on portrait photography I also watch YouTube tutorials and how-to’s all the time. I watch YouTube and MasterClass while I’m doing passive tasks such as cooking, eating, or laundry! Some of my favorite YouTubers? For photography tutorials: Peter McKinnon, Julia Trotti, Jared Polin, and Jessica Kobeissi. For travel vlogging, I love watching Currently Hannah and CupofTJ. PS. Have you subscribed to my YouTube Channel? Subscribe to my channel here: Anything But Salad

2. Starting a blog was the BEST THING I’ve ever done for myself

I was bullied a lot when I was younger and I’m a sensitive soul. I take everything to heart. So to put myself out there for the world to see (and make fun of) was an absolutely terrifying thought. But finally, at 29, I started to seriously put myself out there and the result has been so rewarding. When I started blogging, I thought, “I don’t care if my only reader is my mom. I just want to do this for me.” My mom reads my blog, and apparently a lot of other people do too. I get emails and messages on Instagram from people I’ve never met before saying that they were inspired by my going vegetarian blog post or that my travel blogs were helpful in planning their trips. I’ve made friends that I’ve hung out with IRL because of the blogging community. Starting a blog changed my life creatively and socially. Blogging gave me a creative outlet, helped me find my passion for photography, and surrounded me with like minded people. I’m sad that I didn’t have the courage to blog sooner but I’m glad that I started!

3. I’m having an existential crisis about dairy

When I first stopped eating meat (7 months ago now), I was just kind of freaked out and thought that it was just a phase and I’d probably eat meat again someday. The more time that passes, the more I really don’t think I’ll ever eat meat again. Choosing to not eat meat has been a powerful personal decision. I’m trying to be the best human I can be. I’ve also been having an existential crisis about dairy. If I’m choosing to not eat meat because I care about animals, why am I choosing to still eat dairy? Dairy farms can be just as cruel and disgusting. Although I still eat dairy, I’d like to start minimizing my intake. Even if it’s just cutting my consumption in half, I feel like it’s something!

4. I can’t wait to be pregnant!

I literally can’t wait to be pregnant. I can’t wait to have a cute belly and to GROW LIFE inside of me. The sound of babies crying is like music to my ears. I can’t wait to hold someone that’s half-me and half-John. Is this the most “30” sounding thing you’ve ever heard?! Clearly my biological clock is ringing off the hook!

5. Rescuing a dog teaches you about second chances

This year, while traveling, we rescued a dog that had been left for dead by his owner. When we found him, he had been hit by a car twice and was riddled with blood parasites. He’s a Thai dog, with a beautiful orange coat and piercing golden eyes. They say that the rescue dog chooses you, and that’s exactly what happened. He walked up to us as if saying, “Please help me.” and we answered the call. We named him “Uan”, which means fat in Thai. He’s not fat, but he loves to eat! We gave him a second chance at life. He sleeps in our bed, cuddles us in the mornings, is playful, happy, and loving. It taught me that animals know when they’re dying and that if humans are cruel enough to be able to take lives, we should be kind enough to save them too

6. I’d like to wake up earlier

I’m so much more productive in the mornings! We wake up around 7:30/8am, but I’d love to wake up at 6:30 everyday. My dream routine? Wake up, have coffee, check email, walk the dogs, and then go work out. Imagine if I could get my whole day “done” before noon? In Bangkok it’s also so hot that the later the day gets, the more impossible it is to get stuff done outside. Then that would also leave my entire afternoon/evening open for meetings and getting work done!

7. I love traveling . I hate traveling .

The IRONY. I love traveling. I hate traveling. I think the reason for is this that John and I don’t vacation, we travel. We stay in questionable places, we venture off the beaten path, and while our travel style sometimes yields in some magical experiences, it’s also gotten us into some trouble too . Like…when we decided to go camping in the most remote area of Iceland and had to get rescued by the Icelandic coastguard. John and I have trouble relaxing. We get a thrill out of danger and discovery. I love traveling for that. I hate traveling because we get so tired. We go until we can’t physically go anymore. We usually pass out in our hotel room by 9pm and wake up at 5am the next day to do it all over again. I love it. I hate it. I wouldn’t change anything about it.

8. I’d like to get back into a steady workout routine

I haven’t had a steady workout routine in a good 8-9 months. I feel like I needed a break to work on my relationship with food and fitness. I put so much time into working out that it didn’t leave me any time to work on my blog or other hobbies. Working out didn’t make me happy. I worked out because I hated my body. I worked out as punishment. In the last 8-9 months I really worked on my relationship with my body. My biggest fear in life (no joke) was gaining weight. In the last 8 months, I gained the weight. Surprise? I didn’t die. No one loved me any less. My value as a human being didn’t suffer because of a few extra pounds. I feel like I reached a huge milestone when it comes to my relationship with my body, and although I love myself the way I am today, I’m ready to get back into a steady workout routine with the focus on the other benefits to working out. If some of the weight I gained from happily eating chocolate and Thai food falls off, all the better. But if not, I’m not worried about it. My body is beautiful at any size

9. I need to bring my YouTube Channel back to life

I was making YouTube videos on a consistent basis and then I just stopped. At the time, my company was being acquired, my professional future was uncertain, and emotionally I was feeling drained and tired from all of it. We were also traveling a lot, rescued a dog, and it felt like there was a lot going on and I couldn’t focus creatively. Now, I feel focused, I have a new, powerful computer, and I’m ready to breath life into my YouTube Channel! I absolutely love making videos, being on camera was a huge challenge for me at first, but after a while it became fun and easy. Stay tuned for new videos!

10. I’m thankful for the time I lived with my parents

I lived with my parents until I met John at 26. I could have moved out a lot earlier, but I was single, had a great relationship with my parents, and it gave me the opportunity to pay off my student loans. I’m so thankful that I spend all that time with them. Now, living in Bangkok, I probably won’t see my parents for over a year. My favorite memories are the mornings we spent together before going to work: my dad making strong Brazilian coffee, my mom making me breakfast sandwiches, I would make us all my healthy green juice – we’d all huddle around the kitchen and talk and laugh. My dad had a “pet squirrel” that would come to our back door and beg for bread. I hold onto these memories like they’re gold. I’m thankful that I didn’t choose to move out earlier. At the time, I kind of felt like a loser still living with my parents, but now I realize that everything worked out as it should. I met John, and three months after meeting him I moved out of my parents house, and the rest is history

11. On friendship: I’d rather have 4 shiny quarters than 100 dull pennies

I’m meticulous about who I let into my life. I’ve received some criticism about how I have standards for friendship, but why is it that in our culture that we make excuses for peoples bad behavior? We live in this era of forced and faked positivity, where it’s frowned upon to be critical of someone’s actions. We live in an age of ghosting. Where it’s more socially acceptable to disappear from someone’s life passive aggressively rather than just being direct. I’m not afraid to be direct.

At 22, I was insecure and lonely. I filled those feelings with dull pennies as friends. Girls who cheated on their boyfriends (and then asked me to cover for her), girls who sought out abusive relationships, a best friend (at the time) who made out with my boyfriend (now ex, obviously). I made excuses for their behavior. I forced and faked positivity to mask how their actions made me feel. With friends like that, who needs enemies. Why can’t we be real anymore? Why can’t we be honest with ourselves when a friendship just isn’t working out? Friends for a season and for a reason. Sometimes we just grow out of each other, and that’s okay. I would hope that I am different person than I was at 22. People either grow together or they grow apart, and that’s okay! Today, I have a handful of very close friends who I love and trust with the deepest parts of my heart. I’d rather have that than 100 dull pennies

12. My professional goals are different than they were 10 years ago

My dream at 20 was to be CMO of a big company. I started to hustle hard to climb that ladder in Fortune 100 companies, starting as a Marketing Analyst at Staples Inc and worked my way up to my last position as a Senior Digital Marketing Manager at CA Technologies (now Broadcom Inc). Not bad for 29! Since I got let go after the acquisition, I’ve had some time to think and realign my career goals. While I had the opportunity to lead, to manage budget, and manage people, I learned that I really enjoy creating and working with people. I love the process of both creating a strategy, problem solving, and then executing. I love working start to finish on something. I love working with people. Right now, I’m working for myself as a freelancer and John and I started our own company. I feel like I’d rather be the CEO of my own company than someone else’s company. My professional goal now is to do something that brings me life! Working for yourself presents a whole new set of challenges and adventures. I’m really enjoying it right now, and it’s great while we’re in Thailand. I’m not sure where I want to take my career when we return to the States. Do I want to return to corporate? Do I want to work in tech? Do I want to continue doing digital marketing? I’m leaving the door open to see what comes!

13. I’m done dying my hair

I’ve been blonde, ombre, jet black, purple, pink…you name it. Finally, at 30, I realized that the best hair color on me is my NATURAL HAIR COLOR LOL . I loved pink/purple hair but it washed out so fast on my hair and the upkeep was too much for my low maintenance beauty routine . I think from now on, I’m going to focus on keeping my hair happy, healthy, and natural!

14. “The Universe”…God…same same

I grew up going to Catholic church with family every Sunday. My mom still prays to Mother Mary every day at 6pm. I feel like, in the past, it used to be rebellious to not believe in God. And yet today, believing in God is seen as backwards and less progressive. Brilliant marketers/authors such as Gabby Bernstein have capitalized on peoples desire for faith but also to be seen as “spiritual and progressive”. If you take any of her books and substitute “the Universe” with “God” or “the Lord”, it literally turns into a biblical text. How can people not see that?! I think its annoying that people have basically rewritten the Bible using Millennial language and are reselling it and making millions. I’m guilty of using the word the Universe rather than God because I’m afraid of what my peers might think of me. No more! I’m not daft enough to believe that all this Universe garbage isn’t just the Bible, rewritten. Am I the only Millennial out there that’s not afraid to say that I believe in God and trust in God? The Universe….God…same same. PS. I’M NOT JUDGING ANYONE FOR WHAT THEY BELIEVE IN! I personally believe in God, God(s), The Universe, Thor, Freyja, etc. Whatever higher being is up there has done me well, so I’d just like to say that I am a Universal believer

15. I’d like to learn how to dance

I’m not even joking when I say I’m the world’s worst dancer. I have no rhythm, don’t know how to move my body, I just completely fail at the whole dancing thing. BUT I WANT TO LEARN! I love music, and I love dancing, I’m just not good at it. I love the idea of dancing as a form of exercise and burning calories, too. My goal this year is to gather the courage to take a few dance classes! If I could learn one dance move, I’d be happy!

16. I’d love to run a half marathon

It’s just something I’ve always wanted to. My friend Tiffany and her husband Ben just trained and ran one together and it’s super inspired me! I’m not a runner, and I hate running while I’m doing it, but I love the feeling afterwards. I get such an endorphin high. I’d love to challenge myself to run a half marathon because it’s honestly something I feel like I could never accomplish. I never imagined myself as someone who could run a half marathon – and that’s why I want to do it. I’d love to prove to myself that I am capable of running that far!

17. When life gets uncomfortable, take a deep breathe and lean into it

Lately, whenever I’ve been in an uncomfortable situation, I try to take a deep breath and lean into it. It’s really helped me, especially living with anxiety. For example, I was just at the dentist this morning, and I really hate getting my teeth cleaned (I mean, who does!?). The tool that the dentist was using literally sounded like a drill, and the noise combined with the sensation felt so weird – like nails on a chalkboard. Instead of panicking, I took a breath and leaned into it. I told myself, “That’s weird, but this is fine. It doesn’t hurt and it will be over soon.” It worked! Just in changing the way I thought about the situation, the situation suddenly became less uncomfortable!

18. I need to be more patient

I’m really impatient when it comes to certain things. For example, if I’m ready to go and my husband is still getting ready, I get really cranky. I’m also really particular about leaving the house. I hate being late, so I like to leave super early if we need to get somewhere by a certain time. I also like the house to be spotless, which is difficult when you have two dogs. I vacuum twice a day and sweep twice a day. I’m also insane about clutter. I hate clutter. I know I need to relax a little bit and have more patience!

19. I’ve played so many great games in the last year

Breath of the Wild….God of War 4….Horizon Zero Dawn…and now the Witcher 3. Video games is my escape. It always has been. My cousin Peter and I used to download emulators and stay up all night playing FF. My husband and I now share the hobby of playing video games and it’s a fun thing we like to do together! I’m still waiting for the Final Fantasy VII remake

20. Don’t half-ass a passion. Give it your full ass

I think a lot of people half-ass things in this world. Give it your full ass. If you’re interested in learning or doing something new, dive in head first! Watch YouTube tutorials, read blogs, join online communities, practice, do whatever you need to do to fully learn your craft!

21. Do you work to live or live to work?

One of my favorite travel bloggers wrote a great piece on 10 inspiring lessons she learned from 1 year of travel. My favorite quote from her blog post is, “Wellness is also a measure of success.” This quote really resonated with me because it’s something I’ve been thinking about for the past year. I love to work. I’m a workaholic. I think it’s important to remember to have balance and to ask yourself, “Do I work to live? Or live to work?” To quote Modern Mix Travel: “It’s easy to get stuck in the rat race where you’re working to live, and living to work, leaving little time to cultivate hobbies, interests, and relationships — the things that contribute to our well being.”

22. I think I want to go on a 30 day no alcohol detox

I don’t drink a lot of alcohol as it is, but lately with the holidays I feel like I’ve been having a cocktail or two more frequently than I usually do. Maybe it’s just because I’m getting older, but I feel like lately my body feels like absolute crap when I drink alcohol. My face also gets super puffy the morning after! I think a little detox will do me well.

23. Being married is awesome

I love my husband. We have so much fun together and he’s truly my best friend. We’ve had some tough times but we always find a way through it by working as a team and remembering that our love for each other is greater than any problem we’re having. We share a lot of hobbies, dreams, and passions and cheer each other on. He’s amazing and I’m so happy we met on Tinder and both swiped right

24. In the 8 months I’ve been in Thailand, I haven’t got food poisoning yet

It’s a miracle.

25. When we get back to the States, I’d love to fix up an old camper van and explore the United States

My new dream is to fix up an old camper van, make it really cute and cozy, and go on long road trips. That way, we can travel with our dogs with no worries about finding dog friendly hotels. America has so many beautiful places. I’d love to go back to Zion National Park or see the Grand Canyon. Yosemite and Yellowstone are also on my list! I think for the next chapter in my life, I’d love to dial it back on international travel and see more of my own country!

26. It’s going to be hard to go back to life in America

Life in Bangkok is really different. Living in the big city, it’s kind of like living in any metropolitan city except more chaotic and unbelievably hot. But there’s so much beauty in the chaos. Everyday is like playing for survival. Just taking the dogs on a walk is a big adventure in dodging crazy motorcycles, street dogs, and tourists. Even though we’re only going to be here for a little over a year, I feel like we really assimilated and leaned into the experience. I’m definitely going to suffer from reverse culture shock when we go home!

27. I travel a lot and I still get anxious flying

I went from straight shaking and sobbing just thinking about being on a long flight to flying across the world. I’d love to get to the point where I get on a plane and from take off to landing I have zero panicky feelings. I have to give myself some credit for doing it over and over again despite my anxiety. The next flight we’re going on is a 6 hour flight to Japan, and I’ve been mentally prepping myself for weeks now. I used to fly back and forth from Boston to SF almost every month for work and I used to love that flight because I was looking forward to being in San Francisco. I try to think back to those feelings every time I’m on a plane!

28. The older the get, the less I care about what anyone thinks of me

I used to be embarrassed to be me. To love Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, anime, video games, anything fantasy and role-playing. I loved to read more than anything. I was definitely socially identified in school as a “loser”. I was embarrassed by who I was and what I was excited about. I tried to assimilate and pretend to like things that the “other girls” liked, but people saw right through me. I had a hard time fitting in, but I wish I could tell my younger self not to worry about fitting in. I think as you get older, you find your tribe one way or another. If you’re not into the things that everyone else is into, it’s okay. It’s a big world out there and there are a lot of people who like the same things you do, or who won’t judge you for it!

30. I’m really looking forward to the next 10 years

It’s a blessing to age. Not everyone gets the chance to! I’m really excited about the next decade of my life. I’m looking forward to the little things like waking up everyday next to my husband and dogs and looking forward to the big things too: starting a business, seeing the rest of South East Asia, moving back to America, selling our house, having a family, moving down to Jersey to be closer to our families, and all the new and exciting adventures that come with those things Here’s to !

My Birthday: 30 Thoughts At 30