Hiya I’m Natalie!

Growing up in the rise of social media has been wild. We have near constant updates from friends, an endless feed of awe-inspiring photos from far flung destinations and the highlight reels of everyone’s lives at our fingertips.

While in an ideal world all this content would provide us inspiration and fulfillment in our own lives, we tend to get bogged down with comparisons, fomo, and are left feeling like our lives are less than.

I want to change the expectations. I want to show the crowds of tourists, the pre-sunrise wake ups in pursuit of the perfect lighting, the travel photos being posted from home or the dreaded office cubicle. I want to show the ‘ugly’ side of travel, and prove that the experience is still worth it every single time.

Finding Purpose

Finding Purpose

Natalie
Behind the Scenes
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The world is in complete turmoil right now. It is an uncertain situation that is creating a complete upheaval of the daily lives we are used to, and causing a lot of stress and pain along the way.

I’ve been in the midst of change since February, when I was let go from my job. The company wasn’t doing well and downsizing was necessary, and just like that I was on my way home with a box of my things. After the initial panic and a long talk with my mom, I realized I needed to take a moment to breathe, and to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. I hadn’t been enjoying the direction my career had been going for a while, and it was time to make a big change.

And then the world fell apart.

So I guess sometimes it takes being let go from your job and then immediately thrust into a quarantine to get you where you need to be. I’ve always said I would truly start my blog and take it seriously when I had the time to put in the work. In the past I’ve had bursts of ‘side hustling’, working tirelessly every night and weekend for a month here and a couple months there, but never getting to the point where I wanted to release it into the wild so to speak.

But here we all are, sitting at home with an unprecedented abundance of time on our hands. So after the expected tv binge (I can’t believe it took me this long to watch Golden Girls!) and some puzzles, and reading several books, I’ve finally snapped out of it. I’ve sat here in my boredom and a constant, subtle unease of this quarantine, wondering what else life could have to offer.

So, as terrifying as it is to put this all out here on the internet for anyone to read, I’m going for it. And that’s the whole point really, isn’t it? To be vulnerable and real and hopefully to forge connections with people through this increasingly digital world.

I suppose this means a ‘welcome to my little slice of the internet’ is in order, and I couldn’t be more excited to have you here! I can’t wait to see where this might go; and along the way I hope to be able to provide a respite from the current times when you need it, and to fill you with inspiration for future travels and amazing experiences, as well as break down the curated side of internet life for something more authentic.

Swimming with Dolphins in O'ahu

Swimming with Dolphins in O'ahu
Lake Michigan Circle Tour Part 2: Wisconsin's Wild Side

Lake Michigan Circle Tour Part 2: Wisconsin's Wild Side