UberliciousNYC: The Carey Gabay Way

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Carey Gabay, End Gun Violence

Reposted from my blog: UberliciousNYC: The Carey Gabay Way:

Before I got on the road on Sunday to get a couple of hours of Ubering in, I made a point to stop by the corner of Clinton Avenue at Myrtle in Clinton Hill Brooklyn where my friend, Carey Gabay, was being honored. Eight months after his passing, a portion of the street where he once lived has been co-named “Carey Gabay Way.” People around the world, from the Pope to President Obama, are familiar with his story, which is largely seen as a gun violence tragedy of epic proportion. But, with days like Sunday afternoon, his legacy is emerging as the catalyst for the type of change we desperately need in this country regarding gun control laws and reform. In short, while celebrating in the early morning of the annual pre-West Indian Day Parade festivities known as J’Ouvert last year, Carey was caught in the crossfire of rival gangs and struck in the head by a stray bullet. His passing on September 15, 2015 has signified the urgency of creating a clear strategy and viable means of eradicating gun violence in New York City.

At the time of his passing, Carey was an aide to Governor Andrew Cuomo serving as First Deputy General Counsel at the Empire State Development Corp. Touted as the quintessential example of the American Dream, he grew up in public housing in the Bronx, the son of parents who immigrated from Jamaica and instilled in him the type of character and work ethic that would serve him throughout his life. Before becoming a part of the fabric of Harvard University as an undergraduate leader then as a Harvard Law School student, he attended Harry S. Truman High School in the Bronx where his interests in law and politics were nurtured as a brilliant young scholar. While he would go on to work in corporate law, his passions for serving his community, and the constituents of New York at large, were surely leading him towards a path as an influential elected official in coming years.  

The narrative of Carey Gabay has largely been cast in light of the horrific details behind his murder. Because of that I wanted to write something that would add additional perspective to what we are discussing when we say the name “Carey Gabay.” By all accounts, his loss is a tragedy from which one never truly recovers. His family and those who knew him most dearly continue to navigate the pain of his passing while finding ways to accept a reality without his physical presence in their lives. Yet in recognizing this grief, I am reminded of the words of the poet, Rumi:

Sorrow prepares you for joy.
It violently sweeps everything out of your house,
so that new joy can find space to enter.
It shakes the yellow leaves from the bough of your heart, so that fresh,
green leaves can grow in their place. It pulls up the rotten roots,
so that new roots hidden beneath have room to grow.
Whatever sorrow shakes from your heart,
far better things will take their place.

Therein lies my focus: the fresh seedlings of joy that will blossom in Carey’s honor by continuing the work that he represents. As the street co-naming would indicate, we should begin to shed light on “The Carey Gabay Way” of navigating life. While he is irreplaceable and one of a kind, he has left us with a monumental legacy that will require each person to strive towards the standards he’s set. By doing things the Carey Gabay Way we can become more civically engaged so that we are leveraging our political agency around the community to shift the systems that impact us. We can collectively become involved in legislation behind gun laws and policy reform. We can continue to impact the scholastic aptitude of our youth by referencing his life and accomplishments as an inspiration and model for their own achievement and success in chosen fields. We can be kind, warm-hearted neighbors and generous contributors to our community by supporting minority owned businesses and local empowerment initiatives. We can share a smile or laugh that is just as infectious as Carey’s to everyone with whom we come in contact. We can emanate faith, love, compassion and hard work in all that we do. Because in doing so, we are creating a space for new joys associated with his memory, as well as unearthing the roots of transformative action that he worked towards in order to make New York a better, safer place. That, in fact, IS the Carey Gabay Way.

The co-naming of Clinton Avenue to Carey Gabay Way, an honor that usually occurs three or more years after a person’s passing, took place on May 15, 2016, which would have been his 44th birthday. His name appearing on that street sign, an honor brought about in collaboration with the efforts of his younger brother Aaron McNaughton with the help of New York City Council and the Mayor’s office, is a pledge against gun violence that will undoubtedly be one of many things that lead to the eradication of gun violence in New York City. His brother is also working with the city to create a J’Ouvert task force that will focus on a framework for law enforcement, community members and officials to ensure a safer celebration leading up to the Caribbean Day Parade. Earlier this year, Governor Cuomo announced the Carey Gabay Scholarship Program that will provide full rides to five State University of New York students “who exemplify Carey’s commitment to social justice, leadership, and mentoring, as well as his personal story of succeeding academically despite having an economically disadvantaged background.” The Governor’s Counsel’s office has also created a fellowship in Carey’s name that will be awarded every two years to a mid-career attorney who is committed to public service. The fellow will serve for two years “furthering the Governor’s violence prevention initiatives as well as issues of economic equality and development that Gabay championed throughout his career.” This will enable each fellow to advance the causes and objectives that Carey worked on in Albany, such as helping minority businesses with grants. Finally, the Municipal Fund Scholarship has also been created that will allow graduating high school seniors to complete an internship at a top law firm or investment bank during the summer months. Two out of the 40 students selected for the program will be given scholarships in Carey’s name to attend their respective colleges. These steps towards solidifying Carey’s legacy are just the beginning of preserving his legacy if we all do our part to honor his memory with our own action.

Carey was exemplary in every way. The Carey Gabay Way is Black excellence to the highest degree. He is one of our greatest New Yorkers, who, in my opinion, deserves to be catapulted to legendary status as a public servant. More than a hashtag, a tragic story, and a victim of gun violence (while I have faith that his murderer will be apprehended and convicted), Carey Gabay is a powerful catalyst for the unequivocal shift towards justice, safety and advancement that our city deserves.

That’s why each time I drive down Carey Gabay Way with an Uber passenger, believe that they will get the full story of the street’s renaming from me.

Global citizen making my rounds… towards ANTARCTICA!

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Antarctica, global citizen, travel

So, having had a week to think back over my Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand Finland trip this summer, I am ready to update my Countries Traveled list! As of now, my father has been to 20 countries and my mom has been to 17. I’m between them with 18 countries visited now that I’m back from HK!

1. NZ
2. Aus
3. Switzerland
4. Spain
5. UAE
6. Oman
7. Qatar
8. South Africa
9. Rwanda
10. England
11. France
12. Jamaica
13. Mexico
14. Canada
15. Singapore
16. Hong Kong/Macau (China special administrative regions)
17. Thailand
18. Finland

(Honorable Mention: Italy – only running through the airport in Rome trying to make a connection!)

This means that after South America/Brasil (hopefully by the end of the year or beginning of next), all I need is Antarctica and I will have hit ALL SEVEN CONTINENTS! I’m sitting here now trying to research voluntary options for going to the South Pole/Arctic Circle! I really would love a selfie on the continent seldom visited by girls like me!  As a matter of fact, there’s a book I’ve been meaning to read, just for fun, called Antarctic Security in the Twenty First Century: Legal and Policy Perspectives. I think that it will give me a perspective on how to visit Antarctica, not as a scientist, but maybe in the policy/social scientist capacity… Who knows! #daydreams  Meanwhile, I really need to step my Caribbean travel game up! 😎 #worldwideunderground #globalcitizen

Hong Kong: Week Two! NGOs, New Territories, Temples & World Cup Fever!

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Delaney's, Designing Hong Kong, Field, KELY, N3Con, Old Chekun Temple, Paul Zimmerman, Richard Branson, World Cup

After settling into temporary Hong Kong life, my IFP colleagues and I were ready to split into our various groups for the sake of starting assignments with select NGOs across the city* over the next seven weeks. Most of the organizations we’re working with have a human rights advocacy element within their overall missions, and while we’ll each be responsible for different types of job assignments most of us will be completing media specific projects for them. I found out early on that I would be placed with KELY Support Group, the only English language-based youth advocacy organization with an anti-drug use focus in HK, and Designing Hong Kong, one of the city’s most sustainable urban planning organizations. (*Sidebar: I still haven’t figure out how to refer to HK, as a city or a state, but looking it up on Wikipedia, I see that it is considered a “city-state.” City-state is defined as: An independent or autonomous entity, not administered as a part of another local government, whose territory consists of a city and possibly its surrounding territory; a city-state can also be defined as a central city and its surrounding villages, which together follow the same law, have one form of government, and share languages, religious beliefs, and ways of life. Despite formally being under the sovereign rule of mainland China, as of now HK functions with a great deal of autonomy. In essence, Hong Kong, along with Macau, represents the Special Administrative Regions of the People’s Republic of China. Now that I’ve gotten the technicalities out of the way….!)

…My colleagues and I spent Monday and Tuesday getting acclimated with KELY Support Group, an NGO whose acronym stands for Kids Everywhere Like You that was established twenty-three years ago. As a positive peer pressure safe space, teens are trained on how to influence one another’s decisions to reject the choice to use drugs.  Reportedly, drug use among teens is pretty high in HK due to many pressures that the youth face and relatively easy access to illegal substances. Also because of these pressures, teens are apt to turn to other detrimental behaviors sometimes leading to suicide; because of this KELY’s services include confidential counseling and suicide prevention. On the positive peace side of the spectrum, the organization’s other core values include engaging youth and young adults in the most supportive, empathetic, non-judgmental, and inclusive ways. As they host a range of programming throughout the year that includes self-esteem awareness and career development, we were invited to join three KELY staffers the following day at a local high school in Kwun Tong to meet students and interview a few of them on their achievements with the organization. The teens were as teens are all over the world: bright and full of comedic energy once the cameras were rolling AND once they stopped, yet ready to prove that they had opinions and insights of great value to share from their 15, 16 and 17 year old perspectives.

I returned to the KELY office later in the week on a solo mission to collaborate with them on their social media and online presence. Attending the N3 Media and Journalism Conference last weekend really helped me prepare for the work I’ll be doing with the KELY communications team. As it turns out, one of my cohorts mentioned that she’d actually heard about N3Con but was unable to attend, so it was really cool that I could share what I had experienced and turn her onto their website/YouTube page so that she could review the videos at her leisure. It seems that I was also preparing for this assignment over the course of my last semester when I spent 15 weeks doing research on Black Twitter for my Qualitative Research Methods class. Because of the concerted effort I put into all things Twitter and social media over the last five months, I feel that I am especially equipped to pull together a useful strategy for KELY. This assignment will definitely be a learning experience for me, but I realize it will also be a teachable moment as I share the best of what I know about using Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other social media to effectively promote an organization’s mission. So I look forward to the next month and a half working while with this team.

Wednesday, my other group of colleagues and I met up with a team from Designing Hong Kong to go out to the New Territories. The ten hour day in the field trip included trekking out to explore three villages, Ho Chung – split into an hybrid older and newer village, the hidden farming community traditional village of Pak Sha O that felt like something of a whimsical jewel of unspoiled land from another time period (or a movie set), and the beachside marine village of Hoi Ha Wan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before we even reached the villages, our exploration began at the Old Chekung Temple which I found completely fascinating.

 

 

 

 

It looks like we may end up doing a video awareness project based on some of the social aspects of the villages, but it remains to be seen. There is a lot to brainstorm and discuss, but it definitely presents a rich creative challenge that I believe we’re all up for. The week before the fieldtrip, we had the pleasure of meeting with DHK founder Paul Zimmerman, who had a bit of a Sir Richard Branson vibe, in my opinion, which is totally cool considering my appreciation of all things Branson humanitarian and all things brand Virgin. Listening to Zimmerman, formerly a Hollander turned naturalized Chinese citizen, explain his passion to develop Hong Kong into a more sustainable and diplomatic version of itself reminded me of how a person can truly be a citizen of the world and work towards its betterment, no matter their country of birth.

Nearing the end of a high impact work week, World Cup was set to begin in Sao Paolo, Brasil; but given the time difference, this meant that if any of us were going to catch the opening match as scheduled, we’d have to venture out to one of the local bars at 3AM. Two of us did just that! As my colleague Michael put it, we woke up “after only one cycle of REM sleep!” and headed out to a well-known Irish Pub called Delaney’s in Wanchai not to far from our accommodations.  Of our thirteen IFPers, only he and I made it to the pub shortly after 3AM, and I’d be lying if I didn’t have a thought in the back of my mind like, WTF am I doing out here like this! But the excitement of experiencing something completely knew and even a bit celebratory had me all in! (Sidebar: When I texted my mom a pic of me and my beer during the opening match between Brasil and Croatia, her response was something to the effect of …You don’t drink beer and you don’t watch sports!! “…But I know ain’t no celebration gonna get past you! You will find a way to embrace that celebration with ‘Gusto’”, which I basically did!)

The bar itself was welcoming albeit freezing with the air con blasting wayyy too high for so early in the morning. I did manage to sip on one beer the entire two and a half hours while I shivered under my sheer pashmina that did little in the way of warmth. But the warm atmosphere was totally worth the physically chilly experience. The bar was packed with British and Americans with a couple of Russians and maybe Australians(?) all ready for World Cup show time (which of course was in Chinese.  On top of the excitement of the first match and first score being made by Croatia who was ultimately defeated by Brasil (as was to be expected!), Michael and I came across a whole host of characters ranging from hooligans and louts in silly “stag sombreros” (one was getting married in a few days) to working women from Tanzania and Thailand. I had a short conversation with a trendy guy from Russia who was hoping to buy property in Dubai sometime in the future, and there was one other fútbol fan whom I believed to be from the U.S. but I didn’t get to chat with him at length because he left due to an early work schedule later that morning.

Schlepping back to Kapok Apartments where we’re living for the next few weeks, the sun had risen over Wanchai and I again wondered, WTF am I doing out here! But, I was headed to bed… and it was the perfect ending to a productive week. Work hard, play harder, as the ones who have the most fun like to say!

Hong Kong: Week One… Lantua, Macau, June 4th Rally & N3Con!

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Chunking Mansions, July 1st Protest, June 4th Candle Light Vigil, Kee Club, Kowloon, Lantua, Macau, N3Con, New Now Next Conference, Tai-O

Affairs have been unfolding very quickly since my midnight arrival at Hong Kong International on the 1st of June. Within the first few days I visited the island of Lantau where I just barely missed the boat races but toured the traditional fishing village of Tai-O. On the winding, hill-aceous ride up to the village (which felt very much like a Six Flags rollercoaster), the scenic bus ride revealed tropical beaches across the island and lush mountains illustrating HK’s true range of landscape. Though we were headed up to the muggy village, a colleague and I were tempted to stop at one of the many beachfronts for a cool dip in the ocean. Arriving at Tai-O so late in the afternoon we missed the morning festivities of dragon boat racing, but many of the boats were still docked. I had my first taste of deep fried fish balls and snacked on yummy shumai (a foreshadowing of the great foodie moments to come during this entire trip!)  before I excused myself from the group and caught up with a friend from the States living in Shenzhen across the bay in mainland China. He and his girlfriend came all the way out to meet me in Tai-O, then at dusk we headed back to Tshim Sha Tsui for a sparkling wine toast atop the swank Sky Lounge of Sheraton Hong Kong on Nathan Road before a fresh sushi dinner and the night Star Ferry boat ride back to Hong Kong Island.

 

 

 

 

 

The next day, my group of New School colleagues and I were off to the island of Macau to do some official business and sightseeing. We met our HK liaison, the vivacious Vivian, and took a choppy ferry ride across to the island. The influences of the Portuguese really make for a distinct city layout in terms of architecture and the linguistics of signage. After grabbing lunch at a hole in the wall in the middle of town with the most delicious Chinese fried chicken wings (I had offered one to a colleague but was so happy when she declined! Those things were de-li-cious!), we meandered through the market on our way to the Ruins of St. Paul’s, a 16th century cathedral and Macau’s most famous landmark. I closed out our daytrip by losing about $50 USD at the Grand Lisboa Hotel & Casino, but enjoyed a Johnny Walker on the rocks with a splash of ginger ale while the showgirls, who appeared to be from Eastern Europe, entertained gamblers and onlookers in the vibeless casino (it ain’t Vegas!). Back to Hong Kong pretty late, a small group of us found another tasty neighborhood hole in the wall where I had seaweed/pork dumpling/noodle soup. The owner, who spoke little to no English, was incredibly sweet, and when I returned a week later with another colleague who speaks a bit of Mandarin, I was told that the owner smiled and said, “Oh my friend!” before seating us for dinner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A hilarious few moments both in Macau and Lantua were when various Asian women, primarily from the Philippines or other Asian countries, asked to take a picture OF me! When this happens, I’ve adopted a policy of friendly laughter before I introduce myself, ask their name and suggest we take a photo TOGETHER as opposed to of me. In Lantau there must have been at least eight women to come up to me, two at a time, asking for a photo… What can one do, but smile and say, Cheeese!! The women in Macau were even more excited to approach me, though I forget where they were from.

 

Over the next couple of days I did some local sightseeing around Wanchai and then to Kowloon at the notorious Chungking Mansions, which I understand to be the intersection of commerce and professional social activity for many African, Indian and Arab traders living in HK. A couple of colleagues and I were ready for a really hectic time in Chungking after hearing stories that run the gamut of safety issues to finding the best Indian food in HK. But, and perhaps it was the time of day we visited, it turned out to be a fairly tamed, dare I say underwhelming fieldtrip for us. We took elevators to different floors and did some exploring, but the most interesting moment came when we met the owner of a wholesale DVD and knickknack store, an Indian woman who’s been in her little corner of the Mansions with her husband for 37 years. She said she’s grown accustomed to university students passing by to interview her, and as an engaging conversationalist she also reminded us that whatever we needed, she could basically provide at her store… except for a lighter, which I needed at the moment for my incense!  

 

 

 

 

 

The evening before the trip to Chunking Mansions was the 25th Anniversary of the June 4th Candlelight Vigil memorializing the brutal events of Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1989. It was actually my first time attending an event of such grave importance, and I look forward to similar deeper cross-cultural experiences as the weeks unfold. Next month we anticipate participating in the July 1st Protest which demands democracy, universal suffrage, rights of minorities, protection of freedom of speech, and a variety of other political concerns across HK. So stay tuned for that….

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

I rounded out my first week by attending the New.Now.Next Conference, otherwise known as the N3Con hosted by the Asian American Journalists Association. The weekend conference was held at the University of Hong Kong with a kickoff event Friday at the Kee Club, an event that ended with a vinyl party where I walked away with a handful of rare records!

 

In its fourth year, N3Con included panel discussions all day Saturday and Sunday by industry leaders and a wide range of professionals proving to be an enriching time, as well as an excellent networking opportunity. Highlights of conference include a talk with photojournalist Jeff Widener, who captured the iconic image of Tank Man back in 6/4/89’s Tiananmen Square, and the panel on Women Leaders in Journalism that covered, among other things, balancing career and family life and leveraging time off for family when being considered for a position. However, the discussions of greatest value to my professional journey were during the panels: Being A Freelance Success, an informative talk with long term freelancers led by Glenn Van Zutphen; Landing A Job in the Digital Age led by AP’s Paul Cheung who is also AAJA’s National President, Seattle Times Sharon Pian Chan and NextMedia’s Jason Gatewood with key interview strategies; then, Google for Pros with Google’s Joyce Hau and LinkedIn For Pros by Head of Communications, Deepa Sapatnekar, with the most practical tips on how to maximize Google for research as journalists and LinkedIn for professional networking.  Business Writing Can Be Fun and Your Career, Your Hands both led by Bloomberg’s Angie Lau proved to leave the biggest impression on my motivations moving forward as a writer; I was grateful to share during these discussions and even receive a book from strategic consultant Jane Horan, founder of the Horan Group.  I realized this weekend that there is so much work for me to do moving forward as a professional writer, but this two-day conference has helped me clarify the direction in which I’d like to continue moving once I complete my MA in the Graduate Program of International Affairs.

 

 

 

 

Needless to say, my first week in Hong Kong certainly set the bar for a most productive two months while completing my International Field Program… Here’s to MORE opportunity!

 

Mai on Good Morning America………..just barely!

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Alexa Von Tobel, Good Morning America, Learn Vest

Last Thursday, one of my dear friends who works in PR, texted me around 4:30 in the afternoon like, “Hey, do you want to be on GMA in the morning?” and went on to explain that Alexa Von Tobel of Learn Vest financial services was doing a segment and looking for people to advise. Once I realized that my friend was going to recommend me, I hightailed it into gear like, “I need to do my hair! I need get my nails done, I need to get a new outfit……” though I only ended up getting my favorite two-toned gel manicure done at the last minute! When I showed up at Good Morning America studios Friday morning, passing both George Stephanopoulos and Robin Roberts on my way to the green room (unfortunately I didn’t get to say hello), I met with the producers and other segment participants and got ready for my big close up! The segment, it turns out, put the spotlight on Americans’ poor spending habits so that the financial expert could advise on how to spend and save more efficiently in the new year. They also wanted to hear about our saving habits while Alexa gave tips for these as well. As it turns out, the clip aired today! I got a text from a friend who who got a text from her girl asking if I had been on GMA this morning! I said that I was supposed to be on at some point, but hadn’t heard anything. Long story short, I later came to realize the segment had indeed aired but that my short interview made the cutting room floor. I did, however, manage to get a five second cameo appearance, which I’m perfectly fine with! Here’s to the unexpected moments in life and to saying YES! to whatever opportunities come my way……! ★♥★

International recording artist Rogiérs on Rolling Out!

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Rogiérs, Rolling Out

A week ago I was fortunate to be featured on Rolling Out as a young woman making my way through the world, and this week a great friend and greater inspiration of mine takes the spotlight! Rogiérs, international recording artist and partner at Fibby Music Group speaks about his career as a professional artist over the past fifteen years and what he plans to achieve on the world’s stage moving forward! Check out the full interview HERE!!! Congrats, Ro!!! We are all very proud of you!

Also be on the lookout for The Shedding, Rogiérs’ newest studio project! Here’s a sneak peak and an earful of the beautiful music you can expect!

AND a bit more on The Shedding…. COMING SOON!!

Mai Rolling Out Spotlight!!

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Denetria Lewis, Goals, Howard University, International Relations, Learning, Rolling Out, Sarah Lawrence, The DNYREE Group

Thanks to Denetria Lewis, cultural sommelier and founder of The DNYREE Group for suggesting that Rolling Out to show me a bit of love!

Blogger and international educator Mai Perkins on working abroad and lifelong learning

Name: Mai Perkins
Title/Company: blogger, MaiOnTheMove.com; freelance writer/editor, Mai Content, LLC; and international educator

How did you determine your career path?
Honestly, for the past decade I’ve been one of those people to stumble onto career paths more than I planned with intentions to work in a certain industry. What I mean is that while I am a freelance ghostwriter and editor, it wasn’t until six years after getting my undergraduate degree at Howard University – which had nothing to do with writing – that I went on to get my Master’s in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence. Yet, I’d been writing and editing documents for clients since 2001. The same could be said of working in education. In 2008, I was looking for something less demanding than my job in marketing/advertising. A friend recommended that I apply to teach composition at City University of New York. Five years later, I’m in the Middle East teaching English to young Arab men while also working with clients in New York and across the U.S. Since relocating abroad, I have interests to segue towards a career in International Relations while completing book projects I have coming down the pipeline.

What other industries connect to your career choice?
What really appeals to me about my own career trajectory is how I’ve fused a path within writing, the arts and multicultural education. The fact that I can teach or perform one moment, and edit a 200-page document the next is fascinating. At the same time, recent experiences have developed my deeper appreciation of social activism and global development issues, which I’ve nurtured since moving abroad. Teaching youth and young adults from across the globe has piqued an obsession with identity, ethics and tolerance, the well being of the next generation worldwide, and the platforms we have to shape critical consciousness. So, perhaps I should look into the Human Rights industry as well. The ultimate goal is to integrate my experiences as a writer, documentarian, researcher, educator, and traveler into the next chapter of my life, which will continue to shape a satisfying career.

Share why lifelong learning is important to you.
Arguably, lifelong learning is more important to me than having a lifelong career, though the two go hand in hand. I have known people who would never measure their success in the way of high salaries or moving up the professional ladder. Yet when I sit and talk to these individuals, who have comfortable lives, their knowledge and level of intelligence is astounding. I am a voracious learner and believe that the ability to capitalize on gaining knowledge to propel one forward in life, both personally and professionally, is a valuable asset.

Where do you enjoy vacationing?
Since moving abroad, I am really trying to experience as much of the world as I can. So far I’ve visited places in North America, Africa, Europe and west Asia. My goal, however, is to get to the other three continents in the next year or two, and yes that includes Antarctica. I’ve figured out that I can visit the arctic on a cruise from either South America or Australia, and pretty soon I’ll be ready to get on over there and party with the penguins. Of the places I have traveled, I’ve had the most outrageous and good time in South Africa, so much so that I’ve decided I need to spend a few weeks in Johannesburg and Cape Town every December.

Since I’ve developed a reputation for being a bit of a jet setter and pushing the joys of life to full throttle, I decided to start a new blog at the top of the year called, Mai On the Move. So many of my comrades and peers have expressed how they are vicariously living every journey that I post  and I realized it was time to document my moves in a collection of blog posts. The goal of this blog is to highlight my favorite sites and cities, both domestically and internationally. Since I now have the incentive of posting for my readership on http://www.MaiOnTheMove.com, I’m even more enthralled with becoming a bon vivant.