Journey
A life in fragments
2000
Texas Beginnings
I was born in Austin, TX, where my parents had lived for decades and where I grew up with a tight-knit community of family and friends, lots of backyard BBQs and pool parties. The hot, weird, hospitable South was the first world I knew.
2005
Oakland
In 2005, my family moved to Oakland, California. We had many family friends in the Bay Area and were drawn to its strong public school programs. Given that I have two moms and the Bay Area is a hub for families like ours, the decision felt natural. Oakland became my home, my heart, and remains a place that grounds me and defines my sense of self.
2014
High School Across the Bay
At the end of middle school, I didn’t have a concrete idea of what I wanted to do — really, who does? A teacher told me about a school across the bay that still taught shop classes and emphasized hands on learning. I wasn't sure if my parents would go for it, but figured they had already traveled across the country for education - what was another couple of miles? It was foolish thinking, but they still told me to chase what I want. The commute was tough, the classes were rigorous, and during my first year I seriously considered leaving. But the experience ignited my independence and my love of making things.
2016
First Coding Class
As part of the hands-on, lab-focused classes I was taking, I enrolled in my first real, non-Scratch programming course. The professor introduced us to Python syntax and core programming concepts, then let us build an open ended project in a language of our choice. I chose to build a grammar corrector in Go (a wildly inefficient choice, in retrospect, but one that taught me a lot).
2017
First Writing Class
While reading had always been a huge part of my life, I never imagined becoming a writer. This may have been due to bad essay grades, the perceived impracticality of the subject, my terrible handwriting, or some other insecurity. This creative writing class — where I could unbridle my imagination and share stories with friends as if sharing parts of myself — ended up being one of the happiest and most rewarding moments in high school. Shout out to Ms. RVB.
2018
NYU
When looking at colleges, the East Coast with all of its energy was an obvious draw and majoring in computer science was the practical choice. At NYU Tandon, I found a community of curious, artistic engineers, generous professors, and countless opportunities to grow as a well rounded engineer. It’s also where I met my partner and supporter of all adventures and projects going forward, Jean.
2019-2021
Writing Returns
Eventually, writing came creeping back, even though I thought I’d left it behind in California. Those same creative engineers turned out to be writers, filmmakers and artists, and I met many others outside of Tandon who pushed me to share my work. I explored comparative literature and other writing courses, and by my junior year I was consistently enrolling in creative writing workshops and eventually pursued a minor.
2022
Keysight Technologies
During my senior year, I was recruited as a DevOps engineer for a team in the High Frequency Measurement department at Keysight Technologies. I experienced significant professional growth, working on steady, industry-standard maintenance alongside more experimental internal initiatives in data retention, AI, and MLOps. These were steady, supportive years shaped by mentors who trusted me with complex problems and encouraged me to keep writing who, alongside my partner, helped me hold onto that part of myself.
2025
The New School MFA
This marked my biggest pivot yet. In theory, I could have spent the rest of my career at Keysight — many people do. But I eventually realized that writing has always been my deepest passion, dating back to high school. To be true to myself, I needed to take that risk. The New School’s MFA program has been a powerful start, leading to working with school publications, doing my own readings, and some of the strongest work I’ve produced so far.
2000
Texas Beginnings
I was born in Austin, TX, where my parents had lived for decades and where I grew up with a tight-knit community of family and friends, lots of backyard BBQs and pool parties. The hot, weird, hospitable South was the first world I knew.
2005
Oakland
In 2005, my family moved to Oakland, California. We had many family friends in the Bay Area and were drawn to its strong public school programs. Given that I have two moms and the Bay Area is a hub for families like ours, the decision felt natural. Oakland became my home, my heart, and remains a place that grounds me and defines my sense of self.