PLAY

We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us. 
Current count: 42 countries.

People ask why I spent so much time on this talk. I don't intend to be a mental health advocate. I am not a professional story teller. On top of that it's triggering and exhausting. I almost threw up and had to hide out for 30m in the bathroom stall after stage time, then I ran back to pet my dog for a bit so I could recharge enough to finish out a very meaningful conference. I cried reading messages from attendees on my flight back. It is all worth it because someone out there feel less alone in their silent struggle. Home, tired, and grateful 🙏.
"who are you when you are truly alone, with nothing but your mind?" an earnest talk about my journey through clinical depression, liminal domino, sense of self worth, and the weird quirky rise back using a combination of silent meditation and design thinking methodology. thank you #STORY2019 for having me. -- thank you @hijanetlee @stephkent @joshuaromancello @denrsch @courtneycgross and @designer_kim for talk prep. and thank you, most of all, to @ramyarajakumar for pulling me out of the rut, kicked my ass to get better, and inspired me to share my story. -- I don't know if there will be video but there will be a podcast for sure.
I am reminded of a quote Lauren said to me about my surfing: "there is a line between crazy and stupid. thaniya is right there on that line." here in Nashville, speaking at this conference with actual storytellers. imposter syndrome level 💯
"express love with actions, not words." 💛 I used to think my family is cold and emotionally inadequate because we never say things like "I love you" to one another. (Is it an Asian thing?) Today I understand my family is not less than others. There was plenty of love, expressed through a much deeper way: action. I will do all these things for you, I will pick you up, spend time with you, be present with you, hold you.. that is so much more than saying I love you at the end of a phone call. I learned it from my dog last night. She's pretty wise.. Sage.
9.11 With a single decision, Neil died instead of me on the tower that morning. He just got back from his honeymoon. Every year I wish I didn't make that decision. Every year I wonder what it would be like if he lived, and I didn't. It doesn't get any easier. #neverforget
sunday sunrise 🌞🙌
my plant obsession is out of control. all my life I've wanted a tree I don't have to give away everytime I move. solution: #bonsai. still technically this isn't a tree..more like a shrub, but the debate on what makes a tree a tree is still out there. I am naming her "jeri", short for jericoacoara, a special place in Brazil. she is a pink powder puff aka #calliandra brevipes. native to Brazil, the tiny leaves fold shut at night. spring time bloom is fluffy tiny pink and white flower. let's see if she will bloom next year. 💮 ✨ (ps. expensive as hell. pls don't die)
when a tree grows, does anyone see. when a tree dies, does anyone cry. #mountainturtleplant #stephaniarotundifolia
we are in a pot. one of us is the vegetables and one of us is the water. i can't tell who is cooking who. we are simply melting into each other. two together makes something else entirely better. let's hope we remember. America. #deepthoughts
does this look like me? 🧐 I got featured in an article for researchers and designers by People Nerd. Think this is the most well-written piece about me on the internet to date. And I get a custom-made illustration to go along with it. sweet. The article is probably good for peeps who are contemplating why work matters.. why we do what we do.. what really matters.. find it by googling "dscout thaniya" ✌🏽
sick girl 😞
My heart weeps. I watched a spider the size of my palm quietly eat a bug twice its size. I swum in the black river that's home to pink dolphins. They come out early in the morning and at sunset. I learned about the rise and fall of strong tides that feed the livelihood of animals and villagers. I spent idle time listening to the murmur of thousands of bird species. My heart weeps in a deep way for all of us who will never see the wonder of it anymore, and for all of us who will no doubt be along the path of what will inevitably be many super storms brewing in the Atlantic ocean from the rising heat of the flames. If you think climate crisis isn't here, well, now it really is here.
fly the cotton candy sky ™️ #unitedairlines
親友との静かな夜 💛
went looking for a photo of a friend. found this snap of me on the TED stage years back. coincidentally yesterday my teammate said I am a bad presenter at an internal mtg. slow and boring, he said. must not have a lot of experience. sometimes criticism is a tactic to control more than it is a valuable feedback. this happens to women a lot. don't stay quiet. smile calmly and steer the conversation to its rightful course. #riseabovethefray

TRAVELOGUE

Featured
Tanzania
The hard thing about hard things
Tanzania
Read More →
Tanzania
Portugal
72 hours in Lisbon
Portugal
Read More →
Portugal
Surf video
New York
Surf video
New York
Read More →
New York
Sri Lanka
Stay (for a while)
Sri Lanka
Read More →
Sri Lanka
Thailand
Finding home
Thailand
Read More →
Thailand
Greece
Time to wander
Greece
Read More →
Greece
Greece
When the walls come down
Greece
Read More →
Greece
Behind the scene: planning for serendipity
Read More →
My irrational passion for surfing
Read More →
Yemen
Thirty days later
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
Yemen
The island and its habitants
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
Yemen
Day 6-9: The missing link
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
Yemen
Day 5: Scand
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
Yemen
Day 4: The Dragon blood forest
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
Yemen
Day 3: Wadi crossings
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
Yemen
Day 2: Haghir
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
Yemen
Day 1: Acclimation
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
Socotra - prep stage
Yemen
Socotra - prep stage
Yemen
Read More →
Yemen
California
Coachella
California
Read More →
California
United Arab Emirates
The Guardian in the Desert
United Arab Emirates
Read More →
United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The Abaya and Women's Rights
United Arab Emirates
Read More →
United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The new melting pot
United Arab Emirates
Read More →
United Arab Emirates
Qatar
TEDxSummit
Qatar
Read More →
Qatar
Qatar
Salaam allekum
Qatar
Read More →
Qatar

_

MORE

FROM THE ARCHIVE