Driving to the vineyards on the west side of Waiheke
Oops, I disappeared for a year.....
Okay, its definitely been one year +++++++ since I've written, anyways........I forgot how much I love writing, but now I'm back! (No promises.) I'm certainly now in a new season of life, that has led me back to the keyboard, because for some reason now I feel more adult than ever and have been questioning all my previous decisions to "be adult" because this ain't fun....I guess we can just get into the, how they say, "meat of life."
Au revoir Aoteroa
I arrived back to New Zealand in the dead of winter. My peak Asia Spring abundant with greenery, tow trucks full of produce, and auntie dance groups suddenly faded to grey skies, grey buildings, and grey coats in Auckland. I arrived with no clue what to do, but knowing I had to find a job in a place where many business downsize, or all out shut down for the winter. I did however get a van to live in for very cheap from some old roommates who had difficulty selling, which was a fun adventure I wasn't sure I'd be able to partake in. So with my new Mazda shaped home and a dream I headed to the North Shore where I had a stage lined up for a Cook position. I had received an email from a restaurant who saw one of my "please hire me" Facebook posts while I was in China, and I was terrified. Going from glorified dishwasher at a place where everyone was hyping me up and had the patience to teach me new things, to now a kitchen full of people whose vibes were very unclear from the beginning and with a skillset that was.... i'll say young, was truly a leap of faith. However, it was what I needed to push myself further into cooking professionally. It was also really fated because the place that reached out to me was a modern pasta restaurant that was not traditionally Italian. Pasta and not traditional Italian is exactly the thing I've been working on for almost a year at the time. Not gonna lie, I thought it was a scam because what were the odds. Long story short, I loved working there, became close with both of the owners who I now consider mentors and friends. I learned, I stressed, I ate, I laughed.
A young cook full of spirit
A parting gift from my bosses- the first steak I'd eaten in YEARS
My last 6 months became a worker bee era as the reality of returning to NYC, a place that is way more stressful and expensive, and where I would lose half of my money in conversion really set in. At one point I had 4 jobs and was working 6 days a week. That did not last long..... One of those jobs was my first kitchen were the vibes were difficult. Okay moving on now... I actually really enjoyed living in a van. It felt like freedom. A few months into living in the van I also realized this is probably my only chance to not only live alone, but also to own the thing I'm living in. What a time. I settled into a domestic life of seeing movies every Tuesday before work, driving to markets on the weekends, and trying new restaurants every week. I went to a Samoan restaurant with a pre-fixe menu that was amazing, I learned how well toasted cumin goes with pineapple, and all the different ways coconut can taste depending on the preparation. By the time October came around and spring was rearing its head on the North Island, I felt ready to come home. New York was calling, and soon seeing people who know me from so many different seasons of life felt like spring to me. People always ask me how I liked living in New Zealand, and while I knew after a year it was not "home" for me, I'm happy the great crash out of 2024 led me to trying it out. Truly a beautiful country, I hope to see again but definitely just as a tourist. There were so many other thoughts I had to reflect on that have since been diluted by more recent reflections. I really should work on the whole procrastination thing. New Zealand will always be the place where I first worked in kitchens, took romantic drives along the coast in the peak of my Olivia Dean and Sarah Mckinsley era, fell back in love with public libraries and found fun in solitude.
Onetangi Beach, Feb 2026
