The southwest is my home and I didnāt learn to fully appreciate its unique beauty and culture for what it is until I left.
The wide open skies and horizons that seem to go on forever and the sunsets that come with that are breathtaking. The sparseness of the landscape is soothing to the spirit; the lack of humidity is wonderful for the lungs. The rock formations are insane. If youāre the kind of person who loves sunlight youāre in luck. And few things are better than the smell and splendor of desert rain.
Some areas like where I grew up can be incredibly isolated geographically and culturally from other parts of the US, where the nearest large (American) city is three to eight hoursā driving distance away, surrounded with nothing but empty desert.
I would say the southwest starts in Marfa, Texas (highly recommend) and extends into SoCal, with the furthest north parts being in lower Utah and Colorado. New Mexico and El Paso have some of the best Mexican food in the country. The national and state parks are gorgeous. I donāt claim Arizona, especially since itās become infested with Californians. Every city I have visited in Arizona has been the worst place Iāve ever been.
The environment and climate are hostile to human plant and animal life in a lot of ways (including urban planning in most major cities in the area) and the people can be suspicious of strangers and outsiders, brusque and unfriendly. The legacy of centuries of colonization, occupation, gunslinging outlaws, and war casts an inescapably dark feeling over the land. I admire the southwest because itās an area where everything and everyone must fight to exist; it fosters resilience and self sufficiency like nothing else.
Sep 20, 2024
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Lol I think itās clear here how obsessed I am with this region. Iām particularly a fan of Flagstaff, AZ and northern New Mexico, but I also really like Tucson.
Seems like the perfect place to spend this length of time in since I could imagine the isolation, distance from international airports, and politics of the surrounding areas would get trying longterm. But for this length of time, youāll have all the hikes in the world, amazing food, art scenes, and the healing power of the desert!
Mar 22, 2024
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Closest town is a Mexican sister city right across the river, then a smattering of smaller New Mexican towns scattered through the desert, then absolutely nothing for hoursājust empty space, sand, dust, sparse vegetation, and the open road. You can drive something like eight hours one way before reaching civilization. Thereās not much to do there and sometimes it felt like a place time forgotā¦ havenāt been back there in a few years.
Mar 4, 2025
Underrated state. No joy like eating a green chile breakfast at Frontier Cafe (Albuquerque) or El Jacalito (Las Cruces). White Sands is a wild place (the sand stays cool and feels different than most sands) and the drive coming down from Colorado is very dangerous but itās worth seeing those dwarf pines covered in snow - Iāve never seen anything like it. I like the people there too, everyoneās friendly and hospitable and most of them speak my language. -Saguiv RosenstockĀ
Mar 13, 2025
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āLife shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.ā
ā AnaĆÆs Nin
This is uncharacteristically raw and personal, even for me, and pretty heavy! I know many of you have seen me posting through it and I feel safe to talk about it openly now that Iāve safely landed at the start of my new life. Itās honestly even a little bit embarrassing but I think itās important to share.
Iāve never publicly mentioned it on here, but I have a husband; as of Friday, weād have been together for 11 years, and weāve been married for 3 years as of 2/22. I realize now that I wanted to explore what I looked like outside of my relationship with him because I had lost that. This is why PI.FYI has been so meaningful to me as a space to express myself and connect with peopleāto rediscover my voice.
I had been living a lie this entire time, to others but worst of all to myself. Heās been verbally and emotionally abusive, physically but without touching me, to the point that every day I spent with him I was in danger. Iāve been shrinking myself and walking on eggshells to avoid making him insecure and provoking his casual put-downs and fits of rage, while hanging on for dear life to the threads of good I could see.
Iāve wanted so badly to leave, more than anything, but I felt like there was no way out and that this was just something I would need to endure indefinitelyābut someone who is so very dear to me helped me see that I have wings to fly, not by acting as my savior but by reminding me of my own power. The emotional safety they built and the gentle care they showed me made me feel like I could open up to them. With their encouragement I was brave enough to tell the truth to my friends, my family, my boss, and they have received me with warm, loving and open arms and rallied to support and protect me. The financial andĀ logistical aspects were the most intimidating to me and itās going to be tough for a while but Iām going to be better than okay!
Now Iām opening up to you. This isnāt the only abuse Iāve suffered in my life, and my old therapist told me she believed it was my mission to share my strength and light with others to inspire them and show them that change is possible.
I hope that by sharing this, I can reach even just one person who is going through something similar and show that they are not alone, and they are not weak. People with certain backgrounds may be more vulnerable to abuse, but it can happen to anyone. It thrives in darkness, shame, and isolationāand breaking that silence is the first step toward freedom.
Leaving is the scariest thing I have ever done but I have so many angels around me, and I am endlessly grateful. Thank you for being here with me š
Mar 16, 2025
My dad teases me about how when I was a little kid, my favorite thing to do when I was on the landline phone with somebodyābe it a relative or one of my best friendsāwas to breathlessly describe the things that were in my bedroom so that they could have a mental picture of everything I loved and chose to surround myself with, and where I sat at that moment in time. Perfectly Imperfect reminds me of that so thanks for always listening and for sharing with me too š
Feb 23, 2025
Schedule sent my resignation email for the morning, effective immediately ā
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Feb 27, 2025