LITTLE CREATIVE KID
“At an early age, I knew that art would consume me for the rest of my life.”
I was born in Wahiawa, Hawaii, but I’d be lying to you if I called myself an island boy. Despite being born in a humble town adjacent to a world-renowned pineapple farm, my time on the island would be cut short due to my life as a military brat. At the time, my father was a strapping-young lad in the United States Air Force and my mother was in the medical field. Shortly after I was born, we’d pack up and move from the island of Oahu to the golden state of California.
At an early age, I knew that art would consume me for the rest of my life. Sometimes, my creativity got a little too “extra” and got myself in a wee bit of trouble. From drawing on hotel room walls to drawing Jesus Christ as an action hero in Catholic Sunday School, I just couldn’t draw the line between creativity and being an upstanding little kid citizen. Art was everything to me and it was a conduit for my overflowing imagination.
I owe a lot of credit to my parents for creativity. They were natural artists even though they never pursued it professionally. My father was a saxophone specialist and owned every single type of saxophone ever made. Big ones, small ones, and some as big as your head! On the other hand, my mother was a powerhouse vocalist. She could sing all the greatest hits and had a voice that resonated through Sunday service, family get-togethers, and karaoke night! I eventually followed suit and music became my peanut butter and jelly jam.
ROCK THE MINDSET
“Music allowed me to break out of my shell and conquer my shyness. It allowed me to creatively express myself even if I was a natural introvert.”
During my father’s military service, I got the chance to live in Misawa, Japan where I started a rock band with my buddy called Direkt Drive. We drew inspiration from our favorite bands like Linkin Park and we’d host jam sessions at his house. The best part of it all was that after practice, his mom would cook us amazing Japanese food such as beef curry or pork katsu with rice.
From that point forward, music and art was on my mind 24/7. Aside from my rock band, I was heavily involved with the high school concert band and on the weekends, I would play guitar and sing for Life Teen, a Catholic youth ministry organization, on Saturday nights and join the choir for Sunday service. Music allowed me to break out of my shell and conquer my shyness. It allowed me to creatively express myself even if I was a natural introvert.
Eventually, my family had to move once more back to California, and I continued to play music. By the time I graduated high school, I had the pleasure of playing for the high school marching, concert, and jazz band as their lead Alto Saxophone player. In addition, I spent the weekend playing Sunday service music with my parents at St. Daniel’s Catholic Church in Wheatland, CA. Music showed me the power of communication and connecting with others through the power of words.
Despite my passion for music, I chose to pursue an engineering career at UC Davis. At the time, I was convinced the only way to make a healthy salary was to go into STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math. I took a leap of faith and left my first love of music behind and transitioned into engineering. At first, I pushed against the idea of conforming to the traditional career. However, as I made my way through college, I recognized that I didn’t have to separate my creative capabilities with my technical skillset. So, I did what any rational college kid would do. Start a creative business on the side.
THE SIDE HUSTLE
“Nevertheless, Fitted Life was my first taste of entrepreneurship, and instilled a vocation for developing creative experiences to enrich the lives of others.”
Back in Misawa, Japan, I was exposed to the Japanese car culture scene and the art of drifting. I remember hearing my dad’s coworkers talk about their drift cars, RWD vehicles with a welded or limited slip differential, head down to Hachinohe port to drift. By no means these weekend get-togethers were sanctioned events, but these rag tag airmen enjoyed the thrill of sliding their cars in a controlled manner. At the time, I was way too young to have a driver’s license, but I dreamed of the day when I could own a drift car.
By the time I graduated high school, I had my dream drift car which was a 1996 Nissan 240SX. It was a clunky 90’s car that could barely pass California smog, but it was MY drift car. Every so often I would take it up to Thunderhill Raceway in Willows, CA to drift at an event called Thunder Drift. While I wasn’t the best drifter, I still had a great time, and I got the opportunity to practice my photography skills. At each event, I would try to capture the scene, the vibe, and all the cars sliding around the skid pad. It was a fun hobby turned car blog that became known as Fitted Life.
Regardless of my heavy engineering workload at UC Davis, I treated Fitted Life as a creative sandbox. What started out as a humble car photo blog evolved into a lifestyle brand and I eventually branched out into designing t-shirts and creative apparel. It was my rebellious response to the status quo and a chance to break free from the constraints of traditional education.
Fitted Life became my secondary school focused on marketing, design, and running a business. It became a place where I could learn success from failure first-hand and a template for testing my creative ideas. However, by the time I graduated from UC Davis and started working full-time in engineering, I had to shelve the project and close-up shop. I had a new set of priorities that needed my attention. Nevertheless, Fitted Life was my first taste of entrepreneurship, and instilled a vocation for developing creative experiences to enrich the lives of others.
MOVIE MAGIC
“I learned the value of creating art on my own terms.”
4 years into my engineering career, I needed a creative change and I pursued a dream career in the animation and feature film industry. I was so inspired by the documentaries of Walt Disney Imagineering and imagined myself designing rides for the Disney Parks around the world. In addition, I drew inspiration from countless hours of watching Industrial Light and Magic documentaries. I dreamed about working on movies like Star Wars and Indiana Jones at the historic ILM facility in San Francisco, CA. I knew my destination and I was ready to commit to my goals.
I knew working in VFX was my destination, but my roadmap to creativity was a bit fuzzy. I was determined to get into the VFX industry as an engineer, but I discovered intentional clarity after taking an introductory art course in 3D modeling. I didn’t want to be the person making the tools. I wanted to be the artist using them. That epiphany guided me towards a creative endeavor of becoming a concept artist for the feature film and animation industry.
For the next 4 years, I dedicated myself to developing my skills as an artist. I was a sponge and I absorbed everything that interested me. I became proficient in design and learned how to balance contrast with rest. I developed my eye for dramatic lighting and understanding how color affects our emotion. Art kept me curious, and it was a gift that I was not willing to give up.
After years of artistic mileage, I finally got the call that I was waiting for. I was offered a job to work in the game industry, which I respectfully declined. It was a difficult decision, but I learned something greater along the way. I learned the value of creating art on my own terms.
SECOND CHANCES
“I almost died, but somehow I survived. It wasn’t my time and I didn’t take this second chance for granted.”
During the winter of 2020, I was involved in a car accident that altered my perspective in life. Prior to the accident, I was obsessed with work and I neglected my health. I became obese and my weight ballooned up to 240 pounds. I could barely breathe, my blood pressure was out of control, and the car accident forced me to reconsider my position in life. I almost died, but somehow I survived. It wasn’t my time and I didn’t take this second chance for granted.
So I decided to make a change.
In the summer of 2021, I got back into fitness after being highly motivated by the olympics. It inspired me to do better and I discovered that I was actually a sports fanatic. I became highly invested in US Soccer and became a proponent of the USWNT and the USMNT. Seeing them perform at the highest level was enough motivation for me to get back up and pursue my own fitness goals.
After the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, I made it my vocation to get my life in order. I got back in the gym, restarted my passion for weightlifting, and managed to shred my old self. I became someone I could depend on. Decoding the science of fitness and learning to become better became my new identity. By the end of 2022, I managed to crush my goal by bringing my weight down from 240 to 152 pounds by optimizing my nutrition and developing my fitness protocol. I didn’t want to stop progress. I was driven to keep pushing forward
LOVE LETTERS
“There is beauty in knowing that there is only one of you.”
In the beginning of 2022, I moved to Washington to accept a job promotion in engineering. I landed a bucket-list job designing equipment for the aerospace and defense industry. It was a position that hit my three requirements: excellent pay, good work environment, and the location wasn’t too shabby. It seemed like I hit the jackpot, but as the summer arrived, I started to question my exact position in life…Was this it?
I had everything that I needed minus a few essentials, but I wasn’t satisfied. I wanted more out of life. I wanted more when others could only dream of being in my position. I felt guilty and ashamed of my outlook in life. Then, in my darkest moments I found comfort in a belief that emerged from the light.
There is beauty in knowing that there is only one of you.
It was a phrase that emerged from the dance of ideas and words within a love letter. It meant that everyone in this world lives one irreplaceable life. It is a life filled with ups and downs and plenty of bumps along the way. However, at the end of the day, it is a life that can’t be replicated. It reminded me that in life, everything after enough is added value. It taught me to value my present circumstances, to never fear opportunity, and to keep living for the future.
Love Notes for Life emerged from that one love letter and evolved into an illustrated book of love notes, daily reminders for navigating the wilderness of life. After the book launch of Love Notes for Life, the brand expanded into the Love Notes for Life podcast and a clothing brand focused on designing today for tomorrow.
THE PROMISE
“I’ll be the first one to say it – I don’t have all the answers, but I will do my best with what I got.”
I started Love Notes for Life to encourage individuals that we’re all a work-in-progress. We all have the power to choose to do better and we can start today. Life will never be perfect, but it shouldn’t discourage us to try and build a life worth living.
I’ll be the first one to say it – I don’t have all the answers, but I will do my best with what I got. You don’t have to know everything, and life is all about learning and experiencing life along the way. Lean into the opportunities and love the journey. Be present, adapt, and work with your present circumstances.
Today is your day to feel alive once again. Learn to love. Learn to laugh. Learn to live. Embrace the challenges of life and when it feels like all hope is lost, remember the love note.