A Break from the Norm

Why my next chapter is a creative sabbatical in Mexico City.

If you’re new, welcome to K.I.M. in a minute, where I share creative [k]nowledge with life [i]nsights from [m]y point of view.

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I woke up in Mexico City on the morning of 9/7, turned towards the natural morning light coming through the windows, and listened to residents in the area commute to work. As I lay there for a bit, I started to reflect on how I got to this point. How I was able to enter into this unconventional yet necessary chapter. I felt grateful.

Grateful for the courage to do exactly what I said I was going to do even when I had my doubts. Grateful for the space I had these past few years to get my mental health back on track to fully enjoy this experience. Grateful for my community who may not have always understood but consistently supported and had faith in me. Grateful for the rejections that were redirections. All of it led me here – my creative sabbatical in Mexico City. 

Check out my post Embracing the Unknown to learn more about the moments that sparked this journey.

Why Mexico City?

This is my second time here. As I was approaching 30, I lived in Mexico City for a month to celebrate my birthday since it was always a goal of mine to spend my 30th during an extended stay in a different country. The moment I got on a plane to head back to California, I knew I had to come back for a longer time. I didn’t know how, but it had to happen. Fast forward a few years, a new job, a move, the end of said job, and a lot of life in between, I made it. It took longer than expected, but s/o to the power of patience and intention.

Mexico City is one of my favorite cities. From its unique culture and creative opportunities to the good food and variety of museums, you can walk down any street and discover something new. I look forward to connecting with the artist community, learning about the tech scene, visiting different art galleries, taking some classes, and more. As I continue reading The Artist’s Way, I’m excited to write my morning pages and find new things to explore for my weekly artist dates. And yes, I will make sure to share the cool spots I find.

Goals for My Creative Sabbatical

There are things I want to do but I wouldn’t define them as goals but instead themes. I’m naturally a goal-oriented person, but my themes don’t create the pressure of a timeline or a checklist and provide the space to operate in a creative flow. As I document this journey, I want to identify new ways to use this approach not only for this singular event but also for the future and ultimately help others who may be experiencing something similar.

Read Flowing Freely to learn more about my personal themes for this journey.

After spending 6+ years with this feeling of having something to prove — proving to companies that I was worth the hire even when I didn’t have a traditional background, proving to people who knew me that pivoting from an engineering role to a creative one was the right move, proving to myself that I could get enough work experience to finally feel like “I did it,”  —  I’m now in a space where I want to just explore my creativity for me. No deadlines, no outcomes. 

I occasionally ask myself “What would it be like to create not just to survive but for fun again?” I’m grateful for this time to discover the answer. 

Recent Spots I’ve Explored

A few people were DMing me about places I shared on my Stories (follow me on IG where I share content from my explorations), so here is a list of places I found this week either on one of my hot girl walks or from an invite/recommendation. Let me know in the comments if you would be interested in an IG guide or a Google Maps list.

Restaurants

• Belforno

• The Backyard (tip: get the breakfast sandwich!)

• Bella Aurora 

• Blaxicocina

• Chetito

• Freims 

• La Michoacana Tocumbo

Entertainment

• R&B Night feat. Jilli P at Revolta Queer House

• Diaspora CDMX

• Blaq Planet

Sightseeing

• Biblioteca Vasconcelos

• Angel of Independence

Excited to share more thoughts, places, and creative explorations over these next few weeks. If you know someone who may be interested, feel free to send this post their way so they can learn more and subscribe.

Thanks for reading and talk soon.