“I think.. my ability to access my emotions is a big part of it. So I cry really easily, I can talk about how I’m feeling about things, and I think that that in a way is a lot of who I am. It also allows me to be.. authentic and open with people, so I think that--that’s who I like to think I am I dunno if that really is haha maybe I’m just kidding myself. I also think my job is a… I know that’s not really a trait but I think that’s a huge part of who I am cause I love my job, I think I have the greatest job in the world. And I just love getting up to come to work and I can’t think of anything that I would rather do. so I think being an English teacher specifically and especially at AR is a big part of who I am. I don’t have like a... Life, divide? Between work and home, and a lot of people do... I think I’m just who I am all the time.”

“So I came to Humboldt to go to Humboldt State University, I’d lived in Los Angles I’d live in Minnesota, uh... That’s the only two places I’ve lived haha I was gonna name all these great places but I lived in those two. I moved here and I felt like it was perfect because it was still California and I didn’t ever want to leave California again cause I loved California, but I also loved that Humboldt was surrounded by redwoods and there was the ocean because when I lived in Minnesota I felt landlocked? Cause there was no ocean and I sorta felt slightly claustrophobic. And so I really loved that, I loved the redwoods I loved... Everything about the rural-ness of it. I do miss being able to go get any kind of food I want at any time, yknow? You go to Los Angeles and you think “I’d like to have Thai cuisine at 2 in the morning” and there’s gonna be ten places you can go. And here I remember when I first moved up here--and it’s changed a little bit? But when I first moved here there was nothing. There was no pizza places, nothing. And there was nothing open any later than like 8 o’clock at night. And I moved here and I was like “what did-- where did I move to this.. Weird place”. It’s definitely changed, but… I sorta find that nice now and now when I go back home and I go back to Los Angeles its… a little too much for me? Cause it was so chaotic and crazy. I still love driving there though cause that’s where I learned to drive and I like to drive like a maniac, so I still like that part of it. But its... I think the interesting thing for me that working with teenagers it’s always like “uhh I gotta get outa here, I gotta get outa here” and all the older people want to come here cause it’s like... It’s like a place to come when you’re ready to relax. and I urge everybody to live here at least leave for a while whether its for school or for a job, or to travel extensively. And then maybe you’ll appreciate this place and want to come back or maybe you’ll find something, yknow? It’s such a different… like people... There’s so many people who would be so much better off in a big huge city-- like you [Parker] would be great in a big city. Yes you would! Cause you could like blend in and no one would even notice you in a big city. So I think you would love that--I think I know you think of it as like crazy and frenetic and all that kind of stuff but it’s the opposite cause no one knows you. So here.. Like when I go to the grocery store I know five people. There’s no way around that, right? Masks have been nice though haha. But when you live in a big city it’s like you can go somewhere and nobody knows who you are and people will not talk to you and leave you alone. I think you would like that. Uhm, yeah. That’s all.”