Maria Shimizu Christensen
Bio
Writer living my dreams by day and dreaming up new ones by night
Also, History Major, Senior Accountant, Geek, Fan of cocktails and camping
Stories (102)
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There Are Only Two Things You Actually Need to be Happy
There are only two things you absolutely need to be happy. They don’t necessarily make you perfectly happy – although they certainly can – but they provide the foundation for building your happiness. It’s really hard to be happy without them, and it’s much easier to find happiness if you have them.
By Maria Shimizu Christensen4 years ago in Longevity
The Food Bank Doesn’t Need Your Food. Please Keep Your Chocolate Sauce and Baby Corn.
Some years ago I reluctantly became a food bank client. Trying to feed two kids as a single mother with only one income was a challenge after paying to keep a roof over our heads, among other things. There was a recession and I was laid off from my job. The same old story that keeps repeating for so many of us.
By Maria Shimizu Christensen4 years ago in Feast
A Digital Toaster Is a Reminder of All That Is Wrong in the Modern World
In October of 2001 I bought a brand new car. It was the first time in my life I purchased a vehicle that wasn’t previously owned (and isn’t that a nice way to say “used”?). Since it just had its 20th birthday, we celebrated by checking the odometer, which isn’t something I normally do. It read 60,240 miles, more or less. Pick your jaw up off the floor and let me explain.
By Maria Shimizu Christensen4 years ago in Lifehack
Don't Put All of Your Writing Eggs in One Basket
Most writers I know want to make a living as a writer. Most of those don’t quite make enough to call it a living. Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don’t. I’m always supplementing my writing with side gigs and that’s usually enough. I used to supplement a full-time accounting job with writing as a side gig, so I’m pretty happy the tables have turned. I worked a long time for this.
By Maria Shimizu Christensen4 years ago in Journal
The Day of Remembrance and the Legality of Racism
What do you do when random acts of bigotry weave themselves into the fabric of daily life, but you are not in a targeted group? Say something or nothing, do something or nothing? Or some other combination of words and actions? I've seen people who will not and do not publicly denounce bigotry justify their lack of words by pointing out that their actions speak louder.
By Maria Shimizu Christensen4 years ago in The Swamp
I Would Probably Play the Squid Game
In the aftermath of the hit Netflix series Squid Game, websites popped up with quizzes where you can see if you would survive the brutal game. This is more horrifying than the show, because it hides savagery behind a veneer of entertainment, which is something the show doesn’t do. The messages of Squid Game are as subtle as a sledgehammer.
By Maria Shimizu Christensen4 years ago in Lifehack
Living Life by the Square Inch
I dream in inches. Eight more inches and I could open my bedroom door all the way. Six more inches up and another layer of bookcase will fit. And, oh please, I breathe, just 4 extra inches tall would open up a whole world of storage under the bed. Clearly, these are waking dreams. Daydreams, really.
By Maria Shimizu Christensen4 years ago in Confessions
An Ode to Messy Desks, Creativity, and Albert Einstein
I could choose to have a clean desk. An uncluttered workspace. But in doing so I would have to give up things. Just as science tells us that no new matter is created or destroyed, anything I do to change my environment just means that things will go somewhere else. I wouldn’t wish this state of things on anyone else.
By Maria Shimizu Christensen4 years ago in Lifehack
