an (im)material girl living in a material world looking for joys and enlightenment through food, art, and culture.

consumerism and materialism plague our society with instant gratification, compelling us to pour money towards corporations which stand nothing to gain from us building community. i want to prioritize the things that feed the human spirit without the intervention of capitalism — food, art, creativity, and community engagement — while identifying the underlying political undertones that define our everyday lives.

about me

My name is Isa - welcome! I am born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA, where I currently reside with my partner and our two geriatric (but no less insane) pets, Athena and Sahara. When I am not writing this content, I am thinking about it, or I am cooking one of the recipes that you may see here, or I may be reading (usually fantasy, although I’ve been branching out lately). I am a recovering theater kid and still music and theater remain a huge part of my life and creativity. I am an Aquarius sun, Leo rising, and Libra moon and have been told that this is exactly what everyone thinks my chart is as soon as they meet me. You will get to know me more intimately as you read here and I hope you will stick around to do so!

why blog?

I recently spoke to my therapist about how I feel myself grow through challenges - that working at something and feeling accomplished gives me confidence and raises my spirits. 

I suppose this is why I came back to the idea of blogging (but also partially so that my instagram followers wouldn’t get annoyed with a constant barrage of my opinions). I am looking for an outlet for my ideas, thoughts, recipes, opinions, anger, sadness, and joy. You might think to yourself, “maybe you should journal and leave the rest of us be,” and trust me - I’ve tried. There’s something magical in putting your words into the ether and hoping that somewhere somebody resonates with something you’ve said.

looking for community

The world is on fire right now. Our rights are being extinguished left and right, prices are rising without salaries that follow. We turn on the TV every night to a constant onslaught of events that could destroy your faith in humanity. Instead, I want to challenge myself and you to find the beauty, joy, and hope in these things. The people that are on the ground organizing marches and food banks and clothing drives to ship overseas. The music that is being created in protest. The theater that has been revived in beautiful and haunting ways. The food that brings life to your loved ones (even if you can’t afford eggs right now).

writing has always given me a form of control over an uncontrollable and oppressive world, so i once again turn to the blank page, ready to set pen to paper (who am i kidding, though, i’m typing everything). there are those out there who say that there is nothing that one singular person can do, but i believe that in sharing ideas, forming community, and spreading humanity (joy and sadness included), there is power.