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SISU Pronounced see’-soo. A Finnish term embodying the spirit of grit, guts, and perseverance. Sisu represents a human being’s ability to face any adventure riddled with hardship, hopelessness, and impossibility, yet they still choose to stay the course. It’s not a temporary state of courage, it’s a way of life. SISU MAGAZINE A collection of uninterrupted stories, brilliant photographs, and stunning art that evokes the indomitable human spirit that exists in all of us. An exploration into the experiences and perspectives about the outdoors, told by our contributing writers, photographers, and artists who represent a bold, insightful collective voice.
f r o n t a n d b ac k cov e r P h oto g r a p h y by j e n n i f e r g u r e c k i c o l l a g e a n d q u i lt i n g b y l a u r e n b e l l o O k e r m a n @ @ @
“I thin k we are w being ay too comfo comm rtable claim itted t , eve we w o n ant th a s we p ings t we w r oo be d ant ch iffere ange, nt. If then we
CONTENTS
be the have to chang e.” do n ’t
j u st
ta lk abou t it Pag e 16
6 permission to play
Be in Your Body
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by Teal Stetson-Lee
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homemade and handcrafted Artisan Brands Built For Any Adventure by Erica Zazo
the evolution of dreams
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Jackie Paaso and Eva Walkner’s New Film by Brie A. Moore
12 ask jenny
Hey Suck by Jenny Bruso
whose playground? African Tourism with Savage Wilderness Safaris
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packing a new perspective Cultural Landscapes of Africa by Jennifer Gurecki
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an indoor girl on the outdoors The Park Ranger Is Gonna See Your
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Ass by Melanie Briggs
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Top 5 Tips by Jennifer Gurecki
don’t just talk about it
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Communities of Support with Kriste Peoples
22 get out + get in
OUT There Adventures
poetry in motion
Conundrum by Sydney
Zester
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Self-serving
Sorry Not Sorry by Latasha
Dunston
by Julie Brown
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travelling across africa
stoked and awed to be sober in the backcountry
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when the cows come home Biodynamic Farming with Tibby Plasse
Substance-Free Adventure by Sonya Pevzner
63 26 no boys allowed
Safe Spaces by
Why Mountain Town Suicide Rates Are on The Rise by Lisa Slagle
Alexandra Lev
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losing a limb
Life After Death by Jennifer
snowghosts of our friends
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Gurecki
who’s in charge?
Self Care with Lynsey
Dyer
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what’s in my pack
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the pitch
Outdoor Art Kit
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be seen
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Clearing, Healing, and Planning How to use Chinese Medicine by
DIY Fashion by Devin Bridson
with Andrea Slusarski West Coast Lifestyle with Hoff Goods
Samantha Romanowski
Founder Haleigh Hoff
raction e t n i ] ’ oples is not e p s u o n t “[Indige e environmen er embedded with thctive, but rath hips of destru ate relations t, and in intim , respec
ity mutualction.” conne w p a ne 42 age P
get it together
Financial Cents by Hsin-
Cheng Kuo
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marketplace
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eat, drink, + be merry
Shop It Limoncello Ice
Cream by Vanessa Barajas
82 ive
ect ersp
ing pack
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that’s what he said
Mansplaining by
Andrew Pridgen 1
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TEAL STETSON-LEE | @tealstetsonlee
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eal Stetson-Lee knows a thing or two about play. She grew up as a Nordic ski racer in Durango, Colorado and was first introduced to mountain biking and cyclocross through the Fort Lewis College Cycling Team, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Gender Studies. Besides being a professional bike racer, she is a business woman, a leader, and a community builder. Today Teal works full time as the Event and Partnership Manager for the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship in Quincy, California, running three large cycling races that help fund multi-use trail development on a large scale in Plumas and Sierra counties. She’s passionate about influencing mainstream culture to incorporate and accept women as powerful, capable athletes, but her focus on equality lies both inside and outside of her sport. When was the last time you gave yourself permission to play? No agenda, no tasks to check off, no end goal. Just play? When I was a kid, I was happy to get dirty and
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Are we being active and adventurous to meet a standard, fit a stereotype, for fitness only, to posture or pose as something we don't really believe in... play in the mud, make weird faces, and run around my yard naked, trying to learn how to pee standing up. I played soccer at recess and made forts. I pretended I was a mouse, a lizard, or a tamarin monkey. I do less tamarin monkey impressions as an adult, but I do dance naked in my living room, and I certainly play hard outside skiing, riding, running, wandering, and loving the oddness and imperfection of being my true self. I give myself permission to play. Play sets the mind, spirit, and body free from limiting social constructs. Play is important because it teaches us how to be IN our bodies instead of being A BODY. Play is generally not encouraged after girls reach a certain age, yet for men, it is generally more acceptable to play for the duration of their lives. Men are expected to be active with friends for social bonding and enjoyment. Though women also recreate with their friends for social bonding, there tends to be more emphasis to simultaneously get in a good workout and use the activity as productive time.
We are conditioned to focus on exterior presentation, aesthetics, and the pursuit of unattainable perfection. Brene Brown, in her research on shame in Men, Women, and Worthiness, discusses the difficult task for women to hold space for their vulnerability and power in this world. For women, shame is “being held up against the ideal and that, somehow, we can live lives and edit them so that what the world sees is what’s perfect about us.” This ingrained mentality is insidious because it percolates into most areas of our lives, even into our free time when we should feel liberated to express ourselves as we truly are, without limitations. Shame and perfection can underlie and influence experiences women have, including recreation. For women, recreation and athletic endeavors are often interwoven with the concept of fitness. Fitness is working out, which implies that we are out of shape. Even the phrase out of shape is less than endearing. What is the “right” shape, after all? The fitness paradigm keeps the focus on external approval instead of internal power.
Living an active life is good for your health. Physical movement is healthy and we experience hormonal and mental benefits from the release of dopamine and endorphins and being outside. However, on a deeper spiritual and mental level, the intention for our active lifestyle sets our course. Are we being active and adventurous to meet a standard, fit a stereotype, for fitness only, to posture or pose as something we don’t really believe in, which ties us back to an aesthetic focus? When we focus on aesthetics, we are living by someone else’s terms, not our own.
Play
is important because it teaches us how to be IN our bodies instead of being A BODY. The answer to why we play matters because that is what we internalize about our own self worth. Let’s make that why about play and joy more often. When we lead with this intention, we can be the most powerful, active version of ourselves, free from self doubt and judgment. Our health, sanity, and sense of self depend on it. Photos: John Watson “The Radavist” Riders featured: Teal Stetson-Lee and Sarah Sturm
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just talk about it Kriste Peoples is a runner, writer, speaker, outdoorist, and producer. As the founder of Black Women’s Alliance of Denver, she extends her passion for connecting people to empowered, new narratives of wellness wherever they find themselves. An interview with:
Kriste Peoples | @kristepeoples
We first learned about Kriste Peoples after seeing her in the Elevation Outdoors article “Colorado’s Top Resident Badasses.” We immediately spent some time in the rabbit hole known as Google, and when we emerged, we knew we had to include her in this issue of Sisu Magazine. Not only did we want to learn more about Kriste’s drive and philosophy about creating an intentional community of support through Black Women’s Alliance, we also wanted to dig a little bit deeper about some of the issues that go part and parcel with bucking the status quo, like taking up space and the importance telling your own story. When we sat down to interview her, we knew that it was going to be good, but hot damn… Get ready for some eloquent truth telling and some inspiration to burn our old ways of being down to the ground. Talk to us about how women reclaiming their own stories and telling them themselves is a powerful tool not only for healing, but for change as well. Well, first let’s talk about how that story gets out of our own hands. When the media projects you in a light that is false or unflattering, outdated, or in any way that’s not a true representation of who you are, then someone else is in charge of that story, and you are not. Take the general perception of Black women—in the media we’re overwhelmingly cast as unwed mothers living in ghettos at the poverty line, illiterate, and abusing drugs. By that standard, I should not be who I am. I should not be visible in any circles of power or influence. So reclaiming the story means that I get to tell it myself and I get to say who I am; I get to advocate for myself, express my needs and own my feelings and freedom of movement. I have access to my emotions, and I get to be my own hero. 16
"
If you’re not controlled by the dominant narrative then you’re a wild card. And that’s unsafe."
Society as a whole doesn’t expect me to be here––especially as a leader in the outdoor space. Society doesn’t expect much of me at all, really. So anything I do is political—and that includes simply showing up—because it’s the kind of action that breaks the mold, eliminates stereotypes, changes perceptions. The ability to bear witness to each other in this way is what heals us, connects, and replenishes us. When the narrator changes, that means the story changes too. This is the process of owning oneself and one’s narrative. It plays a huge part in reconnecting us to our power and ability to impact change, to lead from our own vantage points and to redefine what power is as it relates to us. To women in general, to Black women specifically, to individuals, to anyone who wants to declare themselves in the world. Owning our own narrative can be uncomfortable for other people. Often times you get into trouble when you tell your own story, particularly when it goes against the grain of the stereotypical story about you and your community. What’s your experience with this? When we decide to tell our own stories or reclaim them, everything can potentially be at stake. There are countless ways you can “get in trouble” when you’re telling your story. You risk failure, rejection, and alienation because you’re upsetting the status quo, which lots of people are comfortable with. You might have to grieve the loss of the “safe bet” because you’ve chosen to own your narrative. People close to you might not like the change in you. It’s uncomfortable, but that’s growth. It’s all trouble, actually. It’s trouble and danger, and I highly suggest it. 17
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Losing a limb JENNIFER GURECKI | @yogurecki When people die the widows are left behind. Everything becomes their story. This is Dr. Mary Jackson’s story, one year after she lost her husband Nick to an automobile accident. That day changed Mary’s life forever, but in her grief she’s being reconnected with the one thing that Nick cherished the most: the outdoors.
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rieving widows don’t need your platitudes. The Jesus stuff. The feeble attempts to make them feel better by explaining the laws of energy because as Dr. Mary Jackson says, you can’t have sex with a ghost. Widows need your presence. People to bear witness to their loss. But that is easier said than done. Ask Jackson and she’ll tell you that one of the hardest things is for people to exist with someone in their grief because of what it brings up for them. It’s a reminder that life isn’t some inspirational Instagram post. Sometimes it’s going to be shit. “We are so culturally inept at even seeing or facing death. It just confuses us and no one knows what to do with it,” Jackson says, who at the age of 35 was never ready to be a subject matter expert on the topic. “I go to the grocery store and people ask me how I am and I say my husband died this year. Nobody is ready for the real answer. We’re so wrapped up in our own comforts that it’s a shock to hear it.” It didn’t used to always be this way. As a society, we didn’t shy away from death the way we do now until the end of the 19th century. Up until then peo-
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ple died in their homes and the family was responsible for cleaning them, dressing them, burying them. We also don’t see young men dying in troves like they were in World War II or Vietnam. We no longer have a toolkit to deal with death. We don’t even get to wear black anymore to indicate we are mourning.
“It’s more like an amputation, like losing a limb, rather than like an illness. It’s not a sickness that I’m going to heal from. Nothing is going to be the same after,” Jackson says, realizing that it’s this perspective that’s alienated her from the people who were in her life pre-accident.
"We are so culturally inept at even seeing or facing death. It just confuses us and no one knows what to do with it..." “Shit. Give people that year. You may need more than a year. Don’t judge what they say in that year.” And perhaps that’s why you lose a lot more than what you would expect—your person, your friends, family members, the future. Your entire life. When you have a loss of this magnitude everything changes. When the person you lose is your everything, there’s too much to navigate. A widow isn’t going to be sorry for the tears and the blank stares and the emptiness that makes so many people uncomfortable.
Dr. Kimberly Greeson was texting with Jackson when she found out that Nick had died. She’s one of the few friends who still speaks to Jackson almost every day, but she admits that the grief is complicated. “I lost her too. I’m grieving too because I’ve lost Mary.” What Greeson understands is that it’s no longer about you. Friendships are normally reciprocal, the back-and-forth of helping one another. But when a friend looses their partner, that changes. Your problems are not as important or serious. The structure of a friendship isn’t go-
"I learned very quickly that I can't do anything to fix this. I'm now her person. The best thing I can do is listen." ing to work anymore. Not everyone is going to appreciate that new person and they will be confused by it. “They don’t need you to fix it,” Greeson says. “That’s something that I had to learn with Mary. When she calls me, I just need to listen. I learned very quickly that I can’t do anything to fix this. I’m now her person. The best thing I can do is listen.” In addition to Greeson, Jackson has found a community of support from other widows. “We found each other because we were the only ones who understood.” Drawing from her background as an Outward Bound instructor and an AMGA certified guide, Jackson is ready to share her love of the outdoors with this new community. She’s found that while there are ample healing activities based in nature, very few are targeting grief and loss. She’s slowly starting to work on The Widows Walk, a series of trips and adventure activities to bring together the community of widows.
She’s ready to find solace in her community in nature. “The outdoors are a really important piece. The land, more than human nature, has been important in seeking solace or comfort or feeling closer to him and his spirit, especially high up in the alpine where I can get closer to him. I didn’t expect how intense it would be to go out to the desert in Utah where we used to spend so much time together, some of our best times together. Nature definitely has a way to bear truth and feel the truth of the pain. It doesn’t make it any better or worse, it just exists. The pain is so primal and raw, just like nature.” If you’d like to know more about Jackson’s The Widows Walk program, email her at Maryaliciajackson@gmail. com.
comfort in
Here are the rules. The person in the members of the larger community
true friends
center ring can say anything she wants to anyone, anywhere. She can kvetch and complain and whine and moan and curse the heavens and say, “Life is unfair” and “Why me?” That’s the one payoff for being in the center ring. Everyone else can say those things too, but only to people in larger rings.
the person experiencing the bad thing significant others: spouse, parent, sibling, etc.
casual friends, colleagues
dump out
When you are talking to a person in a ring smaller than yours, someone closer to the center of the crisis, the goal is to provide comfort and support. If you want to scream or cry or complain, if you want to tell someone how shocked you are or how icky you feel, or whine about how it reminds you of all the terrible things that have happened to you lately, that’s fine. It’s a perfectly normal response. Just do it to someone in a bigger ring. Adapted from “Want to Support Your Grieving Friend? 5 Truths About What REALLY Helps” by Candyce OssefortRussell.
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P h oto g r a p h y by j e n n i f e r g u r e c k i
//
a rt by a n d r e a s lusa rs ki
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THE PITCH
hoffGoods
An interview with:
haleigh hoff | @hoffgoods
Give us your best elevator pitch. Hoff Goods is a lifestyle apparel and accessories brand that celebrates the laid back lifestyle and locations of the West Coast. You gave the Bay Area a shot as a graphic designer and then returned to Reno, NV to launch Hoff Goods. Tell us about why you made that move. Coming back to Reno was initiated by a change in my personal life. I was in an in-between state and I had just began freelancing full-time, which allowed for me to be flexible. When I decided I wanted to turn my hobby of making products with my designs on them into a full-time endeavor, it made sense to 34
Hoff Goods celebrates the laid back lifestyle of the west coast do it in the city where I have the most connections and support. My network in Reno is incredible, and I owe a lot of my success to the people in this area who support me. It also felt cool to re-enter my hometown with a new business and something to offer to the community. How does your love for the outdoors translate into your designs? My designs are heavily influenced by the outdoors and the places where I live and play. It’s what comes most naturally to me and I try to ride the wave of organic inspiration as much as I can. The first sticker I ever made was the “Nevada Sticker,” which was inspired by being homesick on Nevada Day while sitting in
Oakland and wanting to create a design that I could post to the internet as a shout out for my hometown on its special day. It only took me a few minutes to capture the colors and shapes that I feel represent Nevada. I was surprised with how instinctively that design came to me and so I decided to follow that same style but with other places I considered ‘home’. Within a few weeks I had created an entire selection of designs (that eventually turned into stickers) of Tahoe, Reno, Oakland, California, and Oregon. It’s clear with your Perma Vacay line that you don’t take yourself too seriously over at Hoff Goods, but you did launch a “Here, Queer, Ready for a Beer” line. Why was it important to you to add that to your offerings? I want my brand to feel like an authentic extension of me, my opinions, and my values. Being that I am a queer person it is a part of my life that I wanted to represent in my artwork as well. I got the opportunity to have a pop up market at the Northern Nevada Pride Festival last summer and it felt like the perfect opportunity to create a few more items that were specifically intended for the LGBTQIA community.
What’s been the greatest reward so far? The thing that is the biggest struggle—working alone and doing it all myself—is also the aspect of the business that I find most rewarding. It feels great to be able to see the successes of something I created and executed all on my own. I’m really proud of the work I’ve put into creating this brand and to be able to work for myself as an artist is a constant reward. What’s one piece of advice for creatives who are aspiring entrepreneurs? I’d recommend building a strong and supportive community around you that you can lean on and learn from. Do the thing that you are passionate about doing, and do it hard. Where can people find you? Find Hoff Goods at HoffGoods.co and on Instagram at @hoffgoods. If you’re interested in keeping up with me personally, find me on Instagram at @hayreehoff. Want more of Haleigh Hoff’s designs? Head on over to CoalitionSnow.com to check out the Home Range collab between Haleigh and Coalition Snow.
What’s been surprisingly difficult about your business? I’d have to say that the most difficult aspect of starting this business has been being constantly alone and learning how to do it all myself. I underestimated how many decisions I’d have to make on a daily basis. Being decisive and confident in my choices is one of my biggest struggles.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
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whose playground? An interview with:
james savage and Antony Koine Makumi | @savagewilderness
There’s a new type of tourism happening in East Africa, and it has nothing to do with Westerners galavanting around the wide open savannah in search of an elusive jaguar or rhino. The Savage family (yes, that’s really their last name, and no, we cannot make this up) has been a pioneer in curating outdoor adventures in Kenya since 1990. They got their start leading expeditions up Mount Kenya, the second-highest peak on the continent of Africa, and then became the first to offer commercial whitewater rafting trips. Now they’ve got something new up their sleeve: creating affordable, accessible outdoor activities tailored to the growing middle class of Kenyans. After our Editor Jennifer Gurecki cycled across the continent of Africa with James Savage, the Managing Director of Savage Wilderness Safaris, in the spring of 2018, we wanted to find out more about the role they are playing in shifting the perception that the outdoors is a “mzungu” playground. And we looped in Antony Koine Makumi, Sales & Marketing Manager of Savage, to gain his perspective as a African who’s rallying for his people to get outside and explore more. James, let’s get into the origin story of Savage Wilderness Safaris. Why and how did your father Mark first start exploring the rivers in Kenya? He was a bush pilot and used to fly down to Galana Ranch on the banks of the Athi River, down towards Malindi. On one flight back to Nairobi the veterinarians, who he used to fly down to the ranch, wanted to do a game flight back. So he took the doors off the aircraft and flew low, following the Athi River. When doing this he saw a lot of water and rapids on the river. That night when back in Nairobi, he watched a documentary on rafting the Grand Canyon. It was then he realized that rafting in Kenya was a possibility. Historically, tourism in Africa has revolved around foreigners going on safari and expats getting out of the city. But we’re seeing a big push across
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Africa to cater to the emerging middle class for a number of reasons: They are the fastest growing demographic on the continent, they are critical to the economy, and they have enough clout to demand that they no longer be rendered invisible in their own countries. James, what role is Savage Wilderness Safaris playing in the rather seismic shift we’re seeing in creating relevant, accessible outdoor inspired adventures for locals? The first main thing that we as a company are doing is training Kenyans and giving them the opportunity to get international qualifications so that they can be the most qualified, trained guides in East Africa. From the perspective of our customers, we are keeping prices low and tailoring the activities to attract local Kenyans. We’re seeing a lot of Kenyans (from all classes) coming out to see their country and try the adventure activities we offer. With increased access to social media and the internet, what is available in Kenya and what others are doing in their leisure time is at people’s finger tips. It’s a bit like “keeping up with the Joneses.” Kenyans want to go out have fun and get that selfie too.
challenging, and a fun social activity. There is a negative mentality that the outdoors is a ‘mzungu’ playground (a white man thing). It is also believed to be an expensive venture, which it clearly is not. And most people would prefer visiting a resort with wi-fi, cable TV, a big bed, buffet meals, and a swimming pool. We could use more sensitization to curb these norms and get more people on their bikes, hiking over weekends, or even going for a game drive. Kenya is blessed and it’s a pity we don’t take the initiative to explore what we have. What can be done to shift tourism in Kenya from catering to foreigners to locals? More energy could be focused on the local market with customized packages affordable to locals, unlike what we have right now. Too many people think, “Why make the shift? Kenya receives an an-
Antony, why do you think more Kenyans haven’t embraced recreating in the outdoors? A big percentage of the Kenyan population spends most of their free time in a non-active environment. A proper weekend for a Kenyan means nyama choma (grilled meats) and beers with friends. It would be good to have a change to this. More outdoor participation among Kenyans is bound to promote the general health of the nation. Outdoor sports and recreational activities can be relaxing, 39
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Photography and words:
JENNIFER GURECKI | @yogurecki Artwork:
ANDREA SLUSARSKI | @drawingfromnature LAUREN BELLO OKERMAN | @folklaurstudio It should come as no surprise after sifting through the pages of Sisu Magazine that our Editor, Jennifer Gurecki, has long called Kenya her second home. She first visited in 2004 to conduct research for her master’s degree and was inspired by the sheer grit and perseverance of the women she encountered. Together they co-created the social enterprise Zawadisha, a sort of Rent-A-Center for renewable energy and water products, which today is run by an all female, all Kenyan team. Her love of the outdoors continued while she traveled and worked in Kenya, allowing her to make friends with the team at Savage Wilderness Safaris. She has joined them on white water rafting trips down the Tana River, summited Mt. Kenya and snowboarded the Lewis Glacier, and most recently cycled across Africa from Nairobi, Kenya to Cape Town, South Africa (where all of the photos in the following pages were taken). In between all of this she pursued—and subsequently dropped out of—a PhD program in Sustainability at Prescott College, continuing her research in Kenya around entrepreneurial ecosystems. The following piece was adapted from one of her papers, giving her great joy in knowing that three years of doctoral level research (and subsequent student loans) weren’t fully wasted. 42
There’s no dearth of travel guides for Africa, whether you’re seeking out gorillas in Rwanda, catching waves in Senegal, or summiting Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Inside you’ll find everything you need to prepare for your trip. While making sure you’ve got the currency exchange on lock down and a phone that is ready for a SIM card switch, there’s one thing that isn’t spoken about enough when traveling through this part of the world: Packing a new perspective, particularly when you find yourself exploring the national parks and game reserves that abound across the continent. To this day there is a prevailing narrative that portrays these areas, and the rural landscape of Africa as a whole, as a timeless wilderness. Wilderness, however, is a concept created by modern civilization that requires nature to be separate from people. Its designation results in maps, fences, gates, and boundaries, all designed to keep some people in and some people out. But landscapes across Africa have co-evolved with humans. Reducing these places to wilderness, free of the imprint of people, erases the long history and culture of those who have called it home for thousands of years.
The concept of cultural landscapes can be political in nature, in particular when applied to landscapes with an indigenous presence, which for the most part have been rendered invisible. Take for example the creation of Serengeti National Park, the first official national park in East Africa designated by the British. The people who were kept out were the Maasai, a tribe that inhabited modern-day Tanzania and Kenya for thousands of years. As the British were forming the parks in an effort to conserve land and wildlife, they were cultivating their own ideal of wilderness. It was more nature production, not nature protection. What these early conservationists did not realize is that they were not dealing with wilderness; rather, it was a cultural landscape in which the land and the people were intertwined. The belief that these regions of Africa were pristine and empty wilderness was a mythical creation of the British. It was only made possible by relocating thousands of Africans and denying them (while ironically taking for themselves) human agency in shaping the landscape. By systematically removing the local people from their land, they were creating a “nature” that catered to the Western gaze. It was commonly believed then, as it is now, that the Maasai existed within a primitive and undeveloped form of social order. The work of Garrett Hardin in his 1968 publication The Tragedy of the Commons only furthered this perception. In it he argued that those who rely heavily on ecological systems to support their livelihoods were not able to engage in self-governance that would result in rules and norms to prevent the overuse of the shared pastures where they allowed their animals to graze. He could not have been more incorrect. The Maasai, along with most pastoralists across the continent, have always engaged in selfgovernance, from deciding upon harvesting strategies, to the obligations of participants, to how rules will be monitored and sanctioned, and how conflicts would be resolved. The Maasai had influenced the ecology of the Serengeti through thousands of years of human agency. Agency is power, and that power over the land threatened the British. The representation of the Maasai as primitive and destructive was necessary in
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get it together
¢
financial cents Hsin-cheng Kuo | Hsin-Cheng.Kuo@nm.com
When we plan an expedition to a new location, whether it’s a backpacking trip or a ski tour, most of us pick up a map first. Too bad we don’t take the same care in planning for our financial health. Having a financial plan is like building a map to lead you on the trail to financial well-being. Hsincheng Kuo is a financial planner based in Portland, Oregon who knows a thing or two about making your money be a source of joy rather than a pain point. Tell us a little bit about your day job. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Being a financial advisor, I am often asked why I would want to put myself through this in a male dominated industry. The professional answer is that I have a passion for helping members of our community make better financial decisions. However, the personal answer is that I am a very stubborn person and I want to make a shift in the community to break the stereotypical image of an Asian woman. In the best parts of my day to day work, I get to help answer questions anywhere from, “How much money should I have in cash in case of emergency?” to “I want to retire next year. What do I do?” However, not every day I get to play a financial planning super hero. Often people think I am just another heartless salesperson pushing mutual funds and insurance products. We live in a society where people are very well trained by the media to consume for immediate gratification. People don’t want to plan. People don’t want to save and prioritize.
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People want the magical silver bullet. I spend a significant portion of my time earning the trust of people who are inherently suspicious of anyone working in my field. I feel that I share a similar dilemma with an honest auto mechanic who must break through the inherent mistrust of the average consumer and build the relationship over time and through results. You have an incredible story about how you fell in love with numbers. How did your mother instill this in you from a very early age? I grew up in a very traditional Taiwanese family where the occupations approved of by my parents were lawyers, engineers, doctors, and accountants. (My parents are still telling themselves I am an accountant so they have a better story when chatting with neighbors.) My mom is a homemaker. She day traded on the side to earn extra cash since my dad started his own business in construction. Back in the 90s, television stations broadcasted stock market performance after the news at noon. My mom would put me in front of the TV while she cooked lunch for the
Money—or lack thereof—can cause people tremendous stress. Talk to us about financial health and why it’s important. One of the things I have heard most often when discussing financial goals with people is, “I don’t want to be stressed about money anymore.” A friend shared with me once that she had to check her online banking constantly to make sure she left enough cash in the checking account to avoid an overdraft charge and pay all her bills on time to avoid late fees. She started to develop anxiety and obsessively checked her phone for notifications. We usually don’t notice our financial health until we become unhealthy financially. It is similar to the way many people only start exercising or dieting because of significant life events. Financial planning helps you treat the symptoms by finding the root cause of the conditions. A good financial advisor helps you develop good habits and not make the big mistakes because sometimes we only get to make the decision once. Where can we start if we’re ready to get our finances in shape? There are three things we recommend to help get people started: First, have a cash reserve in a savings account that could cover at least three months of your living expenses. Second, spend no more than what you take home. Lastly, discuss risk management strategies with professionals to protect your health, income, and the people you love.
Let’s get beyond basic for those of us who are looking to level up. What are some of the tangible ways that people can find financial freedom? I would ask what financial freedom means to you. The bottom line is everything is a trade-off. We could all retire soon if we only needed $20 a day to live on for the rest of our lives. To achieve financial freedom, I would have a honest conversation with myself to find out what the most important things in life are. What do you want in life? What are your non-negotiables? Then, talk to a professional planner, such as my team, to quantify what it takes to get there and put together an action plan. When you’re not drooling over spreadsheets, what do you do to stay balanced and healthy? I love doing spreadsheets. In addition, I am a yoga practitioner. I practice hatha and alignment yoga. Traveling is also huge for me. I enjoy going to new places and immersing myself in culture and history. My life goal is to go to every country in the world. In order to achieve that goal, I have made saving to visit a new country every year part of my own financial plan. Financial planning can be for fun things that nurture your soul. It’s not just for adulting.
If you made it to the end of this article, chances are that you are interested in getting yourself into better financial health. Hsin-cheng is offering a complimentary consultation and a comprehensive financial plan with no charge to anyone who contacts her referencing Sisu Magazine. She’s an Insurance Agent at The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company that’s headquartered in Milwaukee, WI. You can find her at Hsin-Cheng.Kuo@nm.com. (And no, this is not a sponsored post.)
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family. She would tell me to watch out for a few stock tickers. When I saw a green triangle pointing up, I had to tell her the number right next to it. When I saw a red triangle pointing down, I had to tell her the number right next to it. I saw that as a game so I started calling out numbers like a stock broker on the floor. After a while, I found my mom sometimes would be happy in the morning, sad in the afternoon, or maybe crying during the night. When I was old enough, I realized her emotions were tied to the stock market and riding that roller coaster. I always wondered if there would be someone who could help my mom so she wouldn’t be sad all the time.
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liv cycling Liv-Cycling.com She saw something the rest of them didn’t. You. That’s why Liv founder Bonnie Tu set out to make the very best bikes for women. Frames that fit our bodies. Components that respond to our strength. And designs that defy stereotype. Check out Liv’s entire collection on their website and get excited for a Sisu + Coalition Snow + Liv Cycling collaboration this summer.
Jitterbug Art JIitterBugArt.com If you love Latasha Dunston’s Stop Saying Sorry print featured in this issue, you’ll love the rest of her Self Serving Collection. From plant care, to mindfulness, to real food, she’ll inspire you to take care of yourself for not just 30 days, but every damn day of the year.
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mungo SisuMagazine.com Inspired by the African landscape and heritage, the Itawuli is more than a towel. It’s a keepsake. Itawuli translates to towel in the Bantu language of Xhosa, and the striped detail that runs through the middle of the Itawuli makes reference to traditional woolen Basotho Blankets. Trust us, once you lay eyes on this beautifully crafted bath and beach towel, you’ll never know how you lived without it. Shop the collection on our website.
JUICY BITS Wherever you love to listen to podcasts Juicy Bits is a bi-weekly podcast produced by Coalition Snow that takes the conversations we start on the chairlift and the trail to the next level. Hosted by our Editor In Chief Jennifer Gurecki, and Coalition Snow Ambassador Jillian Raymond, it’s one of those podcasts that will make you laugh, cry, and maybe pee your pants a little bit. #juicethepatriarchy
Asking Nicely CoalitionSnow.com
What’s the one piece of equipment our Editor Jennifer Gurecki couldn’t live without on her cycling trip across Africa? Her Asking Nicely tee, obviously. She wore it nearly every day because if you’ve got both hands on the bars, you’ve got to make a statement somegauron
how. Shop the entire Asking Nicely collection on our website. Perfect for
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the road, trails, or that holiday dinner.
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thaT's what he said ANDREW PRIDGEN | @andrewjpridgen
mansplaining mansplained /ˈmanspleɪnɪŋ/
I figured out which modern artists to like based on hours of Netflix research. I drive a Tesla and you know this without ever having to ride in a car with me. I say things like, “This Patagonia vest warms me on the outside and on the inside” and then I list off all the socially conscious things that Yvon has done. I’ve got gold club status. I’ll mention that in line at the ter...and you prob- minal gate loud enough for at ably don’t read the least a dozen people to hear me. I am in an elevator chorNew Yorker. tling as I thumb through pictures of a bunch of my bros and the last time we got together in Austin. If you look me up on LinkedIn you will see that among my many, many professional achievements—the only ones you really need to know about are how devoted a husband and proud a father I am. You like these socks? Yeah, they draw attention. Let me tell you about where I got them.
/ˈmanˈspleɪnd/
only much, much longer, and maybe with something I think is a joke at the end. Example: “It’s not like Trump, his family, and his org have EVER been anything but self-dealing burn-it-down mastizations (<-- I’ll pronounce that like ‘masturbations’ with a ‘z’) of our worst collective self-image. But it was never going to be normal. Just like Chuck Todd’s goatee could never fix his face.” While we’re at the bar getting to know each other, I’ll tie something to someone famous or wealthy who is obscure enough so you probably won’t know them. They might not even exist: “I’m moving on from Tequila to Mezcal but not the kind they have here. I know a guy. He was the distiller who started that one with Gerber and Clooney? You ever had that? Casamigos, or as he used to say, ‘house of ‘Salud.’...It means, billionaire friends.’”
“To your health or just… health.”
For the past 27 months I’ve started all my dates by saying that in these confusing times, passion is a luxury and relationships are the result of becoming the person our parents fucked us up to be. That one plays all day. Fairways and greens.
I will always hold up a glass and say ‘Salud.’ Then I will turn and tell you it means, “To your health or just… health.”
Wanna talk podcasts? I’m going to pretend the ones I just read about in the New Yorker are the same ones that I listen to regularly. You probably haven’t heard of any of them and you probably don’t read the New Yorker.
I just started listening to Mitski and she definitely proves that longing is the most underrated emotion. It is, don’t you think?
I was recently in Asheville and had a piece of fried chicken shaped like a West Highland Terrier. If you followed me, you’d know this. When we’re talking, I may bother once in awhile to listen to you and repeat the same thing back,
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So you know I’m a good one and mostly woke, I’ll mention gaslighting and what it does while I’m gaslighting you into a conversation about donor-advised funds. I’ll start every fourth sentence with the word “granted” and then contradict myself and then fake apologize for it.
Let me tell you about the job I’m leaving in June to go do my own startup. “The startup,” you ask? (You didn’t.) It’s kind of like a monthly subscription box for people with prosthetics, so they can get that fresh look. Also, I’m doing it for the troops. See, I had this buddy in high school…
Totally, no, I totally get more than three-quarters hard when I’m wearing a condom. Just kidding, I don’t wear condoms. They make my throat swell up.
“The startup,” you ask? (You didn’t.)
Coachella? Oh fuck yes. No on the fanny pack this year. Jackson Hole? Absolutely. I can slay Corbet’s all day. Hucked it a time or two with Chelsea Clinton’s husband. (We worked at the same hedge fund before I grew a conscience. He grew a goatee.) Have I told you I know one of the producers on High Maintenance and one of the vignettes was based on a time I was back in Brooklyn and we were out— stoned—looking for the best artisanal ice cream and we saw Andy Samberg and his wife what’s-her-name Newsom? And she’s a genius musician, and nothing happened, but we kept running across the same lost dog and I said, “maybe we’re the ones who are lost” and supposedly that line was in but got cut from the show. You have an HBO login, right?
Co a fu che ck lla ye ? O s. h
Yeah, that’s my vape pen. Yeah, that’s my money clip. Yeah that’s my gold-tooth grill that I think is funny. Want to try it on? Yeah, I’ve heard of that place, it’s my spot. Sometimes they have DJs in there, like legit ones, or ones on the come-up who do sets there. It’s a little played now, smelly vintage furniture, a brick wall and Brixton-wearing poseur bros with sleeve tats and forearm burns. Yeah, karaoke on Saturday before noon and Africa used to be my jam, but since Weezer got ahold of it...it’s been more an Against All Odds version, but I re-imagine it so it sounds like if Minor Threat did it.
Do you know a good tattoo artist in Chicago? Because I’ve got a bachelorette—yeah, a bachelorette—there in a month. She’s queer and an ex and I’m friends with most of my exes. Tell me about your exes so I can make fun of them in a way that seems casual and not at all insecure or condescending. Let me tell you that Bruce Willis was my age when he guest-starred on Friends. And he still had it. His hair anyway, no? I’m thinking of a travel app called Travelina. The .io is available. I have an angel investor. It shows safe spots for women who are abroad in real time as well as trusted contacts in every town. I want to make sure you know all about the feelings I have re: Sufjan post-Call Me By Your Name and also why I’m back to drinking just pilsners.
’ve I nd hat a t ic st gifs me. as pe . co f is do ow b n me u h b r Ai t so w yo go sho
I’m chartering a flight to Hana. Yeah, the landing strip George Harrison used to use. You haven’t had fresh banana bread till you’ve had it after a morning riding a perfect left. My favorite Tabata guy is there. We can use his guest house. Airbnb is fascist and I’ve got some dope .gifs that show you how come. I’ve been on this no-sex journey along with Keto but I’m thinking of ditching both. I’ll tell you about it on the way.
You down?