I’m a person who is generally exhausted, but I don’t often find myself able to have access to energy drinks that don’t have mountains of sugar that will have the opposite effect it’s supposed to. When I’m actually able to get a boost without it dragging me down, it feels like being able to run through fresh cut grass after trying to cross the same distance wading through an eternally extending kiddie pool. Not only do I get where I’m trying to go, but the journey itself doesn’t have to be taxing anymore—I get to spend more time actually enjoying the routes I take to get there.

As a type 2 diabetic, it is essential for me to be mindful about what I’m putting in my body. Most ingredient labels end up looking like flashing warning signs for me—beverages that actually focus on making changes to help keep my body going and happy for longer than the next four hours are always going to be priorities for me.

I lived in the Pacific Northwest for a long time, and had a number of friends who made jewelry as personal expressions of art. I was able to try out an absolutely killer pair of studs that made me feel like I could take on the world (until I tried to put my headphones on with them in). Being able to provide the feedback that looking awesome while also feeling like I was being stabbed because of the length of the earring through my earlobe made it difficult to want to wear them consistently helped them hone their products into more of what their target audience were likely looking for (daily wear with comfort AND aesthetics in mind).