Hey there, internet explorers. It’s me, Justina. I was born in Hong Kong, grew up between Hong Kong and Toronto, moved back to Hong Kong in 2014, spent a couple of years in Shanghai, and now live in Singapore.
Today I work for an investment firm, where I grow our brand and team, keep our office running, and evaluate investments. The path I took to get here has been twisty and turny and lots of fun (I even wrote a whole blog post about it!).
Here’s some stuff I did along the way, more or less chronologically:
- Was a band nerd (contemplated minoring in music)
- Had a ton of fun in the Arts & Science Program at McMaster University
- TA’ed for writing and comparative literature classes during undergrad
- Spent a few summers playing way too much frisbee
- Digitized archival material at the university library
- Interned at a couple of cartoon studios in Toronto
- Wrote scripts for children’s television
- Did odd jobs, like putting contact lenses in people’s eyes on the set of a sci-fi TV show
- Six very fun years at ExpressVPN in Hong Kong
- Edited words for an art museum
- Wrote content for an insurance broker
- Followed my curiosity to Shanghai to learn Chinese and experience mainland China for two years
- Now: chief of staff at an investment firm in Singapore
And here are some breadcrumbs I’ve left behind:
- Writing: essays about the boyfriend sweater curse, food memories, and a pair of lion statues in Hong Kong
- Comics: I sometimes make up characters, like the Underwear Tiger (a tiger with underwear on his head) and Peggy Pointer (she has fingers for arms and only does stuff that starts with “P”)
- Knitting and sewing: check out my Ravelry; at one point, I’d hand-made most of my wardrobe
- Songs: my favorite thing is singing with my sisters
- Videos: exploring an abandoned green train in a field in Shanghai, making a Hong Kong shop cat go viral (press coverage), and… ask me about my popsicle review videos!
Fun facts:
- I have two sisters: an identical twin, who lives in San Francisco, and a younger sister, who lives in Hong Kong.
- I’m obsessed with the NBA. My secret dream is to be one of those people that mops sweat off the hardwood at the Blender (aka the Smoothie King Center).
- My oldest possession is my acoustic guitar, which I bought in 2004 with the $300 I saved from tutoring. I got it from Steve’s Music in Toronto. My heart sank when I realized I hadn’t accounted for the GST and PST, but the very awesome sales guy winked and waived the tax.
- I have a lazy eye, imperceptible to the untrained eye. I have no stereoscopic vision or depth perception. I can’t drive a car, and I’m terrible at racquet sports because my brain can’t connect the ball to the racquet. I missed many discs that first year I played frisbee.
- I think the best way to get around any city is by bicycle!
justina forever 