My Blog

End of the Year Reflection

by | December 2, 2024 | Mindset, My Stories | 0 Comments

END OF THE YEAR REFLECTION As this year comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on a journey filled with challenges, growth, learning, and transformation—both personally and professionally. This year has been a testament to the importance of balance, purpose, and...
Read More

Random Thoughts

by | November 4, 2024 | Mindset | 0 Comments

RANDOM THOUGHTS My mind is struggling to form singular, cohesive thoughts right now, so this blog will be another collection of different half-baked ideas and questions I've been reflecting on and trying to sort out lately. Storytelling Theater. We have officially...
Read More

How Do You Man UP? Seven Ways to Man UP!

by | October 2, 2024 | Mental Health, Mindset, Self-Improvement | 0 Comments

HOW DO YOU MAN UP? SEVEN WAYS TO MAN UP! This blog is inspired by a conversation I had with one of my readers, a male immigrant who has lived in the U.S. for decades. He asked during our discussion, “How do you actually man up?” This blog is my attempt to answer that...
Read More

Storytelling Theater for Healing

by | September 6, 2024 | Mental Health | 0 Comments

STORYTELLING THEATER FOR HEALING   In August, we delivered seven Storytelling Theater’s Red Doors performances/workshops. Since early this year, I have been mentioning Storytelling Theater and Red Doors. Some of you/my readers might still be wondering what...
Read More

Compassion/Empathy

by | August 6, 2024 | Mental Health, Mindset | 0 Comments

COMPASSION/EMPATHY   Back in February, through the just keep living foundation, I facilitated a mental wellness workshop at Venice High School in Los Angeles. Using blank kites, I asked the students to draw things on them that gave them joy and hope. After...
Read More

Home Renovation and Mental Health

by | July 3, 2024 | Mental Health, Mindset, My Stories | 0 Comments

HOME RENOVATION & MENTAL HEALTH I’ve entered a whole new phase of “adulting.” It’s called home renovation. This year, due to various semi-urgent reasons, I started renovating my place. I have years of work experience in both residential and commercial...
Read More

Stress Management

by | June 9, 2024 | Mental Health, Mindset | 0 Comments

STRESS MANAGEMENT Stress is a word, a feeling, and an experience that I have been hearing a lot about. Lately, I have to admit I’ve noticed that my stress level has skyrocketed. Back in March, I wrote a blog titled “Why Am I So Stressed?” about the internalized...
Read More

Happy Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month

by | May 13, 2024 | Diversity and Inclusion | 0 Comments

Happy Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month   May marks the convergence of two significant observances in the United States: Asian Pacific American Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month. This intersection presents a...
Read More

Trauma-Informed Care

by | April 1, 2024 | Mental Health, Trauma Series | 0 Comments

Trauma-Informed Approach  The last time I ran a team was six years ago. This year, I have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to produce and direct the Storytelling Theater for Healing and Social Justice and work with a team of eight amazing individuals. They consist...
Read More

Storytelling Theater Ensemble

by | March 8, 2024 | Uncategorized | 0 Comments

Andrew Nishimoto Andrew Nishimoto is a dedicated family man with a passion for coaching soccer and making a positive impact. Andrew finds joy in both his personal and professional life with his high school sweetheart and wife of 16 years by his side, along with his...
Read More

Why Am I So Stressed?

by | March 8, 2024 | Mental Health, Mindset, Self-Improvement, Travels and Adventures | 0 Comments

WHY AM I SO STRESSED?   One of the benefits of solo traveling internationally is the ample time to dive into my own thoughts and deeply reflect on my beliefs, my emotions, and my life. The trip to Southeast Asia in January provided me with this unique...
Read More

Anxiety Episode Out From Nowhere

by | February 10, 2024 | Mental Health, Mindset, Self-Improvement, Travels and Adventures | 0 Comments

ANXIETY EPISODE WHILE TRAVELING IN VIETNAM Part 1 I was very blessed to have the opportunity to spend a big chunk of January in Vietnam and Cambodia. Instead of writing about Vietnamese and Cambodian foods and cultures (there are already tons of these blogs out...
Read More

Japan – The Hidden Rules, Food, Cultures

by | December 8, 2023 | Travels and Adventures | 0 Comments

I had the opportunity to spend about two weeks in Japan last month. I was in and out of Tokyo for six days, in Okinawa for four days, and in Kyoto/Osaka for four days. Japanese culture has had a significant influence on my life. Since I was a young lad, I’ve studied...
Read More

Men and Mental Health

by | December 8, 2023 | Mental Health, Mindset | 0 Comments

“It takes more courage to reveal insecurities than to hide them, more strength to relate to people than to dominate them, more 'manhood' to abide by thought-out principles rather than blind reflex. Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles and an immature...
Read More

Losing Something Precious

by | October 7, 2023 | Mental Health, Mindset, My Stories | 0 Comments

LOSING SOMETHING PRECIOUS  "Sometimes we have to lose something precious not necessarily to gain something priceless; sometimes, just losing is priceless." - Shahid Hussain Raja September was a great, interesting, and turbulent month. A lot of things happened as well...
Read More

Avoidance

by | September 9, 2023 | Mental Health, Mindset, Self-Improvement | 0 Comments

AVOIDANCE  Lately, the word “avoidance” has been popping into my life to the point that I can no longer afford to avoid addressing avoidance. It all started when my friend recommended a podcast interview with Dr. Luana Marques by Mel Robbins. This is what Dr. Marques...
Read More

Monkey Mind

by | July 29, 2023 | Mental Health, Mindset, Self-Improvement | 0 Comments

“It takes more courage to reveal insecurities than to hide them, more strength to relate to people than to dominate them, more 'manhood' to abide by thought-out principles rather than blind reflex. Toughness is in the soul and spirit, not in muscles and an immature...
Read More

Challenge of Unwinding

by | July 7, 2023 | Mental Health, Mindset, Self-Improvement | 0 Comments

“I remember my grandfather telling me how each of us must live with a full measure of loneliness that is inescapable, and we must not destroy ourselves with our passion to escape the aloneness.” ​— Jim Harrison For the past several years, I have been fortunate enough...
Read More

Numbness

by | June 4, 2023 | Mental Health, Mindset | 0 Comments

“I'm tired of being what you want me to beFeeling so faithless, lost under the surfaceDon't know what you're expecting of mePut under the pressure of walking in your shoes… … Can't you see that you're smothering meHolding too tightly, afraid to lose control?'Cause...
Read More

Murphy’s Law

by | May 5, 2023 | Mental Health, Mindset, My Stories | 0 Comments

"Murphy's Law"  “You are having a good morning. You are driving to your next appointment and you are ahead of schedule, and you drive swiftly through all of the green lights. A few days later, you are having a stressful day, you are running behind, and you literally...
Read More

Why, Anxiety?

, ,

Why, Anxiety?   When I was working with my therapist, we were tackling my depression most of the time. After nine years of healing from depression, I’m feeling pretty good about balancing my life and managing my depression. For the longest time, I thought I...

read more

My Love Letter to My Mom

,

My Love Letter to My Mom   Last July marked the 5th anniversary of my mother’s passing from ovarian cancer. After all of these years, I have not fully and/or properly mourned her death. There is this lingering feeling like something is missing and there is a void...

read more

Half Dome vs. Trolltunga

,

Trolltunga vs. Half Dome I had the privilege of hiking Trolltunga in Norway last week. With all of the fjords, Trolltunga is magnificent and breathtaking. It’s probably one of the most beautiful hikes I’ve ever done. The last great hike I did was Half Dome at Yosemite...

read more

The Month

Last month, we celebrated the Asian Pacific Heritage Month as well as the Mental Health Awareness Month. As a nation, we have designated February as Black History Month, June as Pride Month, the National Hispanic Heritage Month is scheduled from Sept. 15th to Oct....

read more

AAPI Month – Authorized

This blog is written by Natalie Lortz, a guest blogger of CoffeeWithJR.  There are, no doubt, benefits to having an excuse to host Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) centered events and partake in the beauty of local communities. The undeniable sense of pride that...

read more

Our Stories

,

OUR STORIES  As part of the new documentary film project that NamQuyen (Q) Le and I are working on, Rachel, our Director of Photography, and I flew to Louisville, Kentucky in early April to do some scouting and preliminary filming and interviewing. (Detail info of the...

read more

Improve Your Mental Health With These Unique Ideas

Mental health is just as important as physical health. It’s a growing problem that affects an increasing number of people every year. There are many causes for mental health conditions, including genetic and environmental factors. Moreover, mental illnesses can range...

read more

Monthly CoffeeWithJR

Join over 3,000 subscribers and sign up for my free monthly email newsletter and blog, where I share my mental health journey as an immigrant, travel stories, and other exciting projects!

Stay In Touch

7 + 3 =

Copyright © 2024 Divi. All Rights Reserved.