Mar 14, 20215 min read

Intro - Get to know me!

Updated: Apr 24, 2023

Hey there! If you are reading this post you are interested enough to find out a little more about me, thank you for that! I decided to do a list of the top 10 facts I think you should know abut me, because no one needs a long essay about someone. Let me dive in:

1. I was born and raised in Mexico

I am originally from Mexico, so my first language is Spanish but I am fully bilingual. I started learning English when I was in pre-school. I have also had the opportunity to spend a lot of time in the United States for family holidays and as I got a little older, summer camps, dance workshops and competitions. I now live in Birmingham, UK where I finished my undergraduate and masters degrees.

2. My first job was magazine sales rep.

Okay, so it wasn’t an “official” job but I was a kid at the time. My uncle started a really cool puzzles magazine called "Reborujos" and he offered me a commission for every issue I sold. I remember getting ready by loading my backpack with magazines, putting on my denim hat and going door-to-door in my neighbourhood offering them. I took the magazines with me to school and tried to sell them to the other kids and teachers (I have to admit that was not the most effective approach), and even was cheeky enough to try to sell them to my parents (who only fell for it probably once). But I tried! Eventually, I gave up my role, but for an eight-year-old it was a great introduction to work!

3. I have had several entrepreneurial ventures

As I mentioned before, my first job was magazine sales rep at age eight. Since then, my entrepreneurial journey has changed a few times. I offered pet sitting, house sitting and garden de-weeding services. I sold handmade bookmarks, bracelets, and scrunchies. I offered to print homework assignments from classmates, rented out my lab coat for those who forgot theirs… you get the picture.

However, my most successful business venture was Totia Rince, meaning dance (Totia) in Nahúatl, a Mexican dialect, and (Rince) in Irish. I acted as the “middle-man” in the sales of second hand Irish dance dresses particularly for Mexican dancers. This started during my first years of university with me helping a friend sell her dress and she offering to give me a commission. I then thought this could be a good market, so I found dresses for buyers and found buyers for sellers. I took the dresses to the right person between countries when I travelled for competition and workshops, which was very often, until I moved to the UK to finish my education, but I really enjoyed it!

4. I LOVE to dance

I have always loved to dance. I started taking ballet lessons when I was four years old. Since then I have also taken jazz, tap, hip hop, Latin rhythms, and Irish dancing lessons. And I love them all. While I am not claiming I am proficient in all of these styles (some I only trained in for a few months), I do appreciate all of those and I try to teach myself little pieces of choreography from videos on YouTube! My specialty is Irish dancing; without it my life would be COMPLETELY different! I can’t imagine my life without dance (and specifically Irish dance!)

5. I consider myself a master traveller

I have been lucky enough to have parents who always preferred experiences and holidays to material things, which meant I have travelled a lot since childhood. We would have one family holiday every summer, and when my brother and I were old enough, we were sent to summer camp in the United States. This changed a little when I got into Irish dancing and instead of holidays I was going to workshops and competitions. The cost of these became higher the more I progressed in my dancing, leaving me to start travelling by myself. At seventeen years old I was on a plane to Ireland on my own and loved every second. I now know a lot of travel tips and I’m rarely caught unprepared! Top tip: always pack a snack for the airport!

6. I was a cheerleader in university and made it to a BBC broadcast because of it

My first year in England, I joined the cheerleading society of Birmingham City University, and became a Tiger. I had never cheered before but wanted to make friends and do something dance related. I went to the try outs and actually made the competitive Pom team! Unfortunately, since I had already committed to my Irish dance team before that, and the training days were the same, I couldn’t compete, but I did get some amazing performance opportunities. BCU Tigers were invited to perform in the Children in Need BBC programme of 2017 and I made the team of performers! It was a great experience and I felt like a celebrity when my friend Georgi sent me a video of his TV and I was in it! You can find the whole video below, and the BCU Tigers at the 1 minute 17 seconds mark!

7. I love to read

I consider a trip to the bookstore a great day out. I love to get lost in a book and my TBR list is longer than I care to admit. My favourite genres are usually historical fiction and mystery novels, and I particularly enjoy books that let me explore a culture or country I am not familiar with; I find stories an incredible way to learn. When the pandemic started in March 2020, I suddenly had more free time than usual, so I decided to start counting the books I could read until the end of the year. The answer was 25. I wish I could remember how many books I read between January and March 2020 so I could have a yearly total (it would only be two or maybe three more), but 25 is a nice round number so I'll keep that!

8. I collect stamps

My mom started collecting stamps when she was younger and she eventually got me into it by showing me her multiple albums filled with worldwide stamps and other crafty projects she made with duplicate stamps. The exciting part is that her mom, my grandma, used to collect stamps as well and she was the one that got my mom interested in it. While digging through her collection, my mom found out that her grandma, my great-grandma, used to collect them too! I love that this is a long standing family hobby!

9. I have three cats

There is not much to say about my cats other than they are awesome, I love them and miss them like crazy! They actually live with my parents back in Mexico, so I miss them when I am in England. I will admit having had FaceTime calls with them… don’t judge me. The fun fact about these cats is that we never really decided to get them. A stray cat just decided to give birth in our garden, they liked the environment and became house cats. Two of our cats have been born in our house, and one of them gave birth there! So obviously, they are a part of our family and we love them very much!