There and back again — a hiatus nutshell

Próximamente hago la traducción a castellano — me salió escribir esto en inglés primero, ni idea, pero justamente el punto es volver a publicar así no más :)

Hello, corionautas! Nothing like ripping off LOTR to get us started after two years of not posting consistently.

Image by Andres Iga via Unsplash

I say "there and back again" because in this long hiatus I left Argentina and am now, well, back again. Alas, I lack the energy to extensively detail all my adventures of the past two years with maps and songs in italics. Basically, I moved to New York City — specifically Ridgewood, Queens — in August 2019 and returned a couple of weeks ago with a new tattoo, piercing and a master's degree.

I haven't written here for several reasons. One, I fell into the trap of how capitalism has made us frame our hobbies...how's that for starters? I love how the Instagram page looks (@coriolismo) but I definitely felt like I had to maintain a pretty curated page with consistent posts for...something. To be good at this? To please some sort of algorithm? But also, I wasn't planning on making a living out of blogging, so being concerned about that made no sense at all. Who would sponsor this blog? Thus, writing here just fell by the wayside as I tried to complete an intense MA programme without burning out and make myself at home in NYC. I'm sad that I wasn't able to document how I did, in fact, end up feeling like Ridgewood was my special little corner — maybe later.

The point is, I'm not falling for that anymore. Curation and algorithms be damned.

Then the pandemic hit. I thought of writing again...and caught covid-19. Wow. Recovered from that, alone, and was sent reeling by the murder of George Floyd. That's reason number two: I've been reckoning with my privilege for years but starting this blog again during the that time felt...I don't know, using my voice on my own platform again felt superfluous. Unnecessary. To that end, I will do my best to recognise my own privilege and not speak on behalf of a community that isn't my own.

Hm. As I wrote that last sentence, I realised that coriolismo as a concept is understanding inherent biases so...that's actually right on brand. I'm not even going to be annoyed for just noticing that because last year I began having cycles of losing almost all motivation do to anything at all. 2020 was rough. Again...maybe later.

Here's an old pic because I love it and like I said...curation and algorithms be damned.

The third reason is the fact that I'm a journalist. I've never been overly concerned about people knowing about my opinions — my reporting should speak for itself. It's far better to recognise those biases (coriolismo, anyone?) and do the work accordingly. I have a lot of thoughts about this but concerns about perceived objectivity were certainly in the back of my mind as I struggled to think about what I would post here if I had the time

Now, in April 2021, here's what I think. This is my personal blog.

I've always been proud of this little corner of the internet I created haphazardly six years ago and has evolved with me. To think, it started with another name in 2015 and was my way of showing the world that I was truly interested in doing journalism: the first ever post was on the Charlie Hebdo shooting. Since I happened to be holidaying in Paris at the time, I actually went to the site and interviewed people, took photos, the whole thing. It was a portfolio when the doors to being published were shut in my face.

Once I started a journalism job it then became my intellectual escape where I put thoughts that I couldn't pitch and simply reveled at how easy it was to get my own voice out there. Then it morphed into a a lifestyle diary of sorts, including capsule wardrobe posts, which is so lovely to look back on for me because it really marked the start of my journey into sustainability. Then I abruptly came out as non-binary, which felt incredibly liberating, but promptly moved to New York and was sort of swallowed whole by the journalism master's degree.

Me on my 29th birthday in Ridgewood. And yes, I had bleached hair! So much to catch up on.

I do wish I had captured some of my NYC evolution here. I've been out very publicly as trans non-binary there and after all the experiences I've had being out in just two years, it does feel like the world does need more voices like mine — with efforts being made to acknowledge my privilege at every turn. I get so much value reading about other enby people's experiences and from those who aren't my own community. I'm not seeing many afab non-binary folks doing capsule wardrobes. Journalism, along with basically every other industry, is fraught for trans people. Heck, the world is. My gender identity is understood as debatable and I have had to continually justify my existence to the world. If that sounds exhausting, it is.

A complete stranger emailed me last year saying they felt "at home" reading my blog and that's exactly what I've always wanted it to be. An open window into my thoughts and habits, however cringe-inducing they are to read years down the line. Despite now having a master's degree under my belt, I feel rusty — even hesitant — writing this out. I haven't written in a while.

For 2021, the plan is to finish my thesis, move back to my apartment, unpack my suitcases and restart my news podcast Plus Five Four. And get a job. And hopefully a pet. But mostly enjoy being home again. I have no idea what coriolismo is going to become.

But honestly, getting used to publishing without a plan and without it being perfect is why this blog was so good for me in the first place.

And the fact that I am a nerdy, bilingual and generally pretty silly trans non-binary journalist means that I have a different perspective to most media outlets — and that was the whole point of it all.

Several of you have requested posts on @coriolismo's Instagram so make sure to follow me there!