I’ve been a longtime fan of the artist Joji (George Miller). A lot of his music inspires my art and design, and I often have it playing while I work. His artistic vision is unmatched, imo.

Drive as fast as you can around cones without hitting them, going off course, or breaking your car. Sometimes you get lucky and all three happen. Autocross events are held all around the US and are an amazing way to build community with other car enthusiasts, push your car to its limits, and learn new driving skills without breaking the bank. Autocross has a relatively low barrier to entry, as many formal tracks are very expensive and require safety components to be installed prior to use (such as rollbars). Realistically, any stock car that fits the height/width regulation should be able to compete at an autocross event. It’s an incredible way for novice racers to get seat time and build confidence.

Miata is always the answer. Over the years Mazda has captured my heart, and the Miata was coming up in popularity on social media when I happened to learn how to drive manual on one. I fell in love with the car. How can you resist the FLIPPY FLOPPY LIGHTS?

I’m learning as I go. The first car I ever worked on myself was my 2006 Mazda3, but I mostly did body work on it- removing dents with a heatgun, replacing the headlights, plastidipping the emblems. I was pretty terrified to touch anything under the hood.

Since owning the car I have: Rebuilt the shifter, replaced the tail light gaskets, replaced the valve cover gasket, switched out the spark plugs, completed standard oil changes with filter, replaced the transmission oil, sanded the front bumper, and removed/replaced the passenger side fender. A lot more work to be done.

I’m also involved in an itasha livery design brand, Ita Lifestyles, as a character designer. More on that to come soon.