// the mood & vibes this week
— hi, friends :) writing this to you from the backseat of my friend drew's behemoth of a 4runner. we're knee-deep into the drive back from tahoe to LA. truly such an incredible packed last two weeks and i can't wait to tell you all the good juju! also, see below for a new thang in our newsletter-a little photo collage of what i've been up to recently :)
— the day our most recent newsletter went out, i completed a big milestone: getting a new driver's license with my correct name, gender, and photo. this was a huge moment. for the past 3 years of my transition, having to show my ID-whether it was at a bar, purchasing something, or doing airport screening-has been an uncomfortable experience at best and a humiliating one at worst. my photo was so squarely boy-mode from my teenage years, and it was essentially like being outed each time i pulled out my DL. despite this discomfort, i delayed getting a new ID for a long time.
— some of this was due to bureaucratic limitations. it takes what feels like eons to update one's name and gender, and my rights to do so have been in flux over the last few years (as of now, i can only change my gender on my driver's license, not my passport. boo!). but my second reason for delaying this is more nuanced. it's hard to understand if you've never dealt with dysphoria or dysmorphia, but pinning my face down on an official government document, when i don't feel like i am fully ME yet, is not super fun. i've come a long way in terms of feeling beautiful and confident and feminine, this is true. but as i've talked about with you, i'm nowhere near done with my transition, and feel i have more aligning to do of the inner and outer worlds. so i almost wanted to wait until i felt perfectly me, perfectly beautiful, to update this document-which i came to realize is a fallacy. we can't wait for perfection or full, 1000% alignment to just…live our lives. mic drop! and i really am proud i decided to live mine in this way, even when i wasn't ready, and just did it. i can't imagine the relief i will feel to whip out an ID that ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE AND DESCRIBES ME! what a concept! we love to see it.
— after this win, the girlies and i celebrated over the weekend, and then i ventured up north for a 10-day vacay in the bay area + tahoe. and…YOU GUYS. as an agent friend of mine likes to say-the moment you leave town for vacation is the moment you'll be the most busy. and that maxim has held true in the past, but never like this. i've had the busiest 10 days of my entire year, and i was remote for all of it! feeling super grateful for my incredible agent homies on the ground that helped me keep things smooth sailing. and i am really enjoying all the flurry of activity-the big moves my clients are making. it feels amazing to be trusted and to actually deliver on that trust-to do what you're good at, for people you care about. like what an elite combo!
— as for the actual vacay part of this vacation-y'all, it's been so very fabulous. whenever i'm back in the bay area-back in mill valley, west marin, the east bay, and the redwoods-i feel so keenly myself. like all the untruths and stress and weight i've been carrying just slip off my shoulders and fall to the floor, in a puddle of silk. and i can just tiptoe out of them into the forest-the meadow-the mountains-run into the light. i feel that way in many places of socal, like the beaches, canyons, and even the silver lake reservoir on a summer sunset. but it's definitely a different, deeper energy up in norcal that i connect to very strongly. my friends and i were talking about this at length-our different connections to different places. how we can feel so right somewhere now, but also long for a different place in a future iteration of our lives. lots of nuance, always. and my time in the bay was full of trees & hangs with my momma + our cat & dinners & the like. a notable highlight was going to an art exhibit for my grandfather robert arneson's ceramics. i don't really talk about him that often online (not sure why, it just hasn't really come up!) but he was kind of a big deal. i never got to meet him, unfortunately, as he passed in the 90s. he was a professor at UC davis in the 60s/70s and credited with being one of the founders of the california funk art movement-basically, one of the folks who made ceramics as a fine art more mainstream. his work is in MOMA, the whitney, the frick, and a slew of galleries worldwide. i grew up with his pieces in our house, and let me tell you they are FUNKY. they're irreverent and witty and inappropriate and earthen and honest. yet i've never been to a gallery show of his. this one was so lovely, and it was actually insane to see his art being appreciated on that kind of scale.
— a few days after the show, i met my LA friend group halfway on the route to tahoe, and the true escape commenced. what can i even say? it was perfect. PERFECT. i'm a newly minted skier, and let me tell you, I AM FREAKING OBSESSED. i'm convinced there is no greater high than absolutely obliterating a slope while “midnight sun” by miss zara larsson pounds my eardrums. not to mention the blissful cabin time, communal meals, and exploring the scene in truckee. 10/10 trip and i need to go sking again ASAP.
— and now, i'm so excited to be heading back to LA. i'll basically be knee-deep in work mode for the next 2 months. lots of activity with my buyer clients-as we discussed in the last newsletter, bidding wars are BACK-and i'm also in the final stages of preparing my wooden house listing!!!!!!!!!!!!! we go live mid-april, and i just cannot wait to show you her. she's perfect.
— in terms of what's coming up … continually on the hunt with my slew of buyers. prepping houses to launch. always searching for the best houses in CA. below you'll find a collection of listings i love on the market.
— if you're considering buying or selling in LA or NorCal in 2026,
message me here.— if you're looking to buy a wood house elsewhere in CA + the US, there's a good chance i can refer you to an agent in your city. referrals are a great way to support me. whenever i send a client to one of my cool out-of-area agent friends, i actually receive a portion of that commission! and like most things in life, a recommendation from a friend is the way to go. if that's you, respond to this email and i'd be happy to connect you.
— talk to you soon, and sending love.
xx,
sam
