Chicago, IL · Still in transit

A paper plane that left India, still mid-flight.
Writer, observer, storymaxxer.

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Ch. 01 — The Premise

I think the best thing a person can be is a good story.

Not the richest, not the most accomplished. the most interesting. The kind of life that can't be summarized on a LinkedIn headline. One built around moments that make you feel something, not milestones that make others nod in approval.

Most people optimize for comfort. Stable job. Safe choices. A life that looks great from the outside but feels like a waiting room on the inside. I'm building mine differently. Around stories worth telling your grandkids about one day.

That means saying yes to the detour. Booking the flight before you've planned the trip. Choosing the city because you're curious, not because it's practical. Staying out too late in a place you barely know and calling it research.

I call this storymaxxing. This site is the evidence.

Ch. 02 — What's Inside
01
"The pieces that sting are the ones doing their job."

Captain's Log

What I find interesting, what I'm learning, and who I'm becoming. Not content. Just honest writing.
transmissions from the cockpit →
Latest transmission
"The Perils of Comparison: Navigating Ambition Without Losing Yourself"
+ 7 more essays in the log
02
"Every city left a crease in the paper."

Journey

Six cities. Two countries. The full flight path from Gujarat to Chicago and the stories between every fold.
aisle seat, always →
Postcard from Chicago
Bhavnagar → Ahmedabad → Long Island → Champaign → San Diego → Chicago
6 postcards from the flight path
03
"I would pay to attend a stranger's wedding."

Loves

Things I chase, things I dream about, and the bucket list that keeps growing. With stories for each one.
things worth chasing →
Currently chasing
Visit all 50 states · Penguins · Table tennis · Credit card points · Cooking fusion · Aviation
+ many more things worth chasing
04
"This page updates when life does."

Now

What I'm reading, watching, building, listening to, and thinking about right now. A living page.
updated often enough →
Right now
Building this site · Writing on The Observation Deck · 18 of 50 states down · Planning the next trip
a living snapshot
05

The Vault

Things I'd genuinely recommend to anyone. Curated, no filler.
open the vault →
YouTubeBooksMusicMoviesShowsPlacesRestaurantsExercises
From the collection
"The Curse of Being Ambitious" — the video that puts words to that restless feeling you can't shake.
60+ recommendations across 8 categories
06
"If the plane goes down tomorrow, this is what survives."

Black Box

Things I've come to believe. The part of the plane built to survive everything. For whoever finds it next.
open the recorder →
Recovered transmission
"In life, we must choose our regrets."
49 transmissions in the recorder
Storymaxxing
/stôr·ē·maks·ing/ — v. collecting stories through experiences worth telling your grandkids about one day. see also: the whole point.
We were put here to love and be loved. With internet and access to travel, the community isn't local anymore. It's the whole world. The paper plane keeps flying.

still here? that means something.

Talk to my second brain — it answers the way I would →