antishay

About Shanti...

I live in Seattle, WA, and I live a busy but fun life that I love to talk about. I love being taught things and I challenge you to tell me I’m not crazy. It’s hard to describe me… I’d say I’m ambitious and positive to a fault, though I have a tendency to also be titanically lazy :)

I love to watch snow fall. And I LOVE the rain and all the mood and atmosphere that comes with it. Perhaps that’s why, more than anything, I plan to live out my days here in the northwest, though I want to travel everywhere.

I love reading and drawing and painting and designing anything and making clothes and touching beautiful fabrics. I buy things on eBay to a fault. I spend too much time writing and re-writing insignificant emails. I use up a pad of Post-Its every other day. I always answer my cell phone when it rings while I’m sleeping. I buy hundreds of books that I plan to read, someday…

I speak Italian fluently and I used to speak French (it’s coming back, but slowly because I don’t study) and I’m learning Spanish casually. I really do love languages. I want to speak them all!

Over at my blog (antishay.com), I write about finance and self-improvement. I am in a constant race to become a better me and my blog is all about that sort of lifestyle.

This blog is basically all about how to be happy and successful while living frugally and simply. That sentence has the connotation that somehow simple living and frugality are not desired, but in truth our American social norms dictate this as truth. I find the opposite to be true, that simplicity and frugality bring about happiness, which is why I’m so passionate about the things I write. To me, happiness is NOT a car or a house full of stuff - I’d go so far as to say these things can bring more unhappiness than anything else, especially when they’re disallowing you financial freedom, or they’re so cluttered or complicated that you have no peace of mind.

I feel very strongly that if we work on ourselves, we will be happier overall, and spread happiness to those around us. In my two-year struggle (some may call it an adventure) to get out of debt, my life has improved drastically - which I totally didn’t expect. I’ve become more self-aware, independent, honest, and a lot more happy. I’ve moved up significantly in my career and have found joy in living. I’ve also had to opportunity to help many friends and family members get out of debt and make good financial decisions. It’s such a blessing that I understand how to be so fulfilled and most of all, that I can help others. It’s from this space that I write to you. :)