The Good Life, With Songstress Priscilla Ahn

Priscilla Ahn is the girl you want sitting next to you on a long flight. The singer-songwriter has a soulful and slyly skewed perspective on life, which is mirrored on her latest album, When You Grow Up (Blue Note Records). She’s toured with the likes of Willie Nelson, Amos Lee and Ray LaMontagne, and you can catch her live at Slim's in San Franciso on December 1 or at the El Rey in Los Angeles on December 2.

My favorite place in the world is… Kaua’i. I’ve been drawn to the island for many years for some reason, and then a year and half ago, I was married there. When I first stepped out of the airport and smelled the air...it felt so familiar, so nostalgic. Like I’d been there before. I dream of retiring there one day.

If I could change the world, I would start with… Helping kids. I love them so much, and see so much purity in them, even in their mischief. They’re still so innocent and giving of love, and all they’re looking for is to be loved in return. I would love to raise awareness in helping kids who are born into abusive or broken families. And perhaps one day be able to help them one-on-one somehow.

Prevent Child Abuse in America

My last random act of kindness was… I helped an older man who didn’t speak much English find vitamins for hair and nail health at Whole Foods.

My favorite green product is… Well...it's on its way, actually! My friend from Portland is going to send me some worms that I can use in a compost I’m going to make. My husband and I cook a lot, so we have a lot of veggie refuse or fish bones that eventually get thrown in the trash, making our kitchen smell bad, which in turn makes us throw out bags of garbage often. I hate throwing out all those big plastic bags. Putting all our smelly scraps in our new compost will cut down on our plastic bag disposal a lot! And I hear that my compost bin won’t smell bad at all, thanks to the worms. We’ll see! I’m very excited about it.

It would be easier to be green if only… There was better public transportation in L.A. And also if the streets were more “walker-friendly.” I live in a very hilly part of the city—which I love—but if I walk down to my local coffee shop and then back up the hill to my house, I get all sweaty and end up needing to take a shower. Maybe I should get a solar-powered standing scooter. Do those even exist? Maybe I should invent one.

Right now, I’m addicted to… Chai lattes, making different kinds of soups, and The Wire.

Right now I’m avoiding… My yoga classes. I love them so much, but they always challenge me to open myself up mentally, physically, and emotionally, so I always get scared right before a class and come up with an excuse not to go. It’s so crazy, because once I’m there and on the mat, I’m loving every second of it. I think I have trouble with losing control and letting go more than I’d like to admit.

My superhero power would be… I’m really good at guessing presents. So...I guess I’d naturally be good at that in a dangerous, life-saving situation. But it’s always been a dream of mine to fly like Supergirl, like from that movie back in 1984.

Our next President should focus on…Well, hopefully it will still be this one. I feel like he was handed a big pile of shitola, and now it’s become a real poop-storm, and fixing it all in a real way will take some real time, unfortunately. And this ridiculous and petty fight between “Republicans” and “Democrats” doesn’t help keep the focus on what’s most important, which is working together to get our economy figured out so people in America can have jobs again. I’d love to focus on outsourcing less; good and affordable healthcare for everyone; and of course, always, saving our environment.

My eco rule of thumb is… Recycle and reuse as much as possible. But most importantly, consume as little as possible. Less is always more.

Calculate Your Carbon Footprint

My last eco faux pas was… I tend to take long showers. I stand in there and start daydreaming. I’ve come up with 80 percent of my creative ideas while standing in the shower. But I do feel terrible about it. There are too many countries where clean water isn’t even available. I really need to cut down on my showering time and brainstorm somewhere else.

Next on my life to-do list is… Finish all my projects from all of my life to-do lists! I have so many half-sewn, half-painted, half-written song ideas. Right now I am really focused on finishing an idea I have for a children’s book and a short film. I’d love to finish those before the end of the year.

The Good Life is TakePart’s weekly probe into the mind of a fascinating person.