Victory Half-Marathon, 18, Fireside Chats, and Orcas

Letter? I Hardly Know Her! - March 2023

Mar 04, 2023

Welcome, WELCOME to Letter? I Hardly Know Her! I’m Apoorva (the her in question), an 18 y/o researcher, artist, writer, keynote speaker, and advocate for youth and gender minorities in STEAM. This newsletter is a means for me to keep track of my personal & professional growth, and to share all the good stuff I’m working on! First-timers: it’s great to meet you, I’m so glad you’re here! For my regular hardly-knowers, here’s your promised, extra special greeting: welcome you cup of coffee—you’re the reason I get up in the morning!

If you too want an extra greeting, you better subscribe:

As a heads up, I publish newsletters on each MONTH/MONTH, i.e. 1/1, 2/2, 3/3, … , 12/12. Is it the most efficient system? Frankly, no. But is it the most funky fresh? Absolutely it is.

Happy happy March and Women’s History Month, Hardly-Knowers! What a month it’s been. (An adult is typing this right now…weird.) This is one of the most exciting times of year for me with IWD/WHM events on the horizon. Now, like the month of February, this letter is short and sweet, so let’s get into it!

2023 Victory Half-Marathon! 18!

What better way to avoid an existential crisis than to run head-first through it? I ran the 2023 Victory Half-Marathon the morning of my 18th birthday (and actually ran through the time I was born)!

It was just pure fun. It was right by the bay and the view was stunning. The weather was perfect, a little chilly but nice and cool, no rain, good amount of sun—what more could a runner ask for? The people running and the volunteers were so incredibly nice and encouraging, and man can these people hustle.

I turned out to be the youngest one running the half, and the oldest people were over 70 (a 70-year-old man finished in a little over 2 hours)! Isn’t that insane? It’s so cool to know that I can (and hopefully will) still be running far 50 years down the line.

Now I’m starting to train for a full marathon at the end of May in Ottawa! It’s going to be hard work, but I can’t wait to cross that finish line.

Fireside Chat with Anna Baird, Global Head of Culture and Innovation at Google

In February, I had the opportunity to co-host (alongside the wonderful Naila Maloo) a TKS x Masason Foundation fireside chat with Anna Baird, the Head of Culture and Innovation at Google. We got to ask her about her journey and career so far, how to foster a culture of innovation, and her experience empowering young women in business.

It was such a fun conversation filled with countless nuggets of wisdom, so make sure to watch the recording here!

Featured in Global Indian

In early February, I was featured by Global Indian and interviewed by writer Amrita Priya. We talked about my journey so far in math, bringing together art and activism, and the importance of giving back. (This newsletter also gets a mention!)

You can read the story here!

!! ARTWORK ALERT !!

Here’s a little expressive landscape I tried out in the past month! This is a master copy of Chaïm Soutine’s Passage, 1923. Finding the flow of straight edges and scenery wasn’t intuitive, but it was fun!

As much as I want to share the artwork I’m finishing up right now for IWD, it must remain a surprise until March 8th. But here’s a frog to make up for it!

I’m also currently writing a reflection on turning 18 and lessons learned from the unprecedented, randomness, and my experiences so far. It’s not done yet, but I’ll hopefully be able to share that with you in the next letter. <3

The Fun, the Fresh, & the Funky

Onto FFFF (February’s Fun, Fresh, and Funky)! There was no shortage of it.

I received the sweetest birthday gifts from my wonderful friends, including a care package from my favorite family ever, Rachel and her sisters! I’m so excited to make pancakes and eat them with the #authentic Canadian maple syrup enclosed (and with maple candy on the side…pure sugar).

This was the birthday card from the youngest sister, Ava, who drew this beautiful orca! It is so cute!!! (Thank you Ava!)

I was also gifted an orca calendar from my lovely friend Maya! And I got Very Fancy macarons straight from France from my favorite Madeleine, who drove over straight from the airport and made strawberry pavlova with me on my birthday <3.

Other FFF things that happened in February include:

Seeing 6 turtles in a line!
Brunch with my sister & sweet crepes!
Visiting my Very Tall friends at Stanford!

^ here is the most dedicated Hardly-Knower in this long overdue photo (6 years?!)

Coming up next on Keeping Up With (K)Apoorva…

2023 International Women’s Day
With International Women’s Day 2023 just around the corner, as is tradition, my art gallery’s annual eBay art auction will kick off on March 8th! As for who I’m painting…all will be revealed soon. Make sure to stay tuned to catch the big reveal and to bid for it! ALL proceeds raised from the painting will go towards the International Rescue Committee’s earthquake relief efforts in Türkiye and Syria to provide the families there with emergency services and to support refugee families in countries around the world.
GLAM Event with the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG)
On March 18, I’m hosting a GLAM Virtual Event with LSEG, a partnership born for Women’s History Month! It’s going to be a blast—I’ll make sure to keep you updated.
Gems in STEM: Intro to Quaternions
An all new Gems in STEM article is coming soon! In this one, we’ll be diving into the crazy world of quaternions, from its history to its applications.
Masason Foundation’s Diversity & Inclusion Event: “Gender in STEAM”
At the end of March, I’ll be a speaking about gender equality in STEAM, early bias, and women’s history education at the Masason Foundation’s event. Very exciting!

A Quarter for Your Quote?

"I'm no longer accepting the things I cannot change...I'm changing the things I cannot accept."
Angela Davis

On that note, we’ve reached the end of this letter, Hardly-Knowers. I wish you a wonderful March and Women’s History Month (make sure to tell the women in your life how much you love, appreciate, and see them). I’ll catch you in April. Cheers!

Sincerely,

Her (Apoorva)

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Feel free to contact me about speaker events, comments, and anything else at apoorvapanidapu@gmail.com! You can also connect with me on LinkedIn, follow me on Medium, and check out my art gallery, personal website, or Instagram.

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