OZO Origin Story

"O-Z-O" are the last three letters of my last name, Cardozo. Growing up, my last name tended to be spelled, "Cardoso", "Cardoza", etc., and it always made me laugh when the o-z-o was hard to communicate... Now, I enjoy helping others communicate!

We are living during times of transformation, a new frontier for society - where we either do the work to move forward, or stagnate in the suffering for longer. I strongly believe we are going to rise up and go with the former, but in the meantime, we have to take care of ourselves. 

One of the many things that grounds me is creating - writing, whether it’s poems or articles, laying out graphics on the computer, serenading my dog Kona, painting, coloring, taking pictures, cooking, gardening. Part of my ongoing physical and emotional healing journey is remembering that it has always been the case. I’m a creative problem solver - always have been, always will be. Ozo was destined to be created, even back in Venezuela in 1995.

Ever since I could remember, I have had a wildly active imagination. I was an only child for the first five years of my life, leaving me with plenty of time to cook up eccentric games and hobbies. I was a curious kid. I liked when my dad built computers and took things apart, and I asked for a microscope for Christmas in 8th grade so I could see what my hair really looked like. When I was around four, I remember wondering what would happen if I rode my bike full speed with my eyes closed. So, I did just that (when my mom wasn’t looking), and drove right into my mom’s Jeep’s tire. I dusted myself off, and wanted to try it again, but, rightfully so, lost that battle to my mom.  I definitely had at least one imaginary friend, and lived for playing pretend. 

I remember having a bag, or my dad’s old briefcases full of themed pretend games. I had one full of old school assignments and notebooks, a gradebook, and some red pens to play teacher. I would set up my bed as a table with assigned seats, wait for them to finish and tried to grade everything before finishing playing for the day.

My dad’s old briefcase was full of his old work paperwork, a receipt pad and all sorts of old office supplies to play office. He, like me, has worked in various fields and industries throughout his life, so the old paperwork varied from old HVAC order catalogues, to spreadsheets reporting some numbers and figures I had absolutely no idea about, but definitely pretended I did when that pretend phone rang! I think this was definitely my favorite to play. One summer at my grandparents’, my grandma entrusted my older cousins (older by 5ish years, but at the time I ran the show) and me to walk to the store to get some orange juice for a recipe she was making. She gave us enough money to buy what she needed and have some change left over. My five-year-old self decided we should stop at the office supply store (mind you, this was in Michelena, Tachira, Venezuela - a small town with small designated shops), and take a look around. My cousins knew better than to try to argue with me. I used the change to buy a receipt book, one of those with carbon paper to make copies. My mom made us go return it, but man did it look cool!

When I spent time at my grandparent’s house, I would use my dad’s old PTJ (Venezuela’s government police agency) badge, a bb gun (without pellets because my mom would have had a heart attack otherwise), and a notepad (to take notes while we were out investigating, duh) to play detectives and robbers with my older cousins. 

All of those pretend games (and plenty of years of schooling and experience) are what led to Ozo Creative. Ozo started before I knew it was Ozo. 

I started Ozo Creative, LLC in 2019, but started it as Artsiquasi.com in 2016. 

ArtsiQuasi [ahrt-see] [kwah-see] is a state of mind. It is curated content, a lifestyle platform and a personal aesthetic guide. It was a place for my portfolio, blog and art. 

It was my second ever official personal website. I created my first website when I was 11 back in 2001 (FrontPage and GoDaddy) called A Girl’s Life. agirlzlif.com was a pioneer of the blog world before there was a blog world. I basically wrote about health, beauty, fashion and would answer questions about those topics through the comments section - sound familiar? It should, it's what every beauty blog out there is/does nowadays. I wish I had kept that domain though - quite lovely. 

Before that, I was no stranger to computers and websites, thanks to my dad.  My dad has a robust background in systems engineering. He had a company in Venezuela called Cardozo Sistemas, that would create custom software solutions for businesses, specializing in restaurant POS systems. He was a self-made dude - started out with no money, no degree, no connections. I remember visiting his office, the smell of paper and plastic, motherboards and files everywhere. Starting in third grade, he would sit down and explain computer networks and branches, the importance of technology, and how computers communicate. I started using a computer at age 4, Microsoft Office at age 7, and building websites at age 12. 

I went to an engineering magnet high school, and starting in 5th grade I did engineering summer programs (on scholarship) at the local university (nerd.it.out. lol). I was good at it, but it was not what drove my passion. Helping others was, so I wanted to be a lawyer. But, at the time I had lost track of who I was (don’t we all?), and went through a series of unfortunately needed events to get to where I am today. In college, I switched my major over five times, but they were all in the humanities and liberal arts programs (I am an artist after all). Following my gut, I went in the nonprofit direction and worked in the arts and culture sector right out of grad school. 

Flashforward five, very different, jobs later, and I’m back in the nonprofit sector doing what I enjoy - helping others. But, entrepreneurship runs through my veins. I come from a long line of creative hustlers, working hard to use their skills to fill their families’ needs. Ozo Creative will always continue to be my main hustle (not to be confused with my career/job). It is the platform with which I can freely be creative and helpful. 

I always knew I liked helping others by using the skill sets I enjoyed and had captured my interest from a very young age. I am grateful I never took my tech knowledge and ease for granted. This service continues to evolve the more I learn and grow in life and my career.

Currently, OZO Creative (a.k.a. me) offers over 8 years of experience in a variety of creative & digital marketing services, including: graphic design, web design, custom graphics & illustration, and branding & social media consulting. I love serving people and brands, in particular, small businesses, nonprofits, and any business looking to elevate their brand and strategic vision.