Yo, What's Up Blogger Fam?

My last post was June 2018. I'm sure many of you thought the 9 year old blog was over. Perhaps it was done for good, left to die on the internet. 

Never. I want to keep this thing going as long as I can. 

I'll get you up to speed.

June
I kicked off the month by going to a "Saved by the 90's" party all by myself. I had friends who were supposed to go but they bailed so I went solo. I wore a crop top, skinny jeans, a hat and tied a flannel plaid shirt around my waist. It was an outfit well out of my comfort zone. I tried my best to act natural and really "own" the look.I think I did a good job! I stayed for the live portion of the party and then ventured back home, just pleased I took a little fashion risk and stuck with it for the night. 

I also cut off all my hair at an exclusive studio in Center City. I was on a wait list to get an appointment there! I had to take off work for the appointment but it was worth it. 

June was full of music. I saw Nathanial Rateliff and the Nightsweats. I took my kickboxing bff to see Philly Bloco live in West Philly (we had a great night of drinking and dancing). And I went home to the ESVA to surprise my dad for Father's Day. 

The highlight of June came toward the back end. I attended my first ever "Daybreaker Yoga Rave." It started at 10am with an hour of yoga followed by two hours of dancing through the decades. No alcohol, just pure fun and organic snacks. The community was incredibly judge-free and you really felt a part of something. The goal was to get out there and dance. That was it. I went with my friend Maura and we had a ball. I almost got emotional at one point during a spoken word set because I felt so grateful to be a part of that morning. Loved it. 

That afternoon, I got Bronx dressed up for the Patriotic Pooch Contest at City Hall. Center City District had used a photo of B from last year to promote the contest. I decked him out as the Statue of Liberty and we put our best paws forward. The contest was a two-day contest that was peer-judged. 18 dogs entered and the winner would get a Bud Light Gas Grill. Last year when I entered Bronx, we arrived five minutes after the judging! We were actually told if we got there a few minutes prior, he would have won. Bronx didn't care. He was just glad to be out of the apartment and on an adventure but I felt like I let him down. So I went full-on pageant mom. I even had a social media campaign "Vote for #8."

Two days after the contest we got a call. Bronx won. He won by a landslide. 

So we went to pickup our grill! I tied my trunk semi closed and drove 3 miles an hour back to South Philly. I then carried the grill up 3 flights of steps and let it rest in my front room of my apartment. I promised Bronx some hot dogs when we were finally able to fire it up. 

July

Of course I kicked off July by doing all the 4th of July Philly things including watching Rocky on the Art Museum steps and attending the Party on the Parkway. I won tickets to the concert seats this year but it was ungodly hot. Instead I went to a friend of a friend's bbq and ended up watching the fireworks on top of a rooftop bar in South Philly. 

In mid-July I attended a crabfest with my best friend. It was that night when I received a text from my landlord. They needed to show my apartment in two days. They were selling my building. Their goal was to keep the tenants in place at the rents we're paying, but I knew better. At my last apartment, two months after I moved out, the landlord slapped 30 day notices on all the doors because he sold the building. Now I had a dog, which meant finding a new place to live would be difficult. I decided to be proactive and search.

My work life got mega complicated to the point I thought I might lose my job. I began to wonder what the future had in store for me because my life was mega-interrupted. 

Fortunately I got my answer somewhat quickly. After some baseline searching on the internet, I ended up visiting a two bedroom house that was for rent in the neighborhood I was hoping to move to. I applied, got it and signed a new lease for mid-August. I'd be moving from a third floor walk up to a house! I'd finally get to use that grill Bronx and I won. 

August
August was an insane blur. I was packing and writing and preparing for the big move. My parents came to visit me the week before I was set to move which was very helpful. We cleaned the new house from top to bottom and packed up my kitchen (which took an entire day). I was purging things left and right but still felt like I had too much stuff. 

August continued to fly by and before I knew it, it was my 31st birthday AND moving weekend. That's right. I moved two days after my birthday. It was almost anticlimactic but friends and family made my day special. I did go to Ray's Happy Birthday Bar for my birthday shot and enjoyed traditional vanilla cake with Bronx back in my kitchen. 

Two days later I moved. I made more trips up and down my three flights of stairs than I hope I ever have to make again. I had friends help me here and there and I hired movers this time which was a huge help. Next thing I know, everything is in my house and I'm surrounded by a hoard of boxes. Time to unpack. 

September
So here we are! In the meantime I've been writing a lot for MOGUL. This weekend I'm headed to New York for a single day conference put on by MOGUL. I'm excited to meet the CEO and some of the people I write for. I've also been MAD busy with RTC. I have five active clients so there is always writing or editing work that needs to be done. I absolutely love it, I just wish I could dedicate more of my time to it. 

Stay tuned for more updates that won't take three months to put here!

Until next time....