To thine own self be true

Last week I found myself stuck. Frustration and impatience were at their peak. I was tired of being at the mercy of the bus' timetable, tired from the lack of structure or schedule to my days, tired of not having a job, tired of my people being so far away, tired of not dancing, tired of being in pain (my RA is flaring), tired of obsessing about the technical details of my blogs, tired of writer's block, tired of feeling disconnected from this new city I call "home". Just tired. Schmeh.

And then the light bulb went off.

While I do have to consciously exercise patience for all of the above on a daily and sometimes minute-to-minute basis (oh to be a naturally patient soul), remembering that everything is a process {impatiently rolls eyes}, none of the above were the true cause of my frustration.

The culprit? Me. I've been trying to be someone else. That sounds so silly, but it's true. I've been trying to be who I think I should be to succeed in this or that, or to make so-and-so happy or like me. But guess what? It's not working. And I'm unhappy and crabby and so bored.

Having a car, a job, multitudes of friends, the best blogs in the land, perfect health and a jam-packed dance schedule, while nice and admirable things to work toward, are not going to make me genuinely happy. Being ME will.

Duh, right?

So. As I continue this journey of landing a job, improving my blogs, finding my people, building a community and getting inside a dance studio, I need to remember who I am. Remember what it is that ignites my soul. And if I attempt something that feels unauthentic, I need to walk away. Just say no thanks with grace and move on.

xoxo

J

New blog in town!

It's rough around the edges. It needs work. But it's hot off the presses - my new blog!

This, my friends, is my latest project! I've been planning this in my head for months. I knew that as soon as I arrived in Pitt I wanted a separate place to dish on my adventures in the Steel City. Since I was born and raised in Colorado and have never lived anywhere else, setting up shop from the ground up is completely new to me. New city, new blog to record it all. You know when you get a new notebook or sketchpad, the buzz of excitement you feel when you open it and imagine all that you will fill the page with? This new blog gives me the same buzz!

(Pinterest)

Friends, I'd like you to meet walking the {Steel} city. I'd be honored if you went over to say hello!

Cheers for a blank new page!

 xoxo

J

Phase I

I'm finally, finally, making some changes around here, as you might have noticed. I'm editing and rearranging and trying to figure out how to get my blog to look exactly as I envision it in my head. Easier said than done, sheesh. I'm definitely a less is more kind of gal, but it is definitely lacking some pizzazz by way of graphics. For now, I'm limited to using the Blogger templates because I'm not as tech savvy as I'd like to be in the designing-and-spiffing-up-my-own-blog department. So here we are, Blog Refresh Phase I.

In other news...

Hubby and I are officially in our new digs! I love our little apartment. More details coming later this week.

Also to come... In addition to the aesthetic changes around here, content is changing a bit as well. This is to coincide with my recent new life adventures, as well as a new little project, which I will unveil tomorrow (so excited!). I'm narrowing the focus of le blog to matters related to dance, fitness, food and health, with random musings on life mixed in from time to time.

So, what do you think about my changes thus far? Yay or nay? Thoughts and suggestions welcome!

 xoxo

J