2021: Year-end Update

It certainly has been a while, hasn’t it? So many things have happened in my life; both amazing and not. Back in August, I saw the emails pertaining to my subscription renewing for this site, and I promised myself I’d be more involved here. However, life and people can take you away from things you’ve been meaning to get to. I have not posted since my trip to Chicago, not from, so I know where I need to start at. But I would like to quickly catch y’all up on some big things that have happened since, and what to expect going forward.

Since Chicago, I have gone on two more national trips – one to the City of Angels (Los Angeles) and the other to the Emerald City (Seattle). Both those trips for different reasons, yet both walking away with similar lessons. However, the biggest news is that finally (finally!!) I have broken the curse of many years and have gone abroad recently. That’s right, your friend Steven got himself his first-ever passport stamp in his book. Where did I go? You’d think it’d be Spain, based on how highly I spoke of it in this previous post. Well, I actually went to my other top country on my list: Italy. Earlier this month, I spent two and a half weeks journeying across the boot that started on the island of Sicily and ended up in Florence. While it was a trip to experience a new culture, eat new foods and see incredible sights, there was also another reason behind this trip. More on that will be discussed in a later post, however, as I must continue updating on what’s been going on which includes jobs.

Back in August, I alerted my employers that I was leaving at the end of September. It was simply time for me to move onwards to new paths, as my happiness and well-being were needing more focus. While in many other circumstances I may have stuck it out, just like many of you out there might have to at this moment, I was fortunate to be in a situation that allowed for this. With no mortgage, family/kids, debt, and I’ve been saving money, this has allowed me to take time off to focus on myself. Honestly, I was prepared to possibly go a year without a job (not counting freelance) as I pondered if I should travel the world for a year. Yet, a month and a half later, fortune shined as another job was offered to me, which I begin next week. While nervous just like anytime you start a new chapter, I’m excited at meeting my new team and doing something more engaging with the public. This job is out-of-town but, at the moment, I won’t be moving closer to the job site. Part of it is due to waiting and seeing how this job turns out, while the other part is simply there not being many good options available right now. Some apartments are too expensive, others too small for the rental price, and most just not available at this time. It’s understandable with so many people moving to Texas, as well as it being the holiday season. So I shall play the waiting game. The same can be said about the new car, which I still am waiting for since I blogged about that long ago.

While this may affect my opportunity to travel, I was thinking of doing some in-state adventures that I can share with y’all. Understandably, I have much to catch up on as it pertains to blog posts so I will begin with Chicago and work my way to the recent Italy trip. Along the way there will be other food-for-thought, poetry and relationship posts sprinkled in. I will try to be more diligent in my writing, because it really is something I’m dedicated to ever since I was a child. And I would hate to see any passion, whether mine or someone else’s, collect dust as it becomes forgotten. Whether it’s writing early weekend mornings, or weeknights after coming home, I will find a normal routine like I used to have. 2021 was slightly better than 2020, but let’s hope 2022 provides light at the end of this dreary tunnel. I have big plans for next year, as a few new chapters will begin, and I plan to take y’all with me. Thank you to my fellow readers who may pop in every-so-often, or keep this site bookmarked, it feels good to be back on here and I hope you enjoy the contents to come. . .