Last night I watched the Super Mario Bros. movie on Peacock. Was it as good as when I saw it the first time in the theatre. I would say yes and I will say yes to seeing this movie if you haven’t already. I digress, but on to today’s blog post.
In July, I had my best month for content since the beginning of the year. Props go to my cousins and their little ones for gifting me with a new laptop. That’s one of the reasons why content was way down in 2022. However, there were other factors that played into my regression.
Last year, I was navigating new roads working at Giant Eagle and trying to figure out my new routine. I was still exploring my non-traditional journey and lost some faith in it as my support system had dwindled. I became depressed early in 2022 as I wasn’t hearing from those who supported me the year before. Perhaps, I should’ve realized that only my opinion counts. Things would turn around nicely in the second half of the year
As for content, early on it looked like it was going to be another good year. I averaged 16 posts a month over the second half of 2021, even though not everything that glittered turned out to be gold. Early in 2022, I was still averaging 11 posts per month before the bottom fell out. Despite the lack of content (I put up very little from May on) my mental health started to improve later on in the year. In case you’re wondering, my mental health drives my journey which, in turn, drives the blog posts.
After a great start to 2023, content was down in the Spring due to a number of things. Benny’s prolonged hospital stay, the cooler than average Spring, and once again there were doubts about me and my nontraditional journey. The attacks on Tiktok transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney made me question things once again. Even though my journey was different, even though I had support from my colleagues and even my store leader, it still had an impact on me. You know what though, woke rules and people need to shut their mouths (because they might end up regretting it).
However, my spirits would be lifted in March when I was called to become President of my home Toastmasters club, the Greensburg Toastmasters. I also know that I had support in my journey from not only my Giant Eagle family, but also my Toastmasters family. I’ve also begun to pick up other hobbies in addition to this blog.
So the questions remain. What does the rest of 2023 hold for me and for this blog? Plus, when do we hit 500 blog posts? I’ve passed my total from last year when I posted last Saturday and I appear to be well ahead of that pace going forward. I would like to keep blog posts at around 10 to 12 posts per month and not make it a race to 500 posts. I have new reading material coming this September and October, plus new Fall outfits I have in mind. I’ll be making trips to pick up a few of those books and using the remainder of my Amazon gift card on the other. You’ll see that material on the blog and on my Instagram stories. It’ll be early on in the Fall, but I’ll be on vacation and there will be adventures to post about. Look for photo opportunites as I make my out to the parks and to Ligonier. In October, it’ll be Annabelle’s birthday plus the Fall Gaffron family reunion. Look for restaurant reviews as I have places lined up in August and September.
My target date to publish that 500th blog post will fall between Thanksgiving and Christmas. November 19 would be perfect because it would be the fourth anniversary of the blog. November 23 is Thanksgiving and that would be something to really be thankful for. November 24 is Black Friday and that would be a gift to all of you who read my content. Realistically, it will fall in the middle of those dates as I’d have to stop posting to hit the goal on Christmas. I hit 300 on Christmas Eve a few years ago.
Closing off the blog, this is a sign that things are looking up once again and 2023 is going to end well. Let’s make it a great rest of summer and a great Fall!
Stylish 🍒 