It was postponed from a week earlier, but Mr. Clougherty and I returned for the 12th season of our annual Dinner Series. We met at Primanti’s in Greensburg and, I celebrated Mr. Clougherty’s (Kevin) birthday.

It was our first time together since October of last year when we had our last meal before swimming season kicked into high gear. We’ve had some memorable experiences over the years. When he lived in Plum, it wasn’t too far for him to come out to Murrysville. Therefore, it was convenient for us to meet up at Burgatory. There was last year when we had Primanti’s at Market Square before our baseball game. Many times we’ve had a relaxing meal at either Kings or Eat’n Park.

Some of our topics we discuss include the high school and what’s going on with the district and construction. We also talk about the team and how they’re doing. Hard to believe how long he’s coached. Sometimes, I throw him a real world problem. In the past, I’ve also come to him when feeling conflicted over my political views.

As for our meal last night, it was a nice kickoff to our new season. We took some to decide on what to order but when we got it, our food was excellent. On a scale of 1 to 5 with five being the highest, I’d give ours a 5. Service was quick and we were well taken care of. The greeter took me to my table (rare instance where Kevin gets there before me). Our server was patient as we decided on what we wanted and very friendly. Great team working there Thursday night. Service gets a 5. The atmosphere was very relaxed. It’s a great place to watch the big game and chill. As for where I was seated, I would like a little more lighting. Maybe we can do outdoor dining at one of the places we go this Summer. Gotta shake things up a bit and give atmosphere a 4.

We planned our upcoming spots for May and June. Scheduling the next dinner for May 30 opens up the opportunity for me to attend Greensburg Night Market on May 23. For my birthday, we’ll meet up a little early and schedule it for June 20. Next month will be at Oliver’s Pourhouse and June will be at the Olive Garden.

The month of April has drawn to a close and it was a record month. Pittsburgh set a record for precipitation with over eight inches of rain. A lot of that came in the first half of the month. The second half of April has not been quite as active. It looks May is starting off summer like with temperatures in the 80s. We saw a high of 87 on Monday. Therefore, May is beginning the same way April ended.

I made two Toastmasters club visits online at the beginning of April when I attended Indiana and Johnstown’s meeting. These visits were in the plans for a long time and I finally got down to making them. I’d been to both clubs before (13 years in Toastmasters, people! I’ve made my rounds). This was my first visit to both clubs in their new locations. Indiana meets at Indiana Regional Medical Center and Johnstown meets at the Arbutus Church of the Brethren. I was warmly welcomed at both clubs and learned that Johnstown had their 70th anniversary celebration coming up. They held that meeting at Hoss’s in Richland Township on Theatre Drive on April 23.

Last Spring, I dealt with feelings of discouragement. Three reasons and two were beyond my control. One was Benny’s prolonged hospital stay at Children’s due to his condition. He was there for almost four months. Two was the Canadian wildfires that brought plumes of smoke down into our region. Cities like Chicago and New York had skies that looked very apocalyptic at one point. Third was the Bud Light controversy and the attacks on a certain transgender TikTok star that followed. One person in particular was very savage in her opinions on Dylan Mulvaney in a podcast. One other person referred to her as a pedophile. This had an effect on me in my journey and almost caused me to quit completely. I went back though and it was at Summer TLI when I wore a leopard print scarf and my Coach purse. A couple of my Toastmaster friends gave me rave reviews on my style and I knew I had done right. While the Bud Light controversy was beyond my control, how I reacted could be controlled.

This Spring, I still have my doubts but I’ve gotten so much better in my journey. I ordered new ‘fits from Old Navy and everything fit. I like everything a little short and don’t mind rocking a crop top. I slay whatever I wear. When I visited Johnstown earlier in the month, their club president Sandi really adored my polka dot top (after I took off my jacket and thus, stopped hiding my true self).

Whatever downtime I had when the weather was nice and not rainy was spent outside. I found out that Hempfield Park is a great place to get your mile walk in if you don’t want to make the drive to Twin Lakes. On those days when it didn’t rain, I filled my exercise goals by walking on the treadmill at Planet Fitness and taking to time work on my muscles as well. Maybe I can figure out Yoga or Pilates in May.

Did you get a chance to view the eclipse on April 8? I was asleep for the morning and early afternoon but I came out just as the sky began to get dark. I put on my special glasses and witnessed a phenomenon that won’t likely come again in my lifetime, at least around my area.

The NFL Draft occurred this weekend and it looked like the Steelers did very well, drafting some much needed help on the offensive line. Six quarterbacks went in the first round, including the first three picks. It felt like 1983, 1999, and 2004 all rolled into one. 1983 saw quarterbacks go in the first round, three who’d end up in Canton. 1999 saw three quarterbacks go first, second, and third. 2004 was all around my most favorite draft of all time because the Steelers got their GOAT at quarterback.

Finally, I finished Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix at the eleventh hour. On the last day of April, I read the final chapter and bid adieu to one of the most trying books in the series. I’ll be watching the movie this weekend and then I will begin Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince next week.

And with that, the month of April comes to an end. Good night!

Time for a short but sweet,news and notes, bonus blog post.

I ordered some new summer attire from Old Navy this month, including a few pairs of shorts. All of my shorts and pants fit. Perfect for a coffee date with yourself or someone. I broke in my new chino pants last Tuesday when I went to Cutie’s and again for my Laurel Highlands Toastmasters meeting this past Tuesday. I also modeled an outfit I want to wear for Saturday night’s dinner.

A warmup is coming this week as we see temperatures in the 80s to start the workweek. A great time to break in the new shorts. More seasonal weather returns for the start of next weekend but even with rain, it shouldn’t be a washout. The countdown is officially on for this weekend’s conference. It’s Derby Day so maybe I’ll get a mint julep at the bar.

Johnstown Toastmasters celebrated its 70th anniversary on Tuesday with a special dinner at Hoss’s Steak and Sea House on Theatre Drive in Richland Township. Many Toastmasters from other clubs attended as well as the County Commissioner. I zoomed the meeting before and got to hear about some of the planning. I wish I would have attended this one instead (likely on Zoom) because it looked like a lot of fun.

Dubois has a Toastmasters club again. The original club suspended operations in the early 2010s but has been reborn. They meet at Penn State DuBois on the first and third Wednesday. I might attend online before my Greensburg meeting (if we’re remote), as the new club meets at 5:00pm.

Check back tomorrow for my look ahead to May when I preview the conference and what else is going on.

Today is the final blog post I’ll contribute to the 2020 (or Pandemic or whatever name fits) series. Like that year itself, writing about 2020 could be as excruciatingly painful as it was to sit through. So the question remains. Why did I write about this lost year if for most people and myself it wasn’t worth reliving?

There’s no real clear cut answer to that question but here goes nothing.

Well, for me, the year before had its moments of sadness and tragedy. But, it also had its good moments. In Toastmasters, we had a great contest season and Spring conference and, our district was growing. I was finally enjoying my job after a decade there with friendships being built and an innocent crush toward the end of the year. That helped change the course of my life. We all had high hopes going into the next year, unaware of what lay ahead in March.

We learned a lot of new household terms that stay with us to this day. We fought politically over how the virus should have been handled, and whether or not the lockdowns should have happened. We rioted in the streets over a black man from Minneapolis getting killed. There were many things to take away from 2020, for all the wrong reasons.

There’s no 2020 left for me to discuss, as I already covered the holidays. Nationally, the beginning of the next year brought chaos in Washington DC when the Capitol was raided by a group of crazy people who felt they were cheated. For me, 2021 was the end of the era for me in so many ways. It brought a change in how I took care of myself. I turned over a new decade. Also, I left a place of employment that I had been at for over a decade. I already discussed these previously and you can scroll through the archives to learn more.

My life has changed for the better now that I’m working close to home and not putting as many miles on my vehicle to go to work. I miss the friendships made at my old job but not the travel. Next week when I go to Spring Conference will be one of the rare occurrences when I’ve traveled long distance in the post-WIS era. I remember when it used to be a regular thing to do to Washington or Johnstown.

These days long distance to me is driving to Pittsburgh or Ligonier, trips that were considered close to home for me about five years ago.

I was inspired to do this blog post after seeing a friend share this. Her late husband had kept this wrapped in plastic in a dresser drawer. My take on it is that if you want to be treated well, just remember how your actions towards other people go. Your actions always have a way of coming back to you. Some of these also relate to my own personal journey.

Throughout my journey, I’ve felt criticism, and worried about ridicule and shame. Therefore, I’ve felt condemnation, shyness, and guilt in return. However, I’ve had those who support me say what an inspiration I’ve been to them and to other people. But, I’ve also felt the need to hide myself to avoid confrontation, thus bringing timidity and, in the past, leaving myself with a bad feeling. In the past few months though, I’ve begun to overcome some of these bad feelings and show my true self and my style. The end result is I don’t care what people think anyways. I’m not degrading myself.

I’ve leaned to social media for approval and don’t always get it, thus feeling discouraged. However, I’m learning to give myself approval, but it is nice to hear compliments once in a while just to make sure I’m not crazy. I’ve begun to clear the most difficult hurdle, and that’s learning to like myself. Not everyone is going to accept me for who I am, but if I like something, that’s all that matters.

It’s easy to walk away from something when someone makes you feel discouraged, but it takes real courage to keep doing it after they hurt you. Don’t let your harshest critics win.

Dance, even if no one’s paying attention.