The first in person contest season since 2019 continued with a fun drive to Punxsutawney this morning.

After a quiet commute the weather changed just as I passed Indiana. From there, the journey to Punxsutawney got a little more exciting.

I arrived at my destination, the Cobblestone Inn and Suites in Punxsutawney just before 10am and was greeted by my fellow Toastmasters Dana Mitnik and Bob Johnson. I talked to Dana about taking on an officer role for Laurel Highlands Toastmasters in 2022-23. Before long Bob (Chief Judge) and Joe Arnold (Toastmaster and Contest Chair) gathered up their officials and contestants for pre-contest briefing.

The evaluation contest was up first and three contestants took part in it. Anna Lisa Haughwout representing McKeesport; Dave Jones representing Johnstown; and, Jim Teague representing Greensburg. Ryan Jacobs was the model speaker and the speech he gave at Laurel Highlands on Tuesday night was the one he also gave at the contest.

Ryan spoke about fatherhood, having recently become a new dad. What I took away from the speech was that the importance of a father in a child’s life is paramount. As we were leaving, I recommended that he check out the movie Courageous sometime. I remember seeing the movie with my church in 2011 and it’s a great film about fatherhood.

The evaluation contestants all gave great feedback to the model speaker. This was going to a difficult contest to judge. Joe Arnold took five minutes to interview the model speaker and we learned a lot about Ryan.

During the break I chatted with Dana who was complimenting me on my sense of style. Jackey Collier, District 13 Club Growth Director, did so as well, complimenting me on my leopard scarf. As Maura used to tell me, leopard print is my trademark. Shanda Kelsch, competing in the International Speech contest and representing Elk County Toastmasters did the same. It matched her heels she wore for the contest. I told her the story of how I had to sacrifice my scarf to save my pink Coach purse (with the cherry 🍒 charm). She’s a fan of Coach too.

The speech contest was amazing. Six quality contestants who would be hard to judge. Being a judge at these events is one of the toughest jobs you can take on. I’ve done it many times though.

Joe was a master interviewer as we waited for Bob and his team to tally up the votes for who the best evaluation contestant and speech contestants were. The top two winners from today’s division contest would go on to represent District 13 in the District Evaluation and International Speech contests (the Evaluation contest is April 29 and the International Speech contest is April 30).

Dave Jones and Jim Teague will go on to represent their clubs and the district on April 29 in the Evaluation contest. In the International Speech contest, it will be Shanda Kelsch and Sharon Joseph competing for the title of the District champion. Maybe one of them will even make it to the big stage at the World Championship of Public Speaking this Summer.

I had to turn it down but a big group of District 13 Toastmasters stopped for lunch at Papa Sal’s in Blairsville.

I’ll be in attendance next Saturday for the Division D contest which will be held at Scaife Hall in Oakland on the Pitt main campus. The conference remains to be seen but I hope to come at least one day out of the three.

We are in the midst of contest season in Toastmasters and in District 13. I’ll be en route to another contest this Saturday morning in Punxsutawney as contestants from Division C will be competing for the District finals. My attendance at those events remains to be seen and I will come to a decision prior to that.

Last night’s Laurel Highlands Toastmasters brought a plethora of great speeches as we heard new member Angela give her ice breaker, new dad Ryan Jacobs speak about fatherhood, and soon to be new member Danielle Doerfler talk about the Power of Decision Making. Danielle and Shelly attended a meeting as guests in January and came back for last night’s open house. We also had a visit from our Area 24 Director, Yasmin Brown and Chanae, another guest who was a Toastmaster in New York City.

Our Table Topics session was short and sweet and tied into the theme of the Power of Decisions. Lisa Shorter served as Table Topics master and called on me, Yasmin, and Judy. My question centered around how I decided to make a career change last Fall. After 13 years of traveling and doing inventory for various stores, I started applying for different jobs and was hired by Giant Eagle. Working close to home has been a blessing (I know I can’t say that enough).

The Power of Decisions can have an impact on our future. As the leader of a sports team, the power of decisions can make or break our season and our role on that team. It can also have an impact on our future with an organization. I took a lot from Danielle’s speech last evening.

I served as General Evaluator for the meeting and gave a great recap. I was told I was concise and that I gave a great overview of everything. Our Toastmaster of the evening, Nick Cecchetti, got next week’s meeting scheduled. Angela will be speaking again and so will I. Sharon closed the meeting by talking about nominations for new officers in 2022-23 (Yasmin also mentioned this via Zoom).

I’ll close off the blog with a shoutout to fellow Toastmaster, friend, author, and motivational speaker Faerie Grace. Speaking with a Twist is amazing and makes your events memorable. Faerie is awesome at her craft and she also makes some sweet balloon animals. I’d highly recommend her for your next workshop, team building event, or women’s retreat.

On this day in 1928, Fred McFeely Rogers was born in Latrobe, PA.

His television show ran for 33 years on PBS and was produced at WQED Pittsburgh. A children’s television icon, he inspired kids around the world with his messages of kindness, compassion, and learning. 20 years after the show ended and almost that long since his passing, his legacy and teaching are more relevant than ever.

The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and the Plane Crash in Shanksville occurred just a week and a half after the last show aired. Even though he was no longer with us physically, we could look up quotes on the internet to help us through some of the more tragic events that have shook the nation. Here’s one we can always turn to when bad things happen that’s always been a favorite of mine.

I saw this posted on social media when the Boston Marathon bombing occurred in 2013. It rang true during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic when we speak of the essential workers. In our own world when something happens to a loved one or in our own community, we can look to inspiration from America’s favorite neighbor and Latrobe’s favorite neighbor, Fred Rogers.

I’m blessed to live in Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood and see how Latrobe has honored the legacy of its favorite son. Street signs have trollies 🚋 next to them. The statue of Mister Rogers in the park (named after his father) and the words “You are Special” still ring to this day.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood came out in 2019. I saw the movie in theaters just before Thanksgiving. Tom Hanks played the role of Mister Rogers very well. I’ve also read books on Rogers including The Good Neighbor and I have one about him written by a local author as well as this gem. I picked this up at Masterspieces during their grand opening week in September 2020.

On today, the 94th birthday of Fred McFeely Rogers. Remember that “You Are Special”, “It’s You I Like”, “I’m Proud of You”, and it’s always “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”

The first in person Division Contest in three years surely did not disappoint.

On Saturday I attended the Division A contest which was held at West Allegheny Library in Oakdale. It was the first in person division-level contest I attended since March 31, 2019. That was the Division C International Speech and Tall Tales contest. That contest was held at the Hampton Inn and Suites in Blairsville and Greensburg Toastmaster Jim Teague was competing in that contest.

Representing Division A were members from Bettis, Moon, and South Hills Toastmasters. Our model speaker for the Evaluation contest was from the oldest club in District 13, Pittsburgh Club 144 (established in 1939). His speech was titled “Everything Sucks” and he started off talking about the state of the world today, before listed four ways we can live a better life. One was the celebrate the wins and another was to stop comparing ourselves to others.

Our evaluation contestants all gave great responses to the model speech. All points of view were different. The first half of the contest was really good and we were now awaiting the start of the Speech contest.

I was happy to have the opportunity to talk up my new job with all of my Toastmaster friends. Four months in at Giant Eagle and I am at home with my new job (nice play on words that I enjoy saying). They have a corporate club in District 13 but that club hasn’t met since COVID shut everything down in March of 2020. That gave me inspiration to come up with an open club for the company. It could be out of District 13 but open to Toastmasters in Cleveland, Akron-Canton, and Columbus (Districts 10 and 40). Therefore it would likely be an online club.

Our District Trio promoted the upcoming District Conference, which would be a hybrid event. The conference will be held at the Marriott in Cranberry located just off Interstate 79. I’m hoping to attend at least one day of the event.

The winners of the Division A International Speech and Evaluation contest will be moving on Cranberry. John Harshman (Bettis) and John Sinclair (Moon) will compete in the Evaluation contest. John Sinclair and Donna Morasco (South Hills) will compete in the International Speech Contest. The evaluation contest will be held Friday night (Apr. 29) and the speech contest will be held on Saturday (Apr. 30).

After the contest I joined up with my fellow Toastmasters for lunch at Mad Mex in Robinson. For all the times I’ve seen my cousins post about the place, this was first time eating there. I’ll be coming there in the Fall for my Gobblerito.

Mad Mex has locations all throughout Pittsburgh. Check them out in: Monroeville, Shadyside, Fox Chapel, Cranberry, Robinson Township, Green Tree, and McMurray.

I ordered the Shrimp Tacos with rice and black beans and a “Big Azz” 22 oz. black cherry 🍒 margarita. My tacos also came with sour cream and guacamole 🥑. The service, atmosphere and food were excellent. I give the experience a 4.7/5.

I appreciate all the opportunities that I’m able to get together with friends now due to the last couple of years being awash due to the pandemic. I won’t always be able to set too much in stone because of my work schedule but when I can, it’ll always be a good time. I’m glad I can attend next week’s Division C contest in Punxsutawney on March 26.

Congratulations to Dave Jones who competed in Saturday’s Area 21 International Speech and Evaluation contest. He placed first in both events and will compete next Saturday against Sharon Joseph and Jim Teague in the Division Contest.

Last night was my second Laurel Highlands Toastmasters meeting. It was also our wonderful president’s birthday so we celebrated by singing Happy Birthday. We had a great turnout with two guests in attendance. One was online and the other in person.

Lisa Shorter served as the meeting Toastmaster. While preparing my Ice Breaker, I emailed her an introduction about me which was well written. In my inaugural Laurel Highlands speaking role, I talked about my Toastmasters journey, my blog, and my professional life.

Some of the best memories of my Toastmasters journey included: serving as District Sergeant at Arms, attending countless District events, and being an adopted member of Cranberry High Noon. My favorite blog posts included my Top Ten of 2021; Dinner, Disco, and Dancing; and of course, the ones I kept from 2019 (especially the Stylish Crush and Hiding a Crush posts). When talking about my professional life, I spoke about how nice it is to work close to home after a lifetime of traveling to stores. I loved my 3609 family but I knew I needed a change. Giant Eagle presents plenty of opportunity and I had family who worked there in the past.

Dana Mitnik went second and spoke on the state of Laurel Highlands Toastmasters. He gave his take on the first club to charter as a hybrid club. They didn’t take long to get off the ground. He also talked about the history of Toastmasters in Fayette County and presented us with the question, who will succeed Sharon Joseph as the next club president of Laurel Highlands Toastmasters?

Judy Eans presented us with great Table Topics questions. Our guests participated as did myself. I answered the question on who some of my favorite leaders were.

I talked about the GOAT 🏆, the man myth and legend himself, Mr. Kevin Clougherty and how he encouraged me to take on the role of swim team manager in tenth grade. I also spoke about of some of favorite bosses to work for at WIS. I learned a lot from Chase at the big events, felt confident with Zach at the helm, and applauded Maura for their growth as she and Ashley took on more supervisory roles. Maura ran Lowes and Target well (her crew just happened to be amazing too) and Ashley was an exceptional stockroom leader on Target.

Sharon was our General Evaluator and she gave great feedback of the meeting. I’ll be taking on that role at our next meeting on March 22. Ryan and Nick were both really good in their evaluations of me and Dana, respectively.

We ended the meeting by sharing cupcakes 🧁 in honor of Sharon’s birthday, which will be this Thursday.

I wrote an exact blog post like this three years ago when I thought I found my new job after ten years at WIS. Things didn’t exactly work out in early 2019 and I was back with my old friends at office 3609. Fast forward to this year and I think I made the right decision this time around.

I’ve spent most of my post academia life in retail, working in restaurants and traveling with my office doing inventory. Some of the various stores we counted were JCPenney, Kohls, Lowes, Joann Fabrics, and most recently we just got Target back. I’ve also counted plenty of dollar stores as well as small clothing stores in the mall.

For most of that time post academia, I was with WIS International. Recently I stepped down to take a job closer to home with Giant Eagle. Everyday is a learning experience and I’ve made it count every night there. Sometimes I felt the past knocking at my door reminding me of past failures but I’ve passed that valley for good now.

Working close to home has felt like a culture shock, but it’s a blessing. However, I find the enjoyment in reaching into the WIS archives and telling my new work family some of the “horror stories” of counting at some of our bigger events. I’ve started to forget what it was like to work on the road. Being close to home does that to you, and it feels so good. I’m glad I have some of my old work friends to keep in touch with though.

At 40, it’s obvious I have way more appreciation for Giant Eagle than I did Kings and Eat’n Park (I worked for Park Classic Diner). I’m also more aware of the opportunities that are knocking on the doorstep. I’m not that same person who longed for the “good old days” of college even just a few years back.

Everything happens for a reason, and in early 2019 it was the right time for me to return to WIS after a short stint with Giant Eagle. That set the stage for all the good things took place in 2019 and helped mold me into who I am today. I wouldn’t have started this blog and I wouldn’t have found myself.

In 2021, when the WIS-RGIS merger was going to be a reality, I knew change was coming. Initially, I gave it the benefit of the doubt. Eventually though, I knew I needed to make that change for me. The question of where I would go was answered a week before Thanksgiving, and it was right for me to take a chance on it.

In November 2021, it was the right time for me to leave WIS and give Giant Eagle a chance. My work family was pulling for me to succeed and left the door open just in case I wanted to return. I’ve seen myself improve over time and feel as if I made the right decision.

So far, it has paid off really well.

I’ve been an avid listener of The Local 724 podcasts since late 2020 in an attempt to get to know my community better. 2020 was the year of supporting my local everything as small businesses were hit hard by the effects of the pandemic 😷. Jordan Hauser, the man behind the the podcasts, talks to local business owners and gets to know them better.

This most recent podcast was no different as Jordan and co-host Ryan Kelley had Alisha Edwards and Juliet Majestic in studio. The podcast has had Alisha on many times and she’s served as a cohost along with Sarah Petro/Just. On this week’s show, Jordan and Ryan got to know Juliet better, highlighting her art and how she’s become a fixture in the Greensburg community.

I met Juliet at the Trendy Bunny back in the Fall of 2020. I was in town for the Greensburg Night Market and I actually stopped in the shop that evening as they were open late on Thursdays. She has an amazing personality and while visiting Trendy one day, I gave her one of my Hallmark Countdown to Christmas books. She was overjoyed and started getting inspiration for the holidays.

I had her make a portrait of me and my now former coworkers from my work Christmas party back in 2019. I would have had her do the same for that picture of me, Sara and Rob from their wedding; or that one of us in front of the gazebo. Here’s the picture she drew and the girls really loved it.

I’ve been learning more about the Fine Arts for Littles classes Juliet is teaching by checking out the Instagram page. There’s some amazing work on there and this girl is really showcasing her talents. I think about all the work Angie Shaw/Wright has done to make Greensburg look beautiful and Juliet is on that level too. She studied at the Savannah College of Art and Design and worked at Anthropologie Home Outlet before coming to the Trendy Bunny Studio.

I haven’t visited Trendy since their first birthday event due to other events like my health scare in the Spring, as well as them being closed during the summer last year. I still keep up with them on Instagram and I am pleased to see the direction in which Alisha is taking Trendy. From children’s birthday parties to baby showers and other events, they seem to be doing a great business.

Tomorrow is Trendy’s second birthday. I wasn’t there for the grand opening but they had a full house that night from the pics I saw on Instagram. I was excited when I heard Wolf and Whisk and A Pretty Flower were going to be moving in. I’ve seen Kelsey at Night Markets and also at the Grand Opening for Masterspieces and her cookies are amazing. I also met Dani at one of the night markets and I know Sara would love to get some flowers from her. I’m looking forward to updates from Alisha on all things Trendy.

I’ll close off the blog with a shoutout to Lacey Douds. She’ll be busy this year with upcoming markets. She is the owner of The Golden Tee Co. and we met at Trendy in September of 2020 (she was one of the first people I met there).

She’ll be involved with the Greensburg Night Market and Ligonier Country Market this summer. Also, she will be doing Steeltown Market this April and the Mothers Marketplace this May, as well as the Neighborhood Flea on Mother’s Day and the I Made It Market this summer. The Mothers’ Marketplace is held at Bella Terra Vineyards in Hunker (near my old WIS office).

Lacey is going places and I wish her the best. I will be attending at least two or three of those markets this summer.

Two weeks ago, I had some Old Navy Super Cash I wanted to spend. I made some purchases in January but I knew I had more amazing fashionwear in mind. I wanted to continue to build on my successful gender nonconformity storyline of 2021 and not write it off as a phase.

I ordered my T-shirts and some cute summery outfits (OK they’re dresses 👗). Harry’s got some competition. With the Super Cash in addition to some great sales, I saved a lot of money. I haven’t tried on the dresses yet but plan to soon. Look out Harry Styles. The tops fit well and here are some pictures I took last night.

“I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again. You are slaying it 🔥 🔥 🔥!!!”—Sara Newsom (my just as fashionable “sister”)

These tops are perfect for a Saturday trip to Phipps to see the new Spring flowers or a Sunday at Greendance or Bella Terra (Moms’ Marketplace is May 14 & 15). Strawberry 🍓 season is coming (cherry 🍒 season too). I’m thinking of all the great desserts that can be made with strawberries.

Pair these tops with jeans and some cute accessories as well as a pair of sandals (a pair of those slides from the 90s would be perfect) as you enjoy some live music on a Sunday afternoon. Put on a blazer and make a great outfit of the day as you head out for a coffee date or lunch date on a warm Spring afternoon.

February has come and gone and we are ever so closer to Spring (16 days as of this blog). Unlike January, this month wasn’t as eventful. We didn’t see as much snow but more rain with a freezing rain event early. Presidents’ Day felt more like Spring as I took advantage of a nice day off to walk at Twin Lakes and spend the afternoon in Ligonier.

The Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Rams played in Super Bowl LVI on February 13. The Rams pulled it out at the end and won their second Super Bowl. Penn Hills native and Pitt alum Aaron Donald earned his Super Bowl ring and Matthew Stafford finally won the big one after so many frustrating years with the Lions.

Area 23 & 24 held its International Speech and Evaluation Contest on February 19. The contest was held at the Carnegie Free Library. We had great representation from Laurel Highlands as well as Greensburg and McKeesport. Our past and present dignitaries showed up as well to cheer on the contestants.

A few days later I attended my first Laurel Highlands meeting as one of their newest members. We had a guest speaker who talked about the importance of gestures. We even did a little exercise during Mary’s presentation. I’ll be giving an ice breaker at the March 8 meeting. This is my third ice speaker speech with Toastmasters and so I’m trying to give this one with more up to date material.

February has been my time to stock up on amazing fashionwear and Old Navy has not disappointed. I love this cute top that I use as the thumbnail for most of my blogs. As Sara (who used to work at Old Navy) tells me, “You are slaying it.” 🔥 🔥 🔥

I used my Super Cash last week to purchase some amazing t-shirts that will make for some cute Spring and Summer fits. With my Super Cash (good for $30 off) and the deals that were going at the time, I saved a lot of money. In tomorrow’s blog, I will do a fashion show and talk about how I plan to style my new Spring and Summer wardrobe.

What’s coming up in March ☘️? Toastmasters contests are in full swing as we heat up for the divisional round. I will get wire reports from social media when when I can to update you. My availability isn’t as abundant as much as it was. The new job at Giant Eagle and the blog having my attention as well as my love of fashion.

On a positive note to end the blog, I celebrated my three month anniversary with Giant Eagle and I believe I made the right choice. Paula congratulated me and gave me credit for being able to handle such a tricky schedule. She told me I had Mason blood in me. It’s an elite family name that goes back to England. They are hard workers, loyal to a fault, and have an interesting history.

That Mason blood is definitely special. Regards to my actual blood relations who are also hard workers.

Today marks my three month anniversary with Giant Eagle. I was hired the Friday before Thanksgiving and did my orientation around the holiday. I did my training and computer work on Black Friday (I also picked up my medication at the pharmacy located inside the store that day so I was able to see some of the employees as they did their work). My first night of work was the Monday after Thanksgiving.

So far, things have gone well with Giant Eagle and it’s hard to believe that at one point I used to drive to Pittsburgh all the time for work. While I’ve only been with Giant Eagle three months, it seems as if I’ve been there longer. I started around the holidays, and that meant I was really busy stocking. I get better every day and take the time to listen to my team when it comes to improving myself.

Here’s a variety six pack of cold hard facts about me. A few covering Giant Eagle, as well as WIS, and my post academia life so far. Don’t worry, I have no hard feelings about my past.

Fact #1: I came back to WIS at the right time in January 2019 and it helped shape where I am now. I got to experience Target, built my work friendships, and began to find myself and my definition of style. I had a little inspiration 🍒.

Fact #2: I left WIS at the right time in November 2021 and it has worked out well. I miss my work family and still keep in touch with them through Facebook.

Fact #3: Working at Giant Eagle has been very convenient for me. I know where everything is when I go grocery shopping; I get my medication at the pharmacy; and, I’m five minutes from home and know when I’ll be done every night.

Fact #4: This isn’t my first time working for Giant Eagle. I was briefly employed at the Eastgate location in late 2018 and early 2019 before going back to WIS full time.

Fact #5: Working at Giant Eagle runs in my family. My uncle worked at various locations for 20+ years in the meat department (in addition to working for Gee Bee and other chains) and my sister worked as a deli clerk for five years at the Eastgate location and briefly at Hempfield as a Deli leader.

Fact #6: I spent a long time living in the past wondering how things could have been different with my education. Early in my post academia life, I denounced myself because I had a degree and was working a menial job. I wasn’t looking at the long term. But over the last few years, I am happy with the way things have turned out.

After only three months on the job, I’m starting to forget what it was like to travel for work (which I did for over a decade). I’ve had my flashbacks to my not so great days but I think we’ve driven over that valley for good now.

Looking back at my post academia life, the first few years (2006-2008) were the hardest before I saw slight improvement (2009-2012). Better days came (2013-2017) and these last few years (2018–present) have made me realize that I’m at a good place in life.