It has been over a year since I put the figurative pen to paper, and boy, let me tell you – a lot has happened.
My career took off, and I found myself busier than ever. Writing took a back seat. I had to focus on working and caring for the boys.
I’d have moments when I missed it. There’s always been something that’s drawn me to stringing words together. Mostly, I didn’t have time to miss it, though. I’d have fleeting ideas while on the road for work, and by the time I got home I was too tired to put them down in more than a Facebook post.
There was a lot going on, and I felt like life was non-stop. To quickly recap everything that’s happened. . .
On March 7th, 2022, I wrote A Little Bit of Sunshine, and detailed my excitement at rising spring temperatures. That was the last post I would have the time to fully write, because shortly after I was informed that the property I was working at was being sold, and I was being promoted. I quickly created a spot in the corner of our basement to accommodate an office so I could work from home. The new position would require both remote and on-site work, and on days I wasn’t sitting in my basement I found myself traveling to different cities in Ohio to assist with the training and operations of other properties in our portfolio. It was a whole different level of property management, and I wasn’t mad. I always have said that there isn’t a dull moment in property management, and it proved to be true as I navigated these other, unknown properties. I got to see new places and meet and help new people. I mostly stuck to properties less than three hours drive away, but I also found myself in Baltimore more than once, and a work conference took me to Vegas. It was a good thing I overcame my fear of expressway driving, and don’t have a huge fear of flying, because according to Google I traveled the equivalent of one time around the world in 2022.
Meanwhile, I was living my best life with my kids. We got this bright idea to pick a location two hours away in each direction – North, South, East and West – and do mini road trips. We visited the Fort Wayne Zoo, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Cedar Point, and Frankenmuth, Michigan. I also squeezed in a trip to Amish Country, and a music festival – both just a couple of hours away from home. Not to mention the weekend US 12 garage sale trip I took with Matt and his girlfriend, and countless mini adventures near home. There were lake days and zoo trips and little festivals around town that occupied our weekends. During the week it was nose to the grindstone, though. Life was intense, and fun, and there were so many memories made and new things experienced.
Late summer brought another promotion and prepping for back to school. Matt began his senior year, and navigating scholarship and college applications and obtaining his driver’s license was a whole new part of parenting that came far quicker than I thought it would.
Mind you – The day to day never stopped during all of this. I am still a single parent, and while I have help, I still needed to care for my children. Often, I’d work from 830am-7pm and still had to keep up on laundry and house cleaning and cooking and doctor’s appointments.
We made it through all of the hectic craziness though – somehow, I balanced it all. Matt got accepted with a full tuition scholarship at a nearby college and got himself a paid internship at a tech company in town. He got his driver’s license – which I can’t take full credit for, because someone else taught him the majority of what he needed to know because my nerves couldn’t handle the process. But he did get it, and it meant a lot to him. Chase made honor roll each quarter for the entire school year, and grew up so much this year that he’s like a whole different person. Things may have been hectic and crazy, and I may have been sleeping only 5-6 hours some nights, but life was the best it’s ever been.
It came to a screeching halt in May of this year, when I found out my entire portfolio was going to a different property management company, and my position was being eliminated. I quickly found a job and exited the company I’d been with for seven years, only to find the new job wasn’t a good fit.
And so, here we are. I’ve found yet another job and am awaiting my start date – in roughly two weeks.
I don’t have the excuse of hecticness anymore. The kids are on summer break, and I’m not working, meaning funds are limited so there will be minimal adventuring until cash flow resumes . . .
So why not write?
I’ve talked time and again about how shit can change in the blink of an eye. My life has always been a prime example of this, but things have calmed down considerably over the last couple of years. I really thought all the nasty curve balls had been thrown and I’d finally found stability. Mostly, I’m not mad about all of this change – I’m always down for a new adventure, to learn something new and take in new experiences. I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t a little worried, though. I’d be a liar if I said I wasn’t a little bitter about the timing, and the overall fact that I was fucking comfortable, and life dealt me a brand-new hand of cards.
Here we are though. I guess we’re navigating the unknown again.
The bitterness will pass, I have no doubt. I’m not one to dwell on the negative. I may be worried, and nervous. But this isn’t the worst thing that’s happened to me. I have caught every single curve ball that life has thrown at me, I have used every shitty card to my advantage.
So here we go. Let’s see what this new chapter brings.
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
So, This is Real Life 