I am back from a long absence. There’s been a lot that has happened, and I can’t wait to share what has been going on with myself, Zora, and what life has thrown at the both of us.
The first thing is that we moved from my mom’s place to a studio apartment in August. The long and short of it is that the house my mom was in became a money pit for the landlord and he decided to sell the property. It was terrible for me because I wanted to turn the basement area into an office space where I can write and create things for my business, and it seemed like the landlord wasn’t going to clean it out. I almost gave up the notion of having a basement office, but I am on the prowl for a home Zora and I can move into without having to pay someone’s mortgage with the rent.
We’re now in a studio apartment and I hate the current landlord. He’s accused me of clogging up the already-ancient pipes with flushable wipes, and I roll my eyes at him. I think he’s looking for a way to get us to leave the building and can’t do that because he’ll be accused of discriminating against a single mom and doesn’t want to get labeled as a racist. I’m still on the hunt for a home and I’ll be better able to design the house to the way I wish, and safe for Zora and me.
I also quit working at the factory in Skokie after seven years. I found out somebody had it out for me the second I arrived, and I was stupid to trust this individual. Third-shift working is not for the weak; I started to appreciate what people did on first and second shifts in terms of locating items and where to place them as well. I do miss some people I befriended there and am grateful to have met them, the rest I do not miss at all, and their levels of toxicity are that of Chornobyl. I outgrew that place, and I am currently working in a better environment that is way less toxic, the hours are better, and I have an opportunity to grow there. I did take a pay cut in salary, but it is worth it.
I updated my hosting because I missed the deadline to do so before I lost everything. Luckily for me, I did save the graphics and other pics. I also decided to participate in both Blogtober and Blogmas this year. I made the banners and I still have the graphics. I began writing some of the articles during my break, and I have some I need to finish by the end of September. I did leave some to write during the challenges as they come along. I found an old grammar book and began revisiting everything I had learned over the years on how to write in a concise manner and get straight to the point on things. I also plan on adding more original pics that I take to showcase my photography skills.
Speaking of upgrading skills, I am upping my video editing skills to add YouTube videos here to help drive traffic. I am making an intro I would love to use for the beginning of my vlogs, and I would like to make a tutorial on how I made it utilizing some free tools that are available. What I haven’t decided on is which platform I want to film the tutorials on a laptop or a phone. The question later becomes how do I screen record my phone and laptop and convey what I’m saying in a way the viewers will understand and get it. I don’t want to dumb down the tutorials, and I also don’t want to say it spoken or written in a condescending way, either. I also don’t want to plagiarize someone either. I’ll figure it out before I get to that point.
Last, but not least, Zora completed her kindergarten year at school and is moving on to the first grade. She has grown a lot, gained friends, and is learning about herself and the world around her. She is going out of town with my mom for a week to get out of the city and meet some of her kinfolks. When she comes back, she is going to day camp to learn how to swim. She expressed a desire to learn how to do that. I made it a rule that I will not force her to take up a sport, instrument, or anything else unless she expresses it explicitly.
I have to run and get some last-minute things ready for Zora and my mom’s trip. See you in the next post!
