Another Year, Another chance to rebrand

(This is going to be a rambling mess.)

And I'm back. I don't know how many times I've "restarted" this blog. It changes with every chapter of my life, and most of them are still here if you read back far enough. But after yet another year (or two) of not writing anything, I'm hoping, yet again, to get more consistent about this. Why? Because I have more to write about now...ish. This blog has always been an outlet for me to update my friends and family on my life. I can post pictures and stories, and generally talk about how I feel. I often imagine that I'm writing this for my grandma to read (she doesn't btw). I've always wanted to focus it more on "useful information" (ie. tutorials and reviews and what not), but travel blogging and history research posts are not for me. This brings me to 2020.

2020 was a year. It was stressful, chaotic, and downright scary. Like literally, when all this started I thought it really was the end of the world (still not convinced it isn't). It didn't help that my January and February were both pretty rough and stressful. I was looking forward to some pretty big stuff in March and April, and then the world shut down. 

They closed the office requiring everyone to report their speed on their internet (something that I didn't have) and start working from home. I hated it. Somehow, I managed to think quickly on my feet, and right out the gate I made a choice to take advantage of working from home to complete a goal that I had made earlier in the year. The end of March, Pineapple the Miniature War Pig came home with me.
It was so weird rushing to get supplies and trying to get to South Carolina, where the breeder was, all with the fear that I wouldn't be able to cross state lines. And let me tell you! Having a baby pig is not a simple easy thing. It might sound stupid cause animals and humans are different, but I really did feel like a first time single parent. But we got used to it. He would sit on my lap while I was taking calls, and we would have lunch outside in the sun. 

Then the next step of the world ending happened: the layoffs and furloughs. This was shocking, but honestly not quite as scary as I expected it to be.

I want to add a disclaimer here: I know I was very fortunate and that there are many who were not as fortunate. I hope that as we embrace the holidays that we all continue to remember those who are still struggling.

My manager told me that I would be brought back as soon as he could. The only question now was, what to do for five weeks? If you know me, you know I can't stay in one place for long, and the idea of just sitting in my apartment for five weeks while the world was ending sounded like hell. I wanted to be out there; I wanted to see what I had yet to see, but more states were closing, and I didn't want to get stuck somewhere. So off to grandma's house I went with the plan to stay put there until things calmed down. This was such a valuable time for me. While I wasn't as productive as I had wanted to be, I got to spend valuable time with my grandma before she moved to a retirement home; also, my uncle and my cousin, who had the same idea to wfh with his dad and our grandma. I also got to spend two weeks with one of my best friends, which was the cherry on top. 

Not long after that, I was back in Charlotte running not one but two clubs. A bunch of friends had all been asking to come camping with me, so I created the Summer Camping Series: a series of camping trips that people could come to over the summer. All this was set up before Covid, and I just sorta went with it. The other club is a bit more of a passion project for me. I realised one day as I was sitting home missing costume events that I couldn't be the only one. So I created The Charlotte Costume Club for people who like to make and wear costumes. It's not easy starting a club in the middle of a Pandemic and disappointments continued as reenactments kept getting canceled. Taking on something as big as these clubs really helped me see where my passion is and is helping me to focus on one thing. I love reenacting, but I don't love it for the history. I love it for the opportunity to make and wear something different than modern attire. (If any of my costumers are reading this: Thanks for turning my crazy idea into a success.)

I know that 2020 was a dumpster fire, but the real message I'm trying to spread here is to look back at this year from hell. Look at the days before and who you were, look at all you've accomplished. It just might be that within all the stress, the fear, and the uncertainty there is success. The world hasn't ended yet. We've made it this far. This is a new year, and while it will not be as drastically different as we all want it to be, it will be different because we want it to be. 

As for me and my blog, I am continuing to embrace the change. The goals I accomplished in 2020 are inspiring me to do more in 2021. I am creating more content to share my love of costumes. I am setting new goals and building mood boards and becoming what I want to be. Thanks for coming along as I create a new chapter here. May peace, love, and entertainment come your way.