A Day in the Life of a Master(s) of Education

So this year is ending differently than I expected. Yet this is not a surprise....in fact if it hadn't, it wouldn't be real life. I am looking forward to 2015. I always look forward to a new year because its so ripe with possibilities. This is also a great time to be uber reflective and decisive about the coming year. What is different: I am single now and back to dating, right now I have a really great guy in my life with potential to become more than a friend. I have be somewhat promoted with the latest expansion at work there has been a large reshuffling of duties and some added opportunities that have become available. Reflecting on my current state in life I have made a list of what I want to accomplish in the next 5 years, after all it's been that long since I graduated from college and thus now is the time to make sure I am in a place that I want to be and adjust if I am not (I'm close but not there yet). What is staying the same: My desire...

So as a part of my year of travel, I planned a weekend birthday trip over Thanksgiving to New Orleans. With Amanda & LJ in tow we hit the Crescent City with an explorers passion. We drank on Bourbon Street, danced on Frenchmen's Street & ate our way through plates of beignets, po boys & alligator. On Thanksgiving day we were able to even find a turducken, a combo of turkey, duck and chicken all cooked in one. Though I had my heart set on finding a Cajun fried turkey I settled for another Louisiana flavor in the turducken which was still very delicious. We accomplished most of the things I had on my list and met some really awesome people. Another trip is definitely in the works. Of my year of travel this is top three following Tokyo & Savannah. Apparently I like water a little more then I realized. Until next post.... laters

Hanging out on the set of the BET show "The Game" and spotted one of the lead actors Hosea Chanchez aka "Malik Wright". Thanks KoP!

So technically my year of travel isn't over with 3 more trips on the docket but I just came back from the most epic trip thus far and wanted to talk about it a little. So in all the whirlwind that has been my life recently I was presented the opportunity to go to Japan with a couple of friends. When a person offers you a trip to a foreign country you have dreamed about, you take it....so even though I had plans to go visit my parents in DC and see Bastille in concert, I sold those tickets and called my mom and told her I would bring her a Kimono from Japan and flew away. What an experience! The people seemed to be a little shy around me but otherwise the place has a rustic charm meshed with modern day appeal. From the mountains of Kyoto to the vibrant nightlife of Tokyo I loved it all. Favorite Things: Traditional Onsen (Japanese Bathhouse) in Kyoto,  Tokyo Disney Sea, karaoke in Tokyo & green tea kit kats Things I could have done without: The constant stares without sp...

So I titled this post "Fenuxe" as a play on the traditional spelling Phoenix for two reasons 1) it's symbolic of the changes that have happened in my life & 2) showing how rebirth doesn't always happen how/when/why you want it to. Now that we are on the same page let's dive into the details of my latest rebirth. I may have already touched on this but just in case I'll do it again. I am currently living the single life again (not very well, but I am doing it) and as such I have used this opportunity to look at myself in the mirror and try to see what others may see. In essence what makes people want to be around me and in some cases ultimately date me. When I did this,  there were physical aspects I still wasn't satisfied with and some inner qualities that I felt needed some refinement.  So that has been my task of late, getting through the fire of a breakup and rising from the ashes as a fenuxe with new radiance! So far I have met each step of the tran...

Well Blogger World, The month of August has been an interesting one. Some major life changes have happened that I don't want to go into but were substantial enough to put into motion a new course of life. Actually I will take the time to talk about one of those changes. On a recent trip to WDW I was disapproved in a few of my roles due to my weight gain and size. I will credit WDW Costuming Manager Winnie for handling a tricky situation with kindness and grace. I understand that she has a job to do and a look to achieve and currently I do not meet those guidelines. Though I was initially upset and distraught, I have since used this as a fuel to my fire weight loss and body toning goals. I have evaluated my eating habits and have since adopted a 4-5/day week workout routine and a protein packed 2000 calorie eating plan. I do not really like the word "diet", too many negative connotations. I feel good. I like it thus far. It has been a struggle to be consistent but with m...

  So here is the long awaited list of artists from my year of concerts: Maroon 5  Owl City Macklemore and Ryan Lewis Flo Rida  Armin VanBuren Fifth Harmony Bonnie Mckee Neon Trees Miley Cyrus Robin Thicke Travie McCoy Elton John Bruno Mars Fitz and the Tantrums 3Oh3!  One Republic Olly Murs Lupe Fiasco Ke$ha Pitbull Lil Wayne T.I Matchbox 20 Goo Goo Dolls Icona Pop Fun. P!nk Imagine Dragons Gwar Talib Kwali Austin Mahone The Wailers Favorite: Bruno Mars Maroon 5 Ke$ha Best Bang for My Buck: One Republic Elton John Jingle Ball (Multiple Artist for 1 price) Must See Again: One Republic Maroon 5 P!nk Fun. Overall Review: So my year of concerts was one of the best things I have ever done. I saw so many great bands and artists,  became a fan of new ones and grew as a music lover. Attending so many shows also showed me the value of music festivals and the like...

Whew!  Where is the time going? It feels like ever since I made resolutions to do things with my life (exploring Atlanta,  Year of Concerts,  Year of travel, etc) everything is whizzing by. It's such an awesome feeling, though the realization that I have been in a loving and supportive relationship for almost 2 years (June 21st!!!!) is still a hard pill to swallow. Even with everything great that is happening and the bad that inevitability comes along I am so content and fulfilled in my life. Some days are harder than others but the general concensus is a positive one. Thank you to all the people who have had a part in my life....even the guy who pissed me off at work today ;-) Until next post....laters!!!

As a part of my year of travel I have attened a few music festivals.  Most recently has been the Big Guava Festival in Tampa.  It rained 2 of the 3 days but seeing Outkast, Girl Talk. Tegan & Sara and Twenty One Pilots was totally worth it.  Here are a few pics from rainy day antics with Amanda in Florida.

This one was unexpectedly awesome. Regina King @ the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Apparently she was scouting for a movie filming in Atlanta.  What made it so awesone was how laid back she was. The highlight of a Manic Monday. 

For the second time I have let a month slip by without a single post. However in my defense I posted 3 times in February and it's the shortest month of the year. Since my real accountability is only to myself, I am going to let this one pass. Anyways it has been crazy busy (another contributing factor in a non-post month) with me working 3 jobs again,  working on my resolutions & the overall pace that is Spring! That being said I have come to the official end of last year's resolution also known as "The Year of Concerts". As promised there will a post with photos and comments,  just not this one. For that I need a computer and about 1hr neither of which is available to me right now. Maybe I will hijack work computer or even Jesse's. Alas I just wanted to check in with you blogger world and let you know I haven't forgotten about you! Until next post..... laters

In my last post I commented that my 2014 resolution would be to travel to a new place every month. Well I have finished the preliminary list but it is open to changes due to budget, time and other variables.  Just wanted to at least get a starting point down. So here it is! January-Kansas City February-Rock City March-Savannah April-Macon May-Tampa/St. Pete June-Charleston July-Ocean City August-Pittsburgh September-Charlotte October-Helen November-New Orleans December-Nashville Hopefully I can to all these places,  after all nothing beats a try but a failure! Until next post.... laters

These haven't been happening as much for me lately in Atlanta (mostly because I haven't been out and about) so I was pretty excited about it. Spotted Samuel L. Jackson (Snakes on a Plane, Pulp Fiction, Captain America) at a prescreening of Robocop. It had been a really tough day so I was kinda of excited to see a DC Native and celeb. That's all for now. Until next post laters!!

So while I have been busy having a social life other things have been popping up!  On the work front the whole outside horticulture team has been commuting to Buford, Georgia to work at a set of greenhouses that house our summer exhibit, Mosaiculture.  It has been a team building project but so hard on the body. In fact I am in the company van aka family van aka the white whale typing this.   I really have respect for the workers who not only do this for a living but also work on pieces that can as large as 50ft tall and 20ft wide.  More on this project later.  Another incident of note was the Snowpocalyse 2014 aka Snowmaggedon 2014 aka SnOwMG 2014, where Atlanta got 2" of snow that caused massive traffic jams,  a birth and a city that shut down for 2 days. I think the SNL Weekend Update was the most comical take on events that were not so funny in the moment. Anyway almost at the greenhouses so I am signing off for now. Until next post enjoy this pho...

So today I  decided to check my blog from a computer (usually I manage it from my phone), and in doing so I found I am not alone in slightly abandoning it! Of the 9 blogs on my "follow" list 3 haven't been updated since 2012 & 4 only have 2-3 posts in 2013. I must admit it felt sort of good to know that I was not alone in the struggle to keep blogging alive. Now the optimist in me would like to think that the lack of blogging is all due to my generation of peers walking away from the computer. Instead of blogging about their respective lives they are out there living it! In all actuality it is more likely that the blogger world has become so saturated that people have just given up knowing that there is a struggle to find an audience. How does one set themselves apart? When I started this blog many moons ago, it was not about the readers. To me this blogs purpose was to keep my family and friends who may not have been on other social media outlets (i.e. Facebook, M...