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

So today I went out with some friends.  This was a mixed group consisting of friends I've had for over a decade and friends I've had for a few months. When I talked about my life as it is now one thing I noticed between both groups.... no judgement. At least not to my face. I'd like to think that the friends that I have would at least say to my face when they were judging me. Even so, looking at my friends after sharing my story, I was even more confident that I have chosen the best folks to be in my life. In the end tonight solidified that quality over quantity is what matters. And boy am I thankful for that. Until next post . Laters

So a couple of years ago, Atlanta got a football(soccer) team. I was pretty excited. Growing up in the Washington DC area, DC United was pretty much our only consistenly good winning team. Couple that with my Caribbean heritage and I've always sort of enjoyed the sport. I never really overly invested though. That changed when the announcement was made about Atlanta United. I'm not sure why it happened, probably something to do with the Atlanta Thrashers (NHL Hockey) leaving and having a sense of lost when that happened. Nonetheless when tickets went on sale for the first AU game I was there. Several games and 2 stadiums later I had become a full fledged member of the "Footie Mob"(still learning the chants tbh but hey got to start somewhere). Flash forward 2 years and me having a stint in the UK (Go LCFC!) I got back to Atlanta just in time to see my Atlanta United win the MLS Cup. Oh boy what a run it has been. I'm so proud of the expansion team that could! On Mon...

Another holiday season is upon us! Another time were I am torn about how much I spend versus how much I save. Bah humbug. Alas hopefully I will have several epiphanies before December 14th.

Hello out there Blogger World, The other day I was wearing a tank top and shorts with flip flops and a wide brim hat...eating a pumpkin chai latte POPSICLE. In the SE fall isn't always "real" and you never know if it will last long. We just don't "do" cooler temperatures. Forget what the calendar says, it isn't really fall in the south until you are eating/drinking pumpkin flavoured items. I, for one, love that. Now don't get me wrong, I love comfy sweaters and boots and layering clothes as much (and sometimes more than) the next person but there is something to be said about eating a pumpkin popsicle. I have friends who hate the constant warmth (even into late October) that the south offers but to me it's perfect. I get to enjoy warmer weather AND do "traditional" fall things like visit the pumpkin patch, drink cider and stouts and porter style beer, apple picking, fall festivals, a single layer Halloween costume, the list goes on. I...

It's almost been a year since I left the place I've come to call home for the unknown. That unknown being life abroad and graduate school. Making the decision was hard, in fact when I first began the path of graduate school I was single, unsure of any potential for growth or diversity in my job and had started to feel like I had outgrown my life. No longer was I the young 20something, new to the city, exploring and discovering myself. In fact I felt the opposite. I felt like I had been there...done that...time to move on. I don't always think that everything happens for a reason, but I do believe that our path is winding and we don't always clearly see what's ahead of us. Anyway back to the reflective bit. I was in a place where I needed a change (or so I thought) and thus decided to apply for grad school. Fun fact: I looked for schools here and abroad. I also explored taking the GREs again or doing a short course to see if I could even handle being in school aga...

What a week! In the last 7 days I have finished and submitted my dissertation (whew), attended Dragon Con, celebrated J's 30th birthday, saw lots of friends, made some new ones, saw Peter Capaldi and Pearl Mackie (swoon), danced until my feet hurt, listened to the Georgia Philharmonic play nerd tunes, finished a cosplay, handed out free snacks, stayed up for hours and made life long memories. This has been a week for the history books. Until next post... laters

I've been thinking about the future a lot lately (probably to ignore the present, but that's a story for another time) and it has dawned on me I should make another bucket list. My bucket lists are things I'd like to accomplish but won't be super down on myself if I don't. More like a life wish list. This will probably be updated again but for now, here we go: Travel to each continent (Africa, Mainland Asia & South America left) Learn to ride a motorcycle Visit every Disney Park in the world Attend an Olympics Have an office (which I can decorate however I'd like) Become a flight attendant/work for an airline Learn another language and be proficient (American Sign Language, Spanish or French) Own a old Jeep or Mini Cooper or any car made between 1970 & 1998 Go to San Diego Comic Con or New York Comic Con Take a Disney Cruise, hopefully to Alaska Update Jan 2019: I mentioned in this original post that I would probably update ...

Things I will miss about living in England: •Walkers Cheese & Onion Crisps •Knowing exactly what something cost, taxes included •Using coffee night/wine night as prees in the Common Room before a night out with the girls...or turning it into our own party •All night study sessions in the David Wilson Library, especially in the Graduate Reading Room •Travelling to just about anywhere with ease on the cheap •Popping down to London within a couple of hours •Open containers and having a beer in the park on a nice day •Meeting up with so many friends, some I haven't seen in years •Having a pint at the pub •Primark •Grocery delivery •Weatherspoons, especially The Corn Exchange •A kebab & cheesy chips from AJs after a long night at the library •Playing quidditch (even in the snow) in Victoria Park •Leicester's Curry Mile •Quick trips in to town that turn into adventures ...

Munich:   Salzburg:   Budapest: Prague:     Dresden:       Amsterdam:                  

There's been ups and downs and I've almost reached the finish line. Just wanted to pop in and say EuroTrip 2018 has been a great way to finish up my time in the UK. The plan was to stay in the UK until mid-September but as they say...best laid plans. Due to a turn of events, I'll be heading back home sooner than originally thought so I booked a EuroTrip with some of my friends as a send off to my time here. The trip included 5 countries (The Netherlands, Germany, The Czech Republic, Hungary & Austria) and 6 cities. Of those, 5 were totally brand new to me. As per usual I do 2-3 things in every country I  have visited since I first studied abroad in Italy back in 2007... 1) Drink beer/wine/liquor 2) Eat McDonalds 3) Purchase a button. When I travelled to Italy for the first time, I learned the drinking age was 18 and also to love wine. To this day I still appreciated the fact that I bought amazing red wine in a juice box while there. I still talk about it as well. I...

So it seems as though I've only been in the UK for a few months but actually it's been almost 9 months. In that time, I've traveled more than I have in my life, made friends from all over the world and really started to appreciate that I have the best network of family and friends anyone could have. As my time here comes closer to its end, I could not be any happier that I took this leap. I wasn't sure it would be worth it to leave the life I had setup for myself and the path I was dedicated to but these last few months have helped me grow so much. I honestly believe I am a better person than I was when I got here, for all the trials, tribulations and triumphs. Here are a few pics of my latest UK adventures, looking forward to see what is next.

Several weeks ago I was suffering from a case of homesickness. Thankfully that has mostly dissipated. One of the ways that helped was travelling. In the last month or so I have been to Edinburgh, Scotland; Alnwick, Northumberland, England; York, England; Dublin, Ireland; Belfast, Ireland; St. Austell, Cornwall, England & Cardiff, Wales. For those of you following at home that means I've seen every country that makes up the United Kingdom. What a trip. In Scotland, it snowed but I got to eat in the restaurant where J.K. Rowling wrote much of the Harry Potter Series. In Alnwick, I had the chance to visit a poison garden, cross the sea at low tide to visit The Holy Island and take broomstick flying lessons at Alnwick Castle (the Hogwarts Castle in the first two films). In York, I was able to stroll the Shambles which served as the modern day Diagon Alley and also attend a Sunday service at York Minister. Dublin and Cardiff gave me the opportunity to party and dance all night with ...