Gratituesday 8.1.17 - Starting Again

Ten years ago today I moved across the country from Atlanta, GA to Davis, CA. I had lived in the Dirty South for 16 years and it was time for something new. So I packed up my belongings, sold my condo and headed West for new adventures. In fact, I blogged about the whole experience. Check it out if you're interested! It was an amazing journey and there are so many people to thank. A perfect way to use my Gratitude list.

GRATITUDES
1. Jennifer Denning, Angela & Chris Aquino and Erin Haas & Steve Behnke for helping me organize, downsize and pack my belongings 10 years ago!
2. Michele Pearce and her husband, Matthew Feldman for hosting a yard sale so I could sell some of my crap, but mostly donate it to a good cause.
3. Suehyla El-Attar for being there as the movers packed my furniture and boxes into 2 shipping containers. And also informing me that at least one of the 2 movers was reeking of alcohol. This forced me to keep an eye on how they worked, but it only stressed me out more. In fact, they did a shitty job. Most of my furniture was damaged in some way in the move. Sigh.
4. Jennifer Levison and her son, Jonah for inviting me to stay in their home for the month of July. There was a month gap from when I had to sell my condo and my move date. As per usual, Jenny was gracious for allowing me and my two cats to take over Jonah's room. She also made the emotional drive to the airport. Gosh, I was a mess.
5. Margaret Baldwin and Jennifer Denning for throwing me a lovely farewell party. And Jennifer for creating a lovely ritual with my closest friends.
6. My mother. I can never thank my mom enough. She flew from New York and met me in Atlanta and together we flew with the cats to Sacramento. When we arrived at 9PM it was 100 degrees. Talk about culture shock. After complaining about my dirty and smelly new apartment, she worked with me to clean and unpack. And made many trips to Bed, Bath and Beyond with me to make my new apartment, home.
7. Chad Sniffen. I met Chad through Sarah Raskin. He lived in Sacramento and was a great resource and friend when I arrived. He met my mother and me at my new apartment in Davis with a futon since my shipping containers would not be delivered for a few days. We took him out for a COLD beer, mostly because we NEEDED one and it was still over 90 degrees out!
8. Art Gruenberger for saving my ass and giving me a job! I met Art during the interview process at UC Davis. As an alum I reached out to him for suggestions when it was looking like the acting class I was set to teach would not happen due to low enrollment. Art founded a puppet company and was looking for someone to be a mascot for the month at the California State Fair. Luckily, it was a new suit, so it wasn't smelly. But sadly, I was punched, slapped or kicked every day mostly by adults. Oh, and did I mention that it was over 100 degrees most days? I wore ice packs around my waist and neck to keep cool.
9. Christine Samson and Tony Shayne for basically being the kids in the sandbox who said, "Hi, I'm new here, wanna be friends?" They were great classmates and I am happy for their amazing friendships to this day.

Apologies in advance as I'm sure I'm missing a few people. It really took a village. And of course, I did it all again 5 years later as I moved from Oakland, CA back to NYC! But enough nostalgia, since I am already a bit emotional right now. Here are some CURRENT Celebrations and Desires!

CELEBRATIONS
1. I had a few HOURS of a clean kitchen sink! This is a tough one for me since I cook so much at home. I always have pots, sheet pans and dishes that need to be washed. Here's to taking it step by step and doing a little bit EVERY day.
2. Regular daily yoga
3. The return to daily Spanish lessons
4. Four new wedding inquiries this week and 1 more booking for this year
5. More social events to help me expand my circle!
6. More business connections to expand my professional circle!

DESIRES
1. A clean and organized apartment
2. A home I love
3. More travel
4. Booking at least 2 of the 5 pending counseling couples
5. To continue my education of essential oils

Okay, folks that was a doozy. But it does make me want to blog on the regular again. In the meantime, please take some time to reflect and appreciate. If you need a cheerleader or an ass-kicker for your Celebrations and Desires, please let me know. Here's to a great week!