The Bold Badass

(Playing with a -8.00 lens blank) For those of you that don't know...I am an OPTICIAN!!! I absolutely LOVE what I do. I decided in March of 2012 while giving the gift of sight to the children on National City, California that I wanted to be an optician. I literally made my first pair of glasses and thought it was the coolest thing ever.  (The day I decided to become an optician!) Fast forward 5 years and I finally got my license. Georgia is a license state. Which means that if you are dispensing glasses and contacts...there must a license on site for the hours you are open. That being said...I have to get continuing education hours.  Y'all!! I freaking LOVE to learn new stuff. I am such a nerd. I have been adding classes everyday since Wednesday. Now I want to figure out how to go to all the optical conferences and go back to school.  I have always LOVED learning. The only thing that has been frustrating for me is that I wanted to take certa...

This weekend I lost a part of my confidence.  I am sitting here trying to write this blog with tears streaming down my face. I am having a really hard time coming to terms with my hair.   Let me give you a little back story.... Last year during the summer, I noticed I was starting to break out a lot. I noticed some weight gain and that I was chronically fatigued and in pain...DAILY!  I started tracking my symptoms and couldn’t figure out what was wrong so I scheduled an appointment with my OBGYN. All I knew is my hormones were acting crazy and my break outs were under my chin. (Which is typically a sign of a hormonal imbalance.) I also scheduled an appointment with a PCP. (In case you missed that blog post...I fired my entire healthcare team and started over late last year.) Well I couldn’t get in with my doctor for 3 months. (That irritated me...a different story that is in my blog.) For 7 months I dealt with hormonal issues. I notice...

(Photo Credit: jill_studio) Happy 34th BIRTHDAY!!!! FUCK!!! How did I get this old!?!?!?! First and foremost….Happy Birthday to my twinnie…Rossie!! This is going to be our best year yet. You’re getting married to your person and I am so excited to be right by your side. Birthdays always tend to be my biggest reflection day of the year. I always think about what I have accomplished. Have I hit the goals that I made last year? Am I where I expected to be by now? [You know..comparing yourself to others your age or younger. This one is the fucking worst!!! Don’t do this!!!]  This year I decided my word of the year would be EVOLVE. Well…that is what I am going to do this year. I am focusing on evolving. This year…I am asking different questions. Am I living in the moment? Am I making my future self proud? Am I present with my friends and family? (photo credit: Adam Bouska) This year I decided my word of the year would be EVOLVE. Well…that is what I am go...

2 years ago today, I escaped a very dangerous situation. Let me share a little about my story for those of you that have never heard it. This is a TRIGGER WARNING. If you have been in a situation with a narcissist and/or a sociopath…know that this is going to get deep. You may not want to continue reading! February 4, 2018...It feels like it was 5 years ago but also feels like yesterday. I never in my wildest dreams thought that I would become a domestic abuse survivor. I have watched all the Lifetime movies and always thought they were over the top and not anywhere near the truth. That was until I lived my own version. Looking back on the entire relationship I see all of the red flags that I completely ignored. I didn't share them with anyone because I thought I was overreacting. I also thought that things would pass. Things were so magical in the beginning. I fell in love. The super deep love. You know where you picture your life together and talk about what life will be...

I was challenged today. That challenge was looking at all the things that happened in my past and to evaluate those events. If the event was negative...I was asked to list a positive that was a result. Sexual Assualt at 5 years old by a family member. Domestic Abuse Relationship. Adopted. Mother in a wheelchair. Corporate Retail. When I thought about things that have defined the person I am today...these are the 5 things that stand out in my mind. There is some negative parts...but there is even more positive. For those of you that don't know...I am adopted. This is one of my favorite parts of my story. It is probably the most confusing yet fascinating parts. I was adopted by my birth mother's childhood best friend. My Moms have known each other since they were 12. I mean if I could figure out how to legally make me and my best gal family...I would do it! Our family dynamic is crazy and confusing for outsiders. I wouldn't change this nontrad...

I am gonna come right out and say it... FUCK HORMONES!!! For the last 7 months...I have been fighting with my body. It all started when I started to feel my eyes get really heavy after lunch every day. The first thing I did was change up my lunches. I figured that whatever I was eating was making me hit that 3pm afternoon lull. It was when I couldn't keep my eyes open on the drive home from work that I knew something was wrong. I started to realize that I was extra emotional. I mean crying over EVERYTHING!! I was also really angry. I mean RAGE kind of angry. Everything would rub me the wrong way. I would feel my blood pressure rise from a person looking at me the wrong way or someone saying something in a tone. I was miserable. On top of all that...I gained almost 20lbs and my pain flared up. It hurt so bad every morning that I woke up. I could barely stand up straight and the joint pain...UNBEARABLE!!!! Pain meds didn't ...