October was so good, like good good. It is my first year in my new home when October hasn't been a nightmare and it has been the closest to the normal October that I had in past years. I just remember last years October's at the pumpkin patches and having to go so early and distance myself and get a few photos and run back home. I was so happy that not only did I switch up the location this year, but that I got out and did it on my own terms.
I think on my own terms sums up this year as well as this month. I have been making slow and silent moves as I always do, but I have put so much more focus in doing things for me since 2021. And not only me, but just living everyday with my husband so differently. I think there is definitely emotional scarring that we all have from going through the pandemic and it effects everyone differently. I know for my husband he is a lot better than me when it comes to compartmentalizing things wheres a lot of my memories are rooted in emotions, smells, times of year, colors, and scents so it is harder for me to forget.
So, there is a lot to say this month at least.
Every year I plan on making more hair videos. I have been keeping my YouTube channel active for years, but I lost a lot of interest a while ago to be honest with hair videos. I just don't do a lot of hair styles and I never have. Caring for my hair over the last 6 years while making less videos has been a whole other journey that I needed to do on my own. Caring for my hair during the first 2 years of the pandemic was the biggest journey FOR ME in the last 12 years of my being natural because of my health and wellness.
Do I want to make more videos? The answer is absolutely yes. BUT there is a lot of vitriol that is directed towards YouTube naturals and even though I never promoted a lot of the stuff that other YouTubers did, I caught a lot of online hate in retrospect and my personal growth was more important than making videos. I started making YouTube videos when I was in college. I am so far past that now and while I love YouTube and making videos, making hair videos is time consuming and tedious and if I make any I definitely want them to be good, not half assed.
I am not a YouTube Partner anymore since they changed everything which means I am not getting paid and that ultimately affects my overall desire to make videos. Again, despite everything I listed above, the desire to make these videos is still there, but I have to also evaluate what I am doing as social media changes and right now YouTube has really messed up how their platform works with respect to YouTuber's in general and their algorithm also has remained about the same since I lost my partnership with Stylehaul and it got worse actually when I was just a YouTube Partner.
My house is still not fully decorated the way I want it to be because of COVID and not being able to get professionals to come in and do certain things that I want done and that has been about the 2nd main factor determining hair videos because I need more room. I also just really feel like I want to move in another direction with my new office. This is my third closet office now and it is the smallest and I am having trouble planning out the space.
Fashion videos: I post them a lot because I love fashion, I can be outside, I can share my travels, they are stimulating, creative, and it keeps my existing page active. Right now, this is where I am at and it doesn't mean I will never make another video about hair. I would just private my whole page if I was done with it, but I haven't. I also feel like you guys can see the current progress of my hair in those same fashion videos. Not a lot has changed, but I know I can definitely share what has whether it is on YouTube, my blog, Instagram, or Tiktok.
What I have done is share updates on my hair progress on my blog which you will see below. This is just a personal note from me to you all that have subscribed to me because of my hair content.
Right now this is my un-straightened hair. Yes this is un-straightened. I literally just washed it and combed it out and put it in a ponytail then brushed it so I can make sure I have trimmed it well while curly. My hair doesn't shed a lot from October to January; it is always like this. So, I purchased a new paddle brush to brush it out really well before Winter starts because in January its will start shedding a lot. I posted my 12 year length check in January 2022 on my blog in the City Life post and it has grown a lot.
I trim my hair every 6-8 weeks. It is more like dusting the ends in my opinion.
Right now, my hair is almost to my butt crack reference the photo above. The front comes to my hip bones. It still has not been straightened or had heat since the first year I big chopped which was I think 2011. Even though my hair is stretched the roots are not, they are still curled by about 4 to 5 inches and I often wear my hair in a mid bun that is not tied when I am a home which greatly has increased hair growth.
I got a large package from Ettika this month so I will share all of these items over the next few months in sets of 3 like below.
You can find these items also for sale on my Postmark account because some of them I get sent to me and decide I don't want them, so they are new and unused and you can make an offer!
DATE NIGHTS:
THE TAMPA EDITION
AZURE
ROCCA TAMPA
EDISONS FOOD LAB
GLUTEN FREE HOME COOKED MEALS:
Gluten free Ahi tuna street tacos. I gave him the ideas for the ahi tuna street tacos and he made them since it was his dinner and he wanted tacos. I thought they turned out beautifully and took some photos of them.
I really like salads, this isn't ground breaking or anything, I just like to share certain things I enjoy eating during the month. This is a really simple Cobb salad with Boarshead tavern ham and Ranch dressing.
I have also shared this recipe before. These are gluten free fried green tomatoes and when I say fried they are not really fried fried. I never really fry anything. My version is relatively healthy and I usually just do one tomato at a time and I split this with hubs.
A healthy Southern meal in my home.
Chicken thighs: I usually cook these in the oven and roast them, but I use the air fryer now.
Steamed cabbage for when I don't feel like making collard greens or kale greens.
Butter Beans, I prefer Ford Hooks, but they won't be in season until February. These taste similar, but to me more in between a Ford Hook or a Lima Bean.
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