Tis Me Michelle

And just like that… Another year has flown by. What a year it has been. Can’t say this year went as I had hoped or planned. I am forever grateful for the blessings and the comfort I continue to live in. Yet… I am still waiting for things to finally click into place. Let’s get into the ‘pillars’ I set up and get back to that last thought.

Pillar 1 – Health: Even through inconsistency, this is the one space I kept trying with. Actively doing the 75 Soft challenge like I did this time last year, with some personalization. Feel free to follow along on TikTok for those updates. Also, my acid reflux has been pretty under control.

I canceled my Planet Fitness membership because I wasn’t making use of it. I had tried Pure Barre earlier this year and wasn’t a huge fan. Yet I found I definitely do better having somewhere to go, even though I should work on figuring out something at home. Instead, I spent the last few weeks going to a bunch of intro workout classes. So I tried Club Pilates, Rumble Boxing, and Orange Theory. Ya’ll, I liked all of them. If only I could just keep taking (free) intro classes… Oh, and I attempted to sign up for a local cycle class, but they canceled on me.

Club Pilates and Rumble was a quick ~30-minute class. I’d anticipate the full class to be much more intense. Even at half an hour, though, I felt the pain of Rumble for days. Club Pilates was a very light intro class, but I think that helped me feel less intimidated by the machine. Orange Theory, on the other hand, was an actual full class. I just did that one, so I expect to be immobile for a few days. I liked that Club Pilates is less of a ‘HIIT’ circuit, which can feel too intense for me sometimes. It would be really cool to become a pro at the reformer. I loved the boxing side of Rumble. The ability to punch the crap out of something is rather cathartic. Orange Theory was very encouraging and had a lot of variety throughout the class.

Based on the other two, I felt like Club Pilates doesn’t have as much intensity as the others, but I would totally do it as an addition versus a primary workout. Rumble is unfortunately a bit out of the way, which wouldn’t help with staying consistent. Orange Theory is relentless. I was super irritated with how many times they reached out just to sign up. I almost didn’t go. And were super sales pitchy after the class. They all fall within the same price range. I wish they were on ClassPass cause I’d love to just mix and match them. I’m going to see if it’s financially worthwhile to invest in any of these. If any of you have tried these and have an opinion, let me know in the comments!

Pillar 2 – Career: Well, I really started the year in an optimistic mode, and I am actively trying to get back there. Content creation-wise, I’ve completely fallen off. I really thought I was gonna be an active YouTuber. I don’t think that is the right avenue for me. It always felt weird doing it, but I have always wanted to do something along those lines. I enjoy blogging more, yet I’ve been consistently inconsistent here throughout the year. But I think I’ll stick around here, even if it’s just me writing to me, myself and I as a diary.

On the other side of the career front, I did get a bit bogged down. There’s been some low morale. And for me, I feel what others feel, so that can be taxing. I also consistently have imposter syndrome and feel like I never know anything. But I allow myself to get dragged down and find excuses or blame others. Even with a decade of experience, I continue to feel like I don’t know anything. People have always told me that I need to be more confident and ya’ll… I need to believe in myself more. I don’t know if this is my forever job, but I am grateful for it, the great people, and the ability to afford my life. I’ve learned that above all, I care much more about the people than the work itself. And honestly, I am happy that’s where my priorities lie.

Pillar 3 – Finances: Umm, not much to report here. I have not gotten better at finances this year. I am blessed to be able to live a comfortable life and hope to be able to continue to do so.

Pillar 4 – Relationships: Can’t believe I haven’t given any updates on my most important relationship, Bruce (my dog child). I could always be spending more time with him. I catch myself rotting on the couch watching YouTube when I should be spending time with him, so room for improvement there. Now that it isn’t brutal Florida weather, I have been enjoying taking him out and enjoying him snuggling up for warmth.

Friends & family, overall, this year has been pretty decent. The number of folks I consider a true friend has tightened up, which has been a good thing. I went to a women’s walk club the other day, which my friend mentioned, but I wasn’t able to attend. It was close by and was a ‘scheduled’ workout activity. Obviously, most people were there to make friends. I chatted with one girl who had a boyfriend but not many friends, and I was like… I have the opposite problem. I can make friends pretty well, but can’t find a man to save my life. I may be romantically lonely, but I am anything but friend-deprived. It’s more so realizing when to walk away from a relationship that isn’t serving me for the better. Unless I organically make a new friend, I’m not necessarily in need of any more friends. Overall, I do need to work on setting boundaries. Really pay attention to who brings light into my life and has growth and love mindsets, over people who may be draining energy.

Romantic relationships… Has not changed in the 33 years of my life. I had some weird instances this year, but the actual movement on finding a man hasn’t gotten anywhere. And to be totally real, the only relationship I am trying to work on right now is the one I have with myself.

Ya know, I can’t say that I thrived this year. It ended up being rather disappointing in a lot of ways. Writing this, though, I do feel like I learned a lot more about myself, what I value, and what I actually care about. And even if I didn’t thrive, I have been abundantly blessed. One thing I’ve been waiting for… my whole life, is this feeling that I’m exactly where I’m meant to be, and every now and then I feel like ‘this may be it’ or ‘could this be it’. Yet I still don’t think I’m there. Tune in for the next post about my 2025 goals as I unfold that thought.