A BIG “Hello“ to all of you that follow or take the time to read my blog!  It has been just a little over a year since I started blogging.  I have a little under 50 followers.  There are 82 posts up on my site and 60 comments.  I do not write all the time.  I would like to start being more consistent.  It is a slight roller coaster ride.  I developed such a passion for writing while obtaining my bachelors degree at Duquesne University that I wanted to find an outlet for it.  The majority of you, who know me well, know why I chose the blog topic.  There is humor, honesty, and real feelings in my writings on here.  This blog is not for everyone.  There are people who like to keep what goes on in their bedroom behind closed doors.  There has never been any shame in my game.

This hobby of mine helped me figure out what career I could see myself flourishing in the very near future.  I am currently studying for the GRE that I am set to take in November.  I will hopefully be starting grad school next fall in ‘Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling’ program with a concentration in ‘Marriage, Family and Sex Therapy.’  I have been in the healthcare industry since 2007.  I learned that I am not built to be a corporate person.  I do not like being put in a box because corporate people hate not being able to categorize you in life.  I have never been able to fit in a box.  My personality colors outside the lines.  A therapist would be the perfect fit for me.  I would be able to help people.  That is what I want to do.  It feels great to be able to be there for someone and help them.  Those are all reasons that flow into coaching volleyball.  I love being a coach.  You get to be a role model for young kids.  You teach them skills in the sport and in life.  It is hard work growing up as a girl.  There are mean girls, emotions, and life that get in the way.

I used to think that after high school people were adults and grew up.  I quickly realized that not everyone grows up.  There are women in their 50’s and 60’s that still act like children.  Do you get upset over these types of people?  No.  You cannot live your life for other people.  You cannot please everyone.  You would kill yourself trying to do it.  Not everyone is going to be a fan of yours.  There will always be a small section of people waiting to see you fail in life.  Your job is to focus on yourself and the huge crowd of people rooting for you.  See the positive.  Ignore the negative.

This year alone..  

• I had one person using another one’s identity to message me on Facebook.  I told the real person that they had been catfished.  I blocked the fake account and went on with my life.  A month later, this person then found their way to my blog and tried to write a nasty gram on here.  I spammed their comment and moved on.
• I had another person leave a comment on my blog about being a bigger girl.  I took that opportunity and posted their message on my social media to show how sad and unfortunate some people are in their lives.
• I recently heard their was a group of ladies bad mouthing me in Pittsburgh.  I left that city over three years ago.  Why would my name come up?  What is there to even say about me?  Do they not have anything else to talk about?  I have not thought about those people let alone the time or care to talk about them.  I had someone there to stick up for me and shame them for their child like antics.  They lived to tell about it since I am now writing about it.  Ha.
  
  

I may have let those types of people have control over my feelings when I was younger.  Now, I am in control of how I feel.  Those ladies talking bad about me did not make me look bad.  They made themselves look bad.  It is humorous and sad that they are lacking that much substance in their life.  If you have that much extra time on your hands, you should go get another job, hobby, or help with a charity.  The negative, hateful Trump’s in the world are holding us down as a society.  Imagine if these people took that time and turned it into something positive for their everyday life.  I try to live the mantra of PLUR.  The world would be a better place if everyone tried to see the light in others and took each day as an opportunity to make a positive impact on it.  

I am a compassionate and honest person.  I am the type to send out birthday, anniversary, and thank you cards.  A letter in snail mail has a big impact.  It is nice to receive something other than the every day bills in the mail.  Someone gets married, has a kid, or loses a family member and I am the person to send them a card or a gift.  My one good guy friend in college lost his sister.  I sent him flowers.  My other good guy friend lost his grandmother in college.  We sat around passing a bottle of Bacardi 151.  Did I want to drink that?  No, but I did it anyway.  Another good guy friend was in the city for the holidays while everyone else was with their families.  I took him a couple of plates of food from my family dinner.  There was a group of girls that bullied me in Pittsburgh.  One night, one of those girls was hammered and left by herself at a bar.  I knew she lived somewhere on my route home.  I had someone help me carry her to my car.  She passed out in my car, so I had to call a mutual guy friend to help me find her house.  I woke her up and helped her into her house.  Did I have to do that?  No.  Would she have done the same for me?  Probably not.  Did I expect a thank you?  No.  Why did I do that?  Because that is the type of person I am at heart.

I have done some things in life that I would have done differently today.  I cannot go backwards in life.  I can only go forward.  We all sin differently.  Those mistakes, falls, bumps, sins and so on help make us who we are today.  I am human.  I am not and will never be perfect.  I can only hope to learn and grow as the days, months and years pass.  I have one full-time job.  I also have one and sometimes two part-time jobs.  I own my own home.  I have lived in different cities.  I have made lots of friends that turned into family along the way.  Some of those people left such lasting impressions on my heart and soul.  

I have and always will be bluntly honest.  That is why this blog is fun to write.  It is pure honesty with some fun humor and serious undertones.  It is a way to connect to people.  There are other people out there that have had the same experiences or are going through them.  So thank you to all of my followers, friends and family that have been supporting me on this fun journey.  I would also like to thank the negative people who try to throw bad energy my way.  It truly tests people’s characters on how to deal with those types of negative vibes.  It helps me sit back and reflect on how far I have come in life.  I appreciate all of you!  And here’s to another year of writing.  Stay tuned! 

With Love,  Britney Leigh 😉