I Am A Magician.

This past week I learned what the term “burnout” actually means.

On Tuesday, in speaking with my therapist, I raised a concern that I felt I was working too much. Embarking on the grand fantastical escape has led me to operating around the clock. The simple reason is: I love what I am doing.

For the first time, I consistently want to wake up and start my day. It is an incredible feeling, but I could not help but be filled with concern that I was pushing myself too hard. Being able to create, write, and dabble full time is bringing me such joy but could it also be the death of me? I was perplexed. Until my therapist asked: What’s wrong with working too much? If you enjoy what you are doing, what are you afraid of? My response: Burnout.

This is when she schooled me on the various types of burn out. One being related to: “boring or routine work, chaotic or high-stress work”. This was a sentiment I often experienced in my old life. In fact, many of the characteristics of burnout such as: Overload, Under-Challenged or Underappreciated, Feeling Helpless and Chronic Physical/Mental Fatigue were all things I became acquainted with in my nine to five. Simply put: I did not like what I was doing. It ran its course and provided me with zero satisfaction. Going through the motions was literally killing me, inside and out.

My therapist helped me realize that, even though I am working extremely hard at the moment, I don’t feel any of those things mentioned above. In fact: I feel absolutely amazing! The most important thing she reminded me of is that I am now in control of my own destiny. Nothing is as it was before. If I am tired… take a nap. If I need a break… read a book or watch a flick. If I need inspiration… take a walk. No longer am I a wind-up monkey that has to perform, instead I am a magician who creates her own fascinations. (In all serious though… I want to learn how to perform actual magic.)

When I informed people of Earth about my departure from corporate life a frequent question that came up was: How will you make money? This inquiry caught me off guard due to it being so personal in nature. Later I realized it was coming from a place of curiosity and that maybe they too wanted to enact their own escape. Since I want to encourage others to break the chains of what is shackling them, I decided to share how I will continue to keep the lights on and ensure that my pen obsession stays satiated.

My best friend forever, Katie gave me the hot tip about Rover. It is essentially an Uber for pups. If their parents need to find a place for their doggo friend to stay while they are out of town, or someone to drop in to take them for a walk, they can use Rover to find friendly folks near by that can help.

This has essentially now made our home a hotel for dogs. Kali (pictured above) was our first guest to check-in and we had a lovely weekend with her. I’ll admit it was kinda a little spooky how much she resembled my dear beloved late friend, Li’l Foxie, but it was also extremely comforting. I love dogs and Kali reminded me what a delight it is to have one around. I am not ready for the responsibility of having my own quite yet, but in the meantime, this is a wonderful option. Not only do I earn some coins, but I get to spend time with a furry friend too. For my Philly pals, if you ever require my services you can find my profile on Rover here. The Leonard castle is presently rated at five stars and offers a wide variety of treats, lovely views of a park and turn down service.

This week I got another two scoops of sweet stuff that I am proud of…

• In my last installment of celebrating the release of my film pal, Alonso Duralde’s book “Hollywood Pride” I wrote about the career of the late Anthony Perkins as an actor, writer and director. Read it here.

• I started to show my face without a mask. This past week I stepped in front of the camera in the name of marketing MovieJawn. It was scary at first, but am quickly finding the experience to be quite thrilling. I am excited about the endless possibilities of what I can film in my laboratory. I also very much look forward to making the videos… WEIRD! You can watch my videos on the MovieJawn instagram here or TikTok here.

We are officially in the dog days of summer in Philadelphia and something that has brought me much happiness has been Chloe’s Lime Pops.

Only three ingredients and so refreshing! I recently discovered these cool pops on a rendezvous to Grocery Outlet with Benjamin. Grocery Outlet is essentially a bargain market where one can acquire many name brand products at low cost. Most of the time they are close to expiration… but it is a great way to try and discover new stuff.

Since this store has moved into the neighborhood, Benjamin and I have become a bit obsessed. We frequent the place several times a week to scope out the latest deals and call these little jaunts: dates. Each time is truly an adventure as you never know what you will find! I’d recommend checking to see if one of these stores is near you. And if you’re looking for something to stave off these hot temps, make sure to seek out Chloe’s pops. Hell… I’ll even pay full price for ‘em.

Happy you are here. xx. goodbye.

Tell a friend.