For over a year my typical morning routine was getting up before the sunrise to enjoy a cup of coffee after my adorable alarm clock pawed relentlessly at my face.  I relished in the silence and stillness of the morning.  I felt comforted by the warm sips and aromas, and the purring of my sweet, little alarm clock lying next to me.  It was my perfect way to start the day. 
Last December, I started implementing Tarot readings with my relaxing routine.  I want to tell you it’s because I’m a witch… but the reality is my sister and a friend, by uncoordinated happenstance, purchased birthday gifts that perfectly complemented each other.  One got me a Tarot deck and the other an Oracle deck.  The curious, intrigued person I am decided the universe presented them for a reason.  My sisters were with me for my first reading.  Despite all of us being utter noobs at the art of Tarot, my Past, Present, Future reading was eerily spot on.  Further intrigued, I researched more readings, card meanings and combinations.  I first looked to the Tarot for instructions but I was unwilling or unable to heed the advice – still carrying emotional baggage from last year’s lows.  But after a couple of months my practicing became a tool for meditation and mindfulness.  The cards are therapeutic now, so I couldn’t leave them behind in Houston.  Yesterday I popped into the Mercadona I wanted to shop at on Sunday and found some pretty decent, inexpensive coffee.  This morning feels like I’ve replenished some comfort I was missing since arriving.  I have my cup of home brew and a daily card just sitting in quiet reflection enjoying the moment.
*Several hours later* I forgot to post this in the actual morning, but at least it’s the same day!  I am a few hours shy of brewing some more of that pretty decent coffee to prepare for my early AM departure for Buñol.  Any guesses what I’m up to?

First official blog post – woo!  If you read the It’s me! page, then you have already received an introduction and some background on why I’ve started a blog.  If you haven’t read it, then go do that!  This first post kicks off with an extension of my background and where my newfound freedom is taking me.
After a couple of roadtrips with dad and the girls it was like, I developed this mega appetite for new places.  In a literal sense, dad and I were big time Triple-D fans and on the hunt for featured food everywhere we went.  Plus, I was Yelp Elite back then, so I owed due diligence to my status.  Less literally, I discovered this untapped desire to see more than I ever imagined.  I started daydreaming about escaping the office oppression for a quaint, sunny apartment abroad living this other life surrounded by another culture bursting with unparalleled creative energy.  When I actually started travelling abroad, the daydream became less of a dream and more of a living fantasy, even if it was only for a couple of weeks a year.  Well, my living fantasy just got an upgrade.  Tomorrow I leave for Madrid to study Spanish and do all the things I can squeeze into 4 months (within a budget).                                           

This is huge. 

I have never been away from Houston alone for longer than a few weeks, nor have I ever lived anywhere else.  I am not spontaneous, I struggle with anxiety, and I am kind of afraid of this enormous leap I’m taking.  It took a lot of planning and reassurance just to get over the hurdle of deciding to quit my job – not quitting it – deciding to quit it, because what sort of fool leaves a coveted, cozy desk gig with a good salary and benefits?  Right here, y’all!  Except quitting didn’t just mean leaving behind a salary.  It meant leaving behind friendships I’d made, stability, and all that I’d known for more than a decade.  It meant going against the grain of the sort of life I thought I was supposed to live.
So, as cliched as it sounds, off I go flying the coop to find myself (hopefully, in the arms of a sexy Spaniard).