Do You Know What Today Is??

It's My Anniversary

Guess what y'all?!?!?!

Today marks the day that I OFFICIALLY moved to Phoenix, Az! We all envision, dream, or even plan out how things will work but the universe (or God) sometimes has a different plan for us.

So my plans went like this:

• Find a two bedroom apartment (that didn't happen)
• Go to all the events and places I found on the internet (nope!)
• Have a good group of folks that will hopefully turn into lifetime friends (EXTREMELY slow, but still in progress)
• Romantic relationship evolving (ummmm yeah lol Hinge account here I come! lol)
• Joining some organizations both at work and outside of work (ha ha ha)
• Get better with being active and eating healthier (gained 30lbs since the move smh!

The Re-cap

In the beginning, there was adjusting to the time change, weather, public transportation, learning my new job role, etc.

The first time I went out was by myself to see a cover band perform Jodeci songs. This spot was called Wasted Grain, it's located in Scottsdale. I won a contest on @thevalleyofthefun IG page for two tickets to the Phoenix  Pizza Festival. I went by myself to that too.  Went to this open mic event in downtown Phoenix with a friend who moved here from back home. This event I think is once a month, not totally sure. It is one of the few staple events going on out here for the black community aka the culture. 

I did make a new friend at work and she invited me to her home for the holidays. Her family embraced me with open arms and I had sooo much fun with them! I'll be going home for Thanksgiving this year but I'm excited to be with them for the other end of the year festivities. I also went to a surprise bday party at this black owned art gallery. Sidebar: There is a DOPE Prince Mural around the corner from this art gallery. That same night I had my first celebrity spotting here: Chico Bean (1/3rd of 85 South).

Oh yeah, can't forget about the Earn Your Booze rooftop workout event at Lustre Rooftop Bar (pretty sure I went a little on the hungover side...I just remember that I ended up throwing up at some point after the pictures) and the Friendsgving that my apartment put together for the residents here.

Took a mini road trip to LA in January (MLK weekend) because some friends from back home where flying to LA for the kiddies bday party. I also got to meetup with some people I'm close with that ended up relocating to Cali.

I attended this free Verizon 5G event. Free food, drinks, and a 1/2 off Uber ride! I have never paid under $5 for an Uber. This was before all of that 5G conspiracy talk and right before Rona lockdown start happening in the U.S. This also was around the time things shifted for me romantically which lead me to seek therapy. I knew that speaking to a professional was LONGGGG overdue for me with all of the things I've been through in my life. Shit going left in my relationship was the kick in the ass that I needed to make the appointment.

At this point, I've been been in the house like the majority of you all working from home. I only was going out for groceries and appointments (hair, therapy, and other stuff haha). S/o to my official hair braider (@beautyanbraids), natural hairstylist (@sunflowercurlsphx), and lash tech (@lashesbyhannallc) that I found out here <3.

There were a couple of times that I did do a lil sum'in sum'in more. I went to Trap Cardio and had a fun time. It was at this point I realized that my memory is really ass and I need to get it shape lol. The founder is super amazing, loved her energy and vibe. I went furniture shopping cause my ass was literally over sitting on the floor in my living room lol. I did fly back home for the weekend in August. S/o to my brother for paying for the flight and my niece for contributing a couple dollars (literally) lol. It was nice going home to spend some time with the fam.

My Experience Thus Far...

A lot of you may know that Arizona is a republican state. There have been some public instances of racial profiling, discrimination, and police brutality here. Unfortunately, I witness a level of police brutality and even discrimination right in the area where I live. Never seen a person hogtied before, especially with someone having a mental episode with no weapon! I was spooked after that and had an extra level of anxiety that weekend going to sleep.

I haven't had any bad encounters with getting to know people out here so far. Majority of the people I have had conversations with are not native Arizonans. People here seem pretty nice but I've heard reoccurring stories of fake friends/ jealous females out here. I hope I don't experience that while living here. As far as men, not on the dating scene here just yet, however, there is this facebook group "Being Black In Phoenix" and lets just say neither gender talks highly of the other when it comes to the dating life here. I believe the ratio is like for every 1 black guy there are 20 black girls (don't quote me on that though.)

Summer is hot AF. I've never witness temperatures over 115! Majority of the time I was in the crib. The moments that I did walk down the street to the bus/lightrail stop or the supermarket I was sweating. Winter here consist of rain here and there and cold early mornings! By mid February the afternoons were in the 70s.

As far as the black community out here, its real different from the east coast but you can tell people are trying to bring similar vibes and events here. Events and spots for us seem far and in-between. Definitely takes some time to find these things. Arizona is big and we are literally everywhere and nowhere at the same damn time lol. Oh, finding good soul food and other staple cuisines #tragic

The scenery and views are breath taking. I have not had any run ins with snakes, scorpions, or wild pigs.

Overall, I definitely miss friends, family, food, and the culture back home but I also enjoy living out here. I love having mostly sun and decent weather, the view of the mountains (don't like the houses that are like built into the mountains lol) on the horizon. I'm giving myself another 2-4 years then maybe Texas or the ATL?!? We'll see what God has planned for me.

To catch my Arizona recap view my highlighted story on Instagram if you haven't and follow me on Twitter to see videos, pictures, and learn about other events, books, and places to check out 😊 In the meantime, please like, share, and comment!

Until next time ✌