Seven months spent preparing for an exam that came and went like an ice cream that melts on a hot summer’s day. I took the Diplôme d’Études en Langue Française B2 (DELF B2) exam on June 11 at L’Alliance New York, formerly known as the Alliance Française. The DELF B2 exam is an intermediate-advanced level…
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Reflections on the First Quarter of 2025
A little bit has happened since January. WORK I didn’t get the raise I requested. I was given a 3% raise, a small increase Trump’s fuckery had annihilated. I was told that many people weren’t going to get a raise, which was not true. My penultimate manager informed me that he hadn’t received a raise…
Why I Chose to Delete My Social Media Accounts for Good
I have been free of all social media for three months. I only had one social media account (Instagram) left in January 2025 before I permanently deleted it. Mark Zukerberg’s decision to end fact checking across his platforms sealed the deal for me. Interestingly, it was his decision to implement a news ban in Australia…
A Personal Stance: Why I Will Not Roll Up My Sleeves and Join the Resistance
We’re exactly one month into Donald Trump’s second presidency (when I started working on this post) and from what I’m hearing and reading, it’s been quite the shit show. Massive layoffs at government agencies. Elon Musk and his minion DOGE-bags obtaining access to sensitive data (i.e., social security numbers, bank account numbers, email addresses, etc.)….
Reflecting on January: A Look Back at the Month’s Events
Almost a month to the date since my last post, and a few important things have happened. WORK My manager changed again. I have had four managers in one year. Four managers in one year! Un-fucking-real. My third manager and I met to discuss my performance review the last week of January but before getting…
The Year in Review: 2024 Highlights and 2025 Outlook
I can’t thank 2024 enough for being a drama-free year at work. It was really boring at work and if you’ve read a few of my posts about my professional life, boring is good. A few things did happen, so let’s recap. WORK Last week made one full calendar year since I started at the…
Becoming a Photographer: A Beginner’s Journey
Becoming a professional photographer has been an elusive goal of mine. I purchased my first DSLR at BestBuy on Black Friday in 2012. I was excited to purchase Canon’s T3i Rebel DSLR camera for an affordable price. It was a great deal for a lot of gear: camera body, kit lens, zoom lens, an extra…
Quarterly Review: A Look Back at the First Three Months of the Year
When I first started my blog, I wanted to post quarterly reviews of my life (personal and professional). It’s taken some time, but I’m going to start posting these now that I’m blogging consistently every two weeks. We’re at the end of the first quarter of 2024, and I’m happy about how I spent the…
Three Months of Baking: A Delicious Journey
I set out to learn how to bake three months ago, and it’s been a sweet road of cookies and cakes. There were delicious successes and spectacular failures. An interesting phenomenon is that I can’t make anything right the second time around. It’s a case of beginner’s luck, and I’m sick of it. Don’t get…
Baking Terminology and Techniques for Beginners
In my previous post, I discussed the importance of mise en place if you’re new to baking. It’s a concept I strongly recommend you adhere to wherever you are in your baking journey. I expanded on the first principle by saying that it’s important to understand the techniques and terminology stated in a recipe. Why…