Recap of 2024: Spinning the block or breaking cycles?

Welcome back to another episode of Chronicles of a Virgo podcast. This week we are joined by our favorite Virgo bestie Jessica as we dive into a full recap of our journeys navigating 2024.

In this episode we discuss:

-Some of our highs and lows we experienced & how we navigated through those time

-Goals we achieved & those that we will continue to work on in 2025

-Our personal reflections & feelings post the 2024 presidential election

-Things we are inviting in for the year 2025 & what we are looking forward too

-Brief update about Chronicles of a Virgo podcast moving forward

From navigating moments of unexpected grief and somber, to moments of joy and happiness, this episode serves as a powerful reminder that no challenge is insurmountable and that there is always hope to be found, even in the darkest times.

Through perseverance, we can always find a path to the light that awaits us.


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Disclaimer: "This podcast and website represents the opinions of Chiquita Johnson and her guests to the show and website. Views and opinions expressed in the podcast and website are our own and do not represent the place of any mental health or medical professional.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This podcast is a production of Unfiltered Studios. If you
would like to know more about joining Unfiltered Studios, please
visit our website at unfpod dot com for more information.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Welcome to the Chronicles of a Verbal podcast, the podcast
dedicated to the transformative journey of healing, mental health and
personal growth. I'm your favorite favorite verbal host Shakita Johnson,
and together we'll continue to turn our vulnerability into strength.
As a sexual assault survivor and mental health advocate, I
have a learned to sort through the ashes of my

(00:34):
trauma and turn my pain into power, and this podcast
is representation that healing is possible. In each episode, we'll
dive deep deep into conversations about overcoming challenges, find an
inter strength, and emerging from life trials like a feelings
from the Ashes. We may even have some friends drive
by from time to time. Get ready to be inspired

(00:55):
and empowered as we embark on a rewarding journey of
self discovery. So sit back and relaxed and let's get
into some healing. What's up, y'all, and welcome back to
another episode of Chronicles of a Virgo podcast, And as usual,
I'm your favorite favorite favorite Virgo Shikeitha Johnson, and we

(01:17):
are back with another pop up episode. And as you
guys see if you're watching on YouTube, we are with
the favorite Virgo bestie, Jessica. What's up girl?

Speaker 1 (01:28):
Hey, y'all happy twenty twenty five?

Speaker 2 (01:33):
Yeah, so we are in twenty twenty five. So this episode,
we are going to do a recap of twenty twenty four.
Were a little late with it, but we here. That's
all that matters because I feel like we got some
good things to get into. And it's so crazy even
talking about a recap because I remember sitting here last
year doing well. Two years ago, I guess during the

(01:56):
recap of twenty twenty three, and my whole mood life
everything was just like it and it's just so different now.
So I want to get into that, and we're gonna
get into Jessica's business, babe. But before you know, we
get into all that. You know, this is a pop up,
we have to keep things the same. So I want
to start with our lovely mental health checking. So Jessica,

(02:20):
on the scale of one of five, how are you feeling?
Are you feeling great? Are you in between? How you
vibing today?

Speaker 1 (02:29):
Okay, So in a general sense, I would say a five.
You know, we just literally just get in the year started,
so you know, just walking into the gear with positivity,
open mind, optimistic.

Speaker 2 (02:40):
So I'm all right, I'm doing all right, all right,
justice fiving it out, okay, okay, and then the new
year with good vibes and all that good energy. I
love to hear it. I still have my Christmas decorations up,
as you see, Like when do you guys take that
stuff down? Like you can tell I don't really decorate
like that.

Speaker 1 (02:58):
I've never put anything up, so there was nothing to
take down.

Speaker 2 (03:01):
So I may or may not have overdid it just
a little bit. But I was excited. Why not Like
the tree, I'm about to take that down in a
few weeks maybe, But I got all these like what's
it the garland and my seat covers you said, my
seat covers with the little hats on the back. Like
I was excited for the holiday. But anyway, I'm rambling

(03:25):
my mental health today on the scale of one to five.
Clearly I'm fiving it out as well. Okay. We are
in a fresh new year, we have a fresh new slate.
I feel like I ended twenty twenty four in such
a wonderful space mentally, physically, spiritually, you know. So I

(03:46):
took that energy and I'm like doubling it in this
new year. And yeah, and I hope you guys that
are listening have entered this year in a positive way
with some good intention set or if you're a person
that sets resolutions or goals, you just have something that
you're gonna work towards this year. Because I'm just feeling

(04:08):
so good about twenty twenty five. I don't know, I
have never felt so like positive entering in new year,
maybe more so like the last few years because I've
had so much shit going on in my life that
was just like Okay, I'm gonna think positive and claim it.
But like things did not pan out how I anticipated

(04:28):
it to be. And it wasn't one of those where
it didntan it did not pan out how I anticipated
because it was better. It was kind of like worse,
you know what I'm saying. I think I told you
the other day I really felt like God was just
like I'm gonna leave her on a hole for a
little bit, and then he popped back up last year
and was like here I go, Like that is literally
how it felt. But needless to say, the purpose of

(04:52):
the mental health check is just a time for us
to sit reflect for a brief moment, take time out
of busy schedule to just check in on ourselves. Whether
you're doing it when you listen to a podcast episode,
or you're doing it when you're taking a shower, sitting
at your desk. Just make sure you're taking the time
to really see how you're really feeling. Check in with yourself,

(05:15):
especially if you are someone that wears many different roles
and you're always looking off for everyone else. This year,
we want to try to focus a little bit more
on our cells, you know, and just really check in
and check your inner dialogue, see how you're doing. You know,
if something is not right, take the time to really
sit with it and try to figure out what it
is that's causing you some discomfort or just some uncomfortable feelings.

(05:38):
Because I promise you sitting with it just a little bit,
you'll start to feel and understand what you may be
going through. Or if you can't figure it out, I'm
pretty sure maybe you will be guided in the right
direction to someone that may can help you. But needless
to say, you're not going through things alone. You know,
we're all in this together. So yeah, thanks for doing

(06:01):
the mental health check, Jessica. Of course I miss you.

Speaker 1 (06:07):
I miss you too.

Speaker 2 (06:08):
I miss you, I miss I miss home. I'm not
gonna lie, as y'all know, I'm in North Carolina. I'm
a little homesick. So I'm a little homesick. I just
told Bailly, like then, we're going home in a few weeks.
And what I'm going home for is very important, but
I just want to like love all my people, Like
I miss my friends. I talk to my friends every day,

(06:30):
talk to my family. But I just like it's these
four and a half months, I have experienced more homesick
than what I thought I would, if that makes sense,
you know, like even though Billy's here, I mean.

Speaker 1 (06:42):
That's just something you really can't antisate.

Speaker 2 (06:47):
Yeah, but I've been getting through. I've been getting through.
So that was a part of my twenty twenty four So,
like I said, we're going to recap, and I want
to piggyback off of the last recap we did of
twenty twenty three because it was titled I think it
was like twenty twenty three Recap, No More Spinning the Block, like,

(07:08):
no more. Not to mention that was like the top
episode for on Spotify for less for my twenty twenty
four rep, I was like, seriously, like not that all
episodes didn't do good, because they really did, but that
one I was like, oh my goodness, Like what happened? Like,

(07:31):
I mean, it was intense, but yes, no more spinning
the block. So did we spend the block last year
or anything?

Speaker 1 (07:40):
I mean, for me, it's not even that I spent
the block. It's just that I just still was on
the same block. So I didn't even spend the block.
I still was just there. You know, sometimes you just
sometimes you never leave a block, you know, when you
should have left the block.

Speaker 2 (07:54):
I will go take your foot off the porch just
a little bit.

Speaker 1 (08:01):
But I feel like, because I think I haven't rewatched
that episode, you know, to like refresh myself with exactly
what we spoke about. But I do think I remember,
at least as far as that's concerned, As far as
how that's connected to my life. I think that was
connected to her relationship or whatever.

Speaker 2 (08:18):
And I don't know.

Speaker 1 (08:19):
It's just one of those things where some people you
just have a deep tie or connection to, but the
relationship transforms, you know, through time, and sometimes that's difficult
because sometimes the way that things transform it is not
the way that you were expecting or what you want it,
you know, per se. But sometimes you really do have
to let things be exactly what they are and not

(08:42):
really stress about it, not put any extra energy other
than what's warranted into it, and then things will be
exactly what they're supposed to be.

Speaker 2 (08:50):
You know.

Speaker 1 (08:51):
We can't control, we can't force, we can't make something
be exactly what we want. Definitely, when you're dealing with
other people, you know, you may have your agenda, your intention,
but it may not match what somebody else has going
on for different reasons, you know. So literally, I think
as far as that particular thing in how I feel now,

(09:12):
it's like literally what is is?

Speaker 2 (09:16):
You know, I think that for twenty twenty four I
adopted just this concept of it is what it is?
Like literally like and that's not negating anything that's going on,
any feelings that you have, but it's really getting down
to the core of can I change what is happening?

(09:39):
Like how much of this is in my control? Right?
Because of course, like we only can control ourselves, like
you said, we unfortunately can't control other people, right, And
a lot of times I feel like for me, a
lot of things that I was feeling and may have
been experiencing were connected to other people, you know, whether
it was a family member or someone at work, love interest,

(10:01):
it was always that other person, and that other person
dictated my feelings, my mood, like my energy and everything.
And until you really sit with that and be like, man,
I am really losing my power giving my control to
someone else, and they are becoming the narrative of the
narrative of this situation, it's like nah, dog like nah.

(10:24):
Like when I last the Inn twenty twenty three, I
was in everything that I have been through these last
few years, more so specifically like the grief and the depression,
and in twenty twenty three was the worst I have
ever felt in my body, in my mind, mind, y'all.
I started twenty twenty four going on a mental healthly

(10:45):
from work because I was two point five seconds of
checking out like everything, Like I just had no care
in the world. I couldn't think, I don't know, like
my brain has never felt like that before. It was
like horrible, and I used that time off of work
to my best ability, and I feel like everything that

(11:07):
I did during the time when I was off. Of
course I rested in it therapy, but everything else it
rewarded me in an end, you know what I'm saying.
So when it comes down to did I spend the
block on anything? And for people that may not have
listened that far back to that specific episode, when I
used the phrase of no more spending the block, it

(11:28):
did not reference a person, because I know that's what
a lot of people use it for, like, oh, we're
not spending the block on this person. It for me
referenced no more spending the block on negative thinking, no
more spending the block on limiting beliefs and depression and
things like that. You really necessarily can't control all the time,
but you have some sense of control over yourself and
your emotions, right, So anything that was affecting me personally

(11:51):
that was keeping me down that I had full control over,
I was not spending the block on it. Anything that
was keeping me in a stagnant I needed to break
flip ups along the way. But I consider those just moments.
But the thing with the moment is moments changed by
a minute, by the hour, by the second, by the day,
and that's what happened. I didn't stay in that space,

(12:12):
and at the end of the year New Year's Eve
last year, I did. I talked about it on I
can't remember if it was that episode one of them episodes.
I talked about doing the Bengo card because I don't
I don't do like the whole boards and stuff. I
did the Bengo cards, something I seen on TikTok and

(12:33):
I recently I recently pulled the Bengo card to see
what the heck I put because I couldn't remember and
how much of those things actually came to pass. All
of the big things, which was get a new job,
get a new apartment, move out of state. I saved

(12:54):
the amount of money that I wanted to save. It
was a few other things on there, but the main
things all came to pass, and then you know, you
do like the twenty twenty four recap, the videos all
on social media, and I was telling justice the other
day because I was so overly joyful, but emotional too

(13:14):
because we talked about this last year. When it came
time to really sit and like you're looking at like
all of the memories from the year twenty twenty three,
it was a whole. Even though I felt like it
was the worst year of my life, I had some
good moments, you know, I had a lot of high moments.
You know, we did a lot, We did some good things.
But twenty twenty four was like, oh my gosh, it

(13:37):
was phenomenal. Like I did a lot, and I was like,
you know, I may not have like travel internationally, you
know what I'm saying, because we're working on that. Nonetheless,
like I did a lot of different things, like people
connected to me, family friends, like everybody did a lot
of things, and I was it's just overly joyful. I

(14:01):
was grateful. And then waking up on January the first,
it hit different for me than it might someone else
because before I moved to North Carolina, I was living
back at home for like that time, Like a lot
of people did not know that. And it wasn't because
oh I couldn't afford like, you know, affordabilion, and it

(14:22):
was nothing to do with that. But to wake up
the first of the year in my own space that
I wanted in the States, I wanted to live, that
just hit so differently, and I was just like, oh
my gosh, like it really happened. It's crazy how you
see people talk online like how fast your life can
change for the better, And I always wish that was me,

(14:44):
And then my life did change the better. It might
not have to happen overnight, right, but it definitely happened.
Twenty twenty four was like all about positive change for me.

Speaker 1 (14:56):
Well, I mean, that's definitely good. Definitely since a lot
of the stuff that you ended up up accomplishing, Like
I remember different points of time of us talking about
those things. You know that a seeing them come from
a thought to being like reality. So I'm definitely proud
of you and happy for you because I know there
probably were moments where you know, not that you didn't

(15:18):
ultimately think that things would never happen, but you know
what I mean, when something don't happen, maybe in a
certain timeframe, or maybe if you feel like something is
like being pushed back or obstacle, that can be discouraging,
you know what I mean. And definitely when you got
other stuff going on, it just feels like damn, you know,
when don't make it a break, But you know you
definitely you know, set your goals and your intentions and

(15:39):
like even with like any of the negative or you know,
emotional stuff that may happen this year. You know that
stuff that you talked about, so your viewers should know
some of the stuff I'm talking about. It's like, you know,
you didn't let that stuff all you back.

Speaker 2 (15:53):
No. I think my biggest like emotional down I'm gonna
say downfall of twenty twenty four was when my father
would passed away. And I say that even though my
years started off rocky and I was dealing with like depression,
you know, some suicidal thoughts, like all of that stuff,

(16:13):
I handled it. I was in therapy, I had y'all,
you know, I worked through it. When my father passed,
I felt like that was the test of fate, like
all of my therapy and everything, Let's see if I
really can apply these things. You know, not that I
was in grief therapy, but I was working through grief
in therapy. I feel like I really stood my ground

(16:36):
during that time. Yes, I may have blacked out a
little bit and went through like some numb moments, but
like I really, you know, I said in all that
and yeah, I got maybe a little sick during the time,
but I really utilized my resources, which were like family
and friends and anything else that I would do, you know,
prayed about stuff. And it was a town, it was

(17:00):
a time. And I think going into it, because it
was so abrupt and unexpected, I thought that it wasn't
going to affect me as much as it did. I
was like, Okay, like, you know, I can get through
this and blah blah blah. However, like I did get
through it, but at the same time, it affected me
more than what I expected. And my therapist was like, yeah,

(17:23):
because it's retriggering your grief, Like you're still grieving the
loss of your grandmother, the loss of your grandfather, who
are all connected to this, your father, so it's a lot.
And I'm like, you know what, You're right, But I
you know, I hung in there. I got through it,
and I'm still getting through it, you know. Overall. Even

(17:44):
when I sit and I get on social media and
I talk about like dealing with grief and stuff, I'm like,
did I say that, Like you know, I've been I
shocked myself, Like twenty twenty four was a shocking year,
if I'm being like honest, because I would say things
and do things and I'd be like, it's just like
a natural thing because the Shaquida a couple of years ago,

(18:05):
it would never be that, you know what I'm saying,
But of course it was. She would never be that
because I'm not supposed to be the person I was
a year or two ago, you know, So it's showing
my peer authentic growth in itself. Yeah, that was the
hardest that that was the that was the hardest thing
or emotional downfall that I dealt with in twenty twenty

(18:25):
three and just navigating that. But here we are.

Speaker 1 (18:29):
No, well you mean twenty twenty four, yeah, four, No,
But yeah, like I said, obviously I was, you know,
there for some of those moments and you know kind
of you know, trying to be as supportive as I can.
But you know, Cau, those are things that you know
only you only know what it's like if you're the
one experience, and you know what I mean, because like,

(18:51):
not everybody has dealt with that level of loss or
like those types of culture relationships, So you know, it's
never easy. You know, we all deal with death differently,
we all deal with everything a little bit differently, but
you know, sometimes it can feel like those types of
things just racking up you know, but as you know,
personally in grief is something that you know, something that

(19:12):
you deal with through all time. You know, just like
any healing process, it's a process. You know, it may
hit you in different times. You know, it may pop
up at times you don't expect it to and xy z.
But you know, I feel like you've been doing your
due diligence and you know, trying to navigate it and
not trying to let it impede other things that you

(19:35):
have going on in your life. You know, because life
it has to move forward.

Speaker 2 (19:38):
You know, prime example, the holidays, Like when was the
last time you heard me excited about Thanksgiving or Christmas
or deucorating anything? Like I listen if you know me,
you know, like the holidays have been second and third

(19:58):
nature to me. My celebration has been lived through other
people like I just have not gave it any thought
last minute. This well, last year, I was thankful that
my mom and my baby sister came down for Thanksgiving.
So we had Thanksgiving here at my place. Bailey came over.
It was fun. We went to see the Christmas lights,

(20:19):
like my mom put my tree up. We decorated like
we went out black Friday shopping like it was fun,
Like I just we had no drama, no biggering, no arguing.
It was just pure authentic joy and fun. Was there
any anybody experienced any moments of grief and sadness? I'm
pretty sure, but I think it was maybe overshadowed a

(20:44):
bit by just being in community with one another and everything.
You know what I'm saying. Christmas was a little different,
Like that was some more feelings on Christmas because our
family did not come. It was just me and Bailey.
But aside and that, like we went to the movies,
we watched the Ravens play, we watched Beyonce, like we

(21:05):
did things, you know, I cooked, We still had a
good time. I'm pretty sure people felt grief. I felt grief,
but I didn't sit in it, and I held myself
to that standard of not letting my grief hinder me anymore,
because it really was that grief and depression was just
who I was becoming. It wasn't no shikida, you know,

(21:28):
like that's literally what I was, and I finally feel
like I have broken free from that. I'm not going
to say that there are times when it doesn't sneak
up on me. I'm humming, you know what I'm saying.
But I navigated so much better now, Like I'm so
happy because I would never have thought that I would
get back in a Christmas spirit. I had a goddamn

(21:48):
standard had onus. It's somewhere around here, like you know,
like you know, like I'm like bro, like I have
lived through other people through holidays and even like during
the spring and summer and traveling and stuff. Which let's
talk about the summer. Let's talk about summer twenty twenty four,
like did you know just it, but did you do anything,
like what was the highlight of your summer?

Speaker 1 (22:12):
Mmm?

Speaker 2 (22:14):
Any shows, concerts, festivals, because.

Speaker 1 (22:17):
You know, I mean, of course, I mean, of course
I'm always going to do a concert. That's something you know,
that's a that's just norm for me. So you know,
went through a few concerts throughout the year, trying to
think because things just me going going. Last year really
was a blur, like for real, and I really didn't
reflect on last year. I feel like everything's kind of

(22:39):
zumed by. So it's actually harder for some reason to
think of like a lot of specific things that happen
because I feel like it just all ran together and
here we are now in the whole New year. So
of course we did the Roots Picnic and Philly and
that was cool. It was hot as hell.

Speaker 2 (23:00):
It's true, but at that that was a good time.

Speaker 1 (23:08):
We did the Out of This World tour with Miss
Cee Bussa and se Era and that was that was
a good time. That was my first time seeing all
of those artists. So and that's kind of my thing
in recent years, like I want to see artists that
I haven't seen performed yet. So like I feel like
I was able to cross off a lot of different

(23:29):
things as far as like seeing performance.

Speaker 2 (23:31):
For the first time.

Speaker 1 (23:33):
Where else did I go? Concert wise? I saw Stevie Wonder.
This wasn't the summer, but I saw Stevie Wonder. So
if anybody knows me, Stevie Wonder is one of my
all time faves. So, you know, you get to a
certain point in life, you're like, that's probably not gonna happen,
you know, because he older, I'm older, we all, but
you know, so I said, let me finally catch him,

(23:54):
you know, before I don't get an opportunity to. So
that was a wonderful show and I actually did that
one by myself, and and I think that's that's something
we probably can talk about too, because I know you've experienced,
like more recently, doing certain things by yourself, because it's
like you're not always gonna have somebody available to do
stuff with, but that shouldn't limit the experiences that you have.
So I know you've been getting out there a little

(24:15):
bit more by yourself and just enjoying, you know, little
moments and stuff. So, but the first concert I went
to by myself was actually a couple months before Stevie Wonder.
I actually saw Comment and Pete Rock at the bottom
of sound stage. They had a new album. It's some
Motorcycles Going down a Street. I was about to say,

(24:35):
they had a new album come out that was like
really good album and it's like previous to the Roots Picnic,
Calment came out for that one song. I actually have
never seen Calm And perform, which is probably a surprise
to people who know me, because people who know me
know I love common right, So I was like, once
again not missing this opportunity. Pete Rock is a legendary producer,
and I was like, you know, I gotta see I

(24:56):
gotta see these people So that actually was the first
concert I went to by my mmmm, and the just
kind of set the standard, like, like you know me,
I love to go to concert with people.

Speaker 2 (25:07):
You know.

Speaker 1 (25:07):
You know how I did. I would just simply buy
the tickets and then find somebody to go with later.
You know, I'm very famous for doing that. But it's
like it was one of those things where it's like
I cannot count on somebody being available, and it's something
I really want to do, I'm gonna do it. So
I went to two concerts for the first time by
myself this year, and I actually just saw a Babyface

(25:28):
with my sisters, but we saw a baby Face in
December once again, a legend and somebody else I've never
seen before. So I just crossed like a lot of
people off my list.

Speaker 2 (25:40):
Yeah, that's a like certain ones I don't go to.
I see I live through you.

Speaker 1 (25:44):
I'm like, Okay, I know.

Speaker 2 (25:45):
She's gonna get good seats, Okay, I know she ain't
gonna be too loud singing in the video, but nah,
that's amazing, And like you're one of You're definitely one
of the pioneer people in my life that have continuously
whether you say it or through your actions you live
it show me to I need to live, like, do

(26:07):
things on my own, whether it's you know, with someone,
just get out and do things, do new things. You've
recently mentioned learning a new skill. You know what I'm saying. So, like,
I appreciate you for having that type of personality and
just being that type of person, but also continuing to
encourage me to live like I'm still partially of course,
I'm here because of God, right, and I fought for

(26:29):
my life, but you also have been a person, a
pivotal person while I'm still here today, like you know this,
you know, so I appreciate you. Dang, I feel like
I did so much stuff last year. I ain't go
to that many shows though, like the Ruce Picnic was
probably like right, did the Ruce Picnic and like you said,

(26:53):
mister Elliott thing unfortunately couldn't do Usher. We were like
two point five seconds from being Usher, but scheduling conflicts
and confusion. I'll just say that I think like out
of the both of them, I love the Roosts Picnic
more like you know, I was in Like when I

(27:13):
go see celebrities or like concerts, I have this big
freaking just like I don't even know, like this blushing moment.
I ain't never seen nobody famous before. I think the
top person that I saw besides Andre three thousand, because
I loved his whole set, like I love that whole
like I love the ensemble, like what he's doing now

(27:36):
for music. I know a lot of people don't like
it because they're not used to him doing like the
instruments and the mindfulness stuff, but I love it. I
remember telling jes like, my toe was hurting it after
we finished it and through his set, like my foot's
not hurting anymore. Man. I just so.

Speaker 1 (27:52):
I just saw Sleepy that was about to put me,
put me down.

Speaker 2 (27:57):
But the only reason, the only reason why I kind
of like a midget regret that is because by the
time he finished, it was time for Little Wayne, and
everybody was like rushing to that that part. Thankfully we
had the VIP so we could go where we could
go and still watch. But I'm like what happened, And
I'm like, oh shit, like it's abbout to be like

(28:18):
Little Wayne and the Roofs are about to perform. My
highlight of that whole weekend probably was Jill Scott, even
though I haven't seen. No, that was first time I've
seen Jill Scott. Jill Scott and I got introduced to
Robert Glass what's his last name?

Speaker 1 (28:34):
Glass?

Speaker 2 (28:35):
Yeah, Like, oh girl, I've be listening to all that stuff,
but like everybody was just like phenomenal, the Dream, redmand
and Method.

Speaker 1 (28:45):
Man.

Speaker 2 (28:45):
I can't get enough of them, Like I don't care,
you know.

Speaker 1 (28:48):
That's that's one of my favorites, my favorite, Like any
anywhere they performed, I will happily go because actually it
was like a little the Little Charm City Live that
happened like at the end of the summer, they performed
at that again, so I was like, that was my
third time seeing them. Because anything that they do, I
love love them is a duo.

Speaker 2 (29:05):
They have great energy, they are funny. Marsha and broaches
me and you've seen her before, like seeing her again.
I can never get enough of her. She's funny, she's
a good performer, like that whole thing. But like the
cultural side of it, like I told you, I want
to go again. No, it's oh my god, oh girl, yes,
I remember.

Speaker 1 (29:25):
Remember I was supposed to see Noue the year before. Yeah, yeah,
make it up to New York. So I was just like, oh, like,
you know, and that was another person that I have
never seen, so I was like, ah, and how close
we were?

Speaker 2 (29:37):
So we were just like everyone was like people just
like hit my inbox, Like, how do y'all always get
good seats? I'm like, first of all, we didn't have seats,
but it's just a matter of getting to a sex,
a certain area and staying there because it was a
lot of people I didn't expect. I don't know what
my expectations was, honestly, because that was not the first
music festival, because you know, I've been in Brocoli City

(30:00):
in America, so that one, this one was a little different.
I definitely would not mind going back this year. Of
course my trip would be a little longer now, but
like it was, it was so worth it, and like
I would love to do more of the cultural things
and events that they have throughout the weekend. But that

(30:22):
was my probably my highlight. Missy Elliott. Remember I said, like, oh,
the top show I've ever been to was Beyonce. Like Beyonce,
that Renaissance experience was top tier. But Missy Elliott, I'm
not saying she was better than Beyonce. No, but what
they had going on was good. And I'm pretty sure
she's playing something else because I seen her post yesterday

(30:42):
on Instagram. I already because it's been so long, you know,
since she's been out there, so it's like, you know,
maybe she's she got that she had the health health
disorder that kind of kind of keeping her down, so
maybe she got herself regulated and she just like, you know,
making up for lost time. That was the first time
I had seen Sierra in a while, because I seen

(31:03):
her down at sound stage some years ago, and I
was like seeing her was just so phenomenal because people
were online saying, oh, she sucked Carsett, it's not good.
But it was funny because remember when we got inside,
I was like, yes, I think she's on the stage.
They started on time. They started at seven o'clock on
the die. We were like, oh my god, they are

(31:24):
They really did start on time, and Busta Rhymes is
I didn't realize how freaking funny he was like it
was just and then she brought They brought out Little
mo Like if you're from Baltimore, if you know, you know,
like Little Moa is like a legend for Baltimore, Like
I love Littlemo. So that was good. It was really fun.
What else did I do last year? Oh? I seen

(31:45):
Tamaron Hall. I wasn't like the biggest Tammon Hall fan. However,
she put out a new books, so I got to
go to a book event she had and it wasn't
really for me about the book behind and her speak,
and I didn't really know a lot about her until
I went, and I got mad respect for mad respect
for met Ernestine Shepherd. Like if you're in Baltimore native, like,

(32:07):
you know who Ernestine Shepherd is. She has like the
oldest bodybuilder in Guinness worl rackets. She's one of my
mom's mentors, one of my mom's closest friends. And out
of all the years that they've been close, I had
never like every time I met events with her, she's
bombarded with cameras and people and all that stuff. But
I actually got to meet her, got to take pictures

(32:29):
and stuff, and yeah, she's such a sweet little a
sweet little soul. So yeah, but the evero's picnic, and
you know, I can't not not talk about my move
like like what are we? What are we? What are
we here for? It's like no, Yeah, my move like

(32:53):
we packed up the U haul hit I hit the
Beltway on August the fourth. I think it was because
it was the first the first Monday in August, and
just mentioned, you know, me venturing out doing things on
my own. I've always been a person that felt like
I needed to do things with people and felt weird
about going to like eat on my own, going to

(33:15):
bars on my own. And now I'm in a predicament
where I know people in North Carolina, but a lot
of them are not in Raleigh, where I'm at. So
if I want to do something, it's like, if I
don't do it, it's not going to get done, you know.
And me and my sister, because she lives like fifteen
minutes away from me, we have done a lot of
things like that. We do things, but like she's in
her own living her own life in her own space.

(33:37):
I respect that and I'm not going to like drag
her to everything I want to do. We did go
to the Raleigh Christmas Day Parade, which again was an
experienced for me because I've always wanted to go to
like the Macy's Parade in New York, and this is
the second largest parade on the East coast. It was phenomenal,
Like we was like front row. We were a little cold,

(34:00):
but it was just so good to see all the
cultures that they implemented within the parade, especially during the
height of the election, and like all that stuff. It
was very inclusive, Like I really I really love that.
But moving has definitely put me in a position to
not regain my independence, but just to I guess, learn

(34:22):
a different part of me on my own. So I recommended, hey,
go to the bar by yourself. I went whenever DoD No,
but no, it's been cool. I don't know what to
say about that, Like it's it's been Eventually, I still
have like anxiety doing a lot of stuff by myself.

(34:44):
I mean I do things by myself, don't get it wrong,
But like autings, like how just went to the concerts
and stuff, I have yet to experience the solo and
like for me just to speak on it, it's not
like it's something that I was just like dying to do,
Like it wasn't like the easiest choice, you know what
I mean, even decided to do it, and definitely I
decided to do it twice, But.

Speaker 1 (35:03):
It was the experience eclipsed my anxiety about it, you
know what I mean, because like obviously I wouldn't go
by myself to anian everywhere like you said, I mean
Baltimore City, you know what I mean. So still gotta
be safe, still gotta be like you got some sense,
but you know, like if something is familiar enough, you know,

(35:24):
like I know, I know those areas, I know the
venues I was going to. You just gotta be smart
about what you're doing. So like how your example goes
to the bar or something like that, maybe the compromise
would be, I'll go to a happy hour, you know
what I mean. It's a little earlier. You know, it
could still be daytime. You know, you get a kind
of you may kind of get like the work crowd,
but you may not go to the ball by yourself
at like ten o'clock at night, you know what I mean.

(35:46):
So it's like you find those compromises within yourself as
far as you know, you know, accomplishing the goal but
still being able to like feel comfortable. And then like
if you once you're ready to branch out and do
something a little beyond that, then cool.

Speaker 2 (36:01):
Yeah, And don't get it twisted, like nothing nothing bad
happened to me, it was just I don't know, I
was having too much fun by myself, which is not
a bad thing, and like socializing with the people and
like of course the bartenders and hosts and all that,
but I would love to have shared that with something,
I guess, having someone there with me. But I was,
I was perfectly fine. My friends got videos after the

(36:22):
fact like I was. I was good. I just haven't honestly,
I haven't had time to really do much of any
of that. I've been busy with work and you know,
going to the gym. That's another thing. Like I got
back into the gym almost immediately when I came down here.
I was determined to find like a park, a track

(36:43):
or something because I wanted to be outside because it'd
be hot. It be hot all the time down here.
I don't know that is I'm going through a culture
shock also with like the weather and just different things
experiencing North Carolina, just the southern living. But I was
able to find like a nice athletic facility that I
can go to the track, and I joined the gym

(37:05):
kind of sort. I have like a fitness program with
my job, but I do go to the gym and
if anybody knows me that talked to me like a
lot when I before I moved, y'all know that I
was determined to be a five a m gym giry,
like to the point where like I set my alarm
in January of last year to five am, preparing to

(37:25):
wake up at five in the morning to be at
the gym. So I've been in the gym by like
five forty five. But the thing is, like i'd be
doing it, you know what I'm saying. I'd be doing it.
And I'm trying to really continue to push myself away
from like focusing on like how much weight I'm losing
in different things. I did the seventy five soft that
was something else I jumped into coming down here, had

(37:47):
really really good results from it. But like I was
just talking to my mom and I'm like I need
to find something and just stick with it, like how
I used to instead of like jump into all these
different things, because honey, I will jump around. I would
jump around. But yeah, like I don't know. Life has
just been different, not in a bad difference, It's been

(38:09):
really good. But I also needed more social so I
had I was like, I need to meet people I'm
meeting people now, a lot of people. I'm meeting a
lot of people and not doing much because I'm really
still like in a shell a little bit, I guess
you'll say. But I'm also planning to make time and

(38:29):
be more intentional about like not just meeting people, but
doing things like not just scrolling like event bright and
Instagram about things that I want to do, but like
buying these tickets and just going and like you said,
not necessarily always waiting for people to be accessible, because
someone's not going to always be ready or not gonna
always be in a position where they can go. But

(38:50):
if I can go, why not go?

Speaker 1 (38:53):
Exactly?

Speaker 2 (38:55):
Yeah? So yeah, like what else happened last year? Any
other likes to you from twenty twenty four?

Speaker 1 (39:05):
So my family had their family reunion. So this is
my mom's side of the family, and it's you know,
if people aren't aware, because I don't know if we
talked about it, but my mom's side of the family's
from North Carolina. So I'm actually very familiar with North Carolina.
My my roots run very deep to the point where,
like I spent my summers there growing up as a child.

(39:26):
My grandparents used to take us down like for like
a couple of weeks during the summer every year. So
I'm pretty much in North Carolina at least once every year,
if not more. And now I have more reasons to go.
You know, I'm typically not in Raley per se, even
though my brother lives there. My family's from the country.
But it's like a it's like a refuse, you.

Speaker 2 (39:47):
Know what I mean.

Speaker 1 (39:48):
Like I'm not one, Like I can't see myself not
living like near or close to a city, but like
this is the country, like quiet, like you hear nature stars,
you know what I mean. So like truly is a
refuge from the city life and just like get away,
just connect with the land, connect with my people. You know,
got family to live close by. We got my great

(40:09):
grandparents' housees up the street and stuff like that. So
we had our mega family reunion and I think we had.

Speaker 2 (40:20):
Was it at least four.

Speaker 1 (40:21):
Hundred people in attendance.

Speaker 2 (40:23):
That's amazing.

Speaker 1 (40:24):
And this is like all the branches coming together, you
know what I mean. So that was good, good time.
You know, anytime I get to be around my family.
Like I said once again, anybody who know me now
Sita can attest to it. I'm very close to my family,
So anytime we have the opportunity to come together and
just enjoy enjoy each other's company, you know, that's just

(40:46):
all I need in a lot of situations that just
get you right, you know what I mean?

Speaker 2 (40:50):
Yeah, especially when it's good vibes. Before I left, you know,
my family we got together on Eastern Shore. My cousins
have like a big family cook else. I don't. Some
call it a family union, but it's a big gathering,
big family gathering. And it was actually held the weekend
that before I left to move. So I went. My

(41:11):
baby sister, she came with me. My family was there.
I mean they're right on the shore, so it's facing
Kent Island. They took the canoe is it the canoes?
They took these boats out there in the water. No,
I did not go because I'm not swim so I
don't want them problems. But it was nice and we

(41:33):
released my grandmother's ashes on the island or whatever. It
had like a little service ceremony type thing. Very emotional time,
of course, but you know it had to happen at
some point. But we just had so much fun. And
like you said, when it's like all family coming together
just being so supportive and good vibes. Kids was playing around,

(41:55):
playing games. It was really fun and that was just
like what I needed at that point because I was
even literally in two days, you know what I'm saying,
And Jes mentioned coming to North Carolina, Like Jess and
Abby came back to North Carolina for my birthday. You know,
we celebrated. Like I was like had a list of
things that I wanted to partake in, and out of

(42:16):
the list, I think it was maybe like one or
two things that we actually didn't do because maybe I'm
not for the streets no more. Like I felt like
the little things that we did man tired me out,
had some sickness going on a little bit. But it
was just fun because I was with my girls, and
Jess's brother came out with his friend, his girlfriend, and

(42:39):
we just we always have a good time when we
go out. A bunch of randomness, you know, almost went
to jail. Oh not really, but no, it was just
it was just good times. It was just good times
being with family and friends and me and Bailey also

(43:00):
know how I forgot Ben Bailey went to Charlotte for
Kamala Harris rally. It was actually her last rally before
like the Holy election, and that is an experience in
the experience, Like it was one thing to watch all
the lives on YouTube and TikTok and Instagram, you know,

(43:21):
when she was going doing interviews and all that stuff.
But it was another experience to actually be there witnesses,
you know, and like hearing the stuff that was being said,
even though it was some of the same stuff, right,
but it's just your in person and being in the
midst like of all these different people that are like
we are all in agreement, in agreement about some of

(43:44):
the same things, you know. And then the election happened,
and I was depressed, like a lot of other people were.
And I know I talked to Jess about this before,
about like just navigating life after the election, and I
was deep. I was a little I was a little
too depressed for my own liking, you know what I'm saying,
cutting people off, dealing people off social media. I feel

(44:06):
like it was a very dark time for a lot
of people. And one thing just told me was, you know,
not word forbadim, but she said something on the lines
of like we have to learn how to exist in
the same world with people that have different that have
differences than us, you know, and granted, like we can
be cordial and be respectful, but like having these different

(44:30):
conversations will help us understand maybe understand one another a
little better. You know. Of course this is by choice.
But since that point, I kind of just kind of
let a lot of Oh I was angry, man, I
was angry, Like, how did the election affect you? If
it affected you.

Speaker 1 (44:49):
Honestly, I can't say that was zero effect. But at
the same token, it almost kind of wasn't. Because when
I say nothing is surprised, it's just not you know
what I mean. And it's like, it's not about not
being optimistic or hopeful or nothing like that. It's about
being realistic. And I feel like it's not that Kamala

(45:13):
winning wasn't unrealistic in the general sense. It was, but
it was the reality of the whole scenario, you know
what I mean, When you really break it down, it's
like that just wasn't going to happen, you know. So
I guess I never really put all my energy into
that possibility per se. Like I guess I would rather
have been pleasantly surprised versus being just being upset disappointed, yes,

(45:35):
but like not upset because it's like, yeah, you know,
this is once again it is what it is.

Speaker 2 (45:44):
I hate to laugh about that, but like that was
the truth. And like you also said something to me
in conversation again not forbid them, but it was on
the lines of I'm not going to prepare for something
that didn't even happen yet, and I'm like, you're right,
a lot of us are, of course, like we're making
preparations however that may look for you. But I feel

(46:07):
like what I was thinking, I was like, Okay, do
I have to move, do I have to get another jobs?
You know what I'm saying, Like just it was fear
taking over at that point, and I'm like, you know what,
I'm not going to prepare for something that didn't happen,
that may not happen, like and I'm not trying to
be like at like this this administration coming forward is
not should not be taken serious, right, but like to

(46:30):
the point of like we was supposed to be doing
what we were supposed to be doing, you know, and
clearly people didn't keep up to the end of I
don't want to say the bargain people was really playing
our face put it like that people was lying and
went to the polls and they did what they did,
and this is the outcome of it. And I think

(46:51):
the funny part now is what's happening on social media
and that future president how he's kind of like flipping
the script a little bit. It's just, you know, I
don't know, I don't know. I feel like it's no,
it's no space for games and things to really be
played when you are playing with the stake of like
people's livelihoods and families being potentially ripped apart and just

(47:16):
a whole lot of different things. So yeah, I really
had to like just really just like God step in
over me and remove me out of like that because
I was so sucked into social media and everything and
I'm just like, oh my goodness, like what is about
to be now? What I will say is we are

(47:37):
a couple of weeks away from like the inauguration and
stuff like that, and I'm a bit more calmer, you
know what I'm saying. So yeah, I feel like that
was like another like emotional maybe down downslide not as much,
but it was definitely like it was hard. It was
a hard time to like navigate. And I know some

(47:59):
people that are like unfortunately still struggling with it because
it was a lot like and it's.

Speaker 1 (48:06):
Like I get it, because like this is the world
we live in, you know what I mean. So it's
not like it's something that you can truly shut yourself
off from me, like somebody living in a cave somewhere,
or you know what I mean, living on an island
where you like literally existing on your own even got
to worry about what other people got going on. So no,
it is something to have your eyes open about, to

(48:26):
be cautious about. And it's not even about preparing. It's
not even about not preparing for what hasn't happened. It's
about not putting the energy into the frenzy, you know
what I mean, Because if that's just not what it
is right now, then that energy can be allocated towards
something else. You know, a lot of times when it's
like crazy stuff going on, we kind of exist in

(48:48):
one extreme or the other, and it's not leaving room
for other stuff, for the stuff that we have to do,
the stuff that you know, then we start missing stuff
because we're so focused on XYZ overhead it's not even
directly affecting us in this moment. So my thing is,
if we didn't know before the first four years, we

(49:09):
definitely need to know now what we need to be
doing as individuals, as community, as x y Z. What
should we have always been putting our energy to, you
know what I mean, as far as building ourselves up
as individuals, building our communities up, you know, building our families,
and you know, getting our money up. Whatever it is,
stuff we all already should have been doing. But it's like, unfortunately,

(49:33):
as Americans. I'm not saying other people don't fall victim
of this, but definitely as Americans we have this part
of it is entitlement. But it's like we allow ourselves
to be oblivious and to be naive, as if as
if we're untouchable, like well, it ain't never gonna happen.

(49:58):
I think that can't happen over here or x y Z.
First of all, stuff has been happening in our face,
not even under our nose, in our face for forever,
Stuff that we just kind of sweep under rugs, Stuff
that we say, oh, that's not my personal problem, that's
that's that's down street, that's that state that dada. But
it's like, if we ain't already doing stuff about the

(50:21):
stuff that's already going on, how we're gonna be all
up in arms about all this other stuff going on.
It's like, nah, we've been had problems that we are
not appropriately focused on, Like we're not fighting for the
stuff that's already going on that we should have been
fighting for. And now people want to be all internet
gangsters and saying this and saying that. But how many
people are really putting the energy behind making things right

(50:44):
or you know, doing whatever we gotta do. So hopefully
this has lit the fire under people's butts, so like
really stand on business.

Speaker 2 (50:53):
Yeah, and it's funny you said that, just real quick.
I was talking to somebody the night actually at my
other job, and young little guy, and he was like, well,
you know, I voted for Kamaa. I voted for her,
but I also felt like nothing that you know, Trump
wants to do is gonna affect me as a as

(51:15):
a black young man. He said that, and I was like,
for real, I said, so, you don't think anything that
he is trying to put in place or has done
his first term right has any effect on you or
any other black man. He was like nah. I was like, okay,
I said way more than that, but you know, it's
just that is the mindset of people. And he just

(51:37):
kept I did vote for her though I voted for her.
Oh no.

Speaker 1 (51:39):
But you know what, sometimes you gotta lead people. It's like,
all right, you that's what you think. Good for you
because we all have access to the same information. We
can all investigate, we can research, we can look up policies,
and we can do all this stuff. All right, you
want to be once again, you want to be naive,
You want to think you live in a bubble, and

(52:01):
you were just I mean, all right, do you like
that's another thing that's see, that's another thing for twenty twenty.
This had to be like and me and my cousin
was talking about this on Christmas night. When you like
people love people, care about people. Sometimes we invest way
too much energy into other people. Then they are willing
to invest in themselves. It's like, no, I had you

(52:24):
got to learn to gracefully detach, like.

Speaker 2 (52:28):
I put no contact last year with a couple. You know,
it ain't easy, but you got put just help first.
And I always say, if they wanted to, they would
the same way you make an attempt to checking on people,
send people flowers, show up for them. If they wanted
to do the same, they would. And my whole thing

(52:48):
was people using certain excuses as a reason for why
they did not do something and not negating if people
don't experience life or tragedy, right, because we all do.
But it's still making an attempt.

Speaker 1 (53:02):
You know, you have to least be an effort.

Speaker 2 (53:06):
I'm like, I'm effortless. No, I'm not. I'm not. I'm not,
I'm not, But it just you. I said a prayer.
I was like, hey, hey God, it's me again. One
hard prayer. A lot of people say it's hard because
when you pray it, it really do happen. Right, is

(53:27):
asking God to remove certain people out your life? Like
I never give a name, you know, I say certain
things and I just realized certain people fall below the waistline.
My thing back in the day would be I would
spending block and like, hey, how you doing having to
talk to you not realizing, like, girl, you just pray
for removal of certain things and here it go, and
now you're bringing them back in your space. You know.

(53:48):
Now catch me up now to where I'm at in life. Now.
I'm not acknowledging the fact that you ain't been there.
You just saying that because again, if people wanted to
show up for you, you maybe even in the midst
of them going through something like you know what, I'm saying,
they still want to be there. And I'm not saying
you got to be all in all the time, because

(54:08):
I'm not, you know, but I just can't do excuses
and I can't do no if you're not going to
reciprocate the same thing that I'm giving, I just have
to take a step away, wow, gracefully, because the end
of the day, like you said, you can be on
overdrive for a person and it do more harm to

(54:30):
you than it's doing good. And we only none that that.

Speaker 1 (54:37):
Black one, And it's just the add to that kind
of going back to what we were talking about earlier,
part of the spending the block, but also some of
the stuff you were saying. I feel like one of
the things in twenty twenty four that I really worked on,
and I think we did speak about this in that
last conversation, if not that when it was one of
the episodes, we definitely spoke about boundaries. So I feel
like I really have been working on and enforcing boundaries

(54:58):
all of twenty twenty four. I really feel like I
did a good job with that, you know, like I'm
the type of person whereas if like and it goes
better what we literally were just saying, like something I
put so much energy into other people, into situations a
half the time is never reciprocated, you know. But in
the same token, it's like, if I want X, Y

(55:21):
or Z, my equation needs to add up, you know.
So a lot of times I can admit my equation
was not adding up, you know, because your actions dictate
the result. So it's like, you know what, there's some
things I got to tighten up on, Like if I
say I want X, Y Z, or if I at
least don't want XYZ, I can't keep doing ABC, you

(55:42):
know what I mean. So I have really tightened up
on my boundaries and things of that nature, and you know,
we'll see how that goal is moving forward, or like
what results I get moving forward.

Speaker 2 (55:53):
You can be successful. I feel like I unconsciously tightened
up on my boundaries too, now that you mentioned that,
because I can think of one very specific situation that
happened a couple of months ago, more recently, and I
just boundaries and I was just like, wow, girl, you
really doing it? You know what I'm saying, especially when

(56:14):
it deals with certain people that you have let your
guard down with a lot, and it's just like, no,
I'm not going to continue to settle for that, because
what am I getting from this heartbreak? No, we ain't
going back there, no more like stressed out acne.

Speaker 1 (56:33):
In a temporary gratification temporary. I deserve long term. I
deserve the jacket, not temporary period because.

Speaker 2 (56:42):
We're not pair falling out. I'm kind of cutting my hair.
I gotta cut it again. But you get it's just
stress like but you get what I'm saying. Why does
that sound like?

Speaker 1 (56:53):
Why does that sound like a bad medication commercial? You
know they listening to the side effects.

Speaker 2 (56:57):
Because people are bad medications. We don't need you, We
don't need you. But that can But you know what
that can go for people, places, things, habits, They could
go for anything. I think we were very specifically reference
to people, but just in general in a general sense,
like Ty's spending money on acne patches from stress breakouts,
like I don't know, not having that to many twenty five,

(57:19):
nor more spending a block on that. So if that's
being said to wrap this up now that we are
in a new year, it's feeling it's feeling real good
around here, right, looking real sweet, and we only had
a couple of days, and I love the vibe and
energy at least from myself and people that I have
been in community with. Do you have any specific goals

(57:41):
that you're gonna work towards this year or anything that
you would like to see from yourself besides the boundaries
in twenty twenty five.

Speaker 1 (57:53):
So definitely need to continue with my like financial goals
and things of that nature. Like, you know, I'm really
good up setting the goals, but I'm not always the
best at following through specifically, when you know you just
want something, you want to do something at a particular time.
So really it's really about that consistency and that sacrifice,
you know, So just continuing to work on and enforce,

(58:17):
you know, what I'm trying to do financially as far
as like saving and like you know, paying stuff off
and stuff of that nature. You know, one of my
goals is always travel, will always just enjoy life in
the moment, So you know, so I'm looking forward to
hopefully getting some trips or something under my belt. I
have nothing specific planned as of yet. Besides, you know,

(58:38):
I guess my technically, my first trip will be back
to North Carolina at the end of the month because
we are going to see Mary japely So and that's
another concert. So you see, that's a theme traveling concert.
You know, that's kind of my life, and you did

(58:59):
mention it earlier, Like I'm interested in either learning a
new skill or just adding something else in my belt.
I feel like I am very overdue for feeding my creativity.
If you know me, you know, I'm a very creative person.
A lot of people see me more in the human

(59:19):
service helper mode, but I'm actually a very creative person,
very silly person. A lot of people don't see that
side either. But the point is, I need to feed
all sides of myself, and I feel like I've been
starving my creative side. So I do have a few
ideas as far as like what I can do for

(59:39):
the creative stuff, but like you know, which kind of
incorporates the learning a new skill, But that can also
go in different directions too. You know, you never know
what's out there as far as like you know, learning
how to do this, learn how to do that. You know,
things that could even just bring you joy, could bring
you money, you know what I mean. So I am
just open open to it all. You know, as I

(01:00:02):
am fast approaching my fortieth year of life in twenty
twenty six, that's trying to be the best me I
can be.

Speaker 2 (01:00:13):
Okay, says I hear. He sounds like all the things,
And I wish you uh successful year, a happy year,
a prosperous, wealthy year. Lit. Yeah, you know, be outside
a little bit, anything that's on your heart. Like I
said before, I can't wait to see it manifest before

(01:00:34):
your eyes this year, as has done it before.

Speaker 1 (01:00:37):
Yes, and not that just just gotta add it because
it's realistic. Not that this is like the goal specifically
of the year, but it would be nice to like
potentially find a man. You know.

Speaker 2 (01:00:51):
I'm like, no, I'm not gonna even I'm not gonna joke.

Speaker 1 (01:00:53):
I'm not gonna jo I've been you know, I've been patient,
you know sometimes, but sometimes it's stuff you gotta do yourself,
you know what I mean. Before certain things happened for you,
So I get to understand that, but it's like, I'm
ready for a little Jessica. So you know, some things
got to start rolling, but it'll happen when it's supposed
to happen.

Speaker 2 (01:01:13):
Yeah, someone has recently told me that they're ready to
be an auntie, So I was like, wait a minute, what,
But yeah, I'm with you on that. You like you said,
things flow how they're supposed to. But I feel like
when you're in the right when you're in the right
space in your life, things really open up and flow better.
Especially in a relationship. They come when you least suspected,

(01:01:35):
you're not even looking at it just happened. At least
that's how my last couple have been. Like, I don't
know my goals are intentions for this year? Well, I
my one of my main main like physical goals is
to run to five k's. I'm actually beginning training now.
My first five k is April twenty seven, and I'm

(01:02:03):
excited for that because I don't know, I've been running again,
like loosening my body up and stuff like that, and
you know, inviting people on. Hey, it'd be nice to
see some familiar faces at the finish line, you know
what I'm saying like family friends, and my mom was like, oh,
I'll come running with you. And it's in Wilmington, North Carolina,

(01:02:25):
and it's actually for sexual assault survivors, which I never
knew that organizations and things like this exist for these purposes.
So I'm excited for that one. And the other one.
I think it's in June, but that's something totally different.
I can't remember all the details, but that's like one
of my major goals is to register and finish both

(01:02:45):
of those successfully. Nothing really in a career aspect, because
I'm still near my job, even though they're pushing me
for another position. I'm just kind of like going to
let it happen when i'm ready, you know what I'm saying.
I don't know. It's hard to kind of explain, but
I'm happy at work. I'm just open for more opportunities

(01:03:08):
in life. I realized that I had been closing and
restricting myself to a lot of things, and I think
it was just, oh, I'm in my healing era and
I have my guard up, but I'm like restricting fun,
restricting living, and I don't want to be in that
space anymore. Didn't realize how much I was really putting
myself in a box. Even though I did a lot

(01:03:29):
last year, I was doing things, I was still holding back,
you know what I'm saying. And I know I had
real specific goals last year and I've completed some, but
the things that I feel like I really could have did,
I didn't. So I'm adding all of them back to
the list for this year. You know. Definitely definitely travel,

(01:03:51):
like I want to travel when I know me and
you talked about this before, Like I think a lot
of times people think about traveling, you always think like
international or leaving the state. Like I'm in a state
where I ain't never really been and it's a lot
down here, and I want to see it all. I'm
not going to probably see it all this year, but
I want to do a lot. I want to drive
to different areas and stay different places and do different things.

(01:04:12):
I really want to make use of my time, my
existence and my PTO like for sure, so I just
want to have fun this year. I just want to live.
I don't want to exist. I don't want to exist.
I want to just live life. Life is supposed to
be lived and fun. And yes, we're going to go

(01:04:32):
through you know, moments of sadness or grief or just
like trials and tribulations, but their moments, and they're in
some it's just some things are more temporary. You know,
my family is dealing with something right now. Someone is sick,
but we're not claiming it right even though I just
claimed it, but we're not fully claiming it. We're claiming full,

(01:04:55):
full healing over this individual. And I talked to her
a couple of days ago, and she's like, I just
want to live my life. I just want to be happy.
I want to just not be around any negativity. I
want to be stressed, free in different things. And as
she's going through what she's going through, that, you know,
warm my heart. And she's dealing with something really really
serious right now. So if she can have that mind

(01:05:17):
frame and be in that space, I can too, you know.
So Yeah, I'm just open to opportunities, open to the
dating world. Like I'm officially you know, saying it, because
like gosh, I'm stuttering because I ain't never officially I'm
officially open to the dating world. I guess, like, what

(01:05:40):
are we doing? So yeah, we'll see what happened navigating
these this timeline of twenty twenty five. It's gonna be
a good one, so you know, stick around now. As
far as like the creativity side Child Virgo, where do

(01:06:00):
we go from here? I really don't know, Like I
really this was my second pop up in the last
couple of months. I really don't have a date set.
Like literally, in a couple of weeks, I will be
hitting my another milestone of celebrating my three years of
having this show. My goal is really to get over

(01:06:21):
the ledge of one hundred episodes because I don't have them.
Because I structured my show a certain type of way
these last few years. But that's the problem. I was
too structured to by some basis that really didn't exist,
you know what I'm saying. So a lot of things
I feel like around me at a point in time
in my life was in a box. I like things
being in a box. So I'm in a space right now.

(01:06:44):
I'm really like mentally revamping chronicles of O Virgo. On a
good side of that, I'm still making charts in different countries. Unfortunately,
I just haven't posted a lot of things, and that's okay.
But I we'll be back for another season. I don't
know when, right now, but we may have one more
pop up before, like I officially launched season four. I

(01:07:08):
think I'm just in a living space right now, you know,
and not that I mean podcast is my baby, of course,
but I need to learn how to implement all of
these things together and not let just that overtake everything,
because when I'm in season it overtakes a large part
of me. And I have numerous jobs right now too,

(01:07:31):
by choice, like right like by choice, rightfully so. But
I'm just trying to figure out how to navigate this
new life of mine. I think that's what I'm trying
to say. And I say me and Jess are opening Dayton,
were opening Daton scratch its head. Don't really know speak
for yourself how, but I get it. So, yeah, I

(01:07:57):
get it. But this was fun. This is totally different
temperament level than the recap of twenty twenty three, and
I'm wholeheartedly grateful for that. Haven't taken no tumbles down
any more steps. Mm hmmm, Yeah, it's been twenty three
four was it was a good year. It was surely

(01:08:19):
a good year. And we are literally a few days
until twenty twenty five, and I don't think I've saw smilings.
So yeah, and I look.

Speaker 1 (01:08:30):
Forward so hopefully it stays that way, you know.

Speaker 2 (01:08:35):
It will you know, hopefully it will there better. And
I look forward to seeing and rocking out with Miss
Mary J. Blige in a few weeks. And of course
I look forward to seeing you in a few weeks.
So do you have anything else for the people? Say?

Speaker 1 (01:08:50):
Yeah, I would just close out with you know, you
kind of started with, like, you know, the year or
how you hope everybody entered into the year, And I
hope everybody entered into the year with calm, you know
what I mean, Like, I hope nobody entered into the

(01:09:11):
year with chaos, because sometimes that can just throw you
completely off, you know, if you just feel like it's
a lot going on, you don't have control, Da da da.
So hope people entered the year with some level of calm,
or at least got themselves to a level of calm.
So do they feel that they can, you know, walk
through the year just feeling like I got this, you know,
whatever it might be, I got this, you know, find

(01:09:33):
your piece, maintain your piece, and create your piece or
whatever that might be. But besides that, just want to
let you know that I'm proud of you for everything
that you've accomplished in twenty twenty four and I have
no doubt that twenty twenty five will you'll, you know,
take it to another level.

Speaker 2 (01:09:54):
Thank you, my friend. Thank you. And I'm pretty sure
there's so many other things I could have mentioned and
I didn't, but what was on my heart the main
one stood out that we talked about. So thank you
for being a part of this conversation. It's always a
joyful moment when we link, you know, whether it's in
person or virtually. Like I said, yes, I hope and

(01:10:18):
pray everyone enter it this year in a good space.
And if you didn't, just know that it's just a moment,
let or allow it to be a moment, meaning it
does not have to hinder on It doesn't have to
hinder you for the rest of this week, for the
rest of the month, for the rest of this winter season.
It's just a moment. And that's not me downplaying anybody's

(01:10:40):
experience or any trials or tribulations anyone may be going
through at the time, but just really try to focus
on not giving you know, so much of yourself to
things that may not be in your control because that's
something that I really learned last year. It is what
it is, you know what I'm saying. And one thing

(01:11:01):
about people. When you're doing people, people want people, you know,
So just put yourself at the top of that pedal
stool and focus on yourself and of course like your
loved ones if you are responsible for someone, but definitely
set some good intentions for yourself and watch them things
flourish right before you and keep the faith like you

(01:11:21):
have to have the faith for the mustard seed, you know,
and that's a mustard seed is very very small. So
I really hope everyone, you know, if you didn't start
the year off, because I know I've seen some things
on social media a very few people that may not
have started the year off the best. But it's okay.
It'd get better. It always does. There's always light at

(01:11:42):
the end of the tunnel. And if you don't stick
it out, you'll never know how amazing things can get,
could get, could get for you. Because all I could
think about is last summer feeling like crap, sitting on
the bleachers, crying to jest because I wanted to end
it all and if I had ended it all not
this was the summer before last twenty twenty three. If

(01:12:05):
I ended it all, I would never have gotten to
see how wonderful my life would have been flourishing now
before my eyes. And don't get it twisted. I don't
have it all, right, I don't have it all, but
I have enough and it's within me. And that's the
joy that I needed. That's the peace that I desired,
and I have it, and everything else has just been

(01:12:26):
coming like kind of like second nature, you know. So
I'm grateful for that. I'm grateful. And Jesse, you keep
up the good work. Keep being the amazing sister, friend, niece,
everything that you are to everyone else, confidine for many
of us. You know what I'm saying. And if you

(01:12:47):
don't know how I appreciated and loved you are, I'm
speaking on behalf of the congregation. Okay, you are so
loved and appreciated. And I hope that this year people
really pour into you you and show you the love
that you give them, including myself.

Speaker 1 (01:13:08):
Thank you, Yes, thank you. I appreciate that and I
receive that and I love you too.

Speaker 2 (01:13:15):
Yes, And when you come down here, I'm gonna hug
on you. I don't care. I don't care. I'm warning
you now. Yes I'm still that touchy Philly person, maybe
just so not maybe a little bit more than I was,
but yes, that is me. But thank you guys for
joining us for our recap of twenty twenty four. Again,
if you're following me on social media, that would be

(01:13:36):
the best place to know when the next season is
going to launch or when the next pop up. Following
you on Instagram, TikTok, I don't know the face of
TikTok right now, but the page is still there. TikTok, Facebook, Instagram,
I'm Crons of a Vertical podcast even Twitter. I'm in
and out of there sometime, Crowns of a Vertical Podcast
on YouTube, Crowns of a Vertical Podcasts. You just have

(01:13:59):
a lot of episodes from the past season that you
can go listen to as well as watch. And I'm
on all of your streaming sites Apple, Amazon, Spotify. I
feel like I'm a little rusty. I'm everywhere, your girls everywhere.
And I've also done a few episodes with other podcasts
within these last couple of months. The most recent one

(01:14:19):
was the John A Podcast. Shout out to my lovely
sisters over there, that was a good conversation, one of
my favorite conversations. I never like put it in categories,
but that one talking about like therapy, my experience and
where I'm at now. So good, so much growth. So
definitely go check them out. And also the things about

(01:14:39):
us podcasts. I did an episode with them back in
November after the election. Like it was. It was a
quick one, but it was a good one. It was
a good one. So shout out to all of you podcasters,
Shout out to Unfiltered Studios, my network that I'm a
part of. I'll put all these lovely links in the description. Yeah,

(01:15:01):
so hope you guys stay tuned this far and we
are out. Thank you for listening to an episode of
Chronicles of a Virgo podcast with me your favorite favorite
verbal host, Shikita Johnson. Your support means the world to
me as I want to continue to see you all
priser and grow. Please join me back next Wednesday, where

(01:15:24):
we will continue to dive into more can it and
empower on conversations that we'll get you a step closer
to stepping into a new filled individual. Remember you're not
alone on your journey. Please don't forget to subscribe to
us on social media at Chronicles of a Verbal podcast
on all social media platforms and the YouTube channel. Check

(01:15:44):
out our website and blog at chroniclesovivirgo dot website dot com.
All links will be listened in the description box below.
Until next time, beautiful souls, keep rising from those ashes
and stay true to here and know your girl loves you.
Peace out,