I think I can. I think I can. I know I can.

Once again, I’ve fallen off the updating wagon. Ah, whatever. Who cares?

It’s been a month and a half since my last update. I swear, I’m not some recovering blogger or something… but the past few months have been nuts, and the past month and a half, ah, well, two months, has been even more nuts.

We finally launched Chapelboro.com. I quite literally feel like I birthed an interactive-internet-local-media-website infant baby. Although I have not given actual birth yet, from what I hear, it’s strenuous and painful. You bleed, sweat, and cry a lot. But in the end, you bring something into the world that you are proud of. And those feelings (including the blood, sweat, and OH THE TEARS), are the feelings I’ve had working on this website.

It sounds trivial, but it couldn’t be more true.

I don’t usually like to use the term “proud” because overly prideful people can sometimes be ugly people. Humility is so important. But I am dadblamed proud of that website and what it not only means for the community of Chapel Hill and Carrboro, but what it means to me, personally. It’s almost symbolic of my journey over the last two years that I’ve lived in North Carolina.

When I first started working at 1360 WCHL (Chapel Hill-Carrboro’s News Talk and Tar Heels Station), I had three other jobs. I was working part-time for the radio station and part-time for three other businesses. I was dying in a lot of ways. I worked my tail off. But I took the job at WCHL with the mindset of, work your tail off and show them why they need to hire you full-time.

So, I worked my tail off. I worked WAY more hours than I was actually paid for and I took the job and made it my own. And in a matter of a little over two and a half months, my boss approached me and offered me a full-time job working for the station. I could finally quit my other jobs.

So, I took the full-time job. The salary wasn’t great, it was going to be tough to make ends meet and I wasn’t going to be eating out or vacationing much, but I had great benefits, a great opportunity, and a full-time job. I took that job with the mindset of, work my tail off and show them why they need to give me a raise and/or promote me.

So, I worked my tail off. I worked WAY too many hours. I learned how to do things outside of my actual job description. And I gained a ton of invaluable knowledge and experience. And, 7 months later, I got a promotion. I was promoted to “Duchess of Digital Media” (best job title EVAR) and I was going to be in charge of the launch of Chapelboro.com. The website had been over a year in the making. I sat in on preliminary meetings, consulted on names, logos, taglines, designs, colors, content. You name it.

I have never worked so hard on anything in my entire life. And I’ve worked hard on a lot of things. But I am really proud of what came out. Sure, there’s still some kinks to work out with it. Okay, a lot of kinks. But hey, it’s the nature of the beast.

Again, I don’t write all of this to sound bragadocious (sweet word) or prideful. I write it to share that you can do anything. With the right mindset and the right work ethic, you can do anything.

I’ve learned so much in the past year and a half and I know I have so much more to learn. I am not where I want to be… yet. But now I have the mindset of, work my tail off, learn a lot, and change the world and stuff like that.

I am so blessed and so incredibly grateful. I can’t thank God, my family, and my friends enough for the support I’ve had throughout the last year, two years, seven years, my entire life. When life smacks me in the face, life backhands itself right back and shows me how lucky I am. (Does that even make sense? It does to me.)

I’m tired. I’ve had one day off in two+ months. But I am okay. I’m like my own proverbial Thomas the Tank Engine.

Also, I get to see my best friend, Bec, this weekend. So I have that to look forward to. 🙂

And, of course, as my mother used to say, “This, too, shall pass.”

I apologize if this post made absolutely no sense whatsoever. But I miss writing. And I felt like putting my stream of consciousness down on paper.

Also, on another note, I’ve lost 20 pounds so far. BOOM BROADS!

And, yet, another note… I’ve raised half the money I need for my mission trip to Kenya!! Wahoo!!

All for now.