Ok Ok Ok. I swear if you looked up the word “slacker” in the dictionary, my photo would be next to it. I’ve been so preoccupied with my other gazillion jobs that I’ve completely neglected these monthly retrospects posts! Or really any posts!
Maybe I was putting off this September update because I didn’t travel at all. It was a fun month, though not very eventful. My boyfriend was finishing up his season as a park ranger at Olympic National Park, so we were still doing the long distance thing this month. However, I did manage to find a few cool events in town with my roomie and I even celebrated a pretty neat blogging win! Read on for the details!
Destinations Visited
Sacramento, CA — 30 nights
The Highs
In August, I had signed up as a dogwalker/dogsitter through Rover.com and have been earning money to play with dogs ever since! I took one pup to the Chalk It Up Festival in Sacramento and another pup mural-hunting around the city.
Alyssa Ramos from My Life’s A Movie started a Wanderlust Workers travel savings program. After admiring her money saving and travel hacks, I knew I had to join! My income wasn’t that great this month, but I was able to use a lot of her tactics to save $50. Now I just need to keep at it and decide on where to go. If you’ve got any ideas, leave them in the comments!
I booked my second travel agent client this month! It’s always so exciting to plan and book a clients trip. I’ve been loving this job and I can’t wait to start promoting my services more! Contact me about cruises, all-inclusives, and more!
Those of you who know me personally or have followed along for a while know that I’ve moved around a lot. Sacramento is the longest I’ve lived anywhere since before college, yet I’ve been going back and forth for cruises and wildlife jobs the entire 2 years here. Making friends when you’re new to a city and always on the move is hard. But y’all! I made friends this month! And I got to adventure with them to a biergarten, a movie night, a crazy plant ladies house, a beekeeping store, and for an affogato run!
Neat blogging win? Getting approval to host my first giveaway! And it was a big one! Thanks to Rapid Hammock, who I’m a brand ambassador for, I was able to give one of their sweet-a$$ hammocks away to a reader the following month! Missed out, but still want a hammock? Enter my code AJAUNTWITHJOY for 20% off at checkout! They make awesome Christmas gifts, too. *wink*
The Lows
Raise your hand if you’re a downstairs neighbor! I apologize to all of you. I am an upstairs neighbor. And this month, I’ve officially succeeded in making our downstairs neighbors hate me. Ok, so maybe not hate me, but they definitely weren’t happy with me dogsitting an ENORMOUS pitbull. He was the cutest sweetest love-bug baby ever. And I loved that nobody messed with me when I walked him because he looked so intimidating. But our poor neighbors — he’d take one step on our floor and it was like he was trying to crash through it. They swore they could hear him breathe.
This month, I had a lot of long distance woes. The last I had seen my boyfriend was in July and with him still working in the backcountry, communication was only like twice a week if I was lucky.
I was supposed to get my first (and big!) commission from the travel agency this month, but it didn’t come when I thought it would. I was trying to plan to fly up to Seattle to meet my boyfriend at the end of his park job, and do a road trip back home with him. But no commission meant no trip. Bummer.
Memorable Food
Just couldn’t stay away from bubble tea since last month’s random craving. I went to Tea For U again and tried a mango royal tea with boba — and I’m pretty sure I saw Heaven’s gates.
Another excellent drink I tried this month was a Pomegranate Cider at the Der Biergarten. I’m not much of a beer girl, but ciders and sakes are where it’s at! And this hip beer garden was a great find with its outdoor seating, string lights, and games like corn hole!
best wildlife shot
Surprisingly, I didn’t take any wildlife photos this month! What’s wrong with me?! This is the closest I got. Meet one of our bearded dragons nomming on some lettuce. He likes warm baths and pooping in his water bowl.
Most Popular Instagram Shot
This was actually taken on my Fourth of July trip to South Lake Tahoe. I posted it to announce the excitement of my hammock giveaway, so it’s no wonder this was the most popular shot! Who doesn’t want a free hammock?! We arrived in the early evening to Emerald Bay State Park and lounged on the waterfront by the Vikingsholm Castle. Once it got dark, we packed up and headed to another section of South Lake Tahoe to watch fireworks on the beach!
Posts Written
Retrospects : August 2016 — Read on for an overview of my August 2016 destinations and adventures. Also included are my highs, lows, goals accomplished, and more!
Goals Accomplished
Hosting my first giveaway! Cha-Ching!
I learned a lot of new recipes this month, too! Cookies, Chocolate-covered frozen banana treats, and Chinese five spice chicken thighs with apples and sweet potatoes.
Goals For Next Month
My only goals are to write more posts than I did this month and to spend as much time with my boyfriend as possible.
Coming Up…
Ranger Mike FINALLY comes home! Also, I’ve been planning a Girls LOVE Travel meetup at Apple Hill. Here’s to hoping I meet even more new friends — who are just as travel obsessed as I am! Oh. And, Fall treats for the win!
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