February gets a bad rep for being especially harsh from those of us who are #foreveralone. Spinsters like myself are thought to spend Valentine’s Day at home with their cats, eating a box of chocolate they bought for themselves while tearing up watching The Diary of Bridget Jones (video: All by myself). But I won’t let V-Day get the best of me. That’s cause January was painful enough.
Seriously, I’m just so glad January is over. My mother has been unable to walk more than a few steps since January 5. After many doctors appointments and many mornings of being awoken to hearing her scream, I was initially quite sad when her epidural to her spinal cord yesterday did not result in immediate relief. February, you’re off to a not-so-great start, damn it. That’s okay though, cause there are plenty of things to look forward to:
Saturday is HeartCamp
Locals, listen up. South Florida’s notorious blogging socialite Maria de los Angeles is hosting the first ever HeartCamp. She’s brought in a diverse group of speakers to discuss all matters of the heart — the physical, emotional, spiritual and creative heart. I am actually most interested to hear from many of the South Florida community members who are sharing their own stories:
While regular price tickets have already sold out, you might still be able to get a late-bird ticket for $40. The event is being held at Hyatt Pier 66 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. I have volunteered my services for the day to handle all the fun social coverage of the event. You’ll be able to follow along on Twitter, Facebook and Flickr.
Finishing the new piece of art on my arm
At the end of January, I had some ink added to my forearm where my New York Times Magazine “T” logo was placed. I wanted something bold, colorful and feminine. After stumbling upon the work of Steve Whittenberger at Rock-a-billy Tattoos in Lauderhill, Fla., via Instagram (no joke), I knew he’d come up with something great – that wouldn’t take away from the “T” or diminish it, but really build upon it.

The day before Valentine’s, Steve will be finishing up the shading and adding some really bold colors to this piece.
In March, I’ll be in Austin for 9 days
My now annual trip to Austin in booked – the company is paying for me to attend SXSW Interactive again (awesome), and I’ve tacked on some vacation time to the end of that so I can see all of my Austin buddies (even more awesome). I plan to spend some time doing some self-reflection and perhaps finally getting a chance to visit some of the things I never got to when I lived there. To name a few: Hamilton Pool (seen below) and the Salt Lick (yum).
