Hello, you beautiful person! There’s a very big story on the blog today, but I’m sharing it in honor of the Home Safe Home Gala, AVDA‘s (Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse) annual fundraising event, happening TONIGHT in Houston.  This fundraiser is created to support AVDA’s mission to end family violence by serving the survivor, the abuser, and the community. Unique and fun, it has become renowned as one of Houston’s premier tasting events, featuring the creations of top chefs.

I am HONORED to be an ambassador of AVDA’s gala this year! It’s an organization I’ve been wanting to be part of since moving to Houston.  The evening will include top Houston chef tastings, wine and more on Thursday, October 5, 2017 at 7 pm, at the Crystal Ballroom at The Rice in Houston. Tickets are on sale now! Visit AVDA’s website for more information here. A portion of the 2017 Home Safe Home Gala proceeds will go to the newly established AVDA Victim Relief Fund, which will provide emergency financial assistance to AVDA clients. Read today’s blog to find out WHY organizations like AVDA are so important. DISCLAIMER: This could be a difficult and triggering read for some, so proceed with caution. 

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It’s been a rough month and while I’ve taken quite a departure from the blog in August, I wanted to come back and share some of the emotions I’ve had while processing Hurrican Harvey and the havoc it unloaded on Houston. As Hurrican Irma is on track to hit my home state of Florida, it feels helpless being hit in not one home, but two. Harvey was unlike any hurricane or natural disaster I had ever seen. I tried to get home after attending Yellow Conference in LA (you can read about how I got stuck in this New York Times’ piece), but couldn’t beat the storm which led to many flights and a drive to Houston. I wrote the below essay in a Facebook status after I finally made it home from Ft. Lauderdale to Houston while experiencing late-night insomnia and tidying up my clean, undamaged apartment. Things felt surreal and I felt helpless. As we cope with whatever storms and disasters life throws in front of us, I wanted to highlight two silver linings: hope and community. This year’s political rhetoric has dimmed that spark I once had for the human heart. I believed everyone had heart, the sky was all rainbows, the good always prevails, and whatever unicorn candy life feeds you when you’re young. It only took a spoonful of misogyny, a plate full of racism and far too many neo-Nazis in broad daylight to make me feel sickened and a bit depressed by what felt like a new normal. Houston’s attitude has illuminated the dark cloud I had hanging over me for not just this week, but for this year. Silver linings happen and sometimes they are strong enough to let all of the sunshine in. So here’s a little entry I wrote candidly after feeling disappointment and shifting it into complete pride.

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