A Leaf On The Wind
For any “Firefly” fans out there you'll understand the significance in the title of this article. For those who are scratching their heads right about now, watch “Firefly” on Netflix. 😏 Ha!

As with many of us, the past year has had me adrift like a leaf on the wind ... after the onset of the Covid era hit (not to mention double back surgeries) I lost my job at Windmill Wellness Ranch (since I wasn't able to work remotely in that job), the ability to see my kids and grands and I also lost one of the other passions in my life ... musical performance.

I'm happy to report that as of the first part of April I have secured an Office Administrator role that is a remote position working for a growing tech company, tekRESCUE based out of San Marcos. I can work from anywhere as long as I have WiFi. It's only 20 hours a week right now, but I can see that changing sooner rather than later. There are only 12 employees and they all remind me of Blake and Bryan ... super intelligent, talented and fun. Being on the team chat with them through the work day is interesting to say the least. I keep telling them I need a dictionary for all the tech/gamer speak that they use. LOL! A casual and entertaining work environment is a nice change from what I've been used to.

Also, within the past few months I've become a member of the San Antonio chapter of the Sweet Adelines. What's interesting about this is that when Blake was 1 and we'd just moved to Arlington I researched Sweet Adelines and thought about auditioning. I received an invitation from a friend to give their Sweet Adelines group a try and, without the band or orchestra gigs to fill my musical bucket, the invitation to check them out was appealing. I spent a month and a half sitting in on the group rehearsals via Zoom every Thursday evening and decided to bite the bullet and audition last month. I was vocally placed as a “Bass” by the director and quickly learned my audition song “Orange Colored Sky.” I was ecstatic to find that I'd aced my audition and was on to the next phase of the process. Next came being voted in by the club's officers. I was so thrilled to be welcomed and “sung in” by the chorus two weeks ago. I'm excited to be singing barbershop with the Alamo Metro Chorus and begin working on competition material. I'll keep you posted as to when we'll be competing again once things begin to open up in the world. I have to tell you, with the family background in harmony singing, I am thoroughly enjoying the luscious blend of voices in four part harmony. It's similar yet so different from singing in my Andrews Sisters' trio.

In addition to the AMC Sweet Adelines, I've recently completed a vocal recording project with our former drummer and good friend, Mike Byrne. He asked me to put vocals to his arrangement of “What a Wonderful World” and I was able to do that recently. That session opened up another recording door for a singer-songwriter in the New Braunfels area and I'll begin to sing on his original faith-based songs soon ... stay tuned for that! So, when the Lord blesses us, he blesses us BIG time!

Additionally, within the past several months I started my own travel service. I was tired of waiting on companies to hire me and decided to take charge of my own destiny and become a certified travel agent. I am certified to book travel and entertainment anywhere in the world. From full blown travel package trips complete with excursions to concerts and theme park tickets ... and everything in between. I have found that Im able to provide personalized service (free of charge to the client), manage all the details, handle problems or issues when they arise and resolve them quickly (which can be a huge headache for the client without a travel agent's expertise) and, last but not least, offer incentives, upgrades and special deals because vendors want to earn a travel agent's business so they offer perks that we can pass on to the client. With that said, if you're considering travel, concerts, theme parks, etc ... hit me up and let me see what magic I can work for you!

I think that's all for this edition of Jules' Journey ... but give it a minute and things are sure to change.

🧡 Jules / Nonni