Change your mindset: Rae’s Violet Adventures

When I started writing this post, it was gonna be a full on rant, but I took some time to reflect and decided I could either be a shell of a person, miserable and broken, OR I could appreciate the good and positive experiences and make this a moment of gratitude.

So I’m choosing the latter.

I went on a trip to LA with my own money, and it was not an impromptu trip. I’d planned a little over a month in advance for a meetup. Long story short, things didn’t go as I’d expected nor hoped.

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I was on the verge of tears the whole time, staying in a shared room with foreign strangers in bunk beds, many of them men from Hungary and a few Colombians. They were all as kind as could be expected, though, and most of them didn’t pay me much mind. That was a relief. Everyone carried on in their native languages and I mainly sat or stood there like this: 😐 during the bits of time I was there. I was trying to make out familiar words here and there, but it was futile.

I had no plans of my own when I got to L.A. other than finding an arcade, so I had to improvise. Regardless, I was dead set on making the most of my trip. And I did!

I enjoyed my trip completely sober with no tears! I didn’t have my actual ID (lost it a couple weeks ago and still hadn’t received the replacement), just a paper copy, and with the hassle I had at the airport, I didn’t even bother trying to get a drink with my paper ID, or voter card (lol), in California.

The streets were filled with homeless people, some sidewalks even had tents. Initially, I was a bit fearful of them, but soon saw the people in cars were much more of a threat than the people on the streets. I didn’t feel safe walking alone or waiting there after being catcalled and ogled by strange men in cars who couldn’t even make out what I even looked like.

Anyways, all that aside, here’s what I enjoyed:

• The art was great and fun
• The beach was nice escape for a couple hours
• Hollywood was fun
• Finally tried fat burger and ate two meals at once
• I got my exercise in with all the walking I did when I wasn’t catching a ride or taking the bus. Can you believe I walked 30 minutes to a CVS when it turned out there was one 6 minutes from where I was staying and I didn’t realize until after the fact???
• I literally wasn’t trying to make any new friends and din’t want to, but I made friends with one of my roommates
• I did some sightseeing (my photos don’t do it any justice)
• The weather is amazing compared to the heat in Dallas right now
• I didn’t get kidnapped, raped, or murdered
• I made it home safely
• Both of my flights went very well
• I got a break from my beloved Dallas for a bit
• I got a tiny break from work life
• I got to see a new way of life and the streets I’d only heard of in my favorite songs, shows and Soft White Underbelly on Youtube
• So much greenery
• Can feel better about solo moments in my hometown
• Being alone isn’t always so bad. It is possible to make the most of time out in public by yourself, and I’m proof
• Also, a lesson in trusting my intuition because I ignored the nagging feeling and red flags telling me to be cautious and wary
• I have more friends at home than I realized lol

So will I go back to L.A. or make anymore solo trips? No thanks, I’m good right where I am.

But who knows?

Follow me on Instagram @imaginationbyrae or Twitter @goddessishrc for more content. Consider donations to Cashapp: $RaesViolet or PayPal @raesvioletwords. Thanks for reading!

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