A friend of mine posted a snapchat of her hanging out at a birthday party. It was literally the birthday girl chillin’ on the couch in her pajamas and maybe 2-3 people sitting around in chairs. It was uneventful. You couldn’t even tell it was a party. More of a gathering. The caption read, “This is what it’s like turning 30.” I laughed out loud because while I’m north of 30, I could relate. I have grown into a homebody. I hardly go out anymore. And when I do it’s a struggle. I have to get my mind right. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m in Detroit and not in NYC anymore. While I love the D, it doesn’t compare to NYC in entertainment or social gatherings. It just doesn’t. Maybe one concert will roll into town and everybody on my social feed will be at the concert. Whereas in NYC you have a plethora of events to choose from. You could go to events and not see the same people. Or you could go solo and always end up seeing people you knew. Even though you were alone, you never felt lonely.
In my younger years I would go out every weekend. It got to the point where my parents would only let me go out one day of the weekend. Friday or Saturday? My choice. When I got to my 20s, I had just moved to New York City and had to go out and experience all of its glory. But even then there were rare occasions where I would stay out really late. I’ve always been a homebody. I have never been into clubs. I like hanging out with friends but I don’t mind being by myself either. I like to say I’m my best company. The highlight of my life now is binging on Netflix or Amazon Prime videos. Like, I really look forward to that. Speaking of, last night I binged on the new show on OWN ‘Greenleaf‘. It is excellent and you must watch.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand. People always assume that I hang out a lot from my social meda feeds. It’s completely the opposite. People really need to stop reading into folks social media feeds. It’s all curated content to show your best self. Now you know it’s bad when your mother nudges you to go out more. There are times that I don’t even leave my house aside from going to the grocery store or post office. She’s always saying I’m not going to meet anyone hanging out at the house. And she’s partly right, unless the postman is trying to holler I’m definitely not going to meet anyone kicking it at the crib. But you also can’t go out with the intent of trying to find someone either. It will stress you out and you will not have a good time.
So in my mission to counteract my habit of staying home and never going out. I’ve decided to challenge myself to go out once every weekend. It can be a concert, an exhibit, a social gathering…anything. Just as long as I leave my house to go someplace that requires me to put on makeup. I will research places to go by using apps like Facebook, Eventbrite and Meetup. I will read the newspaper for options. I will also contact friends and plan dates.
I have been back home for over a year and it’s time to get acclimated. And I’m starting with tonight. I’m gong to see Miss Diana Ross in concert at Chene Park. I’m excited because I’ve never seen her perform live. Micheal Jackson and Prince’s death hit me really hard. Although I was able to see Prince in concert, I never got to see MJ. So I’m trying to see all of the legends and icons in concert while they are still on this earth. Aretha, Janet and Lionel Ritchie are next on the list.
I took these pictures a while back. I’m wearing a black and white drop waist dress by Simply Be (similar) and Antonio Melani red suede pumps (similar).
Do you suffer from FONMO (fear of never missing out)?
