As the saying goes, reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated. I’m alive and have not abandoned the blog. Since my Shapeez review, I captured beautiful photos for two new reviews of bust-friendly clothing, framed the structure of another post, and received a two-part guest series from a friend. There was something else that happened . . . what was it again? Oh, that’s right. I contracted Covid for the third damn time.

Thankfully, the respiratory symptoms were nonexistent, but I suffered debilitating exhaustion, total lack of appetite, and severe inflammation in my muscles and joints. As a result, I depleted my electrolytes and dehydrated, which added to my overall recovery time. I scheduled my second booster and flu shot soon after I felt better because I certainly did not want to repeat that experience. Readers, this was not one of my better decisions. The jabs wiped me out for another couple of weeks. Naturally, I received my inoculations ten days before the news reported a correlation between higher antibody levels and more significant reactions to the booster. Things that could have been brought to my attention yesterday!

Furthermore, my aunt, who many of you met at the shop, has not been doing well lately. If you do not recall, she had a massive ischemic stroke Thanksgiving of last year, and her recovery backslid. If you pray, send one her way, and if you don’t, positive thoughts are always welcome.

Combined, everything negatively impacted my mental health, and I admittedly lost interest in what I enjoy, including writing. The world felt hopeless and barren, and I could not muster the enthusiasm for more than mindless TV shows and my beloved horror movies. I reached out for help, vented to friends, wrote down my feelings, and slowly began to accept what cannot be changed. I have always struggled with finding balance, and I am working on consciously choosing myself more. The process left me in a better place, and I plan to continue it with each new step forward.

Finally, I have three unrelated additional updates:

• Bra Sales: I have new with tags as well as gently used bras to sell. I am evaluating my best course of action, but I am considering creating both a gallery page with images and prices here on the blog as well as using seller’s tools on my Facebook page. One of them is my gorgeous sequin Playful Promises bra which breaks my heart, but with weight loss, the fit looks abysmal. I will create a more detailed post when I finalize how I wish to proceed.
• Weight and Reviews: Because of said weight loss, I need to dedicate a day to pictures and videos of items in my review queue before some no longer fit. I mention this only because when I write the reviews, the perspective will be from the time of the photos/videos. If the bra no longer fits when I post the content, I will include a sale price should you wish to purchase it directly.
• Newsletter: I transitioned the old store newsletter list to the Sophisticated Notion blog and plan to send an introductory letter with links to current content soon. I will send one per month with all the posts along with sales information from some of my favorite retailers and any brand I wish to spotlight. You can unsubscribe anytime from the link at the bottom.

Thank you for being so patient and for coming back to read my posts. I have so much love for all of you and can’t wait to get the first post up!