First Post !
Helloooo
Welcome to Norah’s Notebook: A Personal Travel Blog! This is my first ever post! I know what you’re thinking: wowowowowow so cool, so fun.
For this first post, I am giving you readers a sense of what you can expect from this blog. Norah’s Notebook is a personal blog of sharing my journey as I head solo into a world of experience and learning. Just this week, I bought my flight to Medellin, Colombia, where I will begin my backpacking journey on February 7, 2026. This will start the expedition of my adventure travel. What this will look like is experiencing a new place by spending as little money as possible through opportunities such as Workaway and Couchsurfing not only to meet accommodation needs, but to get the full, real experience of the places I will be travelling to. Off the beaten path if you will.
Crunching on the fall leaves with Groot while listening to Flow by Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi on November 5, 2025 in Waxhaw, NC.
February is still a few months away. In the meantime, I will be preparing for my journey. Preparation in terms of backpacking supplies (what to bring, what not to bring) as well as mental and financial preparation.
Some of you may know I decided to move home when my lease in Boulder, CO, ended. Thus ended my almost three year long career at the local gelato shop. When I returned home, I secured a waitressing job at a high-end sushi restaurant in hopes of making money for travel. Although it was a great opportunity, I quickly realized the food and customer service industry was no longer for me. I’m tired of working for the man. I want to be my own boss. Make my own decisions and answer to no one but the clients I offer my services to. I’m now an entrepreneur who is now learning to best market myself. So come along as I begin this journey as well!
4 year-old Desi Momo with his chocolate cake and birthday crown at Wan Fu in Pineville, NC on November 6, 2025.
I fully expect challenges as I set about making money online. The first problem I am running into is deciding exactly where to start. I quickly realized there are TONS of ways to make money online AND I feel that my skillset applies to many of these options (I know, I know, I’m super talented or whateva). But focusing on ONE thing is the first step. So, I have decided on freelancing. Ok, freelancing what? I could run social media accounts, edit or create videos, freelance photography; the options are endless. Ultimately, I have decided on freelance writing. Even this I am still fine tuning. I’m experienced in journalistic writing, research paper writing, poetry, and creative writing. I have interest in topics like music, travel, environment, social justice, activism…but I’m still trying to find my niche. Finding a niche seems to be the most profitable way to enter the freelancing field. It will also help increase my focus.
I know my brain and I know that by writing through these challenges as they emerge, this blog will give me a sense of clarity on issues as they arise. It will serve as an archive of personal navigation through everything and, expectantly, will give the opportunity for those reading to share with me how they might go about the situation or how they may have handled something similar.
My hope is that this blog will 1) hold me accountable to myself and my audience , 2) help provide insight to people who may want to attempt a similar way of living, 3) serve as a place of self-reflection and improvement on the skills and mindset I already possess.
My Lucy Girl on November 7, 2025, curled up, savoring the warmth of my good night’s sleep in my Waxhaw, NC, bedroom.
Norah’s Notebook will combine lots of different purposes into one. Very fitting if you know me personally; how could I ever just focus on one thing? Hopefully this means you will never be bored ;) You will experience my adventure travel, the construction of my online presence and business, and my path to learning more about myself and the world around me. The ultimate goal is to be self-sustaining in a way that allows me to continuously create and see the world. In my next blog post, I will explain my goals for travel, what I hope to gain through traveling this way, and why I think it’s perfect for yours truly. Stick around, I would love to have you :)
Norah <3
