Welcome to my blog!

There is so much I have been pondering, since I started this We’re Not Dead Yet venture. I’m looking forward to getting it out of my brain and on to the page and see if it resonates with any of you. But first, allow me to introduce myself in a little more detail.

I’m Neeahtima. (nee-ah-tee-mah) It’s American Indian—Choctaw —and a family name from several generations back. What does it mean? Who knows. Family lore is that I was named after a great, great, great, great . . . grandmother, who was Choctaw and married a white military officer. The story goes that the government paid her, in land, to teach the Indian children English. That land later was taken away. Is all this true? I’ve got no proof.

Childhood was split between Buffalo, NY (9 years) and Dallas (10 years). I was raised by a single mother, who taught me to sew from an early age. She taught me independence and that I could do anything, but I was painfully shy. Ballet and singing were my primary activities. I was also a cheerleader AND the school mascot. I rose to the level of an apprentice to the Dallas Ballet, before I determined that I did not want to be poor (anymore). So, I set out to be a first-generation college grad and earned a Bachelor of Journalism from The University of Texas at Austin.

If you’ve ever been to Austin, you know it’s a pretty great place. I chose to stay, then, after graduation and launch my career there. I meandered through the world of communications, working in writing, editing, design, branding, messaging, politics, media, and public affairs. In my last position as a public affairs consultant. . . I had a lovely small office at one point overlooking the Colorado River, but I was rarely in it. I traveled pretty much Monday through Friday to “exotic” places like Topeka, Jefferson City, and Little Rock. During that time, I crossed paths with some kind of impressive, powerful, and successful people. I was very young, with a lot of responsibility in a world of primarily “Good ‘Ole Boys.” Although it was a challenge, I learned to navigate that world, with a fake-it-‘till-you-make-it approach.

My firm sent me to head up a project in Atlanta, where I would spend a few months on the 5 am flight Monday mornings out of Austin and the 6 pm flight Friday evenings back home, running a campaign for a new client. During the campaign, I worked with a lawyer. He wrote the bill to deregulate natural gas in Georgia, and I ran the campaign to get it passed. Sometime after the campaign ended and I returned home to Atlanta, we developed a long-distance romance. Later, I transferred to Atl, and eventually Craig and I eloped to Jamaica.

I stopped working when we started our family. Along came Emma, who is now an aspiring triple-threat performer; then Carsten, who studies computer science; and Regan, who just graduated and is headed off to college. Life as a stay-at-home mom of three involved a LOT of driving. I also served in church leadership and started a middle school musical theater program at my kids’ school. I was producer, director, music director, choreographer, costumer, set designer, and fundraiser. It was terrifying. I was a volunteer. No teaching degree and no degrees in performance. But our little rag tag group ended up winning major awards at the national Junior Theater Festival.

I’ve always been active and tried never to get more that 12 pounds out of line (except pregnancy!), but the 40s brought that universal peri-menopausal challenge of maintaining my desired weight. I started teaching myself to run at 46, and by 50 I had run my first 10K.

I was still frustrated. I was in better physical fitness than I had ever been at 50, but the running wasn’t solving the entire weight gain issue, especially around my middle. Then, a friend introduced me to a new nutrition program that changed the game for both me and my husband. It also helped my high school football player son gain necessary weight and muscle. I was such a fan, I signed on to be a coach so I could help others.

As I was crossing the 50 mark and daily demands of my kids lessened, I started noticing women around me “rocking their next chapter.” I was fascinated by their stories of reinvention and their growth mindsets. I wondered if there was something “bigger” I yet was meant to do. Could I still achieve big things? Maybe I wasn’t too old.

That’s when that fire lit up! What if there was a YouTube channel where these women’s stories were told, so that the rest of us could see it was not too late for us?? Initially I was terrified, so I just sat on it. But God kept nudging me. Finally, I started taking one baby step at a time. I scheduled coffee with potential interviewees to gauge interest. And with each meetup, I got enthusiastic support and encouragement. The courage to “do it scared” gradually built with each woman.

Now, I’m 9 months-ish into this, and I’ve interviewed so many interesting women for my YouTube channel. I’ve made many dear new friends. I’ve learned about video filming and editing, lights, sound. I’m still learning! I’ve learned more about social media. I broke through the 1,000 follower mark on IG, doubling in 3 months! I got serious about TikTok about 6 weeks ago and went from 100 to over 1,000 followers. I've started a community on Clubhouse and I’ve shared my message on several Podcasts. I did a radio interview and I made my first television appearance! I built and launched this website. And other than my sometimes camera-man husband, it's all just me.

Now I’m officially a blogger.

My goal is to take this message to as many women as possible in as many ways as possible. What will that look like? Only time will tell. I’m exploring every path and open to follow each one wherever it leads.

Thank you for being here and supporting my new venture—We’re Not Dead Yet. I’d love to get to know you! Which traits and experiences do we share? How are we different?

XOXO

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