Monday, March 31, 2014

#PaychecktoPaycheck Will The Struggle Ever End?

Eight hours a day is given to work. For some people, more hours are done in hopes that after that full two weeks the paycheck will have a lot more to bring into their household. We have to work. Many of us would love to take long vacations or quit our jobs just to get some clarity. The reality is many of us find it hard to find that quality time outside of work. Instead of living the American dream, we give our most to that 9 to 5 and then use the money to make sure bills are paid.

There's a documentary out right now called "Paycheck to Paycheck" on a woman named Katrina Gilbert who works hard, supports her kids, and lives paycheck to paycheck. I haven't watched the full documentary yet, but Oprah did a town hall episode that gave a voice to people living in poverty.

The first up was Katrina. She spoke a little more about her life and what she learned from watching the documentary. Her lesson was that she is a much better mom than she initially thought of herself. However, her struggles weren't the only thing that she focused on. In the documentary there is a scene where Katrina gets her hair done. She works hard, makes sure her children are taken care, makes her patients feel good, and treats herself also. Upon talking about that scene in the documentary, Maria Shriver (The Shriver Report) said some people were actually upset that a woman struggling would take out the time to make a hair appointment. I don't get why anyone would be disappointed in her trying to take out time for herself.

The phrase for taking care of yourself while doing what you have to do is called work-life-balance. Oprah mentioned this phrase and work-life-survival during the episode. However, having that balance between working hard and enjoying life is so important to each and everyone one of us.

The next woman that spoke on her story also had an activity to keep herself level headed. This woman is currently in school, married, has six children in the house, and her family is living on $20,000 a year. Her husband admitted to feeling depressed because as soon as he receives his paycheck it is used to pay bills. His motivation to move forward is his wife. Although they are struggling, his wife volunteers at an unemployment office. She mentioned that she does it because, giving other people hope to live better helps her appreciate her life that much more.

I wish we could change this paycheck situation. It has been discussed since the beginning of time. The minimum wage problem has been talked about so much that it should have double by now. However, instead it hovers around $8.00 an hour (just a little more than it was a couple years ago). If we wan't automatically change our paycheck problems, the least we can do is try to balance work with living.

Too many of us are just trying to make it day to day. It doesn't have to be getting your hair done or volunteering. It can be whatever makes you happy.

(I'd love to travel to specific places, but just being able to take walks gives me some peace. I've also found peace in sitting at a restaurant and eating alone, going to the moves alone, and writing. Sometimes I do beat myself up for the moments of self indulgence, but no one else is making me feel special. )


Sunday, March 30, 2014

#RealityTelevision Relationships, Arguing, And Cheating

PreachersDaughters, via Twitter
This week several reality shows touched on different relationship issues. I didn't watch every single reality show on television, but the ones that I did watch helped a lot with the kind of love I'm looking for. The following is what was broadcast:

Preachers Daughters- In the name of teenage love, Taylor Coleman tried to date two boys at the same time. The problem is they both asked her to prom. She rejected the guy (Demorius or however you spell it) and went with Spencer. She lied to one in order to keep them both happy. The bigger issue was at prom when one of Taylor's fake friends decided to flirt with Spencer. The friend tried to divert the issue by bringing up that Taylor already had a boyfriend. Spencer didn't know. He was upset and left. On the other hand Taylor decided to confide in her other boo and was kicked to the curb by him as well.

Mary Mary- Tina and Erica are pissing me off with this season's Mary Mary. They've been so unprofessional since the beginning anyway. They put family first (as should happen), turned the weirdest of disagreements into fights (it happens), walked out on rehearsals, showed up just in time for concerts, and through so much anger toward Mitchell Solarek. Actually Tina and Erica are regular business women with issues that they would rather blame on anyone other than themselves. But that's not what this post is about.

Tina's husband had several affairs. We see her upset, happy just because he showed up with flowers, and then trying to figure out how they are going to handle all that shit going public.

Mary Bootcamp- Marriage Bootcamp is the greatest spinoff show idea since the first episode of Bridezilllas aired. Producers knew these couples would be struggling as the years went by so they made  excellent preparations. This is actually the second season of Marriage Bootcamp and the issues with the couples are tougher. They argue a lot and they judge the other couples a whole lot. But they really argue a whole lot.

Unfortunately I'm nowhere near teenage years anymore. I also have no desire to date more than one man at a time. You may think it's crazy, but it makes perfect sense for me. Dating more than one man at a time means intimately sharing myself with more than one man. I'd rather just handle one. For this same reason, the thought of cheating is very disturbing. The thoughts of even dealing with a man that cheats is even worse. I couldn't be as forgiving as Tina. Her husband slept with several different women and she has to be comfortable with that. If a man like that had already stepped out on me several times, it would be clear he has no respect for me or the boundaries set in our relationship.

I also don't like to argue. I'm about to use an example of arguing and if the guy happens to see this he knows who he is. I was dating this guy at one point and he liked to argue. I didn't like arguing. The more I thought of it the more the realization came that arguing over not wanting to argue is a crazy argument within  itself. See how easy it is to pick a fight.

Upon speaking on one of the couples from Marriage Bootcamp arguing in their confessional, the wife (Mai Lee) responded by saying they argued all the time. She also said her and her husband may not have liked each other, but they loved each other. I took this to a Facebook forum and found out a lot of people agree with that. One person wrote the following statement toward it.

"Yeah cause my parents always getting into it with each other but they inseparable. 30+ years married"

Initially the relationship topic was giving me a headache, but I've come to the conclusion relationship issues are the gifts that keep on giving.





Wednesday, March 26, 2014

All That Money Poem (The Weeknd The Morning My Version)


All that money
The money is the motive
You flash all that cash
Cause you know I want it
But first you want me to put in work
So I’ll put it work
Let you hit it from the back
No eye contact
While you concentrate on pleasing the pussy
I’m concentrating on the green
While we’re sexing be a man and keep control
Say my name and make me scream
Brag about your long hours
Brag about that six figure bank account
And how you don’t have a woman to spend any of it on
And I’ll reassure you that you have me
All that money
Let’s go on lots of dates
And take tons of trips out of state
Plus I’ll show off the nice jewelry
And brag about how you upgraded my lifestyle
All you want is for me to put in work
So I’ll boost your ego
Let everyone know you’re my man
And it’s your money I’m spending
I’ll put in work
Be the woman you imagine me to be
Miss Pretty Pussy
Or the type to have her own money too
Or the mother of your kids
If kids is what it takes to get us to the next level
All that money
You and me is the motive
Who we can be
What we can become


Are His Goods Worth It If He's Damaged?

While the title sounds sexual, that is not the direction we are headed in. Someone asked me to write about whether or not we should give damaged men a chance, so here it goes.

Picture this:

You agree to letting a friend hook you up with him. He's not even in the same city as you, so you to have to talk on the phone to get to know each other. Everything gets discussed in an attempt to know each other. After favorite colors, favorite foods, good and bad habits, and professional goals get discussed it's time to get down to the more serious topics; sex and love. Sex is easier to discuss, so you see where his mind is in that direction. He hasn't had sex in years. You see it as odd, but you move on to the love. You find out he was in love once. It was several years ago and the girl really screwed him up. As he speaks on it, he gets emotional. He even cries a little because the memories of how she abandoned him are still fresh. You don't know what to say. You're not even sure if you should say anything. Do you try to reassure him that you are different?

You are at work when he approaches you. He's tall, dark, and handsome. Plus he smells good. He feeds your mind with the idea of going to a fancy restaurant and grabbing some food. You fall for the offer and let him charm you. After spending some time together he starts to want more out of you. He's ready to spend nights at your house, you spend nights at his, and he even wants home cooked meals. However, upon discussing what you two are doing he is not sure. He claims you are just "talking," but that you are more than friends. He doesn't want to call it dating, because his feelings have been hurt. He remembers how the last girl used him for his money and then left him for what she thought was better. He admits that sometimes when he looks at you, you still sees her. What do you do? Do you continue on and hope he starts to trust you more? Do you run as fast as you can away from him?

You don't remember where you met him at, but he always smells nice. His deep voice turns you on too and he's really good in bed. However, while you are trying to be in a serious long term relationship he just wants to be free. He sees freedom as being able to sleep with many women with no worries and not be tied down to one woman. On the other hand, he also tells you that he is not comfortable with sleeping with more than one woman at a time. He really likes you, but just doesn't want to be tied down. Do you wait until he is no longer confused or do you find a man that knows what he wants right now?

Okay, I didn't answer her question. I want you to. Help me out. Should we give damaged men a chance and why?


Tuesday, March 25, 2014

#PiecesofMe Fall by Levina Lye


"Love is not supposed to be a painful thing. Why am I hurting? How do I make sense of it?"

Singer Levina Lye is keeping us waiting on that Pieces of Me EP by releasing great music from it. Her latest release is an original song called Fall. Both the lyrics and the beat will have you falling in love with this song. Listen below.

Also check out the interview I did with Levina Lye here.

Monday, March 24, 2014

Reacting To Mistakes, Accomplishments, And Stress

Last time I became really stressed, I started to distance myself from the people that was contributing to the stress. Sometimes you hit a point where there are no other people to avoid. 

A few weeks ago I tried a pole fitness class to release stress. It was just a simple class where music is played and I exercise however I want. It's $5 for every class, unless I pay to become a member at the place. I may start doing it regularly. 

Then there's also meditation. Someone suggested it to me on twitter and right after another person talked about how meditation helped him a lot. 

I could also get back to reading a whole lot more. So far I'm doing a lot of online reading and magazine reading. Someone (me) is currently getting free copies of Ebony magazine throughout the rest of the year. 

Then finally, there is the art of praising myself more for things I do right instead of beating myself up on my mistakes. I get a whole lot more right than wrong anyway. It's kind of like Drake says. There are no trophies for those of us who consistently work our asses off. We just work our asses off because we're supposed to. We're not supposed to make mistakes though, get worried about our bills, or even worry about how we're going to pay for those nice vacations. 
I'm going to try a little bit of everything just to start feeling a lot better. Currently I'm feeling drained. 

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Glimpse Into The Rocky Side of A Career Path #SundayReflections

#NoFilter, Me Venturing Through Abandoned Office Spaces
Sometimes while working with you people won't let you know that they are tired of working with you. They won't let you know that they are ready to move on to bigger challenges, because they've surpassed whatever you have to offer. You may be excellent at al the opportunities you have to offer, but your opportunities simply just stop being enough for them. They won't let you know it that way though. Instead they'll make you look like the worse person on earth.

I've been watching WETV's hit television show "Mary Mary" and this season they are in an extra special mean mode. They are out to make that ex-manager Mitchell Solarek look like the most unprofessional person work with. In the last few episodes Tina and Erica have done a segment where they are sitting on a couch discussing why they needed to fire him. This recording went from pointing out the mistakes Mitch had made to bringing Erica's husband in the mix. Once Erica's husband became involved in the drama, it appeared Mitch was absolutely checked out of the job. After all, he does have other people's careers to manage. However, these ladies made it seem like they were the only ones he was working with and he was incompetent of doing that.

Last year Mary Mary fired Mitch as their manager. They are now managed by Kenneth Crear, a man also handing the career of Mindless Behavior. Around September Mitch was so mad that he filed a lawsuit against the ladies. I initially thought the lawsuit was a terrible idea, but after seeing the last couple of episodes he had a right to sue them. So he sued them in September and then moved on to concentrate on the other brands he works with. Now it's March and show's season is in full swing. The hate the women are showing is apparent to lots of people and even annoying Mitch at this moment. During a preview of the last show WETV tweeted out something pointing toward the drama coming up and Mitchell responded with some words and ended it with #KillMeOffAlready.


Someone recently put on their Facebook page that we often look too much into the lives of the stars. This is not one of those posts. I eventually want to venture into the entertainment industry. This is just a reminder to myself what could possibly take place and to have the toughest of skin depending on who I encounter. 


Friday, March 21, 2014

Dear Sexual Creeps, No Sucking Toes At Walmart


Sometimes I ask questions related to getting through the day and other times I just dish out real life advice. This is one of those real life stories you might not believe at first. 

A man, 31 year old Michael Brown, was arrested at Walmart for sucking a woman's toes. You know how Walmart workers dress? Without him having on his badge, this woman believed he was actually an employee. I'm guessing his black skin was what made her believe him. 

Anyway, she said he wanted her to try on shoes. Shoes isn't even what she went to Walmart for in the first place. Although that doesn't matter. You can easily go to that store for one thing and walk out with 20 other things. This woman walked out of the store after getting a horrible foot massage by a stranger's mouth. 

He took her to the shoe department and told her that he was a student doing research and needed a picture of her foot. Instead of taking a picture, he stuck the foot in his mouth. This takes foot fetishes to a new level. 

Afterward the woman called her husband and the police. In the video below she was clearly upset. No one should have her toes in their mouth. There's a lesson here. To all the freaky people in the world, keep your freakiness out of Walmart. They don't tolerate sucking toes. They probably don't tolerate ass eating or any other forms of sexual activity either. 

Now if you were ever thinking about making Walmart a part of your freaky catalogue you now know not to do it. 
                       

Are You That Somebody/ Singer Banks Covers Aaliyah

"Are you that somebody?" Not everyone can sing a classic song, especially one by Aaliyah, but LA recording artist Jillian Banks (known as Banks)  recently did an amazing recording of Are You That Somebody. 

Banks is currently receiving a lot of attention around the world. One of her songs was featured on a Victoria's Secret commercial last year and Are You That Somebody was recorded for BBC Radio 1 Lounge. Listen below. 

Thursday, March 20, 2014

#LonelyRoad What Is Master P. And Sonya Doing?

No Limit is back with new music and a new branding. This time they're calling it "No Limit Forever" and all the past rappers are hopping on the mic. Even Master P. himself has released new music for us fulfill our ratchet hearts with.

Although we first heard that Master P. was back after the popular California anthem "Like What" by Problem started playing across the country. At that point he had a mix tape called Famous Again out. He was even trying to mentor Chief Keef. That mentoring didn't go well. However, this isn't really about Master P.'s music. He has a new song out now called "Lonely Road," but it in the news over a messy divorce from his wife.
He and Sonya Miller are childhood sweethearts. Within the Hip Hop industry, they are one of the longest lasting couples. However, something has gone wrong. There's controversy in the media. It started with the announcement of a divorce, but now it is getting messy.

For instance, I was watching Wendy Williams and there are claims Sonja is on welfare and living with Lil Romeo. Now Romeo has money, so I don't understand how she would be getting welfare checks while living with him. Master P. snapped back with the statement listed below.

Why is this news? I haven’t been with this person in over 7 years. She has had several boyfriends since then. I take great care of all of my kids, all of their needs are being met in an abundance. I come from the ghetto, I changed my life but she didn’t want to grow with me so were not together. If Sonya supposedly helped me start any of my companies including No Limit, wouldn’t she be capable of creating some type of income in the last seven years besides turning to welfare?
Educated business people don’t think like that even in hard times. Stevie Wonder could see through this publicity stunt. This is hilarious. All I ask is that she take a drug test in the next two weeks and pass it. I will give her everything I have. The four minors she says she needs help with, three of them are with me, this makes no sense. I’m tired of sugarcoating and hiding the truth of ungrateful people that I’ve been taking care of for so many years. If she’s that great of a businesswoman like she claims, she should be able to do it again for herself.
I don’t trip on my past success. Even through the rebuilding stages in my life, I never blamed anybody. I just figured it out and worked harder. I put my trust in God, not people. You can expect people to take shots at you but I never imagined the people you take care of to turn on you.
I can see why wealthy people leave their money to charity because there are so many ungrateful, unappreciative family members that feel entitled even when they haven’t contributed. When things are going good, everybody loves you, but when things aren’t so good, you see the real in people and even in relationships. I’m not mad at her though. I’ll just pray for her, she will always be the mother of my children. I’m not perfect but I go above and beyond to provide for my kids and family.

Did you know that they've been apart for seven years? I had no idea. I also don't believe Sonya is on welfare. No one in that family should be on welfare. They are all smart individuals who know how to make money.

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

#PreachersDaughters Father, Forgive Me

I'm not sure who is asking for forgiveness on this week's episode of Preachers Daughters, but the episode is titled Father, Forgive Me. Whether or not they need forgiveness is up to whoever is watching. They've all messed up, but who doesn't?

Megan
Megan is on punishment in this current episode. Her parents are making her clean the whole house. The story behind Megan is that her father is executive pastor of the church, so it adds a lot more responsibility in her life. However, she doesn't like being a preacher's child. That is why she was put on punishment. She got caught smoking, but the lesson wasn't learned. By the end of the episode her parents are making her take a drug test because they smelled marijuana on her clothes. 

Taylor
Then there is Taylor. Her parents hooked her up with Spencer and at the beginning of the episode she got in trouble for having Spencer at the house. The rule is no boys while her parents are away. It didn't end bad though. Ken, her dad, loves Spencer and that is also who ended up escorting her to prom. Prom is probably coming at a future episode. 

Kolby
Kolby needs the least forgiveness out of all the girls. The spotlight wasn't on her in her family. It was about her older sister and battles with going to church. One of Kolby's sisters, Sam, does not like the idea of going to church. Sam loves God, but not so much church. However, since she's a mother the family pressures her to put her daughter in Sunday school. However, Sam has told everyone that the decision is between her and her husband. They don't listen though. 

Tori
Tori messes up when she tries to see her current man. While trying to spend time with him, she hooks her 16 year old sister up with someone. While they are out, their dad is calling each of their phones. Neither one answers. It gets bad when their father shows up to the tennis court and sees what they are doing. I actually had a problem with that scene before the father even showed up. 

Tori's younger sister was being very naive. Of course she didn't have any experience anyway. The boy asks what he can get. She lets him get a kiss, but then he says "Hopefully, more than that soon." He hasn't done anything to warrant a kiss, but he's already hoping for more. Then when the dad showed up it got worse. 

The dad said, "Do you know I'm her dad" and he replied "No Shit." 

You don't talk to someone's parent that way. He needs to get nothing more, no more attention, no dates, no phone calls, no anything until he learns some respect. He probably won't learn respect though. 

So, Tori and Megan are clearly the wildest daughters this season. I wonder if they'll get better. Alcoholism and smoking issues are nothing to be entertained with. They need help in those areas. 


Can You Turn A (Male) Hoe Into A Husband?

There's so much advice given to women: so, so, so much. There's the advice on climbing to success in the corporate/entertainment world (my favorite), the advice on becoming a great wife, the advice to men on who not to marry (yes that's indirectly directed to us too), and advice on becoming great mothers. While I love the success advice, most of what is thrown at us is relationship advice.

As women, we're automatic nurturers from the day we're born. We nurture our relationships with our family while learning that we'll one day have to nurture the relationships in the families we create. That is if marriage is something we want. I want marriage. I want that wonderful husband that respects me as much as I respect him. I want the man that shows the world that he loves me as much as I'm showing my love for him.

However, so many men are approaching with so many demands now. There's the men in public and the ones online too. There is a guy on my Facebook page that thinks we're meant to be together. I think he's a sex addict. He has talked to me about a lot of things he has done sexually with a lot of women. Some of these women were even co-workers and managers of his. I'm pretty sure he won't read this because he only looks at my raunchy poems. The fact that he can admit to all of his sexual acts is amazing, but he's also made up in his mind that I'm the one for him. His reasons border along the line of being able to easily talk to me. I feel kind of bad because without knowing him, I don't see him as husband material.

Recently I had another experience with a guy younger than me. It was one phone conversation and in that one conversation I knew it was a bad idea to have given him my phone number. He was nothing close to husband material and far from what we would even consider a man being.

But there are many men out there that hit a certain age and are all of a sudden ready to settle down. They've had their share of women who would do whatever they requested in sex. Three-somes and ass-eating are innocent acts to them. However, now they're ready for marriage. You're not sure if they have moved past the options of sleeping with many women or if they respect having boundaries in a relationship.

Would you try to turn a male hoe into husband? I'll admit I wouldn't.

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Boundaries

Will boundaries still exist when our kids have kids?

Friendship/Family boundaries:
We put rules in place for specific reasons. Some people prefer visitors to take their shoes off upon walking into their house. Some people create rules to only keep out-going people around them, so it will cater to what they already love to do.

One of my biggest personal struggles have been with hugging. Hugging is another form of showing love from one person to another. Outside of my immediately family (parents, brothers, grandparents, aunts, uncles) I've never been real comfortable with hugging. It's a genuine act, but I peter not to be touched unless we're that cool. I can hug my close friends because that bond is there. Otherwise, it always feels like some stranger is barging into my space.

Sexual Boundaries:
The more men I meet the more sexual boundaries become non-existent. But, I hold onto the rules I've created. One rule is no three-somes. I could never even imagine sex with two other people being involved at the same time. Sex is supposed to be a very emotionally vulnerable, private act. However, having two women seems to be almost every man's fantasy. Well, for some of these men it has already become their reality so they think I'm weird when I'm turned off by the idea.

The lack of boundaries go past three-somes. Some of these men go far and beyond with the sex acts they think up in their head. They've surpassed the ideas women sucking and swallowing, getting sex from behind, and trying out a few other sexual positions. They're comfortable talking about going both ways, being bi-sexual. They are comfortable talking about having sex with other men. I've even met a few that privately told me how they experimented with men, but had grown past it. Can you ever get over that?

The hottest topics on sex are eating pussy, eating ass, and how far a person is willing to travel for it. Although, the travel part doesn't have to happen. There's a professional industry made for phone sex, not just the porn HBO loves to show. Even more, STD's (sexually transmitted diseases) still exist.

Where Did The Lack of Boundaries Derive From?
I guess we could blame music. You can only hear the words hoe, THOT, Bitch, and a lady mixed in so much until you don't know the different between lady and the other words.

We could also blame single parent households. Some people think only having one parent creates room for a child to not learn all the values that they need in this society.

We could also blame school. In school we're put in a cookie cutter environment. Everyone is set up to think the same way inside the classroom. This lesson carries onto our art, music, television, and even career choices.

I've created rules and broken some of my set-in-stone rules do to peer pressure. Is peer pressure to blame? Some people are just not taught that "NO" is an acceptable word. Maybe that should start being used more often.

Holding Onto Boundaries:
Will our children's children still have boundaries? The next generation is slowly losing sight of personal values. Well, my brothers (16 and 11) still have them. They probably learned to not let everyone and everything in their personal space from me. But will the children born 20 and 30 years from now have beliefs, personal rules, lines that they won't cross?

Monday, March 17, 2014

The Pussy He Don't Get (Poem Dedicated To Twitter)

The Pussy He Don't Get 
(A Poem Dedicated To Twitter)

Throughout the day all he can think about is some pussy pleasing his dick
The thought of how wet he can get it entices him
Especially if he puts his face in it
Eating pussy is his weakness
And he jacks off to the thought of it
But unfortunately he doesn't get a lot of it
So he has to be creative
He uses twitter as a way to get hard
Using girls pictures as his start
He requests them innocently
By asking them to send him their eyes
Or if they are brave show off those nice big boobs
And since it's all the rage he even requests Afros
With each alert of a mention he gets more turned on
But the pictures aren't enough
To really bust that nut he needs a woman's touch
And if not a woman's touch the sound of her voice
When he can't get a woman to come around
Phone sex is his next step
He begs and pleads until he gets the digits
But her name doesn't matter
Neither does her occupation
It's all about how sexy she can talk
How quickly she can get him to pop
And when it's all over and done
He becomes a sucker for what he thinks is love
Then he shares with the world the pussy he just got
Even though he doesn't know her name
Or her occupation
And never actually seen her in the flesh

If you like my poetry, be sure to let me know and thanks for reading.

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Hoe (Poem) / Accent Challenge

The following was inspired by Kirko Bangz song Hoe. It's not about anyone in particular.

When I think about you I think hoe
Every time I see your name I think hoe
Trying to get at every girl, you a hoe
Every night got a different chick in your bed cause you a hoe
Runnin out of chicks to flirt with on twitter cause you a hoe
You a hoe
You a hoe
Always bragging about how big you is
We all know what your dick look like
But you think it's okay cause you a hoe
When I think about you I think hoe
When I dream about you I think hoe
You wanna hit this
But only met me a couple hours ago
You a hoe

Thursday, March 13, 2014

#PreachersDaughters Raising Hell

Preachers children are the worst. At least that's what we've been hearing since the beginning of time. It's always been this unwritten rule that a child of a minister is out of control, but no one would specifically know if they've never hung out with one. That is where Lifetime network comes in. 

Last year Lifetime premiered a new show called Preachers Daughters. It features the Koloff family, Coleman family, and the Perry's. The point of the show was give us a visual of how the pastors manage being in control of their church and then trying to make sure their daughters are in control too. The girls Kolby, Taylor, and Olivia were not that wild. Olivia was showing how she was bettering her life after going through the wild stage and becoming a teen mother. Kolby was never bad, but her parents were making sure she didn't start to go down that road. It was an interesting season with many lessons. You can find information about it on this blog. I wrote about every episode. 

Season two of Preachers Daughters has started up, but Olivia is no longer a cast member. Kolby and Taylor have been joined by two other girls. There is Megan Cassidy and Tori Elliott. While Taylor and Kolby haven't changed much, the new girls are on the wild side. 

Tori reminds me of that wild side I barely let out. She like to hang with friends, party a lot, stay drunk, and stay broke. She was a police officer, but the pressures of the job was too much for her. At the point when the show was recorded she was jobless, got evicted from her apartment, and moved back in with parents. I love how she used a message from God to move back into her parents house. It's never something we want to do as adults, but sometimes it's our only option. 

Then there is Megan. Megan also likes to party a lot with friends. In these first two episodes we've seen her be a daughter, be a friend, and be an alcoholic. WOW!

This season is not for the faint of heart. These girls should also not be judged harshly, because the people judging have been there. 

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Move That Knowledge Poem (Move That Dope)

Young girl move that knowledge
Push it
Young girl move that knowledge
Push it
She's studied hard
Taking education so seriously
It's written all over her face that she's smart
From the moment she could read
She's taken all the lessons in
From English Grammar and Math Classes
To Sciences and all types of history lessons
How generations ago her people were sneaking to read
Discovering visions of freedom in others words
To wanting to experience freedom for themselves
Going from escaping slavery
To starting up first African American Schools
And yet after doing so much the inequality was still there
She's studied on her people
How they've gone from working for practically nothing
To protesting for better
Better emotional treatment and better physical treatment
Blacks wouldn't always be seen as less than
Blacks wouldn't be the ones who settled for less
We would be able to interact and live just like everyone else
She's studied on how we've never been a culture to settle
Harriet Tubman wanted us out of slavery
WEB Dubois was a man who wanted equal rights for us
Rosa Parks was tired of moving to the back of the bus
All because of her skin tone
And Martin Luther King had a dream
A dream that we should all make sure is taking place
She's studied how as a culture some of us are better
Black entertainers showing that we can be millionaires
And black politicians showing the power of working hard
And yet with all that knowledge
Sometimes she forgets to educate the masses
And she joins them in another type of headspace…

To be continued


Tuesday, March 11, 2014

#TheTripToBountiful The Struggle Between Happy And Settling

We have to do what we need to do when we need to do it. We have to work extra hard to do what we want to do. What we want to do usually comes and goes so quickly it's almost like a beautiful dream. In order to continue to smile, we have to hold onto that dream so tightly until it finally feels like it is a part of our reality.

Lifetime premiered a movie, The Trip To Bountiful, over the weekend. The movie featured everyone's favorite wise woman, Cicely Tyson. Tyson's character Carrie Watts was an unhappy old woman who was stuck living with her son and daughter-in-law. She treated her as if she was a child and gave her no room to be happy. All she wanted was to feel some joy again. That joy was in her old hometown, Bountiful.

The meaning of bountiful is an abundance.

The problem is no one else wants her to go. After a while of being unemployed, her son is finally working full time and even trying to figure out how to ask for a raise. Her daughter-in-law, Jessie Mae, is just annoyed by everything she does. Jessie Mae hates the hymns, hates having to look after her, and hates the thought of this place called Bountiful. However, Carrie is determined to feel some happiness in her heart again and she runs off to get that happiness.

As Carrie boarded a bus, she looked forward to everything Bountiful had to offer. Her best friend since childhood was still there. Her happy memories were there. Her old house was still there. The beauty of the countryside was there. She was so excited she spoke with everyone she came in contact with about Bountiful.

First Carrie met a young woman on the bus who was traveling to see her family. Then Carrie shared her tale of traveling back to her home with the man at the bus station. This is when she found out her long term best friend had passed away. That friend was the last living person in the town. This made her angry and determined to get to Bountiful even more.

Have you ever had that one place in mind where you want to live out the rest of your days? At some point in the movie, Carrie decided she wanted to see Bountiful so bad she was willing to die to get there. I actually thought this was where the plot was going, because there were so many obstacles.

The son and daughter-in-law informed the police to pick Carrie up from the bus station. The bus station guy tried to hold her from carrying out her mission and so did this policeman. The policeman had a heart and finally gave in.

The minute Carrie makes it to Bountiful is the best part of the movie. She's happy again and looks youthful. The memories are flooding back. There is peace surrounding her. She knows her son will soon be there to get her, so she takes it all in. In fact when he arrives, she tries to get him to enjoy the beauty as well.

The son didn't really want to remember the beauty of Bountiful. He didn't want to her stories of his childhood there and his wife didn't appreciate the place either. Have you ever had the special moment in life where everything just went right for you? You got the job, or the significant other, or the trip to that dream place you've always wanted to visit. You wanted your close friends/family to share in the joy, but they ruined it by not caring. Yeah, no one else wanted to be in Bountiful.

The movie ends with Carrie and her family heading back to Houston. It's ironic that Houston is the city they lived in. She was sad because she was once again leaving a place that brought her joy, but she smiled because she was holding onto the memory of being there once again.

I think that's the difference between true happiness and settling. When you're truly happy, every experience becomes that special memory to hold onto. When you settle, you hold onto those moments that did you make you happy so you can continue to have a reason to smile.



Sunday, March 9, 2014

Overflowing #SundayReflections

My to-do list is overflowing with items. My figure-out-how-to-do list is even bigger, because there are so many ways to get things done.

I'm at a point in life where every big event looks like a good place to be. Every city that has the opportunities to build my career looks like the perfect city to be in. However, I'm lacking in finances and time.

For instance, Kelis is supposed to have a food truck at SXSW. This event began this weekend and will continue until the end of next weekend. However, I don't have the time to actually make it there. There are also several blogging conferences I'd love to attend, but the funds to attend them are just not there. Other than building my career, I'm trying to schedule in more time to just have fun. Fun is very vital to life. I just need to have better time management and not be at work every time something fun pops up.

There is so much I want to do and so many places I'd like to go to at this point that my mind is overflowing with thoughts. I like it though. It means I do have a purpose on this earth other than blending in with the crowd.

Friday, March 7, 2014

Future~ Move That Dope (Official Video) + Pharrell Is Weird

Future has finally given us to visuals to his very drug friendly track Move That Dope. In the video, we also see Pharrell talking like embracing the illegal adulthood life. 

Pharrell is weird. Less than a week ago we saw him hop around on a stage with a bunch of kids singing about being happy. Now he's in a video talking about selling drugs. His stand out line for me is "If you got two hoes, you need to let one go." This guy is preaching in the midst of talking about drug selling. All I can do is laugh. I've been laughing at his lyrics since the first time hearing them. Anyway, watch the video below.


Sonyae Elise FukiT (Unofficial Video)

Let's take some advice from comedian Martin and singer Sonyae Elise. Some times you just have to say  Fuck It. For weeks Sonye Elise has been inviting fans to send in videos to her latest song. Every video has been better than the ones before. People really know how to say "fuck 'em" to the world while moving their bodies. Now listen to her song FukiT below. This is the unofficial video.

"I'm drunk. Fuck it. And if I had a dick, suck it."

#MaryMary We All Mess Up (Message To Mitchell)

We all mess up. Everyone has to start somewhere. Starting means we don't know what we are doing in the beginning. We're acting on pure pre-learned knowledge, adrenaline, and whatever anyone is telling us to do in the moment. This also means we're making plenty of mistakes.

The first time Mitchell appeared in front of the cameras, we could all see his confidence. You have to have plenty of confidence to handle a Gospel power group. Tina and Erica were very demanding of Mitchell to handle their professional and personal lives. They needed him to know when to step up and when to step back. Most times he knew when to open his mouth, but then there were times where Mitchell didn't understand that he needed to back off. He wanted to be their manager, but at the time they needed to be alone. They needed to handle sister drama between the two of them and Mitchell continually barged in where his words were not needed. 

Now this current season of the show is here and we are seeing just how much Mitchell is messing up. In a previous post, I embedded a video where he talks about Mary Mary being his first music group. He was in commercial advertising beforehand and wanted a change. This was supposed to be his opportunity to wow the masses and become his own mogul. However, we've seen a descent in his career as a music manager. 

I don't think the ending of Mitchell's music management career happened while the cameras were rolling. That couldn't be it because we all mess up. His killer mistake was filing the lawsuit against Tina and Erica. 

Often times we invest so much of our time in one area of our life that we forget to really take care of ourselves. In Mitchell's case he invested all of his mental energy in doing his best with Mary Mary. He was so invested he couldn't recognize his own issues and when they got rid of him, he couldn't properly move on. Hence the lawsuit that is currently happening. 

I really hope he drops the lawsuit as soon as possible. Then he takes a long vacation and re-discovers the talented person living inside of him. He needs to find out what makes him happy and what new career he could easily move on to. 

I know this because I battle with it every day. I battle with not letting my mistakes go to my head. I battle with not letting other people boss me around just because they caught one thing I did wrong. I battle with anger issues and sometimes faking friendliness to get through the day. Even more, I've learned that every mistake is worth learning from. It doesn't have to result in acting your worst. Really paying attention to every tiny detail of what you're doing makes the difference in how you react. 

There's still more to come on this particular topic, so stay tuned.

Thursday, March 6, 2014

Four Quotes By Actor Jay Ellis That Will Inspire You

BET's The Game is back and that means the stars are doing plenty of interviews. Recently I came across an interview with actor Jay Ellis. The interview was filled with lots of inspiring quotes and it would be wrong if I didn't share them with you, so here you go. The following quotes came from www.aimeramour.com and www.zondamour.com.

"Then I realized that I’m young, and I’ve got this degree I can fall back on. Let me chase my dreams and see what happens. You have to believe in yourself and you have to take risks. You know how people say 30 is new 20 and 40 is new 30? Well I think essentially what that’s telling us is there are so many opportunities out there, you don’t have to rush into something. You can try a few different things. You can try your passion for a while and see if it works and if it doesn’t, at least you tried. I think that’s why I quit my job and went back to acting. I said this is what I’m going to dedicate my life to doing because I didn’t want to look up and say, “Man I wish I would have been an actor. I wish I would have tried.” I knew if I at least gave myself two years to try and fail I could at least say I tried."

" I quit my job and for almost two years I didn’t tell anyone, not even my family or friends. If you knew I quit my job it was because we worked together and I wasn’t showing up anymore. And for those two years I enrolled in acting classes. I acted in some capacity every single day. I would rehearse with people and help them with their auditions. I watched every single television show I could and I tried to become as much of a student of this craft as possible. In fact, I even gave myself a time limit of two years to become a series regular. That was very foolish and ridiculously aggressive. But after two years and four months it happened."


"If you’re passionate about your talent, your craft and your work people will see it first hand."


"I think success is a combination of things. I think it’s when you love yourself and you’re honestly happy with what you’re doing in life. To me success in a professional sense is being able to help other people. I think that’s the biggest thing. I wouldn’t be here today if somebody hadn’t helped me. I can think of forty people that helped me just this weekend alone. If it weren’t for other people who didn’t want anything from me other than for me to be successful and have my chance, I wouldn’t be here. So I think the biggest mark of success is being to help other people achieve their dreams and better their situation." He answered the success question."


To read the full article, click on the links in the first paragraph. 




Tuesday, March 4, 2014

#Food: Kelis Is Still Bossy, Music Is No Longer Her Biggest Passion


"Whatever vibe I'm in, everything morphs into that." 

The Guardian recently had the chance to interview Kelis and after reading I've realized she's still a boss. It's been years since Kelis has given us reasons to crave her milkshake, but she's back and making all of us drink. Well, actually she's giving all of us spoons and making us eat. Kelis is a now a certified chef and her upcoming album will be a way of promoting her food. It's respectably called Food

I'll admit I've always loved Kelis. She doesn't blend in with the crowd. She's always had her own style and to this day she manages to stay the exact same. She's a beautiful confident woman and the following quotes from The Guardian's interview made me love her even more. 

The Type of Artist She Is 
"I was never an R&B artist. People coined me one but that's because, especially if you're in the States, if you're black and you sing, then you're R&B." 

She's Had Career Battles Like The Rest of Us 
"I was like, 'I will never put out another record again, I hate this business, I hate all these people.' I was in this race that I didn't even realize that I was in. I woke up and ten years had passed. That was never my plan. My desire was never to put out albums, it was to do musical theatre!"

She's Had To Search For New Passions
"There's a point where you think, 'What else will I do if I don't do music?' It becomes your identity when it never should have been. But food ignited a fire in me and I came right back to music because it no longer felt like a job. It was a really powerful thing for me."

Kelis Uses Classics To Get That Classic Feeling In Her Music
"You know, those records in your life that your parents played and they resonate with who you are? They make you nostalgic. I wanted to find out how to get that feeling."

While Kelis is still singing, she's promoting her cooking more. Soon she'll have a new show on The Cooking Channel called Saucy and Sweet and she'll also have a food truck at SXSW, which is coming up. Oh how I wish I could be there. 

By the way, it's Women's History Month. The above photos are stills from Kelis' new music video Jerk Ribs


(Poem) Some Things Never Seem To Fucking Work

Some Things Never Seem To Fucking Work 
(The following poem was inspired by Solange's song "Some Things Never Seem To Fucking Work.)


I’m dreaming of what could be
Adventurous dates through the city
Countless dinner and movies
Picnics in the park
And long walks with just you and me
I’m dreaming of a fantasy
Great sex wherever we may be
In the bedroom with the blinds open
Giving the neighbors some entertainment
Or at someone else’s crib in the middle of a party
We can’t hold off until we get home
So we lock ourselves in the bathroom
Everyone can tell
Everyone knows
Our passion is on an unbreakable high
I’m dreaming of the two of us working out perfectly
From girlfriend and boyfriend to husband and wife
From learning each other to educating and providing for our kids
From following through with others plans to organizing family plans of our own
I’m living in a fantasy
While you’ve already created your own reality

You just want to fuck
I had to remind you all that I still write poetry lol. Sometimes I'm a sex fiend, but more often I crave real love. Within the next couple of months I want to give you all a small poetry novel detailing my struggles with love. In the mean time, I'm going to start giving you more poetry. There's new inspiration surrounding me.

Lashuntrice

Lashuntrice