So excited and proud to announce that The PETE Organization and I will be one of four honorees recognized at the upcoming Ujima Awards Celebration! The ceremony is a celebration of individuals as well as organizations for their relentless and selfless service to build and maintain communities throughout New Jersey, in which I will be receiving the Award for Youth Involvement. How awesome is GOD??
Event Details:
The South Orange Performing Arts Center
South Orange, NJ
April 7, 2012 from 1 - 5pm
The ceremony is FREE and Open to the PUBLIC
I am deeply humbled to share this platform with some phenomenal individuals (My Fellow Honorees), the honorable Councilman Donald Payne Jr., Seton Hall Professor and Community Activist Ms. Ingrid Hill, and the AMAZING Tiffany Aliche "The Budgetnista."
Check out the flyer for details and I WOULD LOVE TO see everyone there!!
** This one was inspired by a little Mary J and Cabernet**
Someone on Twitter recently tweeted, "Love feels too good not to want to be in it. #EmbraceLove" And at this very moment... I could not agree more.
As this journey becomes filled with a ton of HIGHs and its fair share of LOWs, I'm now thoroughly convinced that it's better to have someone along for the ride, to share the JOY and BEAUTY of it all. A special someone available to breathe support and applaud your triumphs, then exhale in the same breath to understand and help lift you from the depths of your valleys. And vice versa.
He would be to me, what I am to him...
2012 will probably be one of the most pivotal years of my life, for reasons soon to be noted, and I can not help but think how COMPLETE it would be to have a King by my side. Not just to have any man suffice as a warm body in this empty bed space, nor to fulfill an open wound infected by struggles and voids from my past. But because for the first time in my life, I can honestly say that I'm WHOLE. HAPPY. And at peace. God and I have been working overtime, and I'm content with my current standing as a single lady; yet confident, nervous, and proud of where this journey is headed to a point where I'm ready to share some of this awesomeness... and build onto it with more of "his" awesomeness. Lift OFF... To Infinity...
Call me insane, call me naive, but the journey traveled thus far has lead me to believe in fairy tales because LOVE lives. And anything is, indeed, possible. The only difference is that now, I'm no longer waiting in the window pane for my knight in shining armor; instead, I'm walking with my head high, sure to meet and lock hands with my KING.
Have you ever been filled with so much LOVE, JOY, and SUCCESS that you just want to literally rub it onto your special someone...?... Mmmmmmmm... *bites lip*
Since music tends to penetrate deeper than words, I found these songs to be most fitting for my sentiments... I'm ready <3
No fabrications about this chic and her creativity... While the underlying protest for women's rights in Saudi Arabia is pure brilliance... Gotta LOVE and Respect a girl that creates then stays in her own lane. *pats self the back*
"Originality in full swing No abrupt endings or timely introductions....
Backward, forward, inside out Altering my thoughts To. Be. Free.
This ain't the usual 'cause usual ain't me.
Time often goes faster than expected and deep thought overpowers freedom.
Somehow I gotta learn to stop that.
And Just. Be. Me. Be. Free. 'cause dopeness is thee
Ooouu wee, baybee! *smirk*
Laughter feeds my soul, filling it more than black eye'd peas and collard greens I love my grandmas black eye'd peas But they sure don't make me weak in the knees like a good laugh with tears that stream... Down my face.
The good tears, You know?
Haven't had any of those in a while.
No worries though because HE promised and said, "If we hope for what is still unseen by us,
we wait for it with patience and composure through Me."
The year 2012 is merely 30 days away. Santa Clause is coming to town. And beautiful Christmas melodies will soon be playing " 'Tis the season to be jolly! Fa lalalalalala la la!"
But, guess what?
Right about now, it feels like it's 2001, and I'm the same geeky sophomore in high school who giggles with the best friend each time her crush passes their locker in the hallway. And I actually get butterflies when in his presence. Teeheeheee!
Yeeeep! I have a crush. *blushing*
But what sucks is that I'm 85% sure that he's into me as well, yet I've dismissed his attempts by being a punk, and keeping it innocent.
Like, for real?... How old am I?
I should have these flirting, "catch a man, get a man" tactics down to a science by now, right?
Ummm... Wrong. And if you dare to ask "Why?"... It's because I've honestly never been a Holla Back Girl.
*cue Gwen*
In the last six years of my life, I've been in two serious 2-4 year relationships, where "hollerin" has always been an after thought. And every guy that I've dated outside of two these relationships was the aggressor in approaching me. There was no preconceived notion about that particular guy, and I was initially never interested.
But now, I have a crush on someone that I probably think about more than I should. Thanks to Facebook, I have a general understanding of what he's about, and it's a total different ball game. I think it's safe to say that I have ZERO Holla Back swag and SOCIAL MEDIA RUINS EVERYTHING. But guys aren't mind readers, and if I don't "Holla Back", he will never know that I'm interested.
So despite traditional practices, I strongly believe that there is no harm in a woman making the first move to get man's attention, so I developed some ways to help shy women, like myself, become a "Holla Back Girl"...
1. Be Yourself! Being your authentic self, flaws and all, radiates a sense of self confidence that men can respect and often find "cute." Trying too hard almost NEVER comes off as attractive.
2. Pay A Compliment He'll be flattered. And nothing is more ego-stimulating than knowing that someone is paying attention to a small feature, and they like what they see.
3. SMILE and Make Eye Contact Guys love a good smile. Laugh often, be positive and be optimistic.
4. Just tell him you like him. Plain and Simple. But I'm not suggesting that you get him alone and pin him to a wall to get his attention. A subtle, "Hey"... or better yet; remember the skit on Alicia Keys' "You Don't Know My Name" track where she breaks it down to the man from the coffee shop?...
"Oh hey how you doin?
I feel kinda' silly doin' this, but uh
This is the waitress from the coffee house on 39th and Lennox
(chuckle) you know the one with the braids?
Yeah.
Well I see you on Wednesday's, all the time
You come every Wednesday on your lunch break I think
You always order the special, with the hot chocolate
Look man I mean, I know girls don't usually do this
But I was wonderin'
If maybe we could get together outside the restaurant one day
You know, 'cause I do look a lot different outside my work clothes
(chuckle) Wait a minute, my cell phone's breakin' up
Can you hear me now?
yeah, so what day did you say?
Oh. Thursday's perfect..."
Yeah something to that effect lol
If I missed any ways to flirt or become a "Holla Back Girl," let me know. In the meantime, I'm going to grow some cahoonaas and try a couple of these techniques on my crush. Then, I'll holla back after I "Holla Back"... lol
Life is a total blessing and there definitely isn't enough writing space to share ALL that God has given me to be thankful for...
However.
If I had to make a choice of what I'm MOST thankful for on this day, it would most certainly be :: Being Single, Free of Relationship Drama lol.
Now, please dont get this misconstrued because I am still waiting for my Mr. Right. *wink, wink* But after receiving these random text messages from an irrate woman this morning, I realized that perhaps being single isn't so bad after all.
**And no lie, this was the conversation verbatim...**
Angry Chic: "I would appreciate if you leave my husband alone. Go find your own man. Thank You!"
Me: "Hmmm?... I don't even know who this is. Happy Thanksgiving!!! :)"
Angry Chic: "Is this Barbara?!"
Me: "Nope."
Angry Chic: "Can I ask who this is then?
(after no response from me)
Angry Chic: "I know its you Barbara. Just leave my husband alone. Have RESPECT pls"
Me: "LMAOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Angry Chic:"Yeah, you laugh. You believe in Karma? It will come back to you. Just remember when you get remarried, it will happen to you. I don't wish it on you, but GOD is watching up there. That's all I got to say. And oh yeah. Don't think I don't know about the picture you sent him of your breasts!!!!"
(by this time, I was literally in tears from laughing so hard and started to think that someone was playing on my phone)
Me:"Look girl, or who ever this is. Go eat some turkey, dont worry, and have a Happy Thanksgiving."
Angry Chic:"Sorry, I don't eat turkey! But Barbara, if this is you, please leave John alone. We getting along good and we don't need more problems. Happy Thanksgiving."
Me:"Same to you!" ____________________________________________________________________________________________
Like, whaaaaaa??On Thanksgiving though??!... And mind you, I have NO clue what this was actually about, but its quite obvious that the angry chic was a little frazzled and wanted to rectify the situation with Barbara on Thanksgiving. lol
Meanwhile, the moral of the story is that I'm incredibly THANKFUL to be single without this type of drama in my life. AND to all my unhappily single Ladies out there: Let this conversation be encouragement and relief in your solitude because you don't EVER want to be in the theAngry Chic's position... And ya definitely don't wanna be Barbara. lol
Happy Thanksgiving xo
Tuesday, November 22
LOVE & Inner Peace conquers ALL ... I swear by it.
Every time I become satisfied and complacent with something GOOD, God never fails to surprise me with something GREAT. So thankful and blessed that He continues to see my potential, and ALWAYS has my back...
Lotus (n) : A flower that grows from the mud... The deeper and thicker the mud, the more beautiful the flower blooms... Its leaves, roots, and seeds are all edible... They add a distinctive scent and flavor to the dishes they are used in...
... knowing this just made Flower Bomb ten times more metaphorically beautiful... And funny that this happens to be my 11.11.11. post... not purposely ;)... The universe has spoken.
"As weird as it may sound, one of my most favorite past times is to observe. Observe my surroundings. Observe the actions of others. Observe body language. Just Observe. Everything. And my fascination with the study of people (or psychology) has grown tremendously into the study of humanity... always questioning why people do, say, act, and react to Life's occurrences the way they do? Are morals and values becoming a lost art? Why is the world in such an upheaval? And more importantly, what makes us HUMAN (not biologically)?
With that said.
Lauryn Hill is one of my favorite people to study, and I often find myself more and more intrigued at how she permanently etched her presence in Hip Hop with the mere delivery of ONE album. And my fascination with, both, humanity and Miss Hill is the primary reason why this particular message deeply resonates with me. It not only enlightens, but I can thoroughly appreciate her stance on God's Power. on love. On Hip-Hop. And Humanity.... as it also assists me in enlightening today's youth...
This dress is ab.so.lute.ly Gorgeous. And yes, those are real orchids that were flown in from Taiwan, exclusively for coverage in Munaluchi Bridal magazine.
Munaluchi happens to be a combination of two African names, (one from Ethiopia and the other from Nigeria) which when combined means “Beautiful Work of God.” And Munaluchi Bridal Magazine is the FIRST and ONLY major bridal magazine for women of color. It's in most major retail stores (Target, Walmart, Barnes and Noble etc), all major airports, Nigeria, Ghana, Canada and Europe, and it's only on its 4th issue!
Earlier this year, I had the privilege and honor of meeting Munaluchi's Editor-In-Chief, Jacqueline Nwobu, when she spoke to my girls of THE PETE Organization with a panel of FABULOUS Female Entrepreneurs. She was incredibly sweet, humble and sent everyone home with a copy of Munaluchi's latest issue that featured LaLa during "LaLa's FullCourt Wedding."
Needless to say, I was overjoyed and inspred. Not because the magazine featured Lala or because its production was so impeccable, but because for the first time in years I was totally inspired to LOVEagain. Cynicism quickly shifted. And after actually seeing and reading the dating, engagement, and wedding musings of young Black couples in print, I became filled with so much JOY, HOPE, and FAITH in my future with LOVE - actually envisioning how it would feel to spend the rest of my life with LOVE of my life.
With Munaluchi... I was inspired to LOVE.
Check out Behind-The-Scenes footage of Munaluchi's Fall/Winter 2011 issue, featuring wedding planner extradonaire, Preston Bailey .... Beautiful!http://www.munaluchibridal.com
June- August is usually my chance to jet-set and explore, so I can't believe that this was actually my first trip of the summer (*deep sigh* The grind is so real). But, I'm happy to have visited some friends in Houston last week, while the time spent was full of chill adventures & peaceful escape. Everyone happened to be a Water Sign (Pisces + Cancer + Scorpio) which created a good energy amongst us. And we even visited The Houston Aquarium to spend time with our "relatives." lol These photos aren't the best, but our time submerged in H2O was indeed a beautifully interesting journey.
