NY!

Sometimes as I walk the city I need to look around and take note of where I am...
New York
Where struggles are real
Success is tangible
Happiness is alive
And life is moving all around you...
Yup. My hometown...
NY

When u believe...in capitalism.

Macy's all done up Christmas style. I tend to take in the city all done up in its Christmasy best during this time of year. Took a stroll thru Macy's on 34th st (not for the fant of shopper @ heart) for this is the ultimate shoppers paridise/ tourist trap/ consumer capitalist wrapped Christmas symbol of NYC you could find. Yet I still love to see the cool decorations & believe yes Virginia there is a Santa Clause. You can purchase him for 9.99 + tax. But let me tell you something, there are entirely too many people here trying to return something to the store. As one of my good friends said they need to give better hints for what they want for Christmas since all this returning on Boxing Day is just rude.

Cheers!

oh Christmas....

Celebrating christmas past--- a previous Blog from 2005---
*******************************************************************************

December 6, 2005 - Tuesday
X-mas a*.
Current mood: confused
Category: Life
it is now 6:32 pm in the NYC area, and what am i thinking about? Christmas a$$... Yeah i said it. WHY?
well it all started when i heard this morning when i heard on the radion a person singing this song..."Dominick the donkey" the Italian Christmas song...WTF? Christmas A$$? I had to listen to it all & was buggin out...Apparently Santa has a little friend whos name is Dominick, b/c the reindeer cannot make it up the hills of Italy when Santa goes to visit his paisans<-- (no lie) he has this Donkey there to bring them all sorts of stuff, like shoes and a dress etc etc... ARE YOU FREAKIN KIDDING ME??? here are the lyrics....

Hey! Chingedy ching, (hee-haw, hee-haw)
It's Dominick the donkey.
Chingedy ching, (hee-haw, hee-haw)
The Italian Christmas donkey.
(la la la-la la-la la la la la)
(la la la-la la-la la-ee-oh-da)

Santa's got a little friend,
His name is Dominick.
The cutest little donkey,
You never see him kick.
When Santa visits his paisons,
With Dominick he'll be.
Because the reindeer cannot, Climb the hills of Italy.

Hey! Chingedy ching, (hee-haw, hee-haw)
It's Dominick the donkey.
Chingedy ching, (hee-haw, hee-haw)
The Italian Christmas donkey.
(la la la-la la-la la la la la) (la la la-la la-la la-ee-oh-da)

Jingle bells around his feet,
And presents on the sled.
Hey! Look at the mayor's derby,
On top of Dominick's head.
A pair of shoes for Louie,
And a dress for Josephine.
The labels on the inside says, They're made in Brooklyn.

Hey! Chingedy ching, (hee-haw, hee-haw)
It's Dominick the donkey.
Chingedy ching, (hee-haw, hee-haw)
The Italian Christmas donkey.
(la la la-la la-la la la la la) (la la la-la la-la la-ee-oh-da)

Children sing, and clap their hands,
And Dominick starts to dance.
They talk Italian to him,
And he even understands.
Cumpare sing, Cumpare su,
And dance 'sta tarantel.
When jusamagora comes to town,
And brings du ciuccianello.

Hey! Chingedy ching, (hee-haw, hee-haw)
It's Dominick the donkey.
Chingedy ching, (hee-haw, hee-haw)
The Italian Christmas donkey.
(la la la-la la-la la la la la) (la la la-la la-la la-ee-oh-da)
Hey! Domini

NOW.....not only does it take a stretch of the imagination to believe in Santa to begin with,
then the flying reindeer complete with the 'special' one named Rudolph,
who happens to have a red nose & leads the way to all the houses all over the world
(but definitely not the projects seeing as how 1- there are some bad-ass kids in the projects
2- and there aint no chimneys to go on down, no one ever cleared up that little fact for me during my childhood)
sorry i digressed...
but now some folks continue to subscribe to a CHRISTMAS A$$?
The radio announcer explained this was an old song, etc etc...i'm sorry, i just dont get it..
I personally was expecting another kind of Christmas ass, which is seriously lacking in my life at the moment, but we will leave that for another time...

sn

LET IT SNOW!

Holiday week-day 4

Something motivational for sure! very me...

Something corny

This is what i got for the gift of something corny. The craziest things about these jelly beans are that you can either have one that taste like chocolate pudding or canned dog food. care to try one?

Happy national chocolate covered anything day!

(no I didn't make that up...)

Yeah so we are celebrating holiday-week at the office. what does this mean? Everyday there is something new and exciting to be had.
Now this morning I indulged in a coffee and a ring-ding that was provided by the office...
why?
cause it is national chocolate covered anything day.
(I'll pause to let your imaginations run wild...thinking Denzel or Idris here...)
yummy...
that's all...

Holiday week -day 2

Something black and white...i think it is great!

Holiday week-day 1

The theme is green & good. Ohh cool and it smells great too!

for all those who dont know how to drive

stay your ass off the road.
fuckin' no driving no parking ass people.

(yes this is a pic of my car. No I was not driving it. It was parked on the damn road.)

I go to work every damn day. I put in more hours than necessary and I do the best job I can. And then I do some damn more. I help all those I can & if I can't myself help then I try to put you with someone who will be able to help you. I volunteer. I give back. I donate. I counsel people, love people, friend everyone & everything I think of. I can't do no more. I don't rob, cheat or steal. But what happenss to me? My car gets hit for no apparent reason on the side of the road. I am the one who has to come out of pocket to cover some damn driving ass fools non-driving way.
I am so beyond pissed right now. This world continually is shitting on me in the worst way. Clearly I have pissed off all the Gods, angels & demons to have this crap happen.
I am so beyond pissed at the human race, and really have lost all faith in humanity. I mean what humanity? Is this the way we as humans beings treat people and their property? Yes I am funny aware that accidents do happen but there is something to be said about owning up to what you did you piece of &*@! I would wish the most horrible of horrific things to happen to you and your vechile but even now I cant do that (sad) and what is really pissy is that I got to suck it up and keep trudging along to some imagined justice in this world (really sad).
Yeah I suppose I may be going off the deep end just cause my car got hit but I feel so wronged.
I feel utterly violated and there is no one I can blame. No one I can seek retribution from. There is nothing that can be done.
I am pissed. It is gonna take me a few days to get over this.

a little behind on my goodle doodles...

SO I havent had a chance to actually blog much lately with work being absolutely crazy but

11/26/09 This year Thanksgiving was nice. We all cooked (I made my famous cornbread stuffing) and we watched Black Dynamite...It was very interesting. Family time is always a bit interesting. Mom of course is sorely missed.

12/01/09 was world AIDS day.

12/08/09 the google doodle was of popeye the sailorman & i remember eating spinach at the table where we used to live (624) & pretending to be strong after eating it. weird.

that's all for now...

This is why people hate americans...

Really?
A snuggie for the damn dog?
We can't pass a health care bill for our working peoples,
we can't take care of folks on the street
but here is a snuggie for the dog.
Hot dog!
shaking my head...that's all...

coffee thought...

greeting on this 60 degree weather we are having in NY. it brings to mind thoughts of Global warming... which is possibly why we are having this warm weather.

Bake some love

Happy bake some love day! I got a cookie as i exited the train @14th street. Love NYC freebies!

This is the part i hate...

20-Nov-09 12:55 Pm
this is the part i hate...
right now i am currently in minute #20 of sitting under the hair dryer at the hairdresser. what i cannot stand is that apparently i have about 40 minutes to go. there is something about just sitting here that really really annoys me. like the waste of minutes as i just wait for the follicles to get dry or the thoughts that i should be doing something else or the fact that my spanish is really not up to par enough to speak to these ladies in their language & we communicate in our limited head nodding and no/ yes speak. or the fact that while i am sitting here while the hot air is blowing on my head i have thoughts escaping my head just as fast like oh man did i pay my student loan this month? wait it is direct debit so that should come out soon...wait do i have enough left in my account? oh i have to finish cleaning for turkey day oh man who is cooking what?
yeah many thoughts and nothing can be acted on while i wait.
i really am not a patient person.

poem of the day

"to someone particular"

i admire YOU love

I admire your strength, your reserve

your persistence, your you.

your hopes, your dreams,

your wants, your needs...

i admire your struggle, your falls,

your faith, your stance,

your conviction, your character

and in all that you are

and all that you are striving to be, i admire you.

i admire your love because

I want love

that makes me want to fall and hurt myself.

I want soul

that makes me know you again.

i want heart

that makes me love again.

i want light, that will make me shine.

i want faith that will help me stand

struggle that will make me appreciate

joy that will make me laugh...

i want your love that will make me whole again.

mac & cheesey goodness

Last night, I went to dinner @ this place I been dying to try called S'MAC which is a macaroni & cheese place located in the village. Oh the choices cause 1st I LOVE a mac & cheese. 2nd you can build your own and make all kinds of concoctions and yum! 3rd it is Manhattan priced (so my dish was like $12.00 w/ drink) but OMG. it was great (i had something similar to hamburger helper as it had chopped meat in it & with added ketchup it was GREAT).

I highly recommend this place. enjoy!

coffee thought...

my coffee today has the logo "a taste of Europe in your cup"
i am wondering if this is truly what Europe taste like? i kind of thought Seattle was where everything smelled and tasted of coffee being that the Starbucks machine grew from there? and what about Juan Valdez? i am sure he would have something to say about this...
maybe there will be more explanations at the bottom of my cup.

that's all...

i need...

a hug.
and a scotch.
in that order.

So the battle is kind of won? Now what?

The current battle I am referring to is the battle that was me against the insurance company regarding my mothers insurance. Now you know me, I am a writer & I am a person who uses and chooses words carefully so you can imagine my interpetation when I get a letter from them "you have been approved for your mothers death benefit"
Imagine.
I now have the ability to benefit from my mothers' death... I mean are you serious? Who writes that? Isn't there any other way this could have been phrased. What does this mean? I was /am still a bit shook up at the phrasing and the thought that this is the end of the fight...I feel like as long as I was fighting for something there was a piece of something still out there and a hope that the truth was she was still .... i mean rationally i know these things aren't the case and basically this was literally the final nail in the coffin but dammit...
so now what? how is one to feel about this? what are me & the brothers supposed to do?
(yes I know, whatever we do make sure we honor our mom)
I am still a bit put off by this whole thing so I rationally will need time to process...

3 more google images...

So today AGAIN my day is brightened with the wonderful WONDERFUL Google doodles celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Sesame Street (one of the more pivotal shows in my childhood)
ha ha ha (this one is the Count & the Google doodles are numbers= genius!)
from Sunday *11/08/09- elmo says yay Google!
from Saturday *11/07/09- the grouch & Google! a great combination!
**all images courtesy/property of google!

hey bert...

hey bert.... heyyyy bert!!! yo bert... i love sesame street best friends Bert & Ernie.. they are the best. And interesting fun fact One of my favorite movies "It's a Wonderful Life" had two characters (the cop & the taxi driver) who helped George Bailey... yeah their names were Bert & Ernie...
*all images courtesy of google...

C is for...

COOKIE-- there is never a better time or place for cookie than when Cookie monster is there...

i want a cookie!

*all images courtesy of Google...

coffee thought...

sans coffee and sans thought as I catch up on life...
that's all...

sunny days!!!!

chasing the clouds away
on my way to where the
air
is
sweet
can you tell me how to get
how to get to
you get the rest.....

*all images courtesy of Google...

pics from Saratoga

these are some pics from my travels to Saratoga, enjoy the Fall!

somehow i sense a theme...

is the universe trying to tell me something?
hmmm
something to ponder as I ride down from Saratoga from the conference...

mystery sweets

Guess the cake??still trying to figure out this one...

Sunset on the hudson

Just a quick pic of the sunset on the hudson while I am on amtrak going north...
More on life later

coffee thought...

i so hate the fact that I cannot get coffee in the morning. For the past 2 weeks the regular coffee lady has not been there so there are random dudes making the coffee (not an experiment one wants to try at 9 am). not only that but for the past 4 days I cannot get a cup cause dude can only focus on one thing at a time- as in one person puts an order in, HE MUST WAIT FOR IT TO GET COOKED AND WRAPPED, then he can make that persons coffee BEFORE he takes another order. talk about efficient inefficiency.
so yeah i am pissed and coffee-less.
that's all...

paper bags & good hair...

Not necessarily the two things you would put together (unless you are getting your hair in a bag) but let me explain...
You do not need to be a rocket scientist to know what the paper-bag test is. Many people in the African-American community shun the existence of it but for those who don't know or never knew or thought that was plain ignorant here goes:
the paper bag test is/was basically a test affluent African-Americans (& others) would administer to determine preferential treatment to those who were lighter than the paper bag (I am really simplifying this here- to know more do your own dam research). For those African-Americans who were darker they were deemed _____* fill in the blank and therefore are/were "not good enough"

house negro vs. field negro.
good vs. bad.
light vs. dark.
white vs. black
(you get the point)

So I decided to use this paper bag in my office to "test" my blackness-
low and behold I am black.
(truly didn't need a paper bag to tell me that but OK)
Well not so fast (save the black power fist & dashiki) not according to some people I know and Chris Rock's movie out there now Good Hair. What is good hair, you ask? This is what he was attempting to answer for his daughters and thus shed some light on the topic.
(please can someone let me know)
According to the movie good hair is apparently long, flowing, manageable, easy, and flown in from India (unless you were born with it; which means massa was visiting the slave quarters). "Good hair" is what we spend BILLIONS of time and dollars on in chemicals & processing, time spent at the beauty parlor, wigs, weaves, tracks and stuff to whip that crown of glory into shape (notice the usage of the words)
I saw this movie yesterday and knew some of the things in there (hair from temples in India, reasons behind the sacrifice of hair) but also learned quite a few things that I never new nor experienced (because plain & simply that is not my hair experience)

• the perm/ relaxer: WHAT?? throwing acid up in your hair follicle to relax it from its natural state to bone straight= dangerous. I mean the 4 yr old getting her perm? the torture sessions/ test of wills & the burn that could happen? WHAT?
• weave sex: HUH? *editors note.....* but really don't touch the hair? no running fingers thru the hair, no twisting a loc between your forefinger & thumb while looking into my eyes (sorry i digressed there...)
• water/ rain: ??? Nia Long was like showering with a dude is like extra deep cause to get the whole thing wet and then have to dry it so it doesn't smell and all these other issues. [this is another one I knew since the swimming aspect/ getting hair wet when it rained my friends explained that to me]
• $1,000+ weaves & lay-away plan: <-got no words for that> I remember back in the day when my mom worked for K-mart and we laid-away our Christmas items and were truly delighted to receive them on Christmas Day. Is picking up your weave the same feeling?

While I was watching the stories unfold I was like "WOW, who knew all of this went on on a daily hourly basis in a woman's world?" One of my friends remarked "wow you really aren't black, huh?"
Ouch
All this to say what the hell is good hair? it is funny some of my friends tell me "oh you got good hair" and I say no I don't because hair is hair (dead follicles on your head). Most times people want what they want & don't have-- like i would love to be able to rock some locs in a mohawk or some two-strand twists in a fabulous chignon- alas I cant. whatever that's OK, i just got to do other things to make these follicles work...
oh my point... that my hair as defined by folks who are defining the good hair vs bad hair would be considered "good hair" (especially today when it is long and straight & wow it is raining so that will last until i get outside) does this mean I am buying into the same mentality & argument that is being made BUT in contrast to my skin tone (determined from the paper bag test) I am not good enough. This is the message I am getting from this world... imagine the messages young women are still getting (lest we forget BET, body image & education to boot).
good hair or not Chris Rocks movie was very good, enlightening and has the potential to open up a conversation among all races who are concerned with the hair issue. It taught me lessons I never learned about what some Black Women went thru & go thru to make the 'do do what it do. One lesson I hope EVERYONE takes away from this movie-
don't just come up to me and automatically think you can touch my hair. I will jerk away from you, look at you sideways and then possibly cuss you out.