Clearing Out the Old for the New

So ... my blog goes live RIGHT NOW! YAY!!!!! I'm really excited. I need to learn editing but I'm excited to share a little of me with you. I'm learning the editing software but in the meantime ... enjoy!

What I'm On Now ...

I always like to share when I'm loving new products, places or people - here's what I'm on now:

• Oprah's New Season - Talk about starting off with a bang! Oprah's season premiere was a two day interview with Whitney Houston. Since then she's done a show reviewing her interview w/Micheal Jackson at Neverland Ranch, has had Nick and Mariah on, interviewed Jay Z and had an explosive interview with Mackenzie Phillips who revealed a consensual sexual relationship with her dad - DAYUM Oprah!
• Social Media Networking - I have always loved meeting people on the web, but it seems like lately it has been in overtime. Twitter has become my fav way to keep up w/friends as well as meet new people. I also find daily inspiration, fashion advice and astrological news all in one spot. The most popular sites change often but for right now I'm all about Twitter!
• Yerba Mate - As you know I love love love Mojo coffee shop. But since I'm trying to lose weight, I'm staying away from caffeine (caffeine helps you lose weight but causes cellulite). My barista at the coffee shop suggested yerba mate. Yerba Mate is a South American herb (and you know I want to get to South America) that has tremendous health benefits including: boosting immunity, cleansing and detoxifying the blood, toning the nervous system, restoring youthful hair color, retarding aging, combating fatigue, stimulating the mind, controlling the appetite, reducing the effects of debilitating disease, reducing stress, and eliminating insomnia. And it tastes good too!
• Jay Electronica - He's AMAZING! Originally from New Orleans, his sound is so original and unique. He doesn't have a CD yet but apparently has been a hit online for some time. (Oh yeah, and he's Erykah Badu's daugther's father so ... you know she likes musically gifted men). Do yourself a favor and google Jay Electronica!
• Over the Knee Boots - These speak for themselves

Wednesday night TV - I love love love premiere week. Normally I have a DVR and record all of my favs, but this year I was forced to sit down and fit them all in. Wednesday is my new favorite TV night. ABC has Modern Family, Cougartown and Eastwick; I like Glee on Fox (time conflicts w/Modern Family but luckily it repeats on Fridays) and Top Model on UPN. Great great TV night. Here's a glimpse of why I love Glee (its campy but I don't care, I love singing, dancing and teen drama!).

What are you feeling these days?

That's My Sis

I came home from high school one day and my mother had been rushed to the hospital. She was super sick but the doctor's could not determine what the issue was. After days of tests and still no prognosis, they decided they'd put her on some medication. In order to receive this prescription, a pregnancy test had to be run. Come to find out she was pregnant and she and my stepdad were going to have a baby in two months! All my life I'd dreamed of having a REAL sister (I have a stepsister by my assumed dad and my stepdad had a daughter who is like blood but I wanted my own REAL sister growing up). I really desired this when I was like 7, but instead I got one the year before I was about to graduate high school!

Leanna was a peculiar baby-she made weird associations. For instance since she called our mom mom and her dad dad, she called everyone else their relation to her. She'd call me sister (she only says it now when she wants something). I loved that little girl and spent a crapload of time with her. She was ridiculously cute and I could teach her to say stuff from movies and TV (My favorite was when mom tried to take her bike and she said, "That's my bike Punk," like D-Bo on Friday!). But since I was off to college shortly after she was born, my relationship with my sister was hard to really establish. They moved to Texas, then I started my gypsy migration so I moved all the time. When I moved to Houston for law school, I lived at home, giving me time to reconnect with my sis. BUT she was no longer this cute lil' baby that called me sistah, she was a DIVA! LOL! She was a fashionista-LOVES clothes- and her personality is totally opposite of mine. (For her 11th birthday she described this outfit she wanted in such detail that my friend Kacy and I still laugh about it!).

I don't know if I have done a great job of letting her know how much I love her. I don't do that as well as you'd think since I'm such an expressive writer. One thing I admire most about my sister is her ability to speak her mind. When I was her age, More...I never really said what I felt or thought-I said what I knew would keep me out of trouble. She doesn't have a censor, she says what she feels. I'm not saying that is always best, she is still a kid, but she has healthy a self expression and a ton of confidence. She has the ability to be herself ... really be herself. She is an Aquarius and lives up to that sign (ironically she was born the day before the Aquarius/Pisces cusp and I'm a Cancer/Leo cusper). We are both different than most folk, but she LOVES it and embraces it (I don't enjoy being different although I'm at the point where I've got to accept it). I remember when my Granny turned 65 we had a big party for her with a band. Usher's "You've Got It Bad" was out and when the band played that song, she jumped on stage and started belting it out! I was in tears! (I cry a lot when I'm moved by other's talent.) Another example, this school year, she joined wrestling team - she's a DIVA not an athlete but she's committing to it because it is simply something different than the other girls do (and she apparently likes to fight!). This is a girl who will not leave the house with her hair out of place but she wrestles!

My sister is a manifestor. I'm not sure if she even knows it but she speaks things into existence. For as long as I can remember, she would say I am going to get a car when I turn 16. Since I've had a job since I was 14 and didn't get a car until I GRADUATED from college and I bought that myself, I would be like whatever. BUT wouldn't you know it, somebody GAVE her a car! She was always so confident in her belief she'd get a car and now before she's even able to drive it, she's got a car sitting outside. Talk about name it and claim it. I'll admit, even though I'm exhibiting some hater like tendencies right now (I'm VERY jealous), I do think it is pretty neat that she spoke that up. Now if she could just speak on her career and goals in life ...

So today, in honor of her FAB-O progress report, I celebrate my little sister for all that she is right now and all she decides to become. Love you LeeLee!

On To The Next One

JayZ came out with the Blueprint 3, once again that hip hop is trying to save my life. How can I be discouraged with lyrics like this?!?!?

"I move forward the only direction, cant be scared to fail Search and perfection."
"...and n-ggas don’t be mad cause it’s all about progression, loiterers should be arrested."
"Baby i’m a boss, i dunno what they do,I don’t get dropped, I dropped the label."
"World can’t hold me, too much ambition,always knew it’d be like this when I was in the kitchen."

WOW! The lessons are numerous! So my favorite lyric in some time is the one where he says he knew it'd be like this when he was in the kitchen! WOW! So when he was a crack dealer, he knew that he'd find a way out of his situation, use his talent and become the man he saw himself being. I feel like I'm in the kitchen now - true enough I'm no drug dealer but I am working in jobs that I do not feel use my full potential. I do know in my heart of hearts that the day is coming where I will be the woman I dream of now. Seems to me that Jay is saying that he used the image of where he wanted to be to get him to that point when he was in a less desirable situation. My message from hiphop today is to stay focused on the end goal. Keep it moving and move on to the next one that will help me move from right here to over there. WORD!

The Amber Rose Challenge

I was having a conversation with my friend Mistie about working out. I told her I felt that my health is not up to par since I moved back to Louisiana. In Cali' I ate well (healthy)- it was easy! Trader Joe's provided excellent healthy food at price points I could afford. Most people that I hung out with there were health conscious so we ate things that were generally good for us. Here in New Orleans I eat well (meaning tastes amazing; not sure how good it is for me). In Cali' I also had a healthier lifestyle. Everyone worked out, the weather was great and there were beautiful, free places for you to get your workout on. Here it is so humid, none of my friends who share my schedule/financial situation workout and everyone loves to go out and eat and drink. Also in Cali, weight was a big deal. I was mildly obese there! No one was as "big" as I was and here, I'm small. Well not small, but I'm not really thick. In Louisiana, I'm of average size. That makes it difficult to be concerned with losing weight because everyone is always telling me how I'm not that big! I don't want to lose a ton of weight, I just want to live better. I was sharing this with Mistie and she said, well, if you work out and eat right, you could have a body like that girl Amber Rose you like. WHAT?!?!?! Did my ears deceive me, did she say little old me could look like the No. 1 stunna, Amber Rose?

More...
I began my research. I asked her to go into detail (what do you mean?). She said we both had hourglass figures and even though I was heavier, that our shape/frame was the same. I went to a seminar for one of my many jobs and we discussed body type. Turns out I have an X-type figure: this means your shoulders and hips are around the same size and you have a defined waist (basically hourglass figure). I was in shock! True enough, I don't really dress for my body type and when I do wear "real" clothes guys say I'm fine. I'm really a tough critic on my own body (living in L.A. really made those image issues worse). Long story short, this conversation with Mistie inspired me.

I know for a fact that when I TRULY commit to working out, I can get GREAT results. When I worked with my trainer Scott Parker (he's who made David Banner fine!) for real for real, I looked like a fitness chick! I also know that when I eat right, I feel so good (emotionally and physically). I have more energy and I am more pleasant to be around. I am more confident and generally have better skin from drinking so much water. And now I've got a visual of what my body can look like with maximum effort. I'm in! My Amber Rose Challenge officially starts now!

Good Old Mercury Retrograde

Every year, Mercury goes into retrograde 3 times. This year has been full of astrological occurrences a little out of the norm. Today marks the beginning if the fourth Mercury retrograde this year. This time it occurs in the sign of Libra, starting today through Sept. 29.
By way if explanation, if you recall, I am a relatively new astrological student. I find a deeper study of the science provides interesting and compelling insight into the study of oneself. My first boss in L.A. introduced me to this phenomenon on Mercury Retrograde. See Mercury is the ruler of communication. When it orbits into retrograde, strange things occur as it relates to communicating. Cell phones break, contracts are unclear and general "weirdness" occurs. At the time when I became an assistant to my boss, I had no idea what this thing was. All I knew is we shut down all communication during that period that would have a lasting effect (ie, no signing contracts, no signing new clients or no large purchases).
As my astrological studies increased I learned more about Retrogrades. Now I know it is not just about crazy things happening with communication. Retrograde periods re-present opportunities that may have been elusive in the past. Additionally, the effects are linked to what sign Mercury is retrograding. This one is in Libra, so good ole' relationship (business and personal) issues that weren't previously resolved may reappear. All in all move forward with caution to limit negative implications of this retrograde. Move more into the energy flow instead of fighting it and before you know it, Mercury will be back on track!

Introducing Ally Bea

I was watching Wendy Williams the other day. She was talking about Jon Legend and how he was her "friend in her head." She went on to explain that there are people that she does not really know but from what she sees of them, they'd be her friend. So she's deemed these people as "friends in her head". I've decided to get some friends in my head. (Don't worry - this is totally cool in a non-stalker, no homo, so SWF type way. I've got plenty of real-life friends - you can read about them in She Makes Me Wanna and throughout my blog. BUT my friends in my head are folks I read about online or follow in the entertainment world. The best part is I get to exercise my imagination - I don't really know them so they can be whoever I make them up to be!)

As you know I recently moved to New Orleans. I love it here and the main reason is because I feel that folk are uniquely authentic. I feel there is numerous amounts of talent and very little inhibition about putting that talent out there. There's this girl, Ally Bea-Bea Author that is TOTALLY my friend in my head, because she does her thing. I'm a huge fan of action and she appears to be a very active young woman. She's found her voice and I can dig that.

Here's what makes her my friend in my head.

More...First of all, she has a crew! I'm all about having a crew. One of my dreams is to "make it" as a film producer/personality and be featured in magazines w/my crew of equally successful friends. I get so excited when my friends and I get to collaborate on projects. It is so fulfilling to do the creative things I like but it becomes amazing when I'm creating with my friends. Ms. Bea has this super dope crew - they have a blog, radio shows (one is the Rat Pack, I mean really who wouldn't like that?) and they do events. Not just regular events but real cool, hip events right here in New Orleans - how fresh? I am attracted to friends who are extreme individuals comfortable in their skin. My best friends and I are trendsetters - not because we set out to do that, but because when we let ourselves fully shine, people embrace it. This girl seems to be above all else an individual. Her blogs and tweets indicate that she has a very distinct fashion sense that isn't the norm in New Orleans. On her radio show she makes it a point to expose folk to new and interesting music and artists (I first heard of Jay Electronica through their blog!).

We're totally friends in my head. I see us meeting at cool alternative spots like random tea shops or bars on Frenchman and talking about how what's new and fresh in the world - even though our worlds aren't exactly the same (I feel like she's got the music and street fashion covered, where as I'm more of a film/tv chick w/more of a boho meets classic meets glam fashion style). Our friendship in my head is very reciprocal - I'd share my L.A. experiences and she'd help me navigate my new life in NOLA. Even though I'm way too old, I'd come check out her events and support her endeavors. She'd come to my stuff when she wants to hang out with the "old folks" and she and her friends would be there when I do screenings of my film stuff (yeah, the DaVida Chanel stuff is going to appeal to all types of folk but I digress). We'd have silly girl convos about Trey Songz and Drake and other cuties. Oh and she'd try to influence my fashion choices - trying to keep my sneaker game up to date, while I encourage her to get more heels!

Click here to find my friend in my head, Ally Bea-Bea Author. When you enter her world, you'll see why she's a friend in my head, and she just might become a friend in yours.

Mojo Coffee House

I've found it! This is my type of coffee shop - my place of inspiration! This no internet at home thing, forced me to hit the streets of Uptown in search of a spot w/affordable good coffee and tea, healthy snacks and tea, good energy and of course free wifi. MOJO's COFFEE HOUSE is my spot. First of all, it is located at the top of Magazine - I heart Magazine Street! Secondly, the energy is GREAT here! There's an eclectic group of folk that meet up here. The music is amazing - it is like an IPOD on shuffle and that works for me. The shelves are lined w/fresh herbs and a variety of coffee beans. It is friendly, it is warm (in feeling not temperature), it is EXACTLY where I need to be to share my OMG stories with you! Oh yeah, I almost forgot, they are open from 6am-midnight!!!

Yessir! If I'm not at work working for "the man", you can find me here working for "the woman" ... ME!