The Watch Night

Well I am going to be in church tonight bringing in the new year. This is a tradition for many people. For me this will be my second year attending.

Growing up, I have never been pressed to go. My mom and granddad (when he was living) attended all the time. I chose to stay at home and bring it in with Dick Clark and ABC.

Last year, after going through some shuffling of jobs and not being able to go home, I decided that I was going to attend. Before that I had read some history behind the "watchnight". Snopes.com proclaims that Watchnight started with the Morovians (which may be true) however it primarily became an African American tradition. However, check out the website http://www.wsbrec.org/blackfacts/WatchNight.htm and you will find out that African Americans have been gathering together praising God for years before the term officially had been coined "Watch Night". So really we didn't need a particular name for something we have been doing for years.

Back to the 2007 watchnight. I attended last year at Pine Grove AME Church (the church that I attend sometimes here in Columbia) and it was a packed house. Young, old and in between, you could see people filing in. I thought that was really cool. Some people have been going since they were kids (because their parents made them go). Others began going when they started college and was told this is what you need to do before going to the club on New Years. I will never forget one of my friends said a group of young people in their mid 20's attended watch night back home, and as soon as midnight hit, they passed their children to their parents and said "Off to the club we go!" WOW...that serious?

I enjoyed myself though. There were those who had their testimonials. I am more into the singing, so if I knew the song I was definitely into it. Two minutes before the new year we prayed it in. I'm thinking "this is how it is supposed to be...really". I felt more at peace that night. People coming together, whatever their problems may be and rejoicing and celebrating...and then....running out of the church to get to the party (club, house party)...lol. For me it was going home but if there was a motorcycle party going on...I would have been there, after the watchnight.

To all my readers and everyone on Blogger, have a safe and Happy New Year.

Be Responsible

I chose this topic for my Monday morning blog because of my oldest nephew who needs to somehow "find himself".

"Tay" needs to keep himself free and out of trouble for as long as he can...til infinity for that matter. In September,he got caught up with some older dudes and this girl and ended up being arrested for an attempted armed robbery that went bad. When I say bad, I mean the older ones pushed him up to go try to rob some dude who happen to be a big time drug dealer 90 MILES AWAY FROM COLUMBIA and then the dude was able to grab the gun from him and hold him up.

(I'm going to wait on you to digest this bit of info).

Continuing...
Tay was 17 at the time of the robbery-gone-bad scenario, which here in South Carolina you are considered a adult. Period. End of discussion. The other three (from what I am told) were in their mid 20's. One other girl was arrested, but he other two got away (those two never got out of the car). So now, these two are awaiting trial for this bullcrap, which could take forever to get on the docket.

Bond was set at $1000. You know me, I was like let his ass stay there. Tay was grown enough to leave home at 6am having this mom thinking he was going to school early (???) when in fact he was two counties away. Then on top of that, he didn't call his mama first to let her know where he was. Nah, he calls is then 15 year old sister on her cell phone at school. All the kids at school knew before his mama knew.

(Giving you 30 seconds to digest that info).

But you know mom wants her son at home so what does she do? Scraps up the first $500 to give to the bail bondsman so her son can be home. This was in September. He had spent three weeks and three days in jail from that time. Since then, Tay has had to appear for roll call three times for a 5 minute (or less) appearance which I had to drive them there, take off time from my then permanent job to go 90 MILES AWAY from Columbia for some bullcrap that he should have never been in.

So my thing is, since you ain't locked up yet. You got to do something. Get on the bandwagon. Try to prove to these people that this was something that you weren't trying to get into in the first place, but you are correcting your actions because you don't want to repeat the offense.

Tay turned 18 in November, which meant that he could try out for his driving permit on his own without being on anyone's insurance policy. He successfully got that after two tries.

He then applied for jobs and ended up getting a job at Honey Baked Ham. Sounds like the road is paving away smoothly.

The rocky part of the road: Today, Tay's boss calls him and ask him to come in a little later this morning. Ok fine. So he ask me what time to I have to go to work. I tell him I work this evening but I don't get off til midnight. He sighs. Now he's like he don't think he's going to work today because he doesn't have any bus fare to get back home and nobody to pick him up.

I'm already heated with that line cause first of all, you can get a ride anyplace else you want to, the teen club, the mall, whatever but you not going to work cause you can't find a ride?

I told Tay that his on him, but he need not be asking anybody for any money for anything because he could have been doing what he supposed to be doing.

But 20 minutes later Tay is on the phone with one of his homeboy's and is about to leave the house.

His brother told him he was on that bs cause if he had that job, he would work all the hours he could. He'll find a ride back home somehow. That's what I'm talking about.

It's all about responsiblity. Mama, auntie, or whoever can't hold children's hands when they get grown. They need not to. Let their asses go!!! Most of us who are able to work are doing it because we got to. If I didn't have to pay bills I wouldn't bother getting up to go to anybody's office, retail store, or anything for that matter.

I have my own place, so what's goes on here with Tay at this house, let his mama deal with it if she so please.

Maybe it is just my frustration for today, but when you are 18, you need to be making most of these grown decisions for yourself, not waiting on somebody hand and foot.

Ok, I am finished ranting for the morning.

Back from hiding

I think I have been away from blogger for about a week. Alot has gone on since I last posted. My followers and others I network on blogger know that I would be on here every week.

Well here is the scoop.

About a week ago, the customer service side of our department got the confirmation that we were being let go and our 60 day working notice had begun (December 6). The "working notice" means that we will continue to get paid biweekly until February 3rd, however we will not be required to come back to the office. In other words, we want to get rid of you right now. We will pay you for your time just as long as you pack your things and get out. At least 10 of us were eliminated from our jobs. This does not include an additional 10 that were let go at the beginning of November.

The only thing that irritated me about the whole deal was that they called us in for a 9am meeting to tell us this crap and then we would have to leave by 12 noon. Not to mention the big whigs were in Hartford, Connecticut when they decided to drop the 60 day bomb. I guess it was safe for them to to it there instead of South Carolina. The last time they were down here and they let those first 10 people go, I thought I riot was going to break out.

So last week I picked up hours at Kmart to pass up some time and to make some extra money. Why Kmart have to have their Christmas items 50 percent off already? People buying lights and garlands out of the ying yang and we got like TWO cashiers open up front. I was so sick and tired of Kmart that week alone. I am so glad for this day off.

This weekend I went to a motorcycle club party, which turned out to be pretty good. Sunday, I had to work till midnight at the Big K. I get a voice message from my friend who I am feeling but not trying to get wrapped around him cause just like Raymond, everybody in the motorcycle community loves him. He says (on the message) that it was unsual for me not to call and wanted to know what was up.**clearing throat** If you are into football, and you religously watch it every Sunday and you have already told me that you don't talk to anyone while football is on until afterwards, then why at 7:30pm are you calling with this message??? I had to listen to this 6 times to make sure I was hearing it right. Hell, since football is his "me" time between him and the television, why even bother him, especially if I am not interested? (Note: I do know the rules of football. I rather watch it live than in front of a television set). Lo and behold my friend calls me this morning and I ask him about it. His reply: "I know you don't usually call during football but you do text me sometimes to tell me have a good day so...I guess I got used to hearing from you all the time with something." YO!!!!! Is he getting his head wrapped up? I am not reading into that too fast but who would have ever thought I would have heard him say that.

So now you know I am riding high off of that little comment for the moment. Monday is going pretty good. I am catching up on all my networking sites and check other blogger pages to see what's going on. Hope your Monday is good also.

When You Think You Had It Bad...

Earlier this week I had been under alot of stress. You know how it goes: not making enough money, stretching to make the bills meet, aggravating relatives. Makes you want to go on a vacation when you get back on your feet. QUICKLY!

I had to do alot of praying and mediating so I could ease my nerves. There are times when I feel that there is so much going on in my life that I think I am going to crack.

A cousin of mine called me last night and we were talking about the Friday after Thanksgiving, how it was so great seeing people near and far, folks we having seen in a long time. Some how of another we got to talking about this young lady I used to hang out with when I was working in Hemingway back in 2000. She, her sister, and I were real good friends working at Tupperware Manufacturing. Since we were temporary workers, we could work as many hours as we wanted during the week. We used to log mad overtime, at least 60 hours a week. Once we got paid we took care of the bills we had to take care of and every now and again we would go shopping or go out to eat. It was so much fun. At the time I was back home in my granddaddy's house, which meant no rent, and no house bills, but I felt it was my responsibility to help out with the food, cooking, etc and anything else he needed. His only request was that his kids and grandkids worked. And I wasn't about to sit around the house no way.

By 2003 I had enough money saved up to move to Columbia, and though I didn't want to move away from granddaddy but at the same time I needed to progress financially and Heminway wasn't doing it. Columbia was a better move because I wasn't that far from him and I could still come home and hang out with my family and close friends.

Which brings me back to the conversation with me and my cousin about my friend and her sister. I will call them Amina and Stacia. Amina (who is older) was about 20 when I met her, already had her own mobile home and a car, and a 2 year old and kept herself up real good. Stacia was about 3 years younger, also worked at Tupperware and she worked because her mom made her basically. She was so stuck on this guy named Shawn, and he was dogging her out by dating this other chick, had a baby with her and all.

My cousin told me Amina has "lost her mind". I was like what do you mean? I mean she always said something off the wall sometimes but she could not be like THAT. My cousin was like, "No, I really think she lost her mind or something. From what the people say here, Amina was messing around with this married man. His wife found out about it and had put roots on her. She hadn't been right since." I am now shocked like hell. I was like, "Shereka (my cousin) you got to be lying." But Shereka was like,"Nah. I know Amina real good too and she was always friendly and I know of her to always try to keep herself up. But now? Girl she gained weight. She don't keep her hair up no more and I saw her and her mom going to Family Dollar and she had to hold Amina's hand like she was retarded or something. I spoke to her and she kinda speak slow now." Right now (it just came to my mind) that this girl could have possibly had a stroke but I don't know and according to Shereka, no one really knows what happened to Amina except people keep saying the lady put roots on her.

Well why not put roots on the husband? I mean he was just at fault as Amina was.
Don't get me wrong, I am surely not saying what Amina did was right but if indeed this lady put some type of roots on her she is so dead wrong for that. If anyone practice that stuff I believe you should never do harm to people. That put you in a category of witches (if you believe in them). Shereka said that I should go see her one day. I want to but then I don't. I don't know if I can really stand to see her in that state of mind. Then again, Amina may need her true friends to be by her side. Maybe she can snap out of this trance, if it is one.

Her sister, Stacia, on the other hand...a total mess. According to Shereka, Stacia is still fooling around with that no good bastard Shawn and he got the girl sniffing powder. WTF??? This chick went from the town princess to the town drug addict??? Where is her mind? She had some issues from the time I met her anyway because the rumor around town (back then in 2000) was that she messed around with her momma's husband (which would be her stepdaddy). Ewwww.... I don't know for fact about that but that's real nasty to say and even do. I don't know when it happened but I know her mom and stepdad were together when we all were working back at Tupperware. I don't know about now cause I haven't seen these ladies in about 5 years.

Hearing what Stacia and Amina have (and is still going through) now proves to me that my issues are not really that bad. I break out in hives from time to time (that's usually caused by stressed) but in the end I am able to get through it. Both of these ladies need help and fast. It looks like a long road ahead for both of them and I really hope Stacia gets cleaned up and Amina gets well soon.

Now, would you really say you got it bad?

Go Big Girls What You Gon' Do?

Single Ladies (BIG GIRL REMIX)




OKAY... I had got this from another blog (Miss Pearl's Window). I'm all about the big girls doing their dance but I was FLOORED when I saw the chick did the split.

Kiwi...Imma need you to pass video on to Silky. I can't get on Multiply from work and I know she would have wrote something up on this by now.

Your thoughts?

Seasonal Means Temporary

I'm Diamond~Star, and I approve this message.

This disclaimer being said, I have to tell you about my night work. For the past three weeks I have been working a seasonal job at Belk Distribution center in Blythewood, about 11 miles out of the city of Columbia. For those of you who never heard of Belk, it is a department store that lies in mostly southern states (Southeast and Southwest). I don't know if I could compare it to Macy's, but I think it is more comparable to Dillards.

Anyway, at the distribution center, there are different departments. I work in the shipping department where I am assigned a certain number of stores and at least 2 trucks to load. We load the pallets and the trucks according to the store number. The concept is easy. The work, until you get used to it, is hard. You best believe you will lose about 10 pounds or more working there.

Here it is, Tuesday night and the supervisor assigns me to be the floater among 4 lanes. Basically I am helping the others keep their lanes clear of the boxes and helping them load their trucks and pallets. Cool. I am with that cause that's constant moving. Things are going swell through the night.

4:00am. It's lunch time. After lunch, the 3rd shift has a meeting. I know that it's probably about the shift coming to an end because peak season is about over. I am prepared for this anyway because:

1. When we applied, we were told that this was a seasonal job.
2. Third shift was only going to last a few weeks. After that, the shift would be eliminated and those who wanted to stay on would be split between first and second shift.
3. This seasonal job was obtained through the temp agency.

So tell me why after the supervisor tells us that our jobs on third shift will end this week, that some people decided that they were going to leave RIGHT THEN AND THERE??? I mean, could you not stick it out for 2 and a half more hours(the shift ended at 7am)? About 5 minutes after the meeting the supervisor ask me to take over a lane because this chica had bailed the hell out after the meeting. No goodbyes' no sayonara, nothing. So now I gotta work extra hard to catch this heffa's crap up so when first shift comes in they won't have a pile of boxes laying around everywhere.

Do folk not realize in a time where the economy is an eyesore, that you do not burn your bridges with your job, especially if it's with the temp agency. The temp agency may be able to place you somewhere else if things don't work out on this job. I hope this girl didn't get mad about her job ending when she knew that this was a seasonal job in the first place. Seasonal means temporary. Need to put that in the employment dictonary for those who don't know.

Well, one thing is for sure. There is a lot of other seasonal jobs out there if somebody need one. I just saw that Coca Cola bottling company is hiring for production workers...

That is my rant for today.

More of the Real Housewives of Atlanta

The Real Housewives of Atlanta

I need to really sit down and see the entire episode of this show. I have never watched it but I have heard so many people talk about it. If there is anyone out there who watches this please let me know what you think?

The Butler Sees A New White House

This is an article that was emailed to me. It is taken from the Washington Post. Very touching...



Eugene Allen, 89, a retired White House butler, tries on his old tuxedo for a photo. Allen, who served eight presidents during a period when America 's racial history was being rewritten, is marveling at the election of Barack Obama.

Now retired, he started when blacks were in the kitchen.
By Wil Haygood
November 7, 2008

Reporting from Washington -- For more than three decades, Eugene Allen worked in the White House, a black man unknown to the headlines. During some of those years, harsh segregation laws lay upon the land.
He trekked home every night to his wife, Helene, who kept him out of her kitchen.
At the White House, he worked closer to the dirty dishes than to the Oval Office. Helene didn't care; she just beamed with pride.
President Truman called him Gene. President Ford liked to talk golf with him. He saw eight presidential administrations come and go, often working six days a week.
"I never missed a day of work," Allen said.
He was there while racial history was made: Brown vs. Board of Education, the Little Rock school crisis, the 1963 March on Washington , the cities burning, the civil rights bills, the assassinations.
When he started at the White House in 1952, he couldn't even use the public restrooms when he ventured back to his native Virginia . "We had never had anything," Allen, 89, recalled of black America at the time. "I was always hoping things would get better."
In its long history, the White House -- note the name -- has had a complex and vexing relationship with black Americans.
"The history is not so uneven at the lower level, in the kitchen," said Ted Sorensen, who served as counselor to President Kennedy. "In the kitchen, the folks have always been black. Even the folks at the door -- black."
Before Gene Allen landed his White House job, he worked as a waiter at a resort in Hot Springs , Va. , and then at a country club in Washington .
He and wife Helene, 86, were sitting in the living room of their Washington home. Her voice was musical, in a Lena Horne kind of way. She called him "Honey." They met at a birthday party in 1942. He was too shy to ask for her number, so she tracked his down. They married a year later.
In 1952, a lady told him of a job opening in the White House. "I wasn't even looking for a job," he said. "I was happy where I was working, but she told me to go on over there and meet with a guy by the name of Alonzo Fields."
Fields was a maitre d', and he immediately liked Allen.
Allen was offered a job as a "pantry man." He washed dishes, stocked cabinets and shined silverware. He started at $2,400 a year.
There was, in time, a promotion to butler. "Shook the hand of all the presidents I ever worked for," he said.
"I was there, honey," Helene said. "In the back maybe. But I shook their hands too." She was referring to White House holiday parties, Easter egg hunts.
They have one son, C harles, who works as an investigator with the State Department..
"President Ford's birthday and my birthday were on the same day," he said. "He'd have a birthday party at the White House. Everybody would be there. And Mrs. Ford would say, 'It's Gene's birthday too!' "
And so they'd sing a little ditty to the butler. And the butler, who wore a tuxedo to work every day, would blush.
"Jack Kennedy was very nice," he went on. "And so was Mrs. Kennedy."
He was in the White House kitchen the day Kennedy was slain. He got an invitation to the funeral. But he volunteered for other duty: "Somebody had to be at the White House to serve everyone after they came from the funeral."
The whole family of President Carter made Helene chuckle: "They were country. And I'm talking Lillian and Rosalynn both." It came out as the highest compliment.
First Lady Nancy Reagan came looking for him in the kitchen one day. She wanted to remind him about the upcoming st ate dinner for German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. She told him he would not be working that night.
"She said, 'You and Helene are coming to the state dinner as guests of President Reagan and myself.' I'm telling you! I believe I'm the only butler to get invited to a state dinner."
Husbands and wives don't sit together at these events, and Helene was nervous about trying to make small talk with world leaders. "And my son said, 'Momma, just talk about your high school. They won't know the difference.'
"The senators were all talking about the colleges and universities that they went to," she said. "I was doing as much talking as they were.
"Had champagne that night," she said, looking over at her husband.
He just grinned: He was the man who stacked the champagne at the White House.
Colin L. Powell would become the highest ranking black of any White House to that point when he was named Reagan's national security advisor in 1987. Condoleezza Rice w ould have that position under President George W. Bush.
Gene Allen was promoted to maitre d' in 1980. He left the White House in 1986, after 34 years. President Reagan wrote him a sweet note. Nancy Reagan hugged him tight.
Interviewed at their home last week, Gene and Helene speculated about what it would mean if a black man were elected president.
"Just imagine," she said.
"It'd be really something," he said.
"We're pretty much past the going-out stage," she said. "But you never know. If he gets in there, it'd sure be nice to go over there again."
They talked about praying to help Barack Obama get to the White House. They'd go vote together. She'd lean on her cane with one hand, and him with the other, while walking down to the precinct. And she'd get supper going afterward. They went over their election day plans more than once.
"Imagine," she said.
"That's right," he said.
On Monday, Helene had a doctor's appointment . Gene woke and nudged her once, then again.. He shuffled around to her side of the bed. He nudged Helene again.
He was all alone.
"I woke up and my wife didn't," he said later.
Some friends and family members rushed over. He wanted to make coffee. They had to shoo the butler out of the kitchen.
The lady he married 65 years ago will be buried today.
The butler cast his vote for Obama on Tuesday. He so missed telling his Helene about the black man bound for the Oval Office.

Haygood writes for the Washington Post.

Happy Holidays From the Obamas

They look really good in this holiday video. If you haven't seen it' please take a look.

Twin Tours to Take Bus to Historic Inauguration

http://www.live5news.com/global/video/popup/pop_playerLaunch.asp?vt1=v&clipFormat=flv&clipId1=3126593&at1=News&h1=Paying to witness history

My friends in the biker world, Derryl and Terryl (aka Twin 1 and Twin 2) of Band of Bruthaz MC in Charleston, SC are taking their privately own charter busses to the historic 2009 inauguration ceremonies. Both were featured in yesterday's NewsChannel 5 broadcast (see link). I talked to Terryl earlier today who said one of the buses are full and the other has about 30 seats left.

$495 covers the bus trip and the hotel stay, which the bus will depart from Charleston on Sunday January 18 and returning on Wednesday January 21.

If I was planning to go by myself I would jump on the deal. That is really good considering the price of gas and the skyrocketing prices of the hotels (I got my hotel the day after the election at a decent price considering. It could have been better but hey, this is my first time doing this). My bike club members are planning to attend and they plan on having their children come with them so we will probably rent a van and roll out that way.

Enjoy the video!!!

We Are the United States of America!!!

Watch CBS Videos Online



Last night I attended an election watch night party hosted by the Midlands Bikers Association. It was a really good turnout because people from all over wanted to see the results. It wasn't even 11pm Eastern Standard time when CNN cut in with breaking news, projecting Barack Obama the winner in the Presidential Election.


This is an historic moment for us all. This day has certainly come. Everyone at Greens BBQ (the place where the event was held) was rejoicing: singing, dancing, crying. This is all from happiness. I met this old couple, who had to be in their late 80's and when they found out the results of the presidential election, they hugged and cried. Imagine living all of your life through the civil rights era, where even thinking about voting was not an option, only to come to this day, November 4, 2008, where we exercised that right with full force and power.


I could not help but shed tears of happiness. Here is a man who was DOUBTED...CRITICIZED...even RIDICULED about his name because he was not the ordinary candidate. The ordinary candidate is not up for change, but unlike that candidate Barack Obama is for change. It was due time. Past time. If you look around the world, you have already had countries that had first women presidents, first black presidents. Yet the United States did not have one elected president of color until now. Change was due and it happened. The record numbers in voting, long lines (I stood in line for 2 hours yesterday), the college aged kids, the ones that just turned 18 and while they may still be in high school they still were able to exercise their right to vote. I even praise the woman who was voting yesterday and her water broke. She stood in line for over an hour to get that opportunity and she did so.


This election brought more of us together as one nation. We all have our differences but we are still citizens of one country.Like Barack said, in the end there is no such thing as red states and blue states. We are 50 states and WE ARE THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!!!
We all must continue to keep Barack, Michelle, Sasha, Malia and all of their family members in our prayers daily. No one said this is going to be easy. There are still mountains to climb. Even though Barack's grandmother passed the eve of the election, she knew that her job was done. She raised him well and she is smiling at him.


I am still celebrating, tearing up from time to time, because for me, this is a day that I will never ever forget. YES WE CAN AND YES WE DID!!!

This Is How We See It

This is change we can believe in.

Reality bites for some but I am here to tell you, this is a BEAUTIFUL first family.
We all know that it's going to be a difficult road, but it is time to face these battles without fear. That what I really like about Barack Obama. This man walks into this race, knowing the possible outcomes and he walks without fear.

As stated in Job 11:14-16 verse:

if you put away the sin that is in your hand and allow no evil to dwell in your tent,
then you will lift up your face without shame; you will stand firm and without fear.
You will surely forget your trouble, recalling it only as waters gone by.

Get out there and vote November 4th!!! Ba-rack the vote!!!

Take A Stand Against the One Floor Riders

We the people at various jobs that are located in high rises are tired of this and we want it to stop now!!!

I am talking abou the One Floor Riders (or OFL). You know the ones: they wait at least 5 minutes for an elevator just to go up or down to the next level instead of taking the dayum stairs.

If you have something that you are carrying that is heavy, then yes I understand. Go ahead and take the elevator. But when you are just sitting there with a bag from Chick-Fila, or matter of fact nothing at all, and you get on the elevator from the FIRST floor to go to the SECOND floor??? Come on. It doesn't take that much energy to use the stairs.

Here in my building the OFL's are very frequent among the 3rd and 4th floors. Today I got on the elevator from the 7th floor (where I work) to go down to the 1st floor to get a soda from the canteen. The elevator stops on the 3rd floor. Here comes an unidentified OFL (never seen this person before so she is unidentified). The person on the elevator with me (he got on from the 7th floor too) asked her what floor she's going to. This chick is going to say "2". 2???? where all you had to go is go down the stairs to the second floor and it would have been a wrap???

That really gets to me. As much as doctors talking about getting at least 30 minutes of exercise a day for better health, walking up or down one floor should not hurt anybody at all. The next time you are on an elevator, think about that OFL that interrupted your ride to the 10th floor all because she wanted to ride the elevator from the 2nd to the 3rd floor, the same person that knows where the stairs are at, can clearly see the signs but is too lazy to even climb up the stairs.

That's my vent for today.

Gas Prices Are Coming Down

These gas prices are coming down...and they should be!!!

In my neighborhood, gas is now at $2.27 a gallon but there are some places in Columbia that are reporting $2.19 a gallon as of today.

Just because they are coming down, doesn't mean we should storm the gas stations by force.

We should continue to use gas sparingly. We should only drive when needed, plan our trips way ahead of time ( I say at least 6 months ahead of time). The less money we pay in gas, the more money we have to take care of other bills. I know so many people (including myself) who had to sacrifice a bill so that can have gas to get to work. Groceries list ending up shrinking to mere neccessities because of gas prices. I don't drive unless I have to, and the most driving I do is on the weekends when I am attending networking parties and other events. This is one small feat I believe we all are proud of.

Hair-raising Friday

May, 2008

June, 2008

August, 2008

September, 2008

October, 2008

These are differnt pics of me since I've had my hair cut back in May, 2008. Since then it has grown some and I am glad. The short bob was cute, but I had to keep my hair up every 4 to 6 weeks because the back of my hair grew so fast.

I have read so many hair blogs this week, I've decide to write my own. At least how I maintain mine.

I wanted it done this week because I am attending a pajama party hosted by one of the motorcycle clubs in Aiken. I will have to figure out the style part before Saturday night. I just needed my hair permed because the back kitchen was saying "Wee ooh wee ooh wee, like a cop call."

My cousin Symoan relaxed it, after my niece Asya wasn't able to. Asya was extremely upset that she could not make the football classic in Alabama this weekend. My thing was you ain't getting in my hair upset so I called my friend Debra, who by this time I think was sleeping. Debra and Asya are the only two people I really allow in my hair as far as relaxing it. Asya is the backup in case Debra is not available because Debra can relax and cut (or trim if you hair needs trimming). Asya can relax and style, including updos and things like that. I haven't seen her trim ends and she will need a doll to practice on first. She's only 16, so I'm not allowing her to cut nothing off of my hair right now. Symoan did a good job. Afterwards, I conditioned my hair, wrapped it while it was still damp, and tied a silk scarf over it and called it a night. I am not a fan of the hair dryer unless I am a rush. I wasn't going no where so...

My this morning my hair was completely dry and it came out exactly the way I wanted to: straight. I had to use some castor oil conditioner because my hair was dry and it had to have some shine and bounce. I only do that once a week anyway, as well as the flat ironing of my hair. That's a once a week thing. I am not into curling hair all the time no way.

Usually in between touch ups, I wash my hair once a week with Infusium 23 shampoo, do a hot oil treatment with Africa's best 6 in one oil, and use Infusium 23 leave in conditioner, wrap and go. Using the leave in conditioner eliminates me from adding more oil to my hair when it's done cause it normally last the entire week (the shine that is). Of course I would need to be already in my house for the day and have no plans on going anywhere else. If I can help it, I am not drying my hair. If I airdry it without wrapping it, then I will have to section it out in small pieces and flat iron it. If I wrap it and put the scarf on it, tied it down tight, then all I have to do in the morning is comb my hair down and flat iron it a little (if neccessary).

Now that my hair is of length for now, I am going to get it braided. It's already cold some days in the south and I need my braids. I plan on getting those done before Thanksgiving break. We got alot of activities going on at home, with alot of home town people coming back in from their homes so I gotta look sharp, lol. I got a few cousiins that braid hair who live close to me, and one of Asya's friends braids so I am not lacking a braider in that department. I remember how my cousin Tina from Philly would come down and practically buy all the braiding hair I had at home because she said it was cheaper here than it is there. The same pack of $1 yaky synthetic braid that curls up on the end she said cost $4. I told her we have hair like that down here too, but she emphasis that it was the same brand of hair we had for $1 was $4 there. I am like WOW!!!

The same it is for braiding. The cost ratio is way different here than there. Most girls learn how to braid hair early ( I learned how to cornrow when I was 10) but Shawn from up the street will take $20 or whatever you give her (that really gets to me when someone don't set a price, just say "Whatever you give me". Okay, then I'll give you a $1!!! I wouldn't do anyone like that but still). I think Tina told me her daughter (who is 25, lives in Philly) charges 45 for goddess braids and somewhere around $130 for micros and that depends on what kind of micros. Dayum. The financial resources here are no where near what Pennsylvania has. Personally, I never had to pay over $65 for micros. The braiders here in Columbia (the ones in the shop) charge between $150-200 with the hair (sometimes without). Lil Shaniqua down the street-$20 with your own hair, $30 without. Most of the time Shaniqua will do better than some of the braiders in the shop.

I'll know what I am going to do in the next few weeks. I am saving my money for the braider, the hair itself, and the hair supplies to keep it up. I plan on having my hair braided through March and the first day of spring. That way it will get a rest from relaxing. Sometimes I say that and will renig because I just like to be versatile. I could wear a wig but I get tired of that too. We will see.

Hope all have a good weekend

Potluck at the Office

Today our office team members got together to hold a Fall Luncheon aka The Office Potluck. Everyone was responsible for bringing at least one item. I can cook but I don't cook that often. I can however bake just about anything.

I didn't know exactly what I was going to make. I had this old issue of Woman's World Magazine that was sitting on my desk so I picked it up to see what recipes were in there that was interesting (and easy). The Apple Pear Crumb Cake stood out so I decided to do that.

When I got home last night from work I went straight to bed. I was tired from the previous two days so I wanted to get some rest before acutally having to take on the task. Plus I had to go to the grocery store to get a few items when I got up so I wanted to be refreshed. I went to bed at 8:30pm. I woke up at 3am.

I was definitely refreshed then.

Good thing I live right at the Kroger and it's 24 hours because if it wasn't then I would have waited till about 7 to get up and get things moving. I went to the grocery store and picked up the items I needed. Then I started with the baking. Instruction number 1 says, place aluminum foil across pan...

Great. Now I need to go buy aluminum foil.

So I had to go back to the store and get a roll of aluminum foil. I got a roll big enough so it can last for a while. I start back into the baking process. Peel and dice fruit. I am looking for the pears so I can cut them and I can't find them. WHY ME??? Somewhere between the store and home I am missing two pears. Forget that I am not going back to the store and it's already 4am. So I used 2 granny smith apples instead. This ended up being the Apple Crumb cake which was cool because I had never made either one before. After mixing the ingredients and cutting up apples, I placed the mixture in the oven to bake. After 30 minutes I took it out so that I could add the crumb topping on top. This baked for 25 minutes more. At 6:00am I was finished. I pulled the cake out of the oven so it could cool. Meanwhile I went upstairs and got back in the bed.

At 8am, Symoan woke me up asking if I could drop her off at work cause her car still wasn't acting right. So much for getting a longer nap. So I took her to work, came back about 15 minutes later and sprinkled the top of the cake with confectioner's sugar. I wrapped it back up and attempted to get another nap. Of course this did not work out before the 9:00 hour because I know my phone rang at least 15 times (most of the calls being Symoan). I got up and got dressed for work, with Symoan calling AGAIN before 9:30. This time to pick her up from work because she did get in contact with the auto shop and they were going to fix her car today. GLORY!!! This might not stop her calling so much in the morning but that sure will cut down on the excessive driving I had to do this week. Not complaining cause I might need the same favor you know? So I go pick her up, bring her back to the apartment and she gets her car. I then go back in the house, get the apple crumb cake, and it's off to work for me.

I get to work on time at 10:30am. The potluck started at 11:30am. The cake was an instant hit among the co-workers. My supervisor said she was hoping I was going to bake a cake because last year at the Christmas party I baked an double peanut butter pound cake. Luckily no one was allergic to peanut or peanut products (cause I sure didn't think about that till AFTER I brought the cake to the office). That cake didn't last half the day the way they been gobbling it up.

Besides the cake, we also had baked spagetti (with ground turkey meat), fruit and veggie tray, peach cobbler, spinach dip, garlic bread, sodas, and strawberry-lemonade-soaring strawberry lemonade Koolaid (that is three types of koolaid yall). That koolaid was on the money. As I'm typing right now I am sipping on some koolaid!!!

As I would guess, Symoan called this afternoon asking was there any cake left. WOW!!! I told her I would make one for the house on Sunday since that is the one day I have that I can really spend time in the kitchen. She is happy with that but is still hoping if there is even a smidget of cake left by the end of the night, I will bring it home. *laughs*. Lawd,imagine my dear cousin sitting on the outside of the apartment waiting for the apple crumb cake...LMAO!!! Let me stop. The day is good so far, and hopefully it will continue into the rest of the evening.

Midnight Drive to Georgia

My friend LaToya is an aspiring artist. 2008 has been a great but difficult year for her as far as the art shows are concerned. For the first time, LaToya has been selected as one of the many artist in South Carolina to participate in a traveling art show called "The Connections: Showing the Connections between South Carolina and Barbados". The show started in Anderson, SC and traveled to 5 other SC cities. Now the final showing is in Barbados, and at present, LaToya is flying high with American Airlines.

However...this trip was not easy.

First off, the organizer of The Connections did not think in the best interest of the artist as far as traveling arrangements. Being that all the artist are from South Carolina, one would think they would pick a airline for a group rate where everyone could meet centrally.

Nope.

Or even state in writing that you can make reservations with the airline of your choice, however we will be booking our group flight through XYZ Airlines.

Nope.

Instead, the organization decides to book the flight from Atlanta-Hartsfield.

Now, nothing is wrong with Atlanta, however for LaToya, Atlanta is 5 hours away. It didn't make any sense to me for her to have to drive or ride way down there to catch a flight going to Barbados.

Initially, the organization booked the flights through Air Jamaica (that's what they said) and the closest airline was Atlanta. They wanted to book a non-stop flight. The ticket price was $700. From the rip I was like "Toya, you might want to shop around and get your own flight there and meet the group." but she was dead set in flying with the other artist. I'm not going make an argument out of that, you know? So here it is, she's scrapping up all this money so she can make sure she gets this ticket for Air Jamaica. She gets in contact with the organizer one week before the trip who emails her directions as to how to print her e-ticket. When she gets the instructions, it says go to www.aa.com and follow the instructions. The e-ticket comes up with all the information needed for flight but the airline that she would be flying on is American Airlines. And... the ticket ends up being $200 cheaper.

Okay, so Toya's puzzled about the Air Jamaica/American Airlines thing. Bump that, I want to know if she gotta fly American Airlines why she gotta come all the way to Atlanta? A few months ago, I looked up the same exact flight with the same exact itinerary through Hotwire.com. There was a flight on American Airlines that cost $465 round trip including taxes and fees, flying from Charlotte to Miami, with a layover in Miami and then final stop in Barbados. At least Charlotte would have been closer since Shalanda (another one of our friends) and I were going to be the ones driving from Columbia (she drove her car up to Columbia and parked it at my apartment) to the airport. Save money and gas, not only for us but for her too!!!

Not only did Toya find out this piece of info, she also finds out her cousin (who lives in DC and decides to meet her there on the trip on her own flight) is flying out on American Airlines with a layover in Miami. They both end up on the final flight, sitting about two seats from each other.

Crazy, I say!!!

Being that most of the cost damage was already done, Shalanda, Toya, and I got in the car and rode down from Columbia to Atlanta, leaving a little after midnight (we really left Columbia at 1am). I had to make a pit stop in Thomson (exit 172) cause my stomach starting acting crazy while we were on the interstate. That delayed us for a little bit. We got to the airport at 4:30am, making sure Toya had everything needed for the 5 day retreat. I drove going to Atlanta and Shalanda took the wheel coming back to South Carolina.

All this and I am at work now. Wow...

I hope Toya has fun down there, and I REALLY hope someone buys her work down there. The girl can put it down on the hand made quilts and fabric collages. If you want to see more of her work, you can go to http://www.myspace.com/artisticvision06 . My other blog features her as a member of the motorcycle/social club community doing great things. You can read this at http://www.thescoopbydiamondstar.blogspot.com .

The Apple Bottom Cake

As promised, I am going to tell you all the results of the apple bottom cake I baked this weekend.

This cake is definitely a winner!!!

Fellow blogger Kween (aka Kiwi, Keys, Kali) published the recipe on her blog "Da Kween Can Burn" last week. The ingredients were simple to buy, and I wanted to see if this would be a cake that I would bake this year for Thanksgiving dinner. Thanks to my cousin Symoan, who also was the taste tester for this cake, she gave it two thumbs up. Matter of fact she ate half of the cake. Seriously. Symoan carried on and on about how it was the best cake she ever had so far. I could barely get it out of the oven when she had the cake knife in hand ready to slice it. I'm like "could you at least let it cool down some?" Wow...

This is a great dessert to have with a touch of vanilla ice cream on top. Yummy!!!

Here is the recipe for those of you who are interested and want to try something different:

Apple Bottom Cake (so easy)


~1 box of yellow cake mix (and all its ingredients)
~3-4 Granny Smith apples, peeled & shredded
~light brown sugar
~a stick of butter (whole stick not needed)
~cinnamon (optional)

Glaze:
~2 cups of confectioner's sugar
~about 2-3 tbsp of milk
~ dash of vanilla

After mixing cake mix and shredding apples, prepare the bottom of pan (you can use anon-stick bundt or mini muffins or small individual cake pans) by using stick to generously butter bottom

Sprinkle an even coat of light brown sugar over butter and then an even layer of the shredded apple and sprinkle cinnamon. Pour cake mix on top and bake til golden brown. (Time varies depending on pan...see back of box for times)

Let cool and once removed from pan...flip and glaze!

If any of you do decide to try this, please let me know you thoughts.

For cooking tips, recipes, and more, visit Kween's page at http://www.kweencanburn.blogspot.com

Friday is for Wings

I love chicken wings. Everytime I go out to a bike club event, I go straight to the food table to check out the wings. No lie! Not trying to be greedy or anything but I love chicken wings, especially drummettes.

However sometimes when ordering from a particular restaurant you don't have the option of ordering just drummettes or just flaps. This particular restaurant called Wing Zone sells your choice of bone-in or boneless wings. I usually order the boneless wings from here because their bone-in wings sometimes appear to be overfried.

This Friday I had planned not to order out. I wanted to cut down on my spending and eat some home cooked food. Last night my cousin cooked some steak, rice, peas and corn. I brought some rice and steak with me to work (what was left of it cause I didn't not get to eat any after it was done). This was going to be my meal for the day at work.

The steak and rice didn't work out too well. While the rice was ok, the steak (to me) was hard. There are all different types of steak and whereas I really don't know which kind it was, I know it was tough to my liking. I didn't even eat all the food. I was left sitting here wondering what am I going to eat because I was getting hungry. Chic Fila was out, Subway was out, Duck-In was out. There are not too many places in the area I work to get food. The only thing left to get was wings and I had to drive to get those. This was the only thing that really appealed to me.

So...I ordered the boneless wings.

I don't regret doing so cause they were so good. But I am planning out my grocery list so that I can have more of a variety of foods to take to work with me. More water, salad bags, fruits. I think I am going to try one of my recipes that I printed from yahoo foods. I am definitely going to try to bake an apple bottom cake this weekend that my friend Kiwi passed on on her blog site (and if you need some tips on cooking, sharing receipes, tips or more, check out her blog spot at http://www.kweencanburn.blogspot.com/).

I will let you know how things turn out.

Give Me The Green Light

This is how I'm feeling. I'm ready to go right now!!!LOL!!!

Setting Your Goals In Motion

We all have goals that we want to accomplish. Some will take longer than others. Still, when we accomplish those goals we get this great feeling. Sometimes the feeling can't be explained, but it is like a rush that we have made it to the top.

I have a friend who is aiming to fulfill her goals to become a certified art teacher and an accomplished artist. Since graduating from college in 2004, my friend has taught school on a conditional certified level in the Allendale School District, pending that she pass the Praxis II exam. The Praxis II is a an exam that most prospective teachers take in order to receive certification. Each state has different requirements and some states may not require this exam at all. In South Carolina, this test is required.

My friend has tried to pass this test several times and has missed it by as little as 1 point. Since working in Allendale, she has worked in the Florence County School District as a Therapeutic Behavorial Specialist and in the Williamsburg County School District as an art teacher (non-certified. She was being paid as a permanent substitute teacher) . Currently she is still with the Williamsburg County School District, but as a Therapeutic Behavioral Specialist. She says at times while she does enjoy the work, she really wants to pursue her teaching career in art. She is also looking into art therapy, a field that is growing, however the courses and certifications for this career is scarce in some regions.

I am hoping at the next testing (which is in January), she passes this test. I have never taken the Praxis so I do not know what it is like to try to get a passing score. I am sure that it could be really frustrating to get a score of lets say 144, when the passing score to become certified is 145.

When you have a set goal in mind, you have to really put it in motion. That means doing whatever you have to do to stay focus. Yes it is easy to say and sometimes harder to do. There are going to be many obstacles which may hinder you from achieving your goals, but you don't let the obstacles stop you completely. This is when you get up, brush off the dust and continue marching on to the top. Once you are there, you will feel great and refreshed. You will be the ultimate winner. It does not matter how many times it take you to reach that goal. What matters is that you were determined to get there and you got it.

Whatever your goals are, aim for the best. Don't let negativity discourage you from doing what you really want to do. "Doing you" is what matters the most.

Tuesday Morning

So it's Tuesday morning and I am off to my sister's house at 7am to finish washing and drying my clothes that was supposed to be taken care of yesterday. This time of morning is usually good because the kids are getting ready to go off to school and while I am waiting on my clothes to dry, I can get on the internet and check my emails as well as all the networking sites that I am on.

Not even 5 minutes pass by and my neice Asya says to me, "Do you want to take me to school today?"

Do I want to take you to school? No I don't want to take you to school. That is what the bus is for. Of course I am thinking this in my head so I ask, "So why should I take you to school? May it be because your hair is not finished?"

"Yes," she replied. "And the bus comes at 7:30 and I won't be ready by then."

Well I'll be. See, if my clothes were finished yesterday we wouldn't be having this conversation today. So I said to her, "Yes but make this your last request. Need to get up a little bit earlier to do what you need to do.

Meanwhile, Chelsea, one of my neice and nephews friends who stayed over last night ask, "Ms. Keisha, could I ask you a favor?"

I'm thinking: Great. Here goes my Tuesday morning.

"Could you drop me off at school too?" she continued.

What is this, drop the kids off at school day? First off how in the crap Chelsea got there in the first place and where is her momma? She goes to school in Irmo which is about 5 minutes away from where my sister lives. My sister's kids are zoned for Columbia High, which is less than 2 minutes around the corner, boom bam, that's it.

I agree to take Chelsea to school too, warning her (and the rest of them) this was their last ride?

Not wanting to be mean to the teenie boppers, but hey, you got to get up and be responsible, adjust your time if you need to and get it right. Today teenagers get privledges that we ourselves growing up never had. I am from the country, and where I am from there was no ride to school but the school bus, so we had to get up and get to the road and stand out there and wait for the bus to arrive. Let us still be standing out there and the bus not there..our mom's would be calling the school trying to find out if the bus broke down or something, anything before actually getting into her car and driving you to school. If we were being driven to school, it was because one of us had to be signed back in cause of a suspension and believe me when I say that wasn't going to happen to often. Good thing I never had to have a ride to school for that.

Meanwhile, back in my day (and I am not that old) your momma got up when you got up to make sure you were going to school. Yeah, they got to be responsible but they are still kids who could try you on the sly. Ha!

After all of the ripping and running I did this morning I still did not get all of my laundry done, which means more work to do when I go back over there this afternoon. However if I have to work my other job, then that will mean that it will get delayed again till tomorrow. *Sigh*.

A Little Too Direct For Some

I just had my midterm review today for my job. Overall it turned out to be ok, however according to management there are some minor things I need to work out.

From my report that I received today, it states that even though I handle the job in an efficient and timely manner, I need to work on being more customer friendly.

Hold on...I thought I was customer friendly.

From a coaching point of view, the customer wants to hear you smile (since we are talking about a customer service job at a call center, you know customers don't actually see you so you have to present yourself in a pleasant tone). Basically the report is saying I am not rude to the customer. I give them what they want, but I need to put a little more spark in the conversations.

Hear what I am saying.

I am sure, as well as any other person who has to call a bank, cell phone company, that a person don't mind pleasantness but they sure don't want you to be overly perky when you answer the phone. Now THAT is annoying. I try my best at that. Maybe it's not coming through correctly. Maybe I am being too direct (or they may think I am too direct). Some folks don't know how to take someone who pretty much answers their question after doing research.

Sometimes you have customers that as much as you try to be friendly to them and try to assist them, it seems as though they are not getting it. You are trying to be calm and collective without having to go off on them(these things happen sometimes). The good ol mute button always help out during these trying times. Sure the customer got to vent but by the end of the day the customer service rep got to vent too because of all the crap they have to listen to day in and day out.

Since this was my first midterm review, I didn't really know what to expect. However I do know how I set my own standards. I have this thing about anything less than an A will not do. This means I got to have higher than 94% to meet the average. This is something I go by. Even though the midterm was not graded as such, I felt that it was less than 94% and I needed to know why right then and there.

I know there are ways that I can do better. I can take a refresher course all day long but would it mean something to me? It's one thing that you already know what you need to do. You just need to do it.

The other thing I think that would REALLY help in any workforce is building up team spirit and morale. If it is not there, you are not going to get outstanding customer service. If you are not interacting with your co-workers and finding out what works then and what doesn't, then how do you expect for morale to pick up? You know maybe this is something that I may have to start up myself. I used to do things at the convenient store I used to work at. Every now and then I would bake a cake and bring it to the store for all the employees and if there was some left over then give a slice to those special customers. There were times when we would plan a mini potluck. It would be an impromptu thing, you know like some nachos and dip, something to drink. There was also a time where I made mini gift bags and passed them out. Each of us at the convenient store did something to keep the morale up. It really makes a difference in the workforce.

This being said (cause I really needed to vent today) I am going to pray, meditate and work on being better at my job, Even though I have been in the customer service field for 6 years, there is always room to grow and expand. I started off being aggravated about the whole thing but now I am a whole lot better.

The Dream You Wish Would Come True

I got random thoughts today, and this time it's taking me to a paradise I hope to achieve. I woke up this morning thinking how it would be so nice to acutally wake up day after day at home and not have to get up and go to work! I mean, yeah you got some people who acutally do that right now and they aren't working because they don't want to. They just want to depend on others to do for them. What I'm talking about is after hitting that jackpot: it could be the lottery or being a achieved writer, that all you have to do is get up and breathe in fresh air, thank God for all the things that you have been through and thank Him for his wonderful blessings.

Wouldn't it be great to acutally get up and do things that needed to be done and have time to do them? Like thoroughly cleaning the house, decorating, attend social events that only can be attended to by day, spend some time volunteering, acutally being able to attend my neice or nephew's school activities without having to run out the office to catch the event late? This of course comes after all the monthly bills are paid and money is set aside for a rainy day (cause you gotta have your emergency stash, I don't care how rich you are supposed to be).

Being able to achieve these things are possible, but best believe you will go through some trials and tribulations before it all comes to light. When that light comes you will be rewarded greatly. Some people don't believe this but I can testifiy to going through many trials and tribulations. Success last when it comes to you at a slow but moderate pace. Everything cannot be rushed.

Until then I am going to continue to be the hard worker that I am. I am certain that great benefits will follow in the future.

Here we go again...

I just logged on blogger for today and one of my blogs is "locked". I had to request a review so they will know that I am not a spammer. This is the second time I had to go through this. The first time this happened it took FOREVER to get a response or to get my blog unlocked, so I deleted the entire account. Now I have created a new account, trying to write blogs daily (or every other day) and my blog "The Scoop By Diamond~Star" is now blocked. That aggravates me to some extent. I hope that this is resolved real soon because I would hate to move all of my blogs somewhere else. I know blogger is doing this for security reasons, but come on. You should really know what blogs are "spam" and which are not.

Drama at "Da Plant"

I have a temporary job at a manufacturing facility in the Columbia, SC. I am no stranger to "plant" work, as I worked at Tupperware Manufacturing for 2 years back in my hometown of Hemingway, SC. What amazes me is no matter what type of product the company is making, the scene is always the same: "Drama at the Plant".

Last night, one of the workers went in the breakroom to call her boyfriend. We will call her Tasha It's not like I had been trying to hear her conversation. She was talking low, but loud enough for anyone near her to hear. She was talking about how people were always in her business and that they need to mind their m**** f****** business. Her boyfriend must have asked her a question, cause she replied, " Yeah she tried to come up and start a conversation with me but I was real short with her, you know what I am saying, like I wasn't feeling it." I was sitting here thinking "Oh boy, here comes the soap operas at night. Please don't have nothing popping off in here for everybody to talk about both of yall."

Two hours later the line that I was working on was relieved to go on lunch break. Tasha was back in the breakroom talkingwith another worker. Just then another lady comes at sit at the table that I am at (We will call her Shenika). She happens to work on the line with me. So Shenika is talking about her new house, how her and her boyfriend were doing good and that they were saving up to get some additional items for the house. Then she starts talking about there are haters everywhere. OKAY... I have already caught on to the fact that she and Tasha were the ones having issues with each other. So Shenika starts talking about how you try to help people and they give you their ass to kiss, then speaks in a low tone about how she told Tasha the floor supervisor was pissed off at her the other night for taking a long lunch break. She says Tasha got mad and was like people need to stay out of her m****f***** businesses. "Now she is going around talking trash, when she doesn't realize that everything that is said people come back and tell me." Mind you, Tasha is sitting right in front of us at another table. All I could say is "Please don't do this right now. Nobody trying to break up a fight at 3:00 in the morning." So I simply told Shenika, "Sometimes, it just pays to be by yourself. No one should come into a work force for friends. Sure you may gain some associates in the process. I just find it better to just come to work, do what you are supposed to do and go home." Shenika agreed with that, but I know she was doing all that to see if Tasha was going to get riled up and pop off on her. Meanwhile Tasha is up front and she is talking to the same co worker she sat in the breakroom with, and I could tell she was talking trash about Shenika to him. Such a pity.

My thing is, if your business is all out in the open, it is bound to be spread. The story line seem to be the same. Someone is hating on another person because they dress nice, hair is always done, or simply because they chose not to hang with the popular crowd at the job. There is nothing wrong with having general conversations on the job, like talking about the latest movie or tv show. However I believe your personal business is just that: personal. That should stay between you and your homegirl, homeboy, significant other, especially when you are talking about relationships. Some people may not be able to take your joy and happiness the same way as you do. When people broadcast their business like that it's either going to gain you popularity or hateration.

Personally I tend to stay to myself until I can get the feel of the envirornment. I know for fact these people may not be the type I can share secrets with ( I don't have any so it don't even matter). Yet if I can work with them and can carry on a general conversation, that's all that matters to me. There are other things that I focus on in life that have higher priorites than the drama on the plant floor. I am here for the paycheck. Next.

Hopefully there will not be any drama tonight.

My writings

It's amazing how this thing works.

I am posting more on Blogger, which is good. It does seem to be more user friendlier than AOL Blogs. I have one on there too. I also blog on Multiply. I really like that site because I am able to interact with many of my friends who are online. I am not on there much because of access at work. However when I am at my sister's house, I go over there and I log on to the site. Most of the time though, I am on myspace.

Each networking site is different and is aimed for different things. My myspace site is pretty much for the sportbike networking. I am in a motorcycle club, getting ready to buy my first bike. I try to network with as many people as I can. I love meeting peoplel and being able to hang out with those who have similar interest.

I think the more I write the better I will be. There is a fiction contest coming up in January and I plan on entering it. I entered it last year. Unfortunately I did not make the final 15. I am not giving up. Maybe one day someone will notice my work.

Until then, I will keep on writing my thoughts.

Cleaning House

I'm sitting here thinking how I have to get some things straight in my life. I have been stressing out seem like for a minute. I didn't think I had been stressing out but now I know that I am. I have been breaking out in hives consistantly for over a month. Stress could be part of it if not all of it.

There have been a variety of different things going on. This summer my cousin and her boyfriend moved in with me after being put out of their place. Both of them had to get back on their feet so they can make their next move. So far things seem like they are progressing...slowly but it is progress. For me it is a big help in some ways having them there because they are helping out with the bills. I have been struggling to keep the bills current for months now. The full time job and the piece of a part time job I have is still not enough to keep things going.

I was able to find another part time job with more working hours during the week. Actually I got hired at two different places. The first one I tried out and I was really bored with the work. I mean the job was easy but I was just bored. Plus I did not know anybody there and I felt alone. So here comes this other job, not too far from the first that was hiring and I jumped at it. I went ahead and accepted the job offer there because that job had more of my type of work. I worked in a distrubuting type setting before so this helped adn the people who were in orientation with me were cool. I am waiting to find out what day we will start. I am hoping we will start this Monday so I can have a full week's pay along with my full time job. Once this is together I will be able to save up money to move into another apartment or if I am lucky find me a house. I have been in the apartment I am currently living in for 4 years and I am tired of it. Plus it seems like I played boarding house to so many people while living there that I just need to have some new space, something that is fresh off the paint.

The other thing I have to get cleaned up is my personal life or what I have of it. The guy that I am supposed to be seeing, I don't really know what to think. Both of us have been going through some hard times but at the same time I do believe any little time you can spend with each other counts for something. I'm not asking to spend every waking moment with him (for the time being) but I am only asking maybe once a month or so we go out to the movies or go out of town one weekend, even if it means taking a day trip and coming back the same day. There are so many ways now to improvise on a date to make sure you are financially able to go out. I have had SEVERAL free tickets to comedy shows, plays, and outdoor concerts. All he has to do is SHOW UP. Have your own money. I mean I have a little something to take care of something to eat. Dang. What ever happen to just chillin and having a good time? That's something that I am yearing for but maybe something ol boy might not be ready for. I don't want to analyze the thing because if I do that then I am taking too much time from myself when I could be doing other things.

I have so many thoughts to write out yet it seem not enough time. With all this blogging, I may be able to get right on that fiction project that I am going to enter at the beginning of the year.

It's about that time to end the work day and the work week. This weekend the Midlands Bikers Association is hosting Friends and Family Day. I hope it's a great turnout. I have to leave early though because I have to go to work that day. Sunday morning I am going to see "A Family That Preys" and then going to work later that afternoon.

To all on blogger have a great weekend.

Loose thoughts

Gas is now down to $3.87. I decided to go ahead and fill up but when I got to the $50 mark I was like, "No I'm stopping at $60. Period. That is what I did and that acutally got my car to the full mark. Usually I fill up until I hear the first "click" meaning that it is full. I could not get in my mind to fill up a car past $60. It's insane.

It's amazing that the price of gas really does affect all other things in our household. Filling up my car cost almost the same price as my montly light bill. Utilities can be monitored and right now, if the lights don't have to be on, they are off. It's cool enough outside where I don't have to turn on the ac during the day. Besides that no one is at home, so since that is the case, why even turn it on? I have a cell phone so that eliminates the use of a house phone. So from that aspect I am cutting all that I can.

I even had to take on another job. Tis the season of Christmas and people are going to try their best to have a Christmas dinner or celebration regardless of how the finances are. I am happy for that because the essentials have to be taken care of. I need to make sure that my car is serviced, tires are good, get rid of some old things that may be in my apartment and replace them with needed essentials, put some money aside for a rainy day. The list could go on for days.

I really had in mind to write about something else today but my mind slipped off to this. Maybe when I come back I will figure out what I really wanted to talk about. Right now I am counting down the time to get off for the weekend.

Full of Suprises

This morning I checked my email. I got an invite from someone from back home on Facebook. To me it was kind of a shock because we never had a full blown conversation EVER. The only thing we had in common was this particular guy in high school. We were both seeing him at some point in time. Eventually those two got married. The guy and I went to high school together. The young lady was from another town in the area who I eventually had heard about. All this happened at least 15 years ago.

Now I get an invite from her. I did accept it, but it still was strange to me. Since that era in time, I have seen the guy about 3 times, and had spoken to him at least that much, you know "hey" or "what's up", something of that nature, but not any phone conversations of the sort. The young lady, like I said I have never had a conversation with her. I have let the past be just that, the past. Maybe she just want me to be her friend for networking purposes, which is fine. I don't expect to have a long-time-no- see-let's catch up at lunch conversation either. I will have to go with the flow I guess. There is nothing else going on today that has any types of sparks.

I left my cell phone at home this morning by mistake. That really irked me and I did not want to go back to get it. I text my friend Keith during the day to see how he is doing. I had been thinking about him last night and I miss him at times. I may call him for about two minutes while I am at work. Until then...

Back in Action

After three weeks of not going out to any motorcycle club parties, I am getting ready to kick off the upcoming weekend with one. I needed the break from the motorcycle club scene just for a little while. Most of the members of my bike club go out every weekend to support other area motorcycle clubs at parties, bike shows, church gatherings, community cookouts, back to school drives, family and friends day, and there is so much more. To me, it is an entertainment world within itself. Most people are in bike clubs and social clubs because they enjoy riding and they enjoy supporting each other. Some functions are low key, where there are some which are just A-list. For me it's a great experience.

There are two clubs that are having functions this weekend. No Limit Riders of Jenkinsville is having their annual car and bike show at Lake Monticello Park. This is one of the biggest car and bike shows in the metro that is held by a bike club. The other function is being held by the Atomic Dogs of Aiken, SC. They are having their anniversary cookout and party (which is an all day event too) all you can eat food and drink from 12 pm-2am. It is something to look forward to for sure.

Other than that, nothing much is going on. I just wanted to write something in here, just to put out what I am thinking about at this point.

Waiting it out

Yeah...there is much on my mind today.

I met this guy a while ago. He is acutally in a bike club that I am familiar with, however I never had a chance to acutally meet him until earlier this year. We had been emailing each other on myspace because he had always been sending little short messages like "Hey" and "What's up", things of that nature. So he mentioned coming up to a party in Columbia one weekend, and I was like cool because I will be at that same party.

It was in April. We introduce ourselves to each other, small talk. Basically that's it. I pretty much walked around all night taking pictures for our club's website and speaking to others. It wasn't until a few days later, this guy hit me up on myspace again.

To make a long story short, we started communicating more often, on the phone, on the internet. Things seem to be cool. We hadn't even been on a date and it seems as though we were feeling each other. Then a couple of weeks ago, I called him and we started talking and he was like he had to back away from me because he was developing feelings and he didn't know if he was ready to say that he is going to date just one woman. He continued to say I didn't do anything wrong but he just wanted to make sure this is the direction he wanted to go. As he stated, " You are messing my head up right now and I don't know what to do".

WHAT??? I don't even know whether to be flattered or to be aggravated at that. I am glad that he told me about that and made it clear. Some men won't even take the time to do that. Still I guess what got me is when I am at a point where I am feeling this dude and want to see where things lead, I get the big ol WHAMMO!!! The only thing to do in this situation is to let time take it's course. No lie it is very hard when you and the other person had communication so good you two were talking almost every night, but they say if it is meant to be, it will happen and we can't determine the time of that.

Being single...the joy, the pain, the unpredictable.

Wondering Wednesday

I wish could say today started off great, but it didn't. Work pretty much was the same old thing, few calls, few billing issues. I got two text from one of the guys who's in the motorcycle industry about some people who were either hospitalized or something happened to them tragically. As part of the community, we tend to spread the word to others so that they will keep the family in their prayers.

Well one associate of mine must have been having a bad day himself or was just not into it, because he texted me back saying stop sending him all that bad news. I could have read it and slid it under a rug or something, however at the same time it sounded like I aggravated him of some sorts, and I haven't spoken to him in three or four days!!! I immediately texted him back stating I was just passing along the info but he can go ahead and forget that I even sent the text. I didn't want to appear that I was bothering him and I won't bother texting him about anything else. In some way I felt bad about going off on him like that but in some way I do not. I didn't feel that I did anything wrong. Maybe he had been going through something. I don't know but I know I didn't like how it sounded from my end either. There was no response after that and I doubt that there will be at this point. If it does it will be a suprise.

After work today I am going to meet my cousin in Bishopville and then bring her back so she can spend 3 weeks here in Columbia. She has been itching to come up here for the longest. I got to go by my friend Shalanda's house once I get back. She just had surgery on her knee and is recouperating from that. Otherwise I think I am going to chill for the evening.

Back on Blogger

I have created another blogger account. My first one for some reason, had major problems. I did not have access to any of my blogs, and at that point I felt that it was just necessary to delete the entire thing. A few months later I have decided to come back.

I have other blogging sites, Multiply, Myspace, etc. This site does appear to be user friendly. However, if I have any problems with this one, I will probably end up deleting it again. Hopefully that will not have to happen.

Hope all is well in the blogging world.