Friends in My Head

Michelle and Barack offer an excitement about politics that hasn’t been there in my lifetime. They are a breath of fresh air and offer a hope for change. It’s not that I think that they’ll have all the answers or will be able to make everything alright. What I think that is attractive about them is a feeling of genuineness (maybe it's a realness) that no one else has. It's easy to identify with them. It truly is about change, a new way of approaching the same old problems; seeing it from another direction. Simply acknowledging that the old way isn’t working so let’s see what we can do to make it work. That’s what I like about them.

RIP Aaliyah

Monday was the 7 year anniversary of Aaliyah's death. I really liked most of her songs throughout her career but here are two of my favorites:

Somebody needs to be bitch slapped!

It's time again to pull your arm back - all the way back. When it's well behind your head, start to bring it around, increasing the speed as you go. To gain a little momentum it's ok to lift your leg as you swing it around. It may be necessary to lower your arm just a little so that you'll hit your target dead one. When the target is just inches away is when you want to jerk your body a little. this adds a just a bit of extra force as you smack the shit out of this momma!
(Video is acting up - so here's the link in case you can't see/open it! http://www.livesteez.com/videos/watch/yrrYwFb )

State Fair

I made my annual pilgrimage to the Great Minnesota Get Together (Minnesota State Fair) last Friday. Once again I ate (a ton of food), pointed (at and whispered about people), laughed (with Windy and the girls) and walked (most of the 320 acres of the grounds). After picking up my little chickadees from day care (and an afternoon nap) we headed out under a blanket of grey/black clouds, just as it was starting to sprinkle. I had images of having to grab the girls by their hands and running through pelting rain and hurricane force winds to take shelter in the barn, next to the worlds biggest pig, as a tornado ripped through the fair grounds. With Jonathan Yuhas' voice playing in my head -"Scattered showers, sometimes severe beginning at 4pm" - I prayed that he would be wrong and we would have at least a few hours without rain. As a precaution we were set to tackle the rain if it decided to "rain on our parade" (HAHA! Bet ya didn't know I got jokes too! Multi-talented, that's me) with a rain coat, a poncho and a Dora the Explorer umbrella. As it turned out, the showers never materialized and the rain gear stayed stowed away in the stroller. It was actually a perfect afternoon/evening, cool, breezy and small crowds (seems as though most people took the forecast to heart). The only down point for me was when I realized that I had forgot my (actually "the boy's") camera and wouldn't be able to take pics.

Here are some fair (food) highlights:
Pork Chop on a Stick!

Always a fair favorite. And it's gotta be Petersons. There are some others but they are not as good! It's our first stop (eat it right there on the street with the juices rolling down your arm) and the last stop to get a chop to take home!





Gizmo


Another yearly stop is the Gizmo stand way at the Northend of the fair. The Gizmo is ground beef and Italian sausage with a special sauce and seasonings, covered with melted mozzarella cheese and served on a delicious toasted Italian roll. Windy hipped me to these. You should have seen us passing the Gizmo back and forth. Anyone watching would have thought we were sharing a crackpipe. I love my friend but you better believe I was keeping an eye on the number of bites she was taking. Food has been known to break up years long friendships. I was trying to inhale the Gizmo so fast that I spilled some of it down my shirt and you know I was not wasting any of it, so my hand went right down the front of my shirt to fish out the escaped meat and slurp it up!!!





Big Fat Bacon





(One-third pound of bacon, fried and caramelized with maple syrup and served on a stick.)
This is a newbie at the fair and let me tell you, it is ABSOLUTELY DE-LI-CIOUS! They have taken the pig to A WHOLE NUHVER LEBEL!! This may even give the pork chop a run for it's money! It's kinda like on Saturday morning when you've finished your pancakes but you still have a piece of bacon left and you rub the bacon through the syrup that's left on the plate. It's all sweet and salty. YUM! But it's so much more. Needless to say we got this early on in the afternoon, spent the rest of the afternoon talking about it and then went back for more before we left! It's that good!

Pig Lickers

All I have t0 say about this new item is DUD! I thought that I would get the same sweet and salty effect of the Big Fat Bacon, but instead all you got was a mouthful of chocolate and cold bacon grease. They need to go back to the drawing board on this one.

Oh and the food FESTIVAL continued for the rest of the weekend too...

Heather Locklear has been blabbing about the fresh baked chocolate chip cookies at Target's Food Ave for a week now. Well, on Saturday while out on errands I finally had the opportunity to partake in this delight. Oh, it was definitely a delight (and I'm not even a big chocolate cookie fan). So much so, that I got another one on my way out. Damn, yet one more way Target picks my pocket!

Then on Sunday, I waddled my ever widening behind to the Uptown Famous Daves. For $15.95 they have a YUMMY All You Can Eat Buffet Brunch! There I managed to chow my way through fruit, breakfast potatoes, chix wings, mac and cheese, bacon, sausage, cheese eggs, rib tips, made to order omelet, pancakes, and french toast with a praline syrup. There were a few other buffet items (waffles, dessert, biscuits and gravy, muffins) but I didn't want to compromise any stomach space for anything I wasn't gung-ho about. They also have a Bloody Mary bar but believe it or not I wasn't really up for my fav beverage - maybe next time.


So, this week I have been trying to detox (not doing a very good job) before I go camping this weekend and eat even more junk! UUUGGGHHH! When will the madness end?

New Movie

The Secret Lives of Bees, a novel by Sue Monk Kidd has been made into a movie scheduled to be released October 17, 2008. I recently read the book and truly enjoyed it. My niece, however, calls it a "BM", but I have hope that it will live up to the book.


Set in South Carolina in 1964, the film is the moving tale of Lily Owens a 14 year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother. To escape her lonely life and troubled relationship with her father, Lily flees with Rosaleen, her caregiver and only friend, to a South Carolina town that holds the secret to her mother’s past. Taken in by the intelligent and independent Boatwright sisters, Lily finds solace in their mesmerizing world of beekeeping and more.
Based on the bestselling novel by American author Sue Monk Kidd, the movie adaption stars Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys, Tristan Wilds, Sophie Okonedo and Jennifer Hudson.
Directed by Love & Basketball’s Gina Prince-Bythewood, it will be in theaters on October 17th.

Somebody needs to be bitch slapped!

I have yet to pick my bottom jaw off the floor! What I don't understand is how would anyone allow this? There are adults in the room that seem to be encouraging this behavior! These kids need to be snatched up and the adults need to be straight sucker punched. Some other bloggers are blaming it on rap music and rap videos, but I would have to disagree. I blame the adults that are allowing it. Shame!

Zoom

MD - This is dedicated to you and Marita!

Here's another 1970's PBS show that Heather Locklear and I and MD and her sis used to watch. MD and her sis even had striped ZOOM sweatshirts!

Don King

Imagine my surprise when I looked up from my book yesterday on my bus ride home and watched in shock as Don King shuffled on and sat right in front of me. Before I could blurt out, ‘Yo Don, what’s up? How’s Mike Tyson?’, I took a closer look and was disappointed to realize that this gentleman was just a Don King Wannabe. From the picture below, I’m sure you can understand how I made the mistake. For the next few blocks I was somewhat distracted by DK Wannabe’s hair, lifting my eyes from the pages of my book to take in the wonder of his afro. Well, one of the times that I looked up to take in more of his hair; DK Wannabe was looking out of the window. That provided me with a profile. Oh why did I look up then? The profile allowed me to witness what must truly be a ‘Wonder of Nature’. Don’t know if you’ve ever seen this but it was truly a wonder to behold. This DK Wannabe had a little mini afro sticking out or his ear! I am not kidding. It was a little THICK tuft of hair – looked just like a little ear ‘fro. If that wasn’t gross enough, he proceeded to expel a wad of phlegm from deep in his throat, crack the window and send it sailing!!!! I was mortified with visions of either it not making it all the way out of the window and flying back into my face or it landing on the outside of my window. To make matters worse he did it 3 more times! Just when I was about to get up and change seats, the wonder of his afro lost, he got up and shuffled off of the bus. So long DK Wannabe, Phlegm Throat – ‘til we meet again.

(I'm getting a little better with the sly camera phone shots.) This is the back of DK Wannabe's head. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a good pic of his ear 'fro.

Suit

What are the chances that I would get two pics of Big Pimpin' in one week. 'A million to one' you say? Well, you're wrong! The odds are certainly in my favor this week. (Note to self: Buy a lottery ticket!) As you can see I got another pic of Big Pimpin' this morning. I almost missed it. I just happened to look out the window as we drove through the Uptown Station. Luckily the bus stopped and I was able to get my hands on my cell phone. It actually came out pretty good. I just wish it were closer so that you could see the detail of the suit. Today's red ensemble was actually two-toned/pinstriped. You can't see from this distance but the suit has a shiny alternating red stripe throughout. Classy! And notice the "Secret Agent" briefcase! I told you it never leaves his side!

Reminiscing...

We're getting a new e-mail system at work, so we've all been tasked to delete as many e-mails as we can. So, I've spent all day going through and deleting e-mails. I am a bit of an e-mail pack-rat, so this has been a very nerve-racking day for me (Arbor Mist here I come!). Anyways, while going through some of my personal e-mails, I found this gem...Enjoy!

(December 2006)


Imagine this gentleman with a little more pepper in his hair and glasses. We'll call him "Smiley" for the remainder of this story.

Now that you've had a good look, sit back and enjoy a story with me....

Last night I joined a friend of mine at her son's Varsity basketball game. It was an away game held at St. Louis Park High School. I arrived a few minutes after the game started, found my friend and her kids and had a seat. The game was enjoyable and when half-time came along we stood up to stretch our legs. So, I'm up and looking around. Well, I happen to glance to my right and one row down is a gentleman grinning at me. So, I smile. He smiles even harder and waves. At first I was taken aback but, of course, being the nice person I am, I smile back. When the game started back my attention went back to the game. A couple times I saw the "smiley" gentleman grinning in my direction. Again I really thought nothing of it. 'Maybe he thought I was someone else.' 'He couldn't possibly be flirting with me.'

The game ends and the gym begins to clear out. Again I see "smiley" looking at me. Again, I dismiss it. We'll my friend and I are walking out of the gym and who materializes next me...you guessed it, "Smiley".

"So, are you here for Fridley or St. Louis Park?", he says.

"Uh, Fridley.", I choke out.

"I'm here for St. Louis Park. I used to play for the team. So, do you know someone that plays on the team", he asks.

"Uh, no. I'm here with a friend that has a son on the team." I think my mouth was hanging open as I wondered to myself 'Is this man really talking to me? What year did he play?'

"This is my first game back to the old school", as he says this I can feel it coming. He's getting closer, about to come in for the kill. 'Yikes', I think to myself. 'What is happening?'

I stammer out, "Um, so are you from Minnesota?"

"Yeah, people always think I'm a handsome Italian from Brooklyn.", he chuckles.

'Oh my goodness here it comes.' my voice is screaming in my head. I'm looking for an exit and I'm trapped like a deer in headlights waiting for the crash!

That's when he cuts to the chase. The reason behind all the small talk.

"So, what's your name?"

'Should I tell him my real name? No time to think. UUUGGGHHH'

"Um, Jacke. And you?" I was smiling but screaming on the inside.

"I'm Vinnie. Vinnie, the Italian Stallion".

'What did he just say? Are you kidding me? Is this really happening? Where are the cameras? This has got to be a prank? I'm being punked!'

No one jumps out with camera. So, I smile and let him continue.

"So, we should see each other sometimes."

"Um, yeah, I'll see you around", is all I can think to say.

"No you won't. You should give me your number so I can give you a call."

'Come on already with the cameras. Lets end this joke and move on.' Still no cameras.

"Uh, I can't give you me number?"

"The guy your seeing is a headache. You don't need him." He says, sure of himself.

'I guess that's mob talk'

"Um yeah, that's it. I have a boyfriend and I can't give you my number"

"Come on. He's a headache. You just don't know it yet."

'I have to get away!' I'm like the rabbit not quite sure which way to run put just knowing that I have to run. 'Have to get away.'

"Come on."

"Sorry, can't do it.Well, it was nice to meet you. Bye!"

I quickly and walk off. 'Don't run. Walk slowly'.

'Did that just happen?'

______________________
So, now you have an quick peek at my love life. Enjoy and have a Happy Holiday. And remember, just cause your getting a Social Security check doesn't mean that you still can't get your mack on! Playa! Playa!

(Daddy, what would have been your reaction when I brought Vinnie home for the holidays!)
WWDS-What Would Daddy Say?

Broke My Heart!

This past weekend I got to sit with my two little favorite girls! We had a three day slumber party. It was a blast. On Friday night I told them all about the Olympics and we watched the Opening Ceremonies. When the teams started their procession into the stadium we turned the channel but not before one of the African teams were making their march. It was then that my eldest “girl” made a profound statement in her innocent little four-year old voice. While drawing with her crayons, she looked up and said something along the lines of “I don’t like the brown people. I like the white people.” While I can’t remember what she said exactly, this is a close representation. It caught me so off guard that for a few seconds I just stared at her. I felt like I had been punched in the gut. When I finally found my voice, I started to explain to her that brown people are so beautiful and that she is so beautiful. Other then that I wasn’t sure what to say. What struck me and what made me most sad is that my beautiful little brown baby didn’t see the beauty in her brown people i.e. herself. My babies have brown dolls, books with brown people and are told that they are special and beautiful, but how can we combat society. How do we instill self worth and self beauty in our little ones when they are bombarded with images that differ so much from themselves? How can we get them to see their worth when a majority of the images they see are white of skin and straight of hair? Right now it’s up to me, her parents and all the others that love her and her sister (and any other little brown girl or boy that we know!) to build her up so that she sees that her beauty and brains outshine the images she sees everywhere, everyday.

"These shoes rule!"

Always like to share my new shoes. I love SHOES! These pics don't really do them justice (again the cell phone camera!) but love them all the same! The first one's I got the wear to a wedding a few weeks ago. Under $20 at Marshalls! The bottom one's are gift from Ms. Windy (any time you wanna trade shoes for babysitting services, just let me know!). They match a black dress I have perfectly.

Gold

Black with rhinestone detail on top of foot

Shoes

Remember...

the Big Pimpin' II (Feb 2008) blog entry? Well, I finally got a picture of "suit man" this morning. As my bus approached the Uptown Station this morning, I saw him running across the street. All I was able to get was a quick picture as he sat waiting for his bus. As you can see I haven't invested in my Paparazzi camera yet, so all I've got is this blurry picture from my cell phone. Unfortunately, today he was not as colorful as he usually is, opting for the all white suit instead of one of the brighter hues he owns.

That's him on the right hand side. Also, notice the metal "secret agent" briefcase he carries. He seems to never leave home without it.

RIP

We lost 2 great men this weekend! Lower your head and lift a fist to Issac Hayes and Bernie Mac! They were both legendary contributors to the entertainment world and WILL be missed!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080811/ts_afp/usentertainmentmusichayes_080811032121

http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/2008-08-09-mac-death_N.htm?csp=34

Don't Act Like You Don't Know

Don't why but this past weekend while I was contemplating Election 2008 (ok really I was watching MTV's G's to Gents), I all the sudden started singing the theme to 321 Contact. Don't act like you don't know. Ok, maybe you won't if you weren't raised in the 80s and weren't TV junkies like Heather Locklear and I were. 321 Contact was a science show that came on Channel 2 (PBS) during the 80's. Heather Locklear and I watched it everyday after school (latch key kids). The best part of the show though was the intro song!


A segment of the show that was a fav of ours was The Bloodhound Gang - a ragtag group of teens that used science to solve crimes/mysteries. Looking back though, I swear the girl on the show was about 25 years old.


So you see we were on the right road - watching all the educational shows on PBS. Not quite sure where we made a wrong turn and ended up addicted to Reality TV!

For Real?

I'm beginning to see a pattern. While last week wasn't as bad as the week before it still was a crappy work week and it seems to have rolled over to today. But I'm not gonna let it get to me. I'm a SUPER WOMAN and I gotta hold it down!

Friday Night Video (on Wednesday) for the Ladies

Sorry for no video last week (as if the world stopped) but I had the absolute WORSE WEEK ever at work. I won't go into it, but just know that it was a BAD week. I'm finally getting over it, so thought I'd add a video.

I know it's not an 80's video but it what i was feeling...yummy! Marques Houston isn't all that cute but he has some sexy songs. I just love a man's lower stomach; right where it indents.

Naked

Sex Wit You

And the original belly...(pre-crack) D'Angelo "How Does It Feel"

Jackson 5

Don't know why but this picture made me laugh out loud! So, I had to share. Pure hilarity. I'm sure that this may have been okay back in the 70's but a pic like this now a days would have ruffled more then a few feathers(remember Miley Cyrus just a few months ago?). Daddy Joe would have surely been caught in the backlash for exposing the hairless chests of his boys. Look at poor confused Michael; not sure he feels comfortable.