The Little Girls

Performers are constantly moving their bodies, looking at their bodies, and admiring other bodies. This makes it is so easy to wish for what is on the other side of the fence.

What do I say to that mess?

I say love what you got.

I have been with a fab group of ladies for the past three weeks. My only complaint is that the majority of them are constantly downing their bodies or trying to figure out how to make it better. Counting calories, pulling at the extra yumminess on their hips, and downing their bodies has become a weekly ritual.

Then there is me. I am the first to let it be known that I love what I got and will eat what I want. I try to be loud and proud about it so that the other ladies will hop on the bandwagon. Everyone's body is so gorgeous and unique here. Men could take their pick from our eclectic group of long torsos, wafting hips, soft tummies, and rib showing group of ladies. Each girl is unique and gorgeous. I try to voice that as much as possible, while also working to love me as I receive constant images and words that say I should not love the rolls that I have.

Hmmm... What do I saw to all of this? What do I do to stick to what I believe? Continue with my mantra, "love what you got" and Ill add to that enjoy it all while you can.

The Complexion of my Skin

Last night I was with my people. We were celebrating Oronde's sister's Graduate School graduation. Talk about being in heaven. I was surrounded by successful Caribbean people listening to soca and calypso while slurping up macaroni pie and channa. There is something about being around other Caribbean people that warms my heart and brings me home. It is the one time I feel like I am fully in my skin and myself. I am sure other people can relate in the same way when they visit their home countries or research their biological roots. It makes you grounded and brings you to your plot of earth.

In between dancing, drinking, and laughing, we got into a conversation about skin complexion. I was told I was light skinned. Not just by dark skinned people, but by a girl, who is extremely light skinned. This was news to my ears. I am still in shock as I write this.

Why does it matter? It matters because if I had been born during slavery I would have been working inside of the house. If I am driving, a cop will sooner let me off the hook than a darker African American. If I am going for a job I am more appealing to the eye in comparison to a blue black Afrikan. Knowing your complexion as an African American puts you in a very different mind set because race has always placed the human race (in particularly us) in different categories.

I even asked my parents this morning if they new I was light-skinned and they said, "Yes, of course you are." My father laughed at my lack of knowledge. I have truly never known. This is something else. Oh well, at least I know now.

Perfect Days

Here are some perfect situations that everyone should commit themselves to at least once per week. I have done all of them except #4. I can tell you that the other three made me just appreciate being in the world. So indulge and enjoy.

1. Lie in bed with your laptop and a book until 1:30pm without talking. Only get up for food and the bathroom.

2. Push your regular sweat-inducing exercise to the side and do 30minutes of yoga as your TOTAL exercise for the day.

3. Lay outside in the sun for at least 20min.

4. Have a conversation with a loved one and look them in the eye and listen without worrying about the things you need to complete for the day.

Hurting the ones you love

Oooowee, yall. This just happened. My little brother got upset at me and my mother because we commented on his grades. The lil' booger nearly started to cry and he would not allow any of us to say a word during his mantra.

I am torn between being aggravated at his unwillingness to respond to criticism as the rest of the family does and saddened that I brought the boy to tears.

When he started to tear up I stood there with my heart in my stomach. I have not seen him be upset since we were very young. Especially not upset at me.

I think we worked it out, but I still feel as if I need to have my piece said. within it all. And he needs to learn how to respond better to criticism. Oh well, time shall tell I guess...

The Tradition of Atlanta Carnival

For the past 10 years my family and about 15 other friends and family members have made a pilgrimage to Stone Mountain GA where my Auntie Anne and Uncle Joe live. They have a beautiful house that houses 15-20 Trinidadians for five days during the Memorial Weekend.

Caribbean people are crazy. They love to eat, drink, dance, and shit talk. You need to have a real hard back to be around them, otherwise you might walk away feeling stripped of your dignity because someone "wined' up on ya real hard" or they tell ya that "your poompsy is no good". It is all in good fun.

Last night as the last leg of people arrived Auntie Anne decided it was time to bring out the tequila. Six shots later a conga line was formed followed by Club Trinidad in the living room. Curry filled stomachs rolled and sugar bottoms churned to the sound of "Island Music". And all of them were your resident drunken singers of the night. Crooning the words of each song making sure to be louder than their neighbor.

I stood on the sidelines with my camera capturing each moment. I can hear them right now talking about the night before intertwined with what will occur tonight. More "bachanal". LOL! God I love my family.

Simple Things in Life

Since I have been visiting my parents house I have gotten up every morning to take a jog, hop on the comp to send emails and facebook messages, then find a place to check out for the night. Such a cool and easy beginning to summer. But do you know what one of my most treasured times are for me?

Its around 10am when I just finished my workout. I grab a bowl of Oatmeal Crisp Cereal, a few grapes, and sit on the back porch that looks out on to the line of trees that cover our pond. This morning while sitting outside, soaking up the sun with my cool mixture of milk, granola, raisins and flakes I saw a leaf fall. It was bright green and next to perfect. I dont know why the image stood out so much to me, but I just thought it was beautiful. In that moment I said that I had to write about it, and find some amazing significance for my blog.

Well... I havent found it. And I have nothing profound to say except it was a beautiful moment that I am sure many other people around the world have experienced, but it was the first time I actually took the time to watch it. I look forward to tomorrow morning :)

Curves v. Rolls

In the middle of teaching me how to riff, somehow my girlfriend and I got into a conversation about her sides and back. Girl talk. Well, she showed me, what appeared to her to be, a roll. I said uh uh, that's curves sweety. She replies, well then whats the difference between curves and rolls.

So I asked my homeboy about it. He said that woman have rolls that are curves and its crazy that women obsess so much about their body. Men don't.

Thank God for black men. My homeboy is black, and him like all my other black brothers appreciate the Curves that us women have. They don't want a stick or anything that is flat. My opinion on curves v. rolls is that curves are the lovely bits of goodness that make us look amazing. That includes those love handles, cottage cheese, and flaps of skin. Rolls are the excessive mounds of fat that reveals the unhealthy qualities of a person. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!