Photobucket
Photobucket

Saturday, April 30, 2011

A Little [LES NUBIANS] for a Saturday Night



Hélène and Célia of Les Nubians have done it again, y'all!!! Their newest video is a Swaggerific Anthem for all of us Natural Hair Divas out there!!!!!!



I hope that all of you, regardless of your hair type will enjoy "Afrodance" this Saturday Night... and for my happily nappily people out there, I hope you will "Shake your Afro, Afro..." along with me!! :)

Friday, April 29, 2011

Yummm! I-tal ("Is Vital") Stew Peas

After a terrific time last week in Trinidad and Tobago, I am super excited to head on over to Jamaica!!!!!



Our recipe this week is for I-tal Stew Peas, a dish that is DELICIOUS and so good for you!!! Ital or I-tal (pronounced "eye'-tall") is food often celebrated by those in the Rastafari movement.

The word "I-tal" derives from the English word "vital", with the initial syllable replaced by i. This is done to many words in the Rastafari vocabulary to signify the unity of the speaker with all of nature.

I-tal ("Is Vital") Stew Peas

Recipe Courtesy of Jamaicans.com

Ingredients:

2 cups red peas (kidney beans)
2 whole scotch bonnet peppers (if you like it hot cut the pepper up)
¼ cup water
2 cups coconut milk
bay leaves
10 pimento grains (allspice)
cloves garlic (1 crushed and 3 whole)
3 chopped scallions
1 small onion chopped
3 sprigs of thyme
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon natural sea salt (sold in stores)
2 potatoes (Irish), cubed
1 sweet potato, cubed
3 carrots, sliced
Veggie spinners/dumplings (See Recipe Below)

Directions:

Soak the peas in water for a least 10-12 hours in the pot
Place coconut milk, bay leaves, scallion, pimento grain, whole garlic and whole pepper in the pot.
Slowly boil and simmer for 1 ½ hours or until the peas are tender.
Season by adding the onions, crushed garlic and thyme.
Add carrots, spinners and potatoes
Let simmer for 30 minutes
Remove the scallions, bay leaves and hot pepper before serving.
Serve hot with white rice.

Veggie Spinners

Ingredients:

1 cup wheat flour
Enough water to bind

Directions:

Place flour in a medium bowl.
Work mixture with hands while adding enough water to bind, making a stiff dough.
Roll into 1 inch long pieces, drop into boiling stew peas or soup.
Boil until they float or add them during the last 20mins of the cooking process.

If you have a Caribbean recipe you'd love to share, be sure to email me!

Thursday, April 28, 2011

:::drools::: SimplyBe's Simply Beautiful!!!!



I knew I was in trouble when I got home last Friday to find the newest SimplyBe catalog waiting for me in my mailbox. I have managed to avoid succumbing to temptation before, but from glancing at a few pages I knew I was in for it!

I have not purchased a single thing from SimplyBe since learning of their existence. Primarily because I know that when turning the pages of their catalog, I am going to want at least 95% of what I see, and frankly... I don't have money like that, I'm just a Customer Service Rep! LOL

So recognizing that I cannot, should not and will not break the bank buying everything I see that makes me go "Ooooh!", I decided to make a list of what I like so far, and over the next few months, armed with coupon codes (They have a lot of them, which is always a plus!!), I will be getting some of the items on my list.

I'd like to branch Miss Moon's Musings out to include more outfit posts, and over the past few months, I have been tremendously inspired by Juanette from Fashion Nette-work, Reiko from God's Favorite Shoes, Lexi from Beauty Fash and Chastity from The Curvy Girls Guide to Style. I mean to do these fabulous ladies proud, so I have to make sure I'm on point, you know?

So here are a few of the items that have caught my eye the most:



A. Block Print Tunic - $58.00
B. Anna Scholz Cargos - $51.00
C. Print Maxi Dress - $69.00
D. Jersey Top - $50.00
E. Cheryl Wide Leg Jean - $62.00
(In Dark Indigo, Mid Blue or Black - pictured)
F. Anna Scholz Cover Up - $52.00
G. Viva La Diva Fringe Sandal - $57.00
(In Black, Cornflower or Stone - pictured)
H. Angel Ribbons Stud Trim Tunic -$49.00
(In Black, Stone or Orange - pictured)
I. Angel Ribbons Maxi Dress and Camisole - $73.00
J. Shaped Hem Tunics Pack - $33.00
(In Berry/Navy, Red/Khaki, Teal/Black or Aubergine/Stone - pictured)

So you can see my dilemma judging from this "small" list of mine!!LOL Where oh where do I start!?!?!? What's your pick for the first item I rock from SimplyBe? Comment with your pick!!

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

DOPE: "We Know This Place" by Sunni Patterson



This poem is one that you must give your undivided attention to, so listen when you have the chance to and I promise you... you will be taken on a journey: one that begins in New Orleans and branches forward through time, through circumstance, through worlds!!



So we know this place,
for we have glanced more times than we’d like to share
into eyes that stare with nothing there
behind them but an unfulfilled wish
and an unconscious yearning for life
though death rests comfortably beside us.
At night their moans are louder.
They come to visit the guards at the gate,
and they stay until morning
torturing their guilt-ridden insides.
The silent cries of the keepers are louder
than the booms that come from the guns
they use to occupy the space.

And we know this place,
for we have seen more times than we’d like to imagine
bloated cadavers floating through waters of a city gone savage,
foraging the land for what can be salvaged.
But what can be saved when all is lost?
It happened in August, twenty-nine days in.
We are now five days out of the only place
we knew to call house and home.
Few things are certain:
one, we have no food;
two, there are more bodies lying at the roadside
than hot plates being distributed
or first aid being administered
or recognition as a citizen.
Fourteenth Amendment, X, refugee, check.

And we know this place.
It’s ever-changing yet forever the same:
Money and power and greed, the game.
They suck and devour the souls of the slain.
What a feast for the beast at their table of shame
with napkins around necks that catch the blood that drains
from the flesh they chew, it’s hailed again.

And we know this place, all too well,
dank with the smell of death and doom.
It hovers, it smothers, no growth, no room,
no pretty, no please, just grey, just gloom,
just burned me of hope, and it died too soon,
just juckin’, just jiving, just living, we just fools.

And we know this place. It’s decked in all its array and splendor,
golden streets with good intentions
capture our attention, gadgets and inventions
pesticide the food supply, flu-like symptoms,
diabetic condition, a cancer in the system,
held on hold, it’s a pistol to the temple.
Go run to the churches, tell reverend it’s simple.
Good works and good deeds is what equals redemption,
but tell me, please, Jesus never mentioned,
how do churchmen get extensions on freedom,
while children are being fondled
from the altar to the streets, then back to the sanctuaries?
It’s kind of scary, ain’t it?
to know that both the prophet and the priest practice deceit,
then come to the people and claim peace, peace,
come to the people and claim love, love.
But where is the peace, huh?
Where is the love?
Where that balm in Gilead
that can heal the wounded soul
or make the half-man whole?

I swear, we know this place,
because we have vowed before never again to return,
but here we are, back in the desert,
dry mouth and thirsting for waters from Heaven.
But come, come, children, rally around,
and maybe together we can make a sound
that will shake the trees or rattle the ground,
make strong our knees,
we’s freedom bound.

And we know this place.
Reclaim the crown.
Hold onto the prize,
never put it down.
Be firm in the stance,
no break, no bow,
got to forward on, Mama,
make your move now. Forward on, Papa,
make your move now.
Forward, dear children,
’cuz freedom is now.

To learn more about the amazing poet, Sunni Patterson, please visit her website at http://www.sunnipatterson.com/

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

maniCURATIVE: Milani NEON Collection: Dude Blue



I admit that I've been a bit of a nail polish snob lately, opting for my staples O.P.I., China Glaze and Essie, ignoring the color choices available at my local drug store. I've been dying to try O.P.I./Sephora's Glee Collection color, Slushied for a hot minute now, but I haven't been able to make it over to Sephora after work to snatch it up.

Last week, I was at Duane Reade Downtown Brooklyn, when I spotted Milani's Specialty Neon Nail Lacquers in a display and thought that Dude Blue looked an awful lot like a slightly darker version Slushied.



For $4.99.. I decided it wouldn't be too much of a risk to try it out, so I laid my cash down on the counter and headed home to start my weekend rituals, part of which involved changing my nail color for the upcoming week.

OMG... what can I say about Dude Blue?!?!? I am SO IN LOVE with this color!!!! It's like having a mini mood elevator attached to your hands 24/7. Just looking at my nails made me smile! I got a TON of compliments on the color... and I really really dug the look of shock on people's faces when I told them the brand! LOL



This was my nails last Monday...(I was a bit dorky about the fact that my nails matched my straw.. which I am sure those of you who follow me on Twitter know! lol). Sorry for the picture quality, it was a cell phone shot while at work!



Here are my nails the following Friday (another crappy cell phone picture! lol) I am super duper hard on my nails (I type all day at work and type for hours when I get home doing blog stuff, tweeting and other things), so I generally get TONS of chips by the end of the week. I was astonished at how little the damage was for a Drugstore Nail Polish Brand!!! At the end of the week, I couldn't wait to reapply (Nicer pictures approaching! lol).



Step One: Fill the Gap! Smoothing Base Coat
Step Two: Milani NEON Collection: Dude Blue
Step Three: Seche Vite Dry-Fast Top Coat

(Side Note: I am SOOOOOO "Not so Much..." about No Chips Ahead Chip Free Top Coat - Plainly put: it stinks!!! It causes bubbles all over your nails which is always such a bummer!)







Here is Dude Blue just dried on my nails!! I recently snatched up some of O.P.I & Katy Perry's Shatter polish, so later this week I plan on adding it to my ring finger and thumb (Gotta rock my Blackberry Bling whenever possible) so be sure to check out the Miss Moon's Musings FaceBook Page for updated pictures.

Do you need some "Dude Blue" in your life!?!?!? Well you're in luck, because today THREE is definitely a magic number!!!

I have three bottles of Dude Blue for the first three of my Followers that leave a comment with their email address! Best of Luck!!

Monday, April 25, 2011

Music Therapy with Miss Moon

Happy Monday, all!!! This week's pick for Music Therapy with Miss Moon was a song suggested by my good friend Naemah in response to a recent Be Blessed post.



I am seriously kicking myself for not knowing this song (especially since I loved Kina in Brownstone!), because it serves as a powerful anthem of self acceptance and self love. This is, of course, is why I am sharing it with all of you. Here's "Me" by Kina!



My heart's jumpin'
God, I'm feelin' open
Spent a long time mopin'
Get a load of me, feelin' free
No pain no more
No blockin' up my own door
All anger out my back door
God, it's good to see

Life,
Got kinda hard, I faced it
Fought and cried and almost gave in
All negative forces faded
Love of me just walked right in

I'm just me, I'm enough
With myself I'm in love
I've been weak, I've been low
Made me strong, now I know
I'm just me, I'm enough
Nothin' less, nothing more
I wish everybody could just feel this kind of love

Feels good, feels fine, feels good, yeah
My mind's older
Chip's fallen off my shoulder
All need to prove is over
Good enough for me
Found willingness
Found will to be courageous
No need to feel defenseless, Peace

I'm just me, I'm in love
With myself I'm in love
I've been weak, I've been low
Made me strong, now I know
I'm just me, I'm enough
Nothin' less, nothing more
I wish everybody could just feel this kind of love

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Be Blessed: And KNOW You're Getting Better & Better!

And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.
~ Anais Nin

For everything you have missed, you have gained something else, and for everything you gain, you lose something else.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies.
~ Author Unknown



The following is an excerpt from one of my (many!) old journals, dated Wednesday, November 1, 2006:

"Today was a quiet sort of day. I made no success in job searching, but I remain optimistic. As time progresses I know that I am one step closer to obtaining all of my dreams. And this allows me to not live each day in quiet desperation, and allow me to do what must be done, manage to have as much fun as possible... all with the knowledge that my future is on the horizon."

If the woman I am today could sit down and have tea with the woman I was back then, I bet the me from the past would be astonished about where and who I am now. And today, reading these words of optimism and self-assurance is an inspiration for me. It serves as a reminder of where I've been along this journey called life, and it makes me very excited about the woman I'll be, five years from now, reading this blog entry.

I can honestly say that recently I've been at a point where I've felt very stuck in my life: content, but not very thrilled about the world around me. And in reflecting on this feeling, I found myself all wrapped up in the "could-a, would-a, should-a"s, which is NEVER a motivating thought to have. I took me going back and reading through my journal pages from the past ten years to truly see the picture: I have come a tremendously long way!!! It took that zealously optimistic 28 year old to become the 33 year old woman I am today. Older, yes. Wiser, I think so. Happier? Honestly? Yes!

Below are powerful words from Iyanla Vanzant that I feel really bring to light the energy that was surrounding my 28 year old self back then. At 33, I feel like a new blossoming in in store for me, and I am so happy and grateful to see what will develop for yours truly:

Guess what? You are not the worst person in the world! Sure, you've made some bad judgment calls, taken some pretty foolish chances, created some awful situations, but you give yourself too much credit. Others have done far worse. Then there are those people who haven't done anything to anyone -- ever. They are quiet. Go unnoticed. They have flawless characters and records. But you know what? They haven't done anything for themselves either.

They are probably just as, if not more, miserable and confused as you. Think about it this way: The future will be what you make it today. Whether you are the doer or a nondoer, you must work on the future. If you've made a mess, clean it up. If you are afraid to take a chance, take one anyway. If you've done things that didn't work, do something else. If you have done nothing, do something. What you don't do can create the same regrets as the mistakes you make. In the long run, either you must happen to life, or it will never happen for you.


Step by step, I am getting better and better.

From Acts of Faith
by Iyanla Vanzant

Saturday, April 23, 2011

A Little [RUFUS featuring CHAKA KHAN] for a Saturday Night



It's Saturday, and I plan on spending the evening curled up in bed with a bottle of wine (and my honey!) listening to some good good music. First up on my playlist is tonight's pick for a Saturday Night, "Everlasting Love" by Rufus featuring Chaka Khan. I hope that it will inspire you to enjoy your night!!



Friday, April 22, 2011

Yummm! Pelau Chicken

Happy Friday!! Our journey is far from over, as we leave Cuba for Trinidad and Tobago (Trini Massive, stand up!!)...



This week's recipe is an Indian/Caribbean hybrid of a dish that is one of my favorite Trini dishes!

Pelau Chicken

Recipe Courtesy of Island Flave

Ingredients:

2-3 lbs chicken (breasts or thighs)
2 limes
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
3 cloves garlic -crushed
4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3 tbsp oil
4 tbsp brown sugar
2 cups hot water
2 cups coconut milk
1 can pigeon peas (or green peas)
2 cups carrots
2 cups rice (NOT INSTANT!)
1 hot pepper (optional)

Directions:

Rinse chicken and rub with lime.

In a large bowl: add salt, black pepper, garlic, half of the brown sugar, and half of the Worcestershire sauce to chicken, then set aside (the longer you let it sit, the better the flavor!).

Heat oil in large deep pot. When hot, sprinkle in remaining brown sugar. Once sugar begins to bubble, add chicken and coat well until chicken is nicely browned.

Add carrots, rice, hot pepper, water and coconut milk. Mix well. Cover tightly and cook on very low heat 30-45 mins until rice is almost fully cooked. Do not stir while cooking.
Add pigeon peas. Continue cooking on low heat 10-15 mins until rice is fully cooked. Add additional Worcestershire sauce to taste.

If you have a Caribbean recipe you'd love to share, be sure to email me!

Thursday, April 21, 2011

DO SOMETHING: Tell BP to Pay Their Fair Share!!



* One year ago, on April 20, 2010, BP's oil began to pour into the Gulf of Mexico. It did not stop for 87 days.

Today, economic and environmental devastation remain. Thousands of Gulf Coast residents cope with massive health problems from oil and toxic dispersants.

BP, on the other hand, just scored a nearly $10 billion dollar credit on their 2010 federal tax return, by writing off their "losses" incurred from the tragedy.

That's the equivalent of the entire annual budget of the EPA, whose funding was just slashed in the continuing resolution. It is almost one third of all the cuts in the continuing resolution.

We shouldn't have to endure budget cuts because BP had to pay to clean up their oil spill.

I just signed a petition demanding that BP amend their tax return to take out the $10 billion tax break. Sign the petition and call on BP to pay their fair share:

http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/nobptaxbreak/?r_by=-1491287-6XW9yEx&rc=paste2

**UPDATE**: Wednesday afternoon, it was discovered that BP's tax break will be even bigger than was first reported - an outrageous $13 billion! A BP spokesman wouldn't say if the company is paying any U.S. taxes at all this year. It could even be getting a refund. (MAJOR side-eye because I sure as heck WONT!!!)  Please take action to hold BP accountable.

Photo Courtesy of http://weblog.sinteur.com/index.php/2010/06/17/bp-oil-spill/

I'm REALLY Diggin': MOO.com's Business Cards



I want to really take Miss Moon's Musings as far as it's willing to go, and I recognize that a HUGE part of getting my bloggy baby noticed is to get out there, stop being such a cloistered wallflower and spread the word as much as possible. I first spotted MOO.com's beautiful cards reading the FANTABULOUS blog, Fashion Nette-work (Shout out to Juanette!!), and was so bowled over by her beautiful cards... I decided to venture forward to their website to see how they can create something as fabulous for me.



Creating my card's design was super easy (I have no idea how to use Photoshop, so my design was created using Picasa and MS Paint (I'm working with what works for me! LOL). It took a couple of tries, but I finally got it where the images were high-resolution and could fit the parameters of the card well.

A few weeks after submitting my order for printing, I received my cards in the mail and was instantly bowled over at the super-cute cases they came in!!!



The Green Uploader Case fits neatly in my purse without getting bent crinkled and otherwise look like poopie when handing them out (SOOO not a good look!). The cards themselves?!?!? Check 'em out!!!


Here are the backs of the cards. I decided to use the design elements from the blog's header. I thought it would be a great way to introduce people to the site, as when they visit from getting the card, they'll (I hope!) recognize the theme!


Here's the front of the card. I decided to keep it simple while still displaying some of the elements for the site on the card!!


I decided to get only 50 cards this time around to see if I'd like them. For $30 these cards are exceptional and I will be upgrading and purchasing new cards again as I need them!!

Would you like to get some MOO.com business cards for yourself?!?!? Be the first to leave a comment and you will win a 20% off coupon code (Many Thanks to Moo.com for providing me with the code to share with a very special reader!!!) Best of Luck everyone!!!

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

DOPE: "Motives and Thoughts" by Lauryn Hill



This poem is powerful, y'all. When reading the words, I can't help but wonder if this poem became the song, "Mystery of Iniquity".



Rotating bodies, confusion of sound
Negative imagery, holding us down
Social delusion, clearly constructed
Human condition, morals corrupted
Trapped in reaction, lawlessness war
Dissatisfaction from bowels to core
Devil’s technology, strategy for
Human mythologies, urban folklore
Sick of psychology, counterfeit cure
Wicked theology, robbing the poor
Scheme demonology mislead the pure
Strictly strategically studying war
Light shown in darkness, image exposed
Few can see through the new emperor’s clothes
Lustful this hustle turn humans to hoes
When the blind lead the blind
Just more trouble and woes
It’s the mind that they chose
Its designed to stay closed
Standard of jokers, court just a logic
Sick looking cosmics, from schoolyards to college
Primitive man with civilize knowledge
System collapse and he still won’t acknowledge
God is the saviour, studies behavior
Trying to fix the mix mind that he gave ya
Stiff-necked scholars on prescription meds
Wishing their problems were all in their heads
Morale dilemma, pride is the root
Misguided from youth, heart divided from truth
Egyptians and Grecians, spiritually dead
Imperially led, by the gods in their heads
Motives and thoughts
Industrial wealth
Global economy, in it for self
Heart full of madness, covered with kind
Pleasure designed to take over your mind
Furnished in godliness, painted in good
This tainted priesthood got real saints misunderstood
While classes in government, set up the veil
And cultivate minds for more mythical tales
Typical Hollywood follies good girl
While vice and corruption take over the world
Motives and thoughts
Check your motives and thoughts
Blind with the wickedness, deep in your heart
Modern day wickedness is all you’ve been taught
Lied to your neighbors, so you get ahead
Modern day trickery is all you’ve been fed
Motives and thoughts
Check your motives and thoughts

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Miss Moon's Musings About: My Natural Hair Confessions....



Recently ~L of Natural Review by L shared her third installment of Natural Hair Confessions. I really love this idea, because its a great way to encourage a conversation. Many of ~L's confessions I could TOTALLY relate to, as was many of the confessions readers submitted in the comments section.

Inspired, I thought that I would share my confessions with you. I'd love to hear yours in return!

#1 - I REALLY need to stop being so much of a product junkie!!! Lack of space (I live with three other people in a two-bedroom apartment  in Brooklyn, after all) makes it super difficult to indulge, so I am trying to use up everything I currently own before trying new products.

#2 - I am so super-duper excited about ChicandKinky.com Natural's Night Out on June 4th!!! This will be my first time attending a Natural Hair Event in NYC (I somehow always find out after the fact) and it promises to be an amazing event.

#3 - I admit it: I want my hair to grow long. While my focus has shifted from growing long hair FAST to growing my hair HEALTHY, I would love to get my Cree Summer on by the time I'm 40!!!

#4 - I don't mind detangling my hair. No jive!! I've reached a point where I know exactly how to do it with minimal frustration.

#5 - I would love to take a visit to the Devachan Hair Salon in NYC for a trim, but I cannot imagine spending so much money on getting my hair cut! In fact, I haven't been in a salon in over 15 years!!

#6 - I'm just learning to embrace the frizz!

#7 - I've been tempted to flat iron my hair for a change, but I'm super scared of heat damage! I finally have my hair to a point where it's healthy and thriving, and my desire for change significantly smaller than my desire to continue to nourish my hair!

#8 - I'm so happy that I've discovered so many great Natural Hair Bloggers here in NYC... We really need to do a Blogger Brunch this summer or something!!

What are YOUR Natural Hair Confessions?!?! Post a comment or send me a link to your Hair Confessions Blog post!!

Monday, April 18, 2011

Music Therapy with Miss Moon



It's hard to see some of the atrocities committed in the United Status and around the world without getting pissed off: War, Corrective Rape, and the overwhelming economic disparities between the wealthy and the poor. It's enough to make you long for The Kanamits to come visit with their cookbook! LOL

All jokes aside, this is the world we live in and the opportunity is always present to make it a better place. This week's pick for Music Therapy, by Alanis Morissette (from the "Dogma" Soundtrack)is a plea to be the change you want to see in the world. It starts with love.



Still
I am the harm that you inflict
I am your brilliance and frustration
I'm the nuclear bombs if they're to hit
I am your immaturity and your indignance
I am your misfits and your praised
I am your doubt and your conviction
I am your charity and your rape
I am your grasping and expectation
I see you averting your glances
I see you cheering on the war
I see you ignoring your children

And I love you still
And I love you still

I am your joy and your regret
I am your fury and your elation
I am your yearning and your sweat
I am your faithless and your religion
I see you altering history
I see you abusing the land
I see you and your selective amnesia

And I love you still
And I love you still

Haah... Haah... Haah... Haah...


I am your tragedy and your fortune
I am your crisis and delight
I am your profits and your prophets
I am your art - I am your bytes
I am your death and your decisions
I am your passion and your plights
I am your sickness and convalescence
I am your weapons and your light
I see you holding your grudges
I see you gunning them down
I see you silencing your sisters

And I love you still
And I love you still

I see you lie to your country
I see you forcing them out
I see you blaming each other

And I love you still

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Be Blessed: And Own Your Emotions (Courtesy of the Daily Om)



"Emotion turning back on itself, and not leading on to thought or action, is the element of madness."
~ John Sterling

"To give vent now and then to his feelings, whether of pleasure or discontent, is a great ease to a man's heart."
~ Francesco Guicciardini

" All emotions are pure which gather you and lift you up; that emotion is impure which seizes only one side of your being and so distorts you."
~ Rainer Maria Rilke

Owning Your Emotions
Name It And Claim It

Our feelings can sometimes present a very challenging aspect of our lives. We experience intense emotions without understanding precisely why and consequently find it difficult to identify the solutions that will soothe our distressed minds and hearts. Yet it is only when we are capable of naming our feelings that we can tame them by finding an appropriate resolution. We retake control of our personal power by becoming courageous enough to articulate, out loud and concisely, the essence of our emotions. Our assuming ownership of the challenges before us in this way empowers us to shift from one emotional state to another-we can let go of pain and upset because we have defined it, examined the effect it had on our lives, and then exerted our authority over it by making it our own. By naming our feelings, we claim the right to divest ourselves of them at will.

As you prepare to acknowledge your feelings aloud, gently remind yourself that being specific is an important part of exercising control. Whatever the nature of your feelings, carefully define the reaction taking place within you. If you are afraid of a situation or intimidated by an individual, try not to mince words while giving voice to your anxiety. The precision with which you express yourself is indicative of your overall willingness to stare your feelings in the face without flinching. Naming and claiming cannot always work in the vacuum of the soul. There may be times in which you will find the release you desire only by admitting your feelings before others. When this is the case, your ability to outline your feelings explicitly can help you ask for the support, aid, or guidance you need without becoming mired in the feelings that led you to make such an admission in the first place.

When you have moved past the apprehension associated with expressing your distressing feelings out loud, you may be surprised to discover that you feel liberated and lightened. This is because the act of making a clear connection between your circumstances and your feelings unravels the mystery that previously kept you from being in complete control of your emotional state. To give voice to your feelings, you must necessarily let them go. In the process, you naturally relax and rediscover your emotional equilibrium.

For more information visit dailyom.com

Today, I will express my emotions purely and learn from them.

Saturday, April 16, 2011

A Little [MOS DEF] for a Saturday Night



If you haven't noticed, I love Brooklyn and I admittedly get very, very braggadocious about my 'hood. Bed-Stuy is far from perfect, but there is so much beauty on these streets, what's not to love?

So this Saturday Night, I present two of Brooklyn's finest, Mos Def (Bed-Stuy!) with Talib Kweli (Park Slope!) and "History". Enjoy!!!



Friday, April 15, 2011

Yummm! Picadillo

After a DELICIOUS trip to Aruba, we mosey on over to Cuba this week, where our recipe will be for Picadillo, which is a traditional dish in Cuba that is similar to hash. It is made with ground meat (usually beef), tomatoes (tomato sauce may be used as a substitute) and various seasonings.



Often accompanied with rice, the name comes from the Spanish word "picar," which means "to mince" or "to chop".

Picadillo

Recipe Courtesy of Recipe Island

Ingredients:

1 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
450g lean minced beef
60ml sherry
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano, crumbled
1/8 tsp salt
pinch of ground chilli pepper
45g raisins
160g diced pineapple (fresh or tinned)
1 green bell pepper, chopped
50g red bell pepper, chopped

Directions:

Add a little oil to a large pan over medium heat and use to fry the minced beef, onion and garlic until the onion is tender and the meat is nicely browned (about 8 minutes). Drain off any excess fat then add the remaining ingredients (except the bell peppers). Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook gently for about 5 minutes. Stir-through the peppers and allow to warm through (about 2 minutes). Serve immediately with rice.

If you have a Caribbean recipe you'd love to share, be sure to email me!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

::drools:: Sweet Spring Dresses (And Skirts!!)



One of my favorite things about spring (Hey, that kinda rhymed! lol) is that the warmer weather begs for me to chuck my pants aside for a spell and rock dresses. I loooooove dresses. Funny thing is, I used to love skirts equally, but I haven't worn one in ages. This spring I've been inspired to reclaim my love of skirts.

I've assembled a group of dresses and skirts that I think are perfect for Spring. Enjoy!!


Clockwise, from left:

Women's Plus Braid-Trim Jersey Maxi Dresses ($42.94, Old Navy)
Women's Plus Tiered Floral-Print Skirts ($32.94, Old Navy)
Floral Surplice Dress ($22.80, Forever 21)
Floral Print Dress ($65.00, Simply Be)
Exclusive Vintage Print Sweetheart Neck Dress ($62.76, Asos)
High Waist Flare Skirt ($110.00, Jibri)

I've been obsessed with the High Waist Flare Skirt from Jibri ever since I saw Chastity Garner from The Curvy Girl's Guide to Style rocking it in her amazing blog. I'm on a serious budget right now, but I am saving up to get one. It may not be for the spring, but I will be rocking this come summer, quote me on that!! LOL

Will you be rocking dresses and skirts now that the weather's getting warmer. Where are you shopping?!?!?