Signs of Spring

2010 Philadelphia International Flower Show

Party's Over!

White House Social Secretary, Desiree Rogers is reportedly leaving her post next month, fourteen months and 330 events into her position, to "explore opportunities in the corporate world". A successful Chicago businesswoman and socialite, Ms. Rogers was the first Black woman to hold the position of social secretary and a close associate of President and Mrs. Obama. She came under fire in November 2009 when Tareq and Michaele Salahi crashed the Obama's first White House state dinner. Her critics characterize her as a spotlight seeker who maintained a very high profile including appearances in fashion spreads early on in the administration, and inserted herself as a guest during the dinner instead of fulfilling her responsibilities as social secretary. Of course when you're as fabulous and stylish as she, it would be hard to disappear into the shadows.

My number one rule as a planner is to take care of business-you can't relax until the event is over. You are being paid because of your organization skills and attention to detail. When the event is over-kick your feet up and have a cocktail. If you are managing an event-manage it. A planner should stay behind the scenes handling every aspect of the event detail and be prepared for every contingency. You'll receive your kudos for a expertly managed event-once it's over. It's a shame her tenure ended with a cloud over it.

Just goes to show that even or especially in the White House, you can't let your guard down for a minute. I wish her well.

Flawless Friday

(Getty Images)

As California Goes, So May Go the Nation

Earlier this month, San Francisco’s District Attorney Kamala Harris announced she'll run to be California’s next Attorney General. She was the first female DA in the City, the first African American, and the first South Asian American woman to hold the post. She’s been called the “female Obama”, and cited by the New York Times as one of 17 women nationwide who would likely be the first woman to serve as President of the United States. That's pretty heady stuff!

Kamala completed her undergraduate work at my alumni, Howard University, and she's also a member of my beloved Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. (AKA). Kamala went on to attend the University of California, Hastings College of Law. She hasn't looked back! She has fought some tough issues in San Francisco, and is now looking to take on the state. And if that's not enough, Kamala has a book out entitled "Smart on Crime". Kamala explains in detail her comprehensive and sensible approach to reducing crime.

Watch out for her, you never thought your President would be a Black man either did you? I'm just sayin'......

All Right, Mr. DeMille, I'm NOT Ready for my Close-Up!!!!

My family doesn't have a lot of pictures of me. I don't like taking pictures. I don't like the way I look in them. When I turned 30 I promised myself I was going to get one hot picture of myself. Perfectly styled and groomed, and it would be just spectacular. Didn't happen. I should have been clearer-that was close to twenty years ago (see comment section)! Now I do have pictures of me and my family scattered about, but when the camera shows up, I usually offer to take the shot instead of be in it. Now I'm faced with the task of putting up a picture for my blog. I'm not ready to show the world my face. There's nothing wrong with it. I'm not the worst looking person in the world. In fact, I'm blessed. But not quite ready for my close up. I've decided to use my personal symbol, the Aya or fern to go in that little square as my identity. When I actually pasted in the African version, I didn't like it. Looked like a fish bone. Even with a symbol, you can see I have vanity issues. I'm going to start the search for something else or maybe get a picture taken, but until I do, tell me if you like this one. Not to ethnic, not too leafy, just right for right now.

Questions to Ponder

Our Lenten Bulletin asked questions for each of us to examine, I'll list them here a couple at a time throughout the season.

Am I sharing gladly what I have with others, especially the stranger and the poor?
Don't act like you haven't been there when $ 20 dollars may as well have been $2,000. Someone shared with you when you had a need. You never know how a small simple action can change someone's day, or even change their life. Here is something to really keep in mind: It does NOT have to be money. It can be a ride to the store, keeping a friends' child overnight so she can work, a book, a smile, a genuine compliment-ANYTHING-you get the picture. Don't think of any payoff or payback. Just keep in mind the principle of karma: What goes around-comes around.

Do I have a gracious and patient attitude with others, especially those that irritate me?
Did you laugh out loud? This is extremely hard, but it can be done if you only keep in mind that God made us ALL different. I've learned the reason people irritate me is because they're NOT ME. They don't do or say things in the way that I would do them. And thank God they don't-and who am I to be irritated? It is highly unlikely that you'll find anyone out there who would say that I irritate them..right? Did you laugh out loud again? I know people can rub you the wrong way and you don't even know why. That doesn't give any of us the right to act on that. Be gracious (more on that later), show some patience. You never know, after a while, that person may respond to you by being a little less irritating, and they won't even know it. You must be the change you want to see-Ghandi and all that.....

Fabulous Over A Certain Age

I have been anonymously reading this blog since it's inception last year. Mind you-i'm not fifty yet, but I have decided to start REALLY reconciling my head with my body/face. They say God gives what you need-right when you need it. Here's what he sent me:

1. The "Payback" Flash: An "ex" family member had raging hot-flashes. I mean the kind where you're fanning like the ladies in church coupled with the loud whooping noises. My fabulously arrogant thirty something self said to my husband in annoyance one day that she should stop making all that noise. If nothing else, she's going to remind her husband how old she is. There's alot of noise coming from my bedroom at night these days, but you get three guesses the majority cause. The Lord remembered my cattiness, thus, the "Payback Flash".
2. Sade: Thank you Lord for reminding me that the older you get, the better you get, nor does your talent disappear.
3. The most wonderful supportive friend in the world, who we'll call ZEN. She encouraged me to just keep up with this blogging thing until I figure out exactly what I want to do and what that looks like. She also recommended the 21-Day Oprah cleanse, but adding structured mediation and exercises seems like a chore right now. She's actually in the first stages of talking to me about Integral Hatha Yoga. She recently received her certification in this yoga style. The yoga instruction is really her Act II coming from corporate America. She really followed through with her passion and now has CLIENTS!!!! Bravo to my girl ZEN. Another bonus besides doing what she loves? She's able to maintain her ideal weight, which ironically is my ideal weight, but I never got there.
   
4. Recent blogposts from Faboverfifty. The past week, I've been reading a very honest and informative account of a fifty something woman named Geri who undergoes what she calls "surgery light". I won't recap it here, but what I will tell you that it must take TREMENDOUS courage to go in front of the world vulnerable with your flaws (real or perceived). I finally came out the closet a few days ago to give her a "Bravo". Check out her journey. PS-Put the doctor's number in your Blackberry (i'm just sayin-you never know).
   

Once again-thank you Lord-for reminding me I don't have to fight middle age and all her "gifts", there is motivation, inspiration, and great plastic surgeons out there to help me through.

Best Old House Neighborhoods-2010

Mt. Airy, Pennsylvania is one of the many wonderful neighborhoods in Philadelphia, but it just earned the distinction of being named one of best Old House Neighborhoods in the Northeast according to This Old House.

Mt. Airy is a community known for its exquisite examples of 18th and 19th Century residential architecture.

Lenten Season 2010

LONG BUT GOOD POST WARNING!

The family went to church this Sunday. Just for the record, we go to church every Sunday (plus or minus a few soccer/basketball games) so don't think this is me "fronting" for Easter. The handout in our bulletin contained wonderful information regarding Lent:

Why 40 days? Because, Jesus fasted and was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days. Lent, then, is our time of fasting, prayer, temptation and repentance. Lent is not required anywhere in the scriptures, but it has been a custom, which Christians have practiced for most of the last two thousand years.

In many languages, the word "Lent" actually means "fast". This is where the custom of giving up something for Lent originated.

Just to confuse things, Lent is actually 46 days rather than 40 days. Why? Because the 40 days of Lent are supposed to be days of fasting, which means self discipline and self-restraint. But Sunday, the Lord's Day, should never be a day of fasting, but a day of celebration! So each Sunday we suspend our Lenten disciplines and celebrate. Lent is 40 "fasting" days spread out over a total of 46 days beginning on Ash Wednesday.

The focus of Lent was always threefold:

1. It was a time to prepare new converts for baptism through intensive classes and instruction.
2. It was a time for long-standing Christians to review their lives and renew their commitment to Jesus Christ.
3. It was a time for backsliders to be restored to the faith.

In every case, it is a time for serious, disciplined self-examination, a time spent in intensive prayer and repentance before the cross of Calvary.

To represent the dark and serious business of Lent, one custom has been to strip the sanctuary of all flowers, candles, and colors during Lent. This custom helps us to turn inward and examine ourselves, even as it reminds us of the dark and colorless Sabbath Day when Jesus lay dead in the tomb. Put simply, Lent is a time to examine ourselves carefully.

And you thought Lent was created just to make you give up chocolate huh?
Let me know what/if you're sacrificing for Lent.

Mrs. O - In Philadelphia

(Image Copyright: Daylife)

Michelle Obama came to Philadelphia today as part of her "Let's Move" campaign. The First Lady, along with Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack visited the Fresh Grocer located in North Philadelphia. Mrs. Obama was appropriately dressed in colorful layers of white, gray, and navy blue finished with her signature belted style.

Davis Wins the Gold

I don't normally care for the Winter Olympics. I don't really identify with cold weather sports. Don't ski, don't ice skate, and I REALLY don't understand that "sport" that looks like a shuffleboard game on ice, Curling. But I normally watch the ice skating competitions, and this year skiing because "they" pumped up Lindsay Vonn so heavy but that's another story and I'm trying to keep a no-hate zone here. Anyway, when I normally hear about speed skating, it's all about Apollo Anton Ohno, but we keep track of our "own" and got in late last night hoping we hadn't missed Shani Davis compete. Davis won the Gold Medal in the 1,000 meter skate. It's the first time an athlete has won the Gold in that event two times in a row. It was heartwarming when NBC cut to a shot showing the kids from the Fort Dupont Ice Arena in Southeast DC's reaction when he won. Davis inspired the DC Inner City Excellence Program (DC-ICE). The program offers programs relating to Academics/Athletics, the Eastern Arts (Yoga), Nature (they are located in Fort Dupont Park), and also mentoring and life skills programs. The rink offers public skating as well as lessons in figure, speed skating and ice hockey. If you want more information hit up the Friends of Fort Dupont Ice Arena website here. I'm working on my linking skills-if the link doesn't work-do it yourself until I master it ok?

The Road to Fulfillment

Never forget if you always give, you will always have.

Happy Valentine's Day

Love somebody, but make sure you love yourself.

SN-OMG!!!!!

I can't believe this mess. I am so sick of the snow. If i'm not looking at it, i'm thinking about shoveling it, salting it, getting around in it, and checking to see how my parents are making out in it (they still live in the DMV area). It's stressful for us here in Philadelphia, but you know they're stressing in DC. Employees at a Safeway in NW left the lights on, the doors open, and they were gone!

Mayor Nutter did a good job up here, but Mayor Fenty is really taking a beating about the city's response to the blizzard. I don't know why anyone is surprised because I can't thing of a time growing up that the District was EVER really prepared for the snow. At some point someone down there will realize that even though they're below the Mason-Dixon line, they are a Mid-Atlantic state and not the "true" South. There will be snow.

Anyway, lucky for me I have two little helpers, but they're too busy worrying about making money rather than helping us out of the igloo. When we finally decided it was time to brave the mess, the kids were gone-with the shovels!!! By the time they got back, the snow was hardening, and they were tired. Guess what?? So what!! I had to pull a little old school tough love and had them out there sweating, but we're all clear and all is right again in the world until....

My next door neighbor paid the kids to clean out her driveway. She got her car out a quarter way down the alley and got stuck. Know what she did? She gave my ELEVEN YEAR OLD DAUGHTER her car keys and left. Said she had an appointment she couldn't miss. Has this woman lost her damn mind? At the very least she could have knocked on our door and asked an ADULT to help her out of her jam.

My husband and two other men in the neighborhood went out back and dug her out so the car could get back up into her driveway. As of this writing, she hasn't come back, we still have her car keys and a bill! Trust Me, she will pay for that foolishness. I have never heard anything like that in my life.

If there is any explanation she can give that makes sense, i'll let you know.

Shovel safely everybody-remember, you can't get through the snow make it to the Emergency Room.

Sade Is Back!!

Sade's album, Soldier of Love is being released today. It's been nine years since her last CD. The music's good, yada yada yada......

Take a look at this woman. She just turned 51 years old January 16. I'm not there yet, but she gives me something to aspire to. I look around today at these young ladies, famous with no talent except T&A, and they can't hold a candle to this phenomenal talent who is gorgeous to boot!

Sade will be kicking things off on BET's 106 & Park, followed by appearances on all the usual new outlets so I'm sure you'll have a chance to experience her for yourself. Thank goodness for real music returning to the airwaves coming from a real voice-the advance reviews have been good and I can't wait to see her again.

Maybe she'll reveal during one of her interviews her secret for staying so youthful looking.

Honoring Black History Month

I was up late the Saturday night channel surfing. The Lifetime Movie Network (LMN) was showing "Beauty Shop" starring Queen Latifah. I enjoy the movie every time I happen upon it and this time was no exception. What bothered me was Lifetime promoting the movie in celebration of Black History Month. Of all the rich and wonderful history we have to celebrate, LMN thinks Beauty Shop celebrates our story? The only thing that depicts Black History in that movie was a picture of Madame C.J. Walker on the wall of the shop! That's it.

To be fair, I did check out the other movies they offered for the month long "celebration" and found "The Fantasia Barrino Story", "Introducing Dorothy Dandridge", and "Sins of the Mother", starring Jill Scott.

There is nothing wrong with any of these movies, but there is something very wrong with trotting these selections out and calling them Black History. Towards the end of the movie though, Queen Latifah did sum up our history very well. She finally responded to the man who tried to destroy her and the shop by saying, "The thing is, you didn't break me, I'm still standing, and you will never ever intimidate me."

On the other hand, VH1 made the weekend spotlighting Soul Train in the Rock Docs series. If you want to spend an enjoyable hour and a half going down memory lane with the music, the fashion, the talent, and the back story of how Soul Train was conceived, and how the genius of Don Cornelius kept it on the air for OVER 30 seasons. Check your listings for it-it's a must see and worthy to be celebrated during Black History Month.