Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Me new fave "snack"

I think it's safe to say I have become pretty open to trying out new things especially food... yes, I'm sure I've made it quite obvious that I'm a fatty! I'm fat at heart.
As a public health student, it is only right that I try to promote healthy eating habits whenever opportunity comes so I'm using this to advertise "Carrots & Hummus"... I tried this twice in school and well, I thought it only tasted good just because I was hungry, but I find myself craving it randomly from time to time. The good thing is that it's healthy as well so one doesn't have to worry about piling on the pounds.
There are different types of hummus out there but my personal favorite is the 'Fire Roasted Five Pepper' one. I'm African...I have a tongue for spicy things...duh?! It's not THAT spicy but it does have a bit of flavor.

Anyway whenever y'all get the chance, go out and get you some hummus and baby carrots and dip in! It's so good!

...state of mind....or somewhere in between

So sure, so real
Who would have thought...
Those little steps, the doubting questions,
The timeless moments, the pointless fights...
Who would have thought?
Where doubt was replaced by faith
Where confusion was replaced with assurance.
And then trust took over...
But got spat back out
"In your face".....they yelled... "In your face!
Who would have thought?
The heart that murmurs --- deadly,yet innocent
Adrenaline pumps so rapidly;
Retracing those steps back to solitude...
Where emotion was but a word,
And affection was a fiction of imagination.
Impossible you say? Nah...it once was and trust it can always be.
Who would have thought?
This aint insanity at its finest...
Nah...it's just her way of life!




There is a THIN line...





Between hello and goodbye
Between sickness and health
Between wisdom and foolishness
Between truthfulness and deceit
Between love and hate
Between reality and imagination
Between infatuation and abhorrence
Between sadness and happiness
Between maturity and minority
Between care and negligence
Between light and darkness
Between needing and wanting
Between beautiful and ugly
Between ignorance and apathy
Between taking and stealing
Between tears and laughter
Between winning and losing
Between "I'm sorry" and "I apologize"
Between hope and despair
Between hunger and satiety
Between enmity and friendship
Between hearing and listening
Between good and evil
Between simplicity and complexity
Between "I almost did" and "I did"
Between bitter and sweet
Between skinny and fat
Between strength and weakness
Between success and failure
Between wealth and poverty
Between pride and humility
Between intelligence and stupidity 
Between life and death...
********************************************
There is but a thin line between what WAS, what IS, and what WILL BE...
Sometimes you just have to read between the line(s).
***********************
Have a great week!!


Chocolate kisses
xxox...


Photo credit: Google Images

Friday, May 27, 2011

#Song4dWeekEND

About to start a full 3-day weekend.. well in my case it's gonna be 4, since my Tuesdays are now free...Yup! Memorial day is on Monday. I am absolutely looking forward to it. You know when you have huge plans but at the same time you feel like you've got nothing planned? Yeah, that's kinda the way I'm feeling right now.  I'm somewhat between feeling spontaneous and feeling nonchalant! We'll see how it turns out anyway.
Last weekend turned out to be kinda fun. My high school class mate and friend, Bimpe a.k.a Bimpus invited me over to her friend's graduation cocktail event. It was pretty simple and was more of a "hors d'œuvre" event. Met people, danced and of course I could not ignore the cocktails. After all, that was ONE of the reasons why we were there right? Here are a few pics...
Bimpus workin' it!

Yours truly

Bimpe & Tola (the graduate)
Ex- Adesoye ladies!


Mini performance


Ladies
 Spent the night at Bimpe's and went to her church on Sunday.. Very nice service I must say! Estee goes to the same church so we all decided to go to some African restaurant for lunch. Think it's called Rainbow restaurant or something. :-s The food was not bad even though I played safe and ordered rice! Lacked salt to be honest. My Malt totally made up for it though...

Enjoying the African experience..lol


join me ...




 Fooled around after lunch--- as expected and then we all said our goodbyes.


I always enjoy meeting up with them just because we get to share our individual thoughts on life between how we perceived things back then (while in school) and now. It makes me appreciate what I have more. It's always good to be thankful no matter what your present situation may be. 


On that note, here's the song for the weekend: Motivation: Kelly Rowland feat. Lil' Wayne


Whatever your motivation is this weekend, "Push harder, You're almost there now.." Ha!

Chocolate kisses
xxox...

Hmm....What's in THE BAG

So... my fellow blogger - Sisi Yemmie from GISTDOTCOM tagged me in this "what's in your bag meme". (#sidenote: her blog is hilarious-y'all should check it out!) I had to go and read hers to figure out what exactly it's about and well I'm pretty much supposed to take a pic of my bag and its contents. ....Come on in!


My bag

'Ralph Lauren Newbury Classic Tote' -  I must say I was super-excited when I found this. It's just perfect because I tend to carry my laptop, notebook, and extras with me on most days. Goes between professional and casual- just what I need.  It came with a mini makeup bag but I don't use it....as you will see soon. EVERYTHING fits.... and to be honest, I carry it EVERYDAY!! 
Now let's see what's inside:


A- iPod..--- can't do without my music-- I've got everything from Curren$y to Jagged Edge to Habib Koité to Red Hot Chili Peppers. My mood determines what I listen to. .I'm upset because it's full!!!! Need to open a trust fund for a new ipod. :-) 

B- Pad a.k.a Sanitary towel (ST)--- I'm human and a female specifically, so you do know that my body has certain requirements to fulfill. Never want to be caught off guard! 

C- Band-aids---I'm sort of a "clutz" so I almost always carry band-aids with me.
D- Liz Claiborne wallet--- Met my aunt for the first time when she visited Nig a few years ago and somehow within the first 30mins of talking, I managed to "obtain" this piece from her. Love you auntie!!

E- Moleskine Planner- Gotta love Moleskines-- so sleek! Think I previously talked about it on this blog and how it keeps me busy.
**e - Safety Pin---I always have a safety pin on the side of my bag. Comes in extra handy!

F- Book-  I carry a magazine or book with me in case i get stuck somewhere or I'm bored in class or at work. You can see what I'm currently reading. I was a Psychology major in Undergrad so to be honest, reading books like this tends to piss me off because after every chapter i'm like "I knew that!" Lol!  Sometimes, I just need something to pay attention to besides my school work or my phone. 

G- Advil--- I stay having headaches soooo I'm hooked!! 
H- (Phone) USB Charger--- Tend to be on the move a lot therefore I "juice it up!"...
I- My phone--- Don't think I need to go in depth about having a phone... much less a Blackberry. I STAY CONNECTED!!

J- Jergens hand lotion--- Allergic to "ashy-ness"
K- Card holder --- I use this mainly when I'm running quick errands and I don't feel like carrying my bag or when I'm going out with a clutch purse. SO SO HANDY!
L- Orbit- Growing up, my dad ALWAYS had gum and brought PACKS of it back home each time he traveled. I think I picked this habit from him. Forever chewing!!
M- Coin purse - Got this in China :-) I carry a lot of coins because of parking meters.
N- Notebook-  Just got back from class so it only makes sense that I have this in the pile right now. When I get my Playbook we shall improvise and "save the planet"....but till then!
O- Keys--- I don't know what I'd do if I were to lose these!

P- Vaseline - STANDARD necessity!!!
Q- Lancome Juicy Tubes lipgloss -  "Pucker up!" lol ;-)  P.S. No I don't go around kissing!
R- Carmex --- Yet another lip essential! I call this "lip crack"- totally addicted... I like that tingly feeling it gives.

S- Hand Sanitizer --- Living in New Orleans just made me extra aware of germs around me!  I really wonder how people in older generations made it without this!
T- Nail-cutter--- Always comes in handy especially for those little cuticle issues that creep up from nowhere!

U- Clear Eyes eye drops --- My eyes tend to itch a lot so I keep 'em "CLEAR"....lol!
V- Glasses--- Yes I wear glasses but it seems I'm so used to squinting even when I wear them. Pathetic case!
W- Pen & Pencil--- I love writing and I can say I'm pretty much old school. I know I can easily just put type whatever it is into my phone but sometimes the art of writing intrigues me!

So there you have it! I usually tend to have chocolates and candy in my bag as well but err... yes! I finished it all at work.

I've tagged Dith & MadPhury!

Chocolate kisses
xxox...

Friday, May 20, 2011

Cheers!!!


Hey guys!! I know I'm not the only one that's glad this week is over. I'm literally exhausted, both physically and mentally I must confess! Good news is that I managed to get my people at work to give me Tuesdays off (since Monday is a killer)... but as they agreed, they also dumped 2 huge projects on my shoulders. No problem though..it'll get done. 
Hope you guys had a good week? Many people have exams now and have been in my prayers-- God's got you! Those who are all done, thank God!
Speaking of being done, I got my final grades and yours truly aced all her classes. Straight As! Can I get a halleluyurrrr *Madea voice* Lol! I'm totally ecstatic. Made it through the first year with fab grades overall! God is good and He is real. No jokes. Some of you might think I'm exaggerating but if you know the mindset I had a few years back, you'd understand. Best believe that this is not where I ever thought I'd end up.  Dropped out of med school with no morale whatsoever, lost all hope in myself and in life in general. I'd been told all sorts of things like "I won't make it in future"...but God opened doors for me; He opened my mind up again and well, let's just say the rest is history. Here I stand, loving what I'm doing and dreaming BIG because I know He has a master plan for me... (and for you as well)..

So on that note, here's our #song4dweekend: Rihanna "Cheers (drink to that)
(P.S Listen to it with your volume at the max for full effect lol!)

03 Cheers (Drink to That).m4a

"Life's too short to be sittin' round miserable
People gon' talk whether you doing bad or good, yeah....
                                          ... Cheers to the fricken' weekend....I drink to that, yeah yeah"


Whatever y'all get into, BE SAFE!!!

Chocolate kisses!
xxox...

P.S I'm still learning how to embed music instead of the usual YouTube videos (especially for those that don't have official videos). Please let me know whether this works out. Thanks!!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Note to Self



So today was the first day of my summer classes and it's confirmed I'm going to hate the next few Mondays. Class from 9-12.....Work from 12-4/5... Class again from 6- 8.40. Lord help me! My 9am class is not beans at all! I'm not a huge fan of math and the likes - imagine being locked in for 3 hrs staring at formulas. Definitely not going to be fun at all! Ok, we do get a 10 minute break but really though?? Is that enough??!
Totally forgot it was Blessing's birthday so after dreaming of my bed all day, I got back home, changed and headed out to hers. I'm glad I made it over there though. It was a laid-back atmosphere. Food, drinks, and good company... Fell into the discussion of "Naija girls and their wahala"... and everything under that umbrella. We went from the spiritual aspect, where the guys there gladly yelled out the only memory verse they know.."Women, submit to your husbands..." LoL.. And of course, while we tried to defend ourselves, they were quick to say that's why we are still single...lol.. "we are trying to talk over them"...
It was a pretty hilarious convo though.. and ironically one of the babes there was engaged and she made statement which I am still trying to take in... She said "Once you meet your husband, you will know."...As convinced as I am about this, I have my doubts. Then again, perhaps that's why the conviction hasn't reached me... I'm too blinded by my doubts and fears... and for all you know, I probably haven't met him!
Bloop!!

Anyway, it was fun overall... its 1:30am now. Only got back home about 30minutes ago and I am dead tired as y'all can imagine.

Meanwhile, I text my dad just venting about school and how I am not mentally prepared for this next phase and well this was his reply: "MPH is not cheesecake.".....#classic
Gotta love that man! LoL!  P.S in case you're wondering what MPH is, it's Master of Public Health... which is what I'm doing right now. I don't know what I was expecting him to say but well, it's true. Bottom line is: anything you want in this life, you have to be prepared to work hard and put in all you've got.

Bedtime! Have to force myself to sleep. Work in the morning......woosshh! God give me strength!

Photo credit: Google Images
xxox...

Friday, May 13, 2011

Ladies...will you wait?

One word: DEEP


"You know he's sorta-kinda right BUT sorta kinda wrong... First name "Luke"...last name "Warm"...


.... Can you wait? .....even when the pressure is on......Will you wait? I would love to hear your thoughts on this my dear people.

xxox...

#Song4dWeekEND

Hey guys!
I can't believe how fast this week's gone by. It's kinda scary but nevertheless, we thank God. My mini-break from school's pretty much over- yup! Summer classes begin on Monday and God knows I'm NOT looking forward to it at all! Another 10-week lockup! Does this ish ever end?
Back then, it was okay to have a high school degree.... and then it turned to making sure you got a college degree. Nowadays, even that is not enough; people find you more "efficient" with a Masters degree... or a PhD!!
DOES IT EVER REALLY END?
Seems like from conception to death, we continue to be slaves to something or someone, if not both. God help us all! (Amen)

I went to watch Fast Five yesterday and OMG!! Y'all need to go see it! In my opinion, it tops the last 3 combined. I know I was one of those who complained when I saw the preview in January, like geez is it really necessary. Well, I have swallowed my words! That movie was Awesome & Amazing!! Is there a word for that? Let's try>>>>> "AWE-MAZING"..or does "AWE-SMAZING" sound better?!! I think i prefer "awesmazing". Who's with me? Whoop! Whoop!! There we go. New word to add to ur vocab. lol! I'm so random I know!

I don't really have plans for the weekend.... going with the flow! What are you guys up to? Holla!

Here's the song4dWeekend:

Swizz Beatz feat Eve: Everyday (Coolin'):
Love when Eve goes..."Who want problem, wah- wah- wah-, who want flip... I'm hot like everything kickin, I'm a problem!"  

Good seeing my girl Eve coming back into the game... And Mr. Beatz still going strong!! I love him so much more now that he's with Alicia!

Alright people! Have an AWESMAZING weekend!

P.S... I have been making a few changes on the page as y'all might have noticed. Let me know what you think. 

Chocolate kisses
xxox...

Love Designs Vol. 1


“Babe the phone is ringing…”
*ring ring ring*
“Can’t u answer?”
“But you’re closer now…why should I have to walk all the way?”
“No one ever calls me and you know this…”  *ring ring*
“Well, I never subscribed to rumor mills…”
*ERROR*…her jaw drops...
Babe answers just in time before it cuts off…
“Mula residence. Can I help you?”

A soft, yet shaky voice responds…“Good afternoon, my name is Muni and I would like to speak to Rich. Is he there?”
“Hold on a second”…..”Darling”, she yells….”it’s for you...says her name is Muni!!”

Dead silence sets in the room. . .
“Err...babe who did you say it is?”
“Muni now... sounds like there’s something wrong.
He slowly walked over and collected the phone from her.*

Noticing babe was still standing there, Rich quickly answered and was like “Sorry but I think you've got the wrong number.”
Of course his facial expressions had already spoken for him so babe just went upstairs and got on with her business.
 Babe isn't usually suspicious; she’s one of those who just keep things real and in her mind, because she does that...everyone else does the same. * A little bit shallow in my opinion*
She doesn't like keeping things bottled up. After all, everyone makes mistakes so why not just fess up and move on. Today wasn't the regular Muni kind of day. As she slipped her black dress on, all kinds of thoughts began to run through her mind...."Could he really cheat on me?" "Did I trust him too much?"..." Have I been lying to myself?"... "Where did I go wrong?"....
Suddenly she reaches for the phone to tap into Rich's conversation....

"Rich, why are you trying to deny this...me…US? You told me you loved me and you wanted to be with me. "
" Muni listen! I need you to calm down. I don't have time to explain anything to you now. What I need you to do is find a way to make that baby disappear and move on with your life. I don't know how you are going to do that but it shall be done. And please don't call this number again.”

“Rich! Rich, what are you saying? We were in this together from the beginning. All those nights...in fact all these years you told me I was your only......"
****
Babe dropped on the floor....tears dripping uncontrollably. Her hands trembling; shock written all over her face… She could not bear to listen anymore.
.................

"Babe, wake up...are you okay?
He hands her a glass of water..."Here take a sip"
"What happened?" She asked.
"I don't know I came in and found you on the floor"...

Suddenly Rich notices the phone beside her and realizes she had heard the entire conversation that transpired between him and Muni. Clearly, she didn't handle the news very well... 'I am d.e.a.d! How am I going to get out of this?
++++++++++

Rich and babe had been going on steady for 3 years plus; they met in Uni-he was in law school and she was a Mass Communications major. They shared so many interests like art, traveling & cultures, etc. Their parents had met and she'd moved into his place a little over a year ago. Both had steady jobs and although they had their major differences, compromise was what kept them together all through the years. .. She gave him her trust and vice-versa.
Life was good in general....or so it seemed!
Babe had always kept in touch with her exes- both the ones that did her greasy and the ones she screwed over! Rich ALWAYS had a problem with it but as always, due to his overflowing pride as a man, his response was "no it’s okay, go ahead"... (May pride not lead our relationships to an early demise (Amen) lol!
A certain J.J had moved into their zones about 6 months ago and like every new person, he found someone he knew who offered to show him around and help him settle down. Yup! You probably guessed right- he is one of babe’s exes. In fact, her FIRST love.
**Now you all know what they say about a woman’s first love** Hmmmm
Well, J.J and babe had been spending a significant amount of time together since he moved to their area and Rich was getting a bit uncomfortable with it. To be fair though, babe ALWAYS invited Rich to come with her each time they were going out, but once again, his pride wouldn’t let him agree.  Each time she came back and tried to tell him what they got up to, he acted like he wasn’t interested…..
2 months passed by and soon enough, Rich was asking questions like “Hasn’t he settled in yet? Are you still the only friend he has? Why don’t you introduce him to Uma and those other single ladies that form your rumor mill? Etc. Babe was beginning to sense someone was getting a bit uncomfortable with her movement so she asked… once... twice…six times “do you want me to stop hanging with him?”… Mr. ‘I’mtooproud’ Rich kindly said he has no problem with it and she is wise enough to make her own decisions so it’s all good.
Trust now, feeling like the coast was clear, babe kept on attending to her usual “first love paroles”.
++++++++++++
“Do you still want to go to dinner? You don’t look too well. Perhaps we should stay at home.”
“Oh no, I’m okay! See I’m already dressed so let’s just go.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes now! Or do you have other plans ….with Muni or something, she mumbled”
“Babe, that was unnecessary. We can talk about her over dinner.”
“Okay! Whatever you say then. Let’s go!”

****Candles lit…Jazz playing in the background…enough couples gazing into each other’s eyes…pure ambiance in the atmosphere I tell you!****

“I have something to tell you.”
Rich suddenly froze and his mind started racing…”Oh shoot! She’s been seeing J.J! I knew it. I’m going to beat that mother sucker when I see him!”……

Clears his throat…”Yes darling go ahead. I have something to tell you too.”
Her thoughts: So he’s been seeing that tramp behind my back all these years! He is so going to pay! Maybe I should tell him about J.J…..or not…’

“I’m pregnant.”
“Say what?”
You heard me, I’m pregnant.

Wow I’m so happy…(NOT!) 


...............................................................................To be continued! ;-)

xxox...

Photo credit: Darren Wallace

Monday, May 9, 2011

Back like I never left





Hello my luvlies!
SO sorry for the mini hiatus. I did tell you guys I had exams and guess what, they were all good! Thank God.. and thank those of you who remembered to pray for me. :-) Glad I can say I'm all done now- 1st year of graduate school is over! Bow-chicka-wow-wow!!! 
I only have a week off and after making major plans for where to go and what to do during this time, it seems I'm gonna stay put right here! *pout* 


My mom came through over Easter. She spent 2 days before heading down to Cali for a wedding. It was great company although brief, and I lost a lot of sleep because I had a paper due during the same period. (I never sleep on a normal day anyway). All in all, good times. Got to take her round a little bit and def had my freezer stocked with food!  Lol! She's my mom, what do you expect??!! Also got to go over to my cousin's...#goodtimes

Outside my godfather's house


Easter lunch @ my cousin's


Work's been rather ?><?<:<?<<?><?< ...yeah. That's exactly what I mean. There are no words to explain how things are there. 

One of my good friends- Abi- from waaaaaayy back came through over last weekend and I must say it was a CRAZY weekend. Hadn't seen her in about 14 years, despite the fact that we'd been in touch on and off through that period so you can imagine the excitement! Went out Friday night and I don't know what got into me but I DANCED!!! All of us ladies were in the zone! LoL! Best believe that! For those who don't know me, I'm one of those people who just gets in the zone and dances or moves, (whatever you want to call it) like no one is watching. I didn't take my camera and I'm yet to get the pics from that night but yeah.. it was ridic! On Saturday, there was a barbecue which was supposed to start at 1 but didn't get cracking till about 6. Enough people came through.. Abi a.k.a Tomato Jos was entertaining us all with her dance moves! Lol! Love you babes!
Abi & I
grill masters @ work
dancing time


Saturday night --->of course we had to go out again. Been a while since I did back-to-back clubbing like that especially since I still had one more paper to work on, but you know what guys, I was not going to kill myself because of school. Got dressed...put my red lipstick on (2nd time in my life) and hit the town with the ladies...and gents of course. Started off @ Shadow room but it wasn't really "happening" so we went on to Argana Lounge to party with fellow Nigerians. .. or perhaps I should say Africans. Lol! Putting the B.O (body odor) and "sardine" situation aside, and the fact that we got there at 2am, I think it was fun. My only advice to people who throw them type "free for ladies all night" events is to make sure the venue can contain the expected crowd. #thatisall. Anyway here are a few pics:
Workin' the RED
Blessing :-)
Abi & I ..again! 
LADIES!!!

 What a fun weekend!! 
ABI COME BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Don't mind me.  I'm supposed to go visit her in Philly and I intend do so! :-) 
************************************************
The highlight of this past week, besides the fact that my godfather "arranged Osama" and added more points to his swag-o-meter, was that I found the charm bracelet my brother got me for my 19th birthday! Been looking for it since I moved here in August and I was actually upset because I thought I lost it. It means a lot to me especially since he is no more here. Lord knows I miss him more and more EVERYDAY! (R.I.P)


***********************************************
How was your weekend?? Seeing that I'm done with my first year, my dear friend- (Estee, who featured here before) came over with a nice treat and my Saturday night became bubbly even though I was sleep-deprived...as always! Popped a bottle of Moet and ate Nando's on the side while catching up and acting silly...  
Hello!!

Na so craze dey start! LoL
 We eventually got hyper and decided to go to a bar/lounge. I'm a very spontaneous person and I think that is both good and bad, depending on the situation. Danced A LITTLE bit, while this dude approached me asking for my autograph! Omo! you go fear pick up lines. I looked at him like wth?! He kept trying harder and finally asked for my number. I gave my usually "I'm not from here and I'm leaving town tomorrow" reply and the next thing I heard was... "what now? You don't believe in long-distance friendships?"... Shooo??!! I just giggled and stepped aside politely. I'm not sure how many males read this blog but err... please is that how you guys "toast" females nowadays?! No further comment! 
Blame it on the alcohol! LOOOL 
 ****************************************
At this very moment, I am VERY VERY VERY upset.For those of you who don't keep up with basketball, I must say today went down as one of the darkest, if not the WORST days in history for my team-- Los Angeles Lakers. They got swept "with a broom and packer" (in the words of a friend) by the Dallas Mavericks! 4-0. 

Totally got kicked out of the playoffs like we aint sh*t! We won the last 2 (and MANY MORE)  but I guess this year's just wasn't meant to happen. It is evident that they have a lot of PERSONAL issues to settle amongst themselves e.g. "trust issues"  which makes it even more painful. Can't you put those differences aside and PLAY??? Anyway, I have eaten enough chocolate to comfort myself. Life goes on!!


New week about to begin! This was was supposed to be the #song4dweekend but I'm still gonna share it with y'all!
                                ........."I work too hard to be ballin' on a budget"....


Have a beautiful week! 
Chocolate kisses! 


xxox...


Photo credit: Photobucket