The ice, my God the ice!

It’s Superbowl week, so the eyes of the nation are on Dallas. It has definitely been an interesting couple of days in the Dallas area. As I type this it has been approximately 4 days since I left my house. I am fortunate enough to have a job where as long as I have my Blackberry and my laptop and can work any anywhere for a few days. So I didn’t have any pressure from my manger to physically be in the office. Yes, in case you are wondering I am powerful bored, and cabin fever set in around Wednesday afternoon. However, spending this much time in my house, I have learned a few things about myself.

After watching the news for a day, I immediately became terrified of the thought of my car driving over a tiny bit of ice. My driveway was a complete sheet of ice, as well as my whole neighborhood. When I had a thought about leaving (being brave), all I could think is “my deductible is $500.” I was 100% certain I would go careening into a mailbox, guard rail or just go flying off a bridge. Yeah, I’m a bit of a worse case scenario person. So, I made the decision not to leave the house, mostly because I couldn’t think of a good reason to go anywhere, which leads me to my next bit of self discovery.

I am prepared for a blizzard at all times. Everything I have needed over the last few days I already had at home, (well with the exception of rock salt and a snow shovel). Seriously, I have a pantry stocked with dry goods and can goods, a freezer filled with food, medicine cabinets filled with meds, and all the booze I could ever need! (I tend to buy in bulk when products go on sale). This bit of hoarder-esque behavior was so beneficial this week.

I’m not sure I’ve ever eaten every single meal at home for this many days in a row. I usually do a lunch or dinner out during the week. Since Monday night I have been cooking every meal. Trying new recipes has been great, since I really enjoy cooking, but don’t always have time. Money wise and calorie wise the last few days have been a double win!

All in all, while I spent this post doing a little bit of ranting, this week has made me realize and appreciate how truly blessed I am. Being in my warm, fully stocked house for a few days is not a horrible place to be AT ALL. Netflix streaming, my kindle and a couple of bottles of Malbec also made the unexpected slow down rather delightful. Tomorrow the highs are supposed to be above freezing. Next week I’ll be back to the running around from place to place I love so much.

It's that time of year again...Black History Month!

Oh the month of February, a time of refection on all the contributions Black people have made to America. Don't worry though, you only need reflect for a mere 28 days. Now I know I should feel an incredible amount of excitement for Black History Month, but I don't. I guess I would just prefer for Black people to be acknowledged for their awesomeness during the entire calendar year.

Over the next 28 days television programming will be modified to show more movies and TV shows with Black actors or topics Black people might find interesting. For example, today HBO aired the movie “Ghosts of Mississippi”; I guess their plan is to make Black people sad and/or angry for Black History Month.

You might be wondering as a non-Black person, what you can do to make this Black History Month memorable? Whatever you do, do not under any circumstances watch more BET; that’s not going to help anybody, anywhere, EVER. However, over the next few weeks, I will provide a few tips to make sure you have a safe and happy Black History Month.

Tip #1

Don’t make any comments about February being the shortest month of the year. Yes, while this old ass joke might be funny in many non-Black circles, I assure you it’s not that hilarious. For real. However, if it does come up, say something like “It’s a shame Black History Month is only 28 days”. “Hey, did you know a Black man invented the key chain?” Then pull out of your pocket your MLK key chain. Don’t have one? Well get one for crap sakes, it is Black History Month after all.

Till next time!

2010: My Favorite Things

Yeah, so I totally stole this from Oprah, obviously, but it’s not exactly the same. I’m not giving away free stuff. So if that’s what you’re looking for you should stop reading right now. This is more of a list of things that you can read, and then save up the money to experience yourself, if you want.

Favorite Trip - Pacific Northwest Adventure

In May of this year, as a “congrats” gift to myself for finishing graduate school, I took a Great Pacific Northwest Adventure. It was a five day trip which started in Seattle, took me to Victoria, BC Canada, and culminated with a 2 night concert. I got to meet my favorite band of ALL time, Our Lady Peace. I made a bold move and took a solo vacation. It was one of the most incredible times I’ve ever had. When you travel alone, you really have to work to immerse yourself into a city’s culture and be more open to talking with and engaging strangers. That part was a bit scary at first, but along the way I met some pretty nice folks. Canadians are so nice it is ridiculous. It’s like they don’t know how awful people are in the countries underneath and beside them.

Sidenote: I have LOVED LOVED LOVED Our Lady Peace since I was in highschool. Meeting them was incredible, AND they were so nice, humble, and appreciative of their fans. Secretly I was worried that they might be jerk asses, but they were friggin fantastic! Can’t wait for their next album in 2011!

Honorable Mention - Boston

This trip was not a solo trip, I went with my brother, his GF, and their friend John. Boston is a fabulous city. We did WAY to much bar hopping. We also saw a real life Tea Party protest, which was unfortunate.

Favorite Movie - Black Swan

This year I went to the movies like it was my second job, kinda like I was somehow making money instead of spending money each time. I watch a lot of independent films and documentaries at the Angelika. I don’t always choose movies that will simply entertain and make me feel happy with a nicely buttoned up happy ending. There’s nothing wrong with happy endings per say, they are not just a requirement for me. (hahaha happy endings). Black Swan is such an incredibly acted movie; it’s elegant, dark, and visceral. The movie looks at perfection, stunted emotional growth and how an idea can completely consume a person, and force them to descend into madness. Greatness. Thank you Darren Aronofsky.

Honorable Mention (in no particular order, since I tried that and it was talking to too long to decide)

127 Hours

Inception

Inside Job

The Fighter

True Grit

The Social Network

Favorite CD - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Kanye West

Just recently my Mom and I were cruising around town, listening to some tunes on my iPod, and she turned to me and said, “As professional as you are, you really listen to a lot of rap music.” I had no response, other than that maybe I am genetically predisposed to loving dope beats. I can’t explain it; I can’t defend it, but I STILL love hip hop. I also love cartoons (I watch Adult Swim on Cartoon network almost every evening) Maybe I will grow out of these things, at some point, but I doubt it. (I secretly hope I don’t though). I know that no one can love Kanye West more than Kanye West. However, I have been a Kanye fan since his first song “Through the Wire”. I was completely blown away by the creativity and risk he took on his his latest album. I think Mr. West has created his own genre of music.

Honorable Mention

How I Got Over – The Roots

The ArchAndroid - Janelle Monáe

Brothers – The Black Keys

So did you have any 2010 favorite things? Don’t all three of you jump in at once.

2010: In Review

This year had many highs and lows but if I had to give the year a grade it would get strong C. The last 365 days were just average, but not great. I had some personal achievements this year but still not where I would like to be. I turned 30 this year. Milestone birthdays lend themselves to self evaluation. As I started going through the arbitrary checklist I created I was less than pleased with the results. Since I was a student for part of the year I used a letter grading system.

Professional: C+

I completed graduate school in May of this year. I was actually extremely proud of myself, and honestly thought it would lead to more/better job opportunities. Okay I have an MBA, my life is about to….STAY EXACTLY THE SAME. However, the 2010 job market has been less than promising. Many people lost their jobs this year, so I know I am fortunate. None of my attempts to find new opportunities led to anything. I am attempting to remain positive, but I get very worried about my future, since at some point I want to enjoy my work. Throughout the year I would have these outlandish thoughts about starting my own business, or becoming a professional comedy writer. Then I realized all this overwhelming disappointment has stolen my funny right out of my brain. It’s gone. For real.

Personal: D-

My stupid, stupid weight. I swear to God I have lost at least 250 pounds in my lifetime…..and then promptly gained it all back. Seriously, I lost 80 pounds a few years ago and gained back 40. However, this is to be expected since I have refused to deal with the emotional issues that cause me to eat so damn much. Wait, I don’t just really LOVE pizza and gummy bears?!? Mental note for 2011, try therapy.

Also dating. What’s that? Sometimes I get nervous that I will never find a husband and may not be able to move to the next step. In this sense I feel emotionally immature. There is a certain amount of “legitimate adult” that goes along with marriage and the whole bit. At this point, I might just marry the next dude that tries to holla at me when I am at Lowes (that seems to be the only place men approach me in public). I know that’s weird, but maybe there is just something super crazy sexy about a woman buying paint or air filters.

This year I did quite a bit or reading and researching about my personality type. Why? Mostly because I don’t feel normal. Research findings…I am an Introvert. An EXTERME introvert. That was not shocking, but it makes me understand why it is so difficult for me to make new friends. Everyone in my family and ALL of my friends (albeit a short list) are extroverts. It also makes me understand why I want to punch people in the face who tell me to “get out there more”. Stupid extroverts. Awww snap, was that you funny?!? It makes brief appearances every now and again. I am currently reading several books and will elaborate more on my personality more in a later post. Riveting, huh? I figure these little teasers could boost my blog hits up into double digits!

Okay that is all. Looking forward to better everything in 2011.