Ribbon's Thoughts on a 'Holy' Thursday

It's not how you look to others. It's not how you are percieved by others. It's how you live with others and how you feel about yourself.

Don't let anyone be a stumbling block in your life. RISE! RISE! RISE! Have faith, get focused and pray. Take positive advice and run with it.

Love yourself. Feel good within your skin. Take care of yourself, not just with a hairdresser trip but with a massage, healthy eating and exercise.

Take care of your finances. Live within your means and this may really mean not taking that trip to the hairdresser and putting on that wig or piece or your own afro!

Take time for reflection and meditiation. Don't let anyone rush you into a hard decision unless there is an emergency. THINK! THINK! THINK! ...wisely, of course...

Be yourself and if you are grumpy, find something that can lighten that mood. Don't throw it on the rest of us. Or just tell us you are not in the best mood and to give you some space.

Find your spiritual center. Find your place of worship - however you do it, wherever you do it - praise God!

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POEM: A New Definition by Linette Rabsatt

Confessions of a Chocolate-aholic who also loves cheesecake

I love chocolate. I also love cheesecake but Hersheys, Snickers, Cadbury and M&Ms are my fix. Whether it's time of the month or a long day, chocolate makes me happy. I can remember eating one-half of the large St. Thomas Dairies chocolate icecream when I was pregnant with my daughter. It's funny because I still wonder why she was 7.5lbs.

Sweets are my weakness and it's something that I need to monitor because I come from a family who suffers diabetes and high blood pressure. I need to keep active and drink fluids to wash away these sweets.

I am also not ashamed to say that I don't like sharing my sweets. Call me 'selfish' but I love to sit and enjoy chocolate without having to break one piece or give away one M&M. As I write this blog post, I am enjoying a Cadbury Whole Nut. My inspiration comes from the simple things of life - a nice chocolate bar or a slice of 'good' cheesecake.

I don't need to eat the Dark Forest type chocolate cake unless I am really peevish. A nice tirumisu is good if you can get a nice piece. Don't get me wrong - I do love my local gooseberry or tamarind stew, a good piece of tart or a good vienna cake.

Chocolate just does something different and special for me. It is relaxing and perfectly sweet yet it makes me smile. I just love it!

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Reggae Artists Collaborations in Hip Hop, R&B and Pop

Reggae artists have worked with artists such as Mick Jagger, Beyonce, No Doubt and Janet Jackson in collaborations to produce chart topping songs.

Reggae music and its artists are versatile and have proven this by collaborating in songs with artists from other genres. Artists such as Peter Tosh, Shabba Ranks and Baby Cham among others have worked with R&B, Hip Hop and Pop artists to produce songs that are loved internationally.

Big Hits Featuring Reggae Artists

The list of reggae artists who have teamed with artists from other genres to write and sing would be very long. The following songs are well-loved and include classics from Peter Tosh, Patra and Shabba Ranks as well as more recent music from John Legend and Sean Paul.

• Peter Tosh and Mick Jagger: "(You Got to Walk And) Don't Look Back" is a reggae song about moving forward from bad relationships. "(You Got to Walk And) Don't Look Back" came from Tosh's 1978 album, Bush Doctor. Both of these powerful artists sang in the chorus, "so if you just put your hands in mine/ we're gonna leave all our troubles behind/ you got to walk and don't look back".
• Patra and YoYo: Patra and Yoyo sang "Romantic Call" from Patra's 1993 Queen of the Pack. Patra sings in the chorus "I'm on a romantic call, talking to my baby down a mi yard" and other lyrics include "phone call loving help when you feel lonely/ him can tell you things make you feel sexy". "Take your hands and wrap them round my waist/ cause I know that you can't wait" chants YoYo in her rap. There was a cameo of Tupac Shakur in the music video for "Romantic Call".
• Shabba Ranks and KRS-One: "The Jam" by Shabba Ranks featuring KRS-One was released on Shabba's As Raw As Ever album in 1991. KRS-One is known for his lyrical flow and had lyrics like "taking titles/ breaking idols/ the lyrics I chant in your head are like vitals" and "Boogey Down Productions specialize in classics/ cause all the others specialize in plastics" in "The Jam".
• John Legend and Buju Banton: John Legend's "Can't Be My Lover" comes from the No Other Love / Can't Be My Lover - Cool Breeze Mixes album released in 2009. "I got my bird in the eye why chase one in the sky" chants Buju Banton as Legend sings "over and over, over again... I tried to tell her no. no, no, I already have a friend".
• Baby Cham and Alicia Keys:  Baby Cham released "Ghetto Story" with Alicia Keys in 2006 on his album with the same title, Ghetto Story. Alicia chants in the song, "I remember the days when I went to bed hungry/ all I ever ate was white rice and honey". Some of Baby Cham's lyrics are "…when me and momma bed was a big piece of foam/ and me never like bathe and my hair never comb".
• Damien 'Jr. Gong' Marley and Bobby Brown: "Beautiful" is a sultry song by Damien 'Jr. Gong' Marley featuring Bobby Brown of New Edition. Coming from Marley's 2005 Welcome To Jamrock, "Beautiful" is a dedication to a lovely lady of good character. "She's the only queen the king is designating" and "she don't have no scratches only beauty spots" are some of Marley's lyrics.
• Barrington Levy and Shyne:  Barrington Levy was featured on two songs from Shyne's 2000 self-titled album, "Bonnie and Shyne" and "Bad Boy". In both songs, Levy adds his flavor and he was featured in both music videos.

Collaborations with Beenie Man

Beenie is considered one of the most popular reggae artists. He has collaborated with other reggae artists and also with Janet Jackson and Mya.

• "Girls Dem Sugar": Beenie Man's Art & Life album in 2000 carried a special song, "Girls Dem Sugar" featuring the songstress Mya. Beenie Man had already coined the phrase "girls dem sugar" in "Who Am I" from his 1997 album, Many Moods of Moses.
• "Feel It Boy": "Feel It Boy" came from Beenie Man's 2002 Tropical Storm. Janet sings the hook and Beenie Man tells the story in his chant. He starts the song off with "whenever I got no money/ she's still my honey" and Janet sings in part of the chorus "let's forget everything and everybody/ let's just have a party, me and you".

Reggae Collaborations with No Doubt

No Doubt featuring Gwen Stefani collaborated with Bounty Killer and Lady Saw on their 2001 album Rock Steady.

• "Hey Baby":  Bounty Killer, known for his hard lyrics in songs like "Sufferah" and "Fed Up" from his 2002 Ghetto Dictionary: The Mystery album, sang with No Doubt in "Hey Baby". Some of Bounty Killer's lyrics in "Hey Baby" are "when you rock your hips you know it amaze me...can you be my one and only sunshine lady" and he is featured in the music video.
• "Underneath It All":  Lady Saw joined with No Doubt in "Underneath It All", a mellow song with classic reggae and pop undertones. Stefani sings in the chorus "you're really lovely, underneath it all/ you want to love me, underneath it all". Part of Lady Saw's chant is "underneath it all you are my real prince charming/ like the heat from the fire you are always burning". Lady Saw does not appear in this video. This song appeared in the 2004 romantic comedy 50 First Dates headlined by Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.

Collaborations with Sean Paul

Sean Paul has collaborated with several major artists including Busta  Rhymes in the "Gimme The Light Remix" and "Make It Clap", Blu Cantrell, Keisha Cole, Keri Hilson and Beyonce.

• "Give It Up To Me": Coming from the movie, Step Up (2006), Sean Paul sings "Give It Up to Me" with R&B songstress, Keisha Cole. Sean Paul chants "first place a where you belong" and "why can't you see, we ought to be together/ girl don't front on me". Lyrics from Keisha Cole include "as a woman on my own, I got it going on/ I'm liking what I see and I don't want to be alone".
• "Hold My Hand (I'll Be There): "Hold My Hand (I'll Be There) features [Keri Hilson](http://www.kerihilson.com) and comes from Sean Paul's 2009 Imperial Blaze album. "Girl you know I care, so if you ever lose your way/ don't have no fear" is part of the chorus that Sean Paul sings. Lyrics from Hilson include "and I never would disrespect boy/ I love you straight to my last breath".

Reggae is a genre that is never stagnant. The artists are talented and have and will continue to collaborate with artists from other genres to give the special flavor to the music that people love.

Ribbon's Tips for Saving & Reducing Debt

Making ends meet is not easy. It gets harder when you have bad habits. I listen to people who are crying that money is tight but yet some of them are 'fly' and taking trips. What are your priorities? I had to set mine in order to survive and still be able to enjoy the basics.

1. Save your change - singles and coins in a jar. Only access when the jar is full or if you really have no other funds to buy bread or water!
2. Take care of your family's clothing so that they can last longer. Iron dark colors with a white cloth and wash whites in hot water.
3. Recycle uniforms, books, church clothes with other family members or close friends.
4. Drive less by grouping errands and walking short distances. It's too hard to find parking spaces anyway!
5. Set a realistic savings goal. $20 per week is still $1,040 for one year.
6. Join a partnerhand and save your hand in a CD or Christmas Club account.
7. Long drives or ferry or airplane trips to shop? Can you really not find what you need online or where you live? What are you shopping for anyway - things you want or need?
8. Set goals. What is more important to you - a home or a car? If it's the car, then take car of it.
9. Include your car in your monthly budget. It needs tires, gas, brakes, servicing, coolant, oil, battery etc. Don't play cheap and not buy the new tires you need and be sure to rotate them. Driving on bum tires burns more gas.
10. If you cook food for your children then you can take lunch to work with you. Are you ashamed to walk with a lunch bag but not afraid to ask someone to buy you lunch? That's an lol moment for me!
11. Do your own hair once or twice a month. I do not mean for you to relax your own hair - we never recommend that. However, can't you style your hair by adding a wig, twisting, afroing, wrapping or using flexirods (thank's Juju) for cute curls.
12. Recycle, Reuse and conserve what you can whenever you can.
13. Try not to use the credit unless you can pay it off in one month. Remember, you pay interest on your credit card debt. If you are late once, your interest payment could double and of course there will be late fees. Use a debit card instead so that means if you don't have the money in the account, you can't shop.
14. Reduce your cable and telephone bills if you can. If you have internet, use Skype or another VOIP.

You still have to enjoy yourself and have fun. However, if you are in debt, you have to make choices to get yourself ahead. So if it means not going to the movies or going shopping, then do what is necessary.

I no longer feel sorry for anyone who lives beyond their means or who wants to keep up with the 'Jones and them'. I've made too many sacrifices to keep myself from sinking. Wake up, grow up and get your finances in order.

This is an example of ribbon's no-nonsense guidelines. Do what you know is right.

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POEM: How I Feel About You

Jamie Foxx said we are unpredictable
but I say whether or not, anything is possible
cause you and I are inseperable
it's like we are virtually incapable
of not loving each other
not wanting another
cause with you I feel cooler
loving you makes life much smoother
I lavish in the way you've captivated me
you in my future is what I see
this love has taken me to the place I want to be
so let's chill and listen to some Luther, McKnight or Bob Marley
relax, rewind, live life completely
cause you and I deserve more than satisfactory
let's be each other's significant other significantly
distinctively
physically
passionately
spiritually

© Linette Rabsatt

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POEM: My Sight

My Sight

In the heat of the night
or the heat of the day
My sight is varied
and my heart wants to play
I want to take flight
grow wings and soar
fly high above the mountains
to admire nature's seductive allure
I see the bright lights
the illuminators of the sky
how they shine on their journey
the reason I want to fly
These feelings I don't fight
it's an imagination's climax
only words can describe
wide-eyed thoughts with no syntax

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