A Thought on Happiness

There is no magic recipe for being happy. Everyday will not be easy either and many days, frustration or sadness may cramp your mood. Trials are only for a time - some endure while others subside quickly. There is no magic potion to bring happiness. Voodoo can not bring happiness, but prayer can bring peace of mind.

Keeping balanced within the day takes a lot out of us. Some times we want to scream, curse, kick something or somebody or just walk away. We can't always get that justified result because we may lose a friendship, a contract or a job or go to jail.

Material things will be a short justification but they fade and can't talk to you or keep you warm at night. In a 24/7 world, happiness may just be a short-lived thought or daydream. Peace of mind and balance seem more real but some days, we all know these are not even realistic as we try to maintain finances, keep families together, build communities and nations and pursue multiple careers.

ribbon

Great Music of 2001: Mahogany Soul by Angie Stone

In 2001, Angie Stone released Mahogany Soul featuring "Brotha", "Pissed Off", "Wish I Didn't Miss You" and "If I Wasn't".

Angela Stone, known to R&B and Soul music fans as Angie Stone, released her sophomore album, Mahogany Soul on October 16, 2001. Mahogany Soul was a follow-up to her debut album Black Diamond in 1999. She was once a member of the R&B group, Vertical Hold. According to her official website, in the early 1990s, "after struggling to launch a solo career in the States, Stone headed for Europe, where audiences were more receptive." It was after meeting with Clive Davis of Arista, Stone released Black Diamond which featured "No More Rain (In This Cloud)."

The Soulful Mahogany Soul

Mahogany Soul presents 18 tracks of soulful and inspiring songs including "More Than a Woman" featuring former Undacova member Calvin Richardson, "Bottles & Cans", "The Ingredients of Love" - a duet with Music Soulchild, "Life Goes On" and "Easier Said Than Done". Angie Stone not only had lyrical input in the album but she co- executive produced with Peter Edge and Breyon Prescott.

• "Brotha": "Brotha" was such a hot track that it appeared on the album twice with the latter being a remix featuring Eve and Alicia Keys. The original version is the second track on the album and this song is almost an anthem dedicated to all the hard working black men. In the chorus she sings, "Black brotha/ I love ya/ I'll never try to hurt you...there is no one above you...." "Brotha" had lyrical input from Stone, Raphael Saadiq, Harold Lilly, Glenn Standridge and Robert C. Ozuna. The music video was also special because it featured images of African American icons such as Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Bill Cosby, Bishop Desmond Tutu and many others.
• "Wish I Didn't Miss You": "Wish I Didn't Miss You" brought back that 70s vibe with the instrumental from The O'Jays' "Backstabbers." Written by Andrea Martin and Ivan Matias, this song shares the tale of a broken relationship and the lover the singer still misses. She sings "every time you say you're coming, you disappoint me honey" and in the chorus, "I can't eat, I can't sleep anymore, waiting for love to walk through the door."
• "Pissed Off": While this song is supposed to be an expression of anger as shared in the title, it is quite mellow. Stone co-wrote this song with Eran Tabib, Rufus Moore and Stephanie Bolton. This is not the typical angry song, but Stone expresses "so pissed off/ looking at life through the glass that you shattered...can't let up long enough to get over it...."
• "More Than A Woman" featuring Calvin Richardson: Sexy, sweet and soulful describe "More Than a Woman" which was featured in the 2002 movie release Deliver Us From Eva starring Gabriel Union and LL Cool J. This song is a dedication to unconditional love because of the heights of love that the artists express. "Girl you must've lost your way from heaven/ Could it be for me you came so far /nothing like the ordinary woman/ You're the very beat inside my heart" are a sample of the lyrics.
• "Makings of You": They always say that it is hard to remake a song and do it justice but there are some artists who can. Angie Stone took a big step in her two minute and one-half minute interlude "Makings of You". Giving the song her own musical flare, Stone brought this Curtis Mayfield original a new life.

Angie Stone Keeps Singing
While Angie Stone's biography shares that she has "mapped a life-long journey that encompasses rap, neo-soul, hip-hop, R&B, jazz and more", it is clear that she has star and staying power in the music industry. She has also appeared on VH1's Celebrity Fit Club in Season 4 and shares her writing talents as she co-wrote D'Angelo's "Jonz in My Bonz" from his 1995 Brown Sugar album. Since Mahogany Soul, Stone released Stone Love in 2004, The Art of Love & War in 2008, Unexpected in 2009 and the E-Single, I Ain't Hearin You in 2009. 

What is 'fun' for you?

Everyone looks at having fun differently. Fun for me might be dancing with my kids or reading at a poetry reading. For others it might be playing video games, going to the movies or playing softball. Each person know what makes them smile and also when to comprimise to have fun with others.

When there is a shortage of cash, then the usual fun activities may have to be cut or reduced. Fun can still happen though. For movie buffs, rent and pop your own popcorn and drink soda from a two litre bottle. If you love dancing look for a 'ladies night' event or go somewhere that does not have a cover charge. Afterall, are you going to the club for the people or for the music to dance?

If books make you happy, hit the library. If listening to music is your stress relief, then check Youtube or MySpace and listen free until you can afford to purchase. If you miss the arcade, then do a small tournament with friends on a system that hosts 4 controllers.

If you have a drop income or if you need to deal with other priorities, it does not mean that you can not have fun. You just have to adjust your lifestyle. If you are newly married or have young children, you're not as flexible to go out. However, couples can still have their special time together - establish and follow a bedtime routine for the children!

It's all in your hands - only you can help yourself have fun.

ribbon

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days - not a review but My Thoughts

How would you really lose a guy in 10 days? I'm just watching this movie on Oxygen and what the female character did would run a guy in 10 days. Who really wants a clingy person hanging around them? No one wants a relationship with anyone who pays too much attention to them because everyone wants their space.

She was flat out annoying and most men would run once they realize that the woman has clingy intentions. Incessant phone calls, crazy mood swings, eating disorders, unannounced visits are all ways that both men and women put a potentially good relationship to end.

Relationships should be based on love, trust and some mutual understanding. We both have to be understanding and flexible while being willing to comprimise. Afterall who wants a relationship with rules coming from every angle. Sometimes, you just have to live in the moment.

I have been clingy in the past and I know I have been annoying too but these are lessons that were well learned and I know better now.

ribbon

Networking and Customer Service are Important

Networking is key in business. I hope that if my name is mentioned, the reaction will be positive. Businesses have to work hard to keep customers by building goodwill which in turn means building a good name. I have been blessed to work with good people who have built a name for themselves. Once I say that I know that person, the conversation or transaction goes smoother.

I think what builds goodwill is when a business acknowledges the customers' rights and feeling. I do no agree that the customer is always right because there are many cases when we are not. However, situations can be dealt with in such a way to alleviate the harshness of a situation.

I had a bank teller tell me something that I did not like. I carried some dollar bills to be changed to bigger bills and the young lady told me that I was showing the first sign of money laundering. I actually ended up leaving that bank to go to another one to get them changed. I reflected on the situation and I wrote the bank explaining to them that I have been a long term customer and I wished to use more services. I asked them to offer the tellers more training because $75 in one dollar bills could come from many different sources - like my piggy bank. The bank was excellent in their response and apologized. I felt proud to be a customer once again.

That bank solidified that goodwill for me. I have had several other good experiences but I have had my share of bad too. I feel that I am professional and that I try my best to get my job done. Therefore I expect nothing less when I am paying for a service.

New entrepreneurs have to bear customer service heavily in mind and need to maintain solid business contacts. Even if there are competitors, still show a good face because it will prove to help you in the long run. In life, networking is important because these contacts can remain lifelong counterparts. Networking may start in school, church, at the gym or even at the grocery store. We never know who will turn out to be a key person that may help to push our career or business along.

Keep that goodwill going strong!

ribbon

POEM: Arrested Development

is my development arrested
or am I under-invested
I give my personal best
and yet
for me they want death
but I've got strength
and I go to the lengths
I swim to the depths
I remember when I crept
I know my momma wept
when I did my best
when I live with zest
even when I am under-arrest
my happiness is where I now invest

© ribbon

Use Your Imagination

They say you're not living unless you've travelled. I think that you're not living if you don't use your imagination. Do just think in straight lines? Or are you in bends and twists everywhere? I love to think about new ideas and fun things. Of course, I don't spend all of my day daydreaming but I like to visualize things - especially how I can move forward in life.

I am community minded so no matter what it's hard to turn a blind eye when I see nonsense going on around me. It's just that the solutions are not always at hand but brainstorming helps to solve these problems - we just need to do this on a national level.

If you are not able to travel, can you imagine yourself somewhere? Can you think about being with Moses at the burning bush?  Or standing next to President Obama when he was sworn in? Don't put this down as childish whims because it is out of innovation, inspiration and imagination that we are in the technological world we are in today. Who would have thought that we can have a box in the house that keeps things cold? Further, we rely so much on this box that when there is a power outage, our first thought is about the food in the box spoiling!

Let your mind run and see where it takes you because it could be a global solution, a great book or just a fun time with your imagination!

ribbon