Good-bye 2010....I'm glad to see you go

source: Crunch Gear

"Such is life" - my mom

2010 has been a thorn in my side since it began.  I never saw the horizon because I spent so much time in the valley.  It seems as if everything that could go wrong in my life, did go wrong.  It pained me to see some of the things I worked so hard to achieve taken away from me.  I felt like I spent most of the year down and defeated, trying to fight off every battle that was thrown my way.  Do I think I've grown? Absolutely.  Am I grateful for the obstacles I've faced? Yes.  Did I like it? No, who wants to experience life when it seems everything is going wrong.  If I had to chose to do it again, would I?  Yes, if it was God's plan for me.

So while I am glad to bid a farewell to 2010, it is mainly becuase I am ready to take on everything that is waiting for me as I step in 2011.  I will continue the journey that I started in 2010, but my outlook will be brighter, my steps will be stronger, my faith will carry me and I will take with me, everything that 2010 threw at me.  Most of it knocked me down and some of it kept me down, but I'm shaking it off and using it as the foundation that I step on to move forward to what is waiting for me.

So farewell 2010, I wish you well.  I eagerly await everything that your sister, 2011 has for me.  Bring it on, because I'm ready! 

Happy New Year

Buried in Brooklyn

I laughed at the people in New York because they were buddled up with hats, scarves, gloves and North Face coats and it was still in the 40s.  Even in the 30s, with the sun shining, it was still nice outside.  The weather in November and December, in New York was nothing compared to the frigid weather that my family faced in Chicago. 

Fast forward to Christmas weekend and a winter storm would fall upon the northeast, dropping plenty of the white stuff right over Brooklyn.  The cancellation of hundreds of flight would let me know just how bad the snow had disabled the New York, New Jersey and Philadephia areas.  Heading to the airport I was happy to know that American Airlines flight #1918 was scheduled to leave on time.  Check-in and security were a breeze.  In fact, I had just 1 hour before my flight was scheduled to board.  Max was settled in his carrier and just as I settled in to drink my apple juice, it happened.  One glance of the flight board and my flight was delayed for three hours, until 9:20pm. 

Fast forward another nine hours and I pulled my suitcase through the snow.  The snow that was piled so high that the cab driver couldn't drive down my street.  Snow that was so high, I had to pick up Max because it was too much for him to walk through.  Snow that covered the front porch of my building.  Finally at 2:00am (12 hours after leaving for the airport in Chicago), tired, hungry, sleepy and with a major headache, I walked into my apartment, left my luggage by the door, got in my pajamas and went to bed (ok so I watched an episode of Cold Case first). 

Here are pictures of what waited for me and Max, this mornng, as we went on our morning (well, afternoon ) walk.   Hopefully, we won't be buried in Brooklyn for too long.



a neighbor trying to dig his car out of the snow





looking for a place to do his business





I guess the saying is true "rain, sleet or snow" you will get your mail





my front porch



He is...............

source: tvguide.com

Laz Alonso, Laz Alonso, Laz Alonso.  The brother is so fine, I gotta say his name three times.  So many times, I've mentioned his name and how fine he is and usually most women will say, "who is that?"  And since I have his pictures saved on my computer like he's a member of my family, the only thing I can do is e-mail his photo to the person that is clueless to his name.  It's never a surprise that the response e-mails I receive always says something like, "oh yeah that brother is fine," or "oh my God, I watch the movies he's in just to stare at his face," and my favorite, "good God no one should be that fine."  So it's pretty obvious that he has a face that no woman can forget.

Here's a little about Laz (source: www.imbd.com)"Born and raised in Washington DC, Laz always knew he wanted to be an actor. He remembers at a very early age entertaining his family by imitating relatives and family friends. He graduated from the prestigious Howard University School of Business, earning a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration with a concentration in marketing. After college, he worked on Wall Street at an investment banking firm. He and several partners eventually started their own marketing business, promoting mainstream products to the trend-setting urban market. Owning and operating his own successful business freed up Laz's time to finally explore his passion for acting. Laz began taking classes in the evening to hone his craft and it didn't take him long to begin landing roles in commercials and videos.

From D.C. to New York, Laz feels his upbringing not only taught him how to deal with the school of hard knocks, but also prepared him for his biggest goal, his acting career. He credits the move to NYC as his move into manhood and the city holds many great memories for him. Laz also credits his acting ability to these life experiences, as he is able to bring a little of what he knows or has dealt with into his characters."

While Laz has appeared in many movies and television shows, some of his most memorable are Miracle at St. Anna, This Christmas, Stomp the Yard, Just Wright, Fast & Furious and who can forget Avatar.  So blue, and still so fine!  Laz is the kind of fine that you'd lay in the bed at night just staring at his face, while he sleeps (yeah, I know that's a little stalker like).  He's the kind of fine that you root for his character in a movie, even though he an asshole, because he's too fine to root against (i.e. Fast & Furious.....I did not appreciate Vin Diesel crushing and killing him).  He's the kind of fine, that during This Christmas, while Regina King was whooping his ass for cheating on her, you kept your fingers crossed that even if only for one second, you hoped that towel would drop to the floor.  And he's the kind of fine that even though Just Wright starred Common and Queen Latifah, it took you a while to really get into the movie because you kept rewinding back to date scene with Laz and Queen Latifah.  But, I don't know, maybe that's just me.

So there you have it.  If you haven't figured it out by now, Laz Alonso is fine.  Educated, yet talented and oh so super fine.  Well, just in case you're one of those who is still trying to figure out who I'm talking about, you can come from underneath your rock and look at the photos below.  Enjoy, I'm positive you will!

source: nydailynews.com

                                                             source: (universal) from www.zap2it.com

source: starpulse.com

source: JetMagazine

source: humormilmag.com

Central Park through my lens

So my move to New York hasn't been everything I'd hope it would be, but each week gets better.  On this particular day, I decided to combine my love of photography with my desire to get to know more of New York City.  Tired from a weekend of going out, I braved the cold air,  grabbed my sony DSLR, jumped on the A train and headed to the corner of  72nd Street & Central Park West to meet the rest of my advanced photography class for a 1 day shooting session of Central Park. 

Here are some of the photos (unedited) that were taken on my Central Park journey.

Close up of leaves on a tree.  Perfecting my aperture and shutter speed so that the background is blurry.



Ahhh!  Many are wondering how I made those leaves turn blue.  Well, me too because I can't      remember what feature I used on my camera.  Oh wait, I remember.  I changed the white balance to Tungsten. 

                                                    

I've seen this shot in many movies (can't remember which ones right now), but this is a good shot.  It shows some of the beauty of Central Park and gives a little glimpse of what's waiting outside of the park.

       This was the BEST pretzel I've ever had.  Maybe I was a little hungry, but it was still very tasty.  

I hope you've enjoyed a small peak into what was a good day for me, in Central Park.  I'm still in the process of exploring New York City and all it has to offer.  As I explore, I will share, the good and bad, and hope all ends well and I stay in New York because right now it's not looking real good for the city.  But hey, that's another entry for another day.

Common is Just wRIGHT

Scott McNight, Common....no wait, I mean Scott McNight, no Common....UGH! I can't decide.  Could it be because Common was sooooo fine as Scott McNight in the movie Just Wright.  I've seen Common appear in several movies and television shows. Among other things,  he threw down as the poet and Lynn's lover in Girlfriends.  He was killer as an assassin in Wanted (with Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman) and so good as a crooked cop in Street Kings that I almost forgot it was him.  And who can forget American Gangsta.  Appearing in anything alongside Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe gives anyone another hole in their acting belt.

I'm a hopeless romantic so it's no wonder that I loved Just Wright, starring Common and Queen Latifah.  Unlike, some critics, I thought Common's acting, in this film, was excellent.  Common stars as basketball star Scott McNight who meets physical therapist, Leslie Wright (Latifah) and quickly develops a friendship.  Meanwhile Scott is dating Leslie's god-sister, Morgan (Paula Patton).  Ok so I'm about to speed the story up........McNight gets hurt, Morgan dumps him, Leslie treats him, McNight likes Leslie, she like him back, Morgan wants him back and in the end Scott and Leslie hook up.  It was a great romantic comedy.  I got it on Netflix 2 weeks ago and refuse to return it until I purchase my own.  I mean I absolutely love this movie.  It's right up there with Hope Float (you know I love Sandra Bullock).  I find myself smiling the entire movie, except for those times when Leslie feels hurt.

Common was fine and smooth.  He was so good in this film, I'm hoping the next man that comes into my life is just like Scott McNight, minus the pro basketball player thing.  I loved the way he talked, the way he looked, the way he smiled, the way his eyes gazed when showing interest in a woman.  He was the complete package.  Being from Chicago, I'm a Common fan anyway, but seeing him in Just Wright was just right for me.

Once a skeptic, now a Sprinkles believer

Walking out of Bloomingdale's, with my mom, I looked across the street wondering what celebrity was in town that's causing the long line across the street.  I look up and see Sprinkles outside the building where the line was stretched down the streeting.  Wondering what Sprinkles is, I say to my mom, "I wonder what kind of place that is that has all those people lined up like that."  My mom, as clueless as I was, hunches her shoulders and we continue walking towards the car.  A few moments later, I learn it's a cupcake place.  Really?  Laughing out loud because I'm thinking these people must be crazy.  And me, being out to prove that they were crazy, get in line to see what is the hype about this cupcake.

Exactly 12 minutes later (and my mouth is watering NOW just thinking about it), I'm sitting in the car with my mom and bite into the best piece of cupcake I've ever had in my entire life.  It should be against the law for something to taste so good and satisfy my sweet tooth to highest level of any amount of sugar I've ever had.  To say that a Sprinkles cupcake is good would be an understatement.  Words do not decribe the taste of this tiny piece of cake that has people in Beverly Hills, Dallas, Houston, Washington DC and Chicago going crazy.  I figured if it was featured on Oprah (I didn't know this until standing in line and watching the Oprah segment on the screen outside the store) then it must be a hit.  But featured on Oprah or not, this cupcake is everything and more.  It is a moist, sweet, soft, iced just right little something that has you ready to go to bed just so you can wake up in the morning to rush and buy one.  And it is worth every bit of the $3 it cost for one cupcake to bite into one of the many, delicious flavors (red velvet, banana, carrot, lemon, dark chocalate, cinnamon sugar, milk chocalate, coconut, to name a few) . 

As happy as I was to have discovered Sprinkles, I was also sad.  Sad, because I discovered it 2 days before I moved to New York City.  That night I thought, surely if there was a Sprinkles in Chicago, there was one in New York.  Nooooooooo!  I couldn't believe there was no Sprinkles in New York City.  However, my disappointment didn't last too long as I soon discovered there would be one opening in New York in February 2011.  Until then I get them whenever I visit Chicago and wait for the moment they arrive in New York City.  Wherever that line stretches (I'm sure it will be one), I know I will be in it as someone else looks from across the street saying, "why are all those crazy people in line for a cupcake." Once bite of a Sprinkles cupcake and you'll be crazy too.  Check them out http://sprinkles.com/. 

She's Like a Star

Call me a lame or call me late.  First of all, I don't even know who Taio Cruz is or when he came out.  I only came across this song, a few months ago, while watching someone else's You Tube video and this was their background song.  So the song may be 2 years old, but it's a hit with me.  Like most songs, the beat is what pulled me in.  

I mean, I like a good beat.  I can't stand to hear Lil' Wayne's annoying voice, but I like most of his songs because of the beat.........but, before I get started on his irritating voice, I will move on.  

The lyrics aren't that bad either.  Taio Cruz is actually singing about something that makes sense.   I'd been listening to the song on some generic you tube channel and just recently came across the "official" video.  And looking at Taio Cruz, I still don't know who the heck he is, but I still love this song.  And I smile while bopping my head because one day some guy will be singing (well at least thinking) that same thing about me.