Storm Breaker...Hump Day

I LOVE this commercial. It makes me laugh every time I see it. The advertisers should get an award for this one.







Until Next Time,

Peace & Blessings from  

Random Thunderstorms...(Totally Random)

I love DIY and decorating shows. I could see myself being the black rehab lady on this show. I've been making a list of things to do around my house and prioritizing the order. I am determined to make my personal space my own.

In 2008, I put myself on a strict budget and was determined to come out of the hole left by the marriage  in 5 years. I am proud to say I have paid off ALL credit card debt slightly ahead of schedule! That right there....THAT right there?!? (Yeah, I'm using my best K.att W.illiams voice)

Rest assured after getting into something of a financial bind, KayC will not ever do that again. Married, cohabitation,  parent or otherwise. I have learned to say "No" and mean it. 

I have found the dance floor again and it is lovely. Teaching is okay (I am available for private lessons if you live near me, LOL!) but I adore social dancing. It speaks to my soul. Music and dance have a love affair that should never end.

My other love affair is film/TV. This trailer makes me remember why I love film. In high school and college I wanted to make movie trailers. This one is baddazz:

Woohoo to the local dealership for discounts on repairs! My 13 year old car is still trying to make it and I am determined to nurse it for another year. Yay for over $100 in savings! It could always be worse, right? Yeah, as soon as I paid off the credit cards :(

My furbaby is almost 11 years old. Which means he is like an 80 year old human.He has lived with me since he was 9 months old. He has been with me through separation, living with friends and family, divorce, apartments and now my own home. I am trying to get my head around not having him one day. That is not easy but I hear him whine and his joints crack when he lies down. He even hesitates to climb the stairs at times.

Sigh, I know what's coming.

Until Next Time,
Peace & Blessings...

One Step Closer

This year has been about finding real joy. The kind of joy that allows you to simply live each and every day independent of who is or is not participating that day. I am talking about keeping the kind of peace I enjoy on Saturday mornings when I leisurely walk the fur baby and curl up in my favorite corner of the sofa donning some sweats, a ponytail and an old tshirt.

I need that in my life. At this point I crave it.

I am searching for that thing I was 'born to do" and makes me happy. At one point I thought it was dance but I do not want the weekly commitment of teaching people. I enjoy dancing socially and the occasional classes but the thought of being tied to something weekly gives me the heeby jeebies. (spell checker had a field day with that one)

I find myself coming back to my first love. The thing I wanted to do when I was high school. The thing that made me rush to the movies early so I wouldn't miss a second of the previews. I am not sure if I am too old to pursue this dream but something in me tells me to keep trying.

I found another aide in helping me to figure this all out. These quizzes are interesting.

Your Result:

Your Scores

Many people have two or three strong striving styles, and they can all be important in leading you to the person you are meant to be. If you have a few "highest" scores, read each matching description by clicking the arrow below, and see what rings most true.

Striving to Help: 12

Striving to Be Recognized: 6

Striving to Be Creative: 15

Striving to Be Spontaneous: 9

Striving to Be Knowledgeable: 15

Striving to Be Secure: 11

Striving to Be In Control: 12

Striving to Be Creative

You are an artist: You came out of the womb with a paintbrush in your hand. Or maybe it was a flute or a castanet or a fountain pen to go with your poet’s imagination. The point is, you’re an original, and you know it. Even if you don’t have a singular gift, you’re drawn to the arts—anything creative, for that matter— and you have a unique way of looking at the world. Your need for depth and authenticity in relationships can lead to both great joy and profound sorrow, depending on whether others reciprocate. You don’t care so much about adapting to group or societal expectations; your independence and sharp intuition propel you on your own path.
What to watch out for: When fear of conformity overrides your creativity, you can assume the role of “outsider” or “orphan” and end up feeling alienated. You may even go so far as refusing to vote or pay taxes. This lone-wolf stance might be a defense against feeling vulnerable. Try to be aware that blaming others for your banishment, or pushing away those who want to get close, only makes things worse. Also, dramatizing your emotions can interfere with your creativity.
Looking ahead: As long as you genuinely express yourself, you feel like the person you were meant to be. How you do it is irrelevant. A chef or architect can be as much of an artist as a painter or sculptor. Many advertising and public relations executives are also highly imaginative. Beyond work, there are opportunities everywhere you look to coax out your inner artist: Design your own jewelry line, create an innovative blog, dream up a comic strip. Relationships are another avenue for self-expression.

Striving to Be Knowledgeable

You are an intellectual: As a leader, you’re often ahead of your time. As an employee, you try to surpass the competence level of peers, even managers. Incisive and curious, you’re driven to deeply understand how things work. But that’s things, not people. Oh, your family and friends are important; it’s just that you don’t need to spend hours engaging with them. Social validation isn’t your goal—you’re secure enough in your cerebral pursuits. 

What to watch out for: When you can’t find a way to be the expert, you may withdraw or simply withhold information, which can make you seem smug or arrogant. If you feel yourself retreating into your own world, seek a friend’s help to pull you back. Also balance your cerebral tendencies through physical activities like jogging, hiking, or dance.
Looking ahead: You discover who you are meant to be through accumulating insight and knowledge. So follow your curiosity. Are you drawn to learning Mandarin? Joining a philosophy society? Studying and practicing Buddhist meditation? Delving into the complexities of computer programming? Writing a historical book? Pursuits that place you near the leading edge of technology, science, psychology, academia, or business are good bets. But any situation that allows you to work independently with freedom to investigate and innovate will fuel your drive.

The Job for You

3. Striving to be creative: Imagination and personal expression are important to this type, so they enjoy jobs as:
Graphic Designers
Art Directors
Yoga Instructors Drug Addiction Counselors
Architects
Actors/Musicians/Dancers/Athletes
College Professors
Yoga or Meditation Teachers

5. Striving to be knowledgeable: Deep thinking and an inventive spirit help this type excel in fields like:
Biomedical Research
Computer Programming
Law
Education
Engineering
Management
Environmental Planning
Telecommunications

Until Next Time,
Peace & Blessings...

Black in Latin America: Cuba

I did not want to post this until I had the chance to view it for myself. Most of my friends are Cuban. I have more Spanish-speaking friends than African-American friends and ironically most of of my African-American friends are fluent in Spanish.

My friends joke with me that I am adopted into the Cuban family and often they will only speak Spanish around me then give me the eye when they are done meaning "Did you get that?" LOL!

The stories they tell are first-hand knowledge. Fleeing Cuba in the 80s, the family members that are still there desperate to get out and of course, the poor nation that seems to produce some of the best musicians in the world. The documentary did not go into the world of Cuban music known as "Timba" or the great Salsa that comes out of the small nation which was disappointing but it was eye-opening.

It did go into the slave trade, how the Cuban people refer to themselves as "Cuban" before any other color. The fact that Cuba received twice as many slaves as the USA. The race relations that plague their country. Watching this, I thought of my adopted Cubano de familia and how people view them. Most of them have brown skin, some darker than mine and some lighter than mine. Many of them are considered black here in America. But...ask them and they will proudly tell you "I'm Cuban!"

Watch the full episode. See more Black in Latin America.

Until Next Time,
Peace & Blessings...

Black in Latin America: DR and Haiti

I know it has been a while since I have documented anything here but life has taken over. Considering my love of all things south of the border, my Salseras made sure I knew about this documentary series airing on PBS. A good number of my Salseras and Salseros (men and women who dance Salsa) would be considered "Black" until they opened their mouths. A few of them will keep you guessing until they decided to speak Spanish or (in a few cases) French.

There are a LOT of Americans who have no idea Africans were traded in South America and the islands before they made it to the U.S. The conversations I overhear in Salsa class amaze me sometimes. Including the lady who argued with my instructor about being hispanic as she demanded who gave him the authority to teach Salsa since he was obviously black!!

This should help and enlighten a few people. The full episode is embedded below. It is set to re-air so check your local listings. This is the first of the series including one on Cuba and Brazil. You KNOW I will be glued to the one on Cuba since the majority of my friends are now Cuban!

Amazing how race relations plague the world....

Watch the full episode. See more Black in Latin America.

Until Next Time,
Peace & Blessings...

Remembering Oscar-Nominated Pete Postlethwaite 1946-2011

One of my favorite movies of all time is The Usual Suspects. That is saying a lot because having a Film & Video degree I have watched a ton of film. This movie grabs you form the beginning, keeps you in it until the very end and makes you smile at the twisted ending. It delivers one of the most memorable last liners of all time and does it all with an all star cast, many of whom are still honing their craft in the acting world.

Pete Postlethwaite played the lawyer, Kobayashi, coming to tell the bad boys what a terrible mistake they made and how they pissed off his boss. He was a great actor and this is a great movie. Mr. Postlethwaite recently lost his long battle with cancer and died at the age of 64.

Once described by the film director Steven Spielberg as "probably the best actor in the world today." He worked with Spielberg on two films - The Lost World: Jurrassic Park and Amistad.

But this film, is/was an instant classic.

Giddiness Over The Last Airbender

In case you did not know I have a degree in Film and Video. My love of cinema makes me keep an open mind to new shows, movies and yes, even animation. I was living with my then in-laws when I caught the very first episode of Avatar: The Last Airbender. I was making my former nephew observe a much needed time-out break on the sofa. He did not find it interesting but I was hooked.

Last year while indulging in my latest childhood-nostalgia-turned-summer-blockbuster-movie I saw the preview for this movie and immediately turned into a kid. Think I lost cool points with my date, he had no idea who Aang was and had the nerve to ask me what was an Airbender? (He lost cool points for that one)

I have been looking forward to this movie for a solid year. You can find the original Nick animated series here. I am a little worried about M. Knight being the producer, he is known to be a little Tarantino-esque with his thinking but the original storyline and Japanese animation were simply awesome and got better with each season. This film is sure to have a major following.

This is the original opening from the animated series. Yes, I have seen every episode. Would love to have the box set on DVD.

Intro. A clip from Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Complete Book 2 Collection. @ Yahoo! Video

This is the original full-length movie trailer (the one that had me jumping out my seat screaming at the big screen "No! Can't be...It's Aang! It's the Avatar!") does a pretty good job at explaining the characters and storyline.




This trailer is better if you like action. Not sure of the effects translating from animation to real life but it looks promising.




I think I am going to take my 11-year-old cousin, when I mentioned the film he was the only one as excited as I was. I know where I will be for at least two hours this holiday weekend :-)



Until Next Time,
Peace & Blessings...

Dance War and Making the Band

Since the writer's strike I have watched a lot of reality television. By default I started to watch Dance War and was pleasantly surprised the first and second week. Bruno and Carrie Ann have done something their first try that P. Diddy can't seem to do in six.

The second week they divided the large group by gender and the first group of 4 guys looked and sounded better than most groups out right now. Especially considering they were actually singing and dancing (which is rare). Now why is Diddy having such a hard time making his male group? Maybe this last group will be much better than the others...but I wouldn't hold my breath.

The second group of guys and first group of ladies were okay, but the second group of 3 ladies did a pretty good job with the tough song Lady Marmalade. That was a gutsy move, but it was a good performance.

In case you missed it, here is a rather long clip of the first group of guys:

Boondocks and The Santa Stalker

In the spirit of all the new traditions that are now synonymous with Christmas I present one of my favorite Christmas clips and a new classic (for me anyway). I was not a fan of the Boondocks comic strip, but must admit the cartoon version was witty, well-written and at times make-your-side-hurt funny.

When I originally saw this clip, just the mention of Santa "paying what he owe" would make me laugh (it still does). So, I present to you Riley Freeman who is upset with Santa for not coming to the 'hood when he was poor. When all he wanted was a set of rims....not the whole car, just some rims!

Enjoy!