CIAA

With the CIAA coming up, I thought this was fitting… (click link below)

CIAA

When I was applying for college my senior year of high school, though I was applying to schools like UNC and Appalachian, my my mom told me I had to apply to at least one HBCU, one.   So I chose her alma mater, Elizabeth City State University.   A couple of months later I found myself standing on the Elizabeth City’s campus with a full scholarship.  Four more years, and I was walking across the stage graduating Cum Laude with a B.S. in Geology.  Though I probably complained almost everyday about that school while I was there, I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything.  I met so many GOOD people there, people that cared about my future and where I would end up. It saddened me that some of those same good people lost their jobs there this past year or that they closed four dorms due to low enrollment.  I can’t help but have pride for a place that nurtured me for four years and helped make me into the person that I am today.  If my alma mater,going the rate it’s going now, faced the same fate as St. Paul, it would hurt deep in my heart to say the least.  So maybe I need to step up to the plate, join an alumni chapter in my area, give back to (though I hate to admit it) a place that gave to me…

Black Valentine

I was sitting in my room last night (granted this is the second night I have been snowed in) so I decided to put on a dress, some makeup, and take some pictures.  Dress made by my friend Laijia by the way, check her out on her IG naturalsexinerd …PLUGGGG… lol.  But anyways, I call them Black Valentine, I mean it is Valentines day. I thought they were cute, so I wanted to share. Here they are… And oh yea, love somebody today..

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Actually, love somebody EVERYDAY….

40 years in the wilderness

So, my church is doing this thing where we read through the bible in a year and todays reading was in Numbers.  While reading this morning, God spoke to me!!  But before I tell you what he said, I have to give you a little history on what I’m reading about, so maybe you can receive the same revelation.  

Moses and Aaron have lead the Israelites out of Eygpt and now they are in the wilderness of Paran, right on the edge of Canaan, the promise land. So Moses sends out 12 men, one from each tribe of Israel, to survey the land. When they reached the land of Canaan, they saw that it was more prosperous then any land they had ever seen, I mean God had been calling it the land flowing with milk and honey since they escaped from Egypt, but the people there stronger and had giants living among them!  So they retuned back to their camped deterred and defeated.  Only two of the scouts came back saying “Let’s go at once to take the land. We can certainly conquer it!” while all the others disagreed and so did the rest of the Israelites when they heard the report.  Right then in there God stopped me and said “Are you afraid of the giants living in Canaan?” In simple terms he was asking me what’s stopping me from going after all that he has for me?  God had been promising the Israelites a land flowing with milk and honey since he had freed them from Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and right when they were at the edge of this promise land they wanted to turn back! But when God promises something it never comes back void!  God would have gave them victory over the people there and brought them safely into the land.  God has promises for all of us, promises of divine health, prosperity, and wealth.  And all the desires and goals that he has placed in our heart, he has already equipped us to achieve EVERY one.  Really the only thing stopping us from having these things is ourselves, whether its fear, disbelief, disobedience, lack of faith, or even something else.

So ask yourself this… What “giants” are keeping you away from your promise land?  And how long will you let these “giants” keep you away from what is promised to you? (hopefully not 40 years like the Israelites).  

If you want to learn more take a look in the book of Numbers.

THE OLYMPICS!!!

Sorry I’ve been slacking for a few days, the niece and nephew came over this weekend and I’m just now recovering.  My niece is 4 and my nephew is 9 months old and OH MY GOODNESS, I feel for the mothers out there.  It’s like children have the power to just suck all of the energy out of you and use it for themselves.  It’s an amazing phenomenon that I don’t understand why it hasn’t been researched yet.  But, back to what this post is really suppose to be about… THE OLYMPICS!!

The 2014 Winter Olympics, the XXII Olympic Winter Games, officially kicked off with its opening ceremony, on February 7th, in Sochi, Russia. A record 88 nations are competing in this Winter Games.  The Winter Games are a complete 180 when compared to the Summer Games.  First of all it’s all snow and ice. Secondly, it doesn’t seem as American dominated, we seem a little out of our element or something… The type of sports are on a whole other level. From lube where you’re sliding up to 80mph down pretty much a curvy slide of ice or ski jumping, sliding down a snow ramp and jumping distances of at least 100 km…on skis. When I watch the Olympics I get like extra American.   I cringe every time an American makes the slightest mistake, knowing that a seventh of a half of a second or .001 could be in between our flag being raised and our national anthem being played at the end over another country’s. It’s just when their run is all over, you can either see the joy when they make it to the top of the podium or the anguish, complete disappointment when they don’t make the score or time or meet every expectation they have been training to meet since the last Olympic Games . If I were in the games I would be the Kate Henson, really just happy to be there. Can you imagine bringing a part of something that big? I mean there are athletes there from all over the WORLD. I personally love the Olympics and hope to be present at one one day.  It’s just one time, to me, when the World is all on one accord, brought together by the love of their nation and sports. Speaking of the Olympics, I didn’t forget my pact I made a couple of post ago … Seen this picture before?….

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You’ve probably seen this image on inspirational posters or maybe ran across someone wearing a shirt with this image on it.  It’s 1968 at the Mexico City Olympics.  Gold medalist, Tommie Smith and Silver medalist, John Carlos, two black Americans, wearing black gloves, raise their fist while the Star Spangled Banner was played.  Just through this simple action, they were suspended from the U.S. team and even received death threats.  And you can’t forget silver medalist, Australian, Peter Norman who stood supportively and solidly with Smith and Carlos.  It was a movement called the Olympic Project for Human Rights. Carlos, Smith and Norman all wore patches with those five simple words.  

OPHR had five central demands:

• Restore Muhammad Ali’s title. Ali had been stripped of his title in June 1967 for his refusal to fight in Vietnam.

• Remove Avery Brundage as head of the United States Olympic Committee. Brundage was a notorious white supremacist best remembered today for sealing the deal on Hitler hosting the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. He once praised Hitler’s regime at a rally in Madison Square Garden. As head of the International Olympic Committee, he also opposed the entry of women as competitors.

• Disinvite South Africa and Rhodesia. This was a conscious effort to express internationalism with the black liberation struggles occurring in these two apartheid states.

• Boycott the New York Athletic Club.

• Hire More Black Coaches.

Today, Avery Brundage, Rhodesia and apartheid South Africa are history, African-American coaches are hired without controversy and Muhammad Ali has become a legend as he was meant to be.

Who would’ve thought a simple fist raise and head bow, would resinate with souls even 45 years later?

Red Women

I was scrolling down my Insta timeline the other morning and I saw this…

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I was instantly intrigued, so I started doing some research. This striking image is that of a Himba woman.  The Himba are an ancient tribe of semi-nomadic herders.  They come from the Kunene region of Namibia.  The cause of their red skin is otjize, a paste of butter, fat and red ochre, sometimes scented with aromatic resin.   The Himba women apply this each morning, the same as many American women apply makeup, to their skin and hair, giving them a red color.  There has been many assumptions on why these women apply this, from a repellent to insects to protection from the sun.  However, the Himba say it’s just for aesthetic reasons.  The men of this tribe do not apply otjize. Most of Himba people still live traditional lifestyles, traditions living through war, droughts, and most importantly time.  That always amazed me how traditions out live time and technological advances.  The most important part of the Himba village is the “okuruwo,” or holy fire, which is kept continuously lit.  The holy fire represents the ancestors of the villagers, who acts as intermediaries to the Himba’s god, Mukuru.  The Himba are open to strangers so, I mean if you ever happen to be in Namibia, check them out.  All they ask for is a contribution from visitors in return.  Below are some more pictures of these beautiful Himba women.

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Amazing right?

“I make black history everyday, I don’t need a month”

I know there are mixed feelings about Black History month, like “Why is black history month the shortest month of the year?” or “How can you condense the celebration of black history to just a month?” I too have asked these questions at least once in my life and I celebrate my history more then just the month of February. I celebrate Black history everyday, Black history is American history anyhow, right?  Yea… but just for the sake of February being the month black history is recognized, I’m going to post something about black history, black people,  blackness, anything and everything black everyday, for the rest of this month.  So, to kick it off, here are some facts about Black History Month itself…

1. Carter G. Woodson was the son of former enslaved Africans James and Eliza Riddle Woodson. He gained a master’s degree at the University of Chicago in 1908, and in 1912, he received a Ph.D. in history from Harvard University. Woodson, known as the “Father of Black History” started Negro History week in 1926, which later became Black History Month.

2. February was chosen as the month to observe Black history because it is the birth month of abolitionist and writer Frederick Douglass  (Feb. 14) and President Abraham Lincoln (Feb. 12).

3. In 1976, 50 years after the first celebration, President Gerald Ford expanded Negro History Week to Black History Month.

4. Countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history.

“Oh Well, I like basketball better anyways…”

Super Bowl XLVIII… That was a flop. I only really watch the super bowl for the commercials and the halftime show anyways. With that being said, I don’t know how I felt about the commercials. None of them were laugh out loud funny like I want during the Super bowl. But there were some heart warming ones. The Budweiser commercial about the soldier coming back home to a parade of people had me on the verge of tears. And if you weren’t the same way,  you must be coolllldddd bloodded. And concerning the halftime show, though Bruno was no Beyonce, he definitely sufficed. With his Pilipino and Puerto Rican self, dancing up there like James Brown mhm, mhm, mhm. However, enough with that, the real entertainment were all the Peyton Manning memes on Instagram and Twitter.  So here are a few below, enjoy. And um, congrats Seahawks…
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