Yesterday I learned a classmate died. I wasn't close to that individual. However, at my age, we all feel a collective loss when a Wildcat dies. Last night I was talking with my girlfriend a little about it. Somehow we always think we are not far removed from those days and we have all the time in the world to live. This past summer, I co authored a book about my Father's life and published some of his writings. Diaries of a Wind Swept Muse. Diaries of a Wind Swept Muse: A Story of A Poetic Life Forgotten https://a.co/d/9HLN8HP One of the main themes was that he always thought he had tomorrow to fix whatever it was... As I told his story from my perspective, I remembered this abominable thought that we are all running out of time. A few months ago I got a call from a mutual acquaintance.  He called to tell me our friend had died.  This shook me hard. This friend and I were really close at one time. He wasn't perfect, but he was a perfect friend. He was like family. O...

Today I had tea with a friend. The tea bar is also a zen Cafe. The owner asked us to order our tea, and to select a tea cup that spoke to us. I had the hibiscus tea served in a mother goose tea pot.  The tea was red and delicious like the fine china it was served in.   We sat and sipped. We chatted about our journey in life thus far, and how we are diverging from the roots that professionally and personally defined and labeled us for decades. I shared my plans of returning to school and attending FSU. She inquired why.  I expressed that I was professionally exhausted.  One analogy I gave was how over time, my ability to absorb micro and macro agressions (and blatant disrespect) in sales had dwindled to a thin layer of skin. I was no longer sweet champagne from Fance. I was now a Dry Brut Prosecco, from the South of Spain.  This new season was about repackaging how I experience and absorb "work" in the future.  As we soaked ...

My favorite  book as a young child was Danny and  the Dinosaur . I had every word memorized before I could read. It is a great story about imagination, the museum, and being a great team player. Danny was a young child filled with hope, folly, and imagination. The dinosaur made all his wildest dreams come true. Today I went to orientation at Fayetteville State University. I'm a  college student again.  As I sat waiting for the program to start, I thought of Danny and the dinosaur. Irony I'm majoring in English, and I'm a publisher, so naturally, a book came to mind.  I was feeling pre-historic.  It's been over 25 years since I was in school full time. Technology makes everything happen at the speed of light. However, people assume that you know exactly where to go and what to do. (In the appropriate order) I was experiencing a bit of anxiety around the logistics. I'm the type of person who wants a plan, desires updates, and assessment. I felt that I w...

On a recent hike, the thought came to me that life is cake.  Most people like some type of cake.  I did not like cake until after I got pregnant with my first child. My mother and I went to a cake tasting, and it changed me forever. A universal thing about raising kids is baking.  It is a unifying task worthy of love and adoration. Without a doubt almost every mom has learned to bake something. Cookies, pies, cakes, bread, biscuits, or brownies, we all loved baked items. I am an excellent cook, but not so much a great baker. Do you know why? Cooking allows for creativity. I can make it up as I go. Baking is an exact science. If you change the recipie/ formula, you change the outcome. It requires measurement and precision. You must comply amd follow directions. Most importantly, it requires attentive patience. For all these reasons, my results always vary. Life is this way. People are cooking and burning cake batter, when they should be baking. Others are baking w...

Yesterday I learned a classmate died. I wasn't close to that individual. However, at my age, we all feel a collective loss when a Wildcat dies. Last night I was talking with my girlfriend a little about it. Somehow we always think we are not far removed from those days and we have all the time in the world to live. This past summer, I co authored a book about my Father's life and published some of his writings. Diaries of a Wind Swpt Muse. One of the main themes was that he always thought he had tomorrow to fix whatever it was... As I told his story from my perspective, I remembered this abominable thought that we are all running out of time. A few months ago I got a call from a mutual acquaintance.  He called to tell me our friend had died.  This shook me hard. This friend and I were really close at one time. He wasnt perfect, but he was a perfect friend. He was like family. Over time life took us in different directions and we stopped communicating, but I always felt...

  Fearless by Rebecca Minkoff 2024 New Year, New Me requires that I rest, exercise, drink more water, and pour into my brain content that will feed my future billionaire mind.   I usually read while I’m on the elliptical machine.   Last year I stopped going to the gym and consequently, I stopped reading. This past fall I purchased 8 books, because I knew I was supposed to return to feeding my brain, I was just paralyzed in the current hurricanes in my life. Now that the storms are subsided, and a new calendar year has come, I’m ready to resume greatness. I grabbed Fearless by Rebecca Minkoff first. I didn’t have any pre judgements on what type of book this would be.   In full disclosure, I have been eyeing one of her bags for some time.   I had never heard of her prior to 2022 when I was considering purchasing another comparable brand.    As I window shopped online, her genius marketing made her brand keep popping in my feeds and searches.  ...

I once mentioned that I have strong relationships with inanimate objects. One long standing relationship is with knitted items. I remember the first time I had been given something knitted. My co worker was an expert knitter and she made these foot mitten/slippers. I still have 1 pair till this day. They are amazing! Wearing a knitted items automatically makes you feel loved. It's like whoever knitted it is hugging you. I've felt this way ever since then. I love knitted scarves, sweaters,  and especially large blankets. I was the first girl in my inner friend circle to have a baby. I remember  my girlfriend gifted us a beautiful custom knitted baby blanket.  It was the perfect gift. Aside from diapers, it is one of my go to gifts to give  an expectant mom. There are never enough blankets. We've always had modest accommodations. I've spent alot of my adult life sleeping on a couch for one reason or another. A relative was crashing my bed, my kids, or I was ju...

There is a famous quote by Jim Rohn that says, "Success leaves clues." There are so many analogies I could use with this quote. It came to mind after a recent social media post I made about some failed business attempts. The intent of that post was to look for opportunities where you least expect them. I used some recent outcomes of real estate transactions as an example to how when we knock on doors that don't open, there is always a window. After having reread the post, I thought, maybe this was TMI (too much information) I'm fine with sharing " receipts "when appropriate, but I typically keep current and future plans to myself. Those who are jealous of us know our potential and can see the success we experience. "We all know people hate you because you try, and they'll also hate you the more when you die." Others can't see your vision. When they hate on you, do you dim your light or hide your process? I think not.  Everything tha...

Happy New Year Welcome to 2024! . Every year I choose a word as a mantra. Something to remind me of what I'm manifesting with deep intention. Inspired by my mother's jovial faith, my word this year is RECEPTIVE. When I looked at the definition, it came in three parts as an adjective. Being Open Minded to new thoughts Being Intuitive Being ready to mate My immediate interpretation was something that described a verb. RECEIVING. In order to receive, one must first be receptive. So my affirmations expanded in these words. I am ready. I am receiving. I am reproducing. I shared this with my end of year thoughts on social media over a few post.  I chose a hashtag phrase that I hold sacred to my soul. I've wriiten about it in my first book, Credit Made Simple. "YOUR OWN TERMS." These words hold so much gravity. I remember being 16 and couldn't wait until I could leave my parents house and do life MY WAY. That concept of "my way"...