Balance My Lunch
What can be added or taken away from this lunch to make it healthier?
Featured lunch
Fried wing dings
Green beans
Yellow rice
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Balance My Lunch #2
Can you answer this? What is your networking style?
Do you prefer to network in person or online? Maybe a combination of the two is more like it. Of course, the more connections you make the more opportunities present themselves.
Are you a people person who prefers the more personal one-on-one approach? Some people find that the in person strategy is most effective because you can look at the person you are speaking with and gauge from their response, if they are interested in your collaboration or not. Another clue would be their energy. The person may not seem enthusiastic in what you are saying and unsure about how to let you down easily or relay the disinterest.
On the other hand, some people find great success in networking online. I think it depends on the kind or business you have and are trying to grow. Building your brand and networking online gives you a reach of people that in-person networking cannot achieve. The trick is making sure to align with people interested and building in your field of interest.
So, what is your networking style?
As always, thank you for reading! Stay well and be blessed
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Elevating Life with Louie Hicks
Welcome to this special episode with my first special guest, Louie Hicks. Elevating Life with Louie Hicks gives a glimpse into his views on friends, family and life. Also, he talks about his clothing business, LHJR. Check out the website at www.lhjr.square.site. The podcast he started titled, Connect the Dots Podcast on YouTube. Last but not least, he shares about the podcast he co-hosts with Ock the Barber called Da Hip-Hop Barbershop presents on Apple
Thank you for watching! Stay well and be blessed. 
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Corner Store Bodega
The door to the bodega
Opens with lyrics
Aguanilè
Aguanilè, mai mai
Feeling like you stepped right onto an island
The groove moving up your spine
Bop your head move your feet
Lips turning upward forming a smile
Let me get a Ham with American cheese
And a buttered roll on a Kaiser bun
A grape strawberry Mistic, a quarter water too
Aguanilé
Aguanilé, mai mai
Waiting for your meat to be cut
The lyrics fill the air
You start to dance, salsa or two step
You get to the front to pay
Bum at the counter beggin’, “let me get two loosies man!”
In a hurry to get back, you get mad
Then you hear
Aguanilé
Aguanilé, mai mai
Forgetting the unfolding drama
You move your feet, your hips, your butt
While waiting you go to the lottery case
Slipping a piece of paper to the cashier, play these pick 3 numbers
Oh and a pack of watermelon, grape and apple Now and Laters
Aguanilé
Aguanilé, mai mai
The door to the bodega
Closes behind you
Ears flooded with police sirens
Horns blowing
Arguments and expletives
Feeling like you stepped back into a war
As always, thank you for reading! 
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Being Stumped By Change
—Romans 12:2
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will. —
Change is upon us every day. Whether we are ready for it or not. It happens. Sometimes in that changing, we get stumped. We may not know what direction to take or what exactly we need to do.
It is not easy to change things about ourselves. The uncertainty and not knowing what will happen next. I just implore you to follow your heart. Love yourself and others.
Stay well and be blessed. 
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Balance My Lunch
What would you add or take away to make this a healthy, balanced meal?
Featured Lunch
Tuna on Honey Wheat bread
Orange
Bottled Water
Share with us about what you would change about this meal. Would you add yogurt or some kind of vegetable? Maybe a salad would top it off. The bread would be healthier if it were whole wheat, what do you say?
Thank you for reading!
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Delicate Flower, She Be
Delicate Flower, She Be
You see her walking down the street
Purpose in her eyes
Meaning in her walk
Strut like you have never seen
Delicate flower, she be
Wearing her armor of protection
The look in her eyes lets you know
Back up or I will cut you
A face that tells you she means business
She ain't here for the games
Delicate flower, she be
Like the weeds that grow in your garden
The dandelions that grow in the empty lot on the corner
Growing in between the cracks in the ground
She rises up
Delicate flower, she be
Having the nerve to go where you wouldn't expect
She stands tall and firm
There are years that ask questions and years that answer
Looking at her reveals both; question and answer
Delicate flower, she be
Hard pavement of the concrete
Matches the hard look on her face
Meeting your gaze she stares back
Not a smile anywhere to be found
Delicate flower, she be
Inside she is just waiting for someone
Someone that sees her and brings out the smile
Simultaneously holding her delicately and firmly
In full bloom as delicate as can be
Delicate flower, she be
Delicate Flower, She Be is written in response to the W3 Prompt #148: Wea’ve Written Weekly. Violet Lentz asks us to write about elements of the human condition and include at least 1 of 3 quotes in her guidelines.
Human condition elements I wrote about are emotions, social interaction, resilience and growth. How people can look so hardened on the outside but are really loving and kind on the inside. A smile is just bursting, waiting to come out at the right circumstance.
The quote I chose is by Zora Neale Hurston, “there are years that ask questions and years that answer.”
Image credit: by Josch13 from Pixabay
As always, thank you for reading! 
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What Would You Do?
Can you answer this? What would you do if you see your friend is hurting and you are not sure how to help?
Would you do nothing
Secretly pray for them
Offer help in a way you think is helpful
Of course, a friend is someone we love and never want to see in pain. If you are unsure of the best way to help them, what would you do?
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Near and Dear to My Heart
Near and Dear to My Heart
beautiful to see
love, warmth, kindness, protection
only moms possess
keeping offspring safe, happy
indeed, the eyes tell it all
Near and Dear to My Heart is in response to Sadje’s prompt.
Image credit: Leandra Rieger on Unsplash
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Theoretically Speaking of Morbid Curiosity
Theoretically Speaking of Morbid Curiosity
Theoretically speaking, you wonder if
Happenstance has come to the forefront
Eliciting answers about this thing
Offering no more cues than when it began
Responding with conjecture, whispering, gossip
Entertaining the masses with your theory
Trying not to let others around you
In on the fact that you want to know
Curiosity killed the cat
And still, you don't stop
Letting your mind drift about the situation
Learning that this is someone else's reality
Yearning for truth about today's morbid curiosity
Theoretically Speaking of Morbid Curiosity is written in response to the word prompt by Sammi Cox.
Image by Alexandra_Koch from Pixabay
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The Salon Chair
In the salon chair
Close your eyes let your cares fly
Fly far away and down the drain
Tears chasing thoughts
Thoughts undealt with for years
So relaxed in the salon chair
Not caring who hears
Hears you release pain, regret, disappointment,
Hurt, dreams unfulfilled
Like water, let it flow freely down your cheek
After all who will notice
In the salon chair, scalp being massaged
Forgetting where you are you begin confessional
Spilling details most dear to your heart
In hopes that those hands can relate
The hands of the person in your proximity
Letting you be free with your truths
She or he listens with understanding
Empathy, caring and non-judgement
They know this is your time
Time to let your hair down
Relax, talk, cry, listen
In the salon chair
Where best kept secrets are kept
Never revealing the tears that wept
The smiles, the laughs, the shared tea
Moments at the salon that involve three
The chair the stylist and me
No other entity compares
In the salon chair
Like therapy in many ways
Going in one way and leaving another
Altered both emotionally and physically
Hair looking fresh to death
Feeling and looking your best
You smile and your strut beams confidence
Suddenly you remember to keep your head up
Image by Michelle Raponi from Pixabay
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Keep It to Yourself or Share?
Keep It to Yourself or Share?
Come with me for some tips about sharing. Also, things that we should not share. Enjoy these everyday reminders about why we should be mindful about sharing certain personal care items.
Thank you for watching! Stay well and be blessed
What Excites You About Life?
Life is full of exciting things. What is it for you that makes you excited? Do you wake up every day and get excited to see another day. Yes, this is a valid reason to be excited. Are you excited to be working in the career of your choice? Not everyone is fortunate to have their dream career. Maybe it is your children. It is such a blessing and joy to be able to hug, smile, teach, and watch them grow into adults.
Retirees may excite in the fact that they are no longer on the clock. They can leisurely go about their day. Romance is another reason to be excited. The thought of having your person knowing that someone loves and accepts you.
Can you answer this? What excites you about life? Life brings so many reasons and opportunities to get excited. What does it for you? Maybe you have hobbies in life that excite you and motivate your life.
This question I ask because a lot of times we go about our lives and master the routine. We don’t often, stop to think about what excites us. We need to revisit some of these things and take a detour to bring the spark, smile, sense of humor and love back in. We can still live in our daily routines while enjoying those exciting things too.
PSA- Who are “They”? asks the questions about how society puts a certain demographic of people in the same group. The talk in this post is not my usual content but I felt the need to speak on this topic. I have been seeing and hearing people on various platforms discussing this, and it piqued my interest.
Are black men being judged unfairly? Are they being crucified by public opinion? What do you think? Is there some magical potion or spell on black men being cast by “They”? Just curious about your thoughts on the subject. Please share your perspective.
As always, thank you for watching! 
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The Green-Eyed Monster Hiding in the Dark
In the shadow darkness hides, use your hearing to find your way
In the shadow what you hear is the true beat of your heart
In the shadow, heartbeats echo so rhythmically like you can reach out and touch
In the shadow, feeling the tactile beating heart, gratitude wells up in your throat
In the shadow, gratitude leads to the road of happiness
In the shadow of that happiness the face of envy is rising
In the shadow, envy is obliterated with humility, stay kind
The Green-Eyed Monster Hiding in the Dark is written in response to the W3 Weekly prompt.
Thank you for reading!