I Love New York: What's Up Dog?

OK! I know you've been waiting patiently for this week's episode review.

Can I just say that I love me some Chamo! I want Chamo to have his own show next, by the way.

Who struck me the most during this week's episode were Mr. Boston, Heat and 12 Pack.

Let's start with Frick and Frack, shall we? 12 Pack and Heat.

The Over the Hill East Coast Jersey Shore Party Boys! 'member the song, "What is Love?!" Yeah, imagine that song pumping through your brain right now.

These 2 guys stayed lit the entire episode. Quick! Somebody light a match and let's blow this mutha down. LOL! I just love the outside interview shots where Heat is obviously high and/or drunk. GOOD LAWD!

12 Pack

I have to say that after seeing 12 pack's chain smoking, wine chugging, leopard skin speedo, robot dancing ass, I am totally turned off. *ugh* NASTY! NEXT!!!!!!!!!!!!
That tantric session was creepy wasn't it? Like a really, really bad 3some with that hippie lady all up in the way. How you gonna get freaky with her all in your business tellin' to feel this and feel that. *pfft* Git out the way heifa and hush. Oh! You might want to put on some more clothes time. Belly was hanging like Rasputia, girl.

Heat
Heat, baby. G'on and check yourself into the the nearest rehab. Po' thang. Just pitiful.
Heat was jocking 12 pack like a dog in heat. 'member that scene where they are sitting outside drankin' at 4 AM and Heat was gushing about 12 packs body and how big and strong he is and .... Just bend over already, damn!

Mr. Boston
Alright! I take it all back. I am so over you, Mr. Boston. I mean how clueless can you be?
Sister Patterson is goading you about skin color and there you are agreeing with her? tsk tsk.
That's why New York asked you to take a drink of water because you need the lubrication to remove the feet from your mouth. *eyeroll* I can't believe you said her mother was TOO DARK and that she looks like Darth Vadar?! This man is so oblivious. He's nodding his head when queried about being concerned about hypothetical childen he might have with New York and if he'd be concerned if they were too dark. *ack* OHMYGAWD! IGNORANT! You're just on the show to make a name for yourself. You don't care about New York. OK! ...and did you see his hips kinda grinding in church? He was trying to move to the choir music and was dancing like he was in a nightclub. LAWD GEEZUS! Sit yo' as* down, boy! Pretend like you were at temple. You wouldn't do that in temple with the Rabbi up there, so don't do it at the Baptist church, either. *hmph*

OH YEAH! He picks his nose a LOT! Did you catch that? Second Time!

Onix
*pours out some of my 40 oz. for my homie Onix*
Yeah, brotha. You're too good for her. I liked what he said on his way out the door. "I'm too good for you anyway!". Yes, you are, baby! Your daddy is a preacher and I'm sure you've seen lots and lots of women have the holy ghost before. So, have I. Sister Patterson was clowin' for the camera. *eyeroll* It's not really up for debate whether someone has the Holy Ghost or not. Everyone manifests differently, but there are some tell tale signs and I wasn't really seeing any of them from Sister Patterson during that episode. *hmph* ANYWHO!
New York kept ole drunkas* 12 pack and let Onix go for having an opinion. *shrug*

Real

He so pretty! Don't you just love his hair. He got some Indian in him for real. Did you see his high cheekbones and that smile. OH MY GAWD! Such a punim!

Last and least....
Rico and Tango
Rico you got punked, boy! Tango used you like a...hell, I don't know.
Tango heard Onix say that he felt Sister Patterson was not sincere in church earlier that day and Tango convinced Rico to co-snitch on Onix. *ugh* Too bad you're probably NOT going to be the guy New York picks. HA! I think it will be between Real and his brother Chance.

Food Rehab: Week in Review

Not too bad, I must say.

As they always say, the first couple days were somewhat uncomfortable, but I had a couple pills of Phentermine to ease the pain. Additionally, it helps to be surrounded with support and other friends who are, also, going through the same thing. I'm motivated and conscious of my eating habits right now. I have found food supplements/replacements (Apex Protein Bars and Myoplex Lite Nutrition Shakes) that I enjoy eating and have found healthier options for when I just need a snack fix, i.e. cheddar cheese mini rice cakes or 100 calorie packs of Cheese Nips or popcorn and the Apex 100 calorie BBQ chips.

I notice I tend to snack more in front of the TV, so the challenge is to get out from in front of the TV and do other things. That won't be too difficult since my entrepreneurship class will be starting in a few weeks and I have my knit nights to soak up quite a bit of time. The trick will be the weekends. I'll have to coerce myself out of the house. *sigh* My house is like my binky. It comforts me, so I hate to leave it sometimes. I can always hunker down up in my new craft room and do some much needed organization/cleanup. I, also, have some sewing projects I need to finish....like making myself some new jammies and making myself a new knitting bag.

My friend, Gwenie Gwen, joined my favorite gym saturday. Now, it's all about getting there. I'm waffling right now about going into the gym tonight since I had a marathon dental appointment this morning (2 crowns on my lower right molars) and I'm still kind of drowsy right now. Fortunately, I have my trusty Tony Little Gazelle to help me stay true to my cardio goals on those days when I can't muster the energy to go to the gym.

It feels good to see the ole scale going in the opposite direction now. I don't care if it is water weight. LOL! It's something and my pants are looser, dagnabit. That counts.

I managed to rid myself of the last vestages of wrong food after my party yesterday. I gave it all away. I foisted most of it off on poor Teri. She has a big, tall strappin' husband named Sid and 2 pre-teen boys at home. JACKPOT! I gave her the rest of the cornbread, the brownies, the potato chips and the Fritos. As the coup de gras, everyone that was left towards the end had a sumptious chocolate devil food cupcake with cream cheese icing and little pink sprinkles.

I am now, junk food free folks. Zero. I have an unopened bottlef of regular Coke and a couple cases of regular Sprite and Pepsi, but they don't tempt me since I have a sufficient supply of diet Coke and Coke Zero which are my FAVORITE now. If you haven't tried Diet Coke with LIME slices, run to the store and get a lime and try it. HEAVEN! I say....HEAVEN!

I feel better now that my eating is under better control. Now, onto my finances. I'm not out of control per se, but I'm in a belt tightening mood all around. I want to see just how much unnecessary spending I can purge from my wallet. Gonna have to stop going out to eat after knit nights now. That's putting a dent in things. I haven't been tempted by yarn, but I have been on a dollar store binge lately. I love cute little doo dads. I've become obsessesd with magnets lately. *shrug* I've got them everywhere. At least, I'm not eating it. That's all I can say. LOL!

Le Fug Must Go.

Carma sportin' le fug.


It's time for the fug to go to its new home.
We had a lot of fun modeling the fug today at my Premier Jewelry party.

Voici les Patons Carmen Chocolate cap sleeves.



















Madame Teri porte le fug.

Food Rehab

...that's what I call it.

Just like Lindsey Lohan. I, too, am in a rehab, of sorts.

It just happened. Monday, I had finally had it and I decided to bite the bullet and go into food rehab. I'm counting calories, working out, drinking shakes, eating protein bars and trying not to revert to my lascivious ways. I've never been a drug or alcohol addict, but I do know about being a food addict. Unfortunately, you gotta eat and it's all too easy to drive-thru and get your fix.

Today, the second day of rehab has been challenging and mentally stressful. Last night, I woke up around 2 AM hungry and made myself a shake and ate a protein bar. Then, I proceeded to stay up and do laundry, put the dishes in the dishwasher, finish a set of stitchmarkers. By the time, I went back to bed it was 4 AM and I had to be up at 7 AM for an 8 AM conference call. *argh* I was a raging biotch today at work, I owe some folks an apology and explanation for my crankiness.

Constantly weighing food decisions is taxing. Standing there telling yourself you can't have that anymore...it's no good for you....stay focused...stay on the wagon, girl. It's hard.

Fortunately, I have my friends Bryan and Dennis to go through this with me right now. We're all in food rehab together. They know.

I decided not to join the medical weight loss program they are in because I can eat the same things they do at a lower cost using Apex Protein Supplements and Budget Gourmet. I, also, avoid the mandatory doctor visits and meeting fees. I've already had my blood drawn and all that, so I'm good to go medically. I am going to call for a refill of my Phentermine tomorrow. The hunger pangs are too intoxicating right now.

Dennis mentioned perhaps going to an Overeaters Anonymous meeting soon. I think it would be a good change of pace to be around other professed food addicts and see how they deal with life. I garner inspiration being around others who are fighting the same demons.

Now, I'm not trying to get Mary Kate Olsen skinny, but I could stand to lose a good 50 - 100lbs. I'm so mad at myself right now because my size 22 pants are too tight now. *sigh* I'm relegated to my stretchy fat fat pants for the time being. *grumble*

Right now, I'm going to avoid social eating until I've lost at least 20 lbs. I don't have the restraint yet to eat out with others, so no more knit night dinners for me for a LONG time.

If you want to peek into my food blog and track my progress,
check out my CalorieKing food journal. Sometimes, you might have to peek in on me and keep me honest. Make sure I'm journaling and eating properly. Heck, it might even motivate you to track your food intake or even compete with me.

2007 Well Intended Intentions Report

Career/Education
* Make lateral change from IT to Business Organization.
- I've worked out a compromise with my manager that gives me some additional responsibilities and an opportunity to learn new software platforms.

* Complete Entrepreneurship course and begin acting on business plan.
- I paid the tuition, just waiting for the course to begin.

Financial
* Decrease unnecessary spending by evaluating each expenditure as a "need" or "want".
- I have cut back on fast food and restaurant meals.
- I do my own beauty regime now. No more spa, pedicure or salon visits.
- I allot myself $100.00 every pay period for incidentals.
- I will be turning off my landline phone and pairing back on my cable offering.
- I'm more conscious of the utilities and try not to waste gas or electricity.

* Increase liquid cash and ROTH IRA savings.
- I plan to start diverting regular amounts of cash into my ING Orange Savings account starting this payday Friday.

Health/Fitness
* Continue to workout incorporating more cardio than strength training.
- I have a renewed motivation and spirit as of yesterday. Two dear friends of mine have started a medically supervised weight loss program and I attended a meeting Monday night to see if it would be a good fit for me. I will be shadowing their program using Apex Protein shakes and bars as my meal replacements and Healthy Choice or South Beach Diet frozen meals for my one entree a day. After the gym tonight, I purchased 2 boxes of Apex protein bars. I ate one for my dinner on the way home in the car. I remembered that we have a GNC in my neighborhood, so I dropped by there on my way home and bought a box of Myoplex Lite Chocolate Variety Protein packets. I just drank a dark chocolate Myoplex Lite protein shake with 8 oz. of skim milk and I'm pretty full. I think I might be able to function on this diet regime for a while. As a precaution, I'm going to call my primary physician and get my phentermine prescription filled again. I have, also, made up my mind that I will commit myself to 5 days of cardio at the gym or upstairs using my Tony Little Gazelle. I've gained 40 lbs since 2004 and I need to get my rear in gear before I undo all the good things I've accomplished since I had my gastric bypass in 2002.

Hobbies

* Destash! Destash! Destash!

- All my fun fur and chenille has been sold on eBay. I'm, basically, fun furless now. I still have a couple bags that I saved to give to my friend Jody so she can crochet a couple scarves.

- I'm currently working on the Lion Brand Textured Treasure Speed Stix Afghan, a Seaman's Cap, a pair of Fuzzy Feet and the Vintage Velvet Scarf all knit from yarn in my stash.

* Host regular monthly social events at my house.

- I'm hosting a Premiere Jewelry party this Sunday at my house.

2007 WIP Report

YEAH! My mommy and my nanny LOVE their flannel gowns I sent for Christmas. Now, I just have to finish their fuzzy feets. I'm making them both a pair that matches their gowns. Just have to felt the first pair down some more using a top loading washer. My front loader doesn't get hot enough.

I've completed the head and hair of my Amigurumi Me doll and have started working the increases for the body. Pictures later.

I, also, started working on my trainer's speed stix afghan. Each stitch is 1" wide. WOW! I'm loving this.

Norbit

I'm sure some of you have seen the trailer for the new Eddie Murphy movie "Norbit". I just took a peek at the movie trailer online and I'm rather torn about this one.

On the one hand, it's funny.
On the other hand, I'm wondering about the portrayal of the large Black woman.

From what I can see, Norbit's long time girlfriend, Rasputia is a large, loud, pushy, sometimes violent Black woman (OK! OK! I know that sounds a lot like me, but dang...) and Norbit is portrayed as a small, defenseless man stuck in a relationship with a woman he's basically embarrassed to be seen with. What the ?

During the trailer, you see a scene where Rasputia is at a water park and someone asks her if she's got "bottoms" on (You see she's wearing a fushcia bra with matching camp shirt and bottoms with a big floppy hat and sunglasses) and she raises a fold of flesh to reveal her bikini bottom. *gulp*

I'm not so sure that we fluffy girls are that brave just yet, are we? I mean how realistic is that, anyway? Oh yeah, I forgot about Shallow Hal. Nevermind. I guess it's time for the fluffy sistas to show something after all. I wonder how many men will flock to the theater just to see some real flesh? Hmmm....

Also, there's an interactive portion of the website where you click on a PIG icon to ask Rasputia for insight. Rasputia loves her some ribs, apparently. *sigh*

Anyway, I'm sure it's not all that bad, but lawd...why we always gotta be so mean? ...cause we hong'ry?! LOL!

I Love New York: Big Ballers

People I gotta say another winning episode of high jinx and drama.

Pootie
...lost his damn mind! FOR REAL, Y'all! They had to call the am'ulance to come get him. Dude, totally flipped out. I mean WHOOOO! Let me count the ways:
1. He stole 12 pack's net worth chart, admitted it, wanted to fight him over it and didn't give it back!
2. He went on a rant in the conference room while being interviewed about his net worth about how he's broke and dodging the repo man. Thanks for letting your lender know the exact whereabouts of your car on the show! LOL!
3. After completely embarrassing himself during his interview, he barreled out of the waiting room and into the hallway where he proceeded to break down into tears and pass out in the stairway and they had to call the am'ulance to calm him down.
4. He was shaking uncontrollably during his dinner with Sister Patterson, which cued her into his mental instability and they had to call the am'ulance AGAIN to come get him because he was having a psychotic breakdown. DAMN!

Mr. Boston
...made me moist during his lap dance performance and when he was kissing New York. I wouldn't mind a date with this guy. Did you see his nipples? NICE! *ehem* I have a thing for perky male nipples...I like to play with them. *giggle* *sheepish grin*

T-Weed
First of all, his lower lip really creeps me. Ewww...it was pink and speckled. Most importantly, homie got kicked to the curb for lying about his net worth. Dude got sub sub par credit, yo! You're outta there for being a big fat liar!

Onix
I like this guy a lot. He's really down to earth and totally H O T! He's the kinda guy that can make me go back...if you know what I mean. *wink* He looked so hot in his suit and was well prepared for his interview.


Tango
I smell another rat! Tango's VH1 profile lists him as a "Record Label Owner", but he said during his net worth interview that he's into flipping houses? And, when asked about his estimated net worth, why did he say, "Hmmm..let's say about $300,000?" Hmmm...let's say NOT! He is suspect. She need to run his credit, too.

Bonez
I can't say I blame New York for sending Bonez home. She's right to not want to corrupt him. He's way too nice for her. Better that a more deserving woman should have him.

2007 Yarn Diet WIP Report

*deep sigh*

I'm afraid to say there's nothing much to report. I was working on a pair of Cascade Fixation Ankle Socks and realized Tuesday night that I had increased way to much and the sock was too wide around. *pout* Gwenie Gwen suggested that I only increase to a total of 48 sts instead of the 70 or so. I frogged both socks Friday night.

Now, I'm on an Amigurumi kick and I have just completed the head of my new baby girl who doesn't have a name yet. I'm loving this. She's gonna be SMOKIN' H O T. I might have to make her a hot boyfriend and a kitty cat, too!

Check out my Knitty Patch Kids thread for details. We is gonna have us some fun this year. We gonna fly all over the world and play with other Knitty Patch Kids and have sleepovers and eat cupcakes and play and tell stories and...stuff. I wonder if I can convince my local knitter homies to make a self-portrait doll, too so we can put on skits and blog about them. LOL!

My personal trainer asked for an afghan today, so I think I'm going to use up my Lion Brand Homespun or my Thick & Quick and make the Lion Brand Textured Treasure Speed Stix Afghan.

Where is Me Booty, Matey!?

My pirate name is:

Bloody Morgan Rackham

Every pirate lives for something different. For some, it's the open sea. For others (the masochists), it's the food. For you, it's definitely the fighting. You have the good fortune of having a good name, since Rackham (pronounced RACKem, not rack-ham) is one of the coolest sounding surnames for a pirate. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

Making Me. Amigurumi, Baby!

After seeing Beezie's action figure doll, I was motivated to make my own Divalicious baby, too.

To that end, I've found this cute FREE Amigurumi Girl Doll pattern on CraftZine.com.

I've long been fascinated with Amigurumi and am again obsessed by it. I want one!

My all time favorite Amigurumi artist extraordinaire is
Beth Doherty, creator of Gourmet Amigurumi.


Beth's Flickr Photo Gallery

Her dolls are so intricate and expressive. I just love all of them. *gush* She's so cool.
*secretly covets her*

Flash Your Cat

Here's Kitty!

I love my Kitty Cat! She's so sweet. I need to take some updated photos of my little girl, but here's one that I took with my camera phone last summer.

Check out the Flash Your Cat thread I started on the KnittyBoard.

I Love New York: The Mangeant

OH MY GAWD!
Another fine episode of D-List Hollyhood reality.
Where do I begin?
I LOVE YOU CHAMO! You're the best part of the show! He's so cute and I love his name C H A M O! Awww....so, cute. CHAMO! CHAMO! CHAMO!

My favorites are doing well, so far.

Big ups to Whiteboy for winning the Mangeant. He be keeping it real. I love the part when they were on the ferris wheel together and he stopped talking because New York was so intent on munching during their date and he just politely sat there and praised her eating. MY KINDA MAN! That's right, baby! Get your grub on girl! YES!

12 Pack
Too Too Hot! Do I believe he has a girlfriend back home? HELL YEAH! DUH! ...but, he sure is pretty. *swoon*


Onix
He seems very sincere and sweet. Awww....

...and now for As the Revolving Door Turns...

Pootie
*sounds like an arresting officer* "Mr. Pootie, please come out of the closet with your hands up!" HELLO! Homie got mo' as* than me and that's a whole lotta as*. LOL! *ugh* How he just gonna bust in on Rico and New York in the hot tub and spray haterade all over the place about Trendz not being real?

Trendz
...was wrong for pimpin' his CD like that. I mean can't you do that on the DL where you can stay on the show longer and pimp yourself even stronger?! AMATEUR! *geez* ...and he wasn't even tryin' to hide the fact that he was just there for sex and to promote his CD. *dang*

T-Weed
Dude is so in the closet! Did you hear how (s)he squealed when they were waxing (her)his chest! GOOD LAWD! ...and I didn't see the green fungus that Sister Patterson was so grossed out about. Maybe it was some make-up that one of the beauty pageant girls put on him and it turned colors or something. *ok, it's a stretch, but hey...*

Token
Hmmm...on the one hand, I don't blame him for not kissing New York, but then again...most straight men that I know will kiss a woman after she's done much much worse than just kiss another man...if you know what I mean. *hehehe!* Yes, I know some freaky mens. *ehem* *stories for another time* So, I don't quite get it. I guess he's just not that into her after all...and now, he's gone. *boo hoo* NEXT!

Romance
Hooooo! This guy is a NUTCASE! LAWD GEEZUS! How many times did he cry? I mean I was just howling laughing at the end when he cried as he left the mansion...and why was he cowering in the shadows with "her majesty" the dog? He was sniveling and crying and whispering sweet nothing in her ear. CREEPY!? YES! RUN THE OTHER WAY! I'm not sure a regular man has that much estrogen in his body. *tongue in cheek* Men don't have estrogen. LOL! Part of me wanted him to stick around for a few more episodes, but I think Pootie will provide sufficient entertainment going forward. *wringing hands*

Boston
*shakes head* I'm still seeing little black spots from the glare of Mr. Boston's very pale posterior. Po' Boston. The beauty queens were, even, putting make-up on his booty to darken it a bit and it STILL blinded me. *gargled sigh* *ack* I mean, damn! OH! ...and I don't think spandex STRETCHES out that much that your bulge wouldn't fill the g-string crotch. Either you got it or you ain't and you don't so back it on down to the trainer baby g-string. *shaking head again*

Bonez
I like my mens skinny, but this brotha needs a few sammiches. I mean he really is skin and bones. It was creepy looking at him dance while pouring the water on himself during the pageant. It didn't do him any favors. It just made him look like a skinny, wet bone. Po' thang. Mama would feed you chocolate cake, ice cream and Coke everyday so you'd put some meat on your bonez, boy!

Which Flower I Am!

Which Flower are You?

You are a Rose:You are creative, sensual, passionate, and bold. You pour your heart into everything that you do. Alluring and gifted with strong sex appeal, you very easily draw people in with your animal magnetism.Symbolsim: The rose has always been a flower heavily loaded with symbolism. In general it symbolizes desire, passion, beauty, and enchantment.
Take this quiz!








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Idiocracy

Non knitting related rant begins now...

I saw a commercial for a new DVD coming out called "Idiocracy" and as I watched the clips flash by, I was struck by the sheer magnitude of this movie. Even though, it's a comedy. It's not. It's going to happen. It is happening. Sadly, I must say that the golden age of the United States of America is fast coming to an end. We're not top dog anymore. We don't have the smartest, toughest, most elite anything anymore. What happened to the great All American geniuses?
Long gone are the days of the All American think tank. Where have all the really smart people gone? They are a rarity these days. The rest of the world has passed us by, yet we have "no child left behind!?" HA! What a bunch of bureaucratic bullsh*t.

You see the rest of the world wants what we have and they are intent to get it. The Chinese are now poised to be the world leader and we are handing them the keys. Soon, in a couple generations, North Americans will be the cheap labor pool that the rest of the world relies on. Why? Easy. They will be far smarter than we. They go to school all year long and study advanced subjects at an accelerated pace. Personally, I've already started learning Mandarin. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em right?

Don't like it? I don't either. What can we do? Stop babying ourselves. Challenge ourselves. THINK! Stop making things so easy for ourselves. Remember how good we have it and fight to keep our way of life. Our children need to THINK! Not only do they need to match the academics of the best and brightest in the world, but they also need to learn life skills.
Parents these days do way too much for their children. It seems to me like we have our priorities all messed up. We care more about a student's jump shot than we do their critical thinking skills. We make their beds, tie their shoes, iron their clothes, do their laundry, do their homework, make their lunch and cut their sandwiches in half. Tell them what to do and when. No wonder everyone is on Prozac and Ambien. *sigh* I had to tell my brother to stop doing everything for his kids. They are 7 and 9 years old and don't even know how to do basic domestic chores. They are very intelligent, but very naive. He didn't even realize he was unconsciously crippling them. They need to know how to make their bed, sort clothes, care for their own hair, find basic items in a grocery store or how to find something that they lost like the mate to a sock. *sigh*

I don't know about you, but I see no end in sight to the "idiocracy" at hand. All I want to do at this point is secure myself a spot somewhere warm, bountiful, beautiful and quiet to live out my golden years with my cabana boy and martini in hand.

Avatars

The other day I was googling for a knitting related avatar to put on my KnittyBoard profile and I found the IMVU and MEEZ 3D avatar sites. I love avatars. You're talking to a reformed Sims addict. *sigh* I used to waste whole entire weekends playing The Sims2 on my Xbox.

Here's my new IMVU avatar. Check it out. If you sign up I get points so I can buy more clothes and junk! *rubs hands together*

Your MEEZ avatar can even KNIT! That's right. They can dance, knit, flirt, do all kinds of cool stuff. Check out me and my new boyfriend "Brad Pitt" LOL!

OY! This is going to be a rollercoaster year.

I feel it coming. A lot of upheavel and change on the way for me this year. I feel most, if not all, of the changes I'll go through this year will be positive. There will be lots of nudges, kicks in the a** and dredging in my near future. *sigh* It's scary, but a necessary evil yet I dread the feeling of the unknown. Especially when it concerns my health, career, security or home. I fear that all these areas are up for renewal this year.

With regard to my career and finances, I'm taking an entrepreneurship course this spring that I hope will provide me the foundation to truly venture out on my own. Right now, my online business is stagnant. I need to learn how to utilize eBay to it's full potential to maximize marketing and sales opportunities. Most importantly, I need to sit down and actually make products. I'm in a bit of a quandry with respect to my dayjob. I'm bored and I feel underutilized. Add to that the fact that I took out a HUGE 401K loan to help pay for my housing remodel and I just learned that we will be undergoing 5000 person layoff 1Q 2007. Things look pretty grim around here. I have a lot of local contacts that I can call upon, but I don't really want to change right now. I want, at least, another 2 years so that I can pay myself back and get my finances the way I would like before I make a major career change. I need to sock away a lot of cash fast. If push comes to shove, I know I can always go back to being a traveling consultant. I'd probably rent my house out, put most of my stuff in storage and give Kitty to a good home. *sniffle* I love that little girl.

As for fitness and wellness, I'm sick of being sick. Sick of being fat. Sick of...well, you get the picture. Only one problem. I'm an emotional eater. I eat to soothe my soul and ease my nerves. Food is my undoing. I want to make drastic changes in my eating habits this year. I can workout until I fallout, but at the end of the day, if I haven't burned more calories than I consumed, I'm still screwed!

As for my home, I feel a strong desire to de-clutter and simplify my surroundings. Not that my home is one of those squirrely cat lady houses crammed to the brim with junk. It's quite the opposite. It's an elegant oasis, but I'm never quite satisfied with it. I've been going through some of the stuff in my basement, craft room, dressers, drawers, nooks, crannies, everywhere assessing whether I really need whatever it is. I've got Beanie Baby stuffed animals and trading cards, Toy Story, Coach bags, iPod stuff, a digital camera, books, magazines, stuff I need to just get rid of. I'm going to put it all on eBay and liquidate, liquidate, liquidate.

Which brings me to the topic of stash busting. I'm all about busting my stash these days. No more yarn for me. Just knit what I have. My philosophy will be to keep it simple and keep busting through the stash. Lots of hats, washclothes, socks, gloves.

Do You Have Love For New York?

Of course not, but I can't help watching the drama. I'll flog myself later to atone for my sins. LOL!

Wow! What a cast of characters they drudged up for this show.
My first observation is that 45% of the cast is non Black. That's a nice change of pace since I, personally, prefer Caucasian men. ;) It's just how I roll. I can't explain it.

So far, here are the guys that I, personally, find the most interesting:

Whiteboy: He strikes me as a genuine guy with a lot of passion and heart.

Token: Yeah, this guy is going to be another "Red Oyster" and drop a dime on e'erbody.

Tango: I love his smile. He's so smooth and sincere. A real charmer.

Rico: Ay Papi. Look at those dimples. He's so pretty.

Onix: A solid, level headed guy. He seems very trust worthy and sincere.

Heat: There's something about this guy. I can't put my finger on it, but he's up to no good. I can't wait to see what happens.

OK! Let's be real. My "g*ydar" was on full tilt when I saw these guys:

Romance: OK! What guy brings a picture of himself and his deceased dog "Princess" on TV to try to woo a woman? *ugh*

T(umble)weed: He's too fly to be straight.

Ace: Can you say "Tennis Coach"? HELLO!?