Farewell, My Beloved

Before Hedu Turkoglu. Before LeBron James, there was Grant Hill, the ORIGINAL point forward. Last week, Grant quietly retired from the NBA after 18 seasons. And officially broke my heart. 

Grant was the first basketball player I ever loved. He was a great player and a great man. While other girls had pictures of Paul McCartney or Elvis in their locker, I had a picture of Grant. After his first six seasons of his career in Detroit, Grant averaged 6.2 assists, 7.7 rebounds and 21.5 points.  His Detroit numbers are comparable to LeBron's career stats (6.9 assists, 7.3 rebounds, 27.6 points).  I'm tryna tell you, that boy was good!

He woulda been one of the greats if he hadn't been plagued with injuries. First ankle injuries, then a near deadly staph infection, then a hernia. But he still lasted 18 years in the league. To me, he'll always be Number One in my heart. 

Farewell, My Beloved Grant.

I took this picture while I was supposed to be watching my BFF graduate from Business School

Sweet N Sexy Sangria

So y'all know I love my friends & I love alcohol cooking for them.  Although I'm not a fan of wine, I do love a glass of sangria.  My friends and I recently had a picnic in Central Park complete with basket and blanket;  I was responsible for libations.

Ingredients

1 Bottle of Red Wine

1/2 c. Brandy

1 c. Orange Liqueur

*3 c. Lemon lime soda

1 c. Sugar

1 c. to 1 1/2 c. Water

A whole buncha fruit  (I used blackberries, an orange, strawberries and an apple)

*I didn't have any soda so I used my old steady Crystal Light Lemonade.  She always comes through in the clutch.

The cast of characters

1. Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl

2. Cover with foil and refrigerate over night

3. If it's too sweet, just add water in 1/3 c. increments

Ummm, this was delicious.

Book Review: Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office

This book is written by a female corporate trainer and lists 101 mistakes women make in business.  As a woman who was not trained in the corporate world but wound up there, this book was a necessity.  The chapter about How you Respond in business was the most pertinent to me cuz I have a big mouth and will quickly let people know that I am smarter than them...hence the lay off.  Some of my favorite chapters were:

• Denying Your Power
• Doing the Work of Others
• Asking Permission
• Protecting Jerks
• Wearing the Wrong Hairstyle (I guess the blond is a no go...)
• Accepting the Fait Accompli
• Tolerating Inappropriate Behavior
• Accepting Dead-End Assignments
• Playing the Gender Card

All in all, this book is a must read for any woman in business.

Next Up: Becoming Sister Wives

No Edges

Look here, I'ma only say this once. (Well I think this might be twice.) I'm tired of seeing you ladies walking around with no edges. If you don't know about the 'no edges' phenomenon, it's when a woman has worn her weave so tight or so much that the edges of her hair have eroded. Yes, eroded.  I was in the grocery store recently and my cashier had surpassed 'no edges' and had gone into the 'no forehead' territory. I wanted to yank her moldy weave out of her scalp but then I remembered that I can't fight.

Ladies, I know y'all think long hair is sexy but there's nothing sexy about prematurely balding because you couldn't let go of your weave.  And let me tell you, from personal experience, there's nothing sexier than a fly chick with a cute short hair cut.

Fast Five

Y'all still been working out?? Yeah, me neither. But, I have been making great strides with my healthy eating. So here are five things you can do today and start to see results tomorrow.

1. Steamfesh Vegetables ~ In my household (of one person) we have vegetables with every meal. Couple of reasons: you can fill up on veggies and they are usually 0 or 1 points. (JHud ain't the only one feeling good.) These vegetables are wonderful because all you need to do is throw them in the microwave, add a lil seasoning here and there, and then you're done.

2. Groupon ~ Now this idea I stole from one of my girls: she's given up her gym membership and uses Groupon purely for her exercise needs. She's constantly changing up her workout, getting great deals/discounts, and is no longer tied to a gym membership.

3. Weight Watchers bar code scanner ~ This might be WW greatest invention thus far; you use the bar code scanner app on your phone, scan the bar code on the item and it automatically tells you how many points the item is.  Genius!  Now I walk up and down the aisle of the grocery store scanning and scaring myself into only eating fruits and vegetables.  Again...Genius!

4. Crystal Light ~ Let's keep it all the way funky...drinking water is boring, soda is definitely where it's at. But soda, although delicious, is terrible for you. This is where Crystal Light comes in; it tastes good, is sugar free, and has a really cool name ;-) They're even adding flavors like mojito and appletini so you can fake your cocktails too.

5. 1:1 Water/Cocktail ratio ~ As I've told you before, I have a very active social life due to my undeniable personality and popularity.  One of the things I've learned is the 1:1 water/cocktail ratio.  Drinking a glass of water after every drink fills you up AND keeps you hydrated....no hangover!

Hidden

If you've noticed that I haven't liked your photo or commented on your status in a while, there's a reason: you've been hidden from my timeline...and essentially my life. The good news is, I like you enough not to defriend you, the bad news is you annoy me to the point of not wanting to 'see' you daily on social media.

Actually, it's your fault. You probably share every funny picture you see on the Internet, post pictures of every meal, and commentate every reality TV show you watch. We all know social media is about connecting with people on a different level and in a different space, but you're using it wrong. Trust me, I'm speaking for your 765 Facebook friends when I tell you STOP, you're annoying!

Book Review: The Reverend's Wife

This book is about a Reverend and his wife.  The end.

Actually, this book is about the marital struggles of world-famous pastor and his wife.  It's basically a Lifetime movie.  Cheating, lying, alcoholism, and redemption all wrapped up in a neat lil bow.   

It's clear this book is a part of a series and not the first part.  The author constantly references things that happened in the past that you only get a cursory understanding of.  Also, the book really begins to ramp up in the middle but then deflates rapidly at the end.  All in all, this book was aight, but I wouldn't go running to download.

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