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Now I meant to write this a long time ago but what da heck…better late da never rite Anywayzz am sure some of y’all av notice I had entered into ma craziest phase of ma existance- well like dey say go wit da flow, guess da winds blowin’ ma way was comin of Crazy Land :-D.  (no regrets der)

While I have always had da idea that there is a time and place for things to happen I think I finally left ‘LaLa Land’ and boarded da plane bac to ma reality. Passport?-check, Boardin pass?-check, ipod?- check (music is life) & Toffee?-of course (kyaa sleep witout him). ok! Focus here, enough humor ya,…back to da point lol

While most of us no longer depend directly on nature’s seasons for our livelihood, ma  body clock still knows deep down that a change of season generally means a change in me too. If I don’t acknowledge this, I may feel out of sync, as though I have lost ma natural rhythm. These days, autumn is more likely to bring thoughts of going back to  school than harvesting, but in both cases, the chill in the air tells me it’s time to move inside and prepare for the future.

I am consciously celebratin this change of season as it is my favorite and I av shifted my own energy by setting some time aside to make the same changes I am seein’ in nature. Change to colors like the falling leaves and wilting blooms by putting away ma bright summer colors and filling da wardrobes and living areas with warm golds, reds, and browns. While plants concentrate their energy deep in their roots and seeds, I am retreatin’ to quieter, indoor pursuits, nurturing the seeds of new endeavors, which need quiet concentration to allow maself to grow. Stokin’ ma inner fires with warm favorites like coffee or cocoa while savoring the rich, hot comfort foods that the season brings in an array of fall colors: potatoes, apple pies & don’t forget da cheese cake :-). As animals begin growing their winter coats and preparing their dens for hibernation, I am doin quite da opposite no need to dust off our favorite sweaters and jackets and bring blankets out of storage as I wont be needin dat where am goin :-). I am even lightin’ candles ! jus to bring a remnant of summer’s fiery glow indoors and dats a side of Me I aint av never seen before :-S.

As I am consciously embracin’ & accepting this celebration of change, delited to usher in this new season in away that allows me to go with the flow & not fight against it. I av sync maself up with the rhythm of nature and the universe and let it carry me forward, nurturing me as I prepare for da future!

*NJ*

You Never Know Until You Try 

When contemplating whether to do something or not, a plucky voice in your head may say, "You never know until you try." This is time-honored wisdom that encourages you to be game rather than to hold back. It reminds you that it is only through experience that you learn about this world and ourselves. Even if you regret the outcome, you have learned something, and the newfound knowledge is almost always worth it.

This wisdom can be applied to situations both large and small. From crossing the Atlantic on a boat to trying Ethiopian food, there’s only one way to find out what it’s like. Am sure We have all had experiences where we tried something we didn’t think we’d like and fell in love. We may have found ourselves stuck with nothing to read but a "boring" book, only to kick-start a lifelong passion for Victorian literature. We may have decided that sailing was not for us until we fell in love with someone with a boat. On the other hand, we may try tofu only to learn that it is truly not for us. In this case, we gain greater self-knowledge from the experience. And yet, we might still remain open to trying it prepared in a different way. The right marinade might make you a convert-you’ll never know if you don’t try it.

**NJ-Trainee optimist :-)**

Going Against What Is Popular

Just because an idea or way of doing things is popular doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone. However, part of the way that something becomes popular is that many of us don’t take the time to determine what’s right for us; we simply do what most of the people we know are doing. In this way, our decisions about life are made by default, which means they aren’t what we call conscious decisions. There may be many other options available, but we don’t always take the time to explore them. This may be the result of feeling overwhelmed or pressured by family, peers, and humanity at large, to do things their way, the way things have always been done. Regardless of the cause, it is important that, as often as we can, we decide for ourselves what to do with our lives rather than just drift along on the current of popular opinion. Friends, family may feel abandoned if we decide to change our habits or behavior. Meanwhile, on our side of the fence, it’s easy to feel frustrated and defensive when we feel unsupported and misunderstood simply because we are thinking for ourselves. It can be exhausting to have to explain and re-explain our points of view and our reasons.

This is where gentleness, openness, and tolerance come into play. It helps if we are calmly persistent, consistent, and clear as we communicate to those around us why we are making the choices we are making. At the same time, we have the right to say that we are tired of talking about it and simply need our choices to be respected. Our lives belong to us and so do our decisions.

Those who truly love us will stand by us and support our choices, never mind what’s popular.

The Wisdom Of Sharing- This is one of my favorite parable stories I wanna share with y’all. Depicting our human nature when it comes to our everyday wants  & needs.

"There are many variations on the story of stone soup, but they all involve a traveler coming into a  town beset by famine. The inhabitants try to discourage the traveler from staying, fearing he wants them to give him food. They tell him in no uncertain terms that there’s no food anywhere to be found. The traveler explains that he doesn’t need any food and that, in fact, he was planning to make a soup to share with all of them. The villagers watch suspiciously as he builds a fire and fills a cauldron with water. With great ceremony, he pulls a stone from a bag, dropping the stone into the pot of water. He sniffs the brew extravagantly and exclaims how delicious stone soup is. As the villagers begin to show interest, he mentions how good the soup would be with just a little cabbage in it. A villager brings out a cabbage to share. This episode repeats itself until the soup has cabbage, carrots, onions, and beets-indeed, a substantial soup that feeds everyone in the village".

This story addresses the human tendency to hoard in times of deprivation. When resources are scarce, we pull back and put all of our energy into self preservation. We isolate ourselves and shut out others. As the story of stone soup reveals, in doing so, we often deprive ourselves and everyone else of a feast. This metaphor plays out beyond the realm of food. We hoard ideas, love, and energy, thinking we will be richer if we keep to them to ourselves, when in truth we make the world, and ourselves, poorer whenever we greedily stockpile our reserves. The traveler was able to see that the villagers were holding back, and he had the genius to draw them out and inspire them to give, thus creating a spread that none of them could have created alone.

Are you like one of the villagers, holding back? If you come forward and share your gifts, you will inspire others to do the same. The reward is a banquet that can nourish many.

*NJ* (L)

These are on loan from Buff- Ideally appropriate for here & now.

Leavin’ it Clear & Simple is ma moto. The less drama da better

Ever feel like u talkin’ to a wall? Been searchin for dat one dat is on da same page…u got me for a minute there! nahh false alarm :-/

I feel like I jus been through a war with maself, thoughts armed up against each other holding their ground to see which one gonna surrender first. For those that know me well & I know y’all are not that many, definately know TOUGH is ma middle name- you wanna step on ma toes am gonna let ya, you wanna do sum backslashin hell i’ll even give ya ma full name, wanna take ma stuff i’ll make ya a copy of ma front key so u can get in da door! But once ya hit dat sore spot guaranteed am gon be on ya like hiroshima!

Anywayz bac to this, for da first time I ain’t reactin or actin up! yeah mayb one little explosion but is dat it? what happened to takin’ dem down? come on for old times sake :-S?? Nope, not a stir in da room…Mayb I’ve changed, learned a lesson or two. Possibly…Ma question is y u care how ma paper is spent? who, when, where & with whom I burn dem notes concerns none other than ma pocket book sweety :-)! some people need to learn a thing or two about boundaries, for what u wanna cum rule ma kingdom when I dont even play Empress?!? So wat if he in it for da money?!?

Such complications ain’t ma style, dont understand y I gotta keep lookin ova ma shoulda, messin’ up dem euphoric feelins I usually get the mornin afta. So, am gonna walk away this time; damb shame though- cuzz when u get twisted like dat! YaouzA! Rest assure u in da top..err…let’s jus say u’ve made ur mark.

So, am gonna go bac to patheticness for a while joined by old faithful MJ (See I did try to quit but dey jus not lettin’ me So…here’s to takin up cloudiness more frequently…not bad considering am squintin through fogginess right now as I type- wory bout typos 2mo, ya :-D.

Am gonna leave y’all with ma new anthem- lyrics from Jaheim’s new song on his Album GHETTO CLASSIC . Bangin’…well for me anyway *shrugs*

Couldn’t have said it better- bout time I got bac to dat!!!

Fiend Jaheim(feat. Styles P)-Ghetto Classic
[JAHEIM:]
I gotta quit
I gotta get this chick up out my system
She’s no good for me
All of my dogs wanna hit her
Right after I’m with her
I eat then I fall asleep
And it’s gettin costly
Lately all I’ve been banging is them chicks that come with seeds
But shorty she’s a dime
In fact that girl’s a dove
And I think I’m falling in love
She gets me all choked up
I can barely catch my breath
Don’t want to pass her around
I keep her to myself
You see she gives me stimulation
Ain’t nobody messing up our rotation
Although I think it’s big
And you better believe
Nobody blazing it up but me

I need her first thing when I wake up
Call me a fiend
And I ain’t talking about nicotine
Y’all know what I mean
Just call me your fiend
I’m just a addict for your love
I’ve got to have it all your love
I can’t let it go
I’ll never be clean
You can just call me a fiend

I twist her up, pull her to me real slow
Let the taste of a chocolate make my eyes get low
But she burns through my paper so fast
Gotta make it last
Hate to watch them Swisha sweets walk past
When my personal stash get low
Then it’s back to the block tryna find her
Shorty she’s a dime
In fact that girls a dove
And I think I’m fallin in love
She gets me all choked up
I can barely catch my breath
Don’t want to pass her around
I keep her to myself
You see she gives me stimulation
Ain’t nobody messing up our rotation
Although I think it’s big
You better believe
Nobody blazing it up but me

[STYLES P:]
I’m a fiend for her
Go to sleep wit a dream of her
Wake up, grind hard, get cream for her
Play the whip on a lean wit her
Just in case I don’t make it home
I’ma leave a team with her
Me & her been down since her head was round
I went to every party in town and bought her a round
And now she get lose with it
Her heads purple and green but she looks cute with it
And I ain’t mad at her
I let the team take a stab at her
I bring her home all alone and unpack her bags for her
We can do it all night, right?
Wake up and do it all day
All we needs a light right?

[JAHEIM:]
Letting her go is gonna be a slow process
One kiss from her lips took the stress up off my chest
Riding shot gun, body tight, couldn’t hold it in
Had to park and spark it up again
And I swear she left her heaven scent in the air
All in my clothes, all in my hair
She got my head in a cloud
Y’all know what I’m talking about. Peace *NJ*- temporarily reborn a fiend

We all have days that seem endlessly difficult and hard. On these days, it is as if the odds are stacked against us and we just can’t get a break as one challenging situation follows another. We may feel like we’re standing in the ocean getting hit by wave after wave, never able to get a full breath. Sometimes I feel it’s necessary or worth it to stay in the fray and work my way through. Other times, the best idea is to go home and take the breath I need in order to carry on.

If the only choice is to get through it, a hard day can then be a great teacher. It eventually ends and I can look back on it, taking pride in the stamina, courage, and ingenuity it took to hold my ground. I also have the possibility of looking back and see how I could have done things differently. This knowledge will be valuable when hard days comes soaring my way again. Able to trust my gut as I am deciding whether to work through it, and know that sometimes a timely retreat is the best way to ensure a positive outcome. Getting space has reminded me that external circumstances are not the whole picture. Once I catch my breath and re-center myself, then only I will be able to determine my next move. With a little perspective, who knows maybe even find the inner resources to change my attitude about what’s happening. Slowly beginning to see that what I saw as hardships are actually opportunities. As attitudes changes for the better, acknowledging actions and the circumstances will follow suit. 

Sometimes all that’s needed is a good night’s sleep. No one is immune to having a hard day and these are usually the times we can learn the most.  If we can find it in our hearts to examine the day, and maybe make one small change in perception, we can ease our pain and greet the next day that much wiser!

**NJ**-Everyday a little wiser

We are only Human-No need for pedestals

When we fall in love with someone or make a new friend, we sometimes see that person in a glowing light. Their good qualities dominate the foreground of our perception and their negative qualities. They just don’t seem to have any. I sometimes, more then often than I wish get stuck in this temporary state of grace and end up putting that someone on a pedestal.

We usually put spiritual leaders, idols and our gurus on pedestals. Am sure at one point or other you’ve done this to someone, however and as long as you can remember no one is actually "perfect," the pedestal phase of a relationship can be enjoyed for what it is- a mere phase. As the cocoon unfolds, you see true colors. It’s then that we actually start believing in our own projections hence troubles arise.

Everyone has problems, flaws, and blind spots, just as you do. When we entertain the illusion that someone is perfect, we don’t allow them room to be human, so when they make an error in judgment or act in contradiction to our idea of perfection, we become disillusioned and all goes hay wire. We may get angry or distance ourselves in response. In the end, I realize they are not to blame for the fact that I set my own trap by idealizing them so much in the first place.

Granted, that they may have enjoyed seeing themselves as perfect through your eyes, but we are the ones who chose to believe an illusion. I have now gone through this process enough times, to learn that no one is perfect. We are all a combination of divine and human qualities and we all struggle. When you treat the people you love with this awareness, you actually allow for a much greater intimacy than when you hold them aloft on an airy throne. The moment you see through your idealized projection it’s the moment you begin to see your loved one for who he or she truly is.

Now I know you cannot truly connect with a person when we idealize them. In life, there are no pedestals-we are all walking on the same ground together. The sooner we all realize this, we can own our own divinity and humanity. 

NJ- As my cocoon unfolds                

For whenver it slips ma mind & I feel like snapping…

*I perch myself up to dat place & get lost in ma thoughts*

People are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness makes you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest person with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest person with the smallest mind.
Think big anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People really need help but may attack if you help them.
Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you might get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you’ve got  anyway.   

-Favorite quote as it never fails to re-fresh ma mind of what am exactly here for-

There is no greater way to escape the troubles of daily life than to ascend into the welcoming embrace of a your own little haven Like a bird in its nest, we feel held and safe in the branches, cloaked within a curtain of green leaves. Here we can breathe more freely and think more clearly, our hearts and brains fed by the oxygen released by the leaves. We float above the everyday world of the ground, enjoying a bird’s-eye view of all that remains below.

We may choose to be alone or we may invite a special friend to join us. Either way, this is our private world in which we get to decide who comes and goes. It is our haven where we can fully be who we are, shed the masks required by the
world below, and reveal our most hidden secrets, dreams, and desires. It is also an ideal vantage point on the life that continues below the branches. Often, a new view of a situation is just what we need to answer a difficult question, solve a challenging problem, or see something we’ve been missing. It is as if we
have ascended into the heavens and are able to tap into a higher awareness. We can draw on this airy energy to revitalize us, relax us, and feed us new ideas. When we descend, we are ready to enter the world again, cleaner, clearer, and
often more inspired.