Big Shiny Things

I've seen some shiny cars around town lately. Some with a shine that I didn't even know was possible.

When I was at the new Whole Foods downtown, which happens to be the biggest in the Southeast, and I saw a shiny gold car. And everybody was walking by gawking and taking pictures of it.

One lady, whispered, as I was putting my groceries in my car, "It's a Bentley."

So I took my phone out and snapped a picture, too.

Then the other day, on Peachtree Street, I saw a big shiny silver G-wagon.

Now, I thought it would be odd to drive around in something so glaring like that. But it's not.

You know, you will probably never get carjacked. Those cars, though expensive, with those paint jobs will be left alone. Too easy to spot.

But they do stand out and turn the head. Not sure I want that much attention, but more power to them!

Happy Autumn to YOU!

So Fall has arrived.

Doesn't quite feel like it, though. We had some mild temperatures last week in the ATL, but now it's back up in the mid- to high 90s. My poor air conditioner is screaming LAWD-T!!!

Alas, very soon we will be hollering Merry Christmas!

I had a good weekend. A quiet one. My nephew Justin spent the night. He is talking more now, moreso singing songs like Old McDonald and his ABCs. That gets a bit old after the 10th go-around. But I just grin and bear it.

My favorite picture from the weekend is this one.

I'd been throwing the plastic balls (100 of them) all over the living room and getting him to pick them up and place them in a bag. I was trying to get him to separate them into colors, but looks like it will be awhile before he figures that out. Anyway he got tired of picking up the balls and he laid down and went to sleep.

My most interesting picture was the one below. I saw some black smoke spewing from what looked like the westside of Atlanta. I took a picture and kept driving to work.

Turns out a junkyard was on fire. Ugh! I know that had to be hell putting that out!

But they must have taken care of it, because the skies were sunny and blue when I drove home from work.

... And it was still hot. Hopefully the mild temperatures of fall will soon be among us.

Friday Freestyles

Another Friday. It would be awesome if it was payday! Ummhmm, sho you right.

But alas, it is not.

I am nevertheless thankful for the day.
Because the weekend cometh. And rightfully so.

GLORY!!! *church jogs in the corner*

And I have some good Friday thoughts...

Quote of the Day: I was listening to the Karen Hunter show, and she's taking a 30 day break, a fast of sorts, from negativity. This is a bold undertaking to say the least. Her guest, rapper Common, appreciated her making such a positive goal.  And he said something that resonated with me:

"...it takes work to stay in a positive space, but it's worth if for the individual and for the whole too. Like meaning, the more we talk crazy about other people, kinda the more negative energy we're receiving too. And people don't think about it all the time, but it's like, to sit there and comment about somebody else over and over and say negative things, you're sending God a message, you're sending the universe a message that kinda that's what you think of yourself too, to a certain degree. And even if you don't know it, it's a subconscious thing."

That is profound, but it confirms much of what I have learned over a the past few years. People project their mess on others. I read in a book one time, and I talked about it here in an old post, that people are screens and we are projectors. I think about that when I am around someone who always stirring up a bunch of mess, just messy in general. And I view myself through that filter at times, and make sure I myself am not projecting.

But what really got me is that he said that you're sending a message to God or to the universe. That takes it deeper to some other level. Never thought of it that way. Geesh.

Happy Story of the Week. I love when great things happen to people around me. Keeps my mind away from whatever has me all stressed out at the moment.

One of my favorite coworkers "Sushi" got a promotion! This is exciting because it is difficult to get a promotion in these parts. I was so proud of her! I can finally stop thinking of her as a 12-year-old, even though she is around the same age as my brother. (My brother is 32, but I still think of him as a 10-year-old, lol).

Sushi is one of those rare people on the job who gets along with EVERYBODY and everybody likes her. I have never heard one bad word about her, and if she ever tells me of anyone she dislikes (which she hasn't), I will secretly be looking at that person as they walk by thinking... Sushi don't like you... you must be straight TRASH. Worse than trash.

I remember she randomly texted me a picture of an ultrasound a couple of years ago. I sat shocked at my desk for a moment. And I remember another coworker mouthing what I had been thinking... "Do we have to go kick someone's ass? Because I am down for it." I said no... even though I had been contemplating how to run up on a dude and run him over with my car...

...because Sushi is only 12-year's old in my mind, you see.

(Sushi keeps her business to herself. Sushi could be married, and the Queen of Wakanda for all we know!)

Anyway, back to her promotion. I was so happy. She's on MY level now. I told her that I will have to start calling her Dr. Sushi!! *Sushi kicks the hard eyeroll*

She used it as an opportunity to ask me for some of my famous cookies as a promotion present. Of course I would make some for her (only after I hemmed and hawed about if she was gonna be at work. It SUCKS when I bring cookies for someone, and they take the day off. UGH!!!!)

I made those cookies. Really, tho.

And I didn't draw her name on that bag until she responded to me texting asking if she was at work. If not, they would've been somebody else's cookies.

Sushi be kicking the fly shoes, too!

I couldn't decide if she busted up and killed a leopard , a tiger, a zebra, a cheetah....

But I did ask... "Are those designer shoes or did you get those at the Discount Mall?"
*Sushi kicks the hard eyeroll*
(But on the real... never seen those before. Haven't seen them around these parts.She probably is the Queen of Wakanda and won't tell us. hmm)

Congratulations, Sushi! I knew you were going to be great leader when you taught me how to use the Cash App! I knew then, this girl gonna take over the WORLD!!!

Song of the Week. This has been my song this week, much so for the reworking of Loose Ends "You Can't Stop the Rain".
Ghetto Gospel by "Curren$y et. al


I love that song! (Well, I love the song it is sampled from, really). This song is off an album titled Umbrella Symphony. Dudes just riding around in the rain rapping. I really like this album. It's not that ratchet, but some of it is like... dang, I gotta be a dude to get what they talking about.

That's it for my Friday Freestyles. I really need to post every day, because this is cathartic and therapeutic. 

Gotta post more... on purpose!!!

Freestyle Fridays

It's the weekend! AND it's payday!

A good time for some freestyles... on a Friday, no less!

Quote of the Week. I tend to watch TD Jakes when I'm getting dressed for work in the mornings. This quote caught about destiny caught my attention.

"Finding and following YOUR destiny will always disappoint people who have appointed you to theirs."

Really, though. No further discussion needed.

Meal of the Week. I went to the dentist last week to have my grill cleaned and IMMEDIATELY left there to find some food to muck up the great cleaning my teeth had just had. LOL.
So I got on yelp and found a spot about a stone's throw from the dentist office. I was out in Fairburn, and if you don't know anything about Atlanta, that's a quiet suburb on the Southside of metro Atlanta.  I had a taste for some mexican food. So I found a spot less than a block away from my dentist office: La Costa Tacos y Mariscos.

I bought 2 taco asadas. They were $1.99 each, which is a little pricey for mini tacos. (My regular bootleg spot out in Cobb county are $1.29 for mini tacos). But whatever. I was hungry.

I got in the car and opened the container. They looked tasty enough.

Here's a close up.

Man, when I tell you these tacos were GOOD? They were GOOD-TY! So good that I finished them off while driving. (Why not since I was rolling 25 miles to the house. If you know how short my commutes are, this is a long country drive.) The corn shells were soft and warm, but with just a hint of a crunch. The meat tasted like it came off a grill. The sauce was good and spicy. And it had just the right amount of cilantro and onions. Definitely one of the best authentic tacos I've ever had.

I had to call my best friend LadyTee and tell her about it.

"Yo, new spot!" I hollered when she picked up the phone.
"Where at, girl?" she asked.
"Over by the dentist office. Behind the gas station on the corner. Off in the cut. You would never know it was there. The tacos are FIRE!"
"I'ma check it out, girl!" she hollered.

We are always looking for "new spots". And she lives in that area, so I know she'll check it out. And this one was a good find. I will be grabbing more tacos when I go back to the dentist to get my grill cleaned!

Song of the Week. This song always has me feeling some type of way when I hear it. It just makes me happy, doggonit.

"Come into my life" by Joyce Sims



(Video may not play for some reason. But you don't even have to hear the song, because you are singing it in your head, and will be singing it the rest of the day. LOL)

How awesome is that song? And how bootleg is that video?

I am looking forward to the weekend. I know I have to get up early in the morning and get my hair cut. But I have to make cookies for my barber.  He loves oatmeal chocolate chip pecan! (And I do to. That is why I don't mind making them once a month).

Lots of other errands and chores to do, but I plan to relax A LOT.

Yes indeed!

Next Level Oils at the Black People's Wal-mart

So I was walking around the Wal-mart...

Let me be more specific: I was walking around the BLACK people's Wal-mart, and I saw some interesting things.

Things I thought I would see more at the White People's Wal-mart. This makes me think that gentrification is creeping up on this particular eastside black area.

I was in an area near the gentrified east-side, but just outside of it, in East Decatur. But I think it is the Wal-mart that the toney folk in the gentrified east side head to. It's the nearest one to those overpriced neighborhoods.

I was looking to buy some vegetable or corn oil. I occasionally fry food. Heavens no it's not a daily thing I do (I would pass out from all the grease).  So I may need some vegetable oil every couple of months or so. So purchasing vegetable or corn oil is a simple enough task.

But I saw some products that made me go... hmmmm.

Duck fat!!!

Um... what's this for? Do you fry with it? What do you do with duck fat?

And why is it so expensive?

I'm not even looking it up. Nope. Not buying it either.

And look at this:  avocado and coconut oil.

This actually looks like it can be useful. I may look it up. I don't remember the price, but it was expensive.


Pure tallow!

Isn't that beef fat? Nope. Won't be using that. Bet it is GREAT for frying. But the cholesterol. LAWD!

(There is some Ghee lurking in these pictures. I LOVE ghee. I think it is clarified butter. Whatever it is... loved-ed it!)

Next up: Thrive.

Now I had to look at this a little closer. The can is pretty enough. A closer look at the container revealed that it was "culinary algae oil".

**crickets**

What the world?

I had to look at it twice.

I am sure it is good for you... I hope it is. But let's just say that I won't chance it. One of ya'll try it and let me know how it is.

Plus it's too expensive. It better be good. That is all.

Last but not least: flax, hemp and pumpkin seed oil.

Now, these may not be too bad. I am sure they may be good sprinkled on salad. Not sure what other use for them would be good. I am sure there are many.

But alas, it's too expensive. I will have to let that go.

I think I ended up getting the generic vegetable oil. It was $2 and some change.

And that's what I will stick with.

I was just shocked to see these items in the black people's Wal-Mart.

Maybe these things are just a sign that the Wal-mart, and the area, may be changing.

Ten Tuesday Thoughts (Plus One)

1. Happy BELATED Labor Day to YOU.  That sounds funny, since the holiday is over.

2. A three day holiday is never long enough. I should've taken today off, but I didn't. Sigh.

3. My sister Kentucky and I went down to "the country" to the Cowgirl Cre's friends and family reunion. I didn't think to take pictures but click on the link and you'll see an old post. Here's an old pic to let you know how it goes down.

4. I haven't gone down there in awhile because if wrecks my nerves to drive 75 miles down the freeway, THEN gotta go another 25 miles down some backwoods roads to get to the destination. Of course, cell service drops way back in the woods, so uh... you gotta feel your way through. LAWD.

5. Fortunately, I'd taken a snapshot of the directions, and Cre gave me some printed directions, so we arrived without much bewilderment.

6. Most interesting aspect of our trip: traveling with toddler Justin. Oh my.

7. Not a straight trip, as you can imagine. We stopped a couple of times. That little dude threw up one time (after eating sliced apples), and he worked the heck out of some chicken nuggets, so much so that the remnants were all over him.

8. Next time, Kentucky must sit in the back seat with him. Yes indeed.

9. We stayed for only a few hours (5 hours total, I believe). We had to get out of there before dark. There is NOTHING worse than traveling down backroads in the dark.

10. Why do I say that? Because I hit a bobcat once. I thought it was a leopard, because it was so big. I was driving my '73 white Nova, barreling down a poorly lighted road at 70 mph.

I told my boyfriend at the time, "We must stop and help the animal."

Boyfriend said "Girl, you better keep driving this car!"

And that's what I did.  Let's just say I don't want to go through THAT again!

11. With that said, I must say I thoroughly enjoyed myself down in the country this weekend. I know I have the courage now to travel down the backroads again in the future.