Beauty at all costs

Lady on motorcycle in Lagos doing makeup: How does this chick balance herself on the okada with all the focus on her compact mirror? Guess she's used to riding okada and has mastered the sensei art of balance or doesn't care cracking her skull on the pavement in a noteworthy attempt at putting the final touches to her face painting...lol I said it before and i will say it again--Beauty at all costs!!!

First visit to Nigeria

A South-African Caucasian male takes a trip down to Victoria Island, Lagos, NIGERIA for the first time in his life. This is his account with a lot of very interesting, well taken pictures. A must read. Very good pictures!

Click on this: Link

Got Tagged!!! Yaye!!!

I'd been waiting, anticipating being tagged, and I finally was. Thanks QueenB for holding me down. lol.. Here is my four's...

FOUR JOBS YOU'VE HAD IN YOUR LIFE
1. Computer Engineer
2. Software Engineer
3. Associate Security Engineer
4. Cashier
5. Pharmacy Technician


FOUR FICTIONAL JOBS YOU WISH YOU HAD
1. America's Next Top Model
2. President of N.S.B.E. (National Society of Black Engineers)
3. Fashion Designer Extraodinaire
4. Interior Designer


FOUR MOVIES YOU COULD WATCH OVER AND OVER AGAIN
1. Sound of Music (Watched a gazillion times when i was litttle and could still watch again)
2. The Golden Child ("ah said a ah ah ah, want the knife...please? lol..)
3. Coming to America
4. The Notebook (my favorite movie of last year. the best romantic movie that exits, period.)

FOUR CITIES YOU'VE LIVED IN
1. Victoria Island, Lagos
2. Los Angeles, CA
3. Virginia, USA
4. Ohio, USA

FOUR TV SHOWS YOU LOVE TO WATCH
1. Flavor of Love
2. America's Next Top Model
3. Tyra Banks Show
4. Celebrity Fit Club (don't have the patience to watch fiction, addicted to reality TV)

FOUR PLACES YOU'VE BEEN ON VACATION/TRAVELED TO
1. Paris, France
2. London, England
3. Chicago, IL.
4. Los Angeles, CA

FOUR WEBSITES YOU VISIT DAILY
1. www.myspace.com
2. www.blogspot.com
3. www.money.cnn.com
4. yahoo.finance.com

FOUR OF YOUR FAVORITE FOODS
1. Jamaican Beef pattie
2. Jamaican Jerk Chicken
3. Yoruba style shrimp fried rice
4. Chinese Combination Fried Rice

FOUR THINGS YOU WON'T EAT
1. Pussy
2. Dog meat
3. Horse meat
4. Egg (hate it)

FOUR THINGS YOU WISH YOU COULD EAT OR DRINK RIGHT NOW
1. Suya
2. Heavenly Hash Ice cream (mmm...delicious)
3. Ribena
4. Bournvita (used to eat it up when i was in boarding school, i'm a chocolate person)

FOUR THINGS IN YOUR BEDROOM
1 . DVR and TV
2. Laptop
3. Four fluffy comfy pillows
4. Matching, Ultra comfy comforter...hehe, winter bring it on, baby. I'm ready for u this yr

FOUR THINGS YOU WISH YOU HAD IN YOUR BEDROOM
1. Boris Kodjoe
2. Study table
3. Comfy Arm chair
4. Small, swivel study chair to go with study table

FOUR THINGS YOU ARE WEARING RIGHT NOW
1. I got nothing on, just kidding
2. Denim blazer
3. Black boot cut pants
4. Ultra-sexy, black, leather stiletto boots

FOUR PLACES I'D RATHER BE RIGHT NOW
1. Lekki, Lagos
2. Back at home, watching the remainder of my Nigerian movies
3. In London visiting friends
4. Paris, shopping with Jay-Z's credit card, thanks B for being so understanding and for not "ringing the alarm"! ;)

FOUR FICTIONAL PLACES I'D RATHER BE RIGHT NOW
1. Bola, have to go with ur "Charly's Chocolate Factory" cuz i'm an absolute chocolate person
2. Charly's Chocolate Factory again
3. Sitting on the rainbow eating some skittles
4. In heaven (chillin, maxing and relaxing)

FOUR PEOPLE YOU’D REALLY LOVE TO HAVE DINNER WITH
1. Boris Kodjoe
2. Tyson Beckford
3. Tyra Banks
4. Naomi Campbell (with her hands tied behind her and cell phone safely put away for safety precautions)

FOUR THINGS YOU ARE THINKING RIGHT NOW
1. What time is it?
2. Are the footsteps i hear that of my boss?
3. Time to duck?
4. Why hasn't Chichi called me back yet?

FOUR OF YOUR FAVORITE THINGS
1. My new watch I bought from London
2. A new book I bought called "The 48 laws of Power". (sits in my purse always)
3. Aham (my most loyal friend)
4. Buchi (the least judgemental person i know and easy to talk to)

FOUR PEOPLE YOU TAG
1. Wale Photos
2. Dilichi
3. Beauty in Baltimore
4. Disillusioned Nigerian Girl
5. Everyone and anyone reading this!!!

Ms. New York Got Voted Off!!!

Hey, whoever missed Flava of Love (reality show) on VH1 yesterday missed a good show, full of drama and more drama. New York got booted off for the second time, ya'll. Can't wait for the show reunion next weekend. It should be off the chain since we have Wendy Williams (radio gossip queen) asking all the questions. Meeen, this show is sweet, no lie oh!!! I hereby own up to being officially addicted to this season's Flavor of Love show. You guys in London and Nigeria, don't know if you get this show over there so check out the below outakes to see what you've been missing. This probably might just be a recap for you anyways. Two words about this show -- outright hilarious!!!


Flavor of Love 2- Final Elimination


New York's last date with Flav (Part 1)


New York's last date with Flav (Part 2)


New York Hospitality--funny outakes from last season

For more scenes from Flavor of Love check out vspot or vpothome

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

....Marianne Williamson

Gotten from In my head and around me blog. Good looking out girl! :)

Pictures of Jay-Z and Beyonce in Nigeria

Crowd going wild for Jay--"Hova, Hova!!!"

Jay Z performing on-stage (was told this was in Tanzania)


Jay-Z posing with some females


Jay Z press conference

Beyonce being robed in traditional attire

Beyonce learning some African dance. "Don't she already got all

those moves down already? I mean with the "Deja Vu" video you would not

think she needed any lessons at this point

Jay Z cutting ribbon

Jay-Z in Alhaji attire- Kwara State

Jay-Z riding horse

Jay-Z gets street named after him

Jay and B in traditional attire

Avoiding the Dreaded B-word

This was a good write-up I read today that inspired me. It is about women coming off as too hostile in the work environment and how to tone that "thing" down. I hope someelse can find it useful. I know i did. :)

—by Anne Fisher, Senior Fortune Writer

Dear Annie: How can I achieve a balance between standing up for myself at work and being regarded by colleagues as a bitch? Overall, I'm a pretty easygoing person, I try to help others out when I can, and I volunteer for assignments. The problem: When I need to say "no" or point out that I just can't take on anything else because I'm already buried in work, I get accused of being uncooperative, not a team player, or "bitchy." But when my male counterparts do and say the same things, no one seems to mind. What am I doing wrong, or what can I do to change the perception? -No Prima Donna

Dear NPD: "When men speak up for themselves, they usually do it in a very business-based, proactive way, and without emotion," notes Rebecca Shambaugh, head of the Shambaugh Leadership Group, a McLean, Va., consulting firm that has worked with IBM, Marriott, Northrop Grumman, and many other companies on how to develop and retain female managers. "They'll say, 'Sorry, fellas, I just can't take this one on.' Women, though, often tend to be more reactive, sometimes even bordering on feeling like a victim: 'Don't they know how much work I've already got?' My guess is that this is what you're doing, probably without being aware of it - and that your resentment is coming across loud and clear."

"The good news is, you have more power in this situation than you think," says Shambaugh, who also coaches individual women on how to navigate the slippery shoals of corporate advancement. "It's about re-setting expectations. When you need to speak up for yourself, approach the conversation as 'just business'. Briefly and calmly say that you can't take on one more project and then steer the conversation toward finding solutions." In other words, watch carefully the next time one of your male co-workers says "no", and do it the way he does.

"Staying calm and unemotional when sticky issues arise takes confidence," notes Caitlin Friedman, co-author, with Kimberly Yorio, of The Girl's Guide to Being a Boss (Without Being a Bitch) (Doubleday/Broadway, $22.95). "Until you develop it, act as if you have it. This is one area where the expression 'Fake it til you make it' can really help."

The higher up you go in the organization, Friedman notes, the more you will have to manage others' perceptions of you, so you might as well get used to it now.
"The pressures are greater on women bosses, because people have different expectations," she says. "For example, if you're female, the people under you often assume that you're going to be more nurturing and motherly toward them, and toward their careers, than a man would be. Then, if you're not, you're a 'bitch.' "

She adds: "After our book came out, Kimberly and I did about 100 radio shows, and time and time again people would call in and say, 'I loved my woman boss until she started telling me what to do.' But that is what a boss does! It's okay coming from a man, but very often - still, even in these supposedly enlightened times - not from a woman."

What's the solution? "Being a boss is hard," she says. "This is why women executives need to take the time to mentor other women and share their experiences and insights, so that new female managers don't have to keep reinventing the wheel."

Do you have a mentor? It might be time to seek one out, not just for tips on avoiding the b-label, but as a sounding board on assorted other office issues, too. Feeling less isolated might give you the confidence you need to assert yourself as matter-of-factly as the guys do.

Monday's Chicken Soup for the Soul

I was going through the October "Vibe" magazine edition, and I came across an article about Exhibit, the rapper. I was thinking I would read some shoot-em-up style ghettoreque meaningless advice but his word were very deep and made a lot of sense. I am impressed with Mr. Pimp My Ride..I really am. That dude is smarter than he looks, ya'll. These words are the ones that stood out most to me so here it is=>

1) Don't buy anything you can't buy three times over. If you can't do that, you shouldn't even buy it once.

2) Being uncomfortable in your own skin is a bad place to be. If your skin's uncomfortable, somebody's gonna peel it off you.

3) Never look at the next man's grass to see how green yours should be. I was never jealous of anybody else. I knew mine would get here eventually.

4) Take baby steps. You can't be a novice driver stepping into a NASCAR.

5) Any accomplishment is great. It'll lead to more. Once you know what accomplishment feels like, you'll strive for more.

1) I've never seen a dog bark and bite at the same time. So if that dude keeps talking, he ain't gonna do nothing.

by Alvin "Xzibit" Joiner.


Word to yo mama...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sidenote: Monday is always a crappy day for me. Hope your Monday didn't go as slowly and unproductively as mine. Hope my week get's better cuz I'm feeling like calling in sick for the rest of the week. No lie.

Oh and by the way, I just had another run in with law enforcement recently...but this time it was a good one. The cop pulled me over and to my surprise, he referred to me as his "sister", told me he too was from Ohio and rested on my door to begin a friendly conversation with me, chit-chat and that sort of thing. He had no idea how scared of him I was for simple fact that he was "one of them" and also the fact that I still had not sorted out my Legal Issues (in my older blog, "Through These Eyes). He has at least managed to make me feel a bit less hateful towards the other popo's. I still have my reservations about some "others" if you know what I mean. This one was one cool brotha so he hit a sista off with some lyrics, a little bit of toasting, complimented my new hairdo and let me off with a friendly warning. Is this my week or what? We'll see by the time we get to Friday. Knock on wood.

Before I check out for today, here are my words of wisdom for you=>







Smile!!! It takes more muscles in your face to frown than to smile. Plus it's free! :)

Have a nice week!

Collateral Damage

Today is a wet, rainy day. Very dreary, slow and boring. Nothing to do except skip around and view other people's blogs. After reading Olawunmi's blog, I was inspired to write this poem. Thanks for putting me in a poetry-writing mode, 'Lawunmi. I am not a writer. Hardly! I can count on one hand how many poems I've written in my lifetime. lol.. However this poem that I am so proud of at this very moment and that I also just wrote in under 10 minuts is what boredom and my wandering mind birthed. Hope you like it=>

She skips back into time
Her memory blurry
Head fuzzy
However emotions overwhelming
Almost incapacitating
To know that you held that from me
That which I ought to have known
Afterwhich I'm never the same
Can't be the same
Can't get answers from a dark space
That lieth beneath the surface
Six feet deep


Callousness, falsities rain from me
Like raindrops from a desert storm cloud
Heavy, thick, a downpour
Of what you passed on to me
Your misery
Unbenknownst to me
At the third tick of the new century
Succumbing to your lies
I was your slave, the murdered
Now others succumbing to mine
Events overtake my mind


Gone is my sense of presence and my control
And i'm left to murder your mind
and your soul
Oh how callous of me
I wish it couldn't be
But it is
Oh heavenly rain wash away
The dark clouds of my secrets
And renew my dreams with a clear blue sky
Of innocence once had but lost
A poor trusting soul executed
Put to death by strangulation


No wait
What do I hear
Two thumping hearts
One lost and forgotten
Weakened beyond understanding
Crammed with hurt and disappointment
The other strong, vibrant
Thumping hard
Seething with revenge
Venomous
Don't want to stand in the way
Lest the strong consumes the weak
Hence the strong is sent off
Like a dark warlord on a lofty, speedy horse
And I stand back
And watch what unfolds
In front of mine eyes
Helpless
To behold the collateral damage

by: Forever your Lady, aka Through These Eyes


No unauthorized copyrighting allowed

Welcome to my new blog page

I have been tinkering around trying to get my page set up right. I'm loving my new format, color scheme and new profile. What can I say? I wrote it! *chuckle* Anyhoo, next is to put up my first real post and then keep the flow consistent. I'm really excited now!!! A new blog, a new space, a new beginning. You are now witnessing the revolution. By the way, it shall not be televised. Yes, the revolution shall not be televised. It shall be blogged...hehehe. So watch out for me. A new Sherrif's in town and her name is "ForeverYourLady." Through these eyes has been laid to rest. Take care for now. Laterrrrr!!!!