In 2009, It’s all about Execution….

Execution of my goals, execution of all my dreams, execution of all my aspirations. Plant the seeds, baby girl….

Why am I sharing this with you? Because it’s time that I stop bull-shafting and start becoming accountable for all. I am where I am because of me – ultimately it all falls on me. I allowed people in, habits in, pitfalls that I could have prevented and/or avoided in to run/ruin my life. So why can’t  I easily kick their asses out the door – party is over and its running a muck in my life.

So what are  we talking about here? Get back to me first. DO YOU, J! And no – this is not some stinking resolution – it’s my revolution and my time to evolve begins now.

GOAL #1) = Dedicate and preserve my sexy by eating clean always and rationalizing or overcompensating for poor diets and cheat foods. BE DILIGENT!

Goal #2) = BE ACCOUNTABLE by filling out your diet diary daily – no excuses. Fitday.com has it for free.

Goal #3) = JUST DO IT!:  I mean c’mon now, I spend more time dwelling over not doing when I could have just done it already. P90X doubles for January 1st – 21 and finish up with 21 to end with 7 day cardio. February & March sign back up with Cathy Savage to fine tune and soar!

Goal# 4) = Market it and mean it: Begin my portfolio for fitness modeling in March 2009 with BW photos themed “the affair”. April 2009 – FAP and June 2009 – FAME. Take it for what its worth and see each door as an opportunity. Skyrocket, mama – the world’s your oyster!

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Ava Cowan is Another Bad Chic – an ode to Lady Marmalade Ava Cowan

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This chic is SICK!!!! She is not only beautiful, practically drop dead gorgeous – but her body is like divine intervention.   Maybe its the symmetry in her shape – the fact that every curve, peak and definition is placed perfectly in that tightly packed physique. Or maybe its her ability to achieve physical prowess while maintaining a feminine facade. Her sex-pot poses don’t hurt either.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not gay and nor do I have a problem with my LGBT community but I certainly can appreciate hard work and the celebration of it. To get to where AC is  – it requires HARD WORK. I had the pleasure of being introduced to AC on Face book. She revealed in a interview how she turned her life around at the age of 30 from a dark and spiraling whirlwind consumed with dependency. It was then that it clicked – I knew this girl from an article I read years ago in a fitness magazine: a young homeless teen turns her life around. It was inspiring. I always kept that article in my archives – in paper and in the back of my head. So when she confirmed my suspicion that she was that girl  – I had a new founded respect for her.

 

I like to hear triumphant stories; they give me hope. Maybe its because I feel that their stories; it could have been mine if I didn’t recognize the warning signs. But more importantly, its nice to see people survive from the wrong side of the tracks and thrive in their new lives. So Kudos to "Miss Lady Marmalade" herself – Ava Cowan. Keep on shining, striving and inspiring beautiful!!! Much success in years to come.

XO -j

photos from Ava Cowan’s Website

Alicia Marie is One Bad Bitch – an ode to AM

Taking right out the mouths of legendary Run DMC,  what I mean is “not bad being bad, but bad meaning good {turntable scratch}  – there it is”. And yes, there it is. It must have been fall 2005 when I found Alicia Marie, then named Alicia M Denton, on the cover of a fitness magazine garbed in only pumps, a red sleeveless hoody and matching shorts – and I said to myself – wow, I would kill to have a body like that. It was only a matter of weeks I spotted her again on the cover of Oxygen Magazine and again I was astonished. My fascination with that type of dedication and disciple began then.

For months, I kept her covers at the top of the stack of classic magazines I collected on my coffee table – positioned conveniently perpendicular to my television set to remind my spreading waistline not to park and eat in front of the TV. I know its sounds and may even seem harsh but I have to be my toughest critic – why let someone else have all the fun?

I moved into a smaller apartment in 2005 and my fascination took a pause as I parked my collectable’s into my storage unit and parked my aspirations there with it. Instead, I swapped it for a new fix – stress eating. I gobbled everything down from triple espresso caramel macchiatos courtesy of Starbucks to bagels lathered with Philly’s finest cream cheese. Ugh! And boy did my thighs pay for it.

So fast forward to 2006 when I returned to my parents home in NY to regroup and while depressingly contemplating the state of my existence, I flipped through channels and found Alicia M Denton, BKA Alicia Marie, on MTV MADE. Damn, this chick is tall! But she is gorgeous – and there it was again – the obsession for a better body. My obsession with my body image and shape change was even more solid when I found Cathy Savage making over a young college woman to a stronger leaner body. I knew if she could do it – I could do it and there it really truly began.

So I tip my hat to Alicia Marie for being a front-runner in this body fitness industry -a household name in the arena, a strong and confident woman – helping pave the way for chicks like me. So what if she had a few enhancements along the way – she’s entitled – she’s fierce.

Check out a few more pics of our girl, the Amazon Woman herself, AM…. Photos are courtesy of Alicia Marie from her website: AliciaMarie.com.

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Chronicle Day 1

So its December 1st, 2008 and today, this morning, is the first day of this journey embarked by me to obtain a leaner, sexier and stronger new body by June 1st 2009. The "stuff-your-face" holiday is over and I was pretty impressed with my ability to keep it together. I know I certainly did do some damage but I am willing and motivated to take back control of my eating habits and nutrition.

It’s getting pretty late, and I have a big day today (in 8 hours). So I’ll share more later on…

mjm

NAS on the Colbert Report: FOX TV is feeding us TOXINS….

This is self-explanatory. No need to comment. Fox TV is following in the same shady footsteps as our dearly beloved GW Bush. The same president who is so revered by the American Public {the majority that is} that he will have a sewer system named after him.

If you can’t view the video, here’s the link: http://www.livesteez.com/videos/watch/TfIcrEb

Quantum of Solace, 11/07/08

Respond/React: Failed Ideas in Hip-Hop

Okay so today I am ishing on Hip-hop and its horror…. Tomorrow I’ll plug in a new topic… Officially – Tuesdays is Shit on Hip Hop Tuesdays. Big Tuesdays…..

Its the ROC Baby!!! Where’s Dame Dash when you need him??

Respond/React: Welcome to Unemployment, Miss Jones….

As you may have heard, Shot 97’s Miss Jones has been handed her pink slip.

Finally!!!

Now I have been following Miss Jones’ career since she stepped out on the scene with Doug E Fresh and Ron G with hood single “Don’t Front” {black and white video, MJ stomping through the hood biting off Mary’s swagger – cropped jacket with a full bodysuit}. She then lost a chunk of weight and brought her sexxxy back with “Where I want to be boy” {to the uptown crew, nuff respect}. She even grace the classic AZ joint “SugaHill” quite lovely with superb vocals. And finally, she guest-spotted Biggie’s Classic Video “One More Chance” – where anybody who was anybody during the Golden Era of Hip-Hop was there {Jonesy rocked the FUBU hockey jersey and black ponytail with cascading curls}.

And then, she was on the radio – blessing Hot 97, when it used to be hot, Sunday Mornings early, like 8-11, or something like that. She used to beg for people to call her up because everyone was drunk asleep from partying the night before. My cousin and I used to call her up and ask questions about her album and getting into the industry. She didn’t even know we were still in Jr. High School, too young for grown folk parties but we wished were there.

Eventually, people started catching on to her show and she stopped taking long phone calls but we were happy for her. She left all of a sudden and we heard through the grapevine {wendy williams} she was in philly doing sister station radio, Power 99.

One day, years later, I am hearing her voice on the radio again with Ed Lover and Dr. Dre with Miss Jones in the morning. I was content to hear her voice again, always giving the feminist view. But I was as faithful.

Later I heard her again. This time with another man’s voice – who was so abrupt and yet commanding {Star} that I was compelled to hear what he had to say. Her force with his brash seemed like the perfect sweet and sour. I made it a point to listen. But after a while, I can feel through the airwaves that she wasn’t 100% down for the Star and Bucwild team. The truth was she wasn’t – so they replaced her with Prozac Girl.

I followed Star to his new station and even took notice of Miss Info, Miss Jones’ rival (though she didn’t say this, I assume this – I hear it in her voice dammit). Miss Jones bragged about her friendship with Wendy Williams but out of nowhere it turned sour. I rooted for Wendy because Miss Jones was getting out of hand.

When Hip-Hop changed, radio and their personalities changed with it. Miss Jones included. She didn’t miss an opportunity to “stab someone in the back” when issued her own show, for ratings sake. Miss Jones, who refused to ride with Star’s inappropriate take on the death of Aaliyah, became vicious and conniving, joking and teasing the victims of the Tsunami. She hung up on other artists and ridiculed others’, let alone their parents. She became her very own enemy.

As Hip-Hop downgraded, Miss Jones plunged too. Her ethics and mannerisms were superficial. Shame to hear from such a college educated girl. She taunted NEW YORK for her baffoonery, but she, herself, was much of a joke as well. She lacked accurate reporting and when she couldn’t deliver,she would conjure things up just to make due. I am certain her shucking and jiving had more to do with the radio station than her herself. They probably paid her well to be a coon. And at the end of the day {like Lil Kim would say} they cooned her out, compromised her and spit her back to the unemployment line of where she came from a little over 10 years ago.

I can believe she didn’t see it coming… Didn’t she watch Brown Sugar? Didn’t she catch a hint when her counterparts like Ed Lover, Star and Wendy. Whatever happened to Sunny? Anywho, she should have consulted her 97.1 counterparts who have radio shows on Sirius Radio and Mtv… Hello – can you spell progress, my sistah Syracuse grad?

No! You can’t because you would rather follow in the footprints of everyone else {just like your singing career} and do a tell-all book about you spreading your legs to rappers and ball players with wives. You would rather ish on Beyonce for trying to act like she has virtues while yours wither away with age and your diet {note: B.K. Carter HAS an explosive singing career and you just remake her songs for comedic purposes}.

Oh well… I guess its another lesson – reap what you sow.

Respond/React: Screw AT&T

My love affair with AT&T is officially over and so is the tango we have been dancing since the merger of Cingular and AT&T.

In 1998 I got my very first cell phone; I retired my beeper and decided to become more modern. I ran over to my AT&T store in Nanuet NY and purchased the cheapest phone I could afford. I’ve been married to the cell phone carrier ever since. I renewed my vows every one and a half to two years to purchase a new phone or upgrade my plan. I even stuck by them when they nonsensibly decided to change the name {only to change back}. I introduced them to friends of mine and even family… But do I get any thanks for that – NO!

Now let’s fast forward to 2007 – when hell broke loose. I visited Haiti for 5 days in November and unfortunately my bill was due. In fact it was past due. I called up the rep, dialing *729 on my PDA, and explained that I was going to make the payment when I returned  the following Monday. No problem said the rep. Why was my phone shut off before I arrived in Haiti. I had to make arrangements for a pick-up at JFK using security’s phone instead of my own. I rushed to make a payment and bitched at the in-store rep and she politely said the conversation was never noted on my account. Ugh!

I didn’t press the issue because after all, it was their first eff up. So when I  visited Haiit again in March 2008, I did the same. Called beforehand schedule a payment for the returning Monday. They informed me of the roaming charges; I understood and moved on. When I returned, I paid my bill. But when I got next months bill, holy ishh… Almost 400 dollars. I was pissed. I was being charged for calls made to me in Haiti from theh USA. How crazy is that????? My mother also accompanied me on the same trip. She had the same charges. However, her contract was expired and used that for negotiations. She dangled the carrot in front of their eyes and they chomped it down. They removed 300 dollars of charges for her contract renewal.

April and May 2008 my husband enters a store to pay my phone bill with cash. Each time their machine was broken. So he asked a rep for help and she denied him, telling him I had to be present. Well if I could have been present, I would have been. If he is paying the bill its because I couldn’t make it. He gave them all my detailed information: date of birth, social, address, driver’s license #, she said no. He drives 15 minutes away to another store and they weren’t even concerned. They accepted the cash and kept it moving. I called afterwards letting them know to notate the account to allow my husband to pay the bill in person. The same drama happened again, despite the note, the following month.

Last week, I visit the mall and see an AT&T kiosk. I talk with the gentleman {very professional} and he said not to worry about the $175 cancellation charge. Since I am 4 months away from end of contract, they would waive it. It sounded too good to be true, so I stick a foot in my mouth and called AT&T direct this morning.

I spoke with the snotty, arrogant witch on the phone about AT&T policy. She said the kiosk had no jurisdiction to offer a waive and all would be approved by her department anyway. She was soo snotty and short with her comments that I got pissed and told her to fly a kite – in a not very nice way…. So I told her to close out the account and she hung up on me.

So why am I blogging – because I want to log into cyberspace and bitch to all, especially if you are considering AT&T as a wireless service provider.

Long gone are the days where loyalty meant better service. In a ten year relationship, they couldn’t waive the 175 for 4 months of 80 billed payments from me. They weren’t going to break even so they gave me the finger. I told the girl I was with At&T way before she ever was – she didn’t care.

I complained how their upgrades for loyal customers would cost me 100 dollars more than if I was a new customer – who is being ridiculously discounted to attain new business. But me, the loyal one, gets screwed with no vaseline.  It just doesn’t pay to be loyal these days – not anymore. Definitely not with AT&T.

I informed the girl about the statement stating 175 early termination fee with 5 dollar reduction for every month – she said it doesn’t apply to customers who signed on before May 2008, meaning me. If I changed my rate plan, it would extend me another 2 years with them, if I add another line it would extended me another 2 years with them. They leave me with no choice but them a win-win over the customer. Geez – we really get the brunt of it, don’t we???

Part 1 – I think its the Pretty Chics

that are simply crazy….

While riding the blogosphere, I stumbled upon this ridiculous story on Karrine Stephans writing yet another book about giving professionals. So I clicked on the video footage of her and said WTF… Keep your man by giving dome… Wait a minute – who is writing this….

Has anyone out here know Karrine Stephans to keep any man, let alone have one?She is a jump-off. And she prides herself in being only worth that.

 I think the longest relationship she ever had was with Kool G Rap and she alleges that he beat her. Oh my bad, it was Murder Inc – meaning the whole label. But didn’t she claim she was strung out on drugs…

I don’t believe it. She wasn’t strung out, she was never beaten… She just wanted to legitimize her porn-dom. I don’t hate on it. Because Sex was always a topic for discussion. But a female discussing it was taboo and she is just capitalizing on it.

She should really add the disclaimer that she never kept a man though. Not even F-ugly Mahr. She so played herself with that frumpy chalk-white Coke-casian {allegedly}.

She obviously has an audience to be putting money in her pocket to be writing more books. She’s no different than any other male whore in the industry… But she certainly ain’t getting my money…. If I wanted to know how to keep a man or give better head, I’d ask my man…. DUH!

SOHH reports New DEF JAM EVP – Respond/React

ITS ABOUT DAMN TIME!!!!

Maybe this new EVP will assist existing artists on the label push their facet of hip-hop instead of shoving his “hovey-hov, jigga-n*gga, cameo-pushing, so-called retired but having a concert at the Garden every 3 months” self.

Maybe he’ll pay to reissue and remarket the Roots best album ever {GAME THEORY – if you didn’t know, but based on album sales, you probably didn’t know} instead of robbing fools’ blind while chilling in the Tropics or St. Tropez with his b**tch.

Maybe this new EVP {who according to Sohh.com has help garner the acquisition of Jeezy and Rick Ross} will actually keep his face out of the limelight, head in the boardroom, and ears on the streets.

Wait a minute – maybe this new EVP will actually work. Hmm, that’s a thought.

It looks like he might… He’s not a rapper, he’s not an artist, he’s been with DJ since 2002, playing the corporate role – in the background… He’s college educated from Morehouse not the school of hard knocks. He’s come up in the world of music by playing his position – not biting off everything Biggie did, claiming its his own. Nah, we got a possible real talent here.

I think Def Jam finally figured out that it probably costs less to promote from within than to acquire from abroad. I think that’s why it took so long – their accounting had to be accounted for. Now tax season is out of way, they can regroup. Def Jam probably felt they needed a big name to help roster some talent over at the label – so since Jigga was {some call} hot at that time, who better.

But where they failed, is where all you rappers and artists need to learn from… If you are going to go corporate and behind the scenes-play your Maggie-Frocking position. If you don’t have it in you to stay behind the limelight, pass the fly tracks to your artists, leave your scouting and artist development to your A&R {last I checked, a paid position}, than you have no CEO or EVP in you. If you want to replicate your own image because you are so goddamn cocky -DIDDY- not everyone wants to memorize and regurgitate the same old lyrics with different faces – JIGGA, I mean Memph Bleek.

Speaking about Cock-a-fella, was Dame or Jay successful at any of their roster besides JAY-Z. Shouldn’t that be a prerequisite before awarding such an astute position to an artist. I dunno, maybe its just me. But I don’t see Clive Davis running into the studios, do you???

Last I remember, LA REID was part of an R&B group left his group to form LaFace Records. They successfully put out artists like Toni, TLC, USHER, PINK, Avril Lavigne etc…. LA Reid went on to CEO of Arista because Babyface was trying to reclaim his mojo with that whack hit with the Neptunes “There she goes…” You didn’t see Reid saying let me do a drop on that.

Basically, what I’m saying is when an artist is gifted enough to allow fellow artists bloom and grow within the realms of the label than they have successfully transitioned to corporate. When the artist knows that retirement truly means tired of my day job and now need a new gig, then they can transcend. But if they can’t and they have their greedy paws all over the money, all over the tracks, all over the industry – you are a suffocating the audience and the other artists.

To the new EVP – Shakir Stewart: allow the world of hip-hop to breathe again. On January 1st 2008, we all woke up from the matrix {we already know the verdict on Diddy’s Titanic}. We’ve been waiting to exhale and on our next pull, we want to inhale real hip-hop….

SIDE BAR: Peace to Busta Rhymes – ur new joint is tactful, burning myself. Holla at the Roots – Rising Down, Can’t wait for that new NAS N*gga… I know you going to drop the insight…

Blog Day #1 – Wendy Williams vs Nicole Spence

I have been a devoted listener of my girl Wendy Williams since she was rocking the airwaves with DJ Red Alert at Kiss FM. I was a teenager at the time, waiting-practically salivating for her evening show to hear the scoop on prominent Hip-Hop artists like Diddy, Jodeci, Mary J, etc…

She moved over to Hot 97 {bka Shot 97}. She beefed with Angie supposedly over some scoop about who Angie was creeping with… Emmis Communication shipped her out to Philly’s Power 99. I was only able to hear her when I visited my friends Lynn and CJ at Fort Dix in South Jersey. But she was still bringing it.

Eventually she brought her fatty over to WBLS-where she should have been from the jump… She hired Nicole Spence {a former high school classmate of mine} as her celebrity booker/assistant. My last memory of Nicole was her walking off RCC campus talking about moving back to the Bronx with her cousin to make it in the music business hopefully as an A&R assistant or something. I never really engaged in conversations with her in high school but at “The Rock” she seemed more mature and down to earth. I wished her luck and success and she was on her way…

Fast forward, I peep Wendy’s show one day and hear a familiar voice on the mic. I knew Wendy mentioned Nicole’s name but I didn’t think it was the same girl… When I check WW site and saw her pic – I was proud to see she made it far. Its cool seeing your peers make it somewhere…

Anyhow, I was disturbed couple months back to hear the news that Nicole was suing the ish out of Wendy because of her allegedly trifling husband. I guess it was a shocker since Nicole seemed to have a tight relationship with Wendy. They go out and eat together, go shopping… Nicole got that Essence deal – 30 days 30 dates, or something like that. I thought it was all good. But when I browsed on Sandra Rose and other blog sites for details regarding the charges, Nicole started recounting incidences that happened while on air – while I was in my car or at home listening to the show.

Nicole accused Wendy of persuading her to go shopping for new clothes, look more sexy, etc to help her Bushwick goon get his rocks off… Hell, I feel disgusted if Wendy was in fact saying that crap on air to help get her husband off… I feel even more guilty than disgusted for blindly witnessing that kind of harassment. I always thought it was odd to have the ruff Mcgruff on the airwaves during bonus hour. He would be soooo out of line – it boggled me why she would air him out and have him in the spotlight. He’s her manager, play the background, stick to your role nucca. Then all of a sudden, he was no longer on the air – THANK GOD! His chi was off…

I even recall odd silent air just when the commercial breaks ended as if she just got back from the bathroom late. But now in my mind, I imagine her hubby hemming her up against the pink walls, grappling her by her neck. She would clear her throat like the dry air has knock out the moisture in her esophagus when really she was probably readjusting her t-neck cashmere sweater to cover her bruises.

For the record, I do wish that Wendy – the friend in my head – is actually not in an abusive relationship {though she jokes about being choked up for sexual pleasure} and that Nicole – a quasifriend from childhood – works out a settlement out of court for putting Wendy on blast. In my heart, I want Wendy to be alright, but my core kind of tells me, that Nicole is probably telling some truth. She might have dramatize a few details but something tells me that Wendy and her oger stepped the boundaries at some point. But Wendy should have her people sign a disclaimer – to protect her and them. The Experience is not an average working environment. She pushed alot of buttons over the years – why am I not surprised this would occur.

Then a few weeks ago, the blogosphere exploded with video of Mr. Wendy Williams explicitly have coitus with a jump-off. I don’t know Kevin personally but hell, what I have seen of him in photos, its him on the tape. Yeah maybe he doesn’t have the tatts like he has now, Wendy but he wasn’t born with tatts either. He obviously made the video montage before the ink. Giving you even more reason to run out to Montclair Women’s Center and demand a HIV test. But that’s all my opinion…

Anyway, today is June 4th and Wendy is on air now, announcing her Fox TV show. I am sure it will be eventful and entertaining. I will be watching but curiously and inquisitively checking her neck for an abundance of cover-up to disguise those bear marks.