Poetry- Ode to Neo Soul

Ode to Neo Soul

Nu soul, true soul, you touch my soul

You’re so jazzy, classy, and contemporary

If you were clothes I would wear you, but instead I hear you.

You rhythm my day and blues my night

You Raphael Saadiq my groove, Nu,

You got me through my toughest times.

Just like a star you crossed my sky but then you broke my Choux Pastry heart

You drew me in, smiled, possessed me, I was powerless…an enchantment

Now, I’m having trouble sleeping,

this constant compromise between thinking and breathing.

I’m breathless, your thoughtless, you don’t believe what love can do but

wait ‘til it happens to you.

Lately, when I’m alone with my thoughts,

You just run across my mind.

I wanted to call you but instead I sat back

and sipped my crown royal on ice.

There was a time when he loved me, especial- ly different

every- time. That’s when our beautiful melody

became wildly staccato but I was left

To be plow in his sunny afternoon,

Love rain down on me, on me down on me.

*Tribute to Jill Scott and Corrine Bailey Rae/ Performance piece

To be continued......

Stay Naturally You!

SweetestTabu xoxo

Meditation, Health, Exercise etc. VOTE!!

Hola everyone! I hope your Halloween went well. As you can see I dressed up as Leopard and ran off to the Village. Good times! 

So, whats new? Well guys, I've been thinking and Google-ing as usual. I think I'm going to work on being more spiritual. I went venturing out to Rockville Centre, a town near my home that houses a strip of restaurants, bars, and boutiques one Sunday and came across a Health store. They had all types of earth stones and rocks that possess a certain power to conserve good energy and release the negative. Paintings and natural fragrances, teas! I fell in love with the shop. I wanted to purchase a stone, which depending on the size and the type they can run anywhere from $3 to $50. The clerk told me that I am supposed to choose a stone that my body gravitates toward; something that captivates my eyes. Since I seemed interested in all of them and no one particular stone spoke to me, I didnt purchase one. I realized that I have to be connected, I have to research, I have to practice and meditate, eat better, exercise more, and learn. I found a book while I was there called the Master of Love by Miguel Ruiz. A wise and spiritual book that speaks of all the barriers and stereotypes we place on Love. How we should learn to forgive, truly forgive, and approach relationships and love as something void of pride and doubts. As hard as this is, I'm sure it is possible. They always say 

you must first accept and love yourself before you can allow anyone else to.

Side note: I am applying to about 10 graduate programs in the psychological fields. I shall keep all of you posted on where I end up! I miss school so I cant wait! *nerd snort*

Side note #2: My hair is growing so beautifully. Its getting long. Length check just under my jawline! I am weaving it in about 2 weeks for the winter. Have to protect my coils. I have a deep conditioner in it now (Eggs, Mayo, a few drops of olive oil and shea butter) Gonna rinse, detangle, and Bantu Knot it for tomorrow.

Side note #3: I hope everyone is VOTING today. If we want to keep Obama we have to lay the foundation. Democrats must not lose power, if they do, Obama loses, and everyone that believes in what he stands for will lose too. VOTE. It's not over people.

Signing off my loves. Stay naturally you.

SweetestTabu xoxo

Poetry- Fall Stairs

Inspired by Emily Dickenson

Like Hansel and Gretel’s bread crumbs

These fallen leaves lead somewhere.

It’s that time again, when things die and colors change

When things grow old and others renew

I need this change; my life can’t go on this way

I need these fallen brown, red, and yellow leaves

Because without change how can one’s life get better?

So, I follow these fallen leaves up these unknown stairs

In hopes that I’ve learned from my past experiences

And that something better awaits me.

But when I come to a point in my journey where

I won’t know whether to go left, straight, or right

My red leaves tell me to think with my heart

My yellow leaves tell me to think with my mind

And my brown leaves tell me to think with both

So every time things begin to die and colors begin to change,

When I need a map to help me find my way again,

I just look to life and follow my fall stairs up to the future.

Enjoy :)

SweetestTabu xoxo

           

So, I did it! Skydiving!!!

Okay, so it's been awhile since I've posted on my blog, but I've been very busy with my summer! 

Guess what guys? I went skydiving! It was so much fun and the craziest thing I've done so far. I was a tad bit nervous but my mind set was just "Whatever". I have tons of pictures and a dvd. Which I will post up for you guys to see. I went some where in NJ. The cost was about $200 to jump and $130 for pics and video. When I first jumped out of the plane, I felt that "falling" feeling in my tummy after while I was just falling and doing silly stunts in the air. I would most likely do it again. Good times.

As for my musical talent....it hasn't developed just yet! I still haven't gotten a chance to purchase a guitar, but my best friends boyfriend just bought a new Ibanez acoustic nylon stringed guitar for only 100 bucks! Gotta love Brooklyn. When I get a little money I will just have him purchase it for me.

Language: I actually met up with someone who was looking for an English tutor and willing to tutor in Spanish for free. We met a cute little Spanish cafe in Queens but after speaking with him, I realized he spoke great English, he just has an accent and didn't know some words, but he did fine. I was a bit suspect after that because it would end up being the case where I was getting the better end of the deal. We never met again. I figured he was using this as a way to meet people. To each their own. The journey still continues....

GRE: I did fairly well on my exam :) I didn't get the PhD score I so desperately wanted but I did get a good score to get me into a nice masters program. Now I am applying to 4 schools and for a Fulbright Scholarship to do research in the Dominican Republic. My deadlines are in October!

Travel/Vacation: I am off of work for 3 weeks for vacation and I intend to travel! I couldn't make it out of the country, but I am stopping by a few states to visit family and friends. This weekend, Connecticut to hang for a bit. Next week, I wanna go and see my biggest brother, John, in PA and then maybe hop over to Uncle Joey's house in NJ. After that is Virginia Beach to visit my wonderful mother. The last week of my vacation, I'm heading to Miami for Labor Day weekend. I am traveling alone, but sure to meet familiar faces and hopefully new faces out on South Beach. I may even get a bit risky and get a tattoo! 

Overall: I am happy, I remember a few months back I said that I wasn't. Something has changed and things are moving forward. Also, my hair is growing so beautifully! Length check at my jawline :D. I'm still having issues with dryness but I've been you tubing and google-ing regimens and I'm actually about to run out to Whole Foods in a few. Time to try something new with my hair.

I hope everyone is doing great as well, until next time. Stay naturally You.

Sweetest Tabu xoxo

Trying New Things

Hola Blog world! I haven't posted in a long while. So here is what I've been up to:

Remember when I said that I was going to apply those "finding your self" tips to my life? Well I have a few things lined up. I have decided to buy an acoustic guitar and take lessons on how to play. I want to apply my soon to be learned musical talent to my poetry and see what develops. Cool idea right? I'm surfing online right now for an affordable used acoustic guitar to serve as a starter. There are so many choices to choose from and I'm being told that I should get a nylon stringed guitar because steel stringed hurts. Ive also been thinking of getting an acoustic electric guitar instead of just acoustic. I read that as far as versatility in music goes, a combined acoustic and electric will give me a range from smooth mellow to rock!

Now, you cant play guitar and not sing! (Well at least I'm not) I'm going to take singing lessons as well. This should be fun. I figure I can combine, singing, guitar and my poetry together and get something so beautiful. Like a Jill Scott or a Corrinne Bailey Rae. Wish me luck!

Next, I have started taking Martial Arts classes. I am so sore right about now, but I excited and I love it. The type of class I'm in is mixed karate. The style of karate is called Koryu Uchinadi Kenpo-jutsu. We do a variety of exercises I figure this class will serve as a great fitness regimen, work on self control, and up my self defense skill. I have also just purchased my first Yoga mat (It's too cute) and I plan on doing pilates and yoga in my basement at least 3 times a week. Of course with great exercise, comes great...what? Eating habits. I shall put up a post later on about what I do to keep a healthy diet. 

Okay, numero tres, I am going sky diving July 17th! Crazy right? I can't wait. As the time gets closer, I'm sure to be shivering in my pants but I wont back down...mainly because I don't want to lose my deposit (lol)

Numero cuatro, I'm pretty intermediate in Spanish, but I want to be fluent. So, I am currently looking for someone to teach me more conversational skills. I've been searching around and I think the best and most affordable thing for me to do is to get someone who wants to learn English. That way we can barter our way to our goals! So far no luck.

As you can see I plan to be very busy and very adventurous this summer. You never know who you are going to meet or where life will take you. I feel awakened, in all honesty. Life is just beginning and it's a beautiful thing guys. Don't miss out. I will definitely post up videos on you tube and some on here once things start rolling. Until next time guys, Stay Blessed and naturally YOU. 

FYI: I take my GRE exam soon. Pray for me :)

SweetestTabu xoxo

Stuck with 2 Styles and etc.

Okay, so I'm totally loving my hair, BUT I feel like I am restricted to like two styles. The two-strand Twist out and the Bantu-knot out. Today I wore my twists outside because they weren't dry and I needed to head out. Not bad, but is there anything else that I can do on my short natural hair? Another issue I'm having is the small patch of natural hair that I still have in the front of my head. I find that bantu-knotting the permed part, even when I do a twist out, helps blend in the permed with the natural. Again, is there any other style out there that I can do that helps add variety as well as blend in the patch of permed hair? I bought a bunch of hair flowers, barrettes, and head bands to spice up my look. I love it....just felt a bit bored today when I was twisting my hair. 

I bought some organic shea butter and that seems to help a lot with holding my twists, conditioning and moisturizing my hair. I love it! Sometimes I feel like my hair isn't getting enough moisture but I've realized it's not my hair that's dry, its my scalp. Anyone have any tips on what to use to moisturize the scalp?

FYI: For those that are interested on how I'm doing with the GRE studying....its eh....I need to study a lot more, that's for sure. My dad traveled to Nigeria (I'm of Nigerian decent *greenwhitegreen*) and he texted me today saying that he hoped I was studying hard for my exam because he doesn't want me home in September (lol). He claims that he's gonna have a tent posted outside on our lawn if I am (yikes). I'm trying daddy I swear it! My Princeton review classes end this coming Monday. I MUST take the exam no more than a week after my class ends in order to ensure MAXIMUM performance on the exam. Anytime after that, there is a strong possibility that I will forget most of the tips that I have learned. So guys, wish mucho luck. I shall be true to myself and work hard for the score that I need. 

Also, I need a vaca. Thinking of somewhere tropical and out of the US. Any ideas?

Until next time, stay natural...or at least try it ;) 

SweetestTabu xoxo

How To Find Yourself

The other night I was up at 2 am and I was thinking... In the past year I have been through some things that have caused me to question who I am and what I want out of life. Yes, I have the typical "Where do you see yourself in five years" question answered, but that is dealing with my career goals. Who am I? I have been experimenting with that question. The whole going natural thing, which I love, is one of my "who am I" experimentation's. I have some how withdrawn in the past year. Don't get me wrong, I still go out, enjoy life with friends and family, I'm always bubbly and down for whatever, but when I'm home alone or driving by myself, I realized that I am generally not happy. What's wrong with me? I have a few theories that I wont post up, but the main issue is: I'm different and confused about who I am. So, because I google everything, a friend suggested I google "How to Find Myself". Sure enough, I did and here are some pointers that came up:

1. Create your life timeline- write down major events in your life that made you who you are, re-experience them and learn  from your previous mistakes. Take on a different perspective and do not dwell on the negatives.


2. Start with a clean slate- Develop your own "moral conduct" and remove vice from your life.


3. Lessen your dependance on social approval- You cannot please everyone and loved one's should want you to be happy.


4. Find Solitude- Take a long walk, road trip, read, write etc. Spend quality time with yourself. You shouldn't feel lonely but reflective.


5. Ask yourself challenging questions- If you had all the money in the world, all the resources, what would you be doing right now? What do you want to look back on in life and say you've never regretted. If you had three words to choose to describe the kind of person you'd love to be, what would they be?


6. Write down your answers


7. Act upon your newly discovered knowledge- Do things that you WANT to do! Plan a trip, be silly, spontaneous, adventurous. Whatever floats your boat.


8. Be ready for dead ends- Finding yourself is a journey, not a destination.


Here is what NOT to do in the "finding yourself" journey;
1. Don't spread rumors.-
2. Don't let others decide your destiny for you.
3. Don't lie to yourself and pretend to be someone else.
4. Don't get in the habit of changing who your are to fit in
5. Don't feel like you need to prove your worth to the world
6. You may not like right away the person you find- It's trial and error

So, I am going to try and apply these steps to my life. I will keep all of you updated on the "Finding myself" journey :-)

SweetestTabu xoxo

http://www.wikihow.com/Find-Yourself