The uphill from the foothills

So this past year has been Hell! Through all the problems, lost of friends, sticky situations, mental breakdowns, and dog tiring work I have begun the uphill battle of reclaiming my life!

I use to wonder last year and much of the first half of this year why my life had fallen to shambles. Why did I have to suffer so much and go through the trials and tribulations that to me seem so unnecessary.

Well I'll tell you why!

Being where I am now (living at home with my mom) and seeing the way that things have started looking up I know that the reason I fell so far, was so I could see that I could see all the things that I had taken for granted on the top of my mountain as I fell. I am gifted with so many talents, but instead of using those talents wisely I chose to let them rot under a rock as I gave into my wants and let others handle my needs.

New Shoes were a whole paycheck, but my power bill was a phone call to my mother. I was not using my time. talent, or freedom wisely and for that I lost it. I was angry with everyone else but myself and put my problems on others. I was unable to cope with the fact that I had cause all my problems and was the only one who could fix them. It was not until halfway through my term of AmeriCorps service that I realized that anything I wanted to do was in my reach and I had to work for it.

I am happy that I have taken back my life and I am so much more internally and externally happy than I was around this time last year. Depression is the pits and I can not see how I allowed my life to spiral so far out of my control to the point that slight suggestions from people had me making terrible decisions. Now that I am back in control I see that the only person who can make the right decision for me is ME!

I am no where near the place I want to be, but I know that I am working towards that goal on my own terms and that as long as I keep this drive and will to govern my own life on my own choices that I will succeed.

And if I fail....

I know that it was me who cause it and I must continue to make changes in my life to be where I want to be. No matter what choice I make good or bad (happy or sad) I will be somewhere that I put myself and I will be satisfy knowing that it was not based on someone else's projections or comments.

Its so much easier to find yourself when your dictating your own path.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy for the All of The Lights By Kanye West Video

So I've heard many things and not good about the all of the lights video. (Except Rihanna's possible but improbable nipple slip that had all the guys hoping there would be an uncensored version.) So I refused to ruin the dream of what the video would be, because my over active imagination knows what it could be. Lets just say that if I directed the vision that could be all of the lights it would include;

- A back story of redemption

- Lots of dance style fighting (Tango between a prostitute and a violent customer, an epic tap dancing show down with a man and his wife's lover, and the ending with a girl who does some touching ballet moves after she is rescue from the trunk of her kidnappers car.)

- Alot of light flashes, or at least enough to keep the epileptics away from watching it.

- Of course a extremely over budget clothing budget. (A leotard made out of white silk and diamonds for Rihanna and a catsuit done the same for Alicia Keys of course.)

I know this is beyond what is in the realm of possibility, but a girl can dream...

Right?

Aren't we all human?

When you see the man on the curb wrapped in a blanket, the brown socks that were once white tucked in sole less sandals, and a cardboard poster asking for food what do you stop and think?

A) You don't. You keep it moving on down the street.

B) Why he doesn't have a job?

C) Why can't he take advantage of all those agencies out there that help people like him?

D) What drug was he on that got him out here?

E) Make him dance/sing/other embarrassing acts in order to "work" for your change.

F) Fake a call and ignore his voice?

G) Call him dirty names, pick on him, or do other dirty things?

Or do you do the charitable thing?

-Point him in the direction of a organization you know could help him with clothing, food, housing, etc.

- Give him the left over lunch you were just going to let rot in the refrigerator

- Go to the closest store selling little snacks and buy him a few

- Give him the dollar. Sometimes you just have to trust your heart.

- Offer him your jacket. Trust me, a few minutes in the cold to walk to your heated car is nothing compared to a whole night in freezing rain.

- Donate your clothes, food and time to work in a shelter to help out these organizations.

But the easiest thing to do to help someone else experiencing homeless or not...

- Share an inspirational quote, give them a smile, and most important just acknowledge the fact that even though they may have less than you...they aren't lesser than you.

Cause really at the end of the day aren't we all human? If it happened to him/her/them, it could happen to any of us. We live in turbulent and dangerous times and no ones willing to step up and make a change. We need visible change in our cities, states, countries, continents, and our world. We can make change if we want, we can do direct change, political change, even global change if WE put our mines to it. Together we can all make the world a better place. But today, you can give someone a better day.

Today you could save someones life with a smile.

Tomorrow...well who knows.

:0)

iStand For Human March 2011

Review of D-Roc: No Excuses Vol. 1

I'm back with another review! This time with D-Roc an artist that hit me up on twitter (Shameless plug: Follow Me on twitter.com/keladag !)Couldn't find much out about him on the web, other than that he is an unsigned artist/hype man who's looking to break into the game.

Ya'll ready?

How I am rating: I listen to a song with my speakers first, just to rate the chill vibe of the music and its playlist. Than I plug in my handy dandy headphones and listen, because music always sounds 10x better through headphones. Truth. All together I probably listen to a mixtape 4-5 times before I download it. lol, just to be sure I want it

So here are the 3 possible ratings:

Shelf It - Leave it where it is. It will collect digital dust in your iTunes

Choose Wisely - Pick and choose, there are gems here as well as shiny worthless rocks. But its still worth taking the chance

Cop It - You'll like it, love it, want more of it.

Now, since D-Roc is on Datpiff.com we can do a track by track rating.

We Gonna Make It- Nice flow, but at the end there is a long awkward silence....(Take it, if you can cut it down at the end)

Food For Thought- The "all you boys that talked s***, look where I am now." If you like the artist or just want a song to pound your haters with (Take it)

Light It Up- A remix to the Drake Song of the same name ft. Jay Z. D- Roc is right in the middle of the 2 artist and holds his own. (Take It)

Straight Bars- A long verse over the "Plenty Money" beat. Its nice and has some original lines that are worth repeating/retweeting. (Take It)

Bloodline- Nice song, but the volume randomly changes. (Take It)

Saw Freestyle- Very powerful voice, he sounded mad at me. And I was just listening (lol) Lots of emotion. (Listen on the internet, but Leave it)

Free Weezy Freestyle- The first few lines are for weezy, and than it starts to sound like the Saw freestyle without all the anger in his voice. A couple of nice lines in there. (Listen and maybe take it.)

Till It all Falls down- A remix to another well know song. Sounds nice, but there is another long awkward silence at the end....(Take it, if you can cut it down at the end)

My Rating: If you like the next hot new thing and want to stay ahead of the curve than I would tell you to Cop It. But beware!!! This mix tape needs a little more mixing and mastering. Its not really quite a finished project, but I guess its free so...yea. If D-Roc decides to fix the little mess ups here and there than this would be a definitely Coppable mix tape.

Here is the datpiff.com download link: http://www.datpiff.com/Evil_Empire_D-Roc_No_Excuses_Vol1.m123548.html

-Stay Safe, Happy, and Awesome!

My Review of CJ da FLY GUY & DJ Iceberg: Kollege Dropout Vol. 1

Alright, so I'm doing my first ever mixtape review!!! lol, I decided to do this because I run across artist everyday who ask people to listen to their music on twitter and no one really pays attention. I'm a lover of music, especially new music and underground artist. So I decided to give all these guys fair chances on my blog.

So on to the review...

CJ da FLY GUY was a fellow Georgia State University student until he dropped out after December 2009 to pursue a music/fashion marketing/techno junkie/hustle #4/ hustle #5... career. One thing no one can knock the guy for is trying, and he's doing pretty good. He is the head of marketing for Bliss Skate Co. (check them out at godblissamerica.com) a clothing company that has some pretty cool graphic tees (and more recently a New Ear fitted), worn by the likes of Travis Porter and other celebrities. He is also working with the Nano-Tech cellphone watch, a futuristic mini phone on your wrist that tells time (lol).

But what he is rocking more than Bliss and a cool watch...

Music seems to be the love of Atlanta, and Mr. Fly Guy is no different. He gave a great performance at The Leak Music Festival last year, and that was the first and last time I heard of him. But now he got back on my radar with his first mixtape "Kollege Dropout Vol. 1" A funny mix between an ode to his fraternity Kappa Alpha Psi and Kanye West's " The College Dropout" released in 2004.

Now, I must admit, I did enjoy the performance at The Leak Festival....but this mixtape leaves a little to be wanted. I decided to break each track down by song to give it a fair review since datpiff.com lets you download tracks.

How I am rating: I listen to a song with my speakers first, just to rate the chill vibe of the music and its playlist. Than I plug in my handy dandy headphones and listen, because music always sounds 10x better through headphones. Truth. All together I probably listen to a mixtape 4-5 times before I download it. lol, just to be sure I want it

So here are the 3 possible ratings:

Shelf It - Leave it where it is. It will collect digital dust in your iTunes

Choose Wisely - Pick and choose, there are gems here as well as shiny worthless rocks. But its still worth taking the chance

Cop It - You'll like it, love it, want more of it.

Now on with the review!

Intro- Just that an intro (Leave it)

Maybach Music- I just love this original song! "I don't plan on going broke, put that on my Maybach!!!" Gotta couple of nice ad libs you might like to retweet, would of made a better intro. (Take It)

Many Men- Had a nice intro and a nice replay.There was a little nice wordplay. The delivery was hit and miss sometimes. (Take It)

Moet & Goose- We finally make it to a song with more than one verse! lol, got a little of the Go Shorty Go voice with the back voice in between lines, but I like it. (Take It)

1440- Talking ish. Listen once, definitely wouldn't download that track personally (Leave It)

Bad Romance- chopped and screw Lady Gaga on the hook?! Yep. Might like it if you like pop/rap crossovers. It'll probably grow on me (Depends on preference, but Take It)

I think Im in love- Just a story of a girl who gets bang by 2 kappas, ends like a porn...before you get the satisfaction its over. Next. (Its a sex song, so many will probably take it, but Im going to say Leave it)

Marijuana- An ode to Mary Jane, you can never have enough songs to get high to I hear. (Take It)

Super High- A freestyle by CJ and another artist, flows well and sounds nice. (Take It)

Fly Guy Speaks- More talking, listen on the internet but no download (Leave it)

Rock Bliss- The song is catchy, you'll probably buy a shirt. Its catchy and sounds a little like jerkin' music and than when you think its over...you get a nice surprise. lol (Take It)

Mary Jane- Hey, theres no such thing as so much right? (Take It)

Tonight- It sounds nice, smooth, maybe it makes your baby making playlist? (Take It)

Love You- The "My life was ___, ____, _____, so I decided to _____, ______, _____, and now here I am." song, but if you like the artist, you'll probably download it and keep it. (Discretion is up to you)

Rating: Choose Wisely if you download the whole mix tape, you'll be going back and forth between your computer and whatever mind numbing task your trying to complete trying to change and skip songs. Downloading a certain few wouldn't harm your health though. But there are a few good songs here that are worth listening to and have some substance/promise.

So here is the link to the listen and download:

http://www.datpiff.com/DJ_Iceberg_Follow_me_TheDJIceberg_CJ_da_FLY_GUY.m146389.html

Extra Note: Transitions are awkward in between songs, just stop the track. You ain't gotta be fancy (lol). And starting the song over again for every song doesn't make it special after the 3rd song. Congrats on graduating from scratching school...but yeah...please stop.

-Stay Safe, Happy, and Awesome.

Joke of the Day

Why did the monkey fall out the tree?

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Because he was Dead!!!

Lets talk about sex...

So awhile back I became interested in a position as a chat actress.

Chat Actress - Someone who talks or messages strangers about everything (including sex) while acting as someone other than themselves.

I was low on cash, desperate for any type of work, and had a love for talking. So I met pretty much met all the criteria necessary to do any type of cold calling work. I fool around on google and applied at a couple of sites. Thinking I wouldn't get a call back, I told a couple of my friends just so they could get a laugh.

A couple of weeks later, I hear back from a company (that will remain nameless to keep them and myself protected.) that needed females with friendly personalities and sultry voices. They heard my voice of the voicemail audition and I was "perfect" for the part! Excited and ready to make money, I quickly rushed to fill out paper work and become apart of one of the worlds most profitable businesses...The Sex Industry.

I started out making .10 a minute and working 6 hours a night from 12am-6am (the busiest hours) and got tons of perverts. Let me tell you, talking to anonymous people about sex is alot harder than it sounds.

I got tons of callers just wanting me to compliment their genitals, speak dirty things, and moan myself into an "orgasm" before they abruptly hung up in my face. Most of my calls ended this way, averaging about 7 minutes.

Than of course there were the guys/girls who wanted the kinky/freaky/creepy things (No offense if your into any of this. To each his own.)

- Caller who wanted a "Strong black woman" to dominate him. (Check)

- Caller who wanted a threesome between me/him/and his boyfriend who was on the phone in another room (Check)

- Caller who wanted a barely legal brat to say completely filthy things to him, that I had to google in order to keep the caller interested (yea, that freaky!). (Check)

- Caller who wanted to have sex with another woman. (Check)

- Caller who wanted me to just moan for 25 minutes straight while he just deeply breathed over the phone (Him: I'll tell you when I'm going to hang up.). (Check)

- Caller who wanted me to treat him like a dog....(Creepy, yet Check)

Than there were the calls from the occasional bored caller who was lonely and just looking for casual conversation. There was an old man from Minnesota who found the number in the back of a music catalog (use to play with a famous jazz band back in the day). And a guy who moved from Florida to Philly to raise a family instead of Florida because he was part of a crime family. Those were my most profitable calls lasting for well into an hour.

They had people who listen in and would coach you on calls. They always told us not to engage in the "sex talk" right away. Try to stay on the phone as long as possible. At 99 cents a minute we was making the company pretty profitable.

Of course all this talk of sex, gets a little boring, and started affecting my social life especially my budding relationship. Even worst, the company would call me at all hours in order to get me to log in and take calls. (And trust me, thats not a number you want to see Sunday morning on the way to church.) So the job was canned and I received my pay for 3 weeks of work.

I must say it was the steamiest $132 I ever earned. lol

Corny Joke of the Day

Why did the elephant sit on the marshmallow????

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He didn't want to step in the hot cocoa!

Liberated in the 21 Century

How many of us dream of the day we can have that perfect house, perfect wife, two kids, and a bank account big enough to keep up with the Joneses?

Yeah?

Me too.

I wanted the fine husband who worked in his own personal office and enjoyed taking me to Martha's Vineyard on vacation. We would date for a year, marry the next on the white beaches of Hawaii, have two adorable children, and eventually we would retire and move to a plot of land on the coast of Mississippi. A beautiful dream, but it was just that. A dream. I'm too wild to deal with the everyday sameness of traditional married life. I'll definitely be cooking him a home cooked meal every night. But I doubt I'll be working the first 2 years of my child's life. I doubt my husband will work a regular 9-5. I doubt I'll even have the conventional marriage of waiting at home for my husband at his beak and call.

I want a guy who understands that I'm my own woman. Sometimes I want to be independent, but sometimes I want to depend on my husband. (As he will want to do to me sometimes I suppose.) I want to make my own money, but I want to know that my child will be financially stable if I wish to become a homemaker. I want all the big things including a eco-friendly condo, a couple of horses, a brand spanking new BMW, and everything in the world. But I also want the little things. I want to kiss him every morning when he wakes up, makes s'mores by the fireplace, walk with our children to the bus stop, and smile when he makes it home safe.

I've never consider myself a simple woman, and hope my husband keeps things exciting. I may not have the best pronunciation skills, tell terrible jokes, and like sushi/tacos more than somebody of my ethnicity should (lol). I may demand my way more than my husband likes, be a little too obsessed with shoes to match our budgets, and talk his ear off when we're not together....

But I'm sure that we will work out anyways.

Who needs normal when you have the forever eclectic Kelada?!