2009: Year in [abridged] review

January: Brought the new year in at BBC first and later with homies. January 20th brought the New World Order in in D.C. at the inauguration of the first African-American President of the United States of America!!! Oh yes, we got it in.

February: All-Star weekend in Phoenix. Actually went to the games this year.

March: Went to OKC for work.

April: Welcomed my newest niece, Samantha Lee, into the world. Went to Philly for work. Cut my hair for my birthday. :)

May: Went to France for play, memories to last a lifetime. Went to Cincinnati for work.

June: Got a promotion at the gig!!! Went to NOLA for play. Went to B-more for Tiff's wedding (She was Carrie Bradshaw fly!!!). Missed Rachel's wedding while I was at Tiff's wedding (but she knows I love her too!) On the 25th, the King of Pop died. No words can describe the loss the world is feeling right now.

July: KICKED IT in Chi-town for the 4th. For some strange reason black folks were extremely patriotic this year. LOL! Celebrated the promotion with co-workers and friends at District. Went to Lily's second baby shower.

August: Re-signed my lease. Gave myself a break on the condo purchasing talk. I am not superwoman. (P.S. It was unseasonably cold all summer in the Chi. Womp.)

September: Went to NYC and D.C. for work. (P.S. It was unseasonably warm all month in the Chi). Went to my aunt's 50th bday bash.

October: Signed up for Big Brothers Big Sisters. Hoping to be the change I wish to see in the world.

November: Went to Jersey for work. Left my laptop in the airport. :P Got it back. YAY! Celebrated 5 years with the gig. (WOW!)

December: Finally got a raise for the June promotion. The economy is turning around (well, I don't know about the whole economy, but my personal economics are much better now). Woo Sah! Went to Dr. Smith's 60th bday celebration. Had a good time despite the lack of bootential. Took the last week of the year off (per usual) and enjoyed every minute of it.

God is truly amazing. Every year I live gets better and better no matter what else is going on in the world. Hope you had an phenomenal year. Here's to reaching new heights in 2010!!!

Land of the Lost

My life is full of funny stories and most of them are due to the fact that I forget things. When me & thummyb were roommates in college she noticed a pattern. So much so, that she told her boyfriend not to get to comfortable when I left because I'd be back 3 or 4 more times for stuff I forgot. This particular time, I came back in the house 3 times.

Anywho, I'm getting better. I make a note of where I put my keys and I have specific places for my bus card and anything else I use on a regular basis. Umbrellas, scarves, gloves, things that I don't use EVERY day are still hard to find.

Here's some stuff I've lost or forgotten lately.

Laptop: In November I went to Jersey for ONE day for work. I left my laptop in the security checkpoint at the Newark airport. I got it back. Praise God!

I was doing laundry the other day. There are three washers. I had four loads. I went downstairs to move clothes from the washer to the dryer and forgot the fourth load. I went back down (third time to the laundry room) and had the 4th load, but forgot the quarters. I was ir.ri.ta.ted and I couldn't be mad at anyone but me.

I got a Zipcar one day and forgot my cell phone. I dropped the car off at 5. It was cold as... well, cold as Chicago winter outside. At about 6, I walked the three blocks to the car after I'd settled myself in my cozy apartment. The car was gone. So I had to walk back to the house, order the Zipcar for the next time it was available: 10:30 p.m. I got it back, but dang. That was doing a whole lot.

So I came up with a proverb to make me feel better about myself:

It is not she who loses things, but she who cannot find what she lost, who is truly assed out.

Book of the Week: Mistaken Identity

Hopefully you all took some time off work and are using it to unwind, relax and prepare for the start of a new decade. If you have some time to read, check out Mistaken Identity by Lisa Scottoline. I'm pretty sure I bought this book for the low at an unexpected streetside book sale summer '07. (I love the north side)

If you like Law & Order, CSI, Matlock (lol) or any cop-mystery type shows, you'll love this book. I read it in France and on the plane home. I was dead tired, but it's a serious page turner. Check it out.

Twitter Files: Food & Such

So on Twitter people make a great habit of telling others what they're eating, what they wish they were eating, what they're cooking and best of all Twitpic-ing photos of food.

I feel like most people eat every meal or at least twice a day. An oven and/or stove is probably used at least once a day or if you don't cook maybe 3 or 4 times a week. But we don't see the Tweets about cooking every day. We only see Tweets when people are cooking soul food or something gourment-sounding.

Peeps will be like: I'm making fried chicken, mac & cheese, greens and cornbread OR I'm making 3-cheese risotto with homemade alfredo sauce. Double-buttered garlic bread and a luscious white wine.

It's hilarious because no one ever says Peanut butter & jelly on deck. Or Chicken and rice: FTW! I know good and hell well I'm not the only person who enjoys kids foods like PB&J, grilled cheese, chicken fingers and other stuff that requires no knowledge of cooking whatsoever.

So last night I went to a pot luck and I was tweeting all the food making it sound gourmet.

3-cheese baked pasta=mac & cheese
salsa-infused whole-wheat chicken wraps=chicken taquitos
decadent broiled peach torte=peach cobbler
chocolate fudge flattened pastries=brownies

Oh yeah, I was wildin' yesterday. So what you cooking? LOL!

Merry Christmas!!!

And happy 21st birthday Josh!!!

The 90s ARE BACK!!!

Finally.

10. Name plates are back
9. Shoulder pads are back (early 90s)
8. Kids are wearing colorful jeans (they're skinny & not baggy, but colorful nonetheless)
7. Stonewashed jeans are back. Well, Rihanna's the only one wearing these, but she's a trendsetter, so we'll see.
6. K-Ci, Jo-Jo & Htown just dropped a song.
5. Juvenile has music out
4. Ja Rule has music out
3. Montell Jordan said here on Twitter that he might be dropping an album in 2010.
2. The Bears are losing consistently
1. We have a President in office that we voted for

I friggin' love the 90s. I'm glad they're back. I just want Jodeci boots to make a comeback then my life will be complete. Who's throwing the next 90s party? What'd I miss?

Tea's Giving Back Challenge!!!

I don't know about where you live, but it's cold as all get out in Chicago. I'm very fortunate to live in a studio where my heat is included in my rent. At the end of a day, no matter how stressful or trying, I know that I'll come home to a toasty apartment.

Some aren't so fortunate.

As the temperatures drop, I am reminded of people who spend most of their days outside in the cold. Last year I said every time I go into Subway in the winter to get a sandwich for me, I would buy soup for a homeless person. The soup is like $1...

The problem is I forgot to do it a bunch of times. This year, I'm all about spreading the warmth. If I see someone on the street (and I remember), I buy them a coffee, tea or hot chocolate. I put up facebook & Twitter statuses encouraging peeps to do the same, but I don't know if they did or not. If they're anything like me, they probably forgot.

All of that to say: WELCOME TO TEA'S SPREAD THE WARMTH CHALLENGE!!!

Here's how it works: Throughout this winter season, when you see a homeless person in the cold, buy them a hot drink or soup. Come back and tell me in the comments once you've done it. In case you forget to post, I'll call for entries via e-mail on March 19th. Then on March 20th, I'll annouce the winner and award a $100 gift card. (March 20th is the first day of Spring, even though it'll be cold in the Chi until June. Womp.)

You can also count previous hot drinks or soup you've bought for the homeless this winter (so if you've already done this, leave it in the comments today).

Also, this is the Republic of Tea (pure dictatorship), so I don't know what kind of gift card I want to get yet. It might be an AmEx gift card. Might be to Amazon.com. Might be to Starbucks, Caribou Coffee, Intelligentsia or Argo Tea. Hell it might be to an airline on which I think you should travel. I don't know yet, but someone going to get PAID for doing good.

*Trey Songz voice* Is it you? Is it you? Is it you?

LOL!

Quote of the Night

So last night we were at Monday Night Football with the fellas and per usual, debauchery ensued. Amongst other things, we played Uno at the bar, but not just any Uno... Hanna Montana Uno. Oh yes, don't hate on our good time.

So I'm sitting at the booth and one of the fellas comes back with a story:

Man voice: "Yeah, she can GTFOHWTBS. She said her girls wanted to play Uno. So I said do they have big booties. Then she looked at me with the pissy face and pointed her girls out. Have you SEEN her girls. She should've been like hell yeah, they got big booties... and they go."

LMAO! Now, I understand you probably had to be there, but this ish is funny to me, so I'm posting it.

Love Jones & Such

*OMG, I just looked at this post after I posted it and it looks long as hell. It's really not that bad though, I swear.*

Today I'm going to talk about Love Jones. I'm not going to really do it in any order, but here it is.
Love Jones used to be my favorite movie. It came out when I was in HS and we LOVED the hell out of that movie. We watched it at sleepovers, we watched it with our parents, with our boyfriends, it was awesome. A girlfriend joked that when a guy called and said "You want to watch Love Jones?" he was really saying, let's have sex. (She used more colorful language, but I'll let you all use your imagination on that one).

Then after college, when I was still living with my mom, my stepfather's mom came to live with us due to illness. I lived in the basement and she lived in the den (family room). She watched Love Jones on repeat EVERY night. I know all the words to the movie, so most nights I couldn't sleep. She passed away not shortly after and I swore off the movie because 1) I know all the words and was quite sick of it 2) it just reminded me of a sad time.

Fast forward to this weekend, I got it on Netflix. I don't know why I wanted to see it. I just did. Do you know I watched it SO much that the Netflix copy started to skip. It was like having a phone conversation with an old boyfriend from high school (that you're still on good terms with). It was flirty, familiar, nostalgic and just plain good.

Watching the movie as an adult and with so many advances in technology I noticed a few things.

1. It was pretty low budget... not tacky or classless, just not a big budget
2. The artistic references in the movie (music, photography, poetry, etc) are rare in movies today and I think that's what made us fall in love with it the first time.
3. Larenz Tate looks young as hell. So much so, that I feel like I'm watching the story of two young kids vs. two people who I could turn into when I grow up.
3a. I did some research and Larenz Tate was 22 when that movie came out (1997). Nia Long was 27. The movie jacket calls them "hip twenty-somethings." I think his young age (and the fact that my little brother looks just like him) is what made me so uncomfortable watching the movie this time around. It was damn near kiddie porn. LOL!
4. Nia Long's character was more confused than I remember. She was all in his face flirting and whatnot, then talking about "it's bad timing." When you're grown you stop playing games with the opposite sex. I could see how we thought that was cute in HS. Right now, today, if you want him to come up, invite him come up. If you don't want to come up, send his ass home. There's no in between. LOL!
5. I remember relating to Nina at one point. Now I relate to her single, extremely attractive, insightful girlfriend, Josie (LOL!). Except as you get older you discuss your relationships less & less. Won't be any "girl, let me tell you what he did to me" talks. It's either good, bad or needs work, but no specifics.
6. Did you all notice neither Nina or Darius had jobs. It never mattered before, but I was looking like, of course your dates are low budget. Neither of you have a job. (I'm horrible, I know).
6a. The movie also shows that if you follow your passions you'll succeed (Nina and her photography & Darius & his book). I dig that.
7. "You people running, hopping, skipping, falling, diving in love. Somebody, please, tell me how to stay there" is still my favorite quote. If we had the answer to that question, the divorce rate would drop significantly.
8. Larenz Tate could still get it. 22, 34... whatever. He could get it.

Um... I think that's all I have for now. What are your observations about the movie, favorite parts, quotes, etc.

Ruined - NSFW

There are a few words in the English language that are ruined for me do to comedians and youtube videos. I thought I'd share a few with you. These are hilarious and NSFW (unless you have headphones or a door)...

Snacks

Hustlin'

Security - I really can't remember which Martin episode or movie this is from, but he says security in a high-pitched female voice. Now EVERY time I say security, I say it like that. The word is ruined.

SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDDDDDDDDD

Do You See What I See: Twitter Edition

This is my girl's Twitter profile pic and I absolutely love this quote. I guess this is quote of the day too.



And some other random funny [to me] quotes...

"Shawty you ain't got no change for us"

This was said in passing by two black teenage males walking down Michigan Ave. coatless while I was walking to work (so yeah at 8 in the morning). Um... are you peddling, cat calling or something else... I was confused.

"Your legs look really nice in those heels. Wear them until you can't anymore. See me, I have big legs & they just don't look as good in heels."

- Old lady who asked me to ride the CTA elevator with her on the way to church because she was scared. (Don't get me wrong, I love a jazzy old lady, but I also love the fact that this old lady is modest and understands what's age and weight appropriate and what's not. That made me smile.)

"When asked what she'd like to have most in the world, her reply: Donald Trump's baby"

- WGN newscaster talking about a Hooters girl who was on the show. (Gotta love the morning news).

Tea's Top 10: Chicago Winter Edition

These are the top 10 things that Chicagoans did or vowed to do on Thursday when the high was 9 degrees Farenheit (for all you metric system readers 32 is freezing, 9 is some other shit!)

10. Plan a warm weather vacation

9. Get a ski mask

8. Buy an automatic car starter

7. Install the automatic car starter they got for Christmas LAST winter

6. Use the indoor cafeteria instead of going out for lunch.

5. Check the 10-day forecast and reschedule all appointments (dentist, Dr., optometrist) for the days of the week where the temperature would be closer to 40 than

4. Check the weather daily. (Don't know what dummies weren't doing this to start. This is Chicago. It could be 60 and sunny and 10 and snowy in the same damn day)

3. Buy hand and foot warmers with NO intentions whatsoever of skiing or going to a Bears game.
2. Buy a full snow suit... like a 3-yr old and not be embarassed to wear that jawn as a grown ass man or woman

1. Update your resume, send it to companies you don't even like in warm states, get hired and move the hell out of Chicago (most of us never make good on that promise, but it sure does sound good when your tears are frozen to your face)

What'd I miss?

Brandon Harper

On August 20, 2009 an innocent young man was shot and killed by the Riverdale police (Chicago suburb). He was 22, his name was Brandon Harper, he was the son of a member of my church.

Did you hear about it on the news? I didn't, but maybe I wasn't paying attention because clearly, here's the breaking news story and there's a newsclip about the lawsuit against the police below.




I made a note in my drafts to talk about it here, so I wanted to share it with you all. Don't mean to bring anyone down, I just hope that if I'm killed by the police or because of domestic violence or at all for any reason, that someone will take the time to remember me and pray for my family.

Tea & Such readers, please pray for Brandon Harper's family this holiday season.

THANK YOU!

I just wanted to say thanks to each and every person who reads my blog: those who "follow" me, those who comment, even the lurkers. (and my wonderful friends who text, email and/or send me facebook notes about the blog instead of commenting... I love y'all too).

This blog is SUCH a blessing to me and I can't thank you enough. So, thanks for rockin' with me. It can only get better from here. :)

MUAH!!!

Damn! Damn! Damn!

I'm sad today.

I'm sad today because my credit score went down.

I'm sad today because my credit score went down and I can't see any way to have prevented it from happening.

It's no secret that CC companies are going for blood out here, but I got a letter in the mail that my very high credit limit on my *insert name of company* card would be decreased by a significant amount due to gross negligence or some other crap like that. (yes, I said the name of the card. I hope they're monitoring an I hope they know I think they can kick rocks!)

I called and very calmly asked what they meant by "gross negligence." Come to find out a loan I co-signed for my dearly beloved sister was paid late TWICE. *side note: the heavy emphasis on twice indicates two things. 1) I'm pissed at my sister for messing up two times, once maybe, but two. #CmonSon. 2) Twice also emphasizes that I think it's ludicrous for CC companies to have the ability to lower my credit limit for paying late twice [not non-payment, paying late] thereby a)making my total amount available lower, which simultaneously lowers my credit score AND b) making it appear like I went over my credit limits. [i.e. if my limit was $1,000 and my high balance was $987, then they drop my limit to $750, then my high balance will still be $987 and I look like I make a habit or going over credit limits, which I don't.])

I don't necessarily feel helpless, but I can't think of a better word. The last time I talked to you all about my credit score here it'd jumped up 70 points (from decent to good). Well from there, it's gone down 85 points (from good to bad). So I'm not even back to sqaure 1. I'm on square -1.

And I'm going to tell on myself. It's not ALL my sister's fault. Remember that CC I paid off in this post. I um... well um... I ran it back up within three or four months, buying this and some other stuff. :-/ Having maxed out cards (even if you're paying the bill on time no-lookie-good).

Well, the good news is:

1) I make more money than I did the last time I talked about my credit, but my expenses are the same, so debt payment can really take center stage in 2010. (Making sure I eat regularly took center stage up until now).
2) It usually only takes about 6 months to a year get your credit score up and I don't have any major purchases on the horizon, so I have yet another opportunity to practice patience, diligence, restraint & responsibility. (Dear God, what are you preparing me for? Oh boy!)
3) I actually do eat well everyday, so while I'm sad about this minor setback, I see the bigger picture and it looks good (and tasty).

**P.S. I was sad on the day that I wrote this, but I'm fine now. (For all of you all that worry about me.)

Bridezilla!!!

So Bridezillas is On Demand and I must admit, I watch it often. It BLOWS me how these women have convinced men propose to them. Even moreover, I cannot believe some of the background stories about how the couples met.

(Ok, it's not 10, but you get the point)

7. More than once the woman started off as a friend of her now-fiance's ex-girlfriend and "stole" him away from his ex. What the hell kind of union is going with withstand that kind of shaky foundation?

6. Brides are always calling their bridesmaids fat. You knew how fat your friends were when you asked them to be in the damn wedding. Fall back.

5. On the complete opposite, I saw a bride kick a girl out of her wedding because the bridesmaid lost weight and the bride didn't want her "to be prettier than me."

4. It's clear that some of these people are just acting out for the show. This one bride called her bridesmaid bitches EVERY time she addressed them. I know good and hell well 7 black women are not going for that. In real life one of them would have cussed her out. I could hear myself now *Fred Sanford in Harlem Nights voice* "I'm not gone be too many more bitches up in here today."

3. People act like it's some big privilege to be in their wedding. Newsflash: no one wants to pay to be mistreated.

2. A bride was looking for a white horse to ride into the church on and she called all the stables too late (like 2 weeks before her wedding). She asked the man on the phone if he'd ever been on all fours and if she could pay them to ride in on her back. I was furious when I watched that episode. I wanted to jump through the TV and fight her. Getting married does not give you a pass to be ridiculous.

1. The announcer is HILARIOUS! She has a sugary sweet voice, but treats people on the regular. Basically saying stuff like "a short 8 years after they met, with two kids and a house already, these two lovebirds are ready to jump the broom" that ish is funny to me.

Hair Update

For my new and new-ish readers, feel free to learn about natural hair journey here.
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Side note: I found that the twist-out looks much better if I leave my hair twisted for 24 hours or more before taking out. You could also try a hooded dryer to speed up the drying process, but I'm not really on that.

So at the end of April, I cut my hair to look like this:

Below is what a wash 'n' go looks like with the assymetrical cut


And finally below is what the twist-out I wrote about here AND here looks like:


Sorry about the blurry pics (had to steal them from Facebook). Anyway, I don't know if you can tell because of all the different textures, but my hair has grown a ton since April. I don't have any reason to straighten it, so I probably won't and you'll just have to take my word for it.

I LOVE the twist-out though and just like the wash 'n' go it starts doing it's own thing after a while, which is so much fun to me (y'all know I'm easily amused).

Winter Weight Gain

For my new and new-ish readers, read my former quests to lose weight at one time and gain weight at another here.
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So one of my super smart friends told me that our bodies hold more weight in the winter time. We pick up the weight in preparation for the cold. Now, this makes perfect sense, but you all know I struggle with my weight every November. (Not seriously struggle, but hit the gym a bit harder because my pants are fitting snugly - or like the case in 2004, didn't fit AT ALL).

This has been going on since I left college (and could therefore no longer wear sweatpants and booty shorts everyday). But it makes me feel SO good to know that this is God's way of keeping me warm and not an eating or exercise fail on my part. (Thanks God!)

In case anyone cares (I'm sure no one does), I've done a pretty good job of going to the gym regularly this year. I must admit I had a little summer hiatus where I only went to the gym to partake in the rooftop pool [oh yeah, my gym is off the chain!], but as soon as cold temps hit, I was back at it. I aim to go every day and fall short every week, making it about three times a week, which is good.

(If I aimed to go three times a week, I'd never go).

Anyway, it's December, in January, we were all talking a great game when it came to fitness. How'd you do?

Holiday Martyrs

I had a great holiday and didn't want to put a damper on it by posting this the Monday after Thanksgiving, so it's a little dated, but I think you all can keep up.
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It's 7:10 on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and I have a slight attitude. My mom decided to do a potluck at her house this year rather than slaving over all the food, which I thought it was an excellent idea. We're in a recession and she and her husband shouldn't have all that leftover food anyway.

I had to remind her THREE times to tell people about it. She claimed that the Saturday before Thanksgiving was too late. I said no, get the e-mails/texts out today and it'll be fine. She forgot. Then I reminded her two more times on Sunday and she finally sent it out.

The thing is people didn't really step up to do the big stuff. So my mom is still cooking Turkey, dressing, ham & greens. I'm making mac & cheese (which I always do at her house, but I'm buying the supplies which is new) and my grandma is making potato salad (which she always does and I'm sure my mom is paying for ingredients) and my aunt is bringing yams (new development right here) and everyone else is bringing dessert or pop (which they always do).

I bet when I come back to make edits to this post my mom will have made a peach cobbler and banana pudding too... **back to make edits** she actually made a peach cobbler, cornbread, gravy for the turkey and two pies.

It upsets me that she doesn't put her foot down and do what she says she's going to do. I feel like the family takes advantage of her. But at the same time, what's really cooking my grits is that I think she likes it. **back to edit** ok, saying she likes it is harsh. I think she feels obligated in the way that so many women, mothers and black women especially, do to give back to their families. It shouldn't hurt you to help others though. I just want to help her put herself first on holidays, but she's not trying to hear me. I'm going to leave what I originally wrote at the bottom though, so keep reading.

I really don't think she can do things easily and have a carefree holiday. It's like she WANTS to be overworked and underappreciated.

The reason I know this is because I said I was going to make the mac & cheese in the morning and she was like, no I'm making dressing in the morning. I'm like aren't there two racks in the oven. AND don't we have ALL morning to cook. From the time I get up (9am-ish) to the time we eat 2pm-ish. Why in God's name can't we both just cook in the morning.

Nope, she's not having it. Taking the practical road is too much like right. T, you know my oven doesn't cook evenly, blah, blah, blah and so she's going to STAY UP tonight cooking greens and dressing and preparing the turkeys for the deep fryer.

I tried to help, I really did.

Women, it doesn't have to be this hard. You can cook meals that don't require loss of sleep and still be appreciated. When I start doing Thanksgiving at my house (will probably never happen because my mom can't ever just go sat down), but when I do, please remind me that stressing over holiday meals is for the birds (unless my mother-in-law is coming over for the first time - that's pretty much the only time I'll be stressed).

P.S. I missed my darn bus Wednesday night writing this post, so I hope y'all comment. :)

Design Help

Ok, look to the left and the right. You see that white space at the edge of my blog? How do I put a photo or a background or something there? I've seen people's blogspot blogs where that space is filled in. It's ABSOLUTELY driving me nuts.

I'm going to google it later, but if you have any design help, please comment (or send me an email).

Love you guys! Have a great weekend!

T

Baby Showers

I was recently on Target.com going through my girl's baby shower registry. I was going to call her and ask her something about it, but then it occured to me that I didn't want to tempt her to look at it. Side note: She's probably reading this which negates the whole point of not calling her, but whatever. Maybe she skipped a day of reading this blog.

So question of the day is for the mommies who have had gift registries (or even people who have done wedding registries): what keeps you from looking at your gift registry online? Or do you just say eff it and check it all day everyday like Twitter.

Do You See What I See: Newstand Edition

I usually don't buy magazines on the newsstand. I look at them, might even flip through them, but look at my first lady looking A.MA.ZING! on the cover of Glamour for the December 2009 issue. (Side note: They have covers with Rihanna and Serena too and I saw those on the blogs. I didn't even know about Mrs. Obama though).

I literally could not resist buying it. Every woman everywhere needs to go buy this. What an awesome, awesome rolemodel she is for women and girls in America and around the world. I'm gushing right now. LOVE. HER!!!



And darn my wack editing skills because it's so blurry, but trust me, she looks phenomenal.

So What You Do?

Yes, I have a blurry photo of the homewrecker on my page. Remember in the "You Don't Know My Name Video" she said "So What You Do" to Mos Def. And it didn't sound like a horrible grammar mistake... it just sounded sexy...

Whatever, you still listen to Chris Brown too... sue me.

Now, on to the topic at hand. I hate the question "What Do You Do?" Not because it's a bad question, but because I don't have a good answer.

Him: So what do you do?
Me: I work in consumer marketing public relations.
Him: Word, what does that job consist of?
Me: Getting my clients in the media positively.
Him: So, essentially, you put people on.
Me: Companies, not people, but essentially, yes.

Him #2: So what do you do?
Me: I work in consumer marketing public relations.
Him #2: So what do you do every day?
Me: Make sure my clients are respresented in the media positively.
Him #2 : So who do you work for.
Me: I work for an agency. I have a lot of clients.
Him #2: Silence
Me: My clients are: company you know #1, company you know #2 and company you know #3
Him: So you basically do marketing for large corporations.
Me: Yeah, basically.

Do you see what just happened Tea & Such readers. I said the same thing to two different people and they both broke it down into bite-sized pieces of communication that they could better understand. One said "you put people on" the other said "you do marketing for large corporations." While true, neither of those statements, represent an accurate depiction of what I do if I utter them in isolation of my other comments.

I can't predict what someone does or doesn't know about my field of work and asking a pre-question doesn't help either. EVERY time I ask someone if they know what PR is, they say yes, because they don 't want me to think they're stupid. When in fact only about 20% of people have any idea what it is and half of those people work in the field. Womp.

It's just frustrating as hell because if you're an accountant no one really knows what you do. They know you deal with money and balance sheets and bottom lines, but they are no more aware of your day-to-day activity or deliverables than they are of mine. However, when YOU say I'm an accountant, they say ok and go about their business.

I say I'm a PR practitioner and everyone - no matter who it is - feels the need to ask for more information and the condescending tones in which they do so (as if to say PR? WTF is that?) is enough to make even the mildest PR diva irate. And I'm not mild.

*Duracell commercial voice* Consider this: Unless you're looking into a job change does it really matter what the person you're talking to does? I mean, you're never going to understand my job unless you work here or in a like environment. When someone tells you they do something you don't recognize, know or understand, consider saying ok and googling it later. #imjustsayin

Don't Count My Money!!!

Chris Chase of Yahoo! Sports said the following in this article: "Forbes said Serena made $14 million through prize money, appearance fees and endorsements. For her, having to cut a check for $82,500 is more an annoyance than anything."

I hate when people count my money and I bet celebrities do too. Now yes, Serena is ballin', but who is this author to say what's an annoyance and what's not. $82,500 is 1.6% of her 14MM salary.

The average salary of a Chicagoan is $38,625 (according to Wikipedia, so I'm sure it's not accurate, but work with me). 1.6% of that is $618. I'm not going to say if I make more or less than the average Chicagoan (get out my pocket, homie), but I'm not trying to pay ANYONE $618 and get nothing in return. Ya' feel me. Sorry, Chris Chase, that's a bit more than an annoyance.

I guess Serena gets to keep playing in tournaments in return for that lofty fee, but I just wish people would stop counting other people's money (including mine). It aggravates me.

World AIDS Day

Today is World AIDS Day. Just want to remind everyone who doesn't have AIDS or HIV, to wrap it up, get tested often and educate yourselves about the facts. (Oh yes, plenty of people are still ignorant about the disease).

Just want to remind those living with HIV and/or AIDS to wrap it up, follow your doctor's orders and educate yourselves about the facts. HIV is not an immediate death sentence. New developments are being made everyday and you can live your best life [(c) Oprah] even with this disease. Keep your head up. T's in your corner. AIDS IS the bad guy. You are NOT.

With that, everyone come out tomorrow to the Red Pump Project's
"Say Red... Cocktails & Conversation"
Wednesday, December 2nd
6-9 p.m.
AI Sushi Restaurant & Lounge
358 W. Ontario

I will be there rocking my red pumps. Tell a friend!!!