Posted by Kim Jackson on 11:52 AM
![]()
Tell us why you felt at your best in this moment:
I felt better in this picture than I have my in my whole life because it was the ending of a very long struggle with depression and self-unlove (I won't say hatred) and the beginning of a life built on faith, peace, and love. When I started my Masters program I was living in my parents' dining room literally because there weren't any spare bedrooms. I had just moved home after a failed career, a failed pseudo-relationship, and a failed young professional social life. I felt like a total failure. This picture just shows how far a little belief in yourself can get you. I lost...
Posted by Kim Jackson on 6:22 PM
![]()
PLPT GEMS PresentsTamala BaldwinPerformer. Web Host. Change Agent.
Tell us about your background and your journey to discover your purpose.
I remember when it all fell apart like it was yesterday. I was living in beautiful San Diego. I had a lovely apartment, awesome friends, a cool job and I was singing with a local band and taking belly-dancing classes again.
Life was good but I started sensing that there would be more. I was satisfied but I was not full. God must have agreed because in the course of ten days, I lost my job, one of the guys I was singing with decided they wanted to focus on other projects and my car broke down – costing...
Posted by GG on 5:56 PM
source
"Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself." ~Harvey Fierstein
Raise your hand if you've ever talked yourself out of trying something new? Maybe you didn't want to deal with the extra attention? Perhaps you weren't confident that you would like it, let alone anyone else. How about this one: have you ever been afraid to stop doing certain things because it's not what people expect from you? Maybe you're afraid to stop smoking or drinking or eating unhealthy food? What if that is all your friends do? ...
Posted by Kim Jackson on 11:50 AM
![]()
Don't allow the need for anyone else's approval keep you from achieving your own personal joy. You're responsible for your own happy, just as they are responsible for theirs. Have a fantastic weekend, Lovies!
By the way, have you entered our giveaway yet? There's still time! We're accepting entries through June 30th at midnight. Best of lu...
Posted by Kim Jackson on 6:19 PM
I absolutely love Peace, Love and Pretty Things. My favorite section is the At Your Best. I adore that they take time to let women honor themselves or others when they know they are rocking. So, I was stoked beyond belief when I learned that they were encouraging further submissions for AYB. I immediately wanted to write something. Besides my awful grammar and inability to make coherent, thought provoking sentences--I had one big problem. I didn't really feel at my best. You know how it is when nothing in your life seems to be working. Job stinks. You are gaining weight. You hate all your clothes. Shoot, your nail polish won't even dry correctly. You find yourself in Stinksville, USA. Well, right now, I am the mayor of Stinksville. I am at my worst.
But the beauty of being at my worst is...
Posted by GG on 5:14 PM
![]()
source
Start the day with your own special routine.I enjoy being able to relax with my family for awhile before we get moving for the day. I haven't figured out how to do this on weekdays, but on weekends I get up several hours before I have to be anywhere. I can straighten up and get organized for the day, cuddle and play with the kids, and eat breakfast. Everyone starts the day with a better attitude when they're not rushed.
Dress for the occasion AND for your mood.
I have a 9 year old, 5 year old, and a 1 year old. I have to bend over, squat, and get on my knees a lot. If I'm planning a day out with...
Posted by Kim Jackson on 3:39 PM
![]()
source
"You should stay another night with me. (I just want your body baby)
Oh woahh.
A one night stand is all I need. (All I need)
Just you and me.
(Baby you) You should stay another night with me.
Oh woahh. (Only want you to stay until the morning come)
A one night stand is all I need."
The first time I heard this song (by Keri Hilson, featuring Chris Brown), I was in the car with my Honey and we both kind of looked at each other like, "Huh? Did we really just hear that?" A bit irritated by the lyrics, I launched into a diatribe about how women complain so often that there are no good men; yet, in fact, they're not representing themselves...
Posted by GG on 11:55 AM
![]()
Have a great weekend!! xoxo
Have you entered our giveaway yet? You have a chance to win handmade hair and body products from Afiya, LLC; the new book ZERO TO BREAKTHROUGH; and a Target gift card. Just leave a comment here, telling us when you feel at your best. We'll be accepting entries through June 30th at midnight. ...
Posted by Kim Jackson on 9:32 AM
In this PLPT Guest Post, Pastor/Professor Lawrence Ware reminds us to stop doing and start living.
Life is busy. We are in this seemingly never ending race. We chase the American Dream. We chase happiness. We cannot sit still long enough to enjoy much of what we accomplish—we are too busy thinking about something else. We think about vacation while at work. We think about work while on vacation. We text friends while with our kids. We watch TV while eating dinner.
Death by multi tasking.
One of my favorite plays is entitled Our Town by Thornton Wilder. The play takes place in a small town at the turn of the twentieth century. In the final...
Posted by GG on 6:35 PM
Need a boost?
Here's some food for thought to get you out of the dumps and back into the light.
xoxo
1. Focus on what matters to you. Happiness is about perspective. What is important to you?
Are you expressing those values in how you live?
Are you sacrificing your own happiness in order to please others?
2. Everything is temporary. Research has shown that pessimists believe that whatever bad thing happening is everlasting,
while optimists view the same thing as only temporary. Feeling stuck is what causes most of the suffering.
3. Make a Worry List.Write...
Posted by GG on 1:03 PM
Have a beautiful weekend! Have you entered our giveaway? Click here for details.
...
Posted by GG on 6:17 PM
source
We truly look forward to sharing lovely links with you every month on Happy Black Girl Day. So, although we weren't able to post yesterday, the goodies below are just as uplifting today as they would have been yesterday! :)
But first in other news, we want you to know that we've kept the giveaway open because we think it was a bit daunting to require an At Your Best feature. (Not one entry!) We really want to give these items away, so instead of submitting a feature you can leave a comment stating when you feel at your best. What hobbies, activities or guilty pleasures make you feel like your best self?...
Posted by Kim Jackson on 12:48 PM
PLPT GEMS PresentsJoi-MarieEditor. Blogger. Innovator.
Tell us about your background and how you came to start The Fab Empire.
The Fab Empire started when I was working as an assistant in a non-profit organization in Washington, D.C. I was pretty bored at my day job and decided randomly to start a blog. I brainstormed and even created a failed blog called "Fab! University" as I had recently graduated from University of Maryland. Still, I knew I wanted to create something that didn't just regurgitate what I saw on The YBF or Concrete Loop. I wanted to create something that was original and different. So I focused my scope on covering nightlife...
Posted by Kim Jackson on 10:33 AM
"Don't reach out when u want validation. Wait & let Love move u. Share from the fullness of your Heart rather than the emptiness of your fear" -Mastin KippWhen I saw this on twitter a couple of weeks ago, it instantly spoke to me. I remember a time when I was just a big ball of emotional neediness; and, more often than not, I dumped those emotions on the people with whom I was in relationships. I related in a hungry, needy way; as opposed to actually opening up and responding to things lovingly. This type of behavior was such a catch 22 because despite their trying, there was no way anyone could ever give me enough; so I was always begging for more. “Feed me (emotionally)!” “Love Me!” “Soothe Me!” “Validate Me!” was what I seemed to be constantly asking with my actions. I tried to suck...
Posted by Kim Jackson on 6:49 AM
"Every great work, every great accomplishment, has been brought into manifestation through holding to the vision, and often just before the big achievement comes apparent failure and discouragement." - Florence Scovel Shinn
This past weekend, I moved into a new place. It meets (almost) every specification I'd desired, and is in a wonderful neighborhood that I've actually driven through for years without knowing the development I now live in was located nearby.
This past Friday, as my mom and I were driving, she turned to me and told me how proud she was of me; that she remembered how I have been telling her for the past couple of years that I would take the long way home from work to ride through this area, and that I would envision myself living here; now I actually live here and she was...
