Card Game

Ironically I was talking about — I really love that word Ironic. I use it so much sometimes that I dilute the meaning. —

Ironically I was talking about hobbies and collections the other day. I didn’t actually mention Mike. But like most typical Males, he likes cards, games, comics and Gizmos. Mike also like collecting money Lol. Yes… he collects money.

Anyways, so recently he had a desire to look back at his childhood and so we ended up buying the Nintendo DS, just so he could play one of those Pokemon games. When he was about 10 he played them so it’s like a walk in paradise for his soul to go back and explore the same feelings he’s had. Lately, you can see him much happier when he’s interacting with the game, so it proves that his endeavor was fruitful.

So last night, the Pipsqueaks were spending the evening with us. The Nephew was side by side watching Mike play. Mike started brainstorming and he mentioned that he use to have a few Pokemon Cards. Seriously, if you don’t know Pokemon, no matter what age you are, you’ve been under a rock ;). I’m not that big of a Pokemon fan but I’ve seen it on TV and it’s pretty much everywhere. It’s also one of those cartoons that are for boys and girls and not just Male dominated.

ANYWAYS. When Mike was little, he use to do things because he felt like it and not because other people suggested it or advised him. He still has that attitude. So when he was little, he bought a deck of Pokemon cards and he use to play by himself with it and just admire the characters, artwork, card itself and the little coin that comes with it. Mike wasn’t very privileged so that was the first and last set of cards for him, so it holds a more heavier emotional bond. As he looks back at it, he subconsciously perceives that to be one of the good and positive memories in his childhood.

So last night, as he was showing the Nephew how to play, he got the urge to go explore his Pokemon cards. He actually wasn’t sure if he had them. He FELT like he had them, but he knew that it could’ve gotten lost through the years. So, the Niece and myself helped him look through some of his old stuff that I kept in a closet. Luckily we found them, amidst dust and other worn atmospheric effects.

And boy was he happy. Every card he shuffled through he kept calling me. “Look Mel!! remember this card!!??” and he just went all happy and stuff. So the Nephew was also very intrigued and he was wowified by it all.
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I was in the Kitchen at the time with the Niece and Mike kept coming around and asking me if I remembered this and that.

At that point, I got the craziest Idea’s running through my head. I remembered a lot of things. I remembered how they enjoyed the art projects we did together and the math problems we did, even if most kids would imagine math to be absurdly un-fun. It really was about the bonding. I also recalled how I DID see some Pokemon stuff a few months ago when I went to one of those department stores. So I had this crazy idea; maybe Mike could buy the kids some cards and THEY could make it a family thing.

The Reason I said ‘they’ is because I didn’t have any initial intention to actually join them. I honestly wanted to find a project for those two boys to play.

And I keep remembering like, we didn’t have so much frivolity. We didn’t have so much carefree or sanctity. We didn’t have privilege. And things have changed and I want them to experience what we experience NOW. I want to build a stronger family structure than what’s common. The only way to nurture something like that is to communicate and build memories.

So I told Mike my idea and he was really excited about it. He went on Toys R Us.com  and looked up the latest cards and all that Jazz. I got involved, when Mike was looking at an online “How to Play” Demo. When I left the kitchen, I just glanced the computer screen with them. One of the statements that they were selling was that how the card game uses Math and is a thinking game. Not as complex as us grown ups would think, but complex enough. So Mike says “See Mel? It’s a thinking game, which means this is your territory.” Like seriously, how can I say “no” after that? Plus he went on and on and then the boy started trying to persuade me. The girl wanted in too.

I spent a few hours learning the game and everything I needed and I think I got it down about 95%. So now, we gotta get the cards.

This really isn’t a traditional family thing but who ever said a family experience was written in stone? At the end of the day, the experience and the memory will be great, regardless of what happens. Plus… They are at that age, where we still have mind control over them. What I mean is, we are impressionable on their minds and we have a heavy influence on their perspectives. I think a lot of families neglect that. So — okay whatever. I feel like im just repeating myself Lol. Ya’ll understand.
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You think I can get Liz and Ms. 19 in on this lol? Would be interesting to find out lol.

Speaking of which.

I had dinner with them in the evening. Me, Mike, Liz and Eric. I always love these moments together. It’s very family-based. I also enjoy what they bring to the table. They bring the same respect indoors, as they would if they were eating at a fancy shmancy gourmet restaurant. Spending time with them is heart warming, just to hear them speak, to watch them interact. To find out how their day was, to listen to what was new in their life. (Like I don’t know).

I brought the dinner over to their apartment. So we had dinner in their apartment. Usually it’s in my apartment, but a change of scenery is nice. After we finished eating, they helped me out with the dishes and then the Pipsqueaks came looking for us. Lol. So they called it a night and turned off most of their lights and we left and spoke about cards with the kids.
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When those two came over, I had a bunch of fresh fruits that I had gotten. I sliced some up for them to find out which ones they liked. Learning about that also makes me feel enlightened. Gotta know your kids right?

Fruits can be as sweet as candy. But you gotta know which ones hit your spot. For some it’s blueberries, cherries, strawberries. I like Mangos and Watermellons and Pears. Mike likes apples, bananas and pears.
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Me and Mike make a great WE. But WE don’t make WE.

When WE Makes WE, it destroys the individuality of each element. It becomes corrupted, distorted and abusive. The balance of power is imbalanced.

Liz and Eric make a great Them. Two Dots in one circle, Not one solid circle.

They have a lot in common, but they have a lot of differences. She is powerful, and he is powerful. Both strong, both smart, both have similar and different likes and dislikes.

The similarities and differences in one, is attracted to the similarities and differences in the other.

What I’m trying to say is that, sometimes in a relationship, when you lose an individual identity, things usually goes downhill from there.

I know, that wasn’t clear, but once again, ya’ll know what I mean :)
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You know what I like about my family?

When I walk through the Palace, they have a way of making me truly feel like something important.

Lol.

They have these tiny ways of showing their love, appreciation, whatever it may be.

The way they address me, present me with things, etc. Their greetings. The way they come to me. Their time, that they share with me.

I enjoy that. I try to do the same for them.

Anyways….

Anyways……..

Tomorrows Friday. You know what that means right? That means that Mike breaks his discipline and eats whatever his heart desires. It’s his favorite day Lol. So he’s hungry right now. Not hungry because he didn’t eat, because he DID eat, but hungry for a change of taste. He specifically asks for me to cook one thing for him most of the week. So right now he’s plotting on what taste he wants me to cook tomorrow.

I personally want Pizza. And I know Liz wont oppose. I might make Pizza additionally. Or just a tiny bit for me and her? Maybe he wants to. We’ll see.

Oh and the Push ups thing is going great. I can do more than 20 straight now :D. I feel stronger already. And sexier.

Sincerely,
The only person like ME, that you’ll ever meet :)

Gadgets and Push ups

I feel a little cold, and a bit drowsy. Not surprised though because last night I tried to go to bed early and in an hour flat I was reawakened by my favorite people who just felt like it was necessary to tell me something :).

But it’s all cool.

Speaking of being optimistic about things, I was listening to the niece speak last night and t made me think about nice people. Generally, everything that she and him (her brother, my nephew) says is positive and innocent. I found that to be soothing and pleasant. It’s just nice to talk to NICE people.

Their conversations are nice, subtle, ostentatious here and there, but for the most part it’s in a nice tone. Some people fake this at first appearance to give off an impression that’s impressionable. But even a person mimic-ing this impressionable personality, realizes that it’s attractive in some way, which is the very same reason why they choose to utilize it.

Genuinely nice people can be found too and they are… soothing.

I find that a lot in Mike. Mike’s discipline training is in his own artistic self, so having a sense of niceness in his self control is important to him. So, it’s always soothing for me to listen to him. But he’s generally a nice person. Even as kids I can recall enjoying just listening to him speak. He’s creative and evokes an imaginative vibe inside you. He can be a critical thinker and a smooth talker. He’s versatile.

Imagine a world with more friendliness and niceness. We have the power to create that by starting with ourselves.
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I was thinking about Liz’s cousin, the other day.” The one with the ipod.” She actually had a new toy to play with and she came over to my realm and some of my gravitators were getting a bit itchy with her. They kept exasperating the fact that she constantly has a new gadget or toy.

They say things like “Where do you get all this from?!” “What do you do for a living?! ” “You must be soo rich!” and so on and so forth.

She simply replies that she works.

Gadgets are her thing. Everyone has a thing. A hobby, collection, etc. A white sin ;). A positive addiction.

But it starts becoming a bit patronizing to her, in my opinion, when they keep acting as if she was magically making these things appear.

She has the kindness enough to share her gadgets with them and let them play with it, and they just seem to be set on figuring out HOW she got the stuff.

I’ve always felt that money was an equivalent to energy in this materialistic world. In a spiritual world, energy is an idea (amongst a plethora of other things), and when we shift that spiritual energy, things come to reality. In a material world, energy is the equivalent of making things happen.

So it doesn’t always seem right for someone else to tell someone how they should distribute their hard labored energy.

But yeah, I think those little addictions are good because they help us distinguish our personalities. Temperance is golden with any addiction, but a hobby with a good temperance is pretty healthy.

I personally have a thing for bead necklaces, and necklaces in general. I have a huge collection of necklaces. Different colors, different stones, different shapes, different sizes… different occasions, different locations, different origins, different meaning, different value. Necklaces are special to me, especially the bead ones. I prefer purchasing a million penny necklaces than one, million dollar necklace ;).

I know Liz has a thing for scarves. Scarves from all around the world. Scarves in all colors, textures, lengths and sizes, etc.
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The other day, my Uncle had a shirt that said “I did the Olsen twins” in big letters…

Disturbing? Yes.

Funny? Yes.

It’s just ironic because he’s usually more classier than that. He doesn’t go outside with it. He said someone gave it to him and it’s a few sizes too big so he uses it for when it’s cold. That’s understandable, but still… it’s funny.
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Speaking of which, My Aunt actually called and said she couldn’t find the battery charger for the camera she bought.

See what happened was, or at least what I recall, is that when I had went back to the Party, she had given someone else the camera to take the pictures since she didn’t see me and Mike. When we arrived, Mike took over the duties immediately.

Honestly, she could’ve waited and given us the camera. But I know she was confused and frustrated so she just didn’t want to forget it inside! An honest mistake.

During the night we asked for the charger, and someone we knew said the person who my Aunt had initially given the camera to hold, said that she had it. So we were like ok, the battery was going to die but it still had good life so we didn’t need it. We actually went the whole night with out needing it. And now… well I guess she couldn’t find it, or no one gave my Aunt back the charger.

We had the camera, battery and the memory so that (the most important parts) were safe. But I guess, if the person who initially had it, doesn’t have it, then it was probably lost, trashed or just gone.

Mike’s been looking online to see if there is a replacement, which there is. She has a warranty so we advised her to take it back or let them ship a free one over. I hope this works out for her because we don’t want her spending any money. There isn’t anyone here to blame here either.

Mike’s also going to check if they can manually charge the battery via the USB like some devices alternatively do.
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And speaking of gadgets, I was looking at Mac’s. I’ve always wanted a Mac and I know Mike wouldn’t mind.

We’ll see how that plays out in the future…

The newest operating system for apple right now is the “Snow Leopard”.

The name itself, made me think about the actual animal, which happens to be endangered with less than 6000 in the world. I think that’s sad because they truly are adorable creatures.

You know I went to one of those big stores and saw two tiger-like stuffed animals! I love stuffed animals! They are so soft and cuddly!

I seen one that looked like a tiger and another that looked like a white tiger. The Snow Leopard reminded me of that. I really want to get it but it’s about 30 dollars. I wanted to initially get it for the kids but It has a really classy look to it. I think it would look good somewhere in my apartment Lol.

See… the thing about this particular stuffed animal is that besides looking cute and soft and cuddly, it’s also very very realistic. When me and Mike went into the store, his first reaction was that it looked so realistic and that it would be funny if we left it in front of our door to scare people with it.

It definitely is realistic looking. It’s laying on the floor and the head is tilted. I could plop it on one of my sofa/couch/thingies and it’ll look soo real. — not that I’d allow a cat on my sofa/couch/thing  in the first place lol.

But yeah, that thing would make a great family present for thanksgiving or Christmas.
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I was playing the DS again and was playing Mike’s game and was thinking about the actual gameplay.

It was so symbolic because, in the game, to move forward in your adventure and to progress and ultimately “win” the game… you have to communicate, explore and learn about your world.

Isn’t that such a realistic depiction of our world?

In life, to move forward, to mature, to grow, you have to ask questions and get answers. To learn, you have to experience. Life is about events and experiences. You can’t stay in one position without exploring because it provides no progression.

Ironically, at the beginning of this particular game, the nameless and faceless narrator (yet another symbol) was wishing us a good journey and hoped that we too, take something from the game.

And I guess what I took was a bridging lesson between this tiny world and our own world :)
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I’ve been working out with Mike and Ty.

Not as hard as them, no where in their league, but I’ve been matching their motivation and will power.

The only thing I did try to do with them is the push ups. Not Girl ones either, I’m talking about real military push ups :). I didn’t do so hot on the first day but I’m expecting improvements as the week progresses :D.

I actually wrote “I’m hoping to see improvements”… but I backspaced and rewrote “I’m expecting improvements”. I’m so determined ;)

This will also tone up my arms and make me stronger, and less fragile and breakable. :D

Who knows, I might even grow an inch or two

….

Well I can dream can’t I lol

Adios
Signed
Super Mel

Par-tay

The Morning of the party was really hectic for me because I didn’t sleep well and I had to wake up early. But what had to be done, had to be done. Auntie went to buy some more things and went shopping while we were setting up appliances and such, getting ready to actually start cooking.

As time flew by, I found energy and a lot of us were helping. Mike, myself, Liz, etc. There were also a lot of strangers there. I think, what my Aunt did wrong was assume that we needed more people than we did. I cook, regularly, for a large group of people, so I’m use to efficiently cooking for those conditions. I was a little surprised she didn’t give me the go to take over WITH her. Not only me, but anyone of the family members. She really left it up to guess, and up to the guests.

I was humble and smiley throughout, and I was happy because I kept smiling through the entire fiasco. And a fiasco it was. People were stating their opinions, beginning to get frustrated and some were cool and making jokes, others were still throwing opinions. Auntie was a bit angry with the whole craziness going on. She called extra people, I’d assume, to make them feel involved and like they contributed. These guests were actually close to my Uncle and Aunt in one way or another, so it wasn’t like total complete strangers.

In my head, as well as Mike and Liz and some others, I think we telepathically agreed that whatever happens, happens. If it gets done or not, it’s not our business anymore. We’re here to take orders and carry out our tasks. This rationalization actually helped us kept cool while we did the best jobs we could. There were many parts where I took over and had my own private cooking session in a different area, and so that was fun. So I wasn’t totally a “helping hand”, because I also got to get those hands messy as well.

I think Mike had it the roughest because he had to go up and down to buy things, in the rain, and he had to carry things. Later in the night, you could see the tiredness in his eyes.

Uncle helped did what he could too. Even though it was his birthday, he did what he could. Definitely something to admire.
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One of the significant arguments that were brought up is whether the chicken should have skin or no skin. The fried chicken, that is. Some were arguing that Chicken tastes better with skin and the skin gives it that extra pizazz to it. Some, myself INTERNALLY agreeing, were for the skinless fried chicken. Even if it had no skin, it could be modified to have a fake skin and still end up healthier and tasty and even tastier.

Personally, I believe that skin or skinless, the most important thing was the skill of the Chef.

The person who actually fried the chicken was someone who didn’t have an opinion, because he came in later and didn’t really mind. That person was a close young friend of my Uncles. Someone like a son to him. So, he cooked it and it came out really good. When we gave him the ingredients and seasoning, he looked at it and he put his hat back on and ran back out the door and said that he would be back. When we asked why, my Uncle said that he was going to get his own seasonings. I think that was really special Lol. It made me smile. It shows that he knew what he was doing and that he’s quite the perfectionist with his food, which is the mark of a good cook.

And like I mentioned, the chicken was very mouth watering.

BTW, they decided to leave some of the skin on. So most of the chicken  was skinless, but it still had SOME skin on it. There were also pieces that had no skin, and some that had skin. 50/50…or 60/40 with skinless being higher, in my opinion.

How much chicken was cooked? You know those ice coolers? The big ones? Yeah, about half of that capacity. Aka a lot.

There was also a brown rice, white rice debate, but it ended up much like the chicken did.
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Pasta, noodles, salads, egg salads, potato salads, sweet stuff, pies, a few variations of meat, and so on and so forth.

Then, in my opinion, the hardest part was dressing up the area that was to be the actual room where it all would go down.

Carrying things, lifting things, etc etc. It was hectic. And setting up balloons and tying things. Those few hours were very trying on me and Mike and others.

At the moment, in my mind, I was thinking that everyone who was coming would just come to enjoy the party, with everything already set up. Magically. But we wouldn’t get to enjoy it so much because we were already exhausted, as we were the ones doing all the hard work that drained our energy.

For some of us, that was true. A few of us were drained. But I think, when we were finished setting everything up, I think, we rationalized that this wasn’t about US, and it was about HIM and that simple fact is important. It brought us happiness to think about that and it brought us energy and a springy youth to get our party on.
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I actually felt happy because, besides relocating the 20+ boxes of beer, boxes of soda, bottles of hard liquor, champagne and wine, I also designed the table look, the seating, the decorations and the balloons locations and… a lot of other stuff.

So it was nice to see the finished product.

When I finished my part and there was about an hour or half left until the party officially started, I went back home to change.

I went home to Shower and re-brush my teeth and such. Afterward I laid on the bed, I could clearly see that I was drained and I was wondering if I’d be able to make it through the night lol, since the party was over at 3. BUT, I’d have to help clean up anyways.

Anyways so I put that aside and found some energy while dressing up and stuff.

Beforehand I was having a conversation with a girl. Actually she was having a conversation with me since I was trying to figure out the designs. She asked what I was going to wear and Mike was sneaking chocolates beside me. So I told her I didn’t know because I hadn’t prepared anything. I casually said, jeans and a nice shirt maybe.

I guess in her mind, she thought bland. So her response was “What?! This is a party, you have to wear a dress!” And she tells Mike to tell me to wear a dress… as if Mike was the person 100 percent in control of me :). But I’m sure she meant absolutely no harm, because she’s a nice girl and she helped out a lot. Girl is an understatement, she’s older than me by a few years. But. I’m sure she was just joking around :).

Anyways, back to real-time. So I was in my bedroom trying on different outfits. I don’t want to say I wasn’t prepared, because I was. What I wasn’t prepared for was how much work would actually go into something this big, so I didn’t know how clean or messy I would be. Because of that, I kept having Gemini-esque-second thoughts all the time about what to wear.

I wanted to look good. I knew people were going to be watching. I knew Mikes’ “SISTER” would be there. I’ll mention his “SISTER” later. I knew my blood family were going to be there. I knew I’d be watched, and stuff. I also knew the occasion and understood. I knew it was my Uncles birthday, not just some random guy.

I guess I was half undressed while Mike was finishing up beside me and I still couldn’t settle on anything. Mike left without me, by my request because I figured they would need him there more because of his male strength.

When he left, I threw on this beautiful little black dress, one of my favorites. It was simple, to the point and quick to get on. My figure hasn’t changed so that wasn’t an issue either.

Taking off my clothes, putting on new ones, changing this, changing that, switching here and switching there made me feel hot and flushed and I was breathing imbalanced. I tried to put on a tiny bit of make up and put on some nice diamond-like-earrings and a tiny necklace and bangle.

I looked at the mirror, spun around a few times and moved my eyes from my body straight into my eyes and blinked a few times. I realized as wonderful as I looked, this had “MESSY!!!” written all over it. What I mean is that, this would be perfect if I WASN’T anticipating helping out afterward, but I knew I’d have to help.

And… once again I yanked the clothing off and changed right into some of my favorite jeans and quickly found a dress shirt with subtle stripes on it.
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Mikey was actually going to go casual, until I told him to throw on a blazer because it would look cool on him. He’s not use to wearing blazers, but he was up for it! So he wore dark colored jeans, his regular sneakers, a white shirt with his chain, watch, male-bracelet, etc. And he threw a nice Blazer on that really gave him a nice formal-informal look. It made him look DECENT and SEXY without appearing as if he was trying too hard.

While I was yanking my clothes off, that was the thought going through my head. I thought that it was my idea for HIM, so subconsciously, I was probably thinking that, since he’ll be helping too, it would be easy for him to just take off his Blazer and not get it messy. Since it work for him, it probably would work for me.

And that’s where I got the idea for the favorite jeans+white long sleeve dress shirt with subtle color stripes.

I kept the earrings, and took off the chain because it didn’t make sense since the shirt had a collar. My nails were already pristine. I was lotion-ed, fresh and already beautified so the clothes were the quickest part. The only difference besides the clothes, now, was that I took my hair and tied it to the back in a simple elegant hair-do.

I spun around in the mirror a few times more, checked my assets and appearance and rushed out my apartment. As I was leaving my apartment, I asked myself, what did you see in the mirror? And I answered, a beautiful, professional looking, smart,  beautiful young woman who didn’t have to try hard to get the point across.
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The DJ was blasting the music, and there were so many people there. Besides everyone sitting at the table, there was another section where the drinks were and mainly men, and they were occupying that area. Everyone was packing the room and it was a great turnout, which made me happy to see.

The DJ was playing those traditional songs that my Uncle were use to and grew up with. The DJ actually, but not unexpected, was a friend of my Uncle as well.

Besides the countless score of people I didn’t know, there were also many I did know.

Everyone of us were there. Grandpa, Maya and her family, Liz … Eric, Ms. 19 and her Mom, My Mom, Nikki and Ty, Liz’s older sister and her guy. The two cousins of Liz. Many of my favorite gravitators were invited. Mike’s parents. Everyone that appears in my life on a regular basis… was THERE. No one was missing. You get the idea.

And like I mentioned, tons and tons of people I’ve probably seen before but have no real knowledge of them on a PERSONAL level.
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My Uncle was the first one to start dancing. He just didn’t care when or when not to, so he got up his seat and everyone followed with him. Next thing you know, an old frail looking fellow jumped out and started dancing with him, a few women Wooh-ed them on, and some young woman with a tight short dress started shaking her stuff. Then an elder woman jumped up, a few younger ones… kids were here and there between the crowd and the next thing you know everyone was having fun and normal party stuff.

I didn’t dance much, I just got a slow dance in with Mike and a dance in with my Uncle and I went back to making sure everything was running right.

When it was time to cut the cake, it was kinda funny because my Uncle was still dancing and he just didn’t seem to want to stop.

What really touched me, was that EVERYBODY loves this guy. He treats everyone so good, like his children. The beauty in this is that they accept that and they treat him like a father. Really, it wasn’t just a bunch of family getting together to throw this whole thing together, it was actually his children. That’s the perspective I was looking at it. Because that’s the truth.

So we cut the cake, smeared his face with it, messed up his clothing with it :D, and we all took turns feeding him the cake and giving him our presents and stuff.

TODAY, when we were at my Aunts house, just cleaning some things up and just thinking and chatting, my Aunt mentioned that everyone who gave a monetary gift gave about 100 or so dollars. There were a lot of people, so that times 100 each equals A LOT of loyalty, Love, Respect and Honor for this guy. That type of person is priceless.

Everyone got some cake and then we ate and stuff.

I listened through the grapevines as I heard people compliment the food and mentioned how certain things that I cooked was really good :). This, no doubt, made me happy and honored.
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Then, there was the funnies. Hours into the night, many, if not most of the Men were pretty much drunk.

Some of the women were drunk-stupid too. :).

Me, not being one of them. I didn’t drink at all. I thought it was funny because me and Mike were sitting next to each other and they kept asking us “What will you two be having?”… And we’re like… Dude… No…we don’t drink.

I honestly couldn’t tell if it was a joke or not, because they all insisted that we take a drink. They reasoned that it would be ok since it’s a party and stuff. We reasoned that that sounds like a set up and Mike is still on camera duty.

And he did a great job btw. He was so secretive in his picture taking and video recording. Today when we were looking at his work of art, we noticed that the shots were sooo NATURAL because it was as if he was secretly doing it and no one knew.

He did a fine job.

So more drunk funnies:

Some of the Men started dancing like airplanes and hands were flailing and pretty much “wasted”. Some women too.

At this time, I went to sit next to Eric and Liz. They had gone to a table and were sitting down. Liz, needless to say, was so beautiful and goddessly elegant. Eric was sharp and handsome in his suit.

Liz got up and went to get a plate of food for him and her and I noticed all the couples that were present. I noticed how happy they were. Some were dancing, some were… drunk, but everyone seemed happy, despite their personal quarrels and strife.

Ty was… Gone Lol. He was part of the airplane-crew. Actually he had good happy sense, but he was just really happier and sloppy.

When Liz came back and she sat with us and ate (she brought a few things for me, because I told her not to bring too much since I ate earlier in the party) we noticed Someone literally falling on the floor.

There were actually TWO people who fell on the floor throughout the night because of intoxication. But who can blame them?? With THAT many bottles of beer and cans and rum etc etc.

When Eric saw that, I saw his stern face crack a smile, and I thought that was priceless.

Eric, and Mike and maybe a few others of the Men who didn’t drink, or drink too much. But I know for certain that Eric and Mike didn’t drink anything alcoholic. Well I couldn’t watch Eric all the time, so I don’t know for sure but like… he was his normal self, very composed, so I doubt he did. And if he did, he’s great at hiding it. BUT I know for sure for sure that Mike didn’t drink.

What we did do, is eat as much as our stomachs could hold, then drink a lot of Soda, then drink a lot of water, then stole a lot of chocolates, and then find a bag of chocolates, then we ate them all :D then we found some more water, then we ate some more annnddd then we drunk more water :D :D :D

Um. Yeah lol.

Oh and more Drunk funnies:

We also, sitting at the table with Eric, noticed an older drunk guy, who was really drunk, was dancing around and stuff. Not rapid dancing, but more like drowsy-im gonna fall soon-dancing. And he happened to get close to where Ms. 19 was and she, being friendly, was trying to talk to him and shake her groove thang with him but he was just completely gone. I noticed Eric and Liz had their eyes eagle-focused on them.

He started grabbing her hand and pulling her in  a drunk way. She was trying to play it cool, laugh and smile and go along with it. Then he wrapped her arm around her neck and seemed to be trying to tell her something. She grabbed his arm though as if he was pressing too hard. They spun their backs behind us so I couldn’t really tell what was going on.

It seemed like he leaned over to her ear and tried to tell her something again, or maybe he tried to kiss her around her ear.

I commented on it light heatedly to Eric, but I noticed one of his eyes were squinted and the other was serious and focused and his lips were focused as well. Lizzy didn’t seem as intense, but I know she was also focused.

He started telling her “I love you”….. blowing kisses and making gestures of no particular meaning.

HIS WIFE…. Who just so happened to be standing next to Ms. 19… and trying to play it off herself, and not feel too ashamed… decided to yank him by the hand and decided to go home. He… already lost his mind… still kept blowing kisses at her. Ms. 19 still tried to act like this never happened and went on laughing about it and she was a bit sad though because the Wife had to leave prematurely to take the big baby home.

She told Ms. 19 that he works hard and doesn’t get to do this all the time so he’s having a bit too much fun.

Very understandable. Yet… one must know their limits in my opinion. You don’t need to be drunk to have a good time right?

But yeah, she’s a nice woman and she helped out A LOT, so I was kinda sad she didn’t get to take home food. But she did eat though. And her KIDS.

I kept a bunch of food for her and I actually got to give it to her today when she came over so it was all cool :)

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Eric wasn’t very active and stuff but … well you know him :). He’s more of the stern, laid back type. Here and there he slow danced with Liz and moved around a bit but for the most part he was very composed and his usual noble self.

I noticed when he got up to hug my Uncle, he  didn’t give a gift of any kind AT THAT MOMENT.

I didn’t know this, until Liz mentioned it, after I mentioned something about the cost of this awesomeness.

Even though Eric wasn’t as expressive as everyone else in the room, all hyper and out of their minds with too much fun lol (the mark of a great party)…. and even though he was quietly in his own zone… out of everyone there, besides the beautiful Auntie who made all this happen!!!!! Eric was probably the second closest person to my Uncle.

Eric is probably the closest thing he has to a son. And besides my grandfather, my uncle is the closest thing Eric will ACCEPT as a father.

so I found out that, he actually made it so, that Auntie didn’t pay anything. Eric basically paid about 80 percent of the expenses and basically made this thing happen. So Auntie and Eric made this really happen. I’m sure Uncle will always remember that too.

So I was like wow, that’s really his way of showing his gratitude and his love.
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We took home soda and stuff, even though we’re not soda drinkers, we couldn’t help breaking the rules for once.

but anyways,

I wanted to save this piece more towards the end.

So…

During the night, this group of women came in. 3 women, one semi-old, one old and the other young, and a little girl.

So they came in and like a flash, Mike’s parents and my Auntie picked up on who they were.

They were anticipating their arrival for a long time and here they were.

When Mike’s parents were younger, and Mike was a baby, and before he was actually born, that young woman and her sisters and her mother (the old woman), use to come over and keep Mike’s mom company, while Mike’s dad worked late hours and stuff.

They built such a loving neighbor relationship (because they were neighbors), that it became like they were blood relatives. They all loved each other.

So the youngest sister, who was now the young woman, probably was 10-12 when Mike was born. She use to sleep over there, help out, help clean. The older sisters also did the same. They became like daughters to Mike’s parents.

Genuine daughters.

When Mike was born, he was born into this loyalty and this genuine relationship of love. This other family, was so intertwined with his family, that it was like they were one. So Mike was born into this.

So this little baby use to be carried by the girls, changed, looked after, played with, etc etc. They loved him.

And then Mike’s family moved to a different place, and then the girls also moved a little later. In the states they were a state away. Never even knew until a recent phone call changed that.

So they actually drove here. The young woman and the mother, was going to stay with one of the older sisters who was in one of the boroughs in NYC.
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All week Mike’s been worrying if they would like him or not. He couldn’t even remember what they looked like, but he FELT it.

Do you know how beautiful and strong that emotional attachment is? Not to SEE, but to FEEL.

Mike left them when he was two, so they only shared two years of his life together.

But they experienced first hand his precious beginnings.

17 years after wards, they were going to see them again.
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The youngest, beautiful, semi-dark skin, very very very long black hair, semi-tall, in a beautiful dark blue dress, was standing there with the rest of them and Mikes parents and my Auntie.

At the time of the time, actually me and Mike were eating and just surveying all the funny stuff we could find. We were sitting on chairs, aside from everyone and we noticed they all turned to us and they started to walk through the people towards us. Mike was still hungry and eating at the same time, trying to stay cool. In his heart, he clearly knew, because he could FEEL it.

So this beautiful young woman, probably in her very early 30’s or late 20’s looked down on Mike and Mike stood his tall self up and looked at her, and them, and I could see the nervousness in his composure.

They smiled and his mother started introducing and he started to smile. The Young Woman asked Mike “Do you know who I am? “

And Mike shook his head nervously. But he knew, he knew it in his heart because he felt it.

and I kept this part for last because this was something sooo sooooooooo sooooooooooooooooooooooooo significant in the life of the man I love and cherish.

And so she smiled at him and said “I’m your sister!”

And Mike’s voice cracked and he smiled back and said “You’re (her name here)”

And she nodded and they just looked at eachother and Mike was staring at everyone, as they were staring at him.

They were amazed, he was amazed.

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Throughout the night, they started mingling some more.

At the table, we were all sitting around, and the families were connecting a bit more now and they mentioned how handsome Mike was and how nice he looked. How smart he was. How intelligent he was. How noble he looked.

I … can’t… really… give you…. the exact specifications of the chit chatting…. because It’s like a blur to me.

It was more of Mike’s thing. Mike would have to tell you his own story.

But later in the night, when Mike dispersed to take pictures and such, and we were back together again, I asked him how he felt inside. I asked him about his emotions and his feelings.

He mentioned how his emotions felt so mixed up.

It’s so important to talk in a time like this.

He mentioned how he felt so enchanted by her, sitting next to him.

And My gosh, she truly truly, was  a beautiful woman. She radiated that aura.

When she sat by the table, her legs were crossed and her hands were in her lap, and her body sat erect. She looked sooo noble just like Mike is. Her hair was so dark and beautiful. When she smiled, she always had a subtle, kind smile. She was just so pretty and beautiful.

Mike kept glancing at them, and they kept sneaking glances at him. They were all enchanted. He was thinking “Look at my sisters!” and they were thinking “look at this little baby that we use to know, grown into this handsome man”

While everyone was dancing, Mike joked and whispered to the young woman that she said go dance too, and she smiled and shook her head. That alone, just shows a subtle beauty in her.

They left early because the young woman has a husband and 3 kids. While they were leaving, Mike’s parents rushed and tried to give them as much money as they could, as a departing present. They really didn’t want to take it, but they were persistent :).

Ohhhh and before I forget. One of her kids did come… a beautiful little daughter. She had a pretty dress and her hair was did and she looked soooo much like her mother, but a bit lighter toned skin. So gorgeous.

When they were saying goodbye, I noticed Mike didn’t seem sad, he didn’t seem smiley, he just had a neutral face on. When they looked at him and they waved, he forced himself to smile and lift his hands. I’m sure he felt heavy and like gravity was his enemy.

I know in his heart he couldn’t bring himself to come to grips that they were leaving already.

They had just entered his life, and like strangers they were out the building again.

As we were still talking, Mike was also mentioning about how he felt really sad inside that one of her children was born with an illness, which renders him incapable of providing for himself. I’m not sure if it’s permanent or temporary, but it sounds … serious. It made Mike feel as if the wrong type of luck happened to someone really great.

Mike can’t remember from his memory, but he knows countless stories of kindness that they’ve shown his parents.

It hurts him to think about it…. but he tries to rationalize it somehow based on spirituality.

Mike’s really passionate so his emotions go around in circles.
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Ironically though, Mike wasn’t TOO sad because, I got some phone numbers, as well as they got some phone numbers, and locations and addresses and his parents got phone numbers and addresses….

So if will power will have it, there will be a gathering for thanksgiving OR Christmas :D :D :D :D :D. I know Mike will love it.

Honestly, I felt, as I’m sure they did too, that it wasn’t a PROPER meeting. Even though it was a party and everyone was there to mingle, I felt like the music was too loud, and no real chatting went on. No reminiscing. It wasn’t a hug… it was a tap on the back… symbolically speaking.

The Phone calls that actually got them here was more of a hug, and I KNOW their next meeting will also be a huge “hug”
.
.
.
I’m happy for Mike because, he was himself, even if he didn’t feel as composed as he usually is. There is absolutely nothing he has to regret or feel ashamed about. I think, if they would call themselves a sister to him, then honestly speaking, they have quite a fine brother.
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I also had a moment of “feel-good” towards the end of the night, AND today.

I went through the night, without much speaking because I was always doing something.

I felt like I didn’t get to interact with many people. Honestly, I wasn’t sad about that because I felt like I didn’t know them too well anyways. The strangers I mean. Everyone was in their zone also. I was just happy everyone was enjoying themselves.

What I found out later was how many people commented on me.

A lot of people complimented my Mom. A lot of people who’ve never met me, but have met my mother, or who knows me from a long time ago, complimented my Mother.

There was a lot of feel-good things said about me.

“She’s so beautiful”
“She’s gorgeous”
“She has her own — “
“Wow, she has a great job!”
“I didn’t know that was your daughter, until you told me! Wow! “
“Oh my god, she cooked the food?! it tastes great”
“I love what she was wearing! “
– There was actually a lot of comments on what I was wearing and appeared like.

I didn’t even have to interpret the comments. I was GIVEN an interpretation.

But it makes me feel good. I’ve always strive to be personally successful and It seems to pay off. What I got was that, She, being me, was a strong, gorgeous independent woman who works hard and still looks pretty damn beautiful.

Some of them got personal as certain people opened up a bit too much Lol.
“Wow, when she’s my age, she’s going to be rich!” (hinting about my iron will to save money and how hard I’ve worked since I was younger)
“Her boyfriend of that many years! I can’t wait to come to the wedding!”
“She has a great head on her shoulders!”

and so on and so forth.

Actually though, I was happy they enjoyed what I wore, because before I left, even though I rushed and I was flushed, I also enjoyed what I saw in the mirror. The ensemble went well.

But honestly, I try not to let all this go to my head. The compliments, the gestures, the acknowledgments of my kindness, beauty, intelligence, generosity, strength, femininity, my relationships, my personal life, my visible life, my hidden life… Their input was tantalizing. But I won’t let it go to my head.

I think what happens with a lot of people is that, when it goes to their heads, then it’s pretty much downhill from there. Lol. It ushers a false sense of hierarchy.

What I do DO though, is smile, enjoy it, acknowledge it and APPRECIATE it. I also love it because it shows me that I’m doing what I believe in, and I’m doing everything right, and I’m accomplishing what I dream to be, which is a strong intelligent and successful WOMAN.

Most importantly, my Mom, while we were in my Aunties kitchen, mentioned how proud SHE was of me and how she never wanted me to stop being who I am. My Aunt agreed.

I think that hits home the most because seflessness is a great trait. Being the best I can be, is a sefless act because the people that love me the most, have a reason to be proud of me.
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Aaaannndddd noooowwww guess how many hours im going to sleep for!!

Yep. my favorite number. 20!

I am so not going to work lol.

My arms hurt from the carrying and lifting, and my feet still hurt from all the walking.

And I know I know, this was like 3 entries in one, but it’s a special :D

Night night lovies,

Signed
A beautiful and strong woman.

Sweet and Sour

Toddaaayyy I had my hair up in a bun. :). I wanted to go with a different look. You know how Buddha is commonly depicted with his hair in a bun on the TOP of his head? Imagine that, but place the bun a  bit towards the back, and tilt it to the left in a cuter more feminine way aaannddd that’s what I had.

I thought it was an interesting twist since my hair is long and huge. So it sculpted my bare face very well. The earrings played a nice part too since they were more exposed.

Anyways.

I was just sitting down with Mike and we were watching TV. We saw this commercial for one of the various female contraceptive products. The commercial wasn’t deliberately funny, but it was ironic because of the side effects. When me and Mike heard “May cause stroke, blood clots and heart attacks. Smokers increase risk of heart attacks”… I was like WOW. And Mike grinned and we both just laughed.

Modern medicine seek out to solve problems but often end up making it worst!

Honestly, one of the things me and Mike practice is a very natural and old school life style. For example, instead of taking a pill, we take a medicinal leaf. Instead of taking pain medicine, we find an alternative way like exercise to get rid of certain pains. Sickness and colds are all naturally endured and taken out with juice and exercise.

Mikey takes it a bit further by calibrating his brain to be immune to most pains.

Honestly, I’d prefer doing this than anything else. I’ve seen and have used the pills and the medicines, and I don’t like it and I don’t need that lifestyle.
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You know I was making dinner today, and I also was thinking about “serving sizes” and this fat and that saturation, etc. I thought about where my grandfather and mother grew up and I was thinking about what they ate and how much.

They use to eat in abundance. “Serving Size” was when they FELT full. EVERY meal. Their lives were not on a chair and the food itself was so much more wholesome. Bananas were sweeter and juicier. The meat were freshly killed and tastier. Everything was so much more natural. Everything was dirt-grown, and not chemically enhanced or modified. Even the sweet stuff wasn’t as destructive as todays chemically altered stuff.

I was in a deli the other morning and I saw the candy shelf and I took a look at the Snickers Bar. I remembered their motto “Hungry? Grab a snickers” and I smiled because I realized that that thing couldn’t full me. My stomach may be small, but even so, it wouldn’t satisfy me.

That TINY BAR of probably 40 percent chocolate has about 280 empty calories that do absolutely nothing.

Amazing :)
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Tonight, after work I wanted to treat my family to a nice dinner. Mike’s been extra strict with his diet and work out this specific week because he KNOWS he’s going to have FUN at the party and probably overeat lol. So he’s been very disciplined.

Usually, his routine is strict the entire week, and on friday and saturday he splurges. Sundays he detoxifies himself with fasting and then he returns back to his strict diet.

There IS a different in Friday splurging and Saturday splurging for Mike. Fridays are usually Meat-based and more food based like Rice. And Saturdays is more sweet-based like cakes and stuff.

Today though, I made this wonderful Dish for everybody. It was actually two dishes. It was a thick spaghetti with a leafy semi-sweet mixture sauce that I incorporated with the noodles. So after mixing it It had a very dark brown look, but it tasted good. I added a bit of extra virgin oil and some other sweet liquids to keep it moist.

Usually I make noodles or spaghetti dry, since nobody around here eats it with much spaghetti sauce. Or any. But Today *I* wanted to go with something different.

The Side Dish was a small batch of Penne which had a slight sour taste to it. It, also was thick with my own concoction. I mixed it with a bit of the same wet mixture, but added more herbs and flavoring, and I made it more thick and gloppy. I had to extract the sour-vinegar taste because I wanted it to be evident but not TOO evident.

The idea I was going for was sweet and sour. So the spaghetti had a sweet hint to it while the penne had a more sour-ish taste to it.

I made two sets of chicken as the meat of the dishes. I actually left the Skin on the chicken legs I fried and seasoned and such because I was honestly using those chicken legs to make a quick run of whats going to happen in the morning. (Remember I gotta help cook up huge batches of fried chicken for the party! so this is good practice). The other chicken was more on the wet side also. It was actually left over chicken bits that I usually have for Mike’s diet-menus but I took them, cooked them and gave is a sweet and sour taste to it.

For dessert I made a quick chocolate cake, without the amenities. No frills, no icing, just a dark semi-dry cake. This too, was a test run for the morning!
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So I gathered everyone around in my dining room and I set out tables and pulled the table forward so everyone can round it.

I passed out the plates and some of them helped dish out the foods.

The Spaghetti came first with the Penne right by it, the chicken ontop of the meal and a fried chicken for everyone.

It was different for them, because I’ve never introduced this recipe openly to them so I was happy to get their reactions.

Immediately, when you see people eating fast and not taking their time, you know that it’s good. There are signs. BESIDES them saying it was good.

And they did. They loved it. The little ones especially, as well as Mike :).

I was happy with it too! I enjoyed it myself. The smell was great and I purposely made it more moist and a tad bit oily, so it went down so easier. And the tastes did EXACTLY what I wanted it to do. Contrast. And the fried chicken came out nice and crispy.

I am soooo not a fan of frying chicken with skin. One… because the oil sparks up. Two, because it’s not healthy.

But speaking overall, the dish was healthy and it was nice and it was homemade and everyone loved it :)

I had a bit of salad left over and I put it in a bowl on the table for whoever wanted an extra side dish to refresh their tastes with.

That’s really all we use “Salad” for. I’ve never been a fan of just eating a salad as a meal. This goes back to the whole serving size thing lol.
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You know what Mom was doing this weekend?

I went over and she had a bunch of ornaments she keeps in the house, like little ducks on her kitchen and stuff. She had one of them and she had one of her nail polishes and started painting the faded colors Lol.

She’s used nail polish on many things in her apartment! She’s so versatile lol. Wherever there is a knick or bruise of some furniture or something, she uses one of her nail polishes.

And the ironic thing is she DOESN’T have many nail polish variations, but in fact, most of them are brown and dark colors.

So the reason she gets away with it and no one realizes, is because her apartment theme is very classic, with a lot of browns and dark cherry colors, burgundy, etc.

Her nail polish collection is like only 4 or 5 colors. “Savannah” “Black cherry” “Brown bag it” and “Clear” Lol.

A lot of brown, nude, clear and dark colors. And she rocks them well :).
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Lizzy is playing Sudoku right now.

Lol.

I’m sitting on her Sofa and I think I’m going to sleep here tonight :D. It’s nice a soft, just like the bed. So peaceful. Very big and spacious too.

This is where the shortness pays off ;).

Hm, im definitely sleeping here tonight lol.

Tomorrow is the party and im interested and very curious to see what happens!

But more important than the party is the preparation and the cooking and thats where I come in ! Thats where the hard part is, but thats also where I shine ;).

So im going to bed early today.

Signed
Mel the Chef

“Excellence through passion”

That’s the Maserati slogan.

I thought it was appropriate for this entry.

Yesterday I was talking to a friend who was discussing getting a job at one of the many beverage chain stores here on the island.

And they suggested that If I ever quit Hell, I should come join them. Lol. Obviously they were just intimidated, and hasn’t even gotten the job yet to be making offers!

I thought about it though. Not leaving Hell (I’m stuck for life), but Imagining what it would be like.

I didn’t like it. At all.

Not that there’s anything wrong with being a cashier-esque type of person, but that’s just not my… idea of spending my life. If I have a choice then I’d go with my passions
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I’m sure I’d fake a perky-happy person and do great at it :D, but I probably wouldn’t be happy.

Dealing with so many people, and then not having the flexibility nor having the creative output. And the scariest of all, knowing that you’re just liability.

I’ve always been more attracted to management and Money and business and things where I can get creative, expressive and really lay down my genius.

My passion.

Maybe I’m just biased because Hell is the only work I know?

Nevertheless, I’ve always wanted to open up a business and that restaurant and I always talk about investing and my hobbies…. So Yeah, regardless, thats where my passion is.

And I get that’s why I don’t mind on some days when my brain is throbbing. The work, stress, sometimes funny sleeping issues, but it becomes normal to me.

I like having a little power and importance to play with. It brings out the best in me and allows me to contribute. It’s like voting. If you FEEL like you won’t make a difference, then you WONT vote.
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Speaking of Passion :).

Me and Mike were sitting across from each other in the living room and he was on the adjacent sofa/couch/thingy and it was late in the night.

And I was talking to him. Well really, I was doing the talking and he looked drugged up and sleepy. Lol.

And he was smiling though, even though his eyes looked like they were going to kill over. And I’m just talking to him and babbling and saying stuff.

And im sure, all he’s hearing is a little chipmunk voice squeaking rapidly.

And I ask him “You’re not listening to me are you?!”, I don’t expect him to listen, so I wasn’t upset or anything, I just found it funny lol. He was looking into my eyes squarely, but he wasn’t hearing the words, but his imagination was taking over.

And this was yesterday, when I was having my very special, beautiful-self-treat  day and so he moves next to my couch/sofa/thing and he places his lips on my lower neck and says “You smell so good”…..

And I’m laughing so hard because he’s not even in his right mind right now. He’s basically on auto-sleep-pilot. So he’s complimenting and doing his typical romantic Mikey-ness and he’s moving soo slow now.

And he nestles his head on my shoulder and my neck and he completely closes his eyes and he’s GONE. Knocked out cold.

I close the lights and bring him a sheet and just smile and laugh.
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And it’s so funny to me because, that’s not who Mike is. Well he IS, romantically speaking. But what I mean is, he’s not the type of person who SLEEPS if he’s not on a bed. So he must’ve been really tired.

And really comfortable too.

Like, he’ll go days without sleeping, until he’s back in his bed. Even in our comfortable, safe, private apartment, he never sleeps on the sofa/couch/etc. He only sleeps in our bed. You know how some people fall asleep watching TV somewhere? Yeah, Mike doesn’t do that, so that was a bit awkward, but it happens.

Speaking of Mike.

Remember I mentioned, some of Mike’s family friends and this woman who his parents use to hold as a daughter when she was younger and Mike was just a baby? Well she was invited to the party and Mike’s a bit uneasy about it.

Remember, Mike is so Stoic so when he tilts his head and says “Hm, I wonder what they’ll think of me”……is the equivalent to a woman saying “OH MY GOD IM SO STRESSED OUT AND WORRIED!!!”

Lol… ok not really

But. It made him uneasy.

Because they’ve seen him as a baby, and saw him grow a few years until they split ways. And now he’s a “man” by law of couse, but he’s definitely not a baby.

Will he be handsome enough? Prideful enough? respectable enough? Tall enough? Too tall? Smart enough? Smile enough? Polite enough? You know, common things to worry about.

Generally speaking, Mike hardly smiles and he’s very quiet and private. The people who get to see his happier and smiley sides are just us really.

I advised him to just be himself because in our eyes, we can’t find anything wrong with Mike. Regardless of his appearance to THEM, it’s his own qualities that make him important to us. Being himself, is whats so golden about him.

I don’t think this is about him either. You know. Mike isn’t the type to be conscious of what others think about him. But I think he’s doing this for his parents. Or I mean, he’s THINKING this way because of them.

Basically he wants to present himself in a way that wont let his parents down. So they can be proud of him.

But I think, if he just carries himself in his NOBLE and strong character, there isn’t a damn thing to be ashamed of.

Plus he has me to do all the talking :D.

And how can he not be admired with a companion like me at his side lmao. Ok..Ok…I’ll stop lol.

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When I was little, I remember self esteem use to be present. I developed a strong self esteem at a young age, because I was constantly reminded that I was short lol.

So I built an immunity and developed a stong sense of self esteem back then.,

I realized that it didn’t matter what others thought because that’s just who I am. Everyone has their own oddities.

And if you notice, I laughed when I wrote that, because it’s just such a part of me now that I never think about it. Unless I have to … you know… change a light bulb ;). But thats why we have ladders. And Mike. And chairs.

Not being ourselves is like the worst thing ever.
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Nevertheless I was a woman. And a kid.

But women are sometimes stronger than Men.

Those two things can be challenging but you overcome them.

Plus it helped to look at women of power throughout history :). And some in mythology, like Neith, the Egyptian goddess.
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Actually, there was a recent time when I was reminded of my shortness Lol.

It was when I was looking for something to wear, and I realized that one of my “shirts”….. actually could be worn like a dress. It’s not that long, but it covers up a good amount, and with the right pants or something, I could turn it into a dress.

MAYBE thats that particular shirt, but you get the idea.
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You ever felt a really crispy crispy dollar? Like something JUST printed? I found 4 of those when I was counting some money and oh my gosh.

I tried to give myself a paper cut lol.

Actually I was just flicking it on my finger to see how crisp it was lol. When I realized it was crisp and I could actually cut my finger like that, I stopped lmfao.

But wow, that was the cleanest dollar ever. I might frame it..
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Speaking of the self.

Lizzy has this tiny tiny little mole on her nose. It’s not visible but it looks cute if you look really close.

She has a natural tanned look so It’s all gravy.

So yeah, cutting this short too.

Nap time.

Peace.

Signed
Mel the Belle from …. well you know

Can’t go wrong with Whisky

My favorite daily ritual: Taking a bite of chocolate or candy or something sweet. Not hard candy though. I know, that can be problematic but the trick is to have self control and indulge without overdoing it.

That’s really my trick to stay svelte. Eat whatever you want, in limits. Eating slowly also helps make you feel like your eating more than you actually are and it makes you enjoy your food better. Eating frequent bites is also good. Well that’s what works for me. This way, I don’t ever worry about eating, or eating, under eating, whatever. Only on a few occasions I lack discipline and go crazy :)

So I just stepped out of the shower and I got one of my favorite floral summer spring dresses on. This one is pure white and has a few floral designs in semi-subtle colors. About my knee length. And I got this white pearly bead necklace on and my favorite earrings and I did my hair and it’s straight and soft and flowing freely. I think on this canvas, the dark brunette hair contrasts greatly with the white dress. And I got some of my favorite brown soft slippers on. My nails are all cleansed and prettay. A pretty little stone bracelet on my arm as well.

Before hand in the shower I hand a blast with nice smelling lotions and things. So the lasting smell is all in my hair and on my skin.

Probably wondering where I’m going today?? Absolutely no where lmao.
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I’m just weird like that.

I’m an extremely home-body. For example, when I have a vacation, I stay indoors most of the time. I just love my home. Theres symbolic and spiritual reasons behind that but you get the idea. Mikey is the same way.

Really I got home from work and I didn’t feel too excited because work drained my energy. So I decided to treat myself and love ME.

A nice hot bath and dressing up for my own loveliness is my idea of paradise. Plus the chocolate :).

And I got food waiting on the table for me :D.
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That reminds me. I ate an awkward combination of foods. Brownies and Cheese. Not sure how that one happened but I had a little of both and couldn’t help trying it at the same time. It was a Decent taste, but really its because I was overwhelmed tot ry both.

Speaking of Flowers.

I went with Mike to Home depot around 23rd to check a price for something he wanted to buy and I noticed these flowers.

Ok so.

If you walk….. from 5th to 6th… on 23rd street…. Wait…is it 23rd? Whatever. The block that Home depot is on.The same block has best buy on the corner and the train on the other side.

Anyways. That block has these beautiful yellow bright flowers. And they are so beautiful. I was elated because I have those SAME flowers growing around the Palace.

I forgot the technical name for those flowers. I wish they put like signs to explain what they are but alas I wont know.

I feel like I know the technical name but I cant remember it. Or maybe im mistaking it for something else.

My flowers, I actually had imported out of state because they aren’t common city flowers, BUT they can thrive in city environments because the City has the same coldness to it.

So besides being strong through deep into the winter, it has a remarkably yellow pop to it that is so captivating.
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You know I was watching the Nanny and im happy they put that show back on because I never got to experience it until now. I always thought it was boring as a kid but its quite not.

They had this recent episode where they were talking about how Fran was trying to be less herself and be more stuck-uppy and more rich and snobby-like. She was trying to not embarress her daughter or something, but later finds out her daughter never had  problem with her and preferred her to be herself. Later on in the episode she acts herself and the party they were throwing was even more better because of that.

I think thats a lovely moral.

It made me think of myself.

You know…. today for me was very symbolic. I didn’t dress up for no one else but me. I didn’t take so much time to make sure everything was beautiful on me for anyone else but me.

There was a time in my life where I worried too much and I cared too much. I took too much of the world on my shoulders for no reason. It just brought me more poison.

When I removed that poison, I felt so free. Sometimes I joke that the sky can fall and I wouldn’t really pay attention.

I’ve moved more to my inner Zone of tranquility. I do me. As the expression goes.

Thats not to say that I don’t care or I lack a sense of compassion these days, because thats not true. What’s happened is, I’ve shifted more power to MYSELF. With my inner power, I can become more of an asset to MYSELF, my family, my world and most importantly my spirit.

Besides I don’t have enough time in my life to care about pleasing everyone and trying to be likable to everyone lol.

And you know what? I did the right thing. Because my life has been so much more happier by shifting power to myself, loving myself and being who I am.

Theres an expression, that one person that’s positive can affect thousands of people, even if they don’t know it. And thats true. Remember that expression, that not only is it good to give a gift, but its also good to acept a gift, and everyone feels good like that. And also the person whos watching it third person feels good by seeing it. So that positivy can only be obtained by being yourself and shifting that distorted power into an inner essence.
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So speaking of Giving.

I went down the Palace to Visit Aunty and Uncle last night with Mike and Mommy.

They were discussing plans and stuff and Aunty looked kinda stressed and worried about the whole thing. The party that is.

Anyways, we had a lot of laughs last night as we were just going through everything and planning with her.

So Me, Mike, liz and all the other girls are gonna help her cook on Saturday morning and on saturday night is gonna be the huge party.

You know what she did though?

She was thanking Mom about helping her with the Cake and then she brought money out of her pocket and gave me and Mike. I was hesitant for that one second and I was about to talk her out of it, just to show her that I was humble and didn’t need anything. But with this great womanly force she grabbed my left hand and smacked the 20 in there and said that I deserved it and she didn’t wanna hear another word about it.

So I didn’t bother putting up a fight :). Nor did Mike. I shall put this into my investing fund lol. I’m sure she wants me to spend it and enjoy it but thats a whole different subject. This would be my way of spending it lol.

Anyways anyways

So we walked into one of the rooms in her apartment and the entire room was packed with stuff.

I kid you not, there were about 20+cases of beer. All together i’m guessing there were 800 cans of beer, more or less. 3 different kinds.

THEN, there were a few cases of water, a few cases of can Soda, and plates and this and that.

That was mind boggling already Lol.

But then she showed us like maybe…..10 or so bottles of Rum. There was Whiskey, Smirnoff, vodka, this and that, tequila….etc etc.

I subconsciously said Whisky first because my Uncle kept asking her a few times to find the Whisky. I guess thats his favorite! You can’t go wrong with Whisky though, it’s old school :).

So anyways, it’s not surprising that there are gonna be a lot of drunk people there..

So you know what? I bet this party actually is around 10,000 or more. I was just guessing at first but now im assuming that this is gonna be more than that.

My Mom told her that this was kinda extreme but she also agreed that this wasn’t going to happen every year. This was a special birthday based on his age and he wont ever have another one like this. Well he can, but it’s expensive.

So it’s going to be family and close friends and such.

She also bought a 200+ dollar sony Camera, not counting the 30 dollar memory card to plug in. And she gave it to me and Mike to fix it up for her. So when we did and gave it back to her, she told us that she’ll try to find a camera person, but she’d prefer it if WE did it for her.

The only thing is that we are also on food watch, but maybe I can leave Mike for a minute, literally and snap pictures quickly and come back with him. Watching the food is important. You don’t want them to TAKE all the food greedily in bags or something lol. More importantly, you don’t want anyone to tamper with the food. So thats where us two kids come in :)

I told Aunty that I dont’ want her to be upset if the photos aren’t to her liking. She said she didnt care, because it didnt have to be special or anything. It’s not like a wedding photo or something. Action shots basically :D.

Uncle joked and asked what we were having to drink and Mike joked back that thats not smart having us on Photography duty while we’re intoxicated. All the photos will probably be of the ceiling or something Lol. Of course we aren’t the drinking type and afterall it WAS just a joke.

Which reminds me though. I forgot to mention the WINE.

She bought bottles and bottles of wine too. And “Woman drinks”…..which is like the like Rums and Whines…..you know the really colorful ones with the pretty bottles, and that looks awkward when Men drink them? Yeah.

And I just mentioned the drinks. Theres still the food and the tons of rice to cook and salads and The tons and tons of fried chicken.

You know what was funny though? Mikey came out of no where and told everyone of us to make sure to keep some of the fried chicken for him Lmao.

Aunty warned us though, to take food and keep it for us BEFORE setting everything out.
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Wow…and it just hit me that I’m going to be helping in this calamity. So this is gonna be testing.

honestly though, I pefer it that way.

I don’t like it when too many people come to help you do something, because too many people have too many opinions, and then it just goes downhill from there.

I don’t mind helping out, I just gotta take it mellow during Friday so I can relax for the morning of Saturday.

I haven’t actually bought any clothing for it and didn’t decide to wear a dress or anything.

Liz isn’t wearing a dress either nor is Ms. 19 or any of the other girls.

It’s not really that type of party afterall. It’s more like a have fun kinda party. Laid back and comfortable so dresses aren’t important.

However, the woman and man of the hour, aunty and uncle, are dressed up. But thats not unexpected.
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Anyways, cutting it short here….

Gonna get that lunch on the table waiting for me, then imma go take a nap or something.

Later dudes

Signed
Ms. Mel

Food shopping

So I DID go shopping with Mom.

And Liz came along too because she knew what we all knew: This particular neighborhood is filled with Pizza places. There wasn’t no reason why she was not coming with us.

Mike also came along like last time but this time he was a bit more impatient and showed more angst and discomfort. He lightened up later when we bought food.

But so yeah, Mom just went to exchange something and also buy some other things. I, bought a 8 dollar umbrella :). Being as small as I am, the wind in New York has a way of not being my friend. My umbrellas that I use to use, which were the dollar kinds, always got torn up and mangled because of the wind. This umbrella in particular had a double skeleton layer so it was more sturdier, plus it had this soft rubber handle and it was a nice medium sized Umbrella. I couldn’t resist. I didn’t buy clothes, but I went with a good umbrella. I see that as a win win.

But on the subject of fashion.

Since the beginning of time, fashion and women have gone hand in hand. There’s a base quality behind that somewhere lol, but Women and fashion are inseparable. Fashion is more of a unique thing, not really a trend thing, although it CAN be a trend thing. If women all had a sheet over them that were the same color, but one woman found a piece of string that could be tied onto the cloth. Then…that distinguishing trait, is what fashion ends up being. An expression.
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Clothes is half the work.

For some women, make up is another thing. For me and Liz, in particular, thats not really a big deal to us. We like the natural look most of the time, or a little tiny bit of something but not too much.

Being a woman is hard work Lol.

The main part is mostly in the phsyical body… the skin… etc.

For me personally, as well as Liz, it’s become something more of a health conscious thing. I say Liz a lot because I like who she is and I don’t mind following her lead in certain areas, while retaining my own individuality.

Being inflicted with a myriad of sicknesses (most of them, me thinking too much lol) at a certain time, I grown more attached to being more health conscious. Not really in eating, because I eat natural foods majority of the time, but in exercise.

Not to get in shape either, but mainly for my heart to move around. Most of my exercises are cardio and stretching and based on making my heart get movement. I can feel when its happy.

Recently, some of the things that make me a bit sad is when I see Mom in arthritis pain. Such a beautiful and deceptively seemingly Young Woman, has a lot of arthritis pain. That comes from a life of hard working and injuries. I think recent injuries, because she fell and hurt both knees, and as a result her knees hurt her on occassion.

This makes me a bit more conscious about that so I like to use tiny lbs of weights to firm my muscle areas. Muscles are there to protect the bones right? As well as other functions, but yeah.

I think, alot more women should use weights too. They have this fear that if you work out with weights, then you’ll have big manly muscles, which isn’t true at all.

My arms are very feminine and small and you couldn’t tell if I used weights. But there is a difference, and the skin and muscle is a bit more firmer. I do other stuff for my legs too.
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Whatever.

The point is, im trying to explain that for a woman, its definitely more complex since her image to her self and others is important.

Like I said I don’t wear a lot of Make up, and most of the time I don’t wear any at all, but the few things I do pride myself on is my Hair and my nails. Lol. I don’t paint them often but I like keeping thing silky white and cleaned. And I go through a plethora of hair styles every year Lol. I’ve gotten so good at both crafts to the point where I can do it myself instead of paying someone to do it for me. Not that I ever did. I learned the hard way!

And as Liz is to Scarfs, Mel is to bead necklaces. They are so cheap and awesome and you can make them yourself and they have so many variations, sizes and colors.
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When we were at the counter, this lady who was at the register started speaking to Mommy in Spanglish. She was so friendly though. She made us go to a different place to exchange the stuff, but her friendliness ws so captivating that none of us seemed to mind.

It reminded me of Mikey.

sometimes when Mike talks to people behind the register, he’s extremely friendly and polite. I asked him once, devilishly, why he always seemed to be so much chipper than he usually is. Remember, Mike, generally speaking…is a very stoic person Lol.

I remember Mike responded by saying that it’s how he gets the better service lmao. He always gets things done that way because the people are attracted to his kindness, genuine or not.

Kindness really does stretch lol.

I remember one lady told him about her granddaughter and joked that he would make a perfect grandson for her lmao.
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Side note:

Speaking of Michael.

Bloomberg is the mayor again. Great.

You know what Mom observed that made me raise an eyebrow? She said that she was watching the news and say the loser Bill Thompson in a friendly matter, congratulating and being grateful, while there was no mention or any real thankfulness from Bloombizzy.

Interesting right? You can say BT still has ambition and is being friendly to show that he’s still capable of showing sincerity and can use that as a mental advantage in his next chance. But maybe thats genuine.
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Oh and that Yankee parade, or whatever it was… Liz and Ms. 19 went to it Lol.

Me and Mike didn’t go because we’re Mets fans.

But seriously, don’t they ever get tired of winning? And even if they lose one year, they act like they don’t have 20+ trophies.

Ms. 19 is a really big-ger Yankee Fan than Liz is. Ms. 19 is all up in the stats and stuff. It’s a very serious matter to her. lol. Saying some other team is better, can cause unnecessary tension.

And saying her name NOW is funny. Ms. 19? It sounds like a secret agent. It’s kinda funny now. I started saying that a long time ago right? Remember? Because thats what her age was, but before it was like Ms. 18. I actually call her Ms. 19 in real life. We all do actually. We don’t know how it happened…but it just caught on, ya know.

But it’s just funny saying it nowadays. Ms. 19. Because its so secret agent-y.

Mike was kinda angry too on Friday becauase he was taking the train or something and there was a block up and the first thing he said was “You know the Yankees caused the train to stop? This is why I dont like them. “

of course he was exaggerating lol. The train didn’t STOP, it probably just took a minute (literally) to readjust itself and get back into it’s vibe. And, but I loved how he blamed it on the “yankees” as if it was one entity. If you get what I mean.
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Really, the real meat of the entry is this:

Afterwards when we went to buy food, it was a fun experience once again.

We didn’t plan to go find food Lol. But anytime we seem to be in that specific area we like buying stuff.

Today…. I don’t know what happened exactly.

Mom wanted to go to this specific place and buy food. She said her and a friend once went there a long time ago and found a place to sit and eat the food afterwards, and it was so good. It seems to have been imprinted in her brain to the point where she HAD to refind the place.

After walking around in circles and many blocks later, we came back to a place where we originally felt wasn’t it, but found out it MIGHT’VE been it. It’s still fuzzy to her mind but she didn’t care.

Anyways, so she’s buying food and she’s so excited about it… Her kid-mode kicks in and shes buying things left and right. And through the whole thing she’s saying how this is good and how that is good.

the real kicker is that im just standing there, and shes picking the food for ME and shes the one super excited.

Usually…..you get excited when YOUR Going to eat it right? lol. She was excited for ME.

Through the whole conversation, it was a series of yes and no and her talking.

I kept saying, Mom I don’t really want you to buy so much food, im fine! thats all I need, im satisfied!

But she kept asking if I wanted this and that….. and my brain starts to melt down, because im addicted to food at heart. My mouth is salivating because I can smell the goodness, and she’s pressuring me Lol. She mentions this and that and it doesn’t help that Liz and Mike was around.

And I say that because she was buying for Mike too and Mike was like , get the chicken! get the chicken! and the potatoes!

And after a while I just start giving in and my mind crumbles and I start launching orders and asking for things. All the while, im in kid-mode too and price just disappears apparently.

And so now we’re at the counter and My eyes just SO HAPPENS TO GLANCE  a Chocolate Bar.

And yall know how much of a fiend I am when it comes to chocolate and sweets.

And Liz caught my eye and she grabs one and says “You want this dont you”….and I wanna say YEESSS but I didn’t want her to go crazy like Mom did

i wanted to be respectful. I wanted to be sincere. Even if I was hungry, I didn’t want to be greedy and ask her “YEESS I WANT IT!!! AND I WANT IT ALLLLL!!!!”…..

And all these RIDICULOUS emotions are swelling inside of me. And I say its ridiculous, because it’s coming up at a time when emotions are not necessary.

Liz is grinning, while my eyes are dodging left and right, and im swallowing my saliva frequently, and my heart is fluttery, and im thinking about how much Liz has done for me in my life, and how great of a person she is to me, and how I DONT want her to ever do anything for me or give me anything because shes done so much already. I just want her love, and thats ENOUGH. And I already have that. And I was thinking the same thing about Mom.

But they were in a whole nother world.

And so after she says “You want this dont you??”….she doesnt even wait till I mumbled silently my reply, because she smiled at the cashier and paid before I could.

And so we walk out the store and Mom is ranting about how the food is cooked sooo good and its soooo excellent and its soooo this and that and how delicious it is….and I kept asking her “You gonna eat some too right?” and she cheerily says “Oh no, I don’t like eating this type of food often” Lol. Sounds like a contradiction right? What she means is that she doesnt eat OUTSIDE food often. And if she does, shes picky. So this place got her approval.

Anyways, so Mikey is all jolly again because he got his mind on his food and you know how Mike is with food.

And so Mom decides…… that we werent done shopping for food.

And Lizzy, not unexpectantly, suggests we go to the Pizza joint that we did last time. Liz loved their pizza.

Again…these two go trigger happy.

On this corner, Lizzy racks up about 12 dollars worth of Pizza. Also buying stuff for me.

And on this corner, Mom goes trigger happy with the rice and fried chicken she saw and says that it looked good and such and well, long story short……. we bought more food.
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While we were walking home I tried to express my discomfort with those two for being so trigger happy. And they shut me up by expressing that it’s not an everday thing. It was a family occassion, sorta.

Honestly….they ARE right.

My discomfort wasn’t really discomfort at all. I knew they were right. I knew that EVEN THOUGH I MENTALLY CALCULATED that they spent 30+ dollars worth of food for MEEEE….ALONE…. It still wasn’t too bad. You know?

They are all home bodies, as well as I am. They eat green foods and hardly eat outside foods. When they splurge, it’s not that bad. So I knew it wasn’t a big deal.

But what I was trying to do was express a subtle thankfulness and tell them that they really didn’t need to do that for Me.

They also went on that I never eat (such a lie) and that im too small (I have great curves…. but they are just finding excuses!)… and a bunch of other excuses about work and stuff.
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Anyways, it was a lot of food.

ALOT of food.

When we came home, Mom split upstairs to go sleep since she didn’t sleep well.

Mike also went back to bed after taking a small bite.

Me and Liz were in her apartment and we were running about getting her Pizza alltogether.

I always…always…love her expression and that glimmer of extreme happiness when she has pizza infront of her.

And then I got a plate and stuff and took a whole bunch of food and we both plopped on her beautiful Sofa/Couch thingy and we turned the TV on and just started going nuts.

My mouth was still salivating through the smells and everything, and I have to admit that the food IS good

Because of that, and the fact that I didn’t eat breakfast, ended up making me eat faster Lol.

So I had that pregnant feeling at the end again Lol.

I actually couldn’t finish eating, and I left a whole bunch of food for tomorrow. I wanted to eat it all up but I couldn’t. Mostly the stuff I ate was the pizza which did a lot of justice for the price. Very efficient. Liz bought alot of different slices also so we couldn’t help but try those out first. The rice and chicken and stuff looked good and the pasta things and everything looked so delicious. But I physically couldn’t finish it all, although I mentally wanted to lol.

After I finished eating, that pregnant feeling hit me again because I…. ate too quick Lol…. ate too much.

I just cuddled up with Liz and closed my eyes and leaned on her shoulder and listened to the sound of the TV while Liz was watching it. I tried not to move for a while, until the feeling of pain left Lol.

Liz made us some Tea to wash everything down and digest the foods and it did the trick.

Green tea is the best.
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I felt kinda cold from being outside, even while eating.

Then when that hot green tea hit my insides, and I can feel it running through my body, It made this really drowsy feeling. So I left Liz and went back to my bedroom and slipped into the sheets with Mike.

And Mikes a big softy. And so romantic.

He rested himself really close to me and grabbed one of my hands and wrapped his fingers around my fingers and locked it. He whispered his romanticness.

He can’t sleep without me. Big softy. Lol.

I remember before I closed my eyes though, I was just thinking back on that really crazy morning. With those two, Liz and Mom going nuts with the food buying.

And I felt so loved. Thats what it is. Thats what I felt. I felt loved. It was an awkward expression than their usual expressions, but it meant the world to me. I love them too.

A very very long time ago, I planted a symbolic seed. In a very desolate place. And I hoped that one day that seed would sprout into something beautiful. And then it would take over, like a forest. A seed of hope. And that was my ultimate goal and my ultimate dream because I knew that the fruits of that labor would be endless.

And so that has come to life… and I’m very happy.

Signed
The Great Melzini

P.S. I can’t wait to wake up so I can eat some more lmao.

Two part – Seven hundred and seventy two word Entry

I was up in the terrace/roofdeck/thingy and I was there for a really obscene amount of time. Ok not really but it was in the cold so everything seemed slower and hence more time. Probably only out there an hour.

My fingers still havent gotten back full feeling. I guess a good reason for this predicament is that I wasn’t fully dressed for this particular weather. I just went up there to relax a bit with Mike but— and well here we are.

I have my comforter wrapped around me right now.

And this is another reason why I’m an indoors person :)

I’m not doing this ever again.
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I can’t wait to go wrap up in bed.

You’d also be amazed at how little sleep the body really needs. It varies between people to people but I’ve realized that some people need more while some need less.

I’ve also noticed that, in general, people seem to force themselves to sleep more. Sometimes I wake up earlier than I should but I make my mind think that I need more time; “5 more minutes!” Imagine how productive we would be if we listened to our bodies also, instead of just making the decision with our mind.

You know what, im going to put this in a draft and finish it tomorrow because I wanna go warm up.

Peace in the middle east.
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Ok….So…The day after.

Or the night after.

Actually It’s Friday. A lot of things had to be finished so I didn’t get to actually type on the timeframe I wanted. This entry got pushed back. But that just gives me more stuff to talk about.

Tonight was pretty subtle, as usual. Usually how I spend my Fridays is in subtle ways.

Work has been challenging a bit and I’m glad today is Friday. Tomorrow I have to go shopping with Mom again and after I come home, I think 20 hours of sleep is in order. I always say 20, but never actually get 20 lol.

So yeah, earlier today I was really pressed but later I felt better.

And of course, just being home, I can feel the aura of peace surround me and give me a strange revitalization.
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Earlier today at Lunch I went for a walk and Noticed a lot of folks who had scarves on. The more scarves I saw, the more I thought about Liz.

Liz is a scarf collector. One of her many quirky attributes. Maybe not a collector? I don’t know. But she has a ton of scarves and she wears them a lot of times. Sometimes it’s not even cold. Sometimes she’s indoors in the privacy of her own self and she’ll throw one on just for the hell of it.

She has a collection of Scarves from so many places. So many kinds. So many colors. So many continents lol. So many textures, fabrics.

Winter time is usually when she brings them outdoors. Certain special ones she doesn’t wear often or only wears at home, where she knows she can have more control of what happens.

Giving her a Scarf is a great gift, which I took great advantage of, and gave her my own Scarf I bought for her. She liked it too :).

But anyways, all the scarves today reminded me of her. And also the fact that it was a lot colder and I should’ve dressed warmer.
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On the contrary, today Mike was in my office and he just so happened to have walked to Hell in basketball shorts and a sports shirt or vest thing.

Like I really need other women staring at him. Lol.

He came from exercising and then went for a walk. Is it awkward for a kid to be walking around in basketball shorts and a vest in the middle of autumn? Not in New York. In this city…..the snow can be falling and people are jogging in their shorts. Awkward City, but thats why its so awesome.

Anyways, so there he was, unaware of his own physical attractiveness. Men generally aren’t as image-conscious so they don’t generally see eyes staring at them. Or  so I’d assume. Of course that doesn’t apply to everyone.

But so yeah, Mr. Oblivious was in my office and I had a fun time listening to the female gravitators tease Mike and compliment him and such.

It’s definitely not the close in Mikes case, it’s his own naturalness. Suit or 2 dollar clothing, he brings a physique of hard work and determination to the table. Sorta speaking.
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Hm, I don’t feel like writing more….

I know…. The irony. I must be really tired or something. I don’t know. But a 772 word entry is so not like me.

Oh well.

Later,
Signed
Mel

The Quadratic Formula

I gotta put this DS down, before I get fired or something. It’s quite amusing. Been playing a educational-esque game on it though. The range of genres for the the little gadget is pretty wide so theres a bit for everybody. And of course, Mike’s been using it in his reminiscing and such.

This particular game has to do with memory, which I found was ironic since I was discussing that the other day. I asked Mike to try it and see if he found it more or less difficult than what he practices, and we both agreed what Mike practices is a bit more complex. Besides remembering a word everyday and the definition, he started remembering long digit numbers, like 9’s and 8’s. Random numbers with no particular meaning. Getting through the day with it is quite a feat, but remembering it the next night is something else. Remembering all 45+ digits, is the real challenge for him weekly.
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Speaking of numbers,

So we were drawing and I got really detail orientated. So while everyone was halfway finished with their drawings, I was still creating the contoured structures. In my defense, I was being a perfectionist :). Of course when I realized I didn’t have to finish it today, I took a lot more sweeter time with it. Needless to say, it’s still not done, but I don’t want to rush it.

The kids had their own interesting rendition of things. Houses, cows, animals and grass. It was interesting seeing that house in particular. I wonder how they feel about living in a “building” opposed to a traditional one-family home.

Back in Florida they had that type of home, which is common for Floridians. The best I can do is put as much effort into making them feel “homey” but I wonder, now, if they see this as a “home”. Maybe I’m over thinking this? I doubt they care. They’re too young to be attached to anything besides their family, so I doubt they miss anything. They haven’t expressed anything.

Even when I was younger in kindergarten or what not, I remembered drawing a suburban-like house too. Is that a societal thing? Has our minds been warped into thinking a “house” is a square and not a vertical rectangle?

I remember someone I know once joking about how “SoHo” (South of Houston street) was the same thing as everywhere else in NYC except that it has a monetary fame to it. It has the same brick structure, the same tall shape, the same barred windows (the Law), the same fines and tickets, the same this and that.

SoHo is a location, a street(s) that is prominently “lavish” with surrounding stores and the residence of the famous move stars and such. That, Tribeca, and a few other places are our version of the hollywood strip, except more urban and watered down and quieter.

Nice beautiful place, but at the end of the day, you’d be surprised how similar it is to everywhere else in the city.

Personally though, I enjoy the place im in now. Besides the fact that my family is literally a few feet away, and 90 percent sure they will never move (It’s too nice and spacious here to move. No point really)… It’s just nice having everything literally a block away.

Guess I’m a real New Yorker :).

But can you blame me? You need coffee, Starbucks on every block. Drugstores…hospitals….wine…restuarants….groceries…bodegas….delis….famous landmarks….people of all kinds, races and mindframes… The richest of rich, the poorest of poor… It’s just hard to find a reason not to be here.

Oh and another interesting thing about the City… Even if you THINK you’ve seen everything (first hand experience)…theres always something new down 5 blocks from you.
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Saturday was money day. Thats the day when we split money, chop it up and redistribute it to it’s designated areas. Like I’ve mentioned a few times before, for me, 90 percent of it disappears into goals and the future.

Besides Mikes savings and investing, he also keeps a Nike bag that he never used for any other purpose than keeping his coins. So I asked him to do a run through and check on his coins to see how much he saved up. It always amuses me.

He counted 230+ dollars of coins, thus far. We weighed the bag and it came up to be about 20 pounds. I joked that I’m not going to be the one who takes that to get exchanged Lol.

Some others were around and they joked that Mike is the type of person who would live off his interest for the rest of his life.

Yeah, he’s quite a psychopath when it comes to money management. I can definitely see him living in a jungle and going everymonth to the bank to get a few dollars from the interest.

But what I admire about that is that it’s because of THAT FEAR, that’s what shaped him into being so good with money and so strong willed.

I’ve heard him tell Ty an old martial arts saying when they were training “Cry in the Dojo, laugh on the Battlefield”

Ain’t it the truth.
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Remember quite a long time ago, a lady that was a distant family member/friend/thing to us and she came over and I tried to help her with as little as I could give?

Well we were talking. I invited her to the big birthday thing for my Uncle, and she hinted that she was looking for a new place to stay. Things aren’t working out there.

It kind of put me in an awkward mindframe. I wanted to tell her that this is a hard economy still to be finding a new place, but then again I knew that it’s not impossible. The same reason that it’s hard, means that it’s also easier for others. Business is a cycle like that. I told her I’d keep an eye out. I asked a few folks but to no avail.

We were discussing with my Aunt, one of my Aunt’s sister who said she might not be able to make it because her granddaughter or niece or something is having a 16th birthday or something. I keep saying something because I didn’t really care to look into it. The evidence that she wasn’t going to come was there already.

My Aunt was a bit upset because this will probably be the only and last huge get together, or party that will be for my uncle. It’s not like he’s 16 and will have about 40+ more opportunities to have another bash. Similarly, that’s why my Aunt was also upset because it didn’t make sense and it was disrespectful.

I’m sure that little aspect won’t be finished with until way after the birthday :)
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Yesterday we were fasting from meat. So Mikey is dying from the lack of, so he’s to expect a huge lunch/dinner. :). It’s good though. It’s something I’ve tried to make them do and they’ve played a long pretty well. The kids tagged along too, and luckily they are still at the age where they haven’t tasted enough to have a say or pick and choose. I’m quite sure Maya wouldn’t allow any says in anything either Lol.

Maya played along too. She liked the idea. Me and her spent a bit of time together. Most of our conversation was interrupted by phone calls and making phone calls for the birthday thing, but it was all good. We’re all part of the same home, so it’s not like she waited for me and acted like a respectful Guest would. She’s family so she turned on the TV and lofted around, doing whatever she would do at her own apartment.

The fasting is good. It’s only from meat though, so usually the day is dedicated to less food or really sweet food or pizza. Non-meats.
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The said Morning, me and Mike were talking about formulas again and the pipsqueaks came upstairs to play with us.

We left them alone for a while while we were still thinking about formulas and then we brought out the paper and had a deja vu moment.

The kids walked over eventually when they were bored of being alone and leaned next to me and saw what I was writing. They know most of their numbers and are pretty decent at basic arithmatic.

But I saw how into the math they were that me and Mike just gave them math problems to do.

We were surprised that they thought it was fun, but I guess the fact that they did something like that and then showed us, gave them a sense of pride. So when we came back with a “good job”, it made them feel special, so they continued to do it. Or atleast thats how I’d assume a childs brain would function.

I advanced some of the lessons and threw them right into precalculus and calculus. I know, I know lol. They are just kids.

But I used a basic formula and did it on paper and showed them. The basic quadratic formula -b+- Square root(B^2-4AC)/2A.

It’s petty much simple plug in application, so we did stuff like that along with them to see how much they could comprehend. Certain things like the square and division we helped with, while they handled the more basic things like the multiplication and addition. We left out the actual factoring roots and it’s purpose. Most of the stuff in the discriminant was doable, besides, like I said the exponential parts.

I’m sure they had little idea what was going on, but they handled the basic stuff well and that was “fun” enough for us lol.
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Randomness:

Mike told me that someone he knows said that most of the time when you see 3 women together, one is prettier than the other two. The other two are like egotistical emotional support.

Apparently that person has never seen Liz’s sister, cousin and friends. Not to mention Liz. Or Maya or Nikki…Ms. 19… my gravitators…. Quarter of New York…..

And me *cough* ………

Yeah but no, that’s ridiculous. That person needs to experience the world more. And that shouldn’t even matter because internal beauty is the most beautiful of all.

Randomness number two:

Back when my Grandfather was growing up…. his family had a huge pit somewhere next to their house. It was dug deep to the ground and they used it to burn trash. Interesting right? Technology wasn’t as chemically advanced so I doubt there was much pollution being done to the air at those ages. Plus it was small fires and the waste content wasn’t as much as todays society. Actually, we throw away things every minute, back then it was extremely minimal.

Randomness three:

Was watching Tyra, randomly, and they had an episode about women who had trouble having “Relations” with their spouses. As a result they have made lives together without “relations”. Talk about true love. Just goes to show you, that that type of life is possible and not just for the “holy”.
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Last night I joined Mike and them while they were working out. Me and Liz were doing our workout while they were doing theres. Eric joined them.

I read somewhere in an article not too long ago that men like Eric who usually work, 24/7 usually don’t have time to exercise and as a result they end up stressed out and out of shape.

Eric is fascinating. Like Mike, he works out random hours everyday, but he works out. He looks great and very handsome too. Very athletic looking, a little less than Mike but similar.

Eric has a mental off switch like Mike does. So when it’s like 2:30 in the morning and his mind says “Come on dude, I don’t feel like moving right now, and we should just sleep and be lazy! ” ….he turns that off, just like Mike does because they realize a little bit of exercise everyday is better than nothing.

So you’ll find him in the Gym Room, random hours, doing push ups, lifting weights and other workouts.

So on that night he joined us earlier.

You can notice his will power when he followed the same training as Ty was and he expressed no sign of pain. Here and there, before and after, you could hear sounds from Ty, like grunts, moans, heavy breathing. Eric had a oneness in his entire demearor from beginning to end. Similar to Mike. I guess they are use to it, that’s why. Ty is still getting use to the idea.

Just another example how Discipline can be the most important thing ever.

Ms. 19 joined us a little later but she didn’t do much, just watched us and talked.
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Right now, I’m gonna go make breakfast and handle some things.

Me and Liz and Mom and Mike are gonna hit the same places we went to last time. Mom wants to exchange something she bought. Awesome.

No really. Cause, it means we can go buy food again Lol.

Time is of the essence, mustn’t waste any, so I’ll see you later.

Signed
Melly Mel

Constructive

One of my favorite things about the “palace” is in the morning when the sun comes up. Before that, granted the lights are off all over, the place is pretty much dark. Then when the light comes it starts brightening. Finally the magic is specifically seen as soon as the first rays of sun shine through in the morning and it bounces off the entire apartment, leaving no need for electricity. The place just lights up with this pretty soft golden shine through the windows. It’s really beautiful.

I haven’t seen it in all of the apartments, just Liz and mines. I think the reason being is that it’s on the same side of the Palace walls.

I was recalling when I was younger, when I was in some old wooden home. Very country. Probably was country. Details elude me right now. But, I remember looking up at the shed windows and it was slightly cracked open and you can literally see the light beams through each crevice. The light beams were like flash lights on the ground. Also, the dust speckles were floating around like a universe of it’s own.
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Before the sun came up, I was randomly watching shows. I came upon this one in particular about a young girl. Not too young that she’s innocent and not so old that she’s mature. She exhibited a bout of emotional insecurity, weakness and just this negative damsel in distress vibe that just made me think “ew”. It played the role well, but it bothered me. I don’t believe in this type of “woman”. This is a myth to me.

There are times, as women, that we exude a damsel in distress aura, usually on purpose. It’s nice to ALLOW a man to THINK that we are smaller, weaker and more fragile, because it brings out their beautiful qualities. That’s usually a coy, slick thing that women do, and usually the strong ones. They know how to turn it down.

What happens though, is during a humans developing stage, something occurs that make us embrace a weaker side to us to the point where it becomes us entirely. It becomes our way of life. It happens generally with children. With children, when you don’t provide that necessary home-education about the “self” that’s so vital later in life, they are left uneasy and unprepared. Naturally we all grow to either embrace our weaknesses or fight them and become better, with or without the help of another. But giving that knowledge to a child at a young age (The knowledge of inner power) is so important. To teach a child patience, meditation, critical thinking, management, observation, silence, etc etc. All these things aren’t taught in school, so it’s our job to provide them.

I don’t know. I just can’t stand being a WEAK woman. It’s a great hindrance to be dis empowered. Sure, we cry, we get depressed and sad, sometimes we can’t physically or mentally handle something (at first), but the mark of a strong woman is seen when she handles that situation bravely and can overcome and endure.

Needless to say… … … … I stopped watching and I changed the channel :D
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So i flick unto the Charlie Rose show and they had a set of Neuro-Scientists discussing the anatomy of the brain, functions, discoveries, etc. I caught it a bit late. It was so captivating.

You know Science stuff always arouses my spirit. I was enjoying watching the show, eating my cereal when I thought about Liz. I thought that she would really enjoy something like this.

So I literally speed walked out my apartment and into Liz’s. As usual, she was the only one up this early.

Same normal routine too. Showered, curled up reading something with her glasses on.

She looks really nice with her reading glasses :D. Nice is an understatement ;). The only time she actually has her glasses on is when she’s reading something for a lengthy amount of time, so it’s usually in private and in the mornings or something. She doesn’t really need glasses. Whatever. They look great on her though, on those rare occasions when she does have them on.

So I told her and she found it interesting and we started watching the last 20 or so minutes, unfortunately.

A few points mentioned during the discussion was that it’s almost impossible to really catalog every single aspect of the human brain. Generally, they actually just base assumptions off of the next best thing; an apes brain. In regards to the actual framework of it, that is. Another point was that there are billions of brain cells and countless ones that aren’t even realized as of yet.

Everything they said just made me think about two things. Memory and practice. I had a discussion with Liz about the brain’s power and she agreed that memory and practice are amazing and important things. Practice would be the most important thing, in my opinion.

Some people I know have developed talents, like my Grandfather can remember very long sets of numbers. I realized he had this power when I noticed he always remembered phone numbers and numbers to non important to semi important things. But that “gift” doesn’t mean much without practice. He even practices those numbers in his head. Like flash mental math.

When I went to Italy for the first time, I made the conscious decision to not take pictures, but rather, use all my 5 senses to make my mental power into a flash photographer. Ever since, I’ve been training my brain to remember things in flashes and instances. What I mean is, that when I close my eyes, I’ve observed something and in took all the information I could so when my eyes are closed I can picture everything as if I was right there.

Mike usually practices his brain power with words and sentences that he remembers from morning and then recites at night. As a result, his vocabulary is pretty good lol.

Discipline is still one of the most important things in my opinion.
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I was reading the newspaper and they had another detailed analysis of the growth of chain stores. Starbucks, mc Donalds, etc. Meanwhile, while walking down the street, I see “for Rent”.

One thing I’ve learned about property is that in the long run, it’s generally better to purchase the land instead of renting it. Renting, in a business, usually puts you at the behest of the lord of that land, regardless of the agreement.

New York City is NOT the place to be buying the property you’re company is in, because New York’s market value is still too high.

But if the opportunity arises and there’s a deal to it, then that’s one of the best things any business can do, granted it can sustain itself.

Again, I’m thinking about the property as an asset, not the business Lol. As an asset, you can always flip your business around, start a new one, change the scenery of the place, split it up, make it residential, or just rent it and gain revenue. As a business, if you’re renting, you’re profits MIGHT be better because you’re not worrying about maintainence and utilities besides Rent, but your still susceptible to economic woes.

It’s like saying, you buy the land, not just the property. The property can be reconstructed and deconstructed but according to a few pieces of paper, the “land”  is yours.
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So I was thinking about that pool Idea again. I did some research and noticed some ways in which I can make it possible without actually destroying any bit of the Palace.

Then I considered, I don’t really care.

I’m not that type of person. I like just lofting around indoors :). Indoor pool? Maybe. But it’s still a ridiculous amount of money and I’m just a big dreamer.
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Speaking of Business.

Eric’s been keeping Mike by his side more often these few days.

He’s trying to show him the ins and out in a more visual way. So he silently stands next to Ty and Eric and watch them work their magic, and inputs when asked to, etc.
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I was walking around at Lunch and saw this really pretty woman walking with a pizza box in her hand. Behind her, holding onto her hand was a little girl trying to keep up.

I thought it was… I dunno, like… so.. beautiful.

It made me smile to see a mother and a child and Pizza.

It’s not really about the pizza, it’s that I invisioned them later in the day, opening the box and they are both happy, or their husband/father, other children, etc. Everyone basically happy and taking a slice.

Food and family have gone hand in hand since the beginning of time. It paints a perfect picture ;)
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Today being Friday… I also have some nice dishes concocting in my mind right now. Maybe some abstract rice and chicken for Mike and a type of Pizza bread or something Pizza-esque for Liz and the pipsqueaks.

Remember a few days ago, I mentioned how Mike was exploring some of his creativity with short stories, poetry and art? Well today he wants to do some artwork and I asked the little ones to “play” with us.

I haven’t drawn anything in ages but I’d like to play along with Mike. Maybe one day soon I’ll get some paints and brushes and such and “get it cracken” with the kids and Mike. :D.

I have this idea of creating this artwork of a scenery.

On the paper, it’s a ledge of some sort. It probably takes place in the middle of the ocean, but this ledge that I’m standing on will be facing the sun, magically floating on the surface of the ocean. Then I see pillars and columns, something very ancient almost.

I wonder what the kids and Mike are gonna make.

the idea comes from the movie we saw the other night with the cartoon stuff.

I don’t know how detailed I wanna make it, or how professional I wanna do it. One side leans towards simplicity and the other side leans towards busting out the ruler and draft supplies to add a horizontal line and perspective and etc etc.

Whatever.

Oh and Halloween is tomorrow. We’re not big fans of Halloween. It’s like an overlooked thing around my house, BUT I might try to obtain tons of chocolates and candies for the kids :D.

Maybe I should consult with Maya first before she kills me lol.
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Peace in the middle east.

Be good my lovies

Signed
Mel