I am a Brooklyn girl with Southern roots and to prove it, I share with you my nickname, Day-Day. That is right, until I was 18 and had earned the right to respectfully demand adults call me Adiaha (Ah-day-ah-ha), I was called Day-Day by nearly everyone in my life. The only person who called me Adiaha was my mother.**

Having a nickname where I come from is a rite of passage. My brother’s nickname was Ti-Ti, my cousins were/are, Robbie, Nikki, Ray-Ray, Mi-Mi, Danni, and Mikki. I knew a Shorty, Beef (yeah really he was a big fella) Tiger, and Pat.

If you did not have a nickname it was because your parents gave you a name with a maximum of two syllables. More than two and it got shortened. Shaquanna became Quanna. Sometimes the syllables of your name were just changed, i.e., Meta became Mi-Mi. Yet still, you could get a nickname based on your appearance. Skinny girls became Fatty, tall and heavy guys were called Tiny.

For whatever reason, the coolest kids had the coolest nicknames, and you were not really popular unless somebody had a nickname for you. If nobody cared enough to shorten your name, then something was wrong with you. If you didn’t want your name shortened, then there was something wrong with you. If something was wrong with you, nobody wanted to play with you.

I was reminiscing and then realized that my daughters need the all to important nickname. My oldest, Alana, when asked what her nickname should be said her nickname should be LaLa. I nearly fell on the floor with tears streaming down my face and my body convulsed. She looked at me like it wasn’t that funny, but if you know Alana and you know what La is then you know how appropriate LaLa is for her.

My youngest daughter, Asherah, has already been dubbed, She-She, which is just terrible. But in the tradition of having a nickname and fitting-in, Asherah, which is more than two syllables, needs a nickname. Who better to give it than family.

What is your nickname? Don’t be shy or embarrassed, share it with us.

**Please note I do not answer to this nickname anymore.

I absolutely love this song and wish MAGIC for everyone, everyday….AMEN.

In light of current events both personally and on the greater global stage, I find it increasingly difficult for me to approach my everyday existence in a positive manner. The onslaught of national and international news that is almost always negative can really affect my outlook on life. As such, I have been in pursuit of a new perception of the tumultuous happenings across our globe . Quite recently I found a solution. Instead of seeing things as catastrophic, I choose to see that we are changing and growing. Like breaking in brand new shoes, the process can be painful and harsh.

We, world citizens, can no longer walk through life with blinders thinking everything is working in our governing systems. We are being forced to see the resulting perversion of our founding ideals in favor of corporations and religious fundamentalists who ultimately do not consider the needs of populations as important as their agendas. We are being forced to deal with the hoarding of wealth, religious intolerance, institutional limitations on individual freedoms based on gender and sexual orientation.  There is a systematic breakdown requiring us to re-examine who we are as humans and which is taking millions prisoner with poverty and ignorance.

I know it is hard to be grateful for this devastatingly difficult period, but I am overjoyed. Not necessarily for the difficulties we are facing personally and as a global community, rather for the opportunity to grow and evolve. Many people’s fundamental beliefs surrounding wealth and freedom have been shaken. We have gotten to a point in our evolution where we are better able to contemplate not just ourselves but others. We have yet again, another opportunity to define who we are through our governments. What makes this time around so interesting and intense is technology. It has allowed us to see first hand and in real time the plights, failures and success of other nations. We learn second hand what the consequences are of specific decisions. The global classroom is in and we are being forced to learn in trimesters rather than semesters. While many desperately cling to ideals from a long gone era, many still are rising from their slumber. And that is a good thing.

Once you are exposed to a new truth it is impossible to return to the limiting belief you had before. You know too much. The number of different protests around the world and the myriad of different causes illustrate an awakening and a willingness to stand for us. Peacefully at times and with forces others.

I can’t wait to see the result of current non-linear thinking in terms of: government power, gender and sexual orientation civil rights, religious tolerance,  and living standards for “the average person.” Who said 2012 wasn’t going to be a transformational year?

I am so impressed with the energy and persistence I have witnessed in New York City recently. This is what I am talking about! This is the America I romanticize about in my head. A place where people are empowered to speak their minds.

While there have been a ton of videos showing police brutally beating protestors and spraying pepper spray on large and small groups, I have also witnessed a sense of community and growth. The fact that this protest began without clear goals is amazing. Major media outlets did their best to ignore the protest with many national television programs not mentioning it until day 17 of the protest. Today the White House was asked about the President’s awareness of Occupy Wall St. and if he was concerned for the protesters or the protest! But what has me really impressed is the first official statement from Occupy Wall Street. Not so much because it encompasses everything I believe in, rather because it was created during a protest, discussed and and voted on by participating demonstrators. The synergy that is enveloping this process of dissent is amazing wonderful and I feel privileged to be a witness.

As a single mother sometimes I find myself depleted. I give so much of myself and while being a mother is it’s own reward, sometimes I could stand little more reciprocity. interactions with friends are usually super affirming but I have little time for friends and the T.V. is never a replacement for rewarding interaction. So I have been thinking of simple inexpensive and meaningful ways to replenish myself.

One way I can give myself the attention I need with very little effort is a special Gratitude Journal where I least at least 7 aspects about myself that I really enjoy. I do not list things I have purchased, rather accomplishments that benefited ME and natural things about my body and/or personality. I don’t always get a chance to do this but when I really feel depleted, I give myself five straight days of this exercise and usually will notice a boost in me feeling even better. Does anybody else have any quick self-esteem boosts they would like to share?

Asherah is walking well now and her stroller days are numbered. I thought a $25 umbrella stroller from Cookies would cut it until she was ready to walk everywhere, but that was wishful insane thinking on my part. The umbrella stroller is demolished and looks really dirty and I need to invest in something a bit more sturdy to get us through to the next phase of her toddler-hood.

I know, I know get a Maclaren just like everyone else in NYC but I just can’t won’t purchase a Maclaren. I just can’t….So I have my eye on the Chicco Capri. Super light weight, reclines and a weather system can be purchased for rain and super cold days. Will it get us through the winter?

I have had great success with Ingelsina strollers in the past, so maybe I’ll get the Swift Trip because it has a rain cover and cup holder. I will be out trying a few different stollers here and there over the next couple of weeks. I really don’t want to get stuck with a piece of crap stroller so while I may purchase the damned thing on line, I am trying it in the stores first!

Any suggestions of what worked for you and why would be really appreciated. Of course if you live in a suburb and your stroller has lasted 3 years because it only gets used at the mall…well you know thanks but no thanks….

I found this video and was floored by Ms.Kitt’s analysis of relationships and love.

I admire her wisdom and find her unabashed candor amazing.

When I grow up, I want to be as WISE and beautiful as Eartha Kitt.

I used to travel a great deal throughout high school and college and often found myself on airplanes. On one trip I was going to visit a friend from college who was living in Madison, Wisconsin. I had never been and thought oh what the heck. I bought a pretty decent flight and off I went.

I was living in San Francisco at the time and the flight to Madison was a connecting flight for Wisconsin residents coming back from Hawaii. A family was traveling together from Hawaii and had a family reunion of sorts. From what I had gathered (yes, I am an ear hustler) celebrated the birthday of their Matron who was pretty old. They were all sun-kissed, excited and a bit tired from their trip. The Matron was allowed a seat pretty close to the front which was just a few isles back from my seat. Even before Erica Badu’s song Window Seat, I had figured out that if you get a window seat you can usually sit close to the front exit (great for getting off the plane first) and most often have nobody sitting next to you! Such was my situation. I was listening to my portable CD player (yes I am that old) and enjoying myself.

The Matron of the large family on the plane closed her eyes and went to sleep and then there was a smell. She died and no one had noticed. They thought she was asleep but then her body released its fluids and well then we all knew what had happened. There was a rush of movement and then the announcement that we were going to make an emergency landing. The family was horrified and had to decide who was going to stay with the body and was it going to cost more and who could afford the time and what was the process? It was painful for them, they were just celebrating the woman’s life and their connection to her. It was a bittersweet way to end a family vacation.

I overheard one man from the family tell another member, “At least we have this trip to remember.” That trip will go down in my memory forever. What a blessing the family received. They knew that the Matron of their family was happy but she wasn’t going back to cold ass Madison alive. I have often wondered what her funeral was like.

It is Friday and while there are a ton of things to be depressed about (thanks Bishop Eddie Long & the current economic downturn) I want need to laugh. I thought that maybe you did too. I LOVE Mike Tyson’s new persona. I am really happy he has found a space to be himself and have fun. Isn’t that what life is about? Anyway Mike Tyson, Wayne Brady and the Original Bad Boy of Hip Hop/R&B Bobby Brown, team up to give us a chuckle. ENJOY! Have a great weekend!