Season 2 of Empire is right around the corner..and I can't wait.

Like most people, I have been going through Empire withdrawals over the last couple of months. Wednesday nights just haven't been the same without seeing Cookie, Lucious, Boo Boo Kitty, and the gang. But, we don't have to wait much longer to see the hit show, which premiered on FOX last season, because season 2 is set to return on September 23rd...still too damn far away, but it's within arms reach. 

FOX Network was smart...at least where Empire is concerned. They knew they would have a hit on their hands with this show, from the writer, co-creator, director and producer, Lee Daniels, to the cast. Taraji and Terrence have an undeniable, sexy onscreen chemistry...like, you just can't help but wonder if they've gotten their freak on at some point in real life. And the rest of the cast- while they may have been unknown at the beginning- have proven themselves to be able to handle their own, as well. I see a lot of people on social media talk about how Power is a much better show, but a lot of people don't get the chance to watch and see for themselves, because everyone doesn't have Starz, which is why the show- produced by Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson - has not been acknowledged as much, and met with the same positive reception that Empire has. 

I just hope that now that Empire has become such a big hit- which means everybody and their mama wants to be a part of this hit tv drama- that the original storyline doesn't get overshadowed by all of the celebrities slated to make cameos on the next season. So far, Marisa Tomei, Pitbull, Mariah Carey, Chris Rock Lenny Kravitz, Alicia Keys, Kelly Rowland, Ludacris, and Adam Rodriguez, are just some of the stars expected to make appearances on the show next season. 

Watch the trailer for season 2 below.

Just a friendly F.Y.I.: You should never walk up to a married woman and start telling her things about her husband that he hasn't told her...especially if she doesn't know you from Eve!

I realize that times have changed a lot since I was young, but no matter how much things change, there is one thing that should remain the same, especially when a married man/woman is involved- RESPECT! I know all about the side-chick revolution, where some women proudly proclaim to be a married man's chick on the side; and due to shows like Scandal, Being Mary Jane, Love & Hip Hop, and some of these other reality shows, single women have gotten real bold in thinking they can come at a married woman about her husband any type of way. Well, all I have to say to that is...don't let those tv shows have you on the negative end of an episode of Snapped. In the real world, not too many married women are going to turn the other cheek. If you're not sleeping with her husband, and genuinely are just trying to have conversation, please make that known ahead of time.

It was a similar incident I had the other day, which is the reason for this post. I was at work- and pretty much everybody knows I really hate my job, but not too many people love their job, right. Anyway, this girl (I didn't -and still don't- have a clue as to who she is) came up to the window with a stack of lottery tickets, wanting them all repeated. That's irritating enough, not to mention that it takes a minute, and a line of other customers was standing behind her. 

So, I start running the tickets through the machine, and she immediately starts a conversation that went something like this: "You tell your husband I said he's slacking." Of course, that made me pause for a second and actually take a look at her, then. She goes on talking. "We all are supposed to be going out and kicking it, but he's never got time, or he's always working," or something like that. Now, I'm really looking at her like, 'Who the hell are you?,' while at the same time thinking, my husband certainly hasn't mentioned to me he's supposed to be hanging out with some other chick. Maybe it was my silence that made her pause, or maybe she'd saw the look that said, 'This heifer is about to get on my nerves,' that I was trying to disguise; but something happened that made her feel the need to finally mention to me that she's also married, that her husband knows my husband, and they were classmates. Whatever. I silently breathed a sigh of relief, not because what I had initially thought she was talking about was wrong, but because I wouldn't end up needing bail money that night, after all. Like I said, females are real bold these days, and some of them wouldn't think twice about walking up to a woman and telling her to her face that she's sleeping with her husband. 

I realize that in the south especially, people feel like if they know your spouse, then they know you; but, yeah, I'm not that chick. Instead of her walking up to me and immediately telling me that she's supposed to be hanging out with my husband (she later changed it to WE all were supposed to hang out), and because I had no idea who she was- and still don't know, so how was I supposed to know I was included in the WE- she should have introduced herself first, or something; because her approach almost made me show her the bad side of being quiet and a Virgo. I've always heard 'you don't ever want to piss the quiet one's off '...and a quiet Virgo is even worse.

There is a way to approach someone about their spouse, and that certainly wasn't the right way for her to approach me, which is what I told my husband...because that's a good way to catch a beat down. His response was, "That's just her...she's always been that way...she likes to talk, and she felt that because she knows me, she knows you." I let it ride with an "Mmm hmm," but we both know that if the situation was reversed, and some strange man walked up to him and started telling him to tell his wife that she's slipping, and they were supposed to be hanging out, he'd be ready to go to jail. It's a matter of respect, plain and simple. I'm going to go out on a limb and say she probably didn't mean anything by it, but just a friendly F.Y.I., please step to a married man/woman correct about their spouse. If y'all are friends or cool with each other, that's one thing; but to walk up to someone you don't know personally...you might wanna choose words wisely. These days, people react first, and think later..when it's much too late. I.J.S. 

MagSwag: The lovely, talented Misty Copeland graces the latest issue of Essence Magazine

The September issue of Essence magazine features Misty Copeland - the first Black woman to perform the lead in Swan Lake for the American Ballet Theatre, and then days later becoming the first Black woman to be promoted to principal ballerina in the ABT's 75-year history. 

"I can't believe my life right now," she told cover story writer (and friend) Julee Wilson Wareham.

Black women are always getting a bad rap, especially when being compared to our white counterparts. We're often held up to the white folks standards of beauty and success, accused of being  'angry black women' when we demand respect, and often made to feel like we could never accomplish something as important and monumental as performing the lead role in ballet.

When I was a child, I loved watching ballet and gymnastics, and anything that had to do with dance. But the one thing I noticed was that there weren't many ballerinas or gymnasts who looked like me. I grew up with the notion that all ballerinas were white, because that's what was mainly shown on tv. Yeah, we may have been in the background performing minor, less important roles- as black women are in every other aspect of life- but we weren't praised, talked about, and respected like the white dancers.

"I'm going to continue to be who I am and my experiences as a Black woman have made me who I am," says Copeland. "All of a sudden now that I am in this position, I'm not going to say 'I'm just a dancer.' It's a huge deal because I'm a Black woman. That's why it's a big deal."

Also in this months issue, there is a very important- and much need to be discussed- article about black women and police brutality. We often hear about black men being killed by police- sadly, way more often than we should; but the fact that at least 5 black women (including 28-year old Sandra Bland and 18-year old Kindra Chapman) were killed while in police custody in the month of July 2015 alone, is definitely a subject that needs to be addressed. The police will have us to believe that these women all killed themselves while in jail, but I for one, am not buying it. 

Pick up the September issue of ESSENCE on newsstands 

August 14th.

Dear Waitress: I'm really not rude, I'm just real picky about paying my hard earned coins on subpar food/customer service.

So, my hubby's homeboy came over to get a haircut. Some how or another, my kitchen also serves as his barbershop, but whatever. So while he was cutting his homies hair, they started talking about any and everything, as they always do. Tonight, they got on the subject of going out to eat. I was watching something on tv, while simultaneously playing referee to my son and daughter, when I heard my husband say my name in his conversation. For some reason, he'd decided to bring up old ish, and tell his homie about an incident we had at Applebee's one time, where the customer service was really bad...so bad, that I left the restaurant without touching my food or drink. Of course, my husband was trying to make me look like I just got an attitude for no reason, but I told him if he's going to tell the story, then tell it right. So, here's what really happened:

A year or so ago, we went out to dinner. It was our anniversary, and it was on a Wednesday (that's not important, I just remember what day it was) So anyway, we have only been to Applebee's to eat twice in the 8 years we've been together- that time being the second and last time. We get in the restaurant, and the hostess (a black girl) shows us to our table- so far, so good. So, once we're seated, our waitress comes over with menus to take our drink orders. She's a white girl, and she seemed cool...at first. I ordered a sweet tea, and my husband got water like he always does when we go out, because he usually ends up ordering a few Corona's at some point. So, while she's gone to get our drinks, we're looking over the menu trying to decide what we want. I had seen some surf-n-turf type dish on Applebee's Facebook page earlier that day that I wanted to try, and my husband- who always makes his order more complicated than it has to be- wanted a couple of different things off the menu. 

The waitress comes back with our drinks and asks if we're ready to order. I am, but as always, my old man is still undecided. He finally tells her what he wants. I think I wanted to order an appetizer as well. So, the waitress starts telling us what we should order, instead of what we asked for. She was trying to tell us we should order some appetizer platter, which had items on it neither of us wanted, which is what I told her. She got a little snooty with me and said, "Well, it's cheaper..that's all I'm trying to say."

Okay, first of all, I didn't ask her what was cheaper. If I couldn't afford to come out to eat, I would have stayed home and cooked (which is what I should have done). It wasn't so much what she said,it was that little attitude she had when she said it. On this particular day, Aunt Flo had decided to pop in for a visit, so her little attitude only caused me to get one in return. I told her, I didn't ask her what the food costs, I told her what I would like to have. She didn't say, "Whatever," but I read it all over her face as she turned around and walked away with her nose up. Okay, so before I go further, let me back up. When she came to take our orders, I'd told her the sweet tea wasn't sweet at all...as a matter of fact, it tasted like they forgot to add the sugar, so I'd asked if I could have a coke, instead. In the south, when we say sweet tea, it should taste like they poured a whole bag of sugar in it. After she got all snooty with me over my order and walked away, she had the girl who had been the hostess bring me the coke to replace the tea. Obviously, she had told her what happened, because the black chick walks over with the Coke, slams it down on the table a little harder than was necessary, and walked off without saying a word.

Okay, ladies...men might pretend not to notice shade being thrown around- like my husband did- but I peeped it. And there was no way in HELL I was going to take a sip of that Coke. Who knows what they could have done. I've been a waitress before, and I know how some people who work in restaurants can get when they have a customer they don't care for. Nope, they weren't gonna get me...not that day. Not only did I not want the drink, I didn't even want the food I'd ordered. The little snooty waitress and the hostess had both left a bad taste in my mouth. And even though my husband was trying to tell his homie that I was just going off for the sake of going off, I really was trying to keep my cool...so I wouldn't go off. By that time, I really just wanted to leave, but I looked up and here comes the waitress bringing our food to the table. I told her- as nicely as I could- that I wouldn't be eating the food, after all, and that she could take it back to the kitchen. I never touched my food or drink. 

She must have really gotten in her feelings then, because she said something like, "I really don't know what your problem is, I was only trying to help you earlier," but she got a little louder with me than I cared for. I took another deep breath, and told her AGAIN that I didn't want the food and that she could take it back. Let me add that while this is going on, my husband- who I call Mikey because he'll eat ANYTHING- was already chowing down on his food...and probably trying to stay out of it. She gave me the 'whatever' look again, and went got her manager. He came over to try to diffuse the situation, and I will say that he was very nice. I told him what had happened and explained that while she may have been trying to be nice, I know what I wanted to eat, and rather than she bring me what I asked for, she got all huffy because I didn't order what she THOUGHT I should have ordered, instead. He apologized and not only did he tell me to take the food for free, he gave Mickey his food for free too. And after all that, I still never ate the food, although I think Mickey did. We left there and went to Chili's Bar & Grill- our usual place- and I ordered my usual meal. The white girl who was my waitress there was very nice, and didn't have a shitty attitude- and I was equally as nice to her. I left her the tip that 'lil Ms. Thang back at Applebee's would have gotten.

Now, what I was trying to explain to my husband and his homie is this: It's expensive as hell eating out these days. But it seems that the higher the price of take-out, fast food, and dining out, the worse the quality of the food and service is getting. If I'm going to a restaurant to spend my hard-earned coins, I would like to have what I want to eat, since I'm the one paying for it. The rude waitress' argument was that by buying that damn platter she kept trying to sell me, I would save a few dollars than I would if I ordered things separately. Okay, I got that. But, there were several items on that platter that neither me nor my husband would have eaten. It would have been thrown away- or whatever they do with uneaten food- and we still would have wasted food and money. The money wasn't coming out of her pockets either way, so I really didn't know why she got so pissed off about what I was spending my money on. 

In hindsight, I realize that Aunt Flo's unexpected visit may have had a lot more to do with my attitude than that little girl did, and maybe she just caught me on the wrong day. As I told my snitching husband, I'm always nice in restaurants, because I know waitressing can be hell, sometimes. Leave it to him to bring up another incident at another restaurant where I was a little...less than nice; but luckily, I had my kiddos to back me up on that one, because they were there with us that time and even my son was like, "Yeah, that place was just bad."  "And the food was nasty,"  my daughter chimed in. Again, I have acknowledged that I can be a witch...sometimes; but I've rarely have bad experiences in restaurants. Other than these two minor incidents, we've always had nice waiters & waitresses and food. And I'm a foodie and a fatty, so I get real picky about my food. Like, I will be ready to cry if I order something and it's not right. But I, like most people, are tired of subpar customer service, especially when dining out. I guess next time, I'll keep my ass at home and cook. Mickey would love that, because while I might be picky and a little rude, he's cheap and cooking at home is so much cheaper. And I can stop embarrassing him in public! 

National Book Lovers Day 2015

As if I needed another reason to celebrate my love of books, 

Book Lovers Day is a National holiday. Who knew? I'll admit, I didn't until today; but now that I know, I will definitely be celebrating by kicking my feet up, grabbing a snack, and indulging in a good book today. I'm supposed to be working on my current WIP, but reading just sounds like so much more fun.

If you don't have one already, head over to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or whatever your favorite site to buy books, and support and author today by purchasing and reading a book today. Oh, and don't forget to leave a review when you're done. Happy Reading! 

Book Review: Sweet Valley Confidential by Francine Pascal

My love and obsession with the Sweet Valley Twins Series started when I was in middle school, and continued until I was in high school. Nostalgia kicks in everytime I think about how I used to love laying across my bed, the radio on, reading about Liz & Jess and their crazy escapades, while eating a bowl of ice cream. Those were truly some of the best times of my life, and if I could go back to being a carefree, sixth grade student, I would....maybe for a little while. So, coming across this series, which fast forwards to the twins in their 30's, made me happy as hell....

Blurb:

What terrible secret has torn Jessica and Elizabeth apart?

Ten years after Sweet Valley High, the Wakefield twins have had a falling out of epic proportions. When Jessica commits a complete and utter betrayal, Elizabeth flees to New York to escape the pain. Jessica remains in California, dealing with the fallout of her heart-wrenching choices. But with Elizabeth as her enemy, Sweet Valley is no longer the idyllic town of their youth.

Elizabeth soon decides the only way to heal her broken heart is to get revenge for Jessica’s duplicity. Always the “good” twin, Elizabeth about to turn the tables…

Francine Pascal finally unfolds the continuing story of Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield—and the whole gang from Sweet Valley—that will delight and surprise the millions of fans of these beloved characters.

Review:

I picked up my first Sweet Valley book when I was in 6th grade. It was Book 3 in the series: The Haunted House. These quickly became my favorite books. Now, I'm almost 37, I was happy to find that books had been written about the twins now in their 30's. Disappointed doesn't begin to describe how I felt while reading. I have never been so bored while reading any book...like, EVER! And speaking of the word 'like', I don't care if I never see that word again. Jessica's valley girl talk, with all the, "I so hated that," and "Like, Oh my God...I can't believe she totally said that," irked my soul and I gave myself a headache from rolling my eyes so much. I know they're supposed to be adults now, but she still speaks as if she's a kid. From the first page, it was clear what big thing had happened that caused Liz to run off to New York, vowing never to speak to Jess and Todd again, but while we kept getting flashbacks leading up to it, we didn't get the whole story until around 65% of the book..and even then, it was tame compared to how I had been imagining Liz would find out about Jess and Todd's secret. 

I pride myself on speaking proper English and being a spelling whiz, but even I had a hard time trying to pronounce and comprehend the meaning of all the big words the author used. I found myself skipping over a lot of Liz's dialogue when she was in New York and all that was happening with the theater, because it was just boring...but I suppose she had to have something to do while she was there, avoiding her family back home. I don't like to leave bad reviews, and normally if I can't rate at least 3 stars, I won't...in an attempt not to be rude just for the sake of being rude...like some reader's love to do. But seeing as how instant nostalgia kicked in when I came across this and the excitement I felt to be reading Sweet Valley again, only to be let down, I couldn't let this one ride. I forced myself to finish this book, only because I hate starting things and not finishing; but I feel absolutely nothing now that I'm done...other than relief that it's over. I have the first 3 books that followed this one, but I highly doubt I'll read them after this. I rarely ever base my decision to read or not read a book based on other customer reviews, because as an author myself, I know that some of those reviews- both good and bad- are mostly baised, and could be from people who just don't care for the author personally; but this is one time I should have paid attention to the fact that on both Amazon & Goodreads, this book struggled to get 3 stars, even with hundreds of reviewers. 

As with movies and tv shows that Hollywood keep trying to remake and recreate, Francine Pascal should have left this series alone, because this was bad...really bad. That is all!

Rating: 

People love your work...until they have to pay for it.

I've been a published author for a little over a year now, and I must say...it's a lot of hard work, sweat, sleepless nights, and tears...but I love it. Unfortunately, I have yet to write the book that allows me to quit my daytime job and become a writer full time, so everyday, aside from my job as a wife and mom, I have to hit the time clock at my, not-so-exciting job as a cashier, because it pays the bills. 

Which brings me to the reason for this post. Yes, writing is my second gig. Anything that you do that earns you money, is a job. Writing for me, is a JOB! Something that I devote hours and hours to, when I'd much rather have my feet kicked up, watching tv, or hanging out with my husband and children...it's something I put serious thought, effort, and hard work into (when I don't have writer's block, a*k*a*- procrastinating by checking my social media). A lot goes into the process of writing a book, from the time I come up with a story idea in my head, develop characters, dialogue, etc. etc...then begin the task of typing it all up until it becomes a book. That can mean typing entire pages of material, then deciding I want to go another route, so I delete pages and pages of work, only to re-write it. As dreadful as this is, I don't mind, beause in the end when my readers tell me how much they loved my book, it's all worth it. Then, after all the writing and re-writing is done, I have to have it edited, hire a graphics designer to come up with an awesome book cover, and pay to have the book published into print and shipped to me. 

With that being said, not only am I spending a lot of time on my books, I'm coming up out of pocket, spending quite a few coins, so I can hand the finished product to you to read and enjoy. So, please stop asking and expecting me to hand you these books for FREE, after so much has gone into publishing a book. It's no different than you going to your job and you forget to clock in when you get there- after you've worked the whole day, only then do you realize you never punched the time clock at the beginning of your shift. After all the hard work you've put in, you wanna be paid, right? Well, so do authors. 

We live in a society where people want something for nothing. In the book world, so many authors have started pricing books at $0.99, whether it's a marketing ploy, or as lesser known authors often do, price them this low to gain a little more exposure and readers. Whatever the reason, readers have gotten spoiled and expect 200-300 page books to be priced at $0.99, if not FREE. I am a firm believer that people pay for what they really want to pay for. As an avid reader, it's nothing for me to pay $14.00-$15.00 for a book...if I really want it bad enough. I used to be in Black Expressions Book Club, where all they offered were hardback books, and they weren't cheap. But, I didn't care, if I wanted it, I bought it. If you want a pair of Nikes, Jordan's, or Louboutin's bad enough, you'll buy them, no matter how expensive. So, why is it a problem to pay an author more than $0.99 for a book? 

I donated several of my books to the public library, which is how a lot of people found out about my books. But, I also keep a box of paperback books in my car, always ready to get my hustle on just in case I come across a potential reader who may want one. What I'm usually met with is, "I read your books, and I just love your work; such and such book was soooo good; when does the next one come out?" When I respond that I have other books that aren't in the library, but they can order them on Amazon or I have paperbacks available now if they want one, I'm given the response, "Oh...well, maybe I'll check them out another time," before they walk away. HUH? They just got done telling me how much they enjoyed the FREE books I offered in the library, but when I say I have other books for $5.00, their whole demeanor changes and they walk away faster than I can blink. It's not that they can't pay $5.00 for a book, they just don't WANT to.

Well, just like you don't find the idea of working for free appealing, neither do I. It's the story of my life- people have always taken my kindness as a sign of weakness. Sorry, not sorry- but being nice to people doesn't feed my family or pay my bills. I may not be a New York Times Bestselling author- YET- but I'm an author, just the same, and I can't afford to write for free. I get all kinds of excuses from people as to why they can't pay me for my books...usually after I've already handed it to them. Now, I've gotten smarter, until I see money and it's in my hand, my book stays in the car. I love and appreciate everyone who reads work, I just need y'all to love and appreciate me enough to pay me for it. Please & Thank You!