June Challenge: Days 1-5…

Day 1 – Music



I love music. It gets me moving through my workouts. It gets me moving when I am cleaning. It makes me feel good when I am sad or even happy. Music transports me to times in my life when things may have been great or even the worse!


My mom used to have an 8 track machine and when we would travel the 8 hours from Jacksonville, Florida to Montgomery, Alabama, it was the music that kept her going, because her kids weren’t worth 2 nickels rubbed together if she was depending on us to keep her woke. The old 8 track would play Al Green, Marvin Gaye, and all the Motown favorites. To this day, you will find me playing Al Green like it is the newest R&B song out.


As a child growing up during the 70s and 80s disco was prominent in my life as well. My sister and I were notorious for making up dance routines to disco songs as if we were on Dance Fever or Soul Train.


My music taste today ranges from old R&B and hip hop. I still love to hear disco tunes. The passing of Donna Summer and Robin Gibbs made me sad because I remember twirling and doing my funky disco routines to their songs. Music is a part of my life and the songs really do convey my history.


Day 2 – Movies


Let me preface by saying I do not go to movies as a standard. The last movie I saw was The Help and it was because my book club was part of the screening group here in Montgomery. My reasoning is really irrational, but hey it is what it is. I just don’t like the smell of theaters, the nasty seats and filthy floors. And when I heard what some of the teenagers were doing in those seats, I threw up in my mouth…a little bit. Ugh! TMI!


However, I love to watch a good old fashion Blaxploitation film from the 70s. An old creature feature movie from the early 60s still makes me cringe, you know The Blob, The Creature From The Black Lagoon, old Vampire movies. If you ask me what my favorite movie is, I will most likely say, Mahogany. The movie is my love story for all times. “Success is nothing, without someone you love to share it with.” Diana Ross and Billie Dee Williams were a great cinematic couple. I still watch the movie and repeat the lines. Next would be, The Way We Were, with Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford. Geez, I need to go buy that one.


A movie I will watch over and over again is The Color Purple. However, I don’t know if I have ever seen the movie all the way through. No, when it comes on I always fall asleep and wake up right before the church scene so I can sing my gospel song, “God Is Trying To Tell You Something.”


The Exorcist made it so that I would not sleep with my window up for decades because that is how the devil got to that girl. No really, that movie still scares me along with Rosemary’s Baby.


Do you remember the first break dancing movies? Oh, yeah!


If I actually could stand to go into the theater, I would like to see the Avengers, Think Like a Man, Snow White and the Huntsman and hopefully, I will get to see one of my favorite bloggers feature film, The Coalition when it is in theaters.
 
Day 3 – Relationships



I recently saw an ex of mine and it was a good meeting, but it brought me a bit of sadness, but ultimately happiness, because of him I am with someone who is worthy of me now!


I don’t have many work relationships because I go to work to work and I am very private. I found after working with all women years ago, mudding the work and professional relationship can sometimes come back to bite you in the azz.


Day 4 – Best Friend


I have several acquaintances, but few friends. I have about 4 best friends and they are all from different seasons in my life.


Best Friend 1 – lives in Denver, CO and is older than me. However, we used to party like none other. We looked so much alike I was able; don’t tell anyone, to use her ID sometimes. But, our friendship was almost like a mentor/mentee. She helped to toughen me up, but she showed me what a true friend was and should be. Although, we don’t talk like we used to, when we do talk it is like we are still living in the same city. We both have grown since we first connected and although our friendship could have gone by the wayside many times over, we have managed to maintain our friendship after over 24 years. Damn, I am old.


Best Friend 2 – we have been friends since our days working at We.ndy’s. We saw each other in school, but we connected on the job. We have stayed in touch even though we are both far beyond the burger business. Her life hasn’t been a crystal stair, but she tries. When her life is chaotic, I tend to pull back because it isn’t my place to criticize her, but we have been there for each other in the most needed times. The morning my aunt passed away I called her at a quarter to 4 a.m. and she talked to me all the way home and I will always be grateful for her ear that morning, because my life changed immensely.


Best Friend 3 – we met when I worked for all those women. She is older than me, but if you see us together you would swear we were sisters. We cuss each other out and fight like none other and when we are finish we go on like nothing has happened. Her first plane ride was my graduation trip to Jamaica. And of course her ears got clogged during the flight and it took hours to clear up. So I was fussing at her because, shyte it was hot and she kept asking the same stuff over and over because she couldn’t hear and I kept saying, “Pop your damn ears,…!” And we got into a heated argument when we return to Atlanta and my sister and her best friend were scared to death. And we were like 15 minutes later acting normal. She also has been with me through some of my difficult moments in life and I appreciate all she has done for me.


Best Friend 4 – is my sister. Now mind you when my mother died, I moved to live with my uncle and aunt and she had to go with her father. So we were separated for about 4 years. When she graduated from high school she spent the summer here in Montgomery. We really got to know each other. We became friends. We talk almost every day. We cuss each other out. I told her do not have one more kid because I cannot take care of all those children if something happens to her. I accept her decisions on things I don’t like, but most of all she is the ear to listen when others don’t realize how difficult it is sometimes in my life. Plus, after torturing her during childhood we couldn’t help but be friends. LOL!


Day 5 – My Kids


And let the church say Amen. I don’t have any kids. Since I was 4 years old I said I wouldn’t have any kids. I believe because I had to help with my sister and brother and helped with my cousins, children just never seemed like a priority of mine. I enjoy working with them on my second job and love when they come back to visit and they are doing well. I just never wanted to have children of my own. I have thought about adoption and foster care, but I only want older kids and according to my sister, that isn’t the best idea. I like other people’s kids and that all right with me.