That statement, or idea, might seem too simple on paper, but give me a few minutes to explain what I mean. Then you can go ahead and poo-poo it if it still doesn’t fit. Think of that feeling when you’re stuck. Like you’re not making progress, not even a little bit. Or worse, you feel completely out of control. Your mind starts drifting into places it has no business being, and before you know it, you’ve become consumed by someone else’s foolishness. OK, I’ll give you an example of my own. I planned to edit a key chapter. Or maybe it was a blog post, or a note, even. I’d…
-
-
The Machine Is Learning: Let’s Make Sure We Don’t Stop
Who remembers books? Just kidding! But also… not really.That mystical dimension before everything started finding us and we actually had to go looking for things. On the daily, I say something either out loud or just to me, within earshot of my phone, iPad, or laptop, and here goes my tech, serving up ads, articles, and videos of that thing to me all day long. I know the first few times that happened years ago, I probably thought it was luck. Nowadays we all know our devices are intentionally listening to us. Annoyingly so. Intrusively, even. And not to help us but to sell to us. And by ‘sell,’ I…
-
Andropause? Suddenly Menopause Doesn’t Sound So Lonely
When the “Man-Flashes” Enter the Chat Ladies, Babes, Luvs, we need to talk… and now! I don’t know where I’ve been, but only recently did some little internet birdies clue me into the fact that something called andropause exists. Andropause? What’s andropause, you say? In the simplest of words: Menopause for men, kinda. Not gonna lie, I did smirk a little. OK, beam with cheshire-cat full glee. We women, damn near since birth, have had all kinds of shit piled on us. Coming out of nowhere is what it feels like. Jumping us. Sneak-attacking us. Sliding in like skid marks. One minute we’re playing as equals with the boys, then…
-
The Right Cake
(A short story by Irene B.) Kira stood in the long, winding pickup line at Bake My Day bakery, already late and already irritated. Her thick, mid-length hair was pulled into a neat, low bun, with loose curls escaping just enough to brush her warm brown cheeks. The place should have been fast. It always was when she wanted a quick sneaky treat, no latte needed, which meant she could skip the second line for the custom, overly complicated orders. She’d placed the cake order last week for pickup today. In the past, it took a few extra minutes to add in a few more sprinkles, encouraged by the competent…
-
How to Keep Going When You Don’t Feel Like It
Stick to Your Plan, Not Your Mood Well, confession time, for most of last week, I hadn’t worked out in literally five days. Including barely jumping on my rebounder. It was a busy week, it was a short week, and it was my birthday on Monday. Happy Birthday to Meeeeeee! Side note: My birthday year had already been off to a cracking start with ‘My Boys’, Arsenal, lifting the Premier League trophy just the month before. Yeah… I’ll absolutely take that lovely gift! ❤️🤍❤️ But back to this week, when the compressor thingamabob, whatchamacallit thing in our air conditioner unit broke, so it literally felt like I was sleeping in…
-
The Version of You That Made ‘That Choice’ Wasn’t Lost
Every Version of You Was Working With What It Had Now that I’ve been seeing, literally on repeat, more posts, comments, thought bubbles on this, I’m more locked in and convinced I’m on a solid path where I need to stay honed on understanding behaviors and patterns not just in myself but in others. You know, like, and I’m sure there’s a name for this theory, when you love the look of a particular silver car, then all of a sudden, you see that very car like everywhere, multiple times. And not in that stalking way where every internet-tracking, nosy algorithm suddenly decides that’s all you’re interested in, now pops…
-
As A Woman, Your Happiness Is Your Power
Why some people get uncomfortable when women are happy. Tell me if this is something you’ve noticed, suspected, or outright discovered, that there’s this special something about a rested woman. An unbothered spirit, a calm woman or even relatively steady woman that you’d think everyone would celebrate. But apparently, according to some corners of these here interwebs and in real life too, a woman who is genuinely content can make far too many people uncomfortable… strangely angered even. Freaking funny, isn’t it? Honestly, it’s a place I’d happily wallow in forever. But since life insists on life-ing, I’m learning to savor the moments, intentional and random, that I get to…
-
When You’re No Longer Building Your Life on Fear
And making space for possibility. Have you ever noticed how differently we approach life when we’re excited about something versus when we’re scared shitless of it? Somewhere along the way, a lot of us—myself absolutely included—become frickin’ expert-level warriors when it comes to protecting ourselves in any and every situation, and for good cause, let me add. Looking back, it’s hardly an overly suspicious or shocking revelation that so many of us have built parts of our lives around fear. It’s seen as practical and responsible. I know I saw it as telling myself that I was making smart choices and, again to be fair, nine times out of ten,…
-
What If You Actually Read Life’s Terms and Conditions?
Would You Still Sign Today? You know those terms and conditions that come with a new phone, laptop, tech, or shiny piece of equipment you want so bad? The ones that are about 50,000 pages long, damn near blurry, so that nobody actually or fully reads them? The first few scrolls of information start off pretty straightforward, clear, and engaging and so most of the time, we just continue the scroll to the bottom and willingly click “Accept.” Not because we agree wholeheartedly with everything or that we’re so comfortable with every condition. But because if we want the thing, then that’s the only option. And in thinking about it,…
-
Big Age, Bigger Growth | Episode 02: Center Yourself Like a Man
Quick Post, Real Reminder And no, this isn’t about bashing the boys, but bolstering us babes, because having confidence is one thing, but centering yourself is a world unto its own. Shuffling through many a saved and poignant note, this one fell through the cracks and deserves all the oxygen. The example: When women (us babes) look at a job posting, we tend to over study the requirements like we’re preparing for the final exam of our life. Somehow some way, we think we need to be able to do 80%, 90%, maybe even 100% of the job before we feel qualified… ready enough to apply. Meanwhile, on the XY…
