"Toxic" is Now In Print!

I almost passed out as I ripped open the cardboard packaging that held my books. Finally, after six months  of work I was holding my first novel in my hands. Toxic is officially in print. For more info Continue reading...

How I Grew To Love My Belly

I have talked about my self esteem struggle many times on this blog. Too many damn times. Lol. Falling in love with myself and my body has been an uphill battle but I am winning!
For the past few months I have been seeing the fruits of all my inner labor. The praying and believing inspired me to take the actions that changed my life. No more young, wild living. Taking care of myself is now a top priority.
The inside is good, now I'm focusing on the outside. First thing's first, I have to get my body and fashion together. I blogged about fashion for the first time in my last post. Expect more, too. :)
As far as my body goes I started working out using a high interval intensity workout called Turbo Fire. Ever heard of Insanity? Well, Turbo Fire is the same workout only put to music and catered to women. I love it! My body has started to change shape and I'm slimming down nicely after only a couple of months. I'm feeling myself so much that I posted the above pic on Instagram showing off my progress with the caption "Fat & fabulous is the mission..." Meaning, I don't wanna be skinny just in love with the skin I'm in.

I was even inspired to go strapless last week. Can't even remember the last time I did that! Not to mention that this denim one-piece is a size Large when I was buying 2X and 3X. What a freakin' difference!

So to all of you ladies that are fighting the battle of the bulge I encourage you to keep on pushing. It is possible to reach whatever goals you set. It's simple to do, but it's not easy so it will take some motivation and strength but you can do it.

If you have any tips on how I can become a slimmer, sexier me or want to share your weightloss journey hit up the comment section below.

Smooches,

Rashida :)

NaNoWriMo - Week One: Hell Week

So the first week of National Novel Writing Month has come to a close. This has been a week of pure hell thus far. I am so disappointed with myself. At the end of the day yesterday I was supposed to have a little over 11,000 words. I currently have 7,091 words. This is not good. I have been very distracted by family and men (my ultimate weakness). There's also this weird feeling of fear that comes over me when I think about the 50,000 word goal. To me, that's a huge number and I get a little intimidated. The pep talks that are featured on the NaNoWriMo website have been a big help to me. I read one before I start writing just to give me a bit of a nudge to leave the fear behind and get started. I also had to remind myself that this stage of my writing is about quantity and not quality. That helps me take the pressure off of the numbers.
I am ending this first week tired and frustrated. I'm also hopeful and determined to complete NaNoWriMo and have a good first draft to work with. All in all, I am still excited and am even more determined to finish this novel. It's 3:25 a.m. here in Cleveland. I'm tired and hungry so I gotta take care of that. 'Til next time...

Soul of a Woman Expo

I am super excited to announce that I will be speaking at the Soul of a Woman Expo on  October 3, 2010. This is an event that will pamper and educate women on all sorts of subjects including domestic violence, finances, and health & beauty.
I will be speaking on my abuse story and give tips and advice on how to live a successful life afterwards.
For more info visit the event website at: http://www.soulofawomanexpo.com/

They smile in your face, but all the time... You know the rest.

Friends are overrated.
That's how I have felt for quite a while. It wasn't until I decided to start a business that I realized that friends, and foes, are a much needed part of any successful business. How else will you be able to let the world know who you are before anyone cares? Network=Net Worth, right?
I went to a cabaret thrown by a friend this Saturday. Her parties are usually packed with people and leaves everyone waiting for the next one. The last few have been empty and no one seems to kick it with her the way they used to. Our circle is pretty small and not even the normal people showed up. Only two of us. I felt kinda bad for her.
You would like for your friend be the way they are in the movies. We all wish we could be like Thelma & Louise or like the ladies off of "Girlfriends" or "Living Single". There for you no matter what. Supporting  your every endeavor. Standing up for you when you need them to and never saying a bad word about you to anyone.
The truth of the matter is, life happens. There are arguments and fights that happen that can't be repaired. Misunderstandings come about and sometimes trust is betrayed. Bad decisions can leave your reputation tarnished so bad that major damage control is needed. So in the end, someone who was once your friend can be more like an acquaintance at any time. Depending on the severity of your misunderstandings and your ability to move on from them.
Lucky for me I do have a few close friends that will be around as long as I am. I cherish them. So if you have just one true friend appreciate them. Because in a world where you have to keep your enemies closer than your friends, allies are your best assets.

Blog-A-Thon 2010 Update!

I haven't been the most consistent blogger and I wanna change that. I saw a tweet on Twitter about a Blog-A-Thon where you sign up and dedicated yourself to post a blog a day for the entire month of May. This seemed like a good idea and it would definitely help me blog more often and gain more readers for my platform.
I didn't start of well. I didn't do any posts for the first 10 days of the month. So I feel bad about that, but starting on the 11th I have been posting everyday. I must say that it's much harder than it seems posting every single day. Sometimes I am just blank for things to post. Thanks to the Google group created for this purpose, I have found some great ideas for topics. Being able to write several posts in one day and schedule them for later posting is a huge help, too.
So all in all, I am glad that I decided to do this! I'm look forward to growing my blog and connecting more with the blogosphere!
I'll update you guys again next Sunday! 

An author with trouble reading?!

I am an absolute fan of Nikki Turner. She is one of my literary idols. What I don't like is the fact that she doesn't read as well as she writes. Thank God for editors!

Is there a penis slot on that Xbox?!

I was watching a special on VH1 last night called "Undatable" where they list the top 100 things that guys do that will ensure that they don't get a date or any sex at all for that matter. I couldn't help but break out laughing when they showed a clip similar to this one:



My ex fiance' is just like this. He spends hours on end playing "Call of Duty" on his Xbox 360. It definitely took time away from us that we could spend having sex or doing something meaningful together. He went so far as to call it his "SexBox" because he loved playing that damn thing so much. Needless to say, he is constantly struggling to keep a roof over his head.
Oh, well. Good luck to him., and good riddens.

Are you down with the swirl?

I have never dated outside my race before. I love a handsome, chocolate man! Being single for a couple years now has made me question what it is I am looking for in a man. I have had such bad luck with black men being lazy, users, and immature. ( I know all black men aren't like that!) I am starting to consider dating older men and even dating outside my race. I decided to do a litte research and I ran across this video.

What do you think? Have you ever dated outside your race? If not, would you?

Male Gold Diggers: The Tables Have Turned

When you think of the term "Gold Digger" you immediately think of a young attractive woman using an older, rich man for her own financial benefit. This is very true for the most part. But in my last few dating experiences and after having conversations with women friends and family, I have noticed that the tables have turned. The men out here are looking for women to have the money and take care of them.
 Over the past few years the roles of men and women have changed due to the large amount of dead beat dads. Women have to work and maintain households in place of the men. Now the independent woman is the head of households everywhere. This brings out all the lazy bums and users.
It just doesn't make sense to me that a man will look for a female to take care of them in every way. If you're looking for a mother then you should still be living at home letting mama take care of you. The dating game is so different now. If that's what you want to call it. Guys don't want to take women on dates anymore. Unless you've already had sex with them that is.
I had a guy talk to me on the phone for a week and he asked me to make his car payment for that month. What the hell is that?! I dealt with a guy for two years and we never went on a date. Not even the dollar movie. I also met a guy who told me that if I wasn't helping him then I was hurting him. He needed a female that could give him $1500 at a time and not be concerned about getting it back. Then there is the dude that wants to come to my house to visit all the time and never mentioned a date.
I asked one of the guys why does he feel that a women should be the financially dominant one and he said women fought for equal rights so now we have to be willing to do the same thing that men are expected to do. The keyword there is "EQUAL". I am all about "fair exchange ain't no robbery". I am more that willing to do nice things for my man as long as he is willing to do the same in return. But I refuse to be used.
Have you ever taken care of your man? Do you mind being the bread winner?

To Watch Her Grow: A Summary of the Book

Real women love real men. So when Shelle Milton finally got together with corner boy turned major dealer, Sunny, she felt complete. She'd had her eye on him for a couple of years but because he worked for her father Sherman, a well known drug kingpin, Sunny didn't want to mix business with pleasure.
Things changed after Shelle's mother Cora and Cora's boyfriend Freddy were brutally murdered the day Cora came home from a nine month stay in a rehab facility. There were no leads or evidence, and because of Cora and Freddy's history of drug abuse the police showed no interest in really solving the murders.
Shelle went into a very deep depression when her family was killed. She stayed in a weed haze and drunken stupor for a month. Sunny, who was hired by her father as her protector, watched her downward spiral and his heart broke with every beat. With Sherman's blessing, Sunny acted on his feelings for Shelle and showed her the love she needed to let go of the hurt and start living her life again.
Shelle's new love with Sunny combined with her unconditional love for Cora and Freddy inspired her to take matters into her own hands and find out who was behind the murders. She enlisted her best friend, a young hustler named Deion to be her partner.
When the two start to piece the clues together and the evidence leads to Sunny his attitude changes and things start to get complicated.
Is the love of Shelle's life who watched her grow from a girl to a woman really a cold-blooded murderer?

Wanna read more? Click on the book widget in the column to the left and read the first four chapters of 'To Watch Her Grow' now!

Leave a comment. Tell me what you think of the plot.
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Pride and Inspiration

At 57 years old, my mother decided to go back to school to get her GED. This shocked me! My mom has been through so much in her life. She grew up suffering abuse from my grandmother so she left home at 15 and had my oldest sister at 16. By the time she was 22 years old she had 4 daughters and she was struggling to take care of them on her own.
She went back home to get some help from my grandparents and it backfired on her. Shortly after moving in, the constant arguing and fighting with my grandmother got to be too much for her so she left my sisters there while she got on her feet. Soon after my sisters were adopted by my grandparents.
My mother got a job, found an apartment, and settled down and had me and my brother. She continued to be an important figure in my sisters lives. It was hard because they had been brainwashed for years into thinking that my mother was a horrible person who left them because she didn't love them. My sisters endured the same abuse that my mom, aunts, and uncles did from my grandmother. So once they became teenagers, they left and came back to my mom.
For years my mother and father worked and supported my siblings and I. We weren't rich, but I was never homeless or hungry. I had a great childhood, for the most part and I thank my parents so much for that.
When my grandparents got sick my mother, father, and I moved into their home to take care of them. She put her life on hold to make sure that they were okay even after the hell they put her through for her entire life.
She suffers from heart disease, she still supports my father through his alcoholism, and yet she found the strength to put the peices of her life back together. The pride and inspiration that I feel now seeing her go to class everyday is unexplainable! She's overcome so much in her life but she never gave up. She was never depressed. She was never bitter.
She was only strong and determined to live. My hero!