Who Inspires You? Part Three

There are people that come into your life for a purpose. When their time is done, they leave. You remember the lessons they taught you and live a better life.

There are other people that are in your life for years. From the day you meet them til the day you die, they remain in your life and are a good source of inspiration among other things to you.

This next inspiration to me has been in and out of my life, due to distance, for some years now. I met her in my first year of high school and ever since we've been friends. Sometimes I really wonder how she deals with me, my mood swings, impulsive behaviour and randomness. A few weeks back I sat with her and a few other people and listened to her speak. When she spoke it was like deja vu. It was so eloquent it reminded me of the our "good ole days."

My friend Gemma Edwin inspires me to be educated, knowledgeable, well versed and open minded. It's amazing the way a conversation between the two of us unfolds. A simple topic such as grocery shopping turns into a three hour conversation on capitalism, organic food, ethics and globalization. It truly is wonderful to have a friend who encourages your own growth and curiosity.

So to Gemma I raise my green bottle and say FIRE ONE!

Thanks for being such an inspiration to me!

-The Empress

YOLO!

Drake came out with this song called The Motto and coined the phrase YOLO - You Only Live Once. Some people get it and some people don't. Those who don't use YOLO as an excuse to do stupid things, unsafe things, plain ol' dotish tings! I want to share my thoughts on YOLO and why and when you should be hollaring YOLO!

1. Exploring and experiencing - YOLO! You only live once so why not travel to that place you've wanted to travel to? Why not try that food you've wanted to, or try something you've always wanted to do? Something as simple as teaching yourself to bake red velvet cupcakes to more complex like doing a complete (or as complete as possible) Asia or Africa tour. You only live once so go for it.
2. Standing up for your rights and getting what you deserve - YOLO! You're in a bad relationship, you hate your job, you live in a bad neighbourhood, you have terrible friends...You only live once so why surround yourself with crap? Give yourself the things you deserve, the things you have the right to have - love, good health, security, comfort, joy, happiness, support. You only live once so take that step and get rid of those toxic friends that tie you down, get rid of that horrible partner that makes you feel like you're less than the roadkill, look for a job that is what you want to do. Don't be crazy and quit your job before you find something else you want to do...no no no. YOLO doesn't mean go about doing things blindly. Plan according and do what you dreamed of doing. The world is your oyster. Gather the pearls (does that even make sense? Anyway!!)

Don't use YOLO as an excuse to do dumb things. YOLO isn't an excuse to be promiscuous, nor is it an excuse to quit instead of fighting. It's not as simple as A B C. No. YOLO does not equal careless, but carefree. Live life to the fullest, enjoying the wonders of the world.

YOLO!

-The Empress

Who Inspires You? Part Two

I recently tweeted "I wish I could give awards to my friends because they are just so amazing."

I have been fortunate enough to surround myself with amazing people. Many of my friends are not just support through trying times, or shoulders for me to lean on. Many of my friends are motivators, inspiration, [good] competition, a source of great knowledge and even wisdom. My friends are people who uplift my spirit in one way or another.

Abdulai Mohamed inspires me. The truth is I have not had a significant number of deep conversations with him (although I am working on that), however, the few that I have had, have left me inspired and motivated to not only dream big and make those dreams a reality.

I love teaching and almost every conversation with Abdulai leaves me wishing I had stayed in the profession. I can't say that I will drop what I'm doing now and return to teaching, but I will say that I will make decisions that change lives for the better. Abdulai continues to remind me that there are good people in the world.

So I raise my glass to you Abdulai and say FIRE ONE! Thanks for being such an inspiration to me!

-The Empress

I've Got A Question!!

This may apply to other Caribbean Islands but I'm going to refer to my country of Saint Lucia for this.

I was having a discussion with a few ladies, one of Spanish heritage and the other from the Dominican Republic. The conversation started with me currently being single and having been single for some time. I said I don't know why no one at Trent, at least, has approached me, but then again I've been told I'm intimidating. Personally I find that hard to believe but hey, I know me. The two ladies then proceeded to say THEY AGREED! When they first met me they were intimidated by me. So of course I had to find out why. They both said I have such a strong and powerful personality and I carry myself well that it can be perceived as something to be intimidated by. We dropped off the first young lady and the conversation continued. Laura, who is in a relationship with a Saint Lucian man, said she had noticed that all the Saint Lucian women at Trent are that way. She also said that her boyfriend said that's how Saint Lucian women are. It had never crossed my mind until then that maybe that IS how Lucian Women are raised - to be strong willed, determined women. Of course there are all exceptions to every rule, but generally speaking, what is your view on the matter?

Do you think that Saint Lucian woman may come across as intimidating to some but are overall strong minded, have a powerful demeanor, and are a bit hardcore? Do share.

Thanks for reading
-The Empress

Who Inspires You? Part One

I should be studying/reading/writing my essay/lab/doing something productive is the general consensus. But nope, I will take maybe 5 minutes, if so long, to tell you who inspire me.

My friend Sarita Louis inspires me. Sometimes (not often, but not seldom, so dead in the middle sometimes) I surprise myself with the good that comes out of me. One person who inspires me to challenge myself and bring forth my best is Sarita. Always checking out my blogs and Tumblr and reading those crazy tweets of mine, Sarita never hesitates to let me and the world know when I did it right. She inspires me to produce quality and give my genuine perspective and opinion on things nobody asked me to comment on, but I still do.

So to Sarita I raise my glass and say FIRE ONE! Thanks for inspiring me!

Follow her on Twitter and be sure to follow her blog as well!!

Back to the books lovelies!
-The Empress

Female Insecurities

There's this girl, I'll call her Jennifer (to anyone reading this named Jennifer, I'm sorry I used your name). She's insecure about herself. She has a track record of searching for male attention in all the wrong ways. It is alleged that she may has an STI (could have/had multiple). Jennifer hates my friend Mindy (not her real name, and sorry to all the Mindys out there). She has said some things about Mindy that are false and fabricated. If Mindy were on fire Jennifer would pull out her cell phone and video take it. She wouldn't spit on her to out the flame. Mindy is a confident, strong young woman. She knows she doesn't need a man to validate herself.

What's wrong with this situation? Could it be that Jen is "hating" on Mindy because she sees what she wishes she could be in her. Could it be that because she doesn't have the self will and power to bring herself out of the dumps she is trying to bring Mindy down?

"Be the change you wish to see in the world"

So many women (and men) believe everyone's just hating on them and they hate on so many people. With so much energy being spent on negative thoughts and emotions it's no wonder one is surrounded by it. Be the change you wish to see in the world. Stop hating on anyone. You can acknowledge the fact that there are things about the person you don't like, but don't let that govern your ability to be civil with someone. Make the change. Instead of focusing on what you don't like or can't stand in a person, look at what is good about them. You don't have to be best friends with them. Just be civil. Focus on the positives. What you see that you like try to emulate it. If you started doing that I'm sure the energies around would change. You would be surrounded with more positivity and hence the people you associate with will also be positive. Don't settle. You deserve to be happy and to have confidence in yourself. You are beautiful and wonderfully created. Start today.

-The Empress

Wasteless Worry

In 2 years time I will be attending my 10 year High School Reunion. A Facebook group was created and everyone was saying which part of the world they're in and what not, and my good friend from high school and I were Facebook creeping a few people (yes I won't lie about that) and seeing the success of others really did raise some worry within me. Now let's be real here...if I didn't worry I would be worried haha. I do worry a lot but it usually never continually consumes me. Anyway, we began talking about how different we are from some of our colleagues - still in school, just finishing, no serious fancy job lined up, single, no children etc. And for a moment I cracked jokes about creating this exciting new life for myself within the next two years that I can display to my colleagues when it hit both of us - all we have to do is be ourselves. Whether there are ladies who will attend the reunion and feel like they have something to prove and will put on a front, I don't know. But what I do know is that I am happy with what I have done with my life. I am happy with the journey I have taken. I am happy that I am who I am and the way I am. If anyone else doesn't like it or I don't meet anyone else's judging criteria then boohoo for you, because I'm quite content being ME!

We worry quite often about what other people think of us. What should matter the most is what we think of ourselves; whether we have achieved the goals we have set for ourselves and whether we have a life we are happy to live. Everyone else's definition of success and happiness shouldn't matter to us if we meet our own criteria.

And....Release

I've been finding it difficult to get over a few events that have transpired last year. I will admit that my mind and the options presented to me by it are not always the best, especially when it's regarding myself. I can give great advice to friends but I often give crappy advice to myself. My plan was to just address the issue head on and speak to the persons that have caused the disturbance. Thankfully I discussed this idea with a friend of mine who suggested that bringing up the issue after so long isn't actually a good idea. It simply gives power to the person(s) involved because it means it's been on my mind. She suggested that I pull up a photo of the person(s) and pour my heart and soul or at least say what I have to say to this picture as if it were the person. After hearing this it made sense to me. Although I am yet to do it (I just haven't had the time to settle down and and focus my mind to get it all out and over it) I believe I will feel better once I have done that. I will no longer have anything on my chest that I haven't said.

Do you think it is a good idea? Have you done this before? Is this something you're willing to try? That being said, don't use this technique for every situation. If you can deal with something immediately, why not? Anyway, I'm off to focus my mind.

Thanks for reading!

-The Empress

Cheers To The Resolutions!

In case you actually don't know, I am a HUGE fan of Those Girls Are Wild! I believe I found out about them from one of my best friends here in Canada and ever since that first video I've been hooked. I follow their blog, subscribe to their YouTube channel and of course I follow them on Twitter as well. These two young women are such wonderful, positive role models for not just women younger than them but even older.

We know how every year people make resolutions saying this year I'll go to the gym, or I'll get in shape or I'll take care of my body and we know that by February more than half those people fall off the band wagon. Don't make large commitments that are difficult to keep. Or if you do, make sure you have it well planned out. Start small and work your way up. Shannon Boodram from Those Girls Are Wild has created a video to help you get in shape! It's simple. I can't say it's easy because then you probably wouldn't see results hahaha, but it's something you can do, everyday even twice a day if you so desire, to get a body that looks amazing. Watch the video, try it out and let me know how it goes.




Happy Exercising!

-The Empress

And the race has began

Classes resume on January 9th 2012 and let me tell you I already have homework for my classes. Readings to complete and things to prepare for class. Now here's where things get different to other years: in the past I might have ran away and said oh I have time to complete these readings and so forth, but this year, that's not how it's going down. As soon as I'm done this post I'm going to go do my readings and prepare my discussion points for the class. This year it's going to be different. I can feel it.

Closing remarks: Don't let the habits of procrastination keep you weighed down. You know what to do, get up and do it. Seize the moment as it arises. Don't let it go to waste.

Best wishes for the New Year

-The Empress