Getting Out What You Put In

Everyone has heard the statement "You get out what you put in" many times over. That statement applies to all walks of life: Trying to get promoted on your job, wanting a successful marriage, debt freedom, making A's in school, etc. You get out what you put in, right? In a perfect world, that would be true, but sometimes you can put in with the best intentions and hard work, and things still go south. Why is that? Because we live in a fallen world, and because of that..things will happen that are out of our control. In a way, training & planning can go so far. Sometimes, it irks me when some people say "you get out what you put in" as if that's supposed to be a cure-all. They mean well, but I think sometimes some people are a little clueless. You have people born into good fortune that are well-connected; these people have never known struggle, and you have those who were dealt a bad hand from Day 1. These people have known struggle all their lives, and they fight & fight to get ahead, but always manage to come up short, through no fault of their own. These people become bitter because they see others getting ahead with ease, and wonder why they can't have the same advantage, even though they're doing equal the amount of work, or greater. Take marriage for example: There are couples on the brink of divorce RIGHT NOW that are fighting to save their marriage, but one person doesn't want to stay, even though the other spouse wants to make it work. These couples have gotten married with the best intentions, but trials have come against their marriage with such force, that one spouse has checked out in the relationship because (s)he can't take it anymore. The moral of this blog: Sometimes, you won't always get what you put in due to circumstances out of your control. Nothing wrong with that; maybe, it wasn't supposed to work in your favor. 

Misconceptions About Friendship: Jamora Lei Rogers

Repost from Jamora Lei Rogers (Facebook friend)

People have a misconception of friendship around here. We're all grown-ups, so act like it. If you are friends with someone and they do something or say something that you don't like or don't agree on then talk about it. Settle it. Move on. Life is too short to play peoples games, tell a bunch of lies to, and read minds. Keep it real, say what's on your mind, and don't sugar coat anything. 

Just because you talk every now and again doesn't mean you're friends yet. Just because you confide in someone you don't exactly know... again, this doesn't make you friends. Those are acquaintances. To actually make time to get to know an individual, spend time with, care for, make a bond, etc. should be continuous when becoming a friend. I take my friendships very serious. I can smell bullshit a mile away, so don't play with me. You don't want me in your life? That's fine boo, because I'm going to keep on keepin' on like the fabulous "me" I'm meant to be. 

All I have to say is...she said that!

Kekeing With The Wrong One(s)

Foolishness can end your life quick, and death will be ready to embrace you.

— Florida Made (@RichardMIATL) July 2, 2015

As usual, I was on Facebook the other day watching prank videos. Some prank videos were in good fun, others were dangerous because they could endanger the jokester, and the victim. This one Facebook page was titled Hood Pranks Gone Wrong, where a jokester pranked several inner-city residents. So this prankster goes into a ghetto to prank someone, and he ends up shooting at him. The jokester was like "It's a prank bro, it's a prank!" He was fearing for his life because he said it fast. The shooter didn't think so because he fired on the joker. In a way, the prankster got what was coming to him because some people don't have a sense of humor, so you can't joke with everybody. Nothing wrong with that, it's how some people are. You can joke with some people, others not so much because you don't know how your pranks will be received. The shooter could have been in a bad mood, and wanted a reason to fire on somebody, or he could have been into it with an enemy thug, you don't know. All I know is the jokester escaped with his life, and I bet he learned yesterday. He learned who (not) to joke with. Foolishness can end your life quick, and death will be ready to embrace you. Look at these high-risk videos on social media. One video showed a man in a swamp provoking an alligator, and the gator almost ate him. That's the thing, some people are asking for death messing with crocodiles, gators, or any dangerous animal. I salute the man's bravery because he has the guts to do what most people wouldn't, but I value my life too much to engage in anything detrimental to my well-being. 

Strawberry Letter: Pregnant By My Best Friend

Strawberry Letter | Steve Harvey in the Morning on WDAS

This letter is about two best friends who grew up together. They did everything together from going to the same schools to sexing. The issue is he's become distant since she let him hit. Should she be surprised? Not really, because even though they're close, once some men get what they want sexually from their lady friend, some men want nothing to do with her. You have a few decent fellas who will stay in her life for two reasons: 1. They appreciate the "friends with benefits" relationship, and 2. They want to see if there's anything more between them. How I know there's more between them is she gets in her feelings when he dates. Why would she be furious that he's going with other woman? Because she gave him the cookie, and now she's in her feelings. He's no better because he's livid when she dates as well. I'm just saying it's a dead giveaway they have feelings for each other because they can't stand seeing each other with other people, especially since they sexed. She better go ahead and tell him because it's not like she'll be able to hide the baby bump much longer; at some point, he will notice. The only potential issue is he could assume any one of the other guys is the father since she's dated around, but that can't be true since according to this letter, she and him had sex so by default, he's the only one she's been with sexually. I just think she should tell him and get it over with, because the longer she tries to hide, the worse it's going to be for her when the baby arrives.

Kissing The Frog

Sometimes you kiss the frog, other times you are the frog.

— Florida Made (@RichardMIATL) July 1, 2015

I'm sure everyone has heard the phrase, "You have to kiss several frogs to find your prince(ss)." That comes from a childhood Disney fairy tale where the princess was looking for her prince, so she went through several guys before she finally met her match. In other words, she had to kiss a bunch of frogs before she met that one man who knocked her socks off. How is this relevant in 2015? It's simple. In a perfect world, everyone would find their mate on the first go, and some of them do. The ones who find their prince(ss) are the ones who aren't moved by the first (wo)man that shows them interest. They start off as friends, and if the relationship goes right, that "frog" (meaning, she may write him off at first glance, but in the end she's glad she gave him a chance because he turned out to be the best thing that happened to her) may turn out to be a great (wo)man after all. What I mean by "Sometimes you kiss the frog, other times you are the frog" is this: Most of the time, a person swears up and down that the other person isn't right for them, but some people don't realize that THEY could be the frog all along. It's not until years later that both parties come to the conclusion that they're wasting each other's time, and it would be best if they went their separate ways. The moral of this message is this: It's easy to assume that other people are always the frog, hard to admit that maybe..just maybe..YOU could be the frog all along, but your pride won't let you see it. 

He Feels Stuck

Strawberry Letter | Steve Harvey in the Morning on WDAS

When it comes to relationships, it's important to choose the right person or you'll have the same issue as this person. This woman and her man have been together for a little over a year, and they have a child together. Both of them work, but her gripe with him was that he acts like a child. Call me crazy, but a working man is far from a child because he's taking care of a family. Meanwhile, he's entitled to down time, especially after a long day of getting money for his family. He smokes, drinks, invites his friends over, all of which are to his wife's disapproval. My view is this: On days when his boys are over, maybe she could do something with her girlfriends: Have a ladies' day out where it's just her and the womenfolk kekeing about their men (chances are, some of her girlfriends are probably single, but that's another topic), going shopping & out for drinks; you know, stuff women do when they get together. A man is allowed to kick back as he sees fit, especially if he's a good provider for his family. The only way I can see where his kicking back could be an issue is if he throws away money on his leisure; and he and his woman start arguing. Other than that, it's nothing to be in your feelings over. In closing, maybe he could feel stuck with her. Maybe she's being too demanding for some reason, and he's starting to check out of the relationship. I don't see the issue here: He has a job, taking care of his, etc. What more does she want from him?

Being Grateful: Shaana Hunter

Not many of us can say the same.

Shaana Hunter

11 hrs •

I may not see eye to eye most times with my parents but I'm extremely grateful for the upbringing of being a blessing when blessed. Sometimes I'm head strong in my beliefs but that's only due to wanting the BEST for anyone in my circle or who crosses my path. I was loved AND raised hard and strong. I cover because I've been covered. My love doesn't come easy but its even harder to let it go.

Love doesn't die. It's a moving energy. Just stay connected. It'll come back around and revive you.