9/30/07

Benny Havens, Oh!

Come fill your glasses, fellows, and stand up in a row,
To singing sentimentally, we're going for to go,
In the army there's sobriety, promotion's very slow,
So we'll sing our reminiscences of Benny Havens, oh!

Chorus:
Oh, Benny Havens, oh! Oh, Benny Havens, oh!
So we'll sing our reminiscences of Benny Havens, oh!

Ron and I hosted a "Benny Haven's" (or happy hour for lay people) for the Outreach Team from the Admissions Office. Project Outreach focuses on recruiting minority candidates for admission to the United States Military Academy. Ron and I are not only alumni of the Academy but also former Outreach Officers from 1990-1991. It was a blast having everyone over. We had a great time catching up with old and new. Enjoy the pictures.

9/28/07

Drains, Pain & Adjusting "Your Package"

I now COMPLETELY understand why men are always adjusting their "package". I have been carrying around 2 surgical drains for the past 3 weeks in the exact same position as a man's genitals and I now understand why, on occasion, they have to "adjust" some things. Okay...for the uninformed...when you have a tummy tuck, you end up with 2-3 surgical drains that drain excess fluid from your body.

And where, as God is my witness, does a surgeon see fit to place these little jewels of medical science. Well, ladies...stand up, look down at your pubic mound and imagine 3 holes coming our of the front of your coochie. So, put your thumb on your belly button and then reach your index finger (the one right next to you thumb) to to middle of you pubic mound and that is where 2-3 drains will be coming out. LORD JESUS HAVE MERCY!

One of my 3 drains fell out at week 2 all by itself, thank the Lord. But I had the other two in for a full 2 weeks and if it was not for the Grace of God and at least half a perc every 4-6 hours, I would have simply gone insane! INSANE!

So, I got these two drains coming out the front of my coochie and I have to like get dressed, walk, sit... DO STUFF. Let me just tell you, that "package" occasionally gets in the way, falls out of place (despite serious attempts to tack, pin, tape those things down) and they just pain get situated in the wrong worst kinda way at the most inappropriate moment. You gotta "adjust your package" or I was gonna be suckin down another perc quick like. These puppies pull (they are allegedly stitched to your body) and JUST PLAIN HURT LIKE SHEEAT! That's it. PERIOD. Hand me a glass of water so I can down this pain killer...anybody got a glass of wine to go with that?

I'm walkin in the mall, trying to get a little exercise as prescribed (as well as spending some more of Ronnie Bears moola) and that tube to the drain slips in between you know where...WELL! you gotta get it outta there! You gotta adjust. So, how do you do it without anyone knowing. Well, a lady will go to the restroom and take care of her business as I did. My husband would just grab, pick, move, "ADJUST" his stuff all incongneeeeegro like...as if I didn't see you do it. WHATEVER.

But now I understand. It's a habit born of having a package attached to the front of your body for life. I just had mine for a few weeks. A man has his for LIFE. Sometimes stuff just gets in the way of daily activity and has to be "adjusted" or "moved". Ron just told me that I still don't understand the complete burden "us men carry around. And some of us are more burdened than others and it requires more adjustment." Sometimes I just want to SMACK him...but he did pay for all.

I got my drains out yesterday. They were coming out PERIOD! I told the doctor that I was on the EDGE OF SANITY! One more days with these puppies and I would absolutely SCREAM and jump off some ledge becoming the future Bionic Woman. He told me he would take them out, my numbers were good. Lay back and hold on...this may hurt. WTF?!! Well, I do what he says...he yanks em out and I don't feel a thing. THANK YOU, JESUS. Now I have to teach myself to walk again like a lady and NOT like a man with a huge PACKAGE between her legs. They say 28 days makes a habit. It will now take a month to walk with my legs closed again.

The upside...I wore a pair of jeans today that I haven't gotten into in years. Praise Jesus for blessing the hands of my surgeon. My scar will be undetectable in a few months. He really is an artist and has been blessed. My skin is still sensitive at week 4. Doc says I have about 10-15lbs of swelling to go down. REALLY!!!! He advised I not buy new clothes or alter anything until all the swelling has gone down and he won't take final pictures until 6-9 months after surgery to guarantee all swelling is gone. REALLY!!!! He finally told me the total fat removed....3 2ltr bottles of soda full of fat as an equivalent. DAMN!

Let me just say, this is not of the faint of heart. Looks easy on TV...cause they don't show you the deal during the 6 weeks in between the before and after...but it ain't. Gird your loins, be prepared for a walk with drains & pain. I still don't sleep right...and lets talk getting back on the sex wagon (AND I OH SO MISS IT) at a later date. Ron might not let me discuss the first day back to sex on a blog like it was the first day back to school. He's a closet freak and likes to keep it that way (as he reads this over my shoulder...go away).

Drop me a line if you want more info.

Thank you JESUS! I walking "package" free now!

9/25/07

NSN 11th Annual Conference Slide Show

Rockin' Girl Blogger

This is soooo cool. This is actually the second time I was tagged for this award and I'm finally getting around to tagging my Rocking Girl Blogger friends. Well, I just realized that just about every woman I know/read already has this distinction, so I'll tag the one blogger girl that hasn't been nominated yet.....

HOME AT LAST FARM - Terri is my bestest "country" diva to my "city" diva girlfriend and her husband is my classmate from West Point. This is a woman who effortlessly (at least to me) raises (and home schooled for a long time) 5 kids, tilled & planted a 1 acre garden, painted the barn, took care of 2 goats, a bunch of chickens, rabbits, a cow & some pigs ----all before noon and then hand crafted something. Always made me crazy. Visiting them, when they had the farm, was an absolute HOOT! We would visit the Amish, antique shop, play in their personal petting zoo, skeet shoot (or shoot something in the "yard" - they had billions of acres), shoot off REAL fireworks only to have to hide from the county police cause the neighbor (bout a mile away) though we were "gonna kill her." I have laughed so hard in her kitchen almost rupturing my spleen, reading books aloud that she had on her shelf (and they have bout 2 billion books- she reads books like I eat candy) such as Goat Husbandry...you just HAD to be there to read about the care of a male goat - DISGUSTING.

Terri and family have finally moved to the suburbs due to her man's new job and she is still trying to figure out how she can build a chicken coop that the neighbors won't throw a fit over. She just slays me all the time...and NO you just can't have another GOAT. It isn't going to go well in suburbia.

We are spending the 1st weekend in October at our 20th Reunion from West Point together and I just know we are going to tear the Academy up. I'm still waiting for her call about what I'm wearing...Girl - YOU KNOW I'M ROCKIN' THE BEST STUFF I GOT. I tell ya one thing...TERRI, you are NOT allowed to wear those damn Ugg boots. PERIOD. It is simply a no go. I love you....now you have to tag at least 5 of your favorite "Rocking" girl bloggers.

See you in two weeks....

Chapter of the Year!

Oh Yeah BABY! The DC/Baltimore Chapter of the National Sales Network ROCKS!!!!!!! We dropped it like it was hot on Saturday Night at the NSN Conference Black & White Awards Dinner & Dance, taking home the highest award.....CHAPTER OF THE YEAR!
We said it, we claimed it, we TOOK IT. YEAH! In other words, we came and kicked some chapter butt! I was so excited, I thought my teeth were gonna pop outta my head from smiling so hard. There are 119 active (that means you paid your raggedy dues) members and we brought 112 to the conference. We got a lot more stats but I'm not gonna bore ya with em here. NUFF SAID. We WON the damn thing.

Chapter Picture (not entire group pictured) & (Some of the...) Executive Committee

DAMN WE LOOK GOOD!


After it was all said and done, we rocked the house with the DJ and I even tried to "drop it like it was hot" for a little while...had to take several rest breaks but I managed to not blow a stitch or drop one of those drains....And yes! I managed to find something to wear that didn't make those damn things showed up. Took me almost a freakin' week to plan a wardrobe for the conference where you couldn't see that I still had my drains in, but I thought FO SURE that Howard Hewitt was gonna squeeze em outta me the other night. I survived or rather "I was healed." It is amazing what you can do with a half a perc, a handsome husband, top honors, a hot gown and a slammin DJ. We partied hard.
Now you know I'm a gonna be haulin' that plaque to every function the chapter has for the next year and workin' our sponsors to renew their sponsorship for the chapter for 2008. A President HAS to use ALL of her assets. For those of you in sales...ABC...Always Be Closin'

9/24/07

Forwarding Emails

Don't you just get SICK and FREAKIN' tired of people sending you emails asking you to forward them to XX number of your friends & family or you will have 20 years of bad luck or you don't believe in God. Don't you just HATE it when you get forwarded an email with some kind of disturbing news and asked to pass it along to your entire address book...and when you check the veracity of it at http://www.snopes.com/ (YOU MUST DO THIS BEFORE YOU EVER FORWARD AN EMAIL - cause just about 99% of all the ones I get are HOAXES).

I CAN'T STAND THAT. Most of the time, I just delete you email without even reading it.

If you hate it just as much as me, you will find this little video ditty HILARIOUS.....

Getting on my Soap Box

9/22/07

NSN Career Fair, Cathy Hughes, Winning & Howard Hughes

Yesterday was an awesome day at the National Sales Network 11th Annual Conference. We started with the Career Fair. We even offered a one day tickets so people could attend the Career Fair, Networking Reception and Concert. I know I've talked about this enough and sent out enough emails to choke a horse so if you missed your opportunity to attend the Career Fair - YOUR BAD. Just about every company was conducting interviews right on the spot or at least screening you for the next step. It was thrilling to go around and see some of the people from our chapter (and others) really utilize the Career Fair as an opportunity - having 2-3 interviews in one day. FANTASTIC.
(ADP is one of the DC/Baltimore Chapter Sponsors)
I even stopped by the P.F.E booth and just COULD NOT resist messing witht he recruiters. I walked up to the booth and introduced myself. One of the ladies said "Are you interested in a career with P.fiz.er?" So, I planted the huge smile on my face and said, "Well, I recently enjoyed a 15 year career at P.fi.zer and you saw fit to lay me off with a huge severance package...so, no not really. But I will take a few pens for nostalgia sake, okay?" These two ladies stood there with their mouth hanging open not knowing what to say. I thanked them for the pens, wished them luck and moved on to the next booth. HILARIOUS.!!!!!!
After the career fair, there we had our Keynote speakers luncheon and I had the honor of introducing Kathy Hughes, Radio Maven of Radio One. WOW! She was fantastic. Her talk was right on and her side bars (the tangents she went off on regularly) were so funny, I thought I was going to blow a one of my surgical drains out from laughing so hard. She went on for 2 hours (only scheduled for an hour) and nobody wanted her to stop. She commented on everything from OJ, Clarence Thomas, Michael Jackson, Jena 6, hip hop, the N word and more. I just know some of the corporate sponsors were squirmin' in their seats, but don't you just wish that you made so much money (Radio One is worth 2 Billion Dollars and 10 years later she is STILL the only African American woman on the stock exchange) that you didn't give a rats bootie what you said?

All I can say is that you missed one of the best luncheon lectures that I've heard in years.

Later that night we had a Networking reception, sponsored by Anheuser-Busch. They were NSN's very first sponsor and they have always sponsored the Friday night reception and concert. The reception was very nice and they raffled off some awesome prizes ('bout 5 portable DVD players, 'bout 4 30G Ipods, 'bout 6 GPS units, and 5 leather jackets). I have been running around or 2 days, claiming that I was gonna win something. Dell was raffling off computers, Abbott gave away jump drives just if you talked to 4 people in thier hospitality room on Thursday night and a PSP player. I WON! I WON! I WON!. My name got pulled out of the bowl and I chose the 30G Ipod. I had to then protect it with my life. Everyone was wantin' to "see" my pod and I would hold it up and say SEE!


After the reception, we went into the ballroom for the Howard Hewitt concert. He was AWESOME. He did some old Shalamar stuff, songs we all knew and then a song from his new album. We had the best time. He stayed out in the audience to sing and went around to everyone. I was having so much fun and even forgot or a short time that I still had a compression suit on and 2 drains in. I was feeling great! Then the DJ came on and we partied like rockstars, tearing up the dance floor. Wish you had been here!



9/20/07

DC Power Team (Pfizer) Reunion

Last night, Stan Wilson (middle guy, back row), came in town from Texas and wehad an impromptu DC Power Team Mini-Reunion. It was just awesome to see some of my teammates from the good ole days at P.fizer - when selling was selling, when we kicked butt, and won everything...District of the Year, Circle of Excellence, Vice Presidents Club. Ha! We Rocked! We even had a mascot...The Power Bot...with a set district code of ethics and rules of engagement. You can read the HISTORY OF THE DC POWER TEAM by clicking link.
We were only able to get a few of us together last night for dinner at Acadiana's (which was YUMMY), but the stories and memories were great. Two of my personal favorites were when Stan won an award trip to Kiawa (I think it is in NC or GA - can't remember) but he was told that it was an island in Hawaii (as a joke) but he went home and told his wife anyway. He still hasn't forgiven us. Or my man Mike Taylor (1st guy on the left, back row) who has ALWAYS been a Texas Ranger in his heart and hasn't changed a bit...Always wore cowboy boots, the big Texas buckle, etc...you just had to love him...and notice his attire last night...
Nothing has changed at ALL...but at least he has invested in a DVD player and a big screen TV so his family wouldn't have to gather around his Pfizer computer to watch "VCR-CD's" - HE WILL NEVER live that one down either.

The funniest thing last night, was after talking about all the differences at P.fi.zer now and how there are not teams and friends like we used to have (it's definitly CYA time at the big blue now), Ron runs into a friend who works in Government Relations for PFE and he was there having dinner with the damn CEO of the company. You just don't know how much I wanted to go over, shake his hand and say thank you VERY MUCH for the awesome severance package and yes, I'm now kicking your but at a rival company. HA!

Anyway, it was wonderful to spend time with people I used to work with that I actually consider my friends...how many times can you EVER say that.

Well, I'm off to the NSN Conference which starts today officially. I can't WAIT for the Hospitality Suites Tonight.

Ron and Stan RAN DC back in the day. They were a formidable Institutional Hospital Rep Team. You can just see that they ROCKED.Sam Harris (from Ron's old District -"The Federals"), Mike and Debbie.

Now, these are some SHARP brothers. (Stan, Ron, Mike)

9/18/07

Why Not to Blog on Valium

Just a short note to say that:
Friends don't let Friends Blog on Drugs
My girlfriend Pattey called to remind me that our sons (16 years old), were born a month apart and that I was at her wedding (over 19 years ago). That would OBVIOUSLY mean that we have been friends for over 19 years (NOT 12). I am reviewing my post to see what other drug induced mistakes I've made, but I can tell you one thing....ALL THE MISCHIEF THAT WE'VE GOTTEN INTO OVER THE YEARS IS TRUE.
Hopefully, I won't need the Val.iu.m by November so I don't go knocking down some Mayan ruin by mistake.

Cara's ABC Adventure

As most of you know, Ron and I are in the process of adopting our 3 year old niece, Cara. We currently have full custody of her right now. Cara is a little language delayed because she had constant ear infections and we finally got her tubes in her ears so she can actually hear. She is doing marvelous now as I WISH to God sometimes that she would stop talking. She does have her own language when she is in the throws of workin' her dollhouse, but she is really improving since we got her enrolled in a special program at the pre-school nearby.

She goes to Brookfield Christian Academy all week, but 4 times a week for half a day she goes over to Dayton Elementary for extra speech therapy and language work. They are doing a marvelous job. I just got this video via email from her Dayton teacher and it is a hoot....


http://www.myabcadventure.com/index.htm?movieid=48FE4A86-F63A-4C50-BC33-859B6F6DA609
You know I'm sending this to everyone I know.

9/17/07

Girls in My Circle

My Girl Pattey sent this ditty to me today...I had to post it here cause it made me smile, it made me cry, it just made me sit and reflect on a friendship of over 19 years. Have we seen each other a lot...No? She's in KY and I'm here in MD but we have talked to each other on the phone almost every Sunday for 10 years and then some in between. We have shared joys, sorrows, tears, laughter, similar family drama and just stuff you can't even write about.

Pattey lost her husband this year after a long battle with cancer and handled his care and passing with the grace of a Saint...and now her son (a soccer and track star) broke both of his legs this past weekend during a soccer match and she talks about it as if its no big thing. We both have crazy sisters and the inside joke (since nothing they do EVER makes any logical sense) is to just say "Noodle" whenever they do something CRAZY/IRRATIONAL which is all the time.
And just when I didn't think my girl could get a break...GOD was RIGHT ON TIME...just like He always is, and she finally gave 2 weeks notice at her job today that we have been talking about ditching for years and is starting a new job/career come October 1st. Can I get a Hallelujah?!!! from the congregation!!!!
We still talk about the time we rode jet skis together in Hilton Head - we smiled and lauged so hard I think a burst a kidney and Pattey's teeth almost popped out of her head; the trip to the Grand Canyon and the helicopter ride back to Vegas - were I swear she was gonna slap me silly for wanting to play with the instrument panel; the NYC trip where we got up at the crack of dawn to try and be on the Today Show and where I acted like a complete tourist on the subway and almost broke some art that looked like a dresser at MOMA. I don't even want to think of the stories we are going to have when we get back from Cancun in November.

Anyway, here's the poem. I hope you enjoy it, just as much as I enjoy my friendship with my girl Pattey.

GIRLS IN MY CIRCLE

When I was little, I used to believe in the concept of one best friend, and then I started to become a woman. And then I found out that if you allow your heart to open up, God would show you the best in many friends.

One friend is needed when you're going through things with your man.
Another friend is needed when you're going through things with your mom.
Another will sit beside you in the bleachers as you delight in your children and their activities.
Another when you want to shop, share, heal, hurt, joke, or just be. One friend will say, "Let's cry together,"
another, "Let's fight together,"
another, "Let's walk away together."


One friend will meet your spiritual need,
another your shoe fetish,
another your love for movies,
another will be with you in your season of confusion,
another will be your clarifier,
another the wind beneath your wings.

But whatever their assignment in your life, on whatever the occasion, on whatever the day, or wherever you need them to meet you with their gym shoes on and hair pulled back, or to hold you back from making a complete fool of yourself ..
those are your best friends.

It may all be wrapped up in one woman, but for many, it's wrapped up in several..
one from 7th grade,
one from high school,
several from the college years,
a couple from old jobs,
on some days your mother,
on some days your neighbor,
on others, your sisters,
and on some days, your daughters

So whether they've been your friend for 20 minutes or 20 years, AND ONLY IF YOU'D LIKE TO, pass this on to the women that God has placed in your life to make a difference.

9/16/07

Lazy Sunday Afternoon

Today, we spent a lazy Sunday sitting in our front grassy courtyard at 5135 and it was one of the most enjoyable days we had doing absolutely nothing in a long time. I actually put a sweatshirt (my River Hill Hoodie - as Jordan calls it) over my PJ's and sat out in one of the rockers. The pictures just don't seem to do justice to all the work I had done since I spend so much time hiding my drains and trying to keep the swelling to a minimum. I swear I could have made a fortune for one of those reality shows if I had just taken pictures of all the drama that goes on in between plastic surgery work. It is a BEEYATCH. NUF SAID....
A friend of ours left a bunch of lawn furniture in our garage and Ron decided he wanted to put the H3 in the garage with 2 of the other cars so he moved the furniture outside into the courtyard. Took me a while to convince him that we couldn't leave this furniture outside permanently because it REALLY isn't outside/outside furniture. We decided just hang out in the courtyard for a while and watch Ron move the furniture around and vacuum the garage with the wet/dry vac. He seems to have a fetish for that thing.

I took pictures of my Cana's which turned out so nice this year. I absolutely love these plants. They are huge and just keep blooming and blooming.


Jordan spent time putting together his skate board...I thought they were like SOOO played, but then again my son does play lacrosse and now tries to do tricks on his skate board. Any minute now, he will be building his own personal ramp.


Even Cara had a great time riding around in her Dora Mobile and eating Doritos - one of her favorite snacks. Even my mom got in on the deal and we opened a bottle of wine and just enjoyed the sun going down.


All in all, it was a great lazy Sunday afternoon.

9/15/07

NSN DC/Baltimore Pre-Conference Party

Last night was the NSN DC/Baltimore Pre-Conference Party at The Gallery in Silver Spring. WE HAD A BLAST. We had a private lounge area where we could listen to "Soulful Sounds" play and enjoy great food and drinks. WHUR was there hosting the live jazz event and we just got to take part in it all.

The 11th Annual National Sales Network Conference begins next Thursday at the Wardman Park Marriott in DC. If you are not registered...YOU ARE GONNA MISS a great conference.
So WHY SHOULD YOU ATTEND (Do what you want, I'm just sayin...):

The NSN conference workshops are designed to assist you with the development of the skills required to ensure that you are competitive in the fast paced ever changing sales environment. The workshop presenters as well as the featured speakers are carefully selected and represent the absolute best of class.

Personal Development
It's not all about what you can do for your company. Your personal development is critical to your health and well being without which you could not be a star producer for any company. The NSN conference makes every effort to incorporate and address issues that impact your personal development.

Networking
The NSN conference provides a unique opportunity to interface with sales professionals that represent all industries from around the country. In addition, attendees are able to have one-on-one conversations with VP's of Sales from some of the leading companies in the US. The annual NSN conference has the dubious distinction of having the highest concentration of Africa-American VP's of Sales then any other annual meeting or conference in the world.

Cost/Value Relationship
The National Sales Network Conference & Career Fair has one of the best cost/value relationships. The very low registration fee far exceeds your return on investment.

Conference Profile 2006
Over 600 Attendees
Over 22 States Represented + International
Account Executive to VP of Sales Titles
Attendees Manage Up to $1.2 B / 200 Employees
Average Yrs of Selling Exp. = 10.3 yrs
Average Yrs of Management Exp. = 5.5 Yrs Average
51.4 % Company Paid (Career Development)

NSN Industry Representation
Pharmaceuticals
Consumer Products
Medical Devices
Technology
Financial Services
Hospitality
Real Estate
Consulting
Advertising / Media
Telecommunications
Industrial
Education

FW: Breaking News!! Second-degree battery charges against Mychal Bell Overturned!

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The Rev. Al Sharpton speaks to a standing-room only congregation at Trout Creek Baptist Church in Jena, La., Aug. 5. Seated with Sharpton are Marcus Jones, left, and Melissa Bell, parents of Mychal Bell. Behind Sharpton are several of the other accused students. 

 

Late breaking news on the Jena Six case!!

The Associated Press has reported that the 3rd Circuit of Court of Appeals has overturned the second-degree battery charges against Mychal Bell!

Bob Noel, one of Bell's attorneys stated that the court has ruled that 17-year-old Bell should never have been charged as an adult. Though this decision offers a glimmer of hope for Bell amidst what seemed to be a sea of judicial disappointments, he will not automatically be released and the charges can be upped by LaSalle Parish District Attorney Reed Walters.

Walters can appeal the decision, accept the decision and charge Bell as an adult with attempted murder, or charge Bell with aggravated second-degree battery as a juvenile.

 
CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO READ THE FULL STORY...
 
  • Be sure to check AFRO.com for updates on the Jena Six Case!!

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