First days of the week

Perfect start of the week. After a 3 hours long, boring and fatiguing course, I was on my way home when it started to rain and I forgot my umbrella. Hate getting wet cause it ruins my nicely brushed hair! It makes it curly and stuff... When I came home, I just wanted to get back to bed to catch up some sleep, until I saw a note that my cousin would come over cause there was something wrong with her internet. Bleh! Means I had to stay up for someone I can't stand (you can't choose your family unfortunately). So I waited and waited... and she didn't even show up! Was kinda pissed off cause I love sleeping!

Luckily my hubby kept me company while I was just waiting there for someone who wouldn't show up. He gave me a pretty long to-do list though (yes Sheriff, 11 things is a lot!) but I got a cam session as a thank you! Ain't that sweet of him? lOl. It's always funny to see his bright face with the big smile, even though his studio walls give me a head ache.

Today I had to wake up at 6 am to catch the 7 o'clock train. Always fun to be dropped in a full to the brim train where you have to stand for the whole trip! People stepping or your feet, handbags slapped to your face (that's the downside of being only 5-3 in this big men's world), ... 8.30-10.30 class was quite exhausting cause the prof was on full force (at this damn early hour where I was still trying to wake up). Second prof was horrible! He started a sentence and half way through his sentence, he started a new one. This is a torture for a "parrot" like me. When I take notes, I just type what the guy says, literally. So when he starts a new one without finishing the old one, my notes are a big joke! The worst thing is that this guy refuses to use books so all you have are your own notes. Lord knows how my exam marks will be...

So next week Monday the train drivers are going on strike, which means I wont be able to get to class. Unless I go by car which is suicide cause they drive like nut people over here! So I'll just be spending a sweet and relaxed Monday at home.

Gotta bounce now cause class will start soon.

Tom Ford

Weekend! Some people live only two days a week: Saturdays and Sundays. The other 5 days are just a burden, something you have to struggle your way through. I am one of those few people. Back in high school, I really hated normal week days. Going to class and all of that. When I entered University three years ago, I started to like the normal days too, but still there is nothing more pleasant than a weekend. Especially a Saturday. Waking up at your own rhythm, going shopping,... Heaven on earth for a girl.

Talking about shopping: I got two new perfumes! Black Orchid and White Patchouli, both by Tom Ford. I love them both! Black Orchid is more a heavy scent, perfect for the "black dress" evenings. White Patchouli on the other hand is suitable for the "jeans, trendy bag and sunglasses" trips to town. They are kind of expensive, but it's a must-have for every woman. Plus these fragrances are so heavy that you only need one drop, to smell good all day long (and even longer!). And because the eye wants something too, the frankincense comes in a classy design (don't we all love those beautiful glass bottles, girls?).

Lol yh I hear you think "how full most her cosmetics box be"? Well I must say I got quite some fragrances. I mostly share them with my mom. My favorite ones so far are:

1. Black XS by Paco Rabanne
   I Just love this one. It's girly, yet strong and different.
2. White Patchouli by Tom Ford
   Unique because not much stores sell it, had to look hard to find it.
3. Donna Karan New York by Donna Karan
   It smells as luxurious as the looks of the bottle!

I made a cake today. Tasted great, but I used a little bit too much coconut... The smell was heavenly! You could smell it from the kitchen to the living room, dining room and even the bedrooms... No I don't share so don't even ask! Lol!

Wishing y'all a nice week ahead

Customization!

I found this cute ass, bling bling, yet kitschy FF theme. Found an apple-like one too but since I also have Safari on my laptop, it would be boring to use two look-alikes. I know, I know, it's just a web browser, but still, the eye wants something too. I always want my stuff to look flashy and not standard like everyone else... Too bad I don't know how to make it myself, because I would love a customized one made by me!

I survived the first week of the new academic year. Barely, but I survived... My body is not used to function during mornings. It is programmed to wake up at noon, be active around 2mp, full force around 10pm and breakdown around 3am... But now it has to wake up at 6am, active at 8.30am (plus be on full force straight away) and it can't break down before 9pm. It's really torturing. I wonder how long this can go on. I'm sure that in some weeks time, I'll need a whole weekend to recuperate.

Received some irritated looks this morning. Was on my way to the station and it was crowded so had to show patience. To chill a bit (yelling at the other drivers doesn't work anyway), I switched on my radio. Searched for a good CD, turned the volume a bit higher and sung along. I must say I received some not-so-friendly looks. Ok, maybe the music was a bit loud... 6 woofers in my car and volume on 21... I would get agitated too I guess... But the whole town could enjoy the Bizzy Body Remix by P-Square. Ain't I friendly?!

Today class was done a bit earlier then expected so I decided to go on elephant hunt. Nah don't start laughing and thinking I lost my mind! From September till November, there are around 70 elephants displayed in Antwerp. This to make people aware that the elephant is an animal species who's threatened. Later on, the statutes will be put up for auction an dthe money will be used to rescue the elephants. So enjoy my trip in images! PS: my favorite one was the Happinez Yin & Yang Black.

60 seconds

Exactly sixty seconds... That's how long one minute takes. Though, sometimes, it looks like ages. Today was one of those days. I was exhausted and wanted to go home as soon as possible. So I was staring at my watch the whole day long. Time was crawling by... Like a snail... S...e...c...o...n...d after s...e...c...o...n...d. You got my point, right? Time just didn't want to pass. After a while I decided to open PhotoShop. The guy staring at my screen gave me a strange look and I gave him the "mind your own damn business"-look. The prof decided to end early today. Mehn was I happy!

My back is still killing me. Yesterday, I decided to pick up some books. Not all of them because that would be too heavy. So I decided to take five books. Pfff! Heavy! It was already five kg. That's one kg a book. From now on they print the books recto/verso. How heavy would they have been if they only were printed recto? ten kg?! So now my shoulder is dislocated from the heavy handbag, back is killing me and my heart, well my heart was in my boots... I will never be able to stuff all of that in my head... I will never be able to stuff all those pages in my head... And I didn't even get all my books. Much more to come! Oh boy...

October 11th, a big red mark in my agenda. I just received confirmation from Brussels Airport that Sheriff can leave the airport while he is in transit... Yay! I'll only be able to see him for a couple of hours, but that's already more than enough! Every second I can spend with him is a blessing. Now we are at him: some days ago I was listening to a love song that I heard millions of times before, but I never had the "it" feeling. Until yesterday! I was listening to it again and all of the sudden I got chills running down my spine. Smoochy love songs only have a meaning when you have someone special in mind. I know that you had some bad experiences with Nigerians, but still, this one is for you. PS: get well soon!

I dey miss you die
I dey beg you
make you try to understand
there's no one like you
and I wonder why
Why it is any time I dey with another person
I dey think about you
Now I realise
I dey think about you everyday
I truly no get anything to say
I really think I'm going insane

There is this TV-show on television for some weeks now. It is a Flemish production called Voorbij de grens (can be translated as beyond limits). It is about ten adults who each have a disability. Some are nearly blind, other ones paralized or missing legs/arms. Yet another person has the Wiedeman-Rautenstrauch syndrome, and the other person is deaf. Each one has his own way to handle the disability. Some have accepted it, other will never be able to accept it. But yet these ten persons dared a trip to Nicaragua where they climb the highest mountain, enter the jungle... Last episode you saw how a paralised woman, Anita, was strugling to get on the mountain. Almost pulling herself up, only using the strength of her arms. She was exhaused and suffering, yet she refused to give up. Or this other person, Sam, who was born with only short arms and legs (no hands nor feet). He went, literally, beyond his limits and he crashed. But they all have one thing in common: the will to fight, to show they are not less than a normal person. And they succeed to do so because they work together as a team. It is truly admirable what they did and the way they did it. Nuff respect!

When something is bugging you...

... you need to get it of your chest. And that's what I am going to do.

There was this girl I was friends with for over 3 years. I was there for her when she needed advise about one of her boyfriends. Yes "one of"... She had this "one true love" in NYC, but while he was over there, she took the time to get into bed with almost every black guy over here. True love my ass... And when she thought he was cheating on her, she was all crying and shocked he could do that to her! Abeg... He was busy earning money to support him and his mother, so is it that hard to be less egocentric and understand that the guy needs someone who supports him and not someone who expects a daily 2-hour call? Where was I? Yes right, we were friends for over 3 years and some months ago, all of the sudden I was not good enough anymore. Without any reason... Childish right?! But heck, who cares. Finally I can stop wasting my time on her. One of the reasons why I don't have many female friends! They always think they are better than you. Ok, fine, sometimes you find a great girl who becomes something closer then a friend, more like a sister... Ain't that right Lolu?
PS: if you feel intimidated or visualized right now, you can either make a scene or bow your head and realize what a crappy friend you have been. You'll probably prefer to make a scene out of it, maybe even write a song to diss me, calling me a bitch and things like that... But hey it took you 3 years to figure out I'm a bitch?!

My hubby got his own blog now and he dedicated a large part of his first entry to me! I'm all blushing right now and I'm so proud of my talented, young, adventurous, smart, outspoken, considerate, clever, carrying and teddy bear looking boyfriend. Girls, you can read, learn and listen but you can't touch! That's my hubby right there!

First day of the new academic year was amazing... because I didn't go! Hah! The actual classes start on Tuesday and I got a morning class so I need to get my ass up at 6am to catch my 7am train. Mehn! I'm not really a morning bird so it will be a real torture for me. Normally I'm going to bed around that time... Great news is that I normally only have 2 hours of class that day (if my predictions are correct). So I gotta get up at 6, take my train, attend 2 hours of class, go back home... If I'm lucky, I'll be home around 12... 6 hours away from home (and my bed) for a two hour class. "Public transport: fast and easy", my ass! Antwerp City is only 30 km away from where I live, but yet ut takes me around an hour to get there. 30-40 minutes on the train (not included the usual delays), a 20 minute walk to my university (the way back is always 5 minutes faster because I don't want to miss my train) and arriving there 30 minutes too early because if I would take a later train, I would be 5 minutes too late. Horrible isn't it? I'm complaining about this for 3 years now and I will keep doing it until I am graduated! This is not an efficient time management!

Sheriff just pulled a shocked face when I told him about how I wrote my book reviews in high school. I'll share the secret. Every time we had a book review to write, I made sure I choose a book that had a movie remake. So instead of spending days on reading the book, I watched the movie and wrote the review! But hey, I didn't end up that bad, now did I? It's an old trick. Students before me used it, I used it and I'm sure students after me are also using it. What's the point of writing book reviews anyway? Let the pro's handle that. They are paid to do so and they are much better at it than us students are! (Excuse out of laziness)

Today it was the first day of fall. Together with winter, this is my less favorite season. It means the days get shorter and the trees go bald. The roads and gardens will be full of brown and orange leaves... It has this sad feeling... It can be romantic too though! You'll stay in bed with your loved one much longer than you do when the sun is shining, you lay close, carress each other, have a long conversation while sharing kisses once in a while... You have breakfast on bed and afterwards you go out to the park for a long walk. You can smell the nature because it rained last night. You hear the birds flying over, on their way to a warmer place...

And that is where I am going too... A warmer place called "my bed"... A place where I can dream about the guy that fills my heart with joy, day after day. Love you S!

The importance of artwork

Tomorrow it will be the first day of the new Academic year and, same as last year, I'm going to skip it. It is über ridiculous that I would take the train to Antwerp, ok it is only 30 minutes, just to pick up my college schedule, which can be found on blackboard.

Today I downloaded the new Joe album and I am kind of disappointed for two different reasons.
I always loved the guy's music. It's a fantastic cross between R&B and smooth vibes. Great music to listen to when you want to spend a romantic night with your sweetie (even though I still prefer D'Angelo for that). But this album is crap! There wasn't a single good song on it. Joe Thomas, New Man a big disappointment music-like.

And also the CD-cover sucks big time. Hopefully it is not the definite version. I mean, a crappy damask background in an ugly brown color and some horrible brushing-away around the head. Then a red line (who doesn't match the brown damask) and a black text with a standard yellow inner glow/bevel and emboss. The sunglasses with this non-natural glaze and bad/forgotten details, especially the left glass.

So what qualities does a good CD-cover need to have? Can't say there is a standard road to success. One time a simple and clean album cover can do the trick, the other time a flashy and catchy is the way to go.

Let me guide you through some great CD-covers. The first one I want to discuss is Hotel Impala (Baloji). It has a clean broken white background with his face painted on it. The colors are chosen very well. They are all significant for the African continent. The font is kept neutral and simple so the face gets all the attention. The guy who made this true piece of art is Pablo Gonzalez. The cover is inspired by His California Album by Bobby Blue Bland. Baloji wanted the cover to be simple, something which he succeeded, and the inside to be colorful, something in which he succeeded too. The cover matches the concept this CD was based on so I would definitely give it a 4 star rating.

Next up is The Birth of Cornelius (Corneille). This album cover is pure class. His face is clearly PhotoShopped, but it is done flawlessly! Use of colors is a big thumbs up. Simple gray color range that matches the jacket he is wearing. And the purple scarf looks so soft and it breaks the hard gray by gives the image this warm feeling. The medallion and grungy effects, together with the tissue of the jacket completes the old portrait-look. 3 and a half star for this classy and sophisticated look.

Erykah Badu. If you know her music, you will also know that you can't put her in a box. She has different influences and her music has some strange twists once in a while. So is her artwork. It's different, colorful and yet controversial. If you look closely to her latest CD-cover, New Amerykah Part One (4th World War), you will notice the hand with the chains (a symbol she frequently uses), but also foetuses, a plane dropping a bomb, guns,... The designer really thought carefully about this and he portrayed her concept about America in a subtle way. You really have to look closely to see what it is all about. Hands down one of the best album covers I've ever seen so I will give it 5 stars.

M.I.A. She's this vivid girl from Sri Lanka with her catchy music that can get everyone up their feet and shake what your momma gave you. Her artwork is just as crazy as her music! The colors are too bright, the shapes are too mind blowing,... It is one masterly unorganized organised (contradiction in terminis, I know) artwork, that shows that the designer thought about this concept for longer than 1 second! Everyone can make trashy things, but it is a true art to make something as kicthy as this and still succeeded to actually make it work! I give it 4 stars.

Nigger, that's how Nasir Jones initially wanted to call his latest album. It was so controversial that he had to change it. But as Nas said "the people will always know what the real title of this album is and what to call it." The cover is kept dark and grungy, yet simple so all the attention would be drawn onto his back with the N. This N is created by falligation scars as a reference to the racial slur and how slaves were tortured. The scars look a bit too "made", but the overall effect does raise the desired emotions this image in created for. A 3 and a half star for this one.