nina

It’s Halloween again and it has me wondering where the year went and how did I miss it all, however this is one my most favorite holidays!  This is the one time of year I can dress up and be silly without caring what others are saying, but this year I have yet to find a costume suitable for my mood this year.  I have looked online, local stores, and even went through my own closet twice to try and find something.  In the past I have dressed up as a Hula girl, belly dancer, and even a streetwalker, these were just a few of my favorites and the ones I can remeber.  When it comes to dressing up though I would rather not put on crazy face paint or wear a wig unless it’s hilarious, this year the stores seem to be lacking these items or perhaps I have waited too long.  The wig sounds pretty good, and I think writing this blog about costumes made me realize what I want to be if I can find the right things to complete my idea.  So be safe don’t eat candy from strangers and make sure to have lots of FUN!  Happy Halloween and good luck costume hunting!

This is the emotion that drives us as human beings. We are constantly in fear of losing our job, worried what others think of us, etc. There is no acceptable reason to feel this way. Take nationwide laws such as if you steal, you will go to jail for a couple of years. This is a prime example of fear we are threatened on a daily basis that our freedom will be snatched from under our bare feet and left with nothing. Americans especially are in fear that they may lose all the money they have worked so hard for, for 20-30 years. I am not implying by any means that you should go and rob the corner store, I am simply asking that we all sit back and ask ourselves, Why does fear motivate us? Motivation should come from somewhere else, but unfortunately this is how (like cattle) we are kept “inside the fence”.

I was watching television last night while my dinner was being prepared for me in the kitchen and Oprah came on…the segment featured women struggling with an alcohol addiction. This subject is very close to my heart because I watched my mother struggle with this same addiction and the damage that is done to the families can be extremely devastating. My story is a bit different than the ones shown on television because my mother is no longer around to help spread awareness on the disease of addiction.
My story is as follows; At eight years old I was told my mother wouldn’t live to see me graduate high school, get my drivers license, or see me start my own family if her drinking was to continue this way. She was diagnosed with a disease called esophageal varices which causes the esophagus to hemorrhage into the stomach only to be excreted by way of vomiting. There were times I can remember cleaning up as much as a pint of blood at a time from our apartment walls and that wasn’t the worst part for me…the worst is watching someone you love give in and suffer from this terrible addiction! She was taken to a gastroenterologist in Atlanta Ga where her esophagus would be banded back together with medical bands and would discontinue the hemorrhaging if she could stop the drinking and end the torture being done to me and her body. Of course because she didn’t the end result was eventually death. As the physicians predicted I was sixteen and alone, my entire immediate family was taken from me by this addiction. This for many years and sometimes even now is hard to deal with. The damage that this disease does to your mind, body, soul, and spirit also kills the hearts of those around you.
I wrote this blog in hopes of helping others even though it leaves me feeling vulnerable while the world reads one of my biggest struggles in life. However if I am able to even just save one person from going down this dark dark road of addiction my job has been done! There are plenty of places to go for help if you think you or someone close to you has a problem with drugs and/or alcohol.  This is a struggle that a majority of our nation continues to hide from others because they are afraid of being judged…don’t be afraid just get help!

Have you seen the new movie Couples Retreat? A friend decided we should go to the movies and because I let them pay for the tickets, I of course let him choose the movie.  I was excited to see it at first because the actors in it are some of my favorites such as Vince Vaughn who always brings humor to the table as well as Jon Favreau, Jason Bateman, and Faizon Love.  The movie starts out fairly well however as the movie progressed it became more and more predictable.  A majority of the funny parts were all the television previews so there were no surprises, which is an element I enjoy when watching new movies.  I would say the ending is the most predictable because the couples all stay together after having their relationships tested daily by couples therapy

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