Ride With Me

As I dig deeper within my soul to discover the possibilities of my mission in life, I find a bunch of diamonds

covered in dirt. The diamonds are known as the joy that nature   brings to my life. I refer to the dirt as the challenges that constantly attempts to take away from my joy.




On Dr. Phil's special episode of  "Baiters," I heard a great example on how to manage life metaphorically spoken through the process of driving.

If you are constantly looking in the rear view mirror, while driving, you will crash and end up in a ditch. 

Where as in reality, if you are constantly looking back on the occurrences of your life, you will crash as you are taking away from allowing yourself to move forward. 

Another example was about the 8 year old and adult: Would you trust an 8 year old to drive your car carefully without getting into any accidents?

I hope not!

But if in life, you find yourself letting your inner 8 year old self take control over your adult hood by constantly bringing up things from your past, you will end up in  destruction as you would if the 8 year old were driving.

As I was driving today, while cars were ignorantly jumping in front of me, I noticed how much I lack road rage. I was proud of myself to find myself at ease. I was reminded of the Dr. Phil driving metaphors and more examples began to pour out from my mind.

If I get angry at a car for driving too slow in front of me or for jumping in front of me without showing its signal, how angry would I get if I actually got into an accident?
How will I be able to handle the situation then through my anger?

As in reality, getting angry over minor issues has never prepared me for the bigger and tougher obstacles that nature has brought upon me. Ironically, I was more in control of my temper while I was driving than when I was sitting in my room in the dark crying because of a comment my father said. For now on, I will practice to control my temper for my personal life the same way I did while I was driving.



Being stuck in traffic will cause us to be late, but usually the peak of traffic is caused by a car accident that you were so luckily to have miss. Some rushing folks are able to dodge traffic by taking through short cuts. And other folks will rather take the local route, traffic and all.


In order to reach a successful point in your life, it takes time, faith and alertness.


It takes time and a speed limit in order to safely reach your destination. It takes confidence in other drivers to  trust that they have enough common sense to not drive into you and cause for you to run off the road. And it also takes being alert to your surroundings to be able to swiftly dodge the bumps of the pavement.

When we receive our permits and licenses for the various vehicles a dealership has to offer, we gain  more experience and even more responsibility as we commit ourselves to the bigger properties of life.

Something blocks you from being able to succeed in your life, you have to carefully move on the next empty lane.

SWERVE!






You  are in control of your own life whether it is your choice to do right or wrong. You are responsible to pay for the consequences of your actions.


You carry the power of your life as your hands are on the steering wheel.

Every now and then you must undergo construction in order to smoothen out the road on your mission possible. Even if we have come to the end of the road, we will always have  the tools and the ability to be able to reconstruct our paths and start new.

You are an Aston Martin.

We ALL wake up in Bugatti's.

 Thanks to be God.

If you have reached the end of this post, please tweet me any questions, comments and concerns @VanityNoSin for I am just as human as you are. Also, follow my journey through pictures and #veedoes on Instagram @VanityNoSin.

Thank you xox

Nature Callz

This blog was inspired by my fascination to display the discovering of new, underground artists and their music. Throughout this blog, I have grown and have been exposed to many challenges in life that allows my journey on this Mission Possible be as exciting as it is. As time goes by, I have discovered a lot about myself that I am sure others can relate to. 

Recently, I have been on a marathon of achievements as I gain experience by challenging myself to greater things bigger than myself, such as speaking in front of crowds about my experiences. I had the opportunity to share two of my stories with New Life United Methodist Church and how I managed my conflict. I received a lot of encouragement and respect for my honesty. I show no shame in what I have gone through. This is my story:

The New Year had just begun and I was ready to kick off the semester so that I can be on the Dean’s List once again. I went to Orlando for the weekend to celebrate my then boyfriend’s birthday. Or so I thought. Upon going I remember my father asking me "Why don’t you spend the weekend with us in Tampa?" “Oh, Dad, I just want to stay at Daja’s house and get to know her family.” I lied. The whole weekend was a disaster. As soon as I got to Orlando, my asthma started kicking in and my boyfriend and I were arguing. I had to call my parents so that they can come bring me asthma medicine. My family came as quick as they could. I felt better, until we went out to dinner and my father pulled me aside to tell me he had news for me. He told me my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. While writing this speech, I am getting emotional because as I recap the chain of events, a massive feeling of guilt takes over me. I tried to hold in my tears, but as soon as I laid eyes on my beautiful innocent mother, I burst. My asthma started to kick back in and I panicked. Why my mother? Is it my fault? Being the spiritual person that my mother is, she calmed me down and told me that everything would be all right. But everything was not really all right. My success that spring semester was a total failure. I went from Dean’s List to Academic Probation Warning. I dealt with my problems the wrong way; I was out all night, I skipped a lot of class, I tried to occupy myself with what I thought was "fun." Yet my mother was still sick with cancer. That summer, I went home. I had to see and help my mother go through chemotherapy. I too felt like I was diagnosed. The hardest part was while I was sweeping the house, majority of what I swept was my mothers falling hair. I could not deal. How did I manage my conflict? I honestly didn’t. My grades dropped horribly. My attitude was no better. But the good news is that, my mother survived. She survived with all of her prayers and faith. Whenever I feel like not getting up in the morning or I lose faith in something, I use my mother as an example of hope. As it says in Jeremiah 29:11, For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Today, I realize that my mother did not suffer breast cancer. Breast cancer was a sign from the Lord that as individuals, as a family, we can conquer everything. Breast cancer wasn’t the lesson learned; it is how I am able to deal with the effects that come with it. I look up to my mother and I am so proud to see her spirit come to life through me.
 



I am a blessed child, always have been and always will be. But I was infected with a disease. A disease from what most people know as the Sticky Fingers. I would walk up in any store and take what ever it was that I wanted. I was grown enough to know right from wrong. I believed that stealing would only be wrong if I were to get caught. So for a long time, I was supporting myself by taking things from stores without paying for it. I felt no remorse. I did as I pleased. Of course, everything that is done in the dark, will indeed, comes to light. So it finally caught up with me. I was at the store, taking things, and as I was headed for the exit, security caught me and told me to come with him. He had informed me that I was caught on camera taking a bathing suit. They wanted it back. I thought “Oh, that’s it? Chuckles* Here take your bathing suit.” As I took it out, all of the other stuff came out too. By then I knew I was in major trouble. Because I did not reside in the county the store was located, I was arrested. I did not argue, I did not complain, I simple accepted the consequences. For I believed that this time had to come, if not, something worse would have occurred. I had to change into the jail clothes, sit in the cell, go through the whole procedure. After my parents bailed me out, it hit me really hard what I had just committed. A crime is a crime. No matter how big or small. I cried, but not feeling sorrow for myself, I felt awful for my parents, that I had to drag them down with me. I went back to school, scared for my life thinking that I will get my financial aid taken away and that I would have to serve more days in jail. I was a nervous wreck. After I did my research, I was determined to redeem myself. I worked harder than ever in school, I seeked opportunities, and I cleaned my life up. I was ashamed that I have this on my record but I no longer live in caution. Isaiah 41:10  fear not, for I am with you;  be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you,  I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. And did He give me strength indeed. I am stronger than I have ever been. I no longer dwell on my arrest; I praise it for it has allowed me to talk about my experience with others. It has taught me to be responsible for my actions. I don’t wait for a tragedy to occur in order to redeem myself. I work harder everyday and seek opportunities that will outdo my arrest. I made a mistake that will always be engraved in my memories for encouragement.
 


My mission statement is to spread awareness on the importance of nature. As technology expands, as a whole, we tend to forget the value of nature and how it is a major part of our lives. It is a part of nature to possibly be diagnosed with a disease or know somebody close to you with a sickness. I have the experience; I can relate to the person and help bring them out of their misery. Throughout my mother’s sickness, I did not have anybody who knew how it felt to talk to. I had to help myself out of the depression that I was in. And I was able to succeed by regaining my faith. I have helped others out of their misery. It brings me closer to God when I am able to help others.  People fall into temptation everyday and tend to forget about the consequences, and even more not fully know how to deal with the consequences in a responsible way. I believe that God has blessed me with a special gift to help others deal with their troubles. I don’t regret anything that I have been through for it has made me the strong person that I am today. As I like to say, What does not kill me, makes me stronger, so I must be on steroids. Figuratively speaking of course. 

Truly Yours

I took a personality test for my Psychology class and I had to share my goals and what I want to pursue in my career. Here is what I wrote:

My current goal is to continue to seek opportunities that will allow me to gain experience with my career goals. I am an aspiring entertainer. My current goals are to host shows and events held on campus and in the community and write for newspapers, magazines and blogs, specifically the school newspaper, FAMUan and my blog. These are my current goals because as each day passes, I am getting closer to graduating from Florida A&M University.  I would be insane to not take advantage of the opportunities that are right in front of my face. I have a big spirit, so I am interested in writing about an array of topics. I yearn to stand out because I understand that the journalism field is very competitive. I am willing to do certain tasks that the average female will not do. I enjoy writing about specific issues and topics that the young college student would not normally write, for example tax fraud and how it can affect a student’s present and future.

Labeled as an “ugly duckling” growing up, I always admired what I saw on TV; I spent my whole childhood trying to grow up entirely too fast trying to go along with the trends, and my grades suffered terribly all because I thought that would make me Miss Popular. It was not until high school that realized that everything I saw on TV was fake and full of foolishness. I was angry at myself because I allowed myself to make a fool out of myself thinking the way I thought and trying so hard the way I did to fit in. I set my mark throughout the halls of Leto High School with my original style and big hair. I stood far out from the average female student. I was a class clown, I loved to read aloud, and I continued to follow up on all of the trends … but only to inform other people around me. I participated in plays, which was totally not cool, but I succeeded. I managed to win “Most Likely to Be Famous” out of my whole Senior class. I wanted to further expand my knowledge, so I went on to college, but not just any college, I went to Florida A&M University.

Today I stand as a third year Broadcast Journalism student and my younger third grade self could not be any more proud. My mission is to save the little girls of this generation who are just like me when I was growing up. Through the art of mass communications, I will spread awareness on the importance of nature and natural beauty. I plan to make people of all ages feel beautiful within their own skin. Through radio, magazines, and television, I will help viewers realize that bliss and beauty comes from within, from your nature and natural instincts.

Based on the results from the personality test, my strengths that can facilitate on accomplishing my goals are extremely accurate. I received high scores for a lot of great things such as liveliness, dominance and perfectionism. The low scores that I received were because I am trusting, unsuspecting, accepting, complacent and self satisfied. I am outgoing, attentive, kind, easy-going and I like people. I prefer abstract thinking rather than reasoning because I am strongly self-reliable, resourceful, and individualistic.

I have been awarded with a gift from God to help people flee from their self-misery. I will uplift my brother and sister and praise them with the truth until they realize their worth. Everyone has the potential to succeed, no matter how big or small his and her dream is. The rise to success starts with your self-esteem. When you have confidence within yourself, you are unstoppable; you can achieve everything you dream of. I will spread awareness throughout my community by first and foremost, practicing what I preach. I will continue to embrace my strengths and show it off in a positive matter. I will contribute the values of nature to my community and hopefully the nation. 

CRIB!

Nate and Devin are two young aspiring rappers coming out of Tampa, FL. CRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIB!

I got the chance to virtually spend a whole day with the two by conversing with them about life and asking them questions about their rap career.

Like the big urban hippie that I am, Nate and Devin are hippies too. They are able to express themselves through their music attempting to spread awareness on reality. 

"It is a shame what our world is today, but we can save it. It starts with us right now," says Nitti Nate.

I run into a lot of people who share the same beliefs on how to improve the world. We, as a whole, ARE the majority. But I have noticed that since we are so humble and peace willing, we tend to fade into the obnoxiousness of negative people, the minority.

Devin and Nate are close friends who feature each other on one another's songs.

"We met through the ganja but we parted ways for a while. After a year or so, I came back and told him I was rapping and he goes, "Dog, me too!" From there on we have been working with each other. Building a team, building something strong," says Devin on how he and Nate got together.

Both rappers vent to the beat about past experiences and their daily lifestyle. They share with their audience their deepest secrets.

Devin likes to stand out as a storyteller. He does not want to rap about "money, clothes and hoes." Although he did attempt to write like it, it just did not work out for him. He plans to help improve his city. He wants to share his success with his hood believing that life is too short to work two jobs just to live. "People are so talented and nobody can stop you from your dreams. I live it everyday. I hope to make a difference, man, being a white MC is a pretty good feeling."

Devin pours his heart out on one of his tracks letting the world into his dark closet where his skeletons are kept. He shares with his audience about when he was abused as a kid and having to watch his mother get hit. "I have seen a lot for a 20 year old, I have been through enough. But music and rhyming is like my journal, it is a release where I can go and say how I feel."

Nitti Nate says that music can teach, heal and uplift your mood. "Shit, growing up it was all of that for me. Even when I was not necessarily looking for answers, I found them in music and I want to share that with others."

I thank artists like Nate and Devin, even if they are not internationally known. Their motives behind each of their music gives me hope that one day we can reach world peace. G shit. There are so many people like us; who want to live in a better place that is working toward making that change starting with them. They are many of us in this world who want to share their success with others.

"I have been noticing that people around me all want the same thing or something similar so we just have been growing and finding out where we want to take our movement," Nate says.

You can hear Devin and Nate's music on each of their Sound Clouds. Also keep up with them on Twitter.

(Clickable links)

@813TherealDevin & Devin Pickett Sound Cloud

Nitti Nate Sound Cloud

Catfish from the Trap

The use of mass communications can be easily abused. But in many ways people are easily able to connect with one another at any given time no matter how far or close a person may be. Not everyone you might meet via social networks is harmful, nor should you always be ashamed to meet people online. This post gives an example of the constructive use of social networks in reference to the infamous Catfish that many of us have been exposed to. 

On Twitter, I interact with various people from all over the country. I was granted the opportunity one day while promoting for my blog to speak with Craigo Gettems, Founder of TrapRock Radio from Baltimore. I was granted to get to know the story of how Trap Rock was formed and a little bit about the artists under TrapRock, Jase and Jayy Starr. 

Craigo started off TrapRock in 2007 as a DJ hosting mix tapes, influenced by DJ Drama and Gangsta Grillz. In 2011, Craigo decided to expand the TrapRock brand with adding artists, clothing, websites, etc. "As a brand, it will give artists a platform to be heard, to reach a broad audience, to have support, to have sharing network opportunities, and to come up with creative ideas in order to make the brand stronger.”

Jase, one of Craigo's artists under TrapRock, has been with Craigo since he first started TrapRock. Jase rapped and Craigo DJ’ed, which allowed the both of them to always have a voice and a vision. But they knew that they had to improve themselves before they took on bigger responsibilities. By 2010, with the help of Craigo, Jase came out with a mix tape titled, "Waiting," which is now an album. "An impressive album that got plenty of positive feedback and praises from his peers. Jase's one and only project so far," says the proud supporter. 

Click here to download

Jayy Starr, another artist under TrapRock, is from California. Another praise for the use of constructive mass communications.

"I met Jayy Starr in 2010 while networking on Twitter on Christmas day. She released a video entitled "Grinchmas." Somebody who was doing promo mentioned her music to her Twitter. I thought her video and song was so on point, it caught me off guard cause I never heard a female artist with so many flows as well as confidence and charisma. I tweeted her giving her much props. I did my research on You Tube and heard more of her music. After I heard this one song, "Fairy tale," I was completely sold. I haven't heard a female MC as talented as her in a very long time. She defies the stereotype that they give many female artists now day."

Around the same time, Craigo started up a new venture TrapRockRadio.com with his partner Big Dro. They wanted to create a platform for artists not just in Baltimore, but also around the whole country; as well as to show artists from Baltimore to the whole country. 

Jayy Starr's latest project can be downloaded on Datpiff and also found on TrapRockRadio.com.

Click here to download

"It is on a solid foundation starting with me and provides a platform for the artists music. It is family oriented whether it is support in music or in general. I care to know what is going on, like a strong friendship. We share creative ideas and helpful suggestions to make the brand stronger. Which I believe will make the bond even tighter and motivate us all. There will be two songs dropping on Valentines Day, Jayy Starr Falling Out and Jayy Starr featuring Jase Love Killer Pt.2," says Craigo.

The independent label, Top Dawg Entertainment, influences Craigo. "I like how the founder stands behind his artists. In a three to four year span, Kendrick, Schoolboy, Ab Soul, and Jay Rock all have been successful from the way their solo projects have been valued with presentation, quality and merchandising. I really like how they use the music, name and clothing to create revenue. As well Nipsey Hussle and his label All Money In." 

EPIC 2012

Happy HoliLIDZ

A happy holiday, indeed, my friends. I hope that you are enjoying yourself and having a relaxed break.

Thank you for being here with me as I introduce you to  Lance aka @JetLifeLidz, soon to be known as DJ Lidz.

Coming live from the underrated city of Tallahassee and the highest of the hills at FAMU, Lance is an up and coming DJ who stands out from any other DJ in the city with the unique choice of music he puts together in his weekly mixes for Hip-Hop lovers on his Sound Cloud page.     

https://soundcloud.com/djlidz25/

As a beginning DJ, the humble, handsome young man purposely usually refrains from todays 'ratchet' music to remind music fans of the rich culture that Hip-Hop and Rap has grown up from. He celebrates the culture in his mixes with new school sounds like Black Hippy, Childish Gambino and Stalley, as well as going back in time with classics by artists like Tupac, Snoop Dogg and A Tribe Called Quest.

Lance is not like any ordinary DJ. You must have a true love for Hip-Hop and Rap in order to understand where he is coming from with his craft. Sorry, not sorry. He stands out as a DJ because not only does he play for his audience but he plays for himself, as well, as he stays loyal to his musical roots.

I am proud to be apart of this journey with him from gig to gig as I see how each crowd reacts to the selection of his songs.

A DJ is just as important as the lyrics flowed over a dope beat. The DJ is an artist himself as he sets the atmosphere at socials and parties by being able to paint smiles on faces for the way he blends in the colors of a beat from song to song.

As a witness, I am so proud of Lance as I watch him take control of the musical wheel while his audience goes along for the ride.

Cheers to good music and thank you DJ Lidz for celebrating the realness of Hip-Hop and Rap.

Peep and Follow him on https://soundcloud.com/djlidz25/

Thank you <3