Cherry Baked Oatmeal

There were no random thoughts decent enough for a blog post for me. So let’s see what I can come up with on the fly …

Oh wait - we did just come into a new toy! It’ll be at our house by the end of the weekend. AND it could be promising for more than just its educational purpose. More on that another day.

See?!

Ah! I made Cherry Baked Oatmeal last night. Yummy! If you haven’t tried baked oatmeal yet, do iiit … do iiit … just do it do it do iiittt!!! :D Seriously, though it’s amazing! Like having dessert for breakfast! You can make it even healthier by substituting bananas or applesauce into the recipe to replace the sugar. Of course, there are probably a few other adjustments when doing that, but still - it’s delicious! I never use the same recipe, but I’m trying to get there. I found a mixture we like, but I keep experimenting; this experiment was a success!

Butter (or spray) a pan {I used a pie pan}. Place the cherries (halved & pitted) in the bottom of the pan. Whisk together eggs & half & half & melted butter. Mix together oatmeal, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Combine egg mixture with oatmeal mixture and then just pour the mixture right on over those cherries at the bottom of the pan. Place this into a preheated 350° oven for about 35 minutes (until edges are a golden brown). Mmmmm!

{... this is just an excerpt. Measurements are not included because I didn't measure my ingredients. I eyeballed it for the most part. Hopefully, I will measure the next time.}

#DateHour

Hey folks! If you follow us on Twitter, you've probably seen #DateHour pop up several times. We don’t actually tweet about it every day, but still we’re pretty frequent about it.

It is going to probably be the basis for our next random project, but more about that after we've finally solidified that. What’s Date Hour? It’s our way of continuing to date while not having the time or resources to be able to do weekly or monthly date nights. So to rectify that, we implemented Date Hour. Almost every day, we set aside an hour for just us. Some nights it is a simple dessert & wine date. Other nights have been movie nights. And some others have been actually going out for late night drinks. Yet others have been more business meetings (financials, business planning, etc.). All in all, we use that time to continue to reconnect & reinforce our love for each other each and every day.

Woo hoo for the forever dating married life! I’m loving mine - what about you?

{... just a thought excerpt.}

Kitchen Experiments

Over the last couple weeks, I've been on a roll experimenting in my kitchen. These experiments have been interesting especially the liquids, mostly tea. So tonight’s post is about just that … enjoy!

Liquid Concoctions

Ginger Tea Soda: Ginger Tea + Sugar + Soda Stream

Strawberry Basil Syrup: Strawberries + Basil + Sugar

Strawberry Basil Rum Soda: Strawberry Basil Syrup + Rum + Soda Stream

Strawberry Ginger Tea Cocktail: Strawberry Cocktail Base + Ginger Tea + Vodka

Dark N Stormy Tea: Ginger Tea + Sugar + Dark Rum

Dark N Stormy Tea Soda: Dark N Stormy Tea + Soda Stream

Food Concoctions

French Toast Oatmeal: Oatmeal + French Toast leftover egg mixture + Syrup

Root Beer BBQ Pulled Pork: Root Beer + Pork + Slow Cooker +BBQ Sauce

Creamy Herbed Chicken: Herbed Cream of Chicken Soup + Chicken + Slow Cooker

Of all the concoctions, I think the Dark N Stormy Tea was my favorite liquid. The Root Beer BBQ Pulled Pork was my hands down favorite food concoction. One of these days I’ll do better about taking pictures so y’all can see them; the strawberry basil syrup & rum soda looked amazing!!

{... an excerpt from my thoughts of the day.}

Who's In your Timeline?

This is real random, but I follow about 100 or so people/business/articles on Twitter.  I was just looking over my timeline (TL) for the day and realized, besides my friends, I follow a number of things, that don’t necessarily go with one another.  That’s the beauty of twitter, you can adjust and follow as you want to, not just one category that pigeonholes you in a certain “box”.  

Here are a few of the things I follow on twitter - You may find we have some of them in common, if you even have a twitter page (FYI - your name may or may not appear on this list.  It doesn’t mean I don’t follow you, it doesn’t mean I don’t like you.  It just means I did or did not include your name on the list):

@mmesarcasm - Wifey, best friend, my heart

@TableTalkN - Spread the word!!!

@motor_29 - Main man. We ALWAYS find humor in stuff

@smile1112 - Fam; just a joy to be around

@NaturalEmerald - Fam; One of the Original 3

@KattPackAllDay - Katt Williams

@deoncole - Check out Deon Cole’s Black Box

@BossLady610 - Fam; Co-Owner of My Day Spa

@_MyDaySpa

@Kyrarena - Homegirl that is definitely about business

@MySisterCircle - Mentoring for young ladies, Founded by @Kyrarena

@mrmisaka - Best big sister I’ve ever had

@TOAO06 - As a brother, I can’t ask for much more (I wouldn’t get a response anyway...)

@14KT - Fam; Look out for his new album dropping on 8/27; Nickel & Dimed

@_MzJessi - She plays the flute

@certifiedinja - She told me & @motor_29 about the flute...

@danieltosh - His show is not for the faint of heart...

@CTCYpsi - City of Ypsilanti

@TweakYourBiz - Online International Business Community

@BigBoi - 1/2 of the most creative and best Hip Hop groups around - Outkast

@YpsiLibrary - Ypsilanti Library

@ReggieBush - New Lion, trying to see what he’s about this year...

@Bigplaycj - Calvin Johnson Jr.; Probably the greatest/most feared receiver in the NFL today

@JalenRose - Former NBA player, Fab Five member, Charter HS founder, Detroiter

@awkwardblkgrl - She is awkward & black & a girl

@DIADetroit - Detroit Institute of Art

@VibeMagazine - They try to help me keep on top of the music game

@BarackObama - 44th President of these United States

@FLOTUS - 1st Lady that keeps it real

@DetroitLionsNFL - Detroit Lions

@DetroitPistons - Detroit Pistons

@MagicJohnson - One of the top 3 NBA players of ALL TIME!

@hbcu - I’m a proud alumni of Morehouse College - Support HBCU’s!!!

@iamjamiefoxx - Actor/Singer/Comedian

@Fidelity - Gotta keep up on my investments

@WSJ - Breaking news & features from the Wall Street Journal

Like I mentioned before, this is just an example of what I see on my TL on a daily basis.  What does it say about me?  What about you? What does your TL say about you?

Holla at me and let me know who you follow?

Get atcha!!!

Marriage Enrichment ...

So today was our annual Progressive Dinner. It wasn't so progressive in that we only had one home, but it was just as much fun as usual. I absolutely love when we all get together and just sit around eating & enjoying fellowship with other married folk. Yeah, workshops are good, but they’re even better when done with folk you know. Don’t you think? I do. And we use such times as this to get to know our fellow laborers in this ministry of marriage.

Whelp, ya know there’s sometimes a downside or two or three. Today, our son broke out in a fever and we can’t explain it. He was way too subdued and was burning up. He was invited to a party, but didn't want to go nor would we have sent him with his lil body on fire like that. Although that’s terrible, he’s 2 so there are probably many more days of that. I hope not though. The other downside was it rained & rained & rained some more; didn't stop the party though - just kept us inside. And the main downside is something that we just can’t seem to put our finger on. For some reason, we just can't seem to get the numbers (attending) up. There’s always just a select few folk and we attempt to cater to everyone. I know some folk have other engagements, but seriously we only get maybe 1/5th of our pool of married folk. What’s that all about? Do people not want to enrich their marriages? Did we offend folk and now they just stay away? What’s the deal?

… and that’s all for tonight. I’m tired after such a wonderful afternoon spent with folk I really do love dearly. They make my day more than they will ever know! And the fellowship definitely enriches our marriage so we’ll keep it up for now. :)

{Keep in mind that most of this month’s post from me will be excerpts from my thoughts. That means they probably will not be totally complete nor always thought through or make sense to anyone but me on that day. It’s cool. Welcome to a small part of my mind.}

How To Calculate The Number Of A Man

As I said yesterday, I did a quick bible reading after that crazy nightmare. I literally just opened my bible and began reading. I read Revelations 13.The 18th verse stuck out to me. My NKJV states, “Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.”

That caught my attention not for the reason most would think. It caught me because of the mention of wisdom of understanding. I've been researching wisdom, understanding, and knowledge in my quest to be more of the Love that I think I need. So this intermingling of wisdom and understanding got me immediately. I decided to flip back to Proverbs (a book full of wise epitaphs) and was led to read Proverbs 18-19. I stopped at 19:8 although 18:15 got a few back glances. 19:8 states “He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; He who keeps understanding will find good.” 18:15 states “The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge. And the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.” You see what happened there? What was meant for a disaster actual led me back to my research, which I had so been slacking on for the past few weeks. I love when that happens. So back on the horse riding at a more appropriate pace, I go.

Don’t miss out on your blessings & lessons focusing on the negative foolishness life throws your way. No matter how strong that hold feels, no matter how scary that experience is, you can pull right on through. When you do, keep on trucking cause there’s much more to do.

Now to this question: How to calculate the number of a man? I have no answer currently, but I have no doubt that I’m gonna run up on that answer as I delve back into my wisdom,understanding, & knowledge studies.

I pray for Understanding Wisdom to guide me in reaching the need so that we all might be secured in His Love.

The question is...

What’s going on good people?!

I apologize for not posting on the site for the last couple of weeks.  It has been a whirlwind of emotions for me and I haven’t necessarily felt compelled to share them at any given time for fear of not “verbalizing” them correctly.  I have went through the complete range of feelings recently and I wasn’t exactly sure how I was feeling at any one time.  I’ve felt happy, sad, relieved, disappointed, anxious, frazzled, blah, expected, and nauseous.  And sometimes more than one at a time.  

There is, obviously, a deep seeded resentment when it comes to the Trayvon Martin vs George Zimmerman verdict.  While I am not at all surprised by the verdict, I am hurt by it.  Yes, the jurors did follow the letter of the law and based on the facts, they found there was a reasonable doubt in the argument that Zimmerman’s defense provided.  No, I don’t believe the prosecuting attorneys did all they needed to do to prove otherwise.  Good news - we have a legal system and it was followed without shenanigans or questionable calls; bad news - a life was lost based solely on someone’s prejudices and ignorances and he was not held accountable for that.  (I personally don’t think that it should have been murder charges, but manslaughter and the outcome would have been different - but I’m not a lawyer).  

I am glad that there were no riots following the verdict because the LAST thing that we need is for us not to get what we want and then go into a violent rage.  That’s called a temper-tantrum.  I don’t like it from my 2 year old.  I don’t like it from grown ups.  If we feel the need for reform in some type of way, we should work through the channels set up to make it happen.  Which is what I believe is happening with the addressing of this nonsense they labeled “Stand your ground”.  Let’s show that we know the game and can play by the rules.  Make them work to our advantage (again).  This happened before, but we began to abuse it and take it for granted, and we are now on the verge of losing out completely.  If you don’t know what I’m referring to, I’ll bring it back up at a later date.  

The most disheartening thing, I feel, is this trial has basically opened the door for everyone to say and vent what they feel.  I have read different articles, mostly online, and not only do I see the hurtful comments that people leave, but at the same time, I look at the enormous amount of support they get behind their comments.  It hurts to come to the realization that so many people in our world still believe that the majority of Black America are thugs who do nothing but smoke weed, hate on white people, pimp out hoes, and listen to gangsta rap.  For the record - we don’t all do that, but if we do, guess what, it’s a personal choice.  No 2 people are exactly alike, not even twins.  So to classify one group of people as such, well, is just “racial profiling”.  Last time I checked, that was wrong.  

The question I have now, the one I’ll pose to my 2 year old son for the rest of his life, and look myself in the mirror and ask myself is: “What am I going to do about it?”.  How will I portray myself in a light that says “I am an individual. Don’t profile me until you know me”? How will I fight the ignorance and close-minded people that continue to look at me and assume that I am up to no good?  

The answer will change everyday, so I must continue to ask, because I’m in it for the long haul.

Writing On The Table

So I know y’all have been looking for those Photo Op posts, but as usual I’m a slacker. Well, actually there were some technical difficulties that just led to no posts. No worries though - they will come to the forefont within this 30-Day Challenge. This Challenge is probably just what TableTalkN needs - a Writing Challenge. Basically, I’ll write a post every day for 30 days. The good thing about that is that you’ll actually get a post (hopefully leading to constant every day posts) every day. The bad thing is that sometimes they will be really short and random; it’s how I write.

So for today, let me tell you about this dream I had during our nap time. I’m hours removed from it so it’s not as clear as it was then, but the gist of it is that I was being attacked by some Demonic Spirit that was basically trying to force me back into something. I mean it was one of those dreams where I couldn’t get up, I couldn’t move, I couldn’t even open my eyes completely and actually wake up. I was struggling something terrible too cause I thought it was actually trying to get to my child; I had to wake up. It was a serious struggle. I swore I was even screaming for help, but lil man was still asleep when I finally broke through the nightmare gasping for air. I was still breathing all extra hard, heart was still beating extra fast, and I was still a bit hazy - that nightmare was real! And it definitely was demonically sponsored. The scary thing was that the person who turned into the demon that was holding onto me and saying all kinds of crazy demonic stuff to me was someone I once was fairly close to; scary cause I once trusted that person and the person isn’t an enemy or anything either.

A drink of water, a quick bible reading, and a not-so-short prayer later … I was still shaken, but confident in the fact that Jesus took care of those Demonic Spirits and escorted them right on up outta our house. It also jump started my motivation to get back to being more diligent about my Father’s business. So for tomorrow,I’ll be letting y’all into some of that quick bible reading/study that was done after my encounter with a demonic nightmare … How does one calculate the number of a man?

One Good Deed Does NOT Redeem You

So I’ve been avoiding this Zimmerman mess since that ridiculous verdict. Yeah, I said it! It was ridiculous. {See thoughts here} Anyway, now this craziness about him saving some folks from this overturned vehicle. Bravo! Proud of you Z-Man. Or maybe not. Sir, that is a very noble thing you did there. It is also the humane thing to do. However, sir, I can not really provide you with a hero cookie for that because I got rid of your hero flour when you shot that kid & claimed fear for your life.

See, here is the issue: Your one good deed has NOT and will NOT redeem you from that one terrible deed. Sorry, but it doesn’t work that way for me. I don’t know about these other folks, but I ain’t buying it. Funny thing is I’m not saying you’re a bad guy either. And you, your fam, and your attorneys were pretty smart for that defense. This whole saving a family from an overturned SUV though has proved to me that you could not possibly have been that afraid of that unarmed child you shot & killed. Why? Well, personally that SUV could have exploded, another car could have hit you while you were saving that family, anything could have happened. That is a scary thing and someone afraid of an unarmed teenage boy should not be assisting in such a scary feat. Leave that for the real heroes - someone who would have possibly just escorted the child home instead of being confrontational and sparking the child’s survival instinct, which then forced you into standing your ground. SMH! Please, get outta here with that mess. Go back into hiding and embrace what you have brought upon yourself and your family.

Speaking of hiding, who called you to the scene to help these people? You are supposed to be hiding because you are so afraid. Was this a setup? If it was, it was too soon. You should have waited a little bit longer. I’m not moved by this one deed. Because of you, I must now teach my son the ways of generations before us because he is not safe from fearful folks standing their ground. In the same discussion, I will have to also inform him that he may not do the same in a reverse situation. Ridiculousness!

Stand Your Ground ... Or Not

Verdict is not guilty, but that young man still does not live. This case was not even about the FACT that this man stalked and killed another person. What kind of ridiculousness is that? This case was about this man’s right to be in his own neighborhood and not feel threatened. Huh? Am I getting this right? Folks are not put directly into jail after admitting to killing someone else? That’s not how this works? I don’t even understand!

I understand that the prosecution apparently did not have their ish together. That’s my understanding solely based on my twitter timelines response to the trial. I did not watch and I’m glad I didn’t. It would have angered me on so many levels. Anyway. I don’t care if there was NO prosecution. This man admits to killing someone else. Lock him up at least for a little while to give him time to think about what he did and to ensure this is NOT the beginning to more killings. I know of too many people that are locked up for far less menacing things (indecent exposure, drinking & walking, etc.). Heck, I know of a teenager who was escorted home by 2 police cars for just walking too far to get to a friends home (during the day time, I might add). That’s excessive to me, but they claimed it was for his safety and now I see that that just may be true in certain neighborhoods.

Because of this foolishness, I will teach my son that he is not allowed to walk around in safe neighborhoods especially if vigilante neighborhood watchers are patrolling the area even IF we happen to live in that same neighborhood. Or maybe, I’ll have him be sure to carry his Freedom papers in which he has been given permission to be walking around his own neighborhood just in case he’s stopped by the slave catchers armed vigilante neighborhood watchers who don’t know him. This is foolishness! Slavery ended way too long ago for this foolishness! Jim Crow ended (officially) way too long ago for this foolishness! Yet and still, you have the right to kill a person who has more melanin than yourself based upon your preconceived fear of …?

My country tis of thee … where are our liberties?

Waiting ...

Dark Girls, Zimmerman, & Voting Rights

This post is a good 3 weeks late (I wrote it on 6/25/13), but I wanted to post it anyway cause a follow-up is coming.

A lot has been going on these past few week or better yet the past couple days on my TL. It began with everybody watching Dark Girls; everyone except me - we don’t have cable & the tv is usually on some version of Thomas the Tank Engine. The next morning I checked it out to find that the Zimmerman Trial had finally begun & they were trying to argue that the child’s parents leave - what a mess! And today, I see a decision has been made concerning the Voting Rights Act - ooohhh, the indignity! The weight and burden of this unloving world …

Dark Girls: Although, I didn’t watch it, I did see the many comments of my peers both on my TL and on Facebook (gasp! Yes, I went on there for a second). Your comments really did stir something in my soul. Some of my dark girl friends have experienced things like myself with comments of “If you were lighter” or “You’re pretty to be so dark”. Others didn’t get it because (gratefully) the people surrounding them shielded them from the foolishness of it all. I find that my experience was two-fold in that I still have an aunt who calls me “lil darkie” and another who remembers her husband calling me “lil grease”, but I also had those who ensured that I understood that “the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice”. I think I should have issues at this age, but I don’t. I love myself, my skin tone, AND this mess of natural hair on my head. It breaks my heart when I see y’all folks out here concerned about that kind of stuff all in the name of being a part of some culture that really won’t ever fully accept you. Ladies & gentlemen be the Love that you want!

Zimmerman: This is the saddest thing I’ve seen in a long time. I don’t know what the outcome will be from this trial. I won’t distribute any other thoughts about it either. BUT I do fear for my son, my dark lil chocolate drop of smoke (conglomeration of how others describe him). My son is rough because his parents are rough with him. However, he is also very mannerable, loving, and funny IF you know him. It is frightening to know that because of his very skin color, he will be a threat. It is even worse that it could also be caused by the simple clothing that he wears. I can’t even fathom the pain of those parents (and many others) who have lost their children to such senseless acts of foolishness. And then to add on the media frenzy and everything else that comes with that. I fear for my child now & forever more. Because of this, I am constantly sending up streams of prayers for his safety & protection. My child may get on my nerves, but he is a piece of my heart and will be forever so yeah … why must we be so far off the mark?

Voting Rights Act: The decision surrounding this one was very much expected by myself. With all of the racially charged politics of being an American, why are you surprised? I am not. Can’t be for the simple truth of the ugliness and unfairness of being in America. Our system is flawed and this decision just furthers that agenda. We are a people with no cause, no land, no solidarity, no familiarities, no nothing. Are y’all really surprised? I am not. We are both hard working & lazy, smart & dumb as rocks, agreeable & harsh … see where I’m going? Why are you surprised? I am not! Cheers to the foolery of politics & the people pushing these ridiculous agendas.

Man of Steel Review

What’s the latest & Greatest people?

Today, The Table TalkN Review Board had the opportunity to go over Man of Steel.  The 2nd attempt to reboot this movie franchise.  With all the success of the Marvel movies (Iron Man, Captain America, Avengers, etc) DC has to do something to catch up.  Batman can’t be their only successful release.  Not to mention, DC is attempting to make a movie franchise similar to the “Avenger Initiative”.  In order to do this, they need to get this component right, Superman.  He is, by all general standards, the leader of the Justice League.  (This could get into a long debate from me about the whole “Superman/Batman; who is a greater leader, fighter, superhero” thingy if I let it.)

If Batman is often compared to Iron Man, then Superman fits in with Captain America.  A very wholesome guy, who just wants to do what is right.  Like the movie, Captain America, you can’t have a successful franchise if Superman isn’t right.  So this was really “do or die” time for DC.  They had to make sure they had the right guy to play the part and that the movie left people wanting to know “what happens next”.  I think this movie helped to resurrect the idea that Superman can be a hero that people want to follow.

This movie was a reboot of the original, sharing Superman’s origin and transition into the Man of Steel.  It was nice that it did not necessarily follow the normal timeline of storytelling, but instead jumped around from beginning to later, back to his adolescence to current day.  I followed the path relatively easily.  It made sense to me, because he showed how similar situations may have helped to shape his life as he became aware of his powers.  The battles he could have had as a child, and the result of positive and good upbringing as a child.  (You can learn alot from your dad when he used to be Robin Hood - in this case both of them.)

The few issues I had with this movie are things that cannot be helped really.  I saw the original Superman when I was a young boy.  There are certain things that, simply, did not exist by then, that do now.  Digital camera’s, inferred reading scopes, etc.  But I believe this movie did a pretty good job at “Modernizing” the movie and telling a good story.  The biggest complaint I heard about this movie going in was it’s length.  That it was entirely too long.  To be honest, time was not a factor.  We saw this movie late and it did not drag on at all for us.  

Overall, I would grade this movie on a few things: (a) The story - this is the most important and key feature.  It separates the DVD rentals in the future from the rotten tomatoes.  (b) The sequel potential.  If a part 2 was to come out, would I try to arrange my schedule, get a sitter and call in sick to work to see it? (c) Overall series implications.  Can this movie be a cog in the bigger picture.  Will it lead to something great?  Based on these factors alone, I give this movie a solid “B” for a grade.  I don’t feel as if I need to see it on opening night, but I would definitely pay to see it while it’s still in the theaters.  While it’s not the original, there were some things that Superman did that, frankly, I was not used to (not necessarily a bad thing) but it did add a little bit of human element to it.  I won’t spoil it for any of you that have not seen it yet, but trust me when I say, the main thing that Superman did “out of character” may help to explain why he is the way he is though.

That’s all from my end.  Until next time.  Table TalkN Review Board signing off...

Remember, keep the lights low and the phones on vibrate...