Chinue*s LLL Philosophy

Highlights From My Cousin's Birthday Party

2009-11-09T03:31:00.000-08:00

My cousin is now a big man, he turned 18 on Thursday, November 5, 2009. Now he towers over me, well it would be a surprise if he didn't considering my height, but yes, I am still proud of him. I still remember going to my uncle's home and seeing him for the first time, when they took off his mosquito net and turned him over as a baby and I looked into his eyes. He has done exceptionally well in academics, and he is very sweet and caring, and a true gentleman - and ladies we all know those are rare today, so I have to show appreciation for the fact that this one comes from my family. Congrats cousin, your life has just started and you have a very promising path ahead of you. :) The pics being displayed are highlights from the surprise party. In terms of styling of my locks as you can see I haven't been really styling it much these days I go freestyle a lot now. I still continue to enjoy them, but it is like a quiet acceptance of them in any state styled unstyled fuzzy manicured clean dirty, etc. :D

1 year and 1 month mark

2009-10-25T20:03:00.000-07:00

They say 11 has a lot of significance spiritually. I definitely have been exploring my spiritual growth maybe that is why I have been so much of a recluse. I want to remind you ladies, that I continue to appreciate all the support I got and continue to get from you during this journey.

See below some pictures of my progress.

Happy 1 Year Locversary to me!!!!!

2009-10-04T15:18:00.001-07:00

Technically this was on my birthday, September 29. Last week was so crazy that I just decided to drop in and post properly when I could allot the time to it. I didn't want to rush, I was adamant that this would be a proper post laying out what the past year has been like.

It all started with me being inspired by my fellow J'can sista and sisterlocks mentor, n'drea. I loved her locks a lot. At the time I still hadn't found myself in terms of appearance, so I experimented a lot. This included having traditional locks twice and a buzz cut at one point. Then I decided I was ready to lock again, but since I had done traditional the first two sets, let me go with Sisterlocks this time around. Being impulsive and never being afraid of taking plunges, I did likewise. And voila - the start, timed perfectly (in truth deliberately) with my birthday. My locks were born on September 29-30, 2008, after 18 ass-crunching hours of pleasurable torture. :-)
Throughout the months I have had a lot of mixed emotions as a direct result of my Sisterlocks.

I have known immense happiness, joy, excitement, patience, fear, disappointment, anxiety, impatience, frustration even. I have even learned a lot about myself and my hair. Who would have ever known that a closely monitored journey through lockhood could bring so much divine wisdom and insight? Not to mention all the friends I have met along the way. What the heck would I do without you guys??? You are the best. Thanks for helping to make this journey so wonderful so far!
Ps. With that said, although I am not at the 3-5 yrs or even 2 year mark ( I won't even try to imagine 8 years or more). I am not THAT jealous of you ladies anymore. :D

Well, I have lost 27 pounds and 6% body fat so far..

2009-09-13T05:57:00.000-07:00

I can't remember the last time I was able to fit in those jeans! To read more click here to go to my raw food blog.

11 months mark :D

2009-08-30T06:48:00.000-07:00

One month down from the 1 year mark. I can't wait. I think I will celebrate with some form of collage or slide show. In the mean time, here are some pics. The back pic was really hard to take, so this is the best I got.

Rashida Went Raw :)

2009-08-02T22:02:00.000-07:00

Not vulgar raw but rather bulgar raw hehehe. I encourage everyone to follow my progress on http://www.rawrenewedrashida.blogspot.com/.

My Vegetarian Background

2009-07-24T20:53:00.000-07:00

Sophia requested that I speak on my diet background. I am appreciative of this and I hope that this post will inspire those who are currently trying to transition into a vegan or vegetarian diet.

I was born on September 29, 1985 in Bronx, New York to Jamaican parents who believed in maintaining a healthy approach to one's diet and lifestyle on a whole. They were strict vegans and believed in raising me to be the same. They took pride in the type of foods they selected and ate and fed to my brother and I. It wasn't just about not eating meat or animal products. It was also about eating organic, pure, healthy foods and using natural and organic products too. We also believed in the herbal and natural options to healing.

When my mother decided to go back to Jamaica and take us with her. I found that I strayed a lot. When I was in prep school, I tried meat and I would eat quite a bit of animal products. My favourites included Jamaican beef patty, tuna salad sandwich, cheese puffs, etc. After 4 weeks of eating a beef patty once a week at school, I got extremely ill. It was like having a really bad flu that affected you down to the joints. My system was clogged with mucus and I felt really weak. After that I never ate meat ever again.

I found that I got even more sensitive to it as I grew older. For example, now as an adult, if my brother eat meat out of any of our plates or cutlery and didn't wash them, I could smell the lingering grease. If he didn't follow my instructions properly as to how to wash the stuff that he used, I could tell, that greasy smell would linger on the items for a very long time; sometimes it remained permanently. If I go to a restaurant that also serves meat dishes I hardly drink from the water glass because I would smell the lingering greasy smell on it.

I am no vegetarian snob though. Unlike a lot of vegans or vegetarians today, I don't mind eating beside others who are eating meat dishes. I also do not mind cohabitating with persons who eat meat, as long as they use separate pots, utensils and crockery. This is simply because I cannot stand the greasy smell.

In more recent times, I have maintained a vegetarian status, which meant that although I had a high intolerance for meat, I still ate animal products occassionally. I particularly had a weakness for cheesy products and some pastries that have egg or dairy products in it. I am gradually working on bringing myself back to 100% vegan. I am there for the most part. However, I continue to work at it. I know I will never be as strict as the day I was born unfortunately. An example of this is consuming products that may have been manufactured in a factory or machinery that also manufactures dairy products. I however still try to go organic and natural wherever I can.

For pics of my brother and I when we were younger with our parents click here. Some are of us in New York and others are of us in Jamaica. :)

10 months... :)

2009-07-24T19:40:00.000-07:00

What's up wonderful ladies! It's been a while but I haven't forgetten you. I have just been a bit busy. See below for pics for the 10 month mark. I have them in a loose braid out. They seem to be locking well. What I am especially happy with is how much they have filled and thicken out. I have now reduced my washing regime to twice a week. After washing and drying, I burst a gel capsule containing vitamin E and apply it to my scalp. I am still using the VO5 clarifying kiwi and lime shampoo, I just love it. I am contemplating changing over to Dr. Bronners liquid soap though, because I hear a lot of great reviews on it for washing locks, particularly in the Sisterlocks community, and I love to experiment now and then. Overall so far so good though. I will continue to keep you posted on my progress.

Jelani is now at the 3 yr Anniversary!

2009-07-09T20:41:00.000-07:00

We have been following the progress of my bro's locks up to this point.

He has some minor build up, but I told him how to deal with it, so he will be all good again soon.

Aside from that this is a pre* maintenance shot. I am personally happy with their progress!

*correction

Jamaican Sunday Dinner

2009-06-28T13:46:00.000-07:00

Tofu in Mango Lime Sweet and Sour Glaze w/ Rice and Peas (made with Basmati Brown Rice) -

3 Servings

Tofu Recipe

Ingredients

1 pack of Tofu cubed

1 Sweet Pepper sliced

1-2 Carrots sliced

1 Onion sliced

4-6 Garlic Cloves diced

3 Scallon Sprigs diced

1 sliced Scotch Bonnet Pepper

1 pinch of ginger powder

Black Pepper (to taste)

Garlic Powder (to taste)

Onion Powder (to taste)

1 tablespoon of Olive Oil

1 Turned Mango cut in small cubes

Juice from 1 Lime/Lemon

1 Teaspoon of Apple Cidar Vinegar

1 Teaspoon of Soy Sauce

4-5 Tablespoons of Ketchup

3 Tablespoons of Chinese Vegetarian Stir Fry Sauce

Method
1) Cut Tofu in cubes and freeze overnight
2) The following morning, place tofu and mango pieces in a bowl with powdered seasoning and sliced scotch bonnet (if you are bad, if not then add during the final stages of cooking), sauces (including ketchup, lime/lemon juice, apple cidar vinegar) mix everything thoroughly, then cover and leave in the refrigerator until afternoon.
3) In the afternoon slice up carrots, sweet pepper, onion, garlic cloves, scallion and add them to a wok with olive oil. Stir around until glistening with onions translucent under medium flame.
4) Add the contents from the bowl to the wok, and stir everything around until nicely mixed.
5) Leave to cook for 5-10 minutes.
6) Stir around some more then serve!

Rice and Peas
Ingredients
1/2 lb of Red Peas/Kidney Beans
2 1/4 cups of Water
10 oz of Coconut Milk
Black Pepper
1 pinch of sea salt
6 Garlic Cloves sliced
3 Sprigs of Scallion sliced
1 Onion
1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper
6 Pimento Seeds
3 Sprigs of Thyme or other Herbal Seasoning
1 pinch of Ginger Powder
Garlic Powder
1-1 1/2 Cups of Brown Rice (long/short grain) or Basmati Brown Rice

Method
1) Put rice pot (medium sized sauce pan) on medium flame with water, red peas/kidney beans, ginger powder, sea salt and garlic powder.
2) Boil until peas/beans have burst and are tender.
3) Add coconut milk, thyme or other herbal seasonings, scotch bonnet pepper, scallion, garlic cloves, pimento seeds and allow to cook for another 5 - 10 minutes.
4) Add brown rice and stir around, allow to cook until rice is tender.
5) Add a layer of black pepper on top of the rice. Do not stir.
6)Turn the flame down to very low, during the last stages when very little water is left and the rice is nearly soft enough. Do not stir too much as the rice and peas will get mushy.
7) Once water is completely gone and rice is soft and fluffy then stir around a bit then serve!

Coming Soon - My Vegan Background (requested by Naturally Sophia).

Good Bye MJ...

2009-06-28T13:36:00.000-07:00

9 Months

2009-06-23T05:36:00.000-07:00

Nothing much to say, except I'm jealous of all of you who have reached the 1 year mark, and 2 year, 3 year, etc. But I still continue to love my sisterlocks. :)

I was trying to get a good shot of the back but that wasn't working out at all. Oh well..next time...lol.

Also check out my body shot tell me if you see progress. It was the best I could do at the time. Nobody else was up. :)

Vegan Cooking Jamaican Style

2009-06-15T23:34:00.000-07:00

Hi Ladies,

Meikmeika requested that I share some recipes and pictures of my vegan dishes. Thanks for the request! I was kind of intimidated by it to be honest, knowing what this woman is capable of in her own kitchen. So here I am to give you my long awaited post containing pictures and recipes of some of my favourites. A few are dishes I made up myself, while the others are dishes I put my special twist to or got from my mommy. Enjoy!

Pictures

Recipes

These are provided in the same order as the pictures. The last two pictures are the Bread Pudding whole and sliced.

1) Steamed Callaloo (my version) - 2-4 Servings
Ingredients
Callaloo Leaves (get a good bundle because they shrink a lot during steaming), 1-2 Tomatoes, 1 Onion, 4-6 Garlic Cloves, 2-3 stems of Scallion, 1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper, a pinch of Salt, Water, 1 tablespoon of a light good quality Margarine (preferably zero or min saturated and trans fat).

Method
-Strip and Wash Callaloo Leaves
- Separate them in smaller bundles; bend those bundles in half and cut across in strips; and place in a stirfry wok.
-Dice Tomatoes, Scallion, and Garlic Cloves, then add to the wok.
-Cut the Onion in vertical strips and add to the wok.
-Use a fork and knife (very important - you do not want to touch with bare hands then make contact with your eyes) to cut the Scotch Bonnet Pepper into medium size pieces; make sure to remove all the seeds, then add to the wok.
-Add a pinch of Salt.
-Add 1 tablespoon of the Margarine.
-Add 1/4 cup of Water.
- Turn on medium flame.
-Stir around for a bit, then cover the pot fully for 5-10 minutes and allow to steam.
-Lift up pot cover stir around a bit, once the water is bubbling, and the Callaloo looks similar to the picture provided, turn off the flame.

2) Stirfried Cabbage w/ Crushed Vege Sausages and Dasheen - 3-4 Servings
Substitutes for Dasheen include crispy baked Bammies, Whole Wheat Fried Dumplings, Fried or Roasted Breadfruit, boiled Yam, boiled Green Bananas, or Whole Wheat Multi Grain sliced bread. Those things are pretty straight forward to prepare so I will just provide the recipe for the entree.

Ingredients
3-4 Worthington Vege Beef Sausages, 1 Medium - Large Cabbage, 1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper, 1 Onion, 4-6 garlic cloves, 2-3 Stems of Scallion, Black Pepper powder (no msg), Soy Sauce (no msg), 1 Tablespoon of Smart Balance Omega Oil

Method
-Slice up Cabbage in slivers and add to a stirfry wok.
-Crush up 3-4 Worthington Vege Beef Sausages then add to the wok.
-Cut onion in vertical strips; add to the wok.
-Dice up Scallion and Garlic Cloves; add to the wok.
-Cut up the Scotch Bonnet Pepper in medium size pieces with a knife and fork (it is very important that you do not touch directly then rub your eyes). Ensure that all seeds are removed, add the pieces to the wok.
-Add a generous amount of Black Pepper to the wok.
- Add 1 Tablespoon of Smart Balance Omega Oil.
-Turn on medium flame.
-Stir the ingredients until everything looks nice and glossy and the cabbage has shrunk somewhat.
-Add some Soy Sauce to the ingredients, then stir around some more, until everything has a nice brownish colour as a result of the Soy Sauce.
-Cover the pot and allow the ingredients to simmer and the Cabbage to shrink some more for 5 minutes.
- Remove the cover stir some more.
- Once the end result looks like the picture or similar, then you're done!

3) Meatless Stewed Peas (my version) w/ Whole Wheat Spinners and Cous Cous
Brown Rice is a good substitute for the Cous Cous.

Cous Cous - 4 Servings
Ingredients
1 cup of Cous Cous, 1 cup of Water, Herbal Seasoning (basil, parsley, another of your preference or a combination), Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, 1 teaspoon of a light good quality Margarine (zero to min saturated and trans fat), 1 pinch of Salt.

Method
- Add Water, Herbal Seasoning, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Margarine, and Salt to pot and cover it.
-Turn on medium flame.
-Allow to boil, then add Cous Cous until it is at the same level or right below the level of the water.
-Stir around quickly, and turn off the flame immediately after adding Cous Cous.
-Leave for 10 minutes. Ensure that the pot is properly covered for the duration of this.
-Remove pot cover and use a fork to fluff up the Cous Cous.
- Serve.

Meatless Stewed Peas w/ Whole Wheat Spinners - 4 Servings
This dish is on the salty side, to compensate for lack of pigtail. If you are watching your salt you may choose to add less or go without.

Ingredients
1 pound of Red Peas/Kidney Beans, Water, 1 Tablespoon of Salt, 1 Tablespoon of Ginger Powder, Garlic Powder, 6 Garlic Cloves, 6 Pimento Seeds, 1 Onion, 3 Stems of Scallion, Basil, Parsley, 3-5 Sticks of Thyme or any combination of (I prefer to use the thyme ;) ), 1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper, 10 oz of Coconut Milk, 1/3 cup of Whole Wheat Flour

Method
-Wash peas thoroughly and add to pot (one that you usually cook stews in), filled with water.
-Add Salt, Ginger Powder, and Garlic Powder.
-Allow to boil until peas are tender and have burst. (1-2 hours)
-Add the Pimento Seeds, Thyme and/or other Herbal Seasonings and 1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper (whole). Do not de-stem or cut the pepper in any way.
-Dice up Garlic Cloves and Scallion and add to the pot.
-Cut up the Onion in vertical strips and add to pot.
- Stir this around.
-Taste the water and add a little more salt if needed.
-Add Coconut Milk and 1/2 - 1 cup of Water; stir around again; then cover put.
- Allow to boil down (for another 30-45 minutes)
-Once the last instruction is nearly done or done, put Whole Wheat Flour in a small bowl or container with a pinch of salt, and enough water to create dough. Mix a little. Ensure your hands are clean, and knead the mixture into a firm dough.
-Remove cover from pot. Roll small pieces of dough into spinners (of a similar size in the picture or smaller) then add them to the pot.
- Stir the pot, and add 1/2 - 1 cup of water. Allow to boil down again (for approximately 30-45 minutes).
-Serve!

Ps. This dish may take a long while to prepare, but the good side of it is that you can multitask while preparing it. If you are going to work, you may put the peas in a slow cooker in the morning before you leave, and when you come home, most of the time is already cut out of the process.

4) Dahl (Split Peas Stew) and Cous Cous (my version) - 4 Servings
A good substitute for the Cous Cous is Roti. Since the recipe for Cous Cous has already been provided see below the recipe for Dahl.

Ingredients
1 Cup of Split Peas, 1 and 1/2 Teaspoons of Salt, Water, 3-5 Sticks of Thyme and/or other Herbal Seasonings, Black Pepper powder, 1 Tablespoon of Ginger Powder, Garlic Powder, 6 Garlic Cloves, 6 Pimento Seeds, 1 Tomato, 3 Stems of Scallion, 1 Onion, 1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper, 1 Tablespoon of a light good quality Margarine (zero-min saturated and trans fat), 1-1/2 teaspoon of Cumin Powder

Method
-Wash Split Peas thoroughly
-Fill a pot (one that you usually use to make stews) with water.
-Add Split Peas, Salt, Ginger Powder, Garlic Powder to the pot.
-Turn on medium flame and allow peas to boil until they get tender and burst. (45 mins - 1 hour unless peas are old)
-Add 1 whole Scotch Bonnet Pepper (do not de-stem or cut in any way), Thyme and/or other Herbal Seasonings to pot, and stir around.
- Slice up the Tomato; slice the Onion in vertical strips; Dice up Garlic Cloves and Scallion. Add to a frying pan with the Margarine and Cumin Powder and Black Pepper Powder.
-Stir around for about 6 minutes, then add the mixture to the pot.
- Stir the pot. Cover it, and allow Split Peas to reduce. Check it periodically to ensure that the contents stay well mixed and do not stick to the pot or burn. (approximately 1 hour)
-Once the contents look like the picture provided or similar, then it is ready to serve.

Ps. Another dish that takes a while to cook, but that's ok you get to multitask. :)

Escoveitch Tofu - 4 Servings plus left overs for sandwiches, etc.
How I usually prepare the tofu is not reflected in that picture. I will replace it with the end result of what I usually do, as soon as I prepare it again.

Ingredients
2 Packs of Tofu, 1 Scotch Bonnet Pepper, 1/2 Cup of Cane Vinegar, 1 Pinch of Salt, Black Pepper Powder, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, 1- 1/2 Long Carrots, 1 Sweet Pepper, 1 Onion, 2 cups of Bread Crumbs.

Method
-Slice the Carrots and Sweet Pepper into thin vertical strips. Slice the the onion horizontally into thin circles and semi circles.
-Add these ingredients, a pinch of Salt, and the Scotch Bonnet Pepper (whole - do not de-stem or cut in any way) to a Sauce Pan.
-Pour the vinegar on top of these ingredients. Turn on a medium flame and allow to boil.
-Once it boils up (this is indicated when you see a lot of bubbles and hear sizzling sounds), turn off the pot and allow to set, while you prepare the Tofu.
-Cut the Tofu in not too thin or thick rectangular or square pieces.
-Shake up Black Pepper powder, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, Bread Crumbs, and a pinch of Salt together in a zip loc bag.
-Add pieces of Tofu to the ziploc bag.
-Shake around until the pieces of Tofu are thoroughly covered in the bread crumbs mixture.
-Line a flat metal tray with alumnium foil and grease it with a very thin layer of Olive Oil, then lay out Tofu pieces on it. Ensure that you shake off the excess bread crumbs before laying them out. Ensure they are not layered on top of each other, if you have to bake them in batches that is okay.
-Put into the oven and bake to a nice golden hue, then flip the pieces and repeat the exercise. I leave oven settings up to you, since results may vary for everyone.
-Once they are finished baking lay them out in a flat rectangular casserole dish, in 1-2 layers.
-Then drizzle the Escoveitch sauce over them, and nicely arrange vegetables on top. Cut the Scotch Bonnet Pepper into thin strips and sprinkle all over the array. Remember to remove all the seeds before doing this.
-Allow the Tofu to marinate in the Escoveitch sauce for at least 3 hours. The longer they stay the more enhanced the flavour will be. It is up to your taste buds, bearing in mind that the main ingredient of the sauce is vinegar lol.

Vege Blast Fried Rice - 4-6 Servings
This is also a great way to use up whatever left overs you may have.

Ingredients
1 Cup of Basmati Brown Rice, 2 Cups of Water, Black Pepper Powder, Garlic Powder, Hot Pepper Sauce, Soy Sauce, 1 Teaspoon of Sesame Oil, 1 Table Spoon of Olive Oil or Smart Balance OmegaOil, Vegetarian Chinese StirFry Sauce, 4-6 Garlic Cloves, 1 Onion, 3 Stems of Scallion, 1 Long Carrot, 1 Sweet Pepper, 1 can of Mushrooms, 1 -2 Worthington Vege Beef Sausages, 1/4 Pack of Tofu, 1/4 Cup of eggless Noodles, 1 Pinch of Salt

Method
- Wash Basmati Brown Rice thoroughly.
-Add it and Water to a medium sized pot with Garlic Powder and 1 Pinch of Salt.
-Allow to boil until the water has completely disappeared and the rice is soft and fluffy. If the rice gets to that point and there is still a little water left, then drain it off.
-Allow rice to cool, while you put together the other ingredients. You can leave the pot cover off (as long as you are present) to speed up the cooling process.
- Dice up the Carrots, canned Mushrooms, Scallion, Onion, Garlic Cloves, Sweet Pepper, Worthington Vege Beef Sausages, and Tofu in super fine squares.
-Add cooled rice and diced ingredients to a stirfry wok.
-Crumple up the eggless Noodles (if they are super long or provided in a cube), and add to the wok.
-Add the Sesame Oil and Olive Oil (or Smart Balance Omega Oil) to the the wok, and turn on medium flame.
-Stir around until everything is glossy and semi cooked.
-Add the sauces and stir around for 5-10 minutes until every thing is nice and brown.
-Cover the wok and allow everything to simmer for 3 minutes.
-Remove cover and stir again, then turn off flame.

Baked Potato and Mushroom Crisps
1-2 Potatoes provides you with a huge serving.

Ingredients
1-2 Medium Potatoes, 1 can of Mushrooms, 1 Teaspoon of Salt, Herbal Seasonings, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Black Pepper powder, 1-1/2 Teaspoon of a light good quality Margarine (zero-min saturated and trans fat), Water.

Method
- Cut the Potatoes in medium sized cubes and add to a medium sized pot of water.
-Add Herbal Seasonings, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder,Black Pepper powder, and 1 teaspoon of Salt to the pot.
-Turn on medium flame, stir around a bit, then cover and allow to boil until the Potatoes are tender.
-In the mean time, dice up the canned Mushrooms, into very small pieces.
-Once the potato is finished boiling, you may add more seasonings as suited to taste, then add 1-1/2 Teaspoon of Margarine.
-Mash and mix this around until you get a nice fluffy creamy mix (basically you're making mashed potatoes).
-Get a flat aluminum tray and line it with aluminum foil.
-Take a fork and apply small amounts of the mashed Potato in sections.
-Use the fork to press down the top of these sections into a flat oval shape with ridges at the top.
-Put in the oven and allow to bake until the top is golden and crispy. Flip and repeat the process.
-When you bite into one, the outside should be flaky and crispy, while the middle melts in your mouth.

And now for desserts..

Chocolate Cake - At Least 8 Servings
It never lasts for longer than an hour in this household.

Ingredients
2 cups of Whole Wheat Flour (unsifted), 2 cups of Soymilk (Chocolate, Vanilla, or Original), 1/2 -3/4 cup of Unsweetened Cocoa Powder, 1 cup of Brown Sugar, 3/4 cup of Melted Margarine, 1 tablespoon of Vanilla, 1 tablespoon of White Rum, 1 Pinch of Salt, 1 Teaspoon of Nutmeg, 1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon

Method
-Put all dry ingredients in one bowl and mix together. Make sure to sift everything except for the Whole Wheat Flour.
-Put all liquid ingredients in one bowl and mix together. Ensure to melt Margarine in a pot and add to this mixture.
-Create a hole/valley in the middle of the dry ingredients mixture and pour the liquid ingredients mixture in this.
-Mix everything together. I like to use a fork to make sure everything is thoroughly mixed.
-Grease a round baking pan with an extremely thin layer of Margarine.
-Pour contents in the pan. Preheat the oven for about 5 minutes, then add the cake. It should bake for 30-45 minutes. I imagine this and the oven setting varies per person.
-Then voila, you have Chocolate Cake.

Bread Pudding - At least 8 Servings
Excellent for when you have left over or old bread slices and don't know what to do with them. Make sure they are not spoiled though. The pudding didn't last longer than an hour in here lol. :)

Ingredients
Approximately 6 slices of Bread, 1/2 cup of Prunes, 1/2 cup of Red Label Wine, 1 Tablespoon of White Rum, 1 Tablespoon of Vanilla, 1 Teaspoon of Cinnamon, 1 Teaspoon of Nutmeg, 1 Pinch of Salt, 2 cups of Soymilk (Orginal or Vanilla), 1 tablespoon of Margarine, 1 cup of Brown Sugar.

Method
-Thread the slices of Bread into small squares, pour Soymilk on to bread until it is at the same level as the bread. Add the liquid ingredients (except for the Red Label Wine and Margarine).
-Also add the Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Salt.
-Mix this up and allow to stay in the bowl and set for 1 hour.
-Put the Prunes in the Red Label Wine, and allow to soak for at least an hour as well. In fact if you knew you had plan to bake bread pudding in the evening, you could do this from in the morning or early afternoon even.
-Once the hour is done, add the Prunes and Red Label Wine, plus the remaining ingredients to the mixture.
-Mix this up thoroughly, taste and add more spices if needed.
-Throw this in a casserole dish and allow to bake for 45 mins to 1 hour.
-Once this is complete. Leave to cool and set for at least 1 hour.
-Slice and serve!

I encourage you to try these dishes and let me know how it worked out. Enjoy! ;)

My response to A friend's Blog Post re: Her Views on Marriage

2009-06-10T22:14:00.000-07:00

It is often said that persons who have had super negative experiences with the opposite sex should abstain from giving advice on relationships. Well, I strongly disagree. I think we who fall under that bracket, are the best at telling you what NOT to accept, and the negative signs to look out for, that will allow you to bail out, before it's too late...

You can read my friend's post and check out her blog here

This is my response:

Honey, what can I say? I am a big cynic when it comes to marriage. My whole
family has been totally “salt” when it comes to this controversial matter. My
grandma’s own had longevity, but it certainly wasn’t without problems, but in
those days the ol’ folks stuck it out through thick and thin – a quality to be
admired that is highly lacking now, but yet, a quality that can be questionable
at the least in some instances, such as abuse, etc.
I think divorces have their role in society, but as usual the human race abuses a perfectly good procedure and as expected it comes right back down to their own selfish and narcisstic gains, just like religion, money, and politics (but more on that in a future convo).
So, with all that said, are you unreasonable in your demands? Hell no, I
say! We as a people need to get back some of those old school ways and good ol’
values that were taught to us by our parents and grand parents. We need to get
back a sense of responsibility, morals, unselfishness, and an overall positive
sense of well being, and it doesn’t only apply to marriage or personal
relationships on a whole, but additionally to everything in our life. We have
lost that sense of connectedness and unity. We have become selfish and
individualistic in so many ways. It is the biggest cause of most of our problems
now (marriage included for sure!).
I, as a fellow sista, say I will never get married (yes I am psychic lol). And not because I don’t believe in it, but because my standards are just as high as yours, and call me a cynic, but I don’t see anybody who meet my high criteria, and I just don’t think they make ‘em that way anymore. Men and women alike are just not molded with the same values as they used to be 10 years ago much less 30-50 years ago.
So with that said, my charge to you upon deciding to jump the broom is to:
- Be 100% sure (not even 99.9%) that he is the right man for you and that you are making the right decision. And I am not talking about your usual jitter bugs or nerves, but rather, your gut feeling and instinct should never be triggered in any manner that could be interpreted as “off” or “odd” even.
- Know that neither he nor yourself are perfect, but certain basics should definitely be there:- respect, communication, communication, communication, communication, sincerity, loyalty, etc.
- Compatibility has to be there. This doesn’t mean you and him should be exactly the same in your personalities or likes and dislikes, but your
differences should complement one another.
- Make sure you live with him for at least 3-6 months getting near to that level of commitment (marriage of course). Not everybody, but often enough, most, are bound to show their true colours sooner or later in a living situation. They may not turn out to be evil, but everybody has their quirks and flaws, make sure such are those you can learn to adapt to in his case. As we Jamaicans love to say “Come see me and come live with me are two different things”.
- Meet his family and friends! A family member of mine who got married not very long ago is having huge problems now and the in-laws are one of the primary causes. Trust me, they usually form a big part of the pieces that connects your marriage together in a neat tidy puzzle. The less untidyness (sp?), the better.
- What do you consider to be a compromise or sacrifice? How much are you willing to compromise on and sacrifice? Ask yourself those questions then do the same with your partner. Then make sure that both of you come to a consensus that you are both willing to put 50-50 at stake for the happiness of the other. It must be equal on both sides, no matter what people say about love not costing a thing, if there is no equilibrium and it’s not costing you now, then it will definitely start to cost you later– probably emotionally, socially, sexually, and/or even financially, etc. So decide from
now what is important to you while considering what’s important to him, and make
this clear from jump.
- Make sure you share common principles when it comes to finances. This is one of the top factors that screams divorce at the given time. I would personally say make sure that you have a personal account outside of the merged one that you keep confidential. I don’t think anything is wrong with this concept. It’s not about being sneaky or calculating. Anything can go wrong. You want to have a back up always. Consider it as your long term “get vex money”.
I think I have yakked on long enough lol. However, once you decide to get married
I wish you all the best!
Disclaimer: Obviously there are "good" people out there. I generalized to make the point that they are rare. And of course, I also acknowledge that in rare instances you may meet the person you think may be "THE ONE", but for whatever purpose of fate, it just didn't work out.

Health and Lifestyle Design

2009-05-21T16:43:00.000-07:00

Hi Ladies,

So as you guys probably already know I am very interested in the topic of health and fitness. Right now as we speak I have been focusing on losing weight, but most importantly - losing body fat, getting fit, and getting to that ultimate state of healthiness. From my teen years, I have always been interested in fad diets and binging. My weight would always fluctuate. It's also sad that I came from a network of family and close friends who were into being vegan and nutritionists using natural and healthy options of healing and keeping fit. I have strayed from that as I got older, and I got to see that that was the right route the entire time.

I have made a lot of changes to my diet, which include going back to my roots pretty much. These are changes that I feel I can stick to for a lifetime as opposed to the restrictive diets that would make me spring back as soon as I reach my goal and got off them. These changes include eating loads more of raw oats, fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains, legumes, and tofu (not plenty of course). I also drink plenty of fluids and green tea (without sugar). I cut back a lot on my sugar in-take as well, and replaced most of my bad fats with good fats, by using smart balance omega cooking oil, olive oil, and sesame oil for cooking, and a good quality healthy light margarine. In terms of carbs - I have cut out a lot of the unfriendly carbs, while sticking to the friendly ones, which include lots of fruit and veggies as I mentioned; having brown sugar in the few cases that I do; eating brown rice and cous cous; yams and using whole wheat flour where needed. I eat irish potato and pasta but prepared in a healthy and low fat way.

I have always been a vegan. I never strayed in the sense of eating meat, but I would have dairy products, in most cases in junky stuff such as pizza or pastries. I have now eliminated junk food out of my life, and focused on my cravings for a particular flavour, and quench such cravings with healthier alternatives. I have also realized it's okay to treat yourself occasionally and it's even okay to get side tracked once in a blue moon, because again restrictive diets can only work for so long and have a higher case of resulting in binging, so I haven't been dieting, but rather been making meaningful permanent changes. If I feel for a treat I make a vegan desert, which is already a lot less junky than it's commercial counterpart (well certainly when I make it).

In terms of fitness, not only have I incorporated Gilad's Total Body Sculpt as my daily workout routine, but I also move around a lot more now, because that was one of my biggest problems too. I am not where I want to be yet in terms of my size, but I notice differences including the fact that I am looking firmer and toned. I am also fitter. I don't get exhausted walking up and down my hill at home, or walking up a long staircase, etc. The changes are therefore forth coming and I am very appreciative. Ooh I also notice that I have lost inches off my waist.

I don't expect to lose everything quickly nor do I want to. I feel if it takes a while, it will stay off and if I enjoy what I am doing and am able to stick with it permanently. Then upon achieving my goals I will definitely be able to maintain the changes for life.

In doing this, I have also been doing something that I never always did before. I have kept myself informed. I read a wide range of articles from various experts, and get tips from my family as well. They say knowledge is power. There is a reason for that. It is with that said that I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to my friend and in recent times, health and fitness mentor Shanique Cornwall. I encourage you to show her some love, especially the ladies who are focused on getting fit and healthy and or maintaining their current state of such. If you follow her blog you will grow to see why she is so inspiring. :)

I hope never to go back to this, but rather to stick with this and continue on like path.

Kreativ Blogger Award

2009-05-18T00:14:00.000-07:00

I am truly honoured to be nominated for this award. Again, many thanks to Nat's Journey who got nominated herself and is definitely very deserving of it.

The amount of growth a person goes through internally upon deciding to start their locks journey is not to be underestimated. This has been my third journey and I am grateful for the insightful knowledge I have gained from others and even myself about the locking process and yes - myself; and I have so much more to learn from here.

Having the opportunity to blog on my Sisterlocks journey while sharing with and learning from you ladies has been phenominal.

With that said, I am required to list 7 things I love and nominate persons I feel are much deserving of this award.

7 things I love:

1) I love my family very much. They are the only people I truly trust and have a close bond to. They have been here for me through good and bad times.

2) I love my friends. They may not be in abundance and I may not make them easily, but once I do, I go all the way without turning back. N'drea is namely one. She is also my Sisterlocks mentor. I have her to thank for the wonderful blogging experience I have been blessed to enjoy up to this very day.

3) I love the negatives and hardships I have encountered as well as the mistakes I have made in this lifetime. I think they have played an intricate role in shaping me into the person I am today - a strong determined confident black woman.

4) I love my hair. I love every single locking journey I have been through, and I think my locks are my signature. I never regret a day being locked much less natural.

5) I love nature. This has been so since childhood, but has only intensified since the last couple years. In fact this goes hand in hand with my number six love. I love the fact that things that appear to be simple such as fruits and vegetables.. plants and flowers.. animals - big and small, all have their piece in this puzzle called Earth.

6) I love taking care of myself. This is something I have grown to appreciate over the last couple years as well. I like knowing that I am fit, and eating,living, and looking healthy. I always prefer to seek out the natural or environ-friendly solution to everything first.

7) I have developed a new appreciation for my life that I have to admit I never always had. I have my blogging family and my locks journey to thank hugely for that. Thank you ladies you are the best!

And now, my nominees for the award. Please remember that I find all of you fabulous even if I don't list you.

My Kreative Blogger Award Nominees
1) N'drea
2) Brunsli
3) Sophia
4) Kalia
5) Sereni-T
6) Meikmeika
7) Euphoria
8) Brown Buttahfly
9) Chelle
10) NuBeing

Freestyle pics as I draw near to the 8-month mark

2009-05-17T23:47:00.000-07:00

What's up folks!

Just thought I would post some pics of my locks in freestyle mode, I am just about to cross the 8 months bridge. They are filling out like crazy. The top and middle have more or less settled down now, while the back is still doing it's own thing, but I continue to be patient. :) I will post braid out pics @ my 8 months mark. PS. I deliberately did that to the picture, I just liked the effect. And yes, I have been working out. :D ;)

Clear Pics of My Latest Retightening and Combined Locks

2009-05-06T21:42:00.000-07:00

And no, I don't worry about my partings not looking super neat like some of you other ladies LOL. As long as I can find them when I am ready to retighten my locks, then I am fine. They were never super defined to start out with anyway, and they got even less defined, when my locks started to fill out.

I also combined a few locks in the back, because they were super thin. It worked out quite well. See below for a picture of an example of this.Look out for a picture of my next braid out coming soon.

I'm back!

2009-05-04T13:34:00.000-07:00

What's up Ladies!

I haven't been on for a minute, but I am back now. In terms of my locks, I have been up to quite a lot I must say.

Styles

First of all, let me supply some update pics on my soft spike s style as promised. This is what it looked like 5 days later.

The curls were still tight, but in a more relaxed mode. I received positive feedback as well. My mom offered some helpful insight on my hair - since it's very curly and elastic, it's best that when I do sets with curlers or braids to not keep it in for too many days, provided that I want to get more length or a wavier look. I did notice this when I kept in my braids for one weekend, as opposed to longer, as I did during the Easter holidays.

P.S. Braids are my favourite way of setting my locks.

DIYER

Outside of that, my biggest update is on the matter of becoming a DIYER again. The last thing I said on the matter, was that I would think about it. Well, it is official, I am now a DIYER again. I now retighten every 2-3 weeks. My retightenings have taken one day so far. I can't really count the hours, since I often stop to do other things then start back again; and no, I do not experience any difficulties while tightening the back.

This change to my routine has certainly paid off. I don't experience complete unraveling anymore. I have a little slippage in the back sometimes though, but the best part about it, is I can correct the problem as I experience it, as opposed to having to wait until the next 2-4 weeks. See below, for a pic after I completed one of my retightenings myself.

Setbacks

One minor concern I have, is that I have a few rather thin long locks in the left back section of my head. They make me kind of nervous, but I simply retighten them as they slip. I just hope they don't break, I am actually considering combining them, but I will watch them a little longer, so we will see. I think what happened is that although my hair grows fast, it has been slower in the actual locking process, and I had experienced a lot of slippage as well as the complete unraveling of some locks, while I waited to go to Curly every four weeks, and so as a result, while everything else would fill out as they grew, these would remain thin, since they had to be freshly repaired every month, hence I ended up with super long and thin locks where applicable. Thank God, this problem is minor though.

Again, I will think a bit more on the matter of combining, but in the mean time, I will watch them closely and tighten them as they slip. In all honesty, I don't really like the idea of combining though, and never did, even when I had traditional locks. I think locks should take their natural course to an extent, but I do acknowledge a valid need for the process, especially when it comes to the potential for breakage.

Summary

My locks on a whole have been going great though. I have length and fullness. What I am a bit antsy about is that they still have a lot of elasticity and so they still shrivel up. Also the left side appears to be longer than the other side, it could be that the curl is loser there, I am not sure, but that has always irked me, even during my traditional locks days, oh well. I do more braid outs though, which kind of work to offset the issue of shriveling, now that I am retightening more frequently.

Below is a pic I manage to salvage of one of my braidouts. It's blurry and the bottom of it got chopped off, but it should satisfy you until I put up some better shots from my next braid out. Take care until then.

Just Showing off

2009-03-28T12:07:00.000-07:00

Hi Ladies,

Finally, I got my Soft Spikes and Sophia's hairtie! I was going to wait a week later before posting, just to test how long the set would last but I was too anxious not to, so I will post pictures of the set again days later.

I washed my hair Thursday evening without banding! I know, shame on me. I didn't experience any slippage I am happy to say, but in examining my locks, I came across a few I had to yank on a bit, because they look like they were tempted to bunch up, so after that I got scared again and decided to go back to banding during shampoos for a little longer.

Anyway, after washing I rolled my semi wet locks with the Soft Spikes. See below for a picture of me with my locks in them.

As you can see there is a lot of length left on the curler after rolling my locks in them, because I do not have the length and fullness that you ladies (esp the ones with the mature locks) have as yet. I was a little puzzled at first about how I would sleep in them. I heard they are soft and much more comfortable to sleep on than regular setters, but because they were sticking out a lot, I still wondered if I would get stabbed in my sleep (kidding!). I am happy to report that I kept them in until Saturday morning; am still alive; and slept quite well with them.

As for the results of the set, I got really tight curls and not much length, which suited me just fine for my styling purposes. I took Sophia's hairtie and created a curly updo. See below for pictures of this.
As already mentioned, I will come back in a couple days and post pictures of my set showcasing how well or not it holds up.

The next time I set with them, I will follow the instructions completely and wrap the length of my locks around as much of the length of the Soft Spikes as possible, to get some spiral curls. So, look out for that soon.

6-Month Mark and Should I Become a DIYer?

2009-03-20T16:18:00.000-07:00

Blogger Pictures

Hi Ladies,

I am now at the 6 month mark (as if my title didn't say so). There have been some challenges, but some positive moments too, and I am happy that I have reached this far in my journey. I have definitely come a long way. As promised, I created a slide show displaying some comparison shots from week 1 to 6 months (just click on the *Blogger Pictures* icon above). Also, see a photo below of my latest shampoo. I followed Sophia's suggestion of braiding my hair in sections and banding the ends (without bending the braids). The set didn't last long unfortunately and my hair shrank. I think this was due to the chilly weather we were having at the time, but next time I will wait until it completely dries before I pull it out. That should give me a longer lasting set.

My last retightening turned out to be 7.5 hours as predicted (I should become a fortune teller). She had to do a lot of corrections, which included correcting slippage and reinstalling the locks that completely unravelled. It also turned out that I haven't reached the shrinking stage yet. My hair just has a lot of elasticity, Curly claims. In fact, it turned out that it had grown a lot. Curly stretched one, which came just above mid back. She exclaimed, "My word, yu hair long man!". The other positives included the fact that my hair has filled out a lot. My locks are definitely starting to feel and look like locks in terms of texture and pattern. The ends are starting to close up too. So, those things I am definitely happy for.

I should also let you in on my plans for my locks. I have always been a DIYer before I got Sisterlocks. I have never really enjoyed going to somebody to do my locks or hair for that matter. As much as I love Curly, going to her once every 4 weeks for 7.5 hours is crazy. Plus, I suspect that a lot of these corrections would be unnecessary if my locks were being retightened more frequently. However, I am not willing to budget for every 3 weeks. As it is, I have been thinking, especially in the midst of this economic crisis I could be saving what I spend on retightenings now. I therefore have been doing some research on the various patterns, and seriously considering becoming a DIYer as of here on. I haven't fully made up my mind yet, I am still thinking on it and doing my research. I will however let you know what I decide to do later down.

Sisterlock Blues pt. 2 - A Possible Solution?

2009-03-14T16:36:00.001-07:00

Hi again Ladies,

So in my last post, I reported on some frustrations I have been having with my locks, as I approach the 6-month mark. I was completely clueless and desperately in need of a solution and some support. Of course, you ladies complied by sharing your experiences, suggestions, and assurance, for which I am absolutely grateful. However, my thought process did not end there. I continued to reflect and muse over what I had been doing from what I hadn't been doing, and what I had been doing differently this month as opposed to the previous months since my installation, because as I said, there was more slippage than last month, which didn't make any sense to me.

I also thought back again on the suggestions that were provided. Then suddenly, Brown Buttahfly's comment struck me. In cases where the hair around the hairline is finer and softer, as well as when the hair is shorter and harder to band, slippage would more likely occur. I blocked that section of the sentence for a reason. I will go into that now.

In a previous post, I stated that I have "shrivel hair", which means nobody will ever know the real length of it especially if I keep it in freestyle (no braid out or set). Over the past months when I washed my locks, they had been in a set or braid out, so there was more length, which facilitated easier banding. The difference this month was that I had been wearing it freestyle most of the time, which made it considerably shorter in appearance and let's not forget that I have been experiencing shrinkage this month too. Then I further thought on it and remembered that my locks had indeed been harder to band, and quite a number of them would escape during shampoos. So it all came together and led me to conclude that very likely Brown Buttahfly was correct, and what added to this was, as new2locs said, the frequency of washes. I was now washing twice per week, and with considerably less length which was harder to band and stay banded, then voila, there you had it - slippage at it's greatest.

So whereas I still think I should do braiding and setting a lot less, what I will probably do is braid it the night before I shampoo, to give it some length and make it easier to band and stay confined. I will tell you if there is any improvement during month 6 upon implementing these adjustments to my routine. Also, feel free to let me know if you have any further suggestions.

Sisterlocks Blues

2009-03-11T20:22:00.000-07:00

Ok ladies,

I love my Sisterlocks. I'm kind of obsessed with them actually, but to be honest I am having some frustrations right now. So I figured who best to turn to but my fellow locked divas, to share their experiences and suggestions, and tell me if I should be worried or if I'm just being ridiculous.

The end of March would mark me being 6 months sisterlocked officially. My next retightening should be on March 14, but because Curly is booked on that day, and she doesn't want me to go over 4 weeks, she will be taking me in the week, probably around the 19th - that I will confirm tomorrow or Friday. My pattern was 4, but for the last three retightenings, she changed it to a reverse 4. I will confirm this again at my next retightening.

Well, let me report what is good first. My locks are: fuzzy; not soft anymore; and looking fuller and thicker. Additionally, a lot of the ends are developing balls. There has been quite a bit of shrinkage too, but I hear this is a good thing. These things don't bother me at all, because they tell me that my hair is locking nicely. The flaking and itchiness have gone down dramatically. I hardly experience this anymore.

The bad news is that I am still experiencing a lot of slippage and growth at the roots by three weeks. In fact, I am already predicting another 7.5-hour visit, whether she would have taken me on the 14th or 19th. As it was I had a lot of growth, but when I washed my hair this Monday for example, the whole of the back had a lot of slippage since, with only half of the lock or the end remaining. The top, middle, and sides, have a lot of growth with more slippage on the sides, but not near as bad as the back. Growth, I can do with and am thankful for definitely, but the slippage is driving me nuts. I guess, I just figured that by now, my locks would have settled down where that is concerned.

In terms of my routine, I am not a product junkie. I'm not really crazy about products at all. I don't even spray water in my locks in between shampoos. I just stick to a low residue shampoo, such as the Starter Shampoo and V05 clarifying kiwi and lime when I'm out of Starter Shampoo. The V05 clarifying shampoo hasn't seemed to stripped my hair of it's natural oils, and that's not even my issue in the first place. I did the ACV rinse 3 months ago, and read that it could soften my hair and promote slippage, but I would imagine that any problems caused by that would have been corrected at my following retightening, besides my locks are not feeling soft anymore, so I don't think that is the problem. I was having a lot of slippage before I did the ACV rinse anyway, only then it was understandable because my locks were still new.

I shampoo once-twice weekly. I find that works to keep the flaking and itching away. I have religiously stuck to the banding routine during shampoos. I religiously separate my locks after shampoos while the hair is semi wet. I have been wearing it freestyle most of the times. I did braid out and setting styles once each for the month. Unless I wash too vigorously during shampoos.. I don't think I do though. I used to think that keeping them plaited would control slippage, but it doesn't really seem to, plus I find that the roots, especially when they grow out or slip, tend to clump together when I do that, so I stopped doing it.

So again, ladies let me know if I should be concerned or not, as well as your experiences and suggestions.

Thanks again for the support!

Disclaimer: Curly is an excellent consultant, very meticulous and in no way lazy, plus she knows what she is doing. So I know it has nothing to do with her not retightening my locks properly, nor is it related to her and her trade in any other sort of way.

Weavie Wonder?

2009-03-02T09:33:00.000-08:00

Hey Ladies,

Did you guys hear about this story? After seeing it myself, I got to thinking maybe weave isn't such a bad thing.. hmmm...

Rocking the Boat Ch 2: Soft Spike Curlers and Lock Loops

2009-02-24T21:59:00.000-08:00

Maybe I am slow or late, but I have to risk getting myself in hot water again and ask a few questions. Is it my imagination or are the only differentiating factors between Soft Spike Curlers and Lock Loops that they have different names and come from different inventors? Who was the first to come up with their product? Can somebody please shed some light on the inside story of both these products? If they do in fact have features and/or functions that differentiate them, can somebody let me know? I am interested in the concept and would love to know when I'm ready which one I should get. Also, see below for a clip on the person who is the inventor for Lock Loops, and let me know what you think. Thanks.

Rollerset pull back do @ 5 months

2009-02-22T14:07:00.000-08:00

Hi Ladies,

I remembered a post I did a while back on setting my hair. I never got back to you with the finished look. My mom and I took my brother to brunch today, so I just thought I would upload some pictures of the roller set pulled back do that I did for this outing to make up for that.

5 Months Mark - Freestylin'

2009-02-19T11:05:00.000-08:00

Hey folks,

As promised, I would provide an update on my locks. I figured that normally I post pictures of my locks in a set or braid out that shows my real length, so I decided to put a different spin on things today and provide pictures of my locks in freestyle mode.For those who have shrivel hair (well that is what I like to call it lol), we know the frustrations of persons never knowing the real length of our hair (provided if length is THAT important to you). This used to be a big deal for me but not anymore, gradually I have started to move away from setting and braiding all the time, and instead, just enjoying the look of freestyle with a headband or in a cute looking short bob as seen in the pictures.

I also think this is good for me considering that my consultant, lovingly known as Curly on here, says my hair, especially the ends, will take a bit of a while to settle down as a result of my texture being silky. Sometimes this comes in like a bummer to me, but I realize that I should not "forceripe" the process. I should enjoy it to the max while I can.

Update on Jelani's traditional locks

2009-02-16T09:02:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone,

For those who follow my blog, you may remember a post I did a while back on my brother and his locks. So, I just thought I would provide update pictures.
He is just over the 2.5 year mark. July would make him 3 years locked. It's just amazing the progress his locks have made over the years. They are looking healthy and thick. They have quite of bit of length too. By the way, show my bro some love, his birthday is February 21!

Ps. I did my last retightening on Saturday. Update and pictures to come soon.

Sisterlock product for dry and itchy scalp

2009-02-11T16:16:00.001-08:00

So I went on the official sisterlocks website today, and was pleased to see that they do have a product for dry and itchy scalp with the *new* icon beside it. I wonder if they read my post. :D (I know that's farfetched lol).

Has anyone tried it though? Is it effective?

Sorry...have to Rock the Boat for a Minute...

2009-02-07T21:09:00.001-08:00

Hi Locking Divas!

Firstly, I want you ladies (and probable anonymous gentlemen) out there to know that although I haven't posted in a bit, I haven't been a stranger either. My focus, over the past weeks, has been to check out a wide array of blogs ranging from the pioneers down to the beginners like myself. I have read up on their success and struggles and been amazed over the progress their Sisterlocks, traditional locks and braidlocs, have made in either a matter of months or years! It certainly has reaffirmed the decision I have made to date, to lock again, and to go the Sisterlocks route this time around.

Now, I know the aim is to always focus on the positives in the blogging community, but I fear I can no longer avoid touching on what may perhaps be deemed as controversial and even negative. In talking to the few persons I know who have Sisterlocks; reading a number of the blogs; and contemplating what I have experienced myself, I have made a common observation. It seems as if a number of persons who install Sisterlocks, at least in the earlier stages of the process, suffer from aggravated, itchy, and/or dry scalp. However, I also understand, whether for purely a marketing purpose, or for our best interest as clients, we are required to only use the starter shampoo from the Sisterlocks brand, and no other products at least in the beginning.

My thing is therefore this, are the Sisterlocks headquarters and certified consultants aware that this aggravated scalp issue is common at least among beginners? If so, considering that they want us to use just the starter shampoo in the beginning, which doesn't seem to rectify the problem by itself, and further considering that many beginners are still using other products and concoctions, whether homemade or off the shelf which supposedly oppose what is instructed, couldn't the Sisterlocks brand try to exploit this issue and come up with a special shampoo or something for beginners (with this problem) that works to alleviate the scalp issues without compromising the locking process? This would leave them with more profits in their pockets, and less issues with clients, such as people not having faith in their consultants' abilities and going astray or creating problems and extra work for consultants to rectify.

Let's face it, nobody wants to jeopardize the success of their Sisterlocks, but the reality is the discomfort of itchy and dry scalp can be unbearable and would leave anyone desperate. I'm sure other victims of this would agree. It leads you to explore all kinds of solutions to the problem, even if it means bypassing your own consultant and going to external realms for a solution.

Again, I am not trying to start drama or hate on Sisterlocks. I am merely a client, who wants to better understand what is best for my locks.

What is your take on the matter?

4 month mark

2009-01-20T11:44:00.000-08:00

Happy Inauguration Day!!!

What a beautiful ceremony, and I am glad we can now officially call him President Obama, let's see what he can cook up for America now. Cheers to him for still having a full black head of hair by the end of the first term.

As for my locks, next week will make me officially 4 months sisterlocked. I decided to post pictures from now since I had done my retightening on Sunday. The retightening, as predicted was like the first time I did one, it was crazy, and it took 7.5 hours, poor Curly. I did warn her that I suspect it would be problematic, but she is like she totally understand, her locks are like that too when its time for retightenings. I have been doing mine every 4 weeks, I just hope she won't start charging me more money.

See below for recent pictures. There has been growth and I think it's starting to look more like locks. The spaces you see are from partings I had in my head, when I had my locks plaited.
Feel free to let me know what you think as usual!

New Year's Eve

2009-01-12T16:26:00.000-08:00

Hey guys!

Happy New Year!!! Don't know what you guys be calling it in the States, but here in Jamaica, we're saying 2000 n MINE. I mean, the last thing you need is more selfishness in the world obviously, but for those who have been taken for granted or exploited for being nice and generous, this is certainly our year to be selfish! Outside of that, this is the year for everybody to accomplish their personal goals, find themselves and achieve some internal growth I guess (hence 2000 and mine). So I wish you all, the best and hope all your dreams and aspirations come true for the year. I also hope Obama will do us proud! Either way, anything is better than another 4 yrs of Bushit and McSame, innit?

On New Year's Eve night, I parred with my brother and his friends, at a Jamaican all inclusive semi-formal party called Carnivale. It was a really great party with a Venetian Masquerade theme - wonderful food, entertainment, and vibes; not too crowded, which is exactly as it should be for an event as such. See below for pictures of me, my brother, and his friends.Take note of the hairstyle I did with my sisterlocks. I pinned up the back, but my mom and aunt, told me to let it out. I failed to get a good picture with the back out, too bad, it would show you the amount of growth I have had. No worries though, I will take pictures after my next retightening.

As for the overall progress of my locks, I'm fretting as I did when my first retightening was approaching, only this time there has been a 4-week interval between retightenings (first retightening took place after an 8-week interval). There has been a lot of growth in the roots, and a bit of slippage at the back. I am doing as I did then, and keeping them plaited as much as possible to protect them. It continues to grow and fill out nicely though, so that much is good.

As I said, I will take pictures after my next retightening.

Tata for now!

Seasons Greetings and Happy Kwanzaa to all!

2008-12-29T22:24:00.000-08:00

Hey guys!

You are probably wondering where the hell I have been all this time. Just really distracted and you know already how hectic the holidays can get. My mom got really sick on Christmas day, but thank God she is happy and well again.

As for my locks, they are doing quite well except for a slight dry scalp problem particularly at the front but I ain't worried. See below for a recent pic, this would make me sisterlocked for 3 months now.

Rashida's Checklist for a F@$kbuddy

2008-12-13T09:21:00.000-08:00

1) You will be avoided and ignored all together.
2) If after a year you still have not met the 18 requirements of Rashida's Checklist for a boyfriend , then you will automatically be demoted to a f@$kbuddy.

People say I should make this less than a year. 6 months perhaps?

Rashida's Checklist for a Boyfriend

2008-12-12T23:16:00.000-08:00

1) He must be willing to privately and publicly define what he has with you explicitly.
2) He must be willing to go out with you in what averages out to be at least once every two weeks.
3) He must be willing to foot the bill for some of the outings you go on together.
4) He must be willing to go in public venues and settings with you.
5) He must be willing to meet your family and friends.
6) He must be willing to introduce you to his family and friends.
7) He must be willing to share New Year's Eve night and at least two other holidays for the year with you in some way in person.
8) He must be willing to talk with you over the phone in what averages out to be at least once a week and share the cost of doing so.
9) He must be willing to have sex with you in what averages out to be at least once per week.
10) He must never compromise your safety sexually or otherwise.
11) You must rank at least top five in his list of priorities.
12) He must be 90% loyal to you.
13) He must be 80% honest.
14) He must be 80% reliable and dependable.
15) He must respect you 100% in his actions and his words, both around you and when you are not around.
16) Whatever level of energy and effort you put into the relationship, he must be able to return it at the same level.
17) He must remember your birthday.
18) He must be willing to show you where he lives.

People including my grandma and mom said I should make the following adjustments:-
3) He will be primarily responsible for footing the bill for all the outings you go on together.
7) He must be willing to share all major public holidays for the year with you in some way in person.
8) He must be willing to speak with you on the phone daily and share the cost.
9)He must be EXCITED to have sex with you more than once a week!
11) He must be able to define what priority you hold in his life.
12) He must be loyal, honest, reliable, and dependable.

If anyone has any additions to make or do not agree with something expressed in this note - don't hesitate to comment, but in doing so, please take into consideration that this is my checklist and I understand that somethings will vary per person. tata. rash.

After Retightening on Sunday, November 23, 2008 (8 weeks)

2008-11-24T14:16:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone,

I did my retightening yesterday (Sunday, November 23, 2008). My understanding is that retightenings usually take 3-5 hours. However mine took 7 hours. I think this is because my official retightening was scheduled 8 weeks after my installation. I told her I wanted to start going on Sundays, she tried to schedule me at 6 weeks later, but that Sunday was booked. The seventh Sunday was booked as well, so I ended up going at the 8th week. She did say that if I started having concerns I could call her before, but I was trying not to be a baby, so I waited out the period and kept my locks plaited as much as possible to

protect the locks as best as I could. I also washed weekly, and separated my roots after each wash, so I don't know if keeping it plaited was a bad idea. Anyway, I had a lot of growth at the roots, and she said the back especially was a bit problematic, so that is why she took 7 hours.I am happy with the progress so far, my loctician told me she is pleased as well. She has now started to schedule me at 4 weeks.

Happy 8-Week Anniversary to Me!

2008-11-21T21:54:00.000-08:00

What's up locking and nonlocking community!

Just thought I would check in with the family and sorta let you know what I have been up to. Well, for those who follow my blog, you may know I have been a tad...ok I admit it super duper nervous about my roots, considering they have grown out quite a bit, and I don't want loads of slippage to occur. N'drea assured me I was overeacting and told me she never seen anybody so fussy about their sisterlocks, and trust me, she has encountered a lot of fussy ones. Oh well.. *blush*

Well, I am proud to announce I have survived the waiting period (minus a couple loose and unravelled locks), and my next retightening is this Sunday, November 23, 2008. This week marks my two-month anniversary. Yaaaay! So, just to celebrate I have loaded a couple pics (see above). They look a bit dark, but you should still get to see my locks in them. Don't forget you can also click on the photo, to see a more zoomed in version.

Also, I lost a bit of weight from the detox tea I have been on plus the gazelle trainer I have been using religiously and my gallons of water intake over the last two weeks, so I admit, I am feeling a little good about myself overall. I would love to work on my arms and thighs though.. tone them up and stuff. So if anyone can recommend a toning programme, specifically for those areas, I would greatly appreciate it!

Tata!

Obama did it!!!! YES WE DID! 349-173

2008-11-05T20:30:00.000-08:00

I have been quite tardy in coming back on here to comment on Obama's stupendous victory! My best excuse is I have been unable to unglue my eyes from the television ever since. Being a political junkie, my addiction only intensified since the win, with me wanting to hear what everybody was saying from the die-hard skeptics to the fervent passionate admirers!

Despite sounding like a scratched record, I have to say that history has indeed been made. I also have to salute those who supported Obama for the entire 21 months. Congratulations on being bold and daring in believing in this man. It is definitely concrete proof that faith can move mountains. For a majority of us younger voters, we believe in the man's ability to unite, lead, and deliver. We believe he has the technical capability to perform the job remarkably. There is certainly a lot to be said on his organizational skills. His campaign model will be studied like a text book for many future election campaigns to come.

For black persons, primarily in the 40+ years age range, I believe among everything else, race is a factor. Let's face it, the fight for equality has been ongoing for centuries. It is in fact, a fight that still goes on in the USA maybe not as rampant now but certainly on a more subdued level. We of the younger black generation can only go as far as to empathize, because we were not there. However, when Obama spoke of the 106 year old black woman who voted for the first time; when my mom spoke of her visit to Winconsin, while she was a university student; when my grandmother spoke of my aunt's study and stay in Indiana, while she was in her twenties; I understand, why from the race factor this is a very important and pivotal moment in black history particularly for black persons of that age group. But the fact is the American people have spoken, and they have now proven themselves ready for a new era. An era of unity and diversity in the matters most dear to the nation's heart.

I also feel that even though numerous voters did factor race into the equation, Obama did not. Obama being biracial understood the need to appeal to a wide cross section of voters. He understood that the only way we could start on a good foot, the path to healing and repairing the country, was by inspiring unity. It was no longer about liberals vs. conservatives (which I believe would prob have been the difference in a Hilary campaign). This is reflected in his overwhelming results in securing a majority of the independent, white and latino vote, and some Cuban republicans, republicans and other conservative votes. This yet again says a lot about Obama's ability to unite the nation for this one common goal.

In terms of expectations, I, like most others, will be looking to see if he will deliver. There is no doubt that he has inherited a big mess, but I do believe he is capable of turning it around, not overnight of course, but I certainly think he can accomplish a lot in 2 terms. I believe if he leads from the centre he will maintain concensus and perhaps keep the new votes he managed to secure grounded for yet another term.

I am looking forward to seeing what he will accomplish and I thank this man for allowing me to believe in possibilities and hope again.

Godspeed Obama!

Update on My Sisterlocks

2008-11-01T17:11:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone,

Happy Election Weekend, I hope you all took advantage of the early voting process as much as possible and if not, don't forget you still have Tuesday! Go out there and make your voice be heard!

Outside of that, I thought I would come and give an update on my sisterlocks. My next maintenance session (technically my first root tightening), has been scheduled for November 23, 2008 (one week after N'drea). I am however somewhat nervous about this. This is because I have been noticing considerable growth in my roots (more so in certain areas than others). The reason this makes me nervous is because I have a long wait before my next session, and my locks are still in the new delicate stage, I'm afraid of getting a lot of slippage.

What I have been doing to prevent this as best as possible though, is to keep them plaited as much as possible. Well, pretty much whenever I'm not on the road, I keep them plaited, in hopes that this will protect them. Curly did say that if I felt uncomfortable I could call about rescheduling an earlier appointment, but I think I'm just going to try and abstain from being a whiny baby and hold out til my assigned date.

I'm so upset. My digital camera isn't working right now, and I wanted to take two pictures of hairstyles I tried this weekend. Bummer! I however bought some setters today (finally!). I have them in right now as a matter of fact (God bless me trying to sleep with them!). I managed to snap a picture with the web cam. You can see below for this. I'm sorry if it's not the best quality. I will tell how the finished product look, and try and get a clear picture of that as well.

Until then, take care!

P.s. For the record, after my last shampoo I did a count, and discovered that I have approximately 417 locks.

Guest Appearance - My Silly Bro

2008-10-21T14:06:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

So, I happen to have a brother who is slightly younger than me. He annoys me like crazy when he's ready, but at the end of the day we know that we have each other's backs. I guess that is all that should count.

He also happens to have traditional locks. These, I started myself and have been maintaining since. He has had them for over 2 years now. Now this dude is something else. He has no interest in blogging whatsoever, yet he sees me blogging and complains that I never talk about his locks. So just to appease him, I have put up his latest pictures. Feel free to comment and tell me what you think.

By the way I'm his pimp, he is on the market, so if any of you ladies are interested (hey, anything to get him out of the house permanently). :D :P

Bro you know I luv ya, and your locs have come along nicely, viewers only got to look to the left panel of my blog to see a pic with him when his locks were considerably shorter. :)

In the meantime, for those who were curious, although I procrastinated with rescheduling my first maintenance session since, I actually didn't procrastinate too long, I went to Curly two days later than the day that was originally scheduled.

She was very pleased with the progress, she noticed that they were filling out quite nicely. She only had to correct a few locks. She did not do any retightening even though there had been growth, she said she would see me in 3 weeks for that. Well that turned into 4 weeks, because I wanted to start doing my maintenance sessions on a Sunday, and N'drea had the-3-wk-later Sunday already. (That's what happens when you share a locitian :P).

The point is my locks are going well. If my loctitian is happy, I'm happy, I will just continue to be diligent in taking care of my sisterlocks. :D

I've Been Tagged.....

Here are the rules:

1) Link to the person who tagged you:happilynappilynish
2) Post the rules on your blog.
3) Share 6 non-important things/quirks/habits about yourself.

Hmmm let's see now....

1) I have a diet fetish, seriously! I ate two nachos at the movies last night, ask N'drea, and now I'm gearing up my body to try out the Lemonade diet next week.

2) I am a shoes and earrings freak, yet don't ask me to wear any hand ornaments (rings, bangles, etc). I rarely do.

3) I am almost certain that I am the biggest vegetarian JUNKIE you will ever find on the face of this earth (refer to #1 ).

4) I have a hyde/jekyll personality, seriously I may be bipolar or schizo hmmm.... one minute I'm the happiest fuzzy wuzzy person you ever encounter, next minute I'm the biggest crankiest angriest black bitch you've ever met.

5) There are two things which make me super cranky if I have to endure them for too long, and they both start with the letter H - hunger and horniness.

6) I carry the same big handbag everywhere I go literally - from work, to outtings to clubs, whether it blends with my outfits or not. I am afraid to change my bag in fear that I forget something important. It has everything in there. If I were to die and that bag were to disappear along with my body, there probably wouldn't be any proof that I ever existed. Big irony about it is I am a huge bag collector.

Coming in from the Cold

2008-10-13T19:01:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

I hope y'all missed me! Well last week was kinda crazy and mostly made me cranky (I'm a happy child in reality I promise!). I had a really nasty stubborn cold followed up with a crazy case of the shits (that I probably got from taking too much angostura bitters). My hair was so dirty, but I was afraid to wash it because I thought it would make me sicker. N'drea however came to the rescue as usual with her words of wisdom. She reminded me that I could wash with warm water and rinse with lukewarm water. Thanks for the tip, N'drea! So I had squeaky clean hair once again, and of course by then the flu was going away. I don't know if it's a good or bad thing, but I really prefer to wash with cold water. There is nothing like the crisp refreshing feeling I get from doing so! Yet warm water was my saviour twice, so I guess it's safe to say it has its use.

I spoke to my loctitian right after I finished washing to confirm my first maintenance appointment. She confirmed Tuesday, October 14, 2008 (two weeks from my the last day of my installation), but I had to postpone it. I had a great convo with her about the progress of my sisterlocks, I told her they were filling out nicely and they seem to naturally curl on their own, with the only bad news being that one lock in the back pull out. She assured me that was normal, especially in the early stages, and that she would repair it when she sees me. I keep forgetting to ask her what pattern she used when she was installing my locks, but I will remember the next time I see her.

So far, I have been getting good feedback on my hair though. Up to Saturday, I was on the road with my mother and grandmother, and somebody stopped and looked on me, saying that she "like how mi hair look and that it do good". I never get to stop walking long enough to tell her that it was sisterlocks, but I smiled and showed my appreciation.
Above is a picture of me and my friend at her birthday flex.

Oops! I got to go now! I need to postpone my appointment for tomorrow before it's too late (yes I know I love to procrastinate too much lol).

My 1 Week Old Sisterlocks

2008-10-04T12:48:00.000-07:00

Hi folks,

You are probably wondering why I took so long to come back on here lol. Well that's because I didn't have access to my rechargeable batteries, and I knew upon writing about getting my sisterlocks installed I was going to be cranky about not being able to put up pics at that same time (not that I wasn't cranky about that already). Anyway, they are now one week old, and so far I have suffered from a severe case of *hanzenthehairitis* LOL.

As for the experience of getting them installed, it ended up taking two days and a total of 18 hours. Curlylocks was easy company to be in of course, and she ensured I was as comfortable as possible for the duration. My ass was crazy sore by the end of it all, but it was worth getting a sore ass for LOL. I'm only sorry that I couldn't get pictures taken on my first day of having them, the scalp showed more at the front than at the back at the time, because according to Curly, the front seems to have a finer texture than the back, but outside of that I was happy with the end result. One shampoo and many braid outs later (in one week mind you to make the point that I have been truly obsessed with my hair since I've gotten my sisterlocks), it could be an illusion, but I have been seeing a lot less scalp.

I have tried to follow Curly's instructions as best as possible - wash once-twice per week; when washing ensure that I group and put elastic at the ends during washing, and once dried, remove elastic and separate roots. I have also ensured to braid them at night time before bed, she said I should set them every night by doing this or by putting setters in them. So I should be getting my setters this weekend. The locks seem to curl naturally by themselves though.

Generally, I have been doing all these things with a lot of care as advised, so as not to encourage slippage or damage the locks.

My Sisterlocks Consultation

2008-09-23T14:27:00.000-07:00

So, I spoke to my good friend and mentor, N'drea, 2 weeks ago, about her linking me with her new loctitian, which she did happily. I was so anxious that I felt if the loctitian could come the very same evening I would forever grovel at her feet. Now can you imagine that? In conversing with the lady over the phone though, we eventually compromised on Sunday (1 week later). It was the longest week of my life, well I may be exaggerating, but it certainly at least felt that way lol.

Finally that blessed Sunday came, I hope N'drea doesn't mind, but I will assign the loctitian with the same pet name she did - Curlylocks lol. Curly found my home with very little effort. She is a small quiet looking woman, with eyes that seem strong and gentle at the same time. Her locks as N'drea's descript promised, were curly and even after 2 years hadn't completely locked, this was because of her mixed background. I nevertheless found them beautiful and did not hesitate to express said sentiments. I had also remembered expressing to N'drea my nervousness, I was worrying that she probably would not like my hair and God knows what else could possibly go wrong. The point was I was obviously fretting. Thank God for N'drea to slap me back into reality, she quickly assured me that I was being ridiculous and that everything would be fine.

Of course N'drea turned out to be right. Curly was the most patient, humble, gentle person I have met in a while. She actually loved my hair, and told me its texture was very ideal for Sisterlocks. We also spoke a bit. I recap my crazy history leading up to this decision, and she told me a bit about herself and what Sisterlocks was about, and some tips on caring it after its installed; before retightings; and before, during, and after shampoos. One of these tips included the famous braiding and banding exercise done to protect the locks from slippage during washing and drying. She also told me for styling and protection purposes, I can braid the hair during night, and other goodies as such. She even showed me her portfolio with beautiful sistas with just as beautiful Sisterlocks at the various stages of maturity and growth. I was so impressed and excited.

She then gave me some Sisterlocks magazines and porfolios to read through, while she installed some sample locks - at the back, in the middle, and at the front on both sides. I had a problem with a treatment product I put in my hair the second to last time I washed it, which made my hair super greasy, ever since that I had been washing it a lot, to get out the excess grease, which I managed to do with a fair amount of success. Curly was however able to pick up on a slight amount of grease still remaining in my hair particularly at the front. She recommended that I just rinse thoroughly with warm water right after she leaves, since I had washed it right up to the night before I met with her. She also said to make sure I banded the sample locks during washing, and try not to forget they are in my hair during combing. I confess although I banded them religiously during washes, I do forget they are there during combing and might slightly snag them with the comb, but my little sample locks continued to remain vigilant.

We ultimately decided we were compatible of course, and she said she would be coming back two weeks later to do my locks and said that I must make sure I get at least two washes in before her next visit. She has booked me for September 28, 29, 30. She said she will come between the hours of 8am-6pm, and could very well finish installing my Sisterlocks in less than the booked time period. September 29, 2008 also happens to be my birthday, so I consider this my birthday present - Happy Birthday to me!

In the meantime, I am trying to be as patient as possible, but if I thought the week before my consultation was the slowest week of my life, well these two weeks are a sure contender, I however keep reminding myself that I only have four days left! In the meantime I have been consoling myself by playing around with my locks, I love the way they naturally curl up by themselves. I am just so anxious to see how they will look once they are 100% installed!

I'm sorry I don't have pictures up of my sample locks, I seemed to have misplaced my camera batteries, but you can be sure I will sort out myself by the time I have completely gotten my entire hair sisterlocked yaaaaay. Looking forward to sharing more soon. ;)

Help me count down the rest of the days!

Welcome and Prologue

2008-09-20T17:53:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

Welcome to my blog! This will serve to keep track of my Sisterlocks journey. I should confess however that although I'm new to Sisterlocks, I am nowhere near new to the overall dreadlocks experience. I recently made a post on the facebook group - LLL (Living & Loving Locks). This post best summarizes my previous experiences with locks so I will quote it here,

"My interest in locks started as far back as when I was in high school. Perhaps part of the influence came from my godmother and father who are also locked. But somehow I always gravitated to them and had a desire to have them from my teenage years. My mom supported this interest, but at the time locks were not accepted in school, so I waited a while.

Years later, this is what I have to share. I have locked my hair twice, and both times, my locks were started traditionally. The first time around, they were small-medium sized, while the second time, they were small. The first time around I cut them off after two years, the second time around, I pulled them out. I now intend to start Ssisterlocks next week. I already have the sample locks in.

I know you guys are looking on and saying I'm crazy. I know when I just started reading about locks and developing an avid interest years ago, I was a shocked onlooker of persons who cut off their locks only to grow them back again. Because we say locks are such a valuable and sensitive experience; its a form of evolution not only of the hair but the mind, body, and soul; it develops discipline and patience within the individual. So after going through all of this, how do one throw it all away by cutting it off?

The answer is you never throw it away, no matter what, the experience, lessons and values learned continue to stay with you. So just imagine how much more is gained then if you go through this experience/journey three times! I am enjoying myself and I'm continuing to evolve and grow, and I find I can never learn enough. Now I'm upon the start of my sisterlocks journey this I will continue to keep tabs on here for all to benefit from.

I also feel that my diversity of experiences has helped and will continue to help me to help my clients being a loctician myself. Check out www.myspace.com/chinuelocs
as well as my other facebook group - Chinue*s - where style meets function for more info!"

As for my interest in Sisterlocks, this came about during time that I was out of school and ready to start locking. I read up on it and viewed many pictures of women with Sisterlocks on blogs and on the official website itself. I wanted to do it then but couldn't afford it at the time. Now upon the advent of my birthday, I am ready and good to go! Happy Birthday to me when it comes! ;)