why tilapia?

Tilapia Fish Cakes

I was mostly a white bass lover. Drive by FRESH FISH HOUSE, any location locally and we'll need to pull over, park, so I can dash in and order a large white bass-head chopped, split, leave the tail on. Yes, fry it! Wheat bread and lots of hot sauce.

However, if you check my freezer, tilapia is the only fish I purchase. I do consume seafood varieties in the form of shrimp, lobster, and crab. However, in the fish family it's none other than tilapia.

Why?

Tilapia is primarily and often entirely a vegetarian fish. It consumes a cereal diet, whereas most other fishes (my white bass) are carnivorous.

It has been regarded as the fish St. Peter (found with the coin in its mouth).

It has very low levels of mercury, though low in Omega 3.

It is a very inexpensive fish, easily farmed, thus leading to its growing popularity. You can find this fish at any store.

water is my bff!

As a natural, we often say water is our friend. Water is the ISH! Washing your hair with it is one way, not fearing it ruining your natural coif is another. The big daddy of them all is how a tiny bottle with a little hot water, spritzed lightly over your twists, helps to keep them butter soft.

I am still learning. This is a journey with me through the natural world, as my health and wellness journey is filled with new discoveries. On this journey I found things that served me very little purpose.

I love Carol’s Daughter products. I have not tried them all and I probably will not need to. However, the best thing in the fray is the Healthy Hair Butter, hands down. This is like hair crack. Seriously, I could retire my journey with this. Unfortunately, it is expensive. Now I can budget for it, but it is best that I use it sparingly, once a week maybe to lock down the twists following my co-wash in Shea/Almond by Suave. After about 2 days, it is Now Shea Butter to the rescue along with my secret leave-ins. Instead of coating my hair with Shea and over piling on the goodness, I simply learned to do this on day 2 or 3 and then follow each morning or night with a light spray of water, tie my hair down, and let the moisture of the water and creamy oil texture of the butters get reacquainted.

By the last day of my workout stints before the day off reprieve, I wash it. Oh how I have the best times in the shower washing my hair with conditioners. I mentioned that I am moving gradually away from shampoos. My hair does not suffer with dandruff anymore. Therefore, the shampoos I purchased with dandruff in mind are sitting in the cupboard, virtually unusable.

It’s a slow process, but I am discarding a lot of this stuff. I refuse to use them on my hair just to be rid of them, so to the trash they will go. I will keep Cream of Nature, Jason’s (of course), Carol’s Daughter Vanilla poo/con, and perhaps even try other Suave or VO5 clarifying conditioners.

I am very satisfied with Suave Almond/Shea conditioner as my mainstay. Some of the products are great for when I go straight, like the Cream of Nature conditioning shampoo. However, in the meantime, the once per week washes will consist of three wash cycles…clarifying shampoo, clarifying conditioner, then the love of my life “almond/shea” co-wash.

Daily sprays with my bff…and I am all good. No, I have not forgotten about my hair grease…it’s still a love of mine. We shall see how my bff enjoys grease. Stay tuned!

halle should buy a clue~

Recently, as the news reports the courts have ruled in Gabe's favor, ordering Halle to fork over $20,000 to Gabe for child support, in order that Nahla, a child torn between two people who love her, can continue seamlessly to live in the lifestyle while in her mother's custody.

Uterus aside, I think the courts clearly are trying to send a message to Halle that her money, power, and influence trumps her 'sky is falling' prediction regarding Gabe and the random perps she claims are placing her child in eminent danger.

I bet if she hadn't threw in all of that 'fear' for my child shit, she wouldn't be paying this. The farther it seems she goes, the more she makes Gabe appear like the victimized father who simply wants to be with his child.

I've always said if she kept her rants in her belly and farted them out, she'd be a more credible witness on her own defense. Instead, Gabe is coming off as the lesser of two fools and that is no place for him to be if her claims be true. Taking Nahla to Paris is not a permanent venue for Halle and anyone who knows her could testify to that. Her home is USA. Her family is here. She has no contacts to Paris. By her US citizenry alone, she trumps Gabe's residency.

Paris is a bitch ass move. The more she presses it and the desire to muck up Gabe and get his rights terminated, the more it appears she's drinking Olivier's kool-aid. If Olivier gets her on his soil, marries her, adopts Nahla, he could fuck that child sideways, and there's nothing Barack Obama or the Special Forces can do to bring Nahla home. She would be Olivier's child and Halle could even wind up losing her rights to Nahla in Paris. She's needs to buy a fucking clue. Dumb ass!

Paris sounds like a move Olivier is pushing subliminally. Halle could give a flying fuck about Paris. She just wants to 'win'. But her own desires to punish the only person who could be Nahla's greatest ally against Olivier's grooming potential is getting her no fans in the probate.

No matter how much money she has or how racist Gabe could be, he's the child's father and she has yet to prove he's a danger to Nahla, only a threat to anyone who tries to impose their 'restrictions' upon his parental rights.

hairstory, know your type

As a naturalista for nearly four years, this journey has been a labor of love. I was enslaved for 30 plus years to chemical relaxers and really did not know why. It started as a child and it continued through adult life. I was programmed to believe that straighter hair grew simply because kinky hair was evil.

To sum it up, kinky hair is coiled tightly around itself. The natural oils that are secreted from our scalp travel down the strands and lubricate the hair. Finer textures or thicker textures, the truth is that hair with a looser curl patter grows apparently faster than coarse strands. Since hair has to be cleansed we wash this oil away, but a healthy scalp continues to secrete and thus the hair is replenished with its own natural lubrication. In coarse textures, the oil cannot travel down the shaft and lubricate the ends, which make coarse hair dryer on the ends. Hair is dead. To retain length hair must receive nutrition inside and out.

What is lost or absent must be replaced. I learned very quickly that the more my ends are coated with a sealant (combo of moisture/oil) the healthier my hair tends to be, grows and retains its growth. The longer the hair becomes, the more your hair requires artificial sealants. This means that you will spend more to maintain your tresses as it grows and retains length automatically by supply/demand. Nonetheless, longer hair does not have to be avoided.

Adopt a healthy hair regimen and stick with it. As I mentioned earlier, I evolved in this process through a lot of trials and errors. The goal is to maintain my hair with as few products as possible. I believe that once I confirm black castor oil, I will have arrived.

a curly girl...conditioner washing evolution

Over 20 years ago when working in the adult foster care industry, I regularly transported clients to SuperMarts in the local area. With the clients small budgets I consciously steered them towards less expensive items. Undoubtedly shampoo regularly appeared on client shopping lists. The need for shampoo and conditioner dialed us towards VO5, White Rain, and Suave. I never new African American's could use these brands and get captivating results.

There has now  a trend on the natural globe that began long before someone penned a book and made conditioner wash/styling the go-to for curly girls. Since becoming a natural, I had to embrace the curl revolution instantly when I big chopped my hair Nov 2008. Now nearly four years into this world of curls I quickly evolved to conditioner washing simply for its softening results. I love my cheap conditioners. I also love the expensive ones. If the cheaper brands will garner the same or better results, it is a no-brainer. I am going for cheap!

Coupons are big to-do on small budgets. Before the year turns over I have begun to pledge to reducing my product margin to no more than 10 products, thus backing off the product junkie life. I am an enormous fan of shopping quantity if the budget and coupons allow. Recently, I embraced Suave's Professional Almond/Shea. First round I tried both the poo/co with amazing results. You simply cannot go wrong with you mix Conditioner with Shea and Almond.

I began to shift towards the 2 to 1 margin, conditioner and shampoo. Now, I am all about the Conditioners. Rarely do I find the need to clarify, since I have not deflected from the Sulfate poos.

No more poos...accept for clarifying.

coconut shrimp

*I usually serve with light fruity marmalade for dipping. You can pick this up at any local store. For this setting I used Apricot.

Peel and devein your shrimp. Set your fryer and prepare for a 400 degree prep for cooking.

***

Dry coating:

1/2 cup coconut

1/3 cup oat flour

1/4 cup whole wheat cracker crumbs

***

1 egg white

1 T organic unsweetened soy milk (or whatever milk you fancy)

1 T Whole Wheat Flour

Pat your shrimp dry. Season (to your desire with salt, pepper, garlic) and toss with flour. Whisk egg white and milk. Mix coconut, oat flour, and cracker crumbs. Spread on waxed paper. Coat shrimp in egg/milk then roll in dry coating. Drop into heated oil for 5-8 minutes or until golden brown. Strain. Serves 1.

spinach pies

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To make crust...

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter, chilled and diced

1/4 cup ice water

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in water, a tablespoon at a time, until mixture forms a ball. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.  

             

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Spinach pie filling...

Fresh Spinach
Salt/Pepper
White Onion chopped
Red Pepper Flakes
1T Olive Oil
Pepper Jack Cheese

Preheat oven at 375 degrees. Saute fresh spinach in oil. Add salt, pepper, pinch of pepper flakes, and 1/2 cup of chicken broth.

Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Strain liquid from spinach and set aside.

Roll crusts out at room temp. Cut into circles or squares 3 inches diagonally or in diameter or larger. I prefer 5 inches to produce a surface to hold 3-5 T of spinach.

Spoon spinach onto crusts, sprinkle chopped onion and pepper jack cheese on top. Fold upwards to pinch and seal edges.

Bake in the oven at 375 degrees until golden brown on a nonstick sheet. Serve. You can freeze extras and eat leisurely. I usually make 2-4 at a time, store the leftovers in the refrigerator and eat within a day or two.

my favorite things—natural makeup

Years ago, I only wore a lip liner and a medium rose glossy tint. It took me less than two minutes to apply and I would be out the door. I never carried a makeup bag. Then in 2003 I joined a wellness company and struck gold. Nicole Miller was a lifesaver. I did not wear much foundation throughout the years but usually kept a staple in case I needed to cover an occasional blemish.

This list will grow as the year progresses. I want to tell you about this now, instead of waiting until Christmas.

On a trip to Sephora, I contemplated walking right back out, but decided that since I was no longer a residual player on the Nicole Miller team, it was time to find a new family. For years I watched infomercial after infomercial about Bare Minerals. It never convinced me.

My sensitive skin craves natural products. It loves oil free, water based goods. I sat in the chair and let a consultant give me the once over. I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE BARE MINERALS. I also love tarte and JOSIE MARAN. Every time I wear it, my sister cannot stand not complimenting me. She’s even planning a visit to the SEPHORA store for a consult. 

hair grease haul

First, forget what you have been told about throwing away 'hair grease'.

When I started this natural hair journey, I was new. The last time I saw natural hair Muhammad Ali was fighting Leon Spinks. Yeah! Some of you folks born in the 80's forward have no idea what I am talking about.  Naturally speaking, the words of the wise are from tested true natural veterans with flowing locs.  Right?

Well, let me tell you a thing or two about ditching what you know once worked on your hair. Not everyone is the same. You will find this on YouTube. Most of the soft luscious wash-n-go girls are 3c and below with hair that shrinks but is fine textured to be manipulated without drying out. For us 4-type folks...uh...we need the twist outs and 'da grease'.

Not everyone is the same, even amongst the 4's. Some do not experience the shrinkage that  I encounter. Some do not like their hair so much that they wear weaves, braids, wigs, extensions, etc. 98% of the time when their hair is not flat-ironed or when doing 'length checks'. Listen up...they hardly blog about the wonderful ways their 4 type hair is styled daily. They hide!

Why? They hide because they are too chicken shit to admit that all of these oils and expensive materials pimped by the natural community for profit are not working for them. They do not want to deflect from the core, so they talk all of this chatter about 'protective styling' and hide their natural hair. Some even duck and run back to the creamy crack. Some, admit the truth and get back to the old ways that worked, which grew thick voluptuous ponies that everyone admired back in elementary school. You remember elementary school? That was the time when your mother still styled your hair, and it was long and thick, before you entered junior high and your poison fingers broke it all off.

My point here is that with all of my 3.5 years natural from a bald head, I started with what I knew. That consisted of the maintenance my mother used on my hair. As I branched out from a smooth bald head to a curly twa (teeny weeny afro) I wanted to see what others were doing with this 'hair' I discovered which was multi-textured. The good part is that I learned. Through this learning I became a product junkie, trying every product that I heard worked. I am not ashamed to say this. You learn by doing. No one sent me free tries so I was left to purchase my 'learning tools'. Sorry, student loan does not cover natural hair styling. Ha!

I will not list all of the products that I tried and tossed. It was a lot. I will tell you that I am ditching more of the stuff that does not work and adding GREASE! That is right. I am not talking about the stuff that you buy in a tiny tub for five dollars, with three trials and you are replacing it. I am speaking about the 1-3 dollar tubs of Bergamont, Castor Oil, and Coconut Oil. Royal Crown was a staple in my home. Some folks used Dixie Peach. Some had hair that just bathed in Dippity Doo (gel).

I know this. I need moisture and I need oil. Conditioner washes are better for me than Shampoo. Leave-ins are the bomb! Cheap Shampoo works! Cheap Conditioners work 10x better than the poos! I did discover a wonderful leave-in by a blogger on the YT. It consists of equal parts: aloe vera, conditioner, oil, and (water...my personal touch). I like my leave-in as a spray. I purchased little bottles to store it in, shake it up before applying, then add my GREASE! Yes sir! I am loving it!

Do you and do what works. Do not be afraid to try. By all means, when the trials fail to give you improved results, do not be afraid to go back home! We are not the rulers of the natural hair world. We do not own you or your journey.