To Michigan on it's 175th Birthday

Dear Michigan,

Given your name comes from a Native American word meaning "turtle", it's probably no coincidence my first pet was a turtle. Maybe it was your way of instilling a sense of place within me during my formative years. You raised me and the majority of my family. You welcomed my father and grandparents, who came from the South. I was blessed to walk through the hallowed halls of your University in Ann Arbor for four years. You put the world on wheels. You have birthed a plethora of figures who have impacted the country and the world. Recent years have been rough for you, however. Many have left you and others negatively comment about you. Despite this, you are always home to those who have resided within your borders. From Ann Arbor to Zeeland, there is no other place quite like you. May you be blessed this and many years to come

With love,
Rana Dianne Irby
A Michigander born and raised.

On Traveling

So it looks like your humble blogger has been initiated into the world of the traveler. It began this past September with my first stay at a B&B. Today's adventure includes a stay at the Chicago Parthenon Hostel (310 S. Halsted) in the Windy City. So far, so good. Clean, fancy, no frills-good bang for the buck at $40 a night for a private room. There are some common-sense rules that have to be abided by here, but it goes to show the extent to which the hostel goes to keep the place nice, spiffy, and safe. On a related note: the staff-quite friendly and down-to-earth! It seems like one can truly call themselves a traveler until they've experienced stays at hostels and B&Bs. Until next time!

"...and we PAINT!" cont'd

It wasn't my intention for this to be my first blog post of the year, but the paintings said it was time. Ladies and gentlemen, presenting "The Metropolis Series"


The Metropolitan



and

Lead Us All Back to One

Each of these have very layered meanings. Hope they bless you, everyone!

Happy New Year & What to Look Out For

The time has come to close the book on 2011 and say hello to 2012. Before giving you my New Year's wishes, a couple things:

Highlights
It's been an interesting year for yours truly. Some personal matters aside, some great memories came about in 2011:

Hooligans in Wondaland-5/11/11, 5/27/11

The picture above? 'Nuff said.
Oh, and yeah-SHE RETWEETED AND DIRECTLY TWEETED ME!!!

Thrivals 4.0-Louisville ROCKS!!! By the way, if you aren't familiar with Thrivals, check out ideafestival.com and RUN, not walk, to Louisville September 2012 for Thrivals 5.0. Also, read the post on Martin Luther King's dream and thrivals.  Links to Dr. Nathaniel Irvin's definition are there. For information about places to stay in Louisville, check out the September about Central Park B&B about the experience there.

9/29/11-My third decade commences

10/20/11-Campus Consciousness Tour!!! F.A.N.D.R.O.I.D.S. know the deal.

It has been the year of Monae: performances at the Grammys and Nobel Peace Prize concert, multiple magazine cameos, Tightrope appearances in HP and KMart commercials AND Happy Feet 2, AND she announced she'll be releasing not 1 but 2 albums in 2012.

As for life lessons this year: many events occur in life for a reason. That reason may not reveal itself at all or after some time passes. The key is to take it one day at a time, which will not be easy. At all.

What's Happening in 2012
Expect some more words from the mad mind that is moi, including the return of Rita Barbour in the continuation of her adventures. (She's been nagging me for months about it)

My sincere hope and prayer is that the year to come is a most blessed, prosperous, and joyous one for you and yours.

Ms. Rana Dee

"...and we PAINT!"

I am by no means an artist, but I have stepped into the creative side a bit.  Here are some works by yours truly(For more info, leave a comment):

A Figure in Black (2009)

 

Balancing Act Series

Balancing Act

Balancing Act Pt.2/Ode to Jane

La La Land-For the 2010 Detroit Artists Market Box Show

Gifts and giving (in the spirit of the Season)

In attempts to deal with this moment of being under-the-weather, I decided to put the tea set that my good friend gave to me. Using the set immediatly brought thoughts about that friend and the blessing to have someone to share common interests with. In this season where giving (and shopping) is at the forefront, it's nice to pause to reflect on the point of the giving-the people we're sharing them with.  Getting caught up in the details of shopping and budgets can easily veer us away from that fact. Giving  is about the human connection more so than the actual items in themselves. They're meant to be reminders of what lies beneath-the love between family, friends, and others as members of the human species. What's more, gifts and giving are purposed to recall the value of each person given their shared humanity. It's a blessing to be to able to share with someone other than oneself. To be able to receive is a blessing as well considering nothing in life is guaranteed. THAT is the heart of gifts and giving.

Foot-In-Mouth: A musing

Everyone has a moment (or two, or three) in their life where they said or did something that caused them to look at  themself  and go"What was I thinking?". For purposes of this entry, it shall be referred to as foot-in-mouth disease. For some, it's curable. For others, well, there may not exactly be a cure. The key is in how it's managed. In such instances, it's easy for demoralization to set in. As the moral of the first poem in the previous entry suggests, there is the risk for the aforementioned to turn into inaction. Instead of being proactive or productive, one who improperly manages their foot-in-mouth end up in a cycle of defeat. On the other hand, proper management (i.e. using "foot-in-mouth" moments as catalysts for positive change) can initiate a cure or an effective means to work around the issue. Like the majority of life's issues, mindset is at the core. It's not easy, but a change in thinking is necessary to address this epedimic.