The past couple weeks have been a blur. What an experience! I've done more in the past week than I thought was humanly possible. I've also learned a few lessons:

• I don't do well on just a few hours sleep
• I'm quite good at elbowing for position on red carpets
• If you haven't eaten in 12 hours, Chile Limon Flavored Cheetos taste amazing
• Stilettos are over rated
• $55 for Friday night parking on South Beach doesn't include valet--only park and lock
• Cj Jeans by Cookie Johnson are my new favorite thing
• Super Bowl Week swag is the same as anytime else
• Interstate 95 Road Rangers really do exist
• Your car really won't run out of gas when the "miles to empty" meter reaches 0
• Kim Kardashian really is gorgeous
• Prescriptives 24 Hour Longwear Mascara will last for 26 hours
• a $10mill home on Miami Beach will only get you 8 bedrooms and 10 baths
• Wendy's Bacon & Blue burger is my next new favorite thing
• Always have an extra SD card on hand

That's all that I can think of now. What did you learn this week?

Your comments--priceless!!

It's a sad day. I've lost yet another part of my childhood. Donnie Simpson is leaving radio in Washington, DC after 32 years. He is originally from Detroit, but after 32 years in DC, we let him call it "home" too.

Most of the country remembers Donnie from his years on BET's "Video Soul," but in my hometown of Washington, DC, Donnie was our morning radio guy. Since we weren't afforded the luxury of iPods and internet and the such, we counted on guys like Donnie Simpson to introduce us to new music. He also bought us news at the top of the hour. He ended every morning's session with the song, "Jesus is Love."

Alas, everything must change. As Granny used to say, "nothing lasts forever." I'm listening live on the station's website. Celebs are callling left and right to wish him well. Thanks for the memories, Donnie!!

Your comments--priceless!!

One of the things that I miss most about my hometown of Washington, DC is the overabundance of greasy spoon restaurants. I believe that you get the best in local eats from these kinds of places. Now, don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with fine dining, but why go to unfamiliar territory without experiencing it the way the locals do.

When my friends travel to my hometown, I tell them to hit Ben's Chili Bowl for a chili half smoke, as well as Horace & Dicky's for a fish sandwich unlike any you've ever had before, and Booeymonger for a Patty Hearst sandwich. And when I go to visit, these are the kinds of experiences that I want to have as well.

What about you? Do you stay on the tourist beat, or do you get down and dirty with the residents? Tell me about your favorite "Greasy Spoon."

Your comments--priceless!!



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As many of you know, I am from Washington, DC. Today, on his 68th birthday, I'd like to honor one of my hometown heroes--John Thompson. John is the former basketball coach of Georgetown University. He was the first Black coach to win a collegiate sports championship in 1984. He also coached the United States basketball team in the 1988 Olympics.

Mr Thompson is a native Washingtonian, as well. He went off to the NBA, and came back to coach high school basketball. He did so well, that he was approached by Georgetown University to coach college level ball. He was an amazing coach and under his tutelage, many pro basketball players got their foundation. He is responsible for launching the careers of such players as Sleepy Floyd, Allen Iverson, Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutumbo, and Pat Ewing. Twenty six of his players went on to be drafted by the NBA, including 8 in the first round.

He was also a very controversial figure. John preached education and demanded that his players, often from underprivileged families, take advantage of the Georgetown academic system. He talked most players out of entering the Draft before graduating. He often had profanity filled tirades, but he cared about his kids. And it showed.

Outside of DC, John was often criticized, but around town, he was and still is a hero. Happy 68th, Coach!

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Yesterday, a close FOJ(Friend of Jewel) called me. She actually called to congratulate me on the examiner.com gig. But during the conversation, she also told me about how the wildfires burning in the Los Angeles area were threatening her childhood home.

She was very concerned, but hopeful that the home would be spared. There was a family member there watching over it. About an hour after the call, the area was evacuated. When I last spoke to her, she didn't know the status. She was still hopeful, as was I.

Fire is so devastating. It turns everything in it's path to ash. She has a lifetime of memories in that home. I would hate for it to end terribly. Please pray for her.

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Some exciting things are happening in my professional life! I can't share a lot right now, but I should be making a huge announcement in the next week or so.

If things go as planned, I should be spending a lot more time working from home. And while that can be a blessing, a few years ago I worked exclusively from home, with my office and boss being about 1200 miles away. While I certainly enjoyed the autonomy that such an arrangement brings, I did have a few issues with it.

First of all, I found myself longing for human contact after a few months. I did have a lot of phone contact, as well as client appointments, but most days were spent sitting at my desk, with only my radio for company. Believe it or not, it was lonely. The second issue was that even though I had a legitimate job, earning legitimate income--folks always thought that I had an hour to chitchat on the phone with them or that they could just drop by and I wouldn't be "busy." They didn't seem to realize that even though I was at home, I still had things that needed to get done and I wasn't just shooting the breeze.

Recent studies suggest that employees working from home actually get MORE done than those in the office, contrary to popular belief. I tend to agree--when you go to work, you have set hours and most of your work is done in those hours. When you work from home, you tend to start earlier and work later, as well as many weekend hours.

What do you think? Do you work from home? How productive are you? Do you know someone who works from home? Do you take advantage of their situation, by asking them to pick up your kids from daycare or go check on your sick pet?

Your comments--priceless!!

Ok, I just couldn't let this one slide. Today, July 27th, has been celebrated since the middle ages as "Natl Sleepy Head Day." On this day, the last person sleeping, in a household, is awaken by either being thrown in a lake or the sea, or having water thrown on him.

In one Finnish town, a local celebrity (usually a politician, writer, or businessman) is chosen to be thrown into the sea, as part of the celebration. No one know who it is until the ceremony. Crowds gather to watch.

Since I'm ALWAYS the FIRST person awake in my home, this is one that I would definitely LIKE to celebrate. Since my husband is usually the LAST person awake in my home, this is one that I will definitely NOT celebrate. Somehow, I don't think he would understand, especially since neither of us is Finnish. But, this is definitely someplace that I want to travel to, right around July 27th. I'm putting it on my bucket list now.

If this was celebrated in the United States, who would be likely to get wet, in your home? You? Spouse? Child? Pet?

Your comments--priceless!!

I do not think it is a good idea to have bad blood with the folks that would be "first responders" to my home.

I do think there is enough blame to go around.

That is all.

Your comments--priceless!!

My regular readers know that I suffer from severe anemia. These last few months have been full of medical procedures and weekly visits to my hematologist. I take a large amount of iron in pill form everyday. While the iron pills haven't done very much for my hemoglobin numbers, they have curbed my constant craving for ice. That's a blessing because, at my worst, I would have rather eaten ice than food.

Well anyhow, last night, while talking to one of my favorite folks in the world, I explained that I hardly ever have that overwhelming desire for ice anymore. This lead to a discussion about the "best" ice, and where to get it. You see, ice cravers like me have preferences. Of course, I have the fancy schmancy fridge that makes ice, but I don't like the shape of that ice. The cubes aren't cubes at all. They are long and curved and much too dense.

I believe McDonald's has the best ice. They have flat, circular "cubes" that fit nicely in your mouth and hold their shape in non-carbonated beverages. I would give McDonald's ice a score of 9. The next best ice comes from Pollo Tropical. They have the true square cubes, but again, the size and density are amazing! I would give them a 7.5. In fairness, I probably should mention that Pollo Tropical using an inferior cup, that starts to leak in less than an hour. (You can't expect me to eat a huge cup of ice in less than an hour, can you?) The worst ice is from Antonio's pizza. The ice there is crushed--YUCK! It's like eating a snowcone without the syrup. I give them a score of 1. The next worse is KFC--the ice is too watery and melts too quickly, though they do use a plastic cup--no chance of leaking.

As you can see, I've become quite an expert on the ice served in my immediate neighborhood. Have you ever given it any thought? Or are you one of those folks who chooses places to eat, based strictly on the food???

Your comments--priceless!!

So, I was thinking--If my home were on fire, and all humans and pets were able to make it out safely, but I could also grab 3 other items, what would they be?

Well, I would grab my photo albums, even though most of my photos are stored online. I'm hoping that even though there is more than one album, that they only count for 1 item.

I would also grab my purse. It would contain my iPod, Blackberry, and Kindle. It would also have my keys, my atm card, and lip gloss.

Finally, I would take my personal Bible. I've had it for a long time and it needs to stay with me.

What would you take? Why?

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Please help me settle a 40 year old family argument! It all revolves around Porky Pig. You youngsters may not know who Porky Pig is, but the oldheads know. Porky Pig was an animated Warner Brothers cartoon character. His most distinguishing features were his severe stutter and his lack of pants(repeated later in Chuck E. Cheese).

Now, some of you may know that I have brothers. They are 14 months younger than me (which means that they, too, are OLD!) and they are twins. Anyhow, when we were all toddlers, our family "acquired" 3 children's plates. I haven't been able to determine how they came to the family, but they were in our kitchen as far back as I can remember. So, we got THREE plates. (THIS IS SIGNIFICANT). We had 3 children in the family. (THIS, TOO, IS SIGNIFICANT). Two of the plates had a huge Bugs Bunny in the center, and the third had Porky Pig. So, let's examine this. THREE PLATES. THREE KIDS. TWO BUGS. TWINS. ONE PORKY PIG. ME.

Well, at EVERY meal, and I do mean EVERY, there was a huge fight about which of us would get to eat from the plate with the big Porky Pig. It was like whatever meal that was on it tasted so much better. Whoever ended up with it gloated while the other 2 glared. For years, we argued about that plate. There were tears, fighting, slaps, punches, punishments, and it usually ended up with everybody being sent to bed early, sometimes without eating at all.

Anyhow, the plate was MINE. The Porky Pig was MINE. The boys had the Bugs Bunny plates. Porky was MINE!!!!! But noooo, do you think my parents would back me on this???? NOPE! We had to rotate Porky at every meal because they claimed they didn't know who rightfully owned Porky. They knew. They knew. It was MINE! And this lack of support, so early in my formative years, probably contributed heavily to the neurosis I suffer from today. But I digress--

S0metimes now, years later, when we get together as a family, someone will bring up the big Porky Pig plate and it will start a fierce debate. Both of my brothers still claim that the plate was theirs. My parents still claim that the plate didn't have a rightful owner, but was rather a "community" plate. Hmmph!! Ok, so I've told my side the story. Please tell me--WHOSE plate do YOU think it was??

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