





Vs. 



If you are like most people, you can't wait for Fridays, when you know you will get a break from the sometimes grueling work week. No, we are not complaining too much, because we are happy to be working and making an income, however most of us would like to be doing this on our own terms and scheduling our own hours. Aren't Mondays the hardest? That's when you plummet from the high that you had over the weekend. Usually on a Monday its best not to approach me before 12:00 or 1:00pm. That's if you don't want to get your head bitten off. Believe me I'm working on and I'm getting better. By Tuesday and Wednesday, most of us are slowly getting back into the work week groove and we can actually manage a smile and a conversation. By Thursday night, usually I am back into the work week groove, preparing for Friday, and anxious and upbeat and ready to get through the day on Friday.
Then, if its not hard enough to get through the day, how about when the supervisor brings work over at 4:30 and says they need it by the end of the day. Even though in this instance I was not obligated to stay and finish the project, I stayed out of courtesy. However, on this particular day I was watching the clock and was really anxious to leave at the scheduled time - 5:30,because I was very tired and beat and pooped. Because I was already in this stressed out mode, and had to stay an hour on top of this, my nerves were extremely tender at the end of the day and I was irritated and snapping at everything and everybody.
And if you think I had it bad, I have friends that have to work 12 hour shifts that are quiet depressed and fed up about the work week. I believe the best way to deal with this is to have some type of positive outlook or it will certainly suck you dry. I don't like to use the word "attitude" too much because it is used too loosely, but in this regard, I believe we have to have a positive attitude about the work week. Whether its money as your motivator or something else, like a goal to buy a house or just saving up enough money to start a business. You just have to keep your eyes on the prize and use as many tools as possible to make it easier. For instance, bring a little radio if you can and listen to your favorite music or programs to help the time pass quicker.
It is also good to be with a Company that believes in, and offers, flex time. This is when they give you a window of options as to when you want to start working and just do your 8 hours from there. Flex time is a very good thing. Number one, we are not going to feel the same way each morning. One day we might be up early, another day we might have to run an errand in the morning and another morning we might just feel sluggish. Its a good thing because we are not robots. Number two, flex time helps with traffic congestion. If we are not all rushing to work at the same time and rushing back at the same hour, then traffic would flow much smoother.
Go ahead and vent about your work week. Is it your co-worker, your boss, your workload, traffic congestion or just getting out of bed?





Pat and Gina Neely
Yey! There is another Black couple on the Food Network and thats great. I must say, the Food Network does make an effort to find diverse hosts and cooking shows. So, hats off to them. The new couple - The Neelys - have presented quiet an array of dishes that are mostly southern, but some that they have put their own spin on. I was disappointed to see, however, the amount of salt and seasoning that was used in this one particular episode. They were making hot wings. They seasoned the wings, then they seasoned the batter for the wings and believe it or not, they sprinkled more seasoning on the wings after they were cooked.
I was surprised to see the amount of (seasoning) salt they put on those wings. I know we like our food tasty and spicy, but in this day and age when we are more aware of the dangers of sodium and high fatty content, you would think they would be more conscious of this when they are presenting their recipes for the world to see. I realize from other episodes that the Neelys are making some kind of effort to include salads and vegetables into their recipes, but they should make a stronger effort to put a healthier spin on the down-home southern cooking with all of its seasoning, grease and heavy doses.
More and more of us are becoming aware that some of the diets we grew up on might not be the healthiest. The heavy seasoning, the heavy starches, the grease. Mind you, nothing is wrong with Carbohydrates in moderation, however it is a storage food as opposed to protein which is a food that is easily burnt for energy. The problem is that some of us have had an over abundance of starches and this resulted in extra storage (fat). The high sodium can result in High Blood pressure and other illnesses. So, I think the Neely's need to be more responsible when they are showing off their southern recipes like barbeque's, wings and scrumptious deserts. With that said, congrats on making it to the Food Network!

