Erykah Badu mentioned that “Honey” would be the first single from her new album, tentatively titled Kahba, which is scheduled to drop on her birthday, February 26, 2008.

“Honey” is produced by 9th Wonder. Badu describes the song as “an old school track with some funk on it.”

The release of “Honey” also marks Badu’s 10th year in the music industry. Badu has enlisted some of the most talented, groundbreaking underground producers and engineers in the hip-hop game to support her breakthrough return, including Grammy Award winning producer 9th Wonder (Jay-Z, Nas, Mary J. Blige), Madlib, Mike “Chav” Chavarria and R&B singer Bilal. “The music is the star,” says Erykah, “I just laid down my vocals and let the music breathe while the melodies tell the stories.”

(TULSA, Okla.) School police officers say prescription drugs are making their way into schools and house parties.

They say kids are calling them salad parties and prescription drugs are the pass to get in. You get whatever pills you can your hands on, drop them in a bowl, mix all the pills up. And having no idea what the pills are, you pull one out from the mix and pop it, waiting for the high.

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What is Thoracic Outlet Syndrome?
Thoracic outlet syndrome is a condition whereby symptoms are produced from compression of nerves or blood vessels, or both, because of an inadequate passageway through an area (thoracic outlet) between the base of the neck and the armpit. The thoracic outlet is surrounded by muscle, bone, and other tissues. Any condition that results in enlargement or movement of the tissues of or near the thoracic outlet can cause the thoracic outlet syndrome. These conditions include muscle enlargement (such as from weight lifting), injuries, an extra rib from the neck at birth (cervical rib), weight gain, and tumors at the top of the lung (rare). Often no specific cause is found.

If you have symptoms of thoracic outlet syndrome, avoid carrying heavy bags over your shoulder because this depresses the collarbone and increases pressure on the thoracic outlet. You could also do some simple exercises to keep your shoulder muscles strong. Here are four that you can try; 10 repetitions of each exercise should be done twice daily:

* Corner Stretch – Stand in a corner (about 1 foot from the corner) with your hands at shoulder height, one on each wall. Lean into the corner until you feel a gentle stretch across your chest. Hold for 5 seconds.
* Neck Stretch – Put your left hand on your head, and your right hand behind your back. Pull your head toward your left shoulder until you feel a gentle stretch on the right side of your neck. Hold for 5 seconds. Switch hand positions and repeat the exercise in the opposite direction.
* Shoulder Rolls – Shrug your shoulders up, back, and then down in a circular motion.
* Neck Retraction – Pull your head straight back, keeping your jaw level. Hold for 5 seconds.

As with any exercise program, if any of these exercise cause pain, stop immediately!

My body’s falling apart…

Regina Daniels, who worked as R. Kelly’s publicist for 14 years, has formally announced her decision to end all ties with Kelly.

In her statement, Daniels writes, “I have prided myself on loyalty, respect and professionalism. It saddens me that I was not always shown those same courtesies during my 14-year tenure as Mr. Kelly’s publicist … There are some lines that should never be crossed professionally or personally. Mr. Kelly crossed a line that forever altered the scope of our relationship. For this reason I made the decision to resign.”

Five years ago R. Kelly was charged with 14 counts of child pornography. He has yet to go to trial, but proceedings should kick off next spring.

I heard on the radio this morning that the reason his publicist quit because R Kelly slept with her 19 y/o daughter. Kelly was a friend of the family and knew the girl since she was 4 y/o. Foul.

Oklahoma is one of the most depressed states in America, according to a national report released Wednesday. The report cites the state’s high suicide rate and a high number of residents in “serious psychological distress.”

“Depression is a chronic illness that exacts a significant toll on our health and productivity,” authors of the Mental Health America report noted. “The illness is the leading cause of disability for individuals ages 15-44 in America.” Oklahoma ranks 46th of the 50 states and District of Columbia. A lower ranking in the report means more mental health problems.

In fact, the bottom ten “most depressed” states are: 42) Wyoming, 43) Ohio, 44) Missouri, 45) Idaho, 46) Oklahoma, 47) Nevada, 48) Rhode Island, 49) Kentucky, 50) West Virginia, and 51) Utah.

The “least depressed” states are 1) South Dakota, 2) Hawaii, 3) New Jersey, 4) Iowa, 5) Maryland, 6) Minnesota, 7) Louisiana, 8} Illinois, 9) North Dakota, and 10) Texas.

The rankings are determined by factors such as adolescents and adults who annually have “serious psychological episodes” and “major depressive episodes.”

“It is important to note that regardless of where each state ranks, there is much room for improvement,” said David Shern, president and CEO of Mental Health America. “This study shows that states can significantly improve their populations’ mental health status by adopting policies that expand access to treatments.”

Oklahoma had 509 suicides in 2005, the most so far this decade for a single year.

That number places Oklahoma 39th in the country for suicides, according to the report. Again, a lower ranking indicates a higher suicide rate. The national study found 13.3% of Oklahomans age 18 and older had “serious psychological distress” in the past year, and 8% of Oklahoma’s adult population experienced “major depressive episodes” in the past year.

On average, 4.3% of Oklahoma adults experience a “poor mental health day” every month, according to the report.

Still A Stigma

The Mental Health America report indicated 17.5% of Oklahomans couldn’t get treatment for mental health problems because of the cost. Dismukes also said mental illnesses have a stigma that keeps people from seeking help. “Mental disorders are the 3rd leading cause of chronic disease in the state – behind only pulmonary conditions and hypertension – and are more prevalent than heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and strokes,” Dismukes, spokesman for the OK Dept of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, said.
“They are the leading forms of disability and lost productivity , it decreased quality of life and premature death if left untreated,” he said.

“As mentioned in the report, depression is a risk factor for such chronic illnesses as hypertension, heart disease and diabetes.”

written by Jim Killackey (Staff writer for The Oklahoman)

Oklahoma Suicides by Year

2000: 466

2001: 506

2002: 491

2003: 476

2004: 502

2005: 509

It is clear that some people are more offensive than others. It seems that either they don’t care or they don’t know what they are doing.

If you have problems getting along with people there are three possible reasons why:

1. You know how you are upsetting people but you don’t care

2. You don’t know you are upsetting people

3. You are aware that you are upsetting people but you don’t quite understand why. This article is for the benefit of all you 3’s out there! (And possibly some 2’s too!)

Why people get offended
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This, my friend, is a dead rat.

Daddy had to scoop him up with the shovel.

Word around town is that Mr B (the cat) killed him. Good Kitty.

Mr Jack with Mustache

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Stevie Wonder Says: ” She touches the place that is the deepest and most clearest to my heart… expressing music!”
Daughter of comedian, social activist and health advocate Dick Gregory, this super vocal talent will soon make her own mark on fame with her long awaited debut album Beautiful Flower.
Ayanna’s musical roots are steeped in the struggle of the “Freedom Movement”. For this child of Human Rights activist Dick Gregory, the seeds and songs for justice were planted at birth. Thus, she decided early in life that her gift of song would be her gift to the struggle. In 1990, Ayanna became a voice for “The Movement” as a student activist at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Here she was called on to sing at marches, rallies and demonstrations against the war in the Persian Gulf. From there and for the next decade, Ayanna would become a major voice within the various cultural, political, and spiritual movements in Washington, D.C.

She’s had the privilege of sharing the stage with Ahmad Jamal, Lou Donaldson, Roy Ayers, Will Downing, Jennifer Holiday, Najee, Amiri Baraka, Sonia Sanchez, Maya Angelou, the Last Poets, Donald Byrd, Kenny Burrell, James Moody, Bill Cosby, Stevie Wonder and Dick Gregory.

Buy Here CD Here

Official Website

MySpace Page

The Crip Walk, or C-Walk, is a steady movement of the feet used to spell out gang-related symbols and images. It originated in the early 1970s in the West End, a poor suburb of Oneonta, New York, popularly referenced in rap lyrics. What began as a symbolic movement of the feet in the early 1980s in NYC, New York, soon inspired a hip-hop dance in the late 1990s.

Instructions: First start out with your feet parrallel and shoulder with apart.
Next all your going to do is jump up lightly. Your feet should only leave the ground by about 2 or 3 inches. Now when you jump stick your right foot out about only 6 inches, NO MORE, (sticking your feet out too far doesn’t allow you to bend your knees as much making you seem stiff, these should be short movements, not long and drawn out). You should land with only the heel of your right foot touching the ground and the ball of your left foot touching the ground. Then jumb again and bring your right foot back to its original position. Now do the same for the other foot.

Now to make your c-walk look even better, this time when you jump up and stick out your right foot bring your left foot with it in the same direction about 3 or 4 inches. Repeat on the other side. Also when you jump back to your original position be sure to bend your knees a little bit. (As you become more comfortable you can alter my directions as long as it still looks good.)

Raise your arms up to shoulder height and put them in a light football blocking position. When in the position move your fist so that they are in directly in front of your shoulders about six inches. Drop your elbows so they are at a 45 degree angle and unclench your fist. Now let your arms move with you freely as you dance, don’t lock them in this position, they should be bouncing around.

Instructions from Mike

This is a severe form of depression.

Sufferers of depression with melancholic features withdraw into a dense cocoon of misery that nothing can penetrate. Nothing seem to make them happy. Even the most joyful events in life seem empty and have no meaning to them.

The victims of this depression are frigid and have lost the capacity to experience pleasure.

Other symptoms include the disappearance of appetite, severe weight loss, and a terrible problem getting any sleep.

The victims feel that their body is almost as broken as their mind.

Some people become so impaired that they are unwilling or unable to dress, may stop washing or feeding themselves, may stop eating, and may wind up spending the entire day alone lying in bed ruminating in a frantic and agitated state. This can lead to a medical emergency with dehydration, malnutrition, exhaustion, and suicide risk.

Here is a typical scenario:

You wake up at 3 A.M. feeling absolutely rotten, desperate, and agitated. You turn on TV but can’t watch, pick up a book but can’t read, try soothing music but feel irritated by it. You return to bed-but toss, turn, and fret in the endless hours before dawn. As the sun rises, you begin pacing around the apartment but feel no relief or comfort and finally go back to bed. You feel worthless wasting time in bed but you are too washed out to get up.

Your mind is filled with self-criticism, ruminations, catastrophization, and worries.
As the day progresses, you feel a bit better. By late afternoon you are relieved enough to eat a light meal and get dressed. The evening is not fun, but it is not an agitated torture. By 3 A.M. the next morning, however, you are back in the lowest circle of hell.

Treatment
Psychotherapy is totally ineffective for this type of severe depression. The victim may view the psychotherapy as added burden and hence the condition can get worse. Antidepressant medication is usually the treatment of choice but electro convulsive therapy (ECT) may be necessary if rapid results are needed or if the medicine has not worked very well.

Source 

Avoidant personality disorder (APD) is considered to be an active-detached personality pattern, meaning that avoidants purposefully avoid people due to fears of humiliation & rejection. It ís thought to be a pathological syndromal extension of the “normal inhibited” personality, which ís characterized by a watchful behavioral appearance, shy interpersonal conduct, a preoccupied cognitive style, uneasy affective expression & a lonely self-perception. According to this view, the avoidant pattern seems to range in varying degrees along a symptomological continuum from mild to extreme. In mild cases, a person may be said to be normally shy, whereas extreme cases indicate personality disorder.

Individuals with AvPD are “lonely loners.” They would like to be involved in relationships but cannot tolerate the feelings they get around other people. They feel unacceptable, incapable of being loved, and unable to change. Because they retreat from others in anticipation of rejection, they lead socially impoverished lives. They have immature and unrealistic expectations of relationships; they believe that they can have no imperfections if they are to be accepted and loved. Interpersonally, they are ill at ease, awkward and tense. They experience unremitting self-consciousness, self-contempt and anger toward others (Oldham, 1990, pp. 188-193).

Individuals with AvPD will develop intimacy with people who are experienced as safe. Nevertheless, they will often engage in triangular marital or quasi-marital relationships which provide intimacy while maintaining interpersonal distance. These individuals like to foster secret liaisons as a “fall-back” position in case the key relationship does not work out. As sexual partners and parents, people with AvPD appear self-involved and uncaring as they preserve distance from others through defensive restraint and withdrawal. Even so, these individuals long for affection and fantasize about idealized relationships.

Go here to view more info.

Set the scene for seduction by e-mailing or calling your partner earlier in the day. His instructions: to buy champagne and have it on ice by the time you get home. When you’re 10 minutes away from the house, call again and ask him to put on your chosen CD (time it so the right song will be playing when you walk in the door), turn the lights down a little and plunk his bottom on the sofa. Then take a deep breath and prepare to…

Walk the Walk
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An acoustic version of Riskay’s “Smell Yo Dick.”  If you haven’t heard the original version that’s making the internet go crazy, check it out here.

This poseable needle felted miniature Schnauzer is 6 way jointed for poseability.

Check out more of teresa‘s creations here.