What a beautiful love song by The Ohio Players. Dedicate this one on Valentine's Day. Check them out "live" on Soul Train after the jump. That was a bad, bad band. The Ohio Players.
'

Call myself going to watch the Grammys in its entirety for the first time in about 20 years. All I remember is Elton John and Lady Gaga, and I was OUT. LOL.

Well, anyway, was on Youtube catching a couple of clips and saw this video of India Arie just radiating with beauty and happiness. She won urban/alternative award. Urban/alternative?

The last time I saw her at a Grammy was that year when she went toe to toe with Alicia Keyes and I think she either won one award or went home empty handed. Could not understand that one either. She happened to mention she has been nominated 18 times and has won ONLY 3 awards. And Beyonce wins a thousand? The powers that be have decided that Beyonce will continue to reign as our IT girl until they find a replacement. RIght now, it seems as if Rihanna and Lady Gaga are working overtime, trying to capture that spotlight. There is definitely much backdoor politics going on with this ceremony.

Now, I know why I haven't been interested enough to sit through an entire show and feel thoroughly entertained and engaged. Same old, same old.

I had the wonderful privilege of attending the festival yesterday. It rained most of the time, but it was warm. Singer, Kem performed for one hour and he has a beautiful voice. No studio sound surprises. It was a beautiful venue. Eatonville, Florida

While I was sitting in my lawn chair taking in the sounds and scenery, I could not help but reflect back to "Their Eyes Were Watching God." Both the movie and book. If you have not seen it, starring Halle Berry and Michael Ealy you can find it on YouTube in its entirety. Here is the link to the movie: Their Eyes Were Watching God movie 1/11

The main street was lined with vendors. I managed to capture a few photos of some of the artwork vendor were selling. I saw many $1000 and $2500 pieces. Just breathtaking. Vendors were there from all around the country and many people left due to the rain so it was nice to be able to navigate with arms length space minus sweltering heat. Food was abundant. Health fairs were taking place and I saw many children with face paintings. This was an all ages event. Young and old enjoyed the moment.

I posted some of my photos. My purchases were a Zora Neale t-shirt and a tub of shea butter. Shea butter was in abundance and I have always wanted to buy some from an African vendor without have to drive somewhere to look for it.

The festival wraps up today, day 9. There are random people in the photos and I don't know anyone in them. ZoraFestival.com
Follow the jump to see the rest.

Photo Credit
Zora Neale Hurston: Library of Congress

There she is, Miss America. Meet Miss Virginia, Caressa Cameron. She was crowned yesterday at the Theatre for the Performing Arts in Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, NV.

Photo Credit
missamerica.org

In my opinion, the greatest female athlete in the world. Serena tucks under Grand Slam tennis title under her belt. Yayyy! She beat Belgian Justine Henin 6-4 3-6 6-2 capture her 12th major titles victory, tying tennis great Billie Jean King. She and Venus won the women's double championship also, repeating last year's victory. I was up at 3:30 am watching it from start to finish. Live.

Here is a breakdown of the prize money the two cleaned up at the two week event. What a nice payday for the #1 Women's pro tennis player in the world!

Serena:
Women's singles winner: $2,100,000
Women's doubles winner: $225,000
Total: $2,325,000

Venus:
Women's singles quarter finish: $200,000
Women's doubles winner: $225,000
Total: $425,000

Photo Credit
www.australianopen.com

Several local news sources say the family had not seen the man, 43 year old Abraham Shakespeare, since last April and he was finally reported missing last November. He hit the jackpot back in 2006 at a time where it was reported that he was making $8/hour as a trucker.

The NY Daily News reports:
"The Plant City, Fla., backyard where Shakespeare was discovered is linked to a woman who claims the lottery winner gave her $1 million after they became friends.

The property was owned by the boyfriend of Doris (Dee Dee) Moore, described by Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd as a "person of interest."" Read More

Reference
<$30 million Florida Lottery Winner Missing

"Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. And so we must straighten our backs and work for our freedom. A man can't ride you unless your back is bent." -- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The Washington, DC Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc. has raised over $100 million with a goal of $120 million. Learn more about the MLK memorial: http://www.mlkmemorial.org/

According to MSNBC:

"The ad depicts a white Australian cricket fan subduing boisterous black West Indian fans by sharing his fried chicken.

"Need a tip when you're stuck in an awkward situation?" the Australian asks. "Too easy," he adds after the West Indian supporters surrounding him give up their celebrating to eat his KFC."

So. I wonder what the response would be if the guy had a bucket of burgers or pizza pies? There's just something about chicken. It's just interesting how to this day certain lines can't be crossed without being considered racist.

I don't know much about Australia other than my one of my favorite tennis grand slams takes place there and the negative history of unfair, racist treatment of aborigines and folks of color---from what I have read.

Reference
KFC pulls fried chicken ad after racism outcry

I went to Banana Republic's website and checking out Gap. Gap was my store back in the 80s then for me, the quality of the clothes and designs went south. Thought I'd check Gap out and see what they are up to. Then I hit BR's site and on the main page, I see a beautiful picture of African supermodel (if she isn't I think she is) Alek Wek smack dab in the center of the page.

There is something different about her looks that I can't quite put my finger on, but she is beautiful and I would guess- underneath all of that makeup, her skin is probably pretty much near flawless. I had not seen her in a while. It is pleasant surprise to see her on the site.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

I have always wanted a tablet computer and I have never owned an Apple computer. Definitely, the changeover will be inevitable for me. According to reports, the tablet is set to soon be released and this will a good reason for me to make my first venture inside of an Apple store. Can't wait to see it.

A male nurse introduced me to this liquid natural sweetener back in September and I have been using it ever since. He said he and his wife no longer used sugar. It has a low glycemic index. The one I have been buying from Wholefoods is produced by Madhava. I use it to sweeten my hot beverages and cold cereal, and it is sweeter tasting than sugar and almost is thinner than honey and has less intensity in flavor than honey. In other words, I cannot not taste it other that it's sweetness in my drinks. Diabetics and pre-diabetics take note. Also, this stuff is nice it you are trying to limit refined sugar in your diet and want to move towards a more natural, healthier diet. I love it. The stuff is just the bizomb!

Madhava tells us:

"Agave Nectar was found to have a glycemic index of 32. In contrast, honey has a reported glycemic index of 58, due to its higher ratio of glucose to fructose, as compared to the ratio of glucose to fructose in Agave Nectar."

"Because Agave Nectar is high in fructose, it enjoys all the benefits which continue to make fructose a preferred sweetening agent. It is sweeter than refined sugar (approximately 1.4 times sweeter); in fact, fructose offers an equivalent sweetness for nearly half the amount of carbohydrate calories. Fructose does not stimulate digestive insulin secretion as do other sugars. It is less disturbing to the glycemic index. In common parlance, it does not create a "sugar rush."

This is just one brand of Agave Nectar, but you can learn more about the goodness of this luscious sweetener: www.madhavahoney.com

While this is virtually old news my excitement seems to renew every time I hear Sade's newly released "Soldier of Love" tune. It took a few plays for it to grow on me, nonetheless, I am just estatic. She's baaaaaaaack. Cannot wait for the tour. Gone for well over a decade and she is reported to be 50 years old. She looks timeless. Musical Goddess. Just, wow! Her new album, Soldier of Love, will be released worldwide on February 8 and I am certain I will wear that disc out. Wondering how many folks will buy more than one copy?

Photo credit
Sade.com