Build an empire for my family and the next generation

but this goal is still valid.

A lot has happened since I last wrote. I been sick a lot over the past few months, registered myself as a small business, helped some sick relatives, got a promotion at my day job and I have been trying to find myself.

It’s been a hard few months but I am thankful I am still here. I have been sick but in this time I have found out what is wrong. Now I can take care of myself better with new doctors.

I am finally an LLC. I’ve taken the steps to make sure that I am a legal business. Since I have been sick there hasn’t been much busineess but I have sold some books online.

My mom and my aunt is sick and I have been helping them out as much as I can. I take my little sister to school each day so that she doesn’t miss out on an education.

I recieved a good raise and a promotion at my day job. Things had been going bad for a while and they made a change and now things are better. I manage a talented creative group and I’m learning new skills that will help my small business.

I took a trip that didn’t go well. I escaped from my life for a day but did it in anger without planning. Towards the end of it I learned what was working in my life and how much I have changed over the years. It also taught me never to move in anger. Always take a few minutes to plan.

Some good things are happening soon. We are moving from this crappy apartment to one that is closer to our family. I made some moves so that we have enough money to be out of here by New Years. My apartment building isn’t safe anymore. We thought the move would be too expensive and we wouldn’t be able to handle it. We are debt free now and I did the math and if we play our cards right we will be only paying $100 more monthly for living in the city.

So that’s what’s been going on for the last few months.

Moving will help strengthen the empire for the future generation. I believe in caring for my elders. I feel this move will be good for my business. I will live in a more popular area for the work I want to do. Also my husband is starting his art business once we move.

It will all come together.

Yeah so I think I should at least wait unti I am married before I make this goal. I have no husband or children in the near future. I think I will focus my energy on making sure I have: 1)paid off my credit cards 2) Save 1,000 3) Save 3 months emergency cash 4)Financial World Domination.

2007 has started off very well. I feel that this year is going to be great.

I have legalized my small business, my husband is looking to start one with his best friend, and slowly things are headed in the right direction.

I’m trying to stay focus and keep my mind clear. March was a busy month for me. I turned 31 and ended up spending my birthday weekend sick with the flu.

I did a wedding and tested out my new digital camera. I met some great people and learned a lot about what I need to do over the next few months.

Life is good right now and I feel blessed.

One of the most important parts of my plan is to improve my health. I want to be stronger mentally and physically.

Over the past month I have been working towards my goals. I have been doing things to be more patient and lower my stress levels.

One thing I am doing is increasing my water. It helps for some reason. My guess is purity goes in and purity comes out.

I have chosen a color as a calm word. Mine is white. Everytime I get stressed I vision myself in a white room. The only thing in this room is a window and a lounge chair which I lay in and close my eyes.

I now have people in my life that are positive and I enjoy their company. I was stressed out over something dumb and came in the presence of someone positive and five minutes in their presence wiped the slate clean. All it took was smile and a warm hello.

I have a music play list that helps me deal with the moods I am in and help change them. When my head is pounding I listen to instrumental, country, blues, jazz and classical music. When I need to create I listen to 80’s music and my favorite oldies. When I need to get off my ass and do something I listen to Rock, Metal, Reggae, Hip Hop, Rap, New Age and Pop.

Walking helps a lot too. I just walk until I can’t walk anymore. I usually see something that changes my mood. It’s like the earth is giving me a reason to keep going. In my experience 9 times out of 10 a stranger will tell me to smile, say hello or something along those lines to break me out of my funk.

Since my nasal and tonsil surgery I have been able to breath much better. I am very thankful for my excellent doctors that have helped me improve my health. I read a book on the science of breathing and am trying to learn to use my breathing as a calming method. It has help me fall asleep at night.

In the notebook I carry with me I have some things I have written to myself. Things to help me stay positive. It reminds me of who I am, what I am shooting for and what I am meant to do.

Lastly, I am taking responsibilty for the stress I have in my life. Some things I have control over, something I do not. It’s all about how I deal with it.

It is my responsibility to mold my life inside this world.

The last two weeks I have been having some amazing dreams.

Sunday’s dream I was being told to make 10 people a part of my inner circle for life. These ten people that I chose are very important and should be chosen with care. The dream didn’t show or tell me who they would be but more like told me that these ten people will multiply everything that comes into my life as I will theirs.

Last night’s dream was about my actions and attitudes. I was given the rights and the wrongs of what I am doing now. I got a guided tour of how things could be. It showed me the things I should take seriously and am not (real life things) and what I shouldn’t put stock in.

I just finished reading a story about a guy who has been a Secret Santa for over ten years. He gives out money to the needy.

It’s a touching story and I think it was worth sharing with everyone.

Here is the link to the story:

http://secretsantausa.com/

Over the past month I have made some new relationships at work and through my support group that I am happy about.

I went to my company sponsored diversity training. I like it a lot because I learned something new and got to meet people and see how they view diversity. Things got pretty hot and bothered but all in all we all learned that some of the things we think are okay to say and think were offensive to another race or sex or person with a disabiltiy.

The training made me a bit emotional (not bad but not good either) because we had some exercises that showed what people thought off the top of their heads on various races. The emotion I felt was like “Wow”. I can’t go into detail as to what went on in the all day trainiing course because of company policy but I have to say that I like what my company did.

After the training I started seeing the members of my class and we have been talking and I even have a lunch scheduled with one of the participants.

I have met and talked to other people who work in my building as a way to meet new people, get over my shyness and just see how the other side lives. I realize saying the regular “Hi, Good Morning and how is your day” is so customary and doesn’t really do much for developing a relationship. So I take it a step further.

I met one of the painter’s who is renovating our floor. Cool guy and when we got to talking I learned a life lesson. This guy went to from working for a company where he was unhappy but well paid to working for himself, making his own hours and making money doing something he likes.

I meet a new person from my doctor’s office. We were paired together to be each other’s angels to help each other lose weight. Just talking with her on the phone I know she is a great match for me. She sounds like she doesn’t take any crap and like me having a difficult time with her surgery. I am going to meet her next week and hopefully we can have coffee or talk.

There are some friends or people I thought were friends that are in my life who just aren’t working. We both know it but are probably too afraid to say anything to part ways.

I have people in my life who are there to use me when they need me and forget to call when they don’t. They have a great amount of negativity surrounding them. No matter how we try to fix the relationship it just doesn’t work. So I have decided to do it. I will let them know I love them, will help them in times of need but won’t be the only one trying to pursue a friendship if there isn’t one to begin with.

I have people who do care about me and themselves in different ways in my life and need to focus on building thoes positive relationships.

I know I have to open up and say in touch with people. I have gotten better at it over the years. I am no longer afraid to speak to people and am getting better by just by trying so hard not to please 24/7. Just be me. It’s helping.

There are a lot of great people in the world.

Is there a person in your life who if they weren’t in it you feel as if the world would be meaningless and colorless.

My grandfather is that person in my life. He’s the person I hold in the highest regards and he is the reason I am still alive today. He literally saved my life as a child and I would not be alive had it not been for him and my grandma. His eldest took me on as her own when my mother became sick and raised me. Each of his kids got something strong from him.

Over the years things have happened to pull our family apart in baby steps. The glue holding it together was my grandmother who died about two years ago.

This weekend my grandfather had a bad heart attack and has to have surgery. I’m hurting really bad because I would give anything to switch places with the hurt and fear he must be going through. I would give my life to save his as he saved mine.

The last time I visited he asked me to make sure that I stay in touch with my family. I guess he needed more glue.

I am afraid he is going to die but in my heart I know that he wants to be with my grandmother again because he misses her every second of his life. So am I being selfish to ask him to live in a world that causes him mental, emotional and physical pain?

I love my family. Every single member of them. I spoke with my brother this weekend after not speaking with him a long time. That felt so good. It’s been so long since I have seen him and that is my fault. He’s growing up so quickly and being the man I always envisioned him to be. I am proud of him. He’s going through some trials right now but he is strong and not alone.

My sister is finally starting to talk and she is going to school. It’s been touch and go with her over the past two years because she was really sick early on. Now things are looking brighter.

I know that building this empire isn’t all about money it’s about making your family stronger and able to stand together when times get tough.

It’s about being able to have the resources, time and engery to help another out when the going gets tough.

Lastly it’s about keeping your empire together. Without family and friends you will nothing.

I tried PayperPost.com and I thought it was cool but I found out that the adds were creating spam.

That sucks. I didn’t know it was happening but have written the company to close my account and return the three pending payments to the advertiser. I don’t want my blog associated with spam.

I realize that i have to slow down a bit and stick with the original plan- things I know: photography, writing and selling used books with amazon.com.

This other internet stuff is too confusing right now.

I’ll invest in what I know from here on out.

All work and no play makes Lady J a very dull girl.

This weekend the hubby and I went to see the movie The Warriors playing at the Coney Island Musuem in Brooklyn.

We had a blast hanging out with die hard Warriors Movie Fans. It was held late Saturday night and we made a night out of it.

There was Warriors Trivia, role play and prizes. Over all it was a very very good time.