30 Day Challenge | July 2014

Hello all and welcome to my fist ever 30 day challenge!

I've decided to do this after seeing a couple of people do it on Tumblr and I figured it would be cool enough to do here on my own blog. I was trying to find the original picture that I had before I wrote the list out and started to fill it in, but I couldn't. But you're free to follow along with me everyday if you want to as I post. I'm really excited to be doing this for the first time and I hope that you guys like this!

Enjoy!

Day 1 | Five Ways To Win Your Heart

I always wanted to do a 30 day challenge but never really found one that I liked enough to do on a consistent basis. I really like this 30 day challenge because it actually asks you questions that require you to think on and then answer truthfully, if people choose to put themselves out there. I thank muff for posting this challenge, she always finds cool stuff. Well let's start off with a bang shall we?

1. Be Genuine.

2. Have a sense of humor, because I live to see you smile.

3. Believe in yourself & your own personal goals.

4. Well rounded, basically not boring.

5. Believe in God & the love we share.

Day 2 | Something You Feel Strongly About

It took me a while to think of something I feel absolutely strong about. There's always my family, music, and even the love of the Lord. But I strongly believe in love period above most. Whether people like to admit it or not but love is something that drives this world. At the end of the day there's always that one person that can get to you, no matter how hard you try to fight it. There's just that one person that knows how to push that one button that makes you illicit some kind of emotion to the point where you just stop thinking rationally and start acting out of character. Now sometimes people give that one person who they shouldn't that power, and they abuse it, but sometimes people luck up and find that one person that they give that power to and they don't abuse. But in any case, love has the ability to break you down or build you back up. That's some strong stuff.

Day 3 | A Book You Love

I've fallen off my reading physical books as of late, so I don't know of anything more recent that I like but I know one book that has played a big role in my life and that's the 48 Laws of Power. For a person such as myself, that book was more than helpful, it was life changing. I like to consider myself to be a self aware person, basically I notice more things that the average person doesn't and I tend to keep it to myself. But that book basically show's me things that I've been doing that I didn't need to be doing that made me look bad. If you want to become a more successful and aware person, then I suggest that you read that book.

Day 4 | Bullet Your Whole Day

It's the holiday, this is relatively easy

1. Wake Up, Thank Up

2. Meet up with the crew

3. Start drinking

4. Make it to the cookout, enjoy great food

5. Keep drinking

6. Make it out to the bar, get drunk

7. Eat cookout drunk

8. Sleep

Day 5 | Things you Want To Say To An Ex
 

Eh, one of the more trickier ones on the list. But I would say that I'm sorry for the end of things, then I would say that I'm still working on myself to be a better man, for the chance that one day the opportunity should arise again to date. That she's a pretty wonderful woman and that I want her to be happy and have some time to enjoy life and move forward into big things that I know she can. And to call me because it's always nice to hear from her and make sure she's doing ok. Yea, that stuff.

Day 6 | Your Views On Mainstream Music
 

Eh, mainstream music isn't really my cup of tea. I try to avoid the radio because they play the same songs into the ground and kind of force certain artists and trends down our throat. I mean I guess I would say I don't have a favorable opinion other than the fact I wish artist could be themselves and make music that they really felt like making. But people aren't going to receive all music the same way anyway. But I will say its crazy how artist can be popular for two months and then phase out into obscurity because people get tired of listening to them.

Day 7 | Five Pet Peeves

Jesus take the wheel ..

1. People who have poor time management skills.

2. People who hinder me from getting my job done at work.

3. People who talk too much about nothing I want to hear.

4. People who aren't clean in their personal home.

5. People who ask repetitive questions I feel they should know the answer to.
 

Yea, those, in no particular order after number one.

Day 8 | What You Ate Today

I'm currently looking at this Checker's burger & fries, They stand no chance.
 

Oh yea, I made some baked ziti last night, going to tear that up too.
 

Day 9 | How Important You Think Education Is

Education will always be important aspect of life.

Now do I think everything that is labeled "Education" is important, no I don't. I do believe that they should get rid of things like geometry & chemistry at the earliest parts of school and implement replacing them with classes geared more towards law & financial planning. Yes it's on the parents or whatever guardians that are in place to teach these things, but I feel as if they are taught on a more comprehensive level then there will be a greater outcome in terms of debt and crime. Teach kids the value of a dollar and there will be a greater emphasis on education, maybe less student loans and more money being dished out of pocket caused by the understanding for the need to work. But then again that would put more control in the hands of the people and less in the hands of big companies like Sallie Mae, and we all know they don't want that to happen.

Day 10 | First Ten Songs On Shuffle

1. Lover & Friends [Feat. Usher & Ludacis] - Lil John & The Eastside Boys

2. Flight School [Feat. Kanye West & T-Pain] - GLC

3. Age Ain't Nothing But A Number - Aaliyah

4. Karaoke [Feat. 2Pac] - Drake

5. Let's Go [Feat. Lil Jon & Twista] - Trick Daddy

6. Scar Tissue - Red Hot Chilli Peppers

7. The Cream Hood Cake Mix - The L.O.X.

8. Nasty Mind [Feat. Truth Hurts] - D12

9. Tell 'Em I Said That - T.I.

10. Doctor's Advocate [Feat. Busta Rhymes] - The Game

Day 11 | Your Family

Ah I really don't speak on my family too much. I like to keep that part of my life private. But I will give some details for those who don't know.

1. Both of my grandparents are alive

2. Both of my parents are alive. & I have a step dad.

3. I have three brothers & one little sister.

4. I have five nephews & two nieces, including my best friends kids.

5. I have plenty of uncles, aunts & cousins.

6. I have a couple of best friends who I consider family.

That's my family in a nutshell. I love them all & they all love me, couldn't ask for more.

Day 12 | Five Women Whom You Find Attractive

Impossible to make a list like this. I'll go ahead and give you the five that I've seen recently on TV though. Not in any particular order either. Well except number one, but not too many people in their right mind are going to debate me on that one.

1. Timeless man, just timeless. Sade never cease to amaze me, be it her voice or beauty.

2. Man I saw this picture Sanaa Lathan this morning & my Love & Basketball crush was validated lol.
 

3. Man Tatyana Ali showed up on my TV screen at the BET awards and I just had to sit and stare at that beautifully made woman. Just looking like a big bowl of "I'll get your ass preggo".
 

4. I was actually scrolling on Tumblr & I saw Ashley King from BGC, and my first thought was that she looks better than Draya by far, and I heard this is a post baby picture at that.
 

5. My oh my, I always liked Janelle Monáe, her lyrical content is always on point in case you missed that tidbit. But I never really noticed her outside of her identifying outfit. But when I saw her in these pictures, I was just in all kinds of lust. I'm not big on being a groupie, but if I see her, just know I'll be smiling super hard in the picture I take with her.
 

Day 13 | Body Opinion
 

I'm a fat boy that loves being fat, that's all there is to say.
 

Day 14 | Today's Outfit

I didn't even take a picture, but the sandals, shorts & t-shirt for the day.
 

Day 15 | Zodiac Sign
 

Positives

Determined, Fearless, Poised, Loyal, Ambitious, Intuitive
 

Negatives

Jealous, Secretive, Resentful, Controlling.
 

I have to say that everything that is said about Scorpio's is pretty true about me. That picture embodies everything that I can do when I'm in my right frame of mind. It says a lot of stuff about us. I just want to give a couple of things that I read that I actually found out to be very true because I recently been through it:
 

1.) The Scorpio men are extremely independent and will not let anybody interfere in their matters as they prefer to be in control of the situations. Expecting them to be dependent on someone is like expecting the Sun to rise from the West.

2.) Although they may have a number of friends, they may not be considered social butterflies. Always focused on their goals, the Scorpio men mean business, and their growth and financial success are always on their minds.

3.) Talking about finances, the Scorpio are very good at making and managing money. They may splurge once in a while, but they will never jeopardize their financial planning and future security for momentary material pleasures.

4.) Apart from money, the other things that attract the Scorpio men the most are power and position. This persistent and determined lot will never settle for mediocre jobs.
5.) They are not stubborn, though. The Scorpio men don’t mind rethinking and taking a different approach, provided they are convinced that the revised one is better than the previous one. Their adaptability, powerful memory combined with strong determination make them fierce competitors, who will eventually win.

6.) The Scorpio men are secretive, always alert, and won’t trust anyone easily. Besides, they have this need to know everything. And their strong sixth-sense helps them see through people, understand their motives and thus enables them to keep emotional pain, something they are so wary of, as far as possible.

7.) They don’t follow a forgive and forget policy. Well, maybe these sensitive souls will forgive the ones who dare to hurt them, but they will never ever forget. They will plan to get back at the offenders and make them pay heavily for their mistakes. So messing up with the Scorpio men is not a good idea!

8.)These males are very passionate, sensual and likely to have a number of romantic encounters. They are attracted towards women who are both intelligent and good-looking. However, once they truly feel the emotion called love and commit to the relationship wholeheartedly, they will stick to it no matter what the rest of the world says.

Seems legit to me.

Day 16 | "What If" ..
 

I'm really not big into what if's. Things don't happen for a reason, and usually it works out for the best. Because without certain things happen, who's to say that you won't achieve what you're looking for in the end. Everything has a story, a moral lesson. You sit around wondering what if, you'll never reach the next stage that you were meant to reach. I know we can't help but think about the what if's but I tend to snap back and realize all the good things that comes from those results. So what if's don't really appeal to my overall thinking of happiness

Day 17 | Something That You're Proud of

My Brothers
 

Day 18 | A Problem That You Have Had
 

I think the biggest problem that I have had was that of being too nice. Being too nice in this day and age isn't too helpful for people who are looking for any reason or means to get ahead. You absolutely NEED an attitude these days or you're going to get eaten alive. Sure being nice will get you opportunities just like anyone else, but at the end of the day, people want someone that's going to handle business and get the job done. And that's also how you make money. But soon that problem will be rectified.
 

Day 19 | Five Items You Lust After

Just going off things that are purely out of desire & not necessity.

1. 1967 Ford Shelby GT500

2. 2015 Ford F-150 Raptor Edition with Lift & Body kit's.

3. 2015 BMW i8 blacked out with full racing kit.

4. Man cave equipped with full entertainment center consisting of every video game console and full movie library & Sony Curve TV.

5. Full music library on an Alienware laptop.

As I made this list, all of these things are pretty obtainable through some serious hard work and dedication.
 

Day 20 | Fears

Well some know this, not too many other people know. My fear is that I won't have a family to care and provide for. Now a lot of people assume that it's easy for multitude of reasons. But not to me, there are certain levels of life that I want to reach before I actually have a group of people that depend on me mentally and physically. Whether it be personally put together well enough financially, doing all the things that I wanted to do before having a family I'm dedicated to 24/7 or simply just meeting the right person.

We all know that life can throw you some major curve balls, but the ideal thing here for me is just patience and trying to be a better human being every single day. But not experiencing that love that comes from being the father and a husband is something that I hope will happen one day for me.

Day 21 | Hopes For The Future

Well besides having a family like I talked about yesterday. I hope to have a home somewhere that I really like to live and friends that I have I can hang out with when I'm not with the family, and a job that I love going to everyday. Be in good health and have time to travel and spend time with my family members and wife's family. Being financially well off so I can do all these things and have nice things. Beyond that, not too much, I like to think of myself as having humble aspirations, just a matter of getting things to click and what not.

Day 22 | Your Academics

Well I graduated elementary school at least lol. No but seriously, I'm one of those people that left college to join the army and what not. So I have about three & some change in there. But I recently got into the right mindset and position to start school again and actually know what I want to do, so I'm going to be starting that very soon. I was one of those kids that upon entering the ninth grade up until summer session of my junior in college, I was always doing something school related. So To say I'm kind of burnt out from doing all that bs. I took some random courses while in the military, but I didn't really have time because of the hectic work schedule that I lived. But now I'm excited to be going back and doing something with myself and knowing it is exactly I want to do, allah, a mental challenge. So that's my academics as of right now.

Day 23 | Something That You Miss

Day 24 | Five Phrases That Make You Laugh

"Take the pin out the grenade and throw it at'em" comes to mind, but this is one of those things that's really hard to narrow down. I'll laugh at so if it was said at the right time lol

Day 25 | Current Worries

At the current moment, I don't have any worries of significance. I learned to just let go & let God deal with it. Everything is on the come up. The time that a lot of us have spent being patient and waiting for our moment to come, is here. I've seen so many tweets and post on Instagram about how being patient is finally paying off, and that just makes me happy man for real. There were a lot of people out there genuinely trying to do better with themselves and make the best of their situations. So to those people who practiced that word patience to a fault, I say congrats to you, I know you'll make the best out of your opportunity.

Day 26 | Likes & Dislikes
 

Likes:

1. Cool people that like to do cool, new things.

2. Beautiful scenery that makes you appreciate life.

3. Good music.

4. Good Food.

5. Cool ass electronics.
 

Dislikes:

Everything opposite of my likes & Shad Moss.

Day 27 | A Quote You Try To Live By
 

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.

- Dr. Martin Luther King, J.R.

Day 28 | Dream Destinations

The Dominican Republic because of the beaches, I just want to see that crystal blue water and feel the breeze. I know it's pretty doable, I just have to find the time to go.
 

Same thing can be said about Greece, I mean just look at the picture, it's pretty self explanatory. Plus I wouldn't mind branching out and trying some authentic Greek food.

I'd like to go to Beijing because of the national landmarks and all the other buildings that they are putting up. I also kind of want to see if their nightlife is really like what it is on those television shows that I see sometimes on. But of course I would also like to see the Great Wall.

For some reason I have this strong like for the Brits, whether it be their acting or their accents, there is a level of coolness there. London has plenty of things that I want to see like: Big Ben, that giant ass Ferris wheel and those guys that are in the hats come to mind. And well yea, hoping to get photo bombed by the queen lol.

Of course going to the motherland will always be the top of my list, Egypt is everything to me. I'll visit as soon as that is humanly possible, and safe.

Day 29 | Five Weird Things I Like

I really don't know what are five things that I like. This is kind of tricky.
 

Well after spending some time thinking about weird things that I like, I came up with nothing.
 

Day 30 | One Thing You're Excited For

The future.
 

When you get to a certain point in life where you just make that transition in thinking that not everyone makes, you kind of get excited for the endless possibilities of what could be. That in turn motivates you to do better. For me, just thinking about spending time with the woman that I love, doing cool things with her, then her having two little big headed kids that we build a nice home with, that's what makes me excited. Being a husband & father is what excites me. Not to say that I'm ready in any aspect except mentally, but if it happened, I would rise to the occasion. That's life I suppose. But other than that, just teaching young adults the trials and tribulations about life so they can do better than I ever did is also a thing that comes to mind.
 

Every single day is not promised, so the next day that I get offered to do better is something I'm always excited for.

Day 31 | Reflection

So today is the end of the 30 day challenge. I decided to add a 31st day so I can do a little reflection for the month. I have to say July was a pretty great month of in terms of things happening and what not, and not just for me. Like I said in a earlier entry, people who've been patiently waiting and working hard to get where they want to be, well their time is now. I know a lot of friends that are moving or starting way better jobs than they had. I'm especially proud of all of my friends that have decided to go back to school this fall. Things are just in motion. I thank the big man upstairs for it all.
 

Speaking of the big guy upstairs. He's taught me a lot this summer, especially in regards to my attitude. Usually I'm hard headed and I just do what I do without little care or consequence. But he taught me how to sit my ass down, and just relax. Being humbled is one of the greatest things that a person can experience in life, if you choose to learn from it that is. I took some major L's this year and I was about to give up and start doing things i didn't really want to do, rather what I want to do. But I did some soul searching, dug deep, made a plan and stuck to it. I thought that plan was never going to be enacted in my life so to say, but it was. Things are coming along great now, and hopefully the major goal in the plan isn't too far out of reach. I like to think that God knows what he is doing, so I'm trusting in him to give me what I need, not what I want.

But that's just July folks. August is coming, and along with it, school, football, and the last bit of cookouts for the year. I like to thank everyone for making my blog into something more now with all the views, the comments, the messages, the ideas, the critiques, all of it. I've hit milestones this month I wasn't thinking of hitting, but I did and I set new goals each time that I do. I'm very humbled that you guys take the time to read and quote me with things that I didn't even know were quotable. I'm ready to give the fall some. Til the next time.