Had some good friends over for brunch today and made some peppered buttermilk biscuits. Everybody loves buttery biscuits….
It’s a total bummer that the Detroit Tigers didn’t make it to the World Series this year after being shut down by the Boston Red Sox during the American League Championship Series.
Although the loss was a let down, the season was great and I had some great experiences this summer. From hanging downtown on opening day with my boo.
To working with and kicking it with Austin Jackson. An awesome experience.
To hanging with my homeboys on my birthday at one of the last games of the season that helped land the Tigers in the ALCS.
It was all good.
Already looking forward to next year and more good baseball!
My 39th birthday is 2 days away but I’ve been celebrating since Sunday. I’m going for broke and making it a weeklong celebration ending in a themeless party with friends.
Well, maybe there is a theme because I’m planning on having a ton of red balloons. The challenge to this is that I have a popcorn ceiling. Yikes!!!! Guess I need to start taking bets on how many will pop. No matter, that will only add to the fun.
Because I’m a little Pinterest obsessed, I created a birthday board to showcase a few of the things that I love…. you know, stuff like strawberry ice cream, music, fashion etc.
My 38th year was a very good year from me and I’m hoping that my last year in my 30′s brings me more joy & peace… Already off to a good start, a good start indeed!
Shout out to Cousin Dee for an awesome mini photo session!
So I was out & about in DC last weekend doing my thing and all of the sudden, my super boo, Butta shows up. Things got real & real fun! Next thing I know, it’s a photoshoot.
You may know Butta from her award winning blog, Soulbouce (my favorite sources for new music) where she grinds hard as the Editor-In-Chief!
When my best friends, Brion & Chonda announced they were having a baby this year, I was so very excited for them!!!
Then my excitement turned to maternity photography to help them document this special time in their lives.
I’m looking forward to meeting their son OR daughter (they decided to be surprised)!
Next, I have to convince them to do newborn photos.
See a couple more outtakes here
Wednesday, I was having a pretty good but busy day. After the 9-5, I hit the gym to relieve stress and continue my workout plan… I’m almost at my 2nd weight loss target of losing 15lbs before my birthday. Just 3lbs shy and I have 3 weeks before the big day!
While I was between sets, I decided to take a mini break and check my Facebook. Soon as the app opened, I saw a post from Sava’s Restaurant, one of my favorite places in town!
They have one of the best happy hours around and the bar staff are like friends, but friends who know how to craft a really good cocktail (especially Chapin & Lerone)! And I won’t even go into how awesome their Bacon Brie Burger is…..
Anyway, as you see from the screen shot above, the post the other night was announcing a new drink special named after me. I had to read it a couple times because I was like what???
This small bit of news was a cool boost for the day. I requested this drink the 1st time I visited Sava’s and it has been on since then.
The “To Tafari” is Hennessy, Domaine De Canton (ginger liqueur), ginger beer and lemon.
I had no plans to have a cocktail out this week but I could not resist after seeing this. How could I?
As soon as I walked into the restaurant, I was greeted in the best way. And apparently, the drink was selling well. It was so funny & a great way to end my evening!
On my Facebook page, I posted this:
“Now that I’ve been featured in the New York Times as a style icon, had a drink named after me in a celebrated restaurant in Ann Arbor, I’m not sure what to do with myself.”
The responses were hilarious to say the least.
On a recent trip to DC, I got the opportunity to photograph radio host, yoga instructor, health coach, and friend Shawna Renee.
Working with Shawna Renee is never like work because all we do is crack jokes and laugh.
You may remember photos that I captured of Shawna Renee a few years ago. This time around, we went with a different approach that was less urban yet still fun.
Check out Shawna Renee’s Cocoa Mode program on Sirius XM 125 Saturdays 10am & 5pm & Sundays 6pm… She’s always bringing the hot topics!
What’s been going on with me? Well, quite a bit. Here are a few quick snippets. I have more good news to share in June. Stay tuned because it’s really gonna be awesome to share out!
My little sister Sade turned 16 years old last week. I sent her a serious care package with some Detroit love, Better Made potato chips along with some other stuff that I thought a 16 year old would find interesting, (not easy to do for an almost 40 year old guy) but she was quite happy.
She’s been so strong over the past year and has been working hard on making all things positive in her life. She recently became a member of the Alpha Kappa Omega Hearts sorority, A flag girl in her high school band, a member of the school gospel choir and all while maintaining good grades (not counting math but that’s another story).
She makes me happy and I admire her courage! And damn, I can’t believe she’s 16.
I recently started going back to the gym to work my husky body. My goal is to drop at least 20 pounds by my birthday in September. I’ve done it before and I’m about to do it again. I have to look hot when I hit the beaches of Cancun.
I’ve been crazy busy with work, all kinds of work and I’m enjoying using my talents, skill and abilities to make others happy.
Now, keep in mind that I’m an artist and I’m sensitive about my shit!
I’ll be in DC this weekend visiting and celebrating with friends and I cannot wait. I haven’t been on a trip since February and it’s time to get the hell out of dodge!
I could go on and on about myself but I’ll stop here.
My little sweet baby, Tongi laid an egg today. I noticed her building a nest over the last few days and then today I came home to her little white surprise.
This is her 4th egg in a year. The last time, she laid 3 eggs in the course of a few weeks. I wonder what will happen this time.
I view her egg laying and timing as a good omen because every time it’s happened, I received some great news. Today was no exception and I’m grateful for the Birmingham Family Court for honoring my family and doing the right thing!
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BTW, can you tell which image here was taken with an SLR or which with an iPhone????
A few weeks ago, my friend and birch jewelry designer, Heather Fagan of Bettula hit me up because she had a very exciting opportunity to work with Fab.com. My job? To get great photos for her portfolio to make this happen!
I own some of Heather’s birch cuffs that I rock during the summer months that I totally love so this was a no brainer.
I love when my artist friends find ways to keep their passions alive and active.
Here are a few moody shots from our time together with 1st time model, Amelia White.
The Bettula sale on Fab.com will run through March 9, 2013, so check it out fast!
People usually get happy at the thought of eating cake. Why though? Is it because cakes are comforting, decadent, stir great memories or is it simply because people just love CAKE?
Last week, a friend informed me that she was retiring at the end of the month. It was both sad but happy news as she will be missed. After she broke the news, I promised that I would make her a cake for our next meeting.
Last night, I made her and the rest of our group my super super delicious cream cheese pound cake. But this one had to be a little more special.
After the cake was done and I popped it out of the pan & marveled at how awesome it looked. The morning, I dusted it with some powdered sugar just because… There is nothing like a well dressed cake.
I couldn’t wait to see the reaction of my friends upon presentation of the cake.
It was all smiles from the room & it made me feel great to see others being excited and celebrating a wonderful person.
Speaking of cake, one of my favorite cake rememories is when my mother made a yellow cake covered in apple jelly when I was probably 12 or 13 years old. My brother, sister and I destroyed that cake in less than 2 days. It was the bomb and I honestly think that it’s the best cake that I have ever had.
It wasn’t all that long ago when I photographed my friends Reggie & Adrienne getting married.. Time is flying and babies are popping up.
So excited about their next phase of life! Like the rest of our friends, I’m dying to know the measurements of Baby Boy Butler. His dad is super tall!!! I need to start a betting pool.
See a few outtake photos here…
My friend went to Brazil and I got a nice string of snail shells. They are so amazing. The variety of colors, the patterns, the size. Mother nature is quite creative.
