black girl, black thoughts

Why did this story get run with these criminals’ school photos, where on the same day, same situation, the article of another group of burglars featured their mug shots? (source)

Same day. Same channel. Same crime. Same author.

So why weren’t mugshots good enough for the white guys who got arrested?  Who already looks guilty before their trial?  Which story plants the seed into a potential jury pool that this is a group of good kids versus this is a group of criminals?

Have you ever heard of traveling for free? As a student it is possible! 

This semester, I had the amazing opportunity to travel to South Africa. From the breathtaking views characterized by the crashing waves of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans to Table Mountain, which seems to be a permanent fixture in every neighborhood in Cape Town, this has been an amazing experience. What is even more amazing is that I get to do it for free! Being a student has allowed all of these doors to open. As I sit on another continent writing this piece, I hope this advice will motivate you to see the world around you! 

1. DON’T BE AFRAID TO TRAVEL! It seems that a lot of people are afraid to travel to other countries or continents, which is an understandable fear of the unknown. Yet, you shouldn’t let this fear hinder you.Chicago is but a granule of sand in this amazingly diverse world. Trust and believe by exploring the world, you will gain great exposure and life lessons. 

2. THERE IS A SCHOLARSHIP FOR EVERYTHING! Everyone loves students. From student discounts to entry into exclusive venues, being a student is a prized entry into a multitude of places. Being a student is always  helpful when trying to acquire funds. You can get funding for practically anything. There are scholarships for being tall, black, Hispanic, a twin, etc… You have absolutely no excuses! 

3. WHERE TO TRAVEL? Well, this may be one of the most daunting questions. Coming from the South Side of Chicago and having the opportunity to travel anywhere can be intimidating. These are some tips for selecting a good travel location. 

a. Think of somewhere you’ve always wanted to go. Simple, yet challenging. 

b. What cultures have you always wanted to experience?

c. How is the dollar compared to that country’s currency?

d. What is the spoken language? 

e. Is this country surrounded by other cities and/or counties that you would like to visit? 

4. PROGRAMS,PROGRAMS,PROGRAMS! There are travel programs for literally everywhere! Once you identify a location, you can find a study abroad program that caters to your needs and desires. 

5. PREPARE BEFORE YOU GO. Makes sure to read about your destination post-arrival. Become aware of what you are about to get yourself into, and have a basic idea of what you could expect. However, do not create fanatical expectations that will make it hard for you to be in the “right now”. 

This tip will also be fruitful when packing. 

6. MAKE SURE TO DOCUMENT YOUR EXPERIENCE! Not only will these  pictures, letters, journal entries etc. help you to remember your experiences after you return, but they will also help you to share the world with others that haven’t had the same opportunity. 

Lastly, live without regrets. Internalize the fact that you only have one life, so live it! 

Make sure to check out my travel blog at blackgirlwithoutborders.tumblr.com.

Whether the Caribbean, Latin America, or Africa, traveling to a predominately black location can be difficult as a black traveler. The cultural and historical diversity within the African diaspora has created uniquely connected yet disconnected cultures, traditions, and identities. As a black traveler in countries with an African presence, your skin color, race, identity, and racial authenticity are constantly being shaped, challenged and broadened.

I have always been black. Blackness has been engrained in me since I was a youngster in Chicago, and it is very much so a part of my identity. However, my blackness was constantly challenged this past semester when I had the opportunity to study abroad and live with host families in a variety of communities in South Africa. As a black woman in Cape Town, South Africa, given their racial theories and categories, my race, ethnicity and heritage were confronted on an everyday basis. Black Americans are a diverse community that have a variety of skin tones and hair textures, but because of this diversity we can occupy a complex position in South Africa. My identity oscillated between black and coloured, a racial group in South Africa that denotes black, European, and Asian ancestry, on a daily basis. It was only known through my voice rather than my appearance that many times people realized that I wasn’t from there. Unlike members of my cohort, I had a privilege of ambiguity, where onlookers questioned my identity.

Until I opened my mouth and South Africans realized that I was American, their perceptions changed towards me and was even reflected in the ways that they treated me. The ways that South Africans perceived me and classified me solely based on phenotypical characteristics impacted the ways in which people responded to me and uniquely shaped my overall experience. I recall a particular day when my friend ,CJ, (who happens to be white) and I got on a taxi in Langa, a black township right outside of Cape Town. The driver turned around and began to speak Xhosa to me. Even after I told him that I only spoke English, he continued to speak in Xhosa. After a minute of talking in Xhosa and me responding in only English, he finally spoke to me in English and told me that I should accept my blackness and not conform. Clearly, he must’ve had some earwax in his ear, and he did not hear my American accent, but he consistently wanted to push his conceived identity on me despite my own identity as a black American.

When I lived in Langa, my host-family accepted me as a black person in their community. When I arrived, I wore my hair in either a big afro or braided. My Langa mother’s friend even told me, “I could be a part of the family”. They knew that I was an American, but I was able to physically blend with my host family and the people in the neighborhood.

Interestingly, enough, when I moved to the Cape Malay “coloured” community I was again accepted, but now as a part of the coloured community. In Bo Kaap, a Cape Malay coloured neighborhood, I was blatantly told that (mind you, by someone who was darker then me) I should stop saying I was black, and in South Africa I was coloured. To them, they believed that saying I was black was denigrating and it was one of the worst insults. Their perceptions were obviously tainted by historical and colonial thoughts, but it was also reflective of the different perspectives of blackness around the world. I was able to oscillate at any point from being black to being coloured to being who knows what else. These experiences highlighted the fact that there is no clear boundary or definition of who is considered black or coloured.

While this is my experience, all of the Black American experiences cannot be summarized within a tightly constructed paragraph. The ways in which blackness is understood abroad is unique. Yet, each person’s experience is informed by a multitude of factors. The complexity and plurality of the black American experience abroad provides a narrative of the complex intertwining of race, class and nationality. There have been countless recounts of Black Americans returning to the “mother land” and not being accepted as they thought they would be. It is a mind-f&% to say the least when you visit nations of the African Diaspora and people look exactly like you, but there are little if any acknowledgement of similar roots and culture.

Have you ever heard of traveling for free? As a student it is possible! 

This semester, I had the amazing opportunity to travel to South Africa. From the breathtaking views characterized by the crashing waves of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans to Table Mountain, which seems to be a permanent fixture in every neighborhood in Cape Town, this has been an amazing experience. What is even more amazing is that I get to do it for free! Being a student has allowed all of these doors to open. As I sit on another continent writing this piece, I hope this advice will motivate you to see the world around you! 

1. DON’T BE AFRAID TO TRAVEL! It seems that a lot of people are afraid to travel to other countries or continents, which is an understandable fear of the unknown. Yet, you shouldn’t let this fear hinder you.Chicago is but a granule of sand in this amazingly diverse world. Trust and believe by exploring the world, you will gain great exposure and life lessons. 

2. THERE IS A SCHOLARSHIP FOR EVERYTHING! Everyone loves students. From student discounts to entry into exclusive venues, being a student is a prized entry into a multitude of places. Being a student is always  helpful when trying to acquire funds. You can get funding for practically anything. There are scholarships for being tall, black, Hispanic, a twin, etc… You have absolutely no excuses! 

3. WHERE TO TRAVEL? Well, this may be one of the most daunting questions. Coming from the South Side of Chicago and having the opportunity to travel anywhere can be intimidating. These are some tips for selecting a good travel location. 

a. Think of somewhere you’ve always wanted to go. Simple, yet challenging. 

b. What cultures have you always wanted to experience?

c. How is the dollar compared to that country’s currency?

d. What is the spoken language? 

e. Is this country surrounded by other cities and/or counties that you would like to visit? 

4. PROGRAMS,PROGRAMS,PROGRAMS! There are travel programs for literally everywhere! Once you identify a location, you can find a study abroad program that caters to your needs and desires. 

5. PREPARE BEFORE YOU GO. Makes sure to read about your destination post-arrival. Become aware of what you are about to get yourself into, and have a basic idea of what you could expect. However, do not create fanatical expectations that will make it hard for you to be in the “right now”. 

This tip will also be fruitful when packing. 

6. MAKE SURE TO DOCUMENT YOUR EXPERIENCE! Not only will these  pictures, letters, journal entries etc. help you to remember your experiences after you return, but they will also help you to share the world with others that haven’t had the same opportunity. 

Lastly, live without regrets. Internalize the fact that you only have one life, so live it! 

Make sure to check out my travel blog at blackgirlwithoutborders.tumblr.com.

Black Up is a french makeup brand for light and dark black skins. Available on Sephora online shop, you can also buy it in Black up stores (France). The best seller of the brand is the contouring stick inspired by the makeup technic of the same name. Five tones are available. I have tested the n°5, the deeper shade. The product is AMAZING ! I really love it. 

Video here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbew8urdnvw

Music: The “Doom Soul” Generation.  

First things first. The ‘doom soul’ descriptor is not one that I can take credit for in any. I first came across these words after reading about Somali-Canadian artist Cold Specks. She used it to describe her sound and ever since then, upon discovering new artists and listening to musicians already in my collection, it’s become a recurring way to describe much of the music I’ve been hearing - and loving - from African/African-descended/Black artists both in Africa and the diaspora.

Through these observations, I’ve spent some time compiling the stand out artists in this new generation that fall under the somewhat wide umbrella of the borrowed 'doom soul’ term. Not one of the artists you’ll hear on my accompanying music mix/playlist sound like each other. And yet, there are several recurring features that tie them all together.

Whether Kelela or Kwabs, BLK JKS or Benjamin Clementine, all these artists have soulful sensibilities attached to their vocal abilities, lyrical content, and melodic inclinations. Each containing their own mixture of elements of soul, r&b, indie, folk, blues, eclectic electronic sounds, the result is usually an emotionally charged hybrid of music with a slightly gloomy aura. Haunting, wholesome and incredibly powerful.

Listen to my Afro-Doom Soul playlist featuring Cold Specks, Mirel Wagner, Benjamin Clementine, Kwabs, Kelela and more.

More music mixes.

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Eri112’s money saving tips.

So, did you reblog this money saving challenge last January?

I did.

I remember thinking that it would never work. I remember thinking it would be too hard.  I remember thinking HOW CAN I HAVE CASH IN MY ROOM AND NOT SPEND IT??

I just counted and it turns out I saved more than this person calculated.

I saved $1500 in cash. In one year.  In a Mason jar.

If you had told me last year that I could do this, I never would have believed you.  I have never been a financially secure person.  This activity taught me so much about myself as a spender. 

Here’s how I did it.

For those who have never seen this, the basic concept is that you print out this (or google 52 week money challenge…You can find many variations on this)…So the first week, you put in $1, second week is $2, third week is $3, etc.  The final week of the year, you’ll put in $52.  There are 52 weeks in a year.  See how that works?

As I said, though.  I somehow ended up with more.  I’m not sure how that happened.  Let me tell you how I managed to save money period.

PLEASE KEEP IN MIND, I AM NOT A FINANCIAL PROFESSIONAL.  FOLLOW THESE TIPS WITH CAUTION.  I CANNOT GUARANTEE THEY WILL WORK FOR EVERYONE.

1. Create your own payday. I have 2 jobs.  One is my full time job that pays every two weeks on Thursday.  The other is a part time job that pays every week on Wednesday.  So, usually by Thursday, I have all the money I’m going to make that week.  So, I made Thursday my pay day.  Every Thursday, I made sure to put in the amount I was supposed to for that week.

2. Use small bills.  This was CRITICAL to saving money for me.  If I didn’t have the cash I needed, I would swing through the ATM and then ask a family member to trade a $20 bill for $1 bills.  I put in the required money and then hid all of the other ones under the jar.  That way, in future weeks I would have the ones I needed to make a payment.

3.  Hide the jar in plain sight.  I kept the jar in my room, but it was hidden.  This way, I wasn’t tempted to spend it.  I have 3 jars in my room.  One is my “happy memories” jar where I right down all the good things that happen to me.  Then I have my savings jar.  I also have a jar for paying myself to work out.  (Any time I work out, I pay myself a dollar.  I use this money for fun stuff like going to the movies)  In order to remember my savings jar and hide it at the same time, I put it directly behind my happy memories jar.  That way, I could see the jars, but I couldn’t see the money inside.

4.  Pack the money tight! It took my father a good five minutes to help me figure out how to get all of those bills out of that jar.  This was quite fun to watch (“HEY DAD!  I’m giving you $1400 in a jar!  Help me get it out!”) and quite difficult to do.  This is because I packed every inch of that jar.  Having the money packed in tightly made it really difficult to take money out.  The harder it was to take money out, the less I wanted to.  I’m quite lazy.

5.  Don’t be afraid to borrow, but write it down and pay yourself back in two days.  I’ll admit, there were a few occasions where I needed to borrow some money from the jar.  I never took more than $20.  I also forced myself to pay it back in two days.  Now that I think about it, I remember there was one time I borrowed and charged myself interest because I didn’t follow this rule…

Now, as I mentioned, my father is the recipient of this large stack of cash.  He was incredibly proud of me, but this lead to a conversation of how I could put away money that could earn some money.  He also suggested ways to get out of debt.  So here is what he suggested.

1.  Open a mutual fund with a high/mildly aggressive interest rate.  A mutual fund is an account that you deposit a set amount every month.  I’ll be opening one later this week.  We found one that earns 13% interest.  We agreed that I will put away $50 a month for 5 years.  Please note that these accounts will charge a fee if you withdrawal from them.  We did the math.  If I put away $50 a month for 5 years, I will have deposited $3000.  With a 13% interest rate, I will have $4394 by the end of those 5 years.  That’s correct.  The bank will pay me $1394 just for using their mutual fund.

2.  Snowball your debt. I also have acquired a lot of debt over the years.  I won’t lie.  I love to shop.  I have credit cards for every store, including amazon and LLBean (in NH, that’s a big deal).  When I receive my bills this month, he and I are going to sit down and compare them all.  We’ll be looking at total amounts due as well as the interest rate.  Then, I will pay in full anything that I can.  That way, I won’t continue to be charged interest on small amounts.  Then figure out how much money I can send to the bigger bills.  Once you know who has the highest interest rate, you can figure out how to divide that money.  You pay the most money to the highest interest rate.  On the others, you pay the minimum balance.  This way, you can put more money towards the bill that you lose the most money on.

Some advice from my rich sister:

Find a way to earn money when you shop or waste time online.

My sister and I use many different apps for saving money on groceries or shopping.  Message me if you’re interested and I can send you my sign up links.

I also use many different websites for earning money online.  Check them out:

Bing: Without using it for every search I do, I’ve managed to earn $10 in Starbucks gifts card through Bing.  I’m 54% away from my $5 gift card.  All you have to do is search for 30 things through Bing.  It can be random (I’ve searched my name a hundred times) and they suggest different stories for you to search.  You don’t have to click on any of the search results.  Just search.  There are other ways to earn with Bing, but searching is the easiest.  Check it out at Bing Rewards and start earning your gift cards now.

Treasure Trooper: I’ve also been on Treasure Trooper which I originally discovered through another Tumblr user (Thanks Diana!.)  I’ve been using it for a little under a year and have already earned $30.  You can answer surveys, listen to music, complete tasks…It’s pretty easy.  You should check it out.

Inbox Dollars might just be my favorite, though.  I’ve been signed up for a little over 5 months and have already earned $46.77.  They also have surveys and videos to watch.  They also send you e-mails and every time you click “view e-mail” you get 0.02.  That adds up.

Swagbucks is an awesome website where you can watch videos (in the background while you sit on Tumblr) and answer surveys, etc. to earn points.  Then you redeem those points for gift cards.  I have earned $45 Amazon gift cards.  It’s so easy.  I love it.

So, this is all I have to give for money advice.  I can certainly answer questions.  Don’t hesitate to message me.  Here’s to having a little more cash to play with!

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