#september blogaday

[mistavybe]

Photos of home 🏠🏝🇹🇹

Port-of-Spain (the Capital city of Trinidad & Tobago)

National Academy for the Performing Arts (NAPA), University Of Trinidad & Tobago campus in Port-of-Spain

Coconut tree my dad and I planted in my front yard when I was about five 😊🌴

Upper Manzanilla (One of the more rural communities in Trinidad)

Store Bay, Tobago

Maracas Bay, Trinidad (arguably the most popular beach on the island)

Buccoo Reef, Tobago (under water) 🌊🛥

Hindu “Temple In The Sea”, Waterloo, Trinidad

Scarlet Ibis (T&T’s National Bird), flying free along with some egrets and pink flamingoes) at the Caroni Bird Sanctuary, Trinidad

This is just a small taste of the twin-island island Republic that i’m blessed to call Home. 🙏🏾

[thedailycourtney]

September 15: Favorite hairstyles you’ve had

I mean, I feel like these two really capture the essence of what it means to be chic.

[thedailycourtney]

September 17: Celebrities you’ve had a crush on

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September 12:   Photos of home

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September 29: Three ways you pamper yourself

naps

spending time alone

taking short social media breaks

[thedailycourtney]

September 16: Comfort foods

chicken fried chicken

mashed potatoes and gravy

biscuits and gravy

GRAVY

pot pie

soup

tea and toast

chicken and dumplings

my mom’s chili

[thedailycourtney]

September 24: Vices

The sun. Booze. The occasional recreational adderall.

[thedailycourtney]

September 9: Five things you like about yourself today

1. Good at cannonballs.

2. Good at action shots.

3. Good at raft surfing.

4. Good at pool handstands.

5. Good at being happy.

[thedailycourtney]

September 19: Favorite time of day

Currently it’s sunrise, walking with my dog at the park, when it’s a little foggy, a little dark, the sky is beautiful, it’s so peaceful, and it’s QUIET, apart from frogs, bugs, and birds.

[thedailycourtney]

September 14: Best gifts you’ve ever given

Oof. OK, here’s where I’m gonna sound like an unsentimental asshole.

I am Rachel Greene when it comes to gifts. I know I’m hard to shop for. I would rather you not waste your time or money gifting me something that I don’t want/won’t use. From the time I was a child, I would ask my mom what my limit was on my “big” gift, whether it be for Christmas or my birthday, and pick out a specific item I wanted...usually a bag, a watch once, every once in awhile jewelry I wouldn’t necessarily buy myself. And if she wasn’t totally sure, she’d give me a gift card to Neimans, or Shopbop, or wherever so I could pick out the exact thing. My mom and I have borrowed each other’s clothes periodically since I was in middle school - but when she picks out clothes for me, I’m baffled. Like, you saw that in a store, and thought “wow, Court would like that?” DO YOU EVEN KNOW ME. Please, don’t waste your stress, your time, your Kohl’s cash on something I’m more than likely going to put in the back of my closet until enough time passes that you forget it, and I can send it to ThredUp. I would literally rather have a gift card to a gas station, or a grocery store, than something I didn’t pick out. I sent my brother a link to a Helen Ficalora necklace charm I wanted like 10 years ago. He hated it, thought it wasn’t worth the cost, blah blah blah. (We stick to around a $50 limit, it’s not like it was diamonds.) I still wear it to this day because I LOVE IT, and it’s what I wanted.

I LOVE gift cards. I know a lot of people don’t - in particular people being baby showered - but they are my favorite. I can find something I’ll use pretty much anywhere. I would rather you give me a gift card to Applebee’s - APPLEBEE’S - than some cheap ass bracelet you grabbed from one of those messy tables at the Dillard’s main entrance during the holiday season, out of some misplaced obligation.

Obviously Receiving Gifts is so far down on my Love Language results, it barely even registers.

So. All that being said, the best gifts I’ve ever given are the ones that are exactly what the recipient asked for. 

[thedailycourtney]

September Blog a Day: Catching up

26. Favorite compliments to receive: I like compliments about my appearance (hello, vanity), about my cooking, about my life choices, and about my wit.

27. Advice you’ve been given you’ll never forget: Don’t waste your time or energy worrying about things that haven’t happened yet. Be present.

28. Favorite numbers: I don’t really care about numbers. I don’t have a lucky number, or anything like that. (Though I do consider myself lucky in a lot of ways.)

[thedailycourtney]

September Catch Up

21: Apps you use the most: Instagram. Overdrive. Tumblr. Facebook. Bleacher Report. (And Chrome and Gmail if those count.)

22: Three fantasy dinner guests: Tom Colicchio, Chrissy Teigen, Anthony Bourdain.

23: Summer Highlights: It would be easier to talk about the lowlights, because there are none. OK, I did not love the bugs.

[mistavybe]

Songs to play while driving 🚙🎶👂🏾

The truth is, I hardly ever play music while driving these days. I find podcasts help keep me more calm, focused and mentally stimulated so I’ve listened almost exclusively to my favourite podcasts for the last... jeez, like 5 or six years at least. 🤔

If I do listen to music of late, I’ve noticed it tends to be retro stuff mostly. 80’s Dancehall/Reggae, 80’s and 90’s Hip Hop and R&B for the most part.

The remix of Kriss Kross’ 90’s hit “Jump” featuring my fave Dancehall star Super Cat goes hard in heavy traffic, IMHO lol. (I feel like @ropeandcoffee would be all about this too 😉) 👇🏾

So does “Ting A Ling” by Shabba Ranks. 🙌🏾 *does the Bogle dance in his seat*

Oh and also if I’m going to the beach and/or I just want happy music, obviously Soca Music rocks too lol.

Oh, one recent Genre of music I do love driving to is my playlist of Afrobeats songs!

“African Bad Gyal” by WizKid is definitely near the top of my driving playlist. 🙌🏾🕺🏾

So is Iskaba by Wande Coal and DJ Tunez. 🔥🔥🔥

And I def can’t leave out “Somebody” by Iyanya featuring Tiwa Savage. 💃🏽🕺🏾

The really interesting thing to me is that, in my mind, all of the Afrobeats tunes I’ve listed here is what Soca Music sounds like in my head slot... like for years - possibly decades - when I’d get an idea for a Soca song and start writing it in my head, they sounded alot like these kids of Afrobeats songs. And eventually i’d pare thr elements I initially heard in my mind’s ear doen to a a “more traditional sounding” Soca vibe that would fit in the mainstream of what Soca fans in the Caribbean diaspora excpect(ed).

Anyway, those would be my main songs to play in the car.

For those of you who may be interested in podcasts like me for driving entertainment, I highly reccomend them.

On the more woke side, I love listening to The Read (by far my number one fave podcast and the funniest thing I listen to every single week), Amanda Seales’ witty and woke podcast Small Doses, and Happy Hour: A Shot Of Conversation.

For any fellow Blerds (or just regular nerd fandom folks) out there, my nerdy go-tos are For All Nerds Show (formerly Fan Bros), The Mad Titan Podcast (hosted by Your Resident Supervillian Mr. Jay Washington), Collider Heroes (RIP Jon Schnepp but I think he’d be proud of how Coy Jandreau and Amy Dallen picked up the mantle), the unofficial but very through Black Lightning aftershow Podcast, and i’m also enjoying the Black Girl Nerds aftershow podcast for Power (now that the show’s final season has started 😢).

As far as local (Trini) podcasts, I like Recess: Creative Convos alot, as well as We Are Crayons and Talk ‘Bout Us. I’ve also been digging The Plug Connect, but I find myself watching their Facebook videos at home instead of listening to it in the car because the visuals definitely enhance the experience given how animated the hosts are lol.

Btw, if anyone knows of any other good Trini podcasts that I should add to the list, feel free to chime in! 🙏🏾

Once in a while I listen to something raunchy (but always sex positive) like Whoreible Decisions or Guys We F**cked. Speaking of which, i’ve been waiting on a new episode of The Old As F#ck Podcast for a while now... I wonder if anyone knows what the hold up is.. 🤔🤬

And yeah... that’s my driving soundtrack reccomendations. 💁🏾‍♂️

[thedailycourtney]

September 18: Three things you’re looking forward to

Going to bed on Sunday night.

Monday

Going to bed on Monday night.

[thedailycourtney]

September 30: Five shows you’re watching right now

The only thing I really watch this time of year is football.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[thedailycourtney]

September 13: Creative outlets/hobbies you enjoy

jigsaw puzzles

crossword puzzles

wrapping Christmas presents

cooking

reading

trail walks

staring lovingly at my dog for hours

telling my dog over and over and over that he’s the very best boy