Celebrity

Kim Kardashian-West Wore Fulani Braids to the MTV Movie & TV Awards and People got Big MAD

Posted on June 22, 2018

Kim Kardashian-West wore West African Fulani braids to the MTV Movie awards and it elicited a lot of reactions and responses from people, some accusing her of cultural appropriation.

For those who don’t know, the term refers to the wearing of clothing, hairstyle, accessories or some other item indigenous to a culture not your own for fashion purposes while not recognizing, defending or engaging with the culture in other context, otherwise. It is not a new term, but one that is getting a lot of mileage because social media has exposed it.

It was not the first time Kardashian-West was accused of it for wearing braids. She has done it a few times before. I have no opinion but I did want to use the opportunity of a lot of people talking about Fulani braids to plug a post I did on the topic over on my braids blog, JJBraids.com you can access here.

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Parenting

Survey: Washington DC Parents Spend the Most Annually On Their Children; Single Parents Spend More than Married

Posted on June 21, 2018

A new survey of parental spending on children found that parents in Washington, DC spend the most per year on kids than parents in all 50 states.

The report by Opploans.com also discovered than single and unmarried co-parents spend between $1,500-$4,000 on their kids than their married counterparts ($8,368) , specifically, single spend $10,173 and unmarried but living with their partner spend $9,830.

The reason for the difference, the researchers hypothesized is that two-person parenting unit means that the financial burden doesn’t all fall on one person.

Across all 50 states, the survey of 1,000 people found that the average parent spends $9,470 every year on each of their kids, but those numbers can change pretty dramatically depending on where you live. For example, parents in Washington DC spend the most, dropping a hefty $17,920.50 on each kid annually, while parents in Montana spend the least, at only $2,000 per year. The Northeast, in general, with the high cost of living, meant parents living there spend more than those in the South.

Dads, the results discovered, spend more than moms.

According to the survey results, the typical American dad spends about $9,486 annually per kid, while the typical American mom spends just $8,789.

Here is an infographic with a summary of the findings and you can find more details about the breakdown and more summaries, generally, here!

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Chanel Iman, the Latest Expecting Victoria Secret Model’s Celeb Style

Posted on June 21, 2018

Mom-to-be Chanel Iman looked radiant while presenting at the 2018 Fragrance Foundation Awards at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center on June 12, 2018 in New York City.

The Victoria Secret model went with her signature red carpet look: a floor-length sleek dress with a deep split. That day, it was a one shoulder dress in crimson color.

It was reminiscent to the black dress she worked to the 2018 CFDA Fashion Awards at Brooklyn Museum a couple weeks earlier on June 4, 2018 in New York City.

The 27-year old joins the long list of Vicky Secret models we’ve “bump watched” on the blog including Jourdan Dunn, Gisele Bündchen, Irina Shayk, Shannon Click, Alessandra Ambrosio, Lily Aldridge, Behati Prinsloo, Miranda Kerr, and Bar Refaeli.

Iman and her husband, New York Giant’s Sterling Shepard, are both expecting their first child together

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News

A Way You Can Help The Migrant Children At the Border

Posted on June 20, 2018

By now, you are most likely aware of the humanitarian crisis at the southern border of the United States where thousands of migrants escaping violence in Central America are being managed.

The current administration has taken an”zero tolerance” program of jailing all who cross into the US without prior authorization and taking any children traveling with adults and putting them in holding facilities.

Some children are as young as 8 months old which is considered infancy. Yesterday, the Associated Press reported that the government has started to hold these babies in “tender age shelters”.

As of this morning, US President Donald J. Trump has decided to sign an executive order reversing his policy to stop the separation of families.

But this doesn’t help those already deported or jailed. An organization in San Antonio Texas is working to pay the bail and find legal representation for the parents.

A fundraiser has been started that is close to raising $15M towards this effort that you can consider donating to.

I don’t know where all of my readers fall on the political spextrum, but I’m hopeful that most see this as a humanity thing.

Even if someone thinks the parents are wrong for risking it all going to America, are using their kids to abuse American kindness or policies or that the kids and their parents should be deported, none of these beliefs detract from the fact that children should remain with their parents.

The American Psychological Association issued a statement stating among other things:

Psychological research shows that immigrants experience unique stressors related to the conditions that led them to flee their home countries in the first place. The longer that children and parents are separated, the greater the reported symptoms of anxiety and depression for the children. Negative outcomes for children include psychological distress, academic difficulties and disruptions in their development.

There! Cannot say much more than that.

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Celebrity

The Moment This ‘Parenthood’ Star Accidentally Revealed Her Baby’s Gender

Posted on June 20, 2018

Parenthood alum Erika Christensen had planned to keep the gender or her second child private but that is until she accidentally spilled the beans at an even this weekend.

While attending the Vanity Fair and Max Mara Celebrate Alexandra Shipp, ‘2018 Women in Film Max Mara Face of the Future’ Award recipient event on June 12^thChristensen first told reporters she was not planning to share the baby’s sex but got carried away chatting about her firstborn daughter 2-year old Shane that she ended up revealing the secret accidentally.

“My mom got her a T-shirt that says, ‘Big sister.’ She seems to grasp that there’s a baby in here. She’s giving the baby some kisses. Hopefully, the little one will learn a lot from her sister,” Christensen said before realizing her slip up. “Oh, well, there you go.”

oops!

The Clover actress added about her husband Cole Maness reaction to growing the family.

“He’s very excited. He’s extremely in love with our girl,” she said. “He’s very excited to kind of see what the family expansion means for us.”

cool! congratst!

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Parenting

10 Reasons You Never Realized Why Dad-Son Fishing Is Gold

Posted on June 19, 2018

The iconic image of a father and son fishing trip is one that’s ingrained into the collective cultural consciousness. Even the classic sitcom images of Andy and Opie sharing a heart-to-heart over a fishing creel cements the American idea of fishing as a male-bonding activity.

As a father, spending time with your son is an important part of his emotional development, as well as a contributing factor to your filial bond.

Here are ten of the reasons why you should take your son fishing, and understand that you’re actually doing something far more important.

The Opportunity for Quality Father-Son Time – In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, it’s not easy to set aside a significant amount of time to spend one-on-one with your son. Taking a fishing trip, whether it’s an extensive one that will require an overnight stay or just an afternoon affair, allows you to focus all of your energy and attention on your son.
Fostering Conversations You Wouldn’t Have at Home – The quiet stillness of a lake and the relaxing nature of waiting for fish to bite fosters plenty of conversation, some of which would be awkward to broach over the dinner table. The natural evolution of your talks can lead to more than one subject you probably wouldn’t discuss under other circumstances.
Passing Along a New Skill Set– In a world where youngsters teach their parents the intricacies of new technology, it can feel like there isn’t much left in terms of skills that fathers pass on to their sons. The age-old art of baiting a hook to catch fish is a real skill, and it’s one that your child can’t fully learn from a YouTube video.
Making Memories You’ll Cherish Forever – As your son gets older and becomes less inclined to spend time with his parents, you’ll have the memories of your shared fishing trips. When he becomes an adult himself, those memories will become fodder for pleasant reminiscence.
Encouraging Independence Under a Watchful Eye – You can encourage your son to bait his own hook and cast his own line while you’re there to watch, allowing him to explore some independence as you look on to ensure his safety.
Instilling a Love of Outdoor Activity – For outdoorsy fathers, the opportunity to share a love of nature with a son is a valuable one. Instilling a love of the outdoors and an appreciation for fresh air, sunshine and screen-free entertainment is a great way to combat the effects of technologically-advanced, indoor-based living.
Temporarily Cutting the Electronic Cord – There are no video games, televisions or computers on the lake, which means that for at least one afternoon your son will be enjoying a completely low-tech good time. What better way to limit your son’s screen time than to take him somewhere that screens aren’t welcome, but fun is still on the menu?
Investing in Your Collective Emotional Future – In order to have a strong father-son relationship, you have to forge a strong emotional bond with your son while he’s still young. Fishing together allows the two of you to get to know one another as individuals, to talk openly and enjoy one another’s company.
Teaching Environmental Stewardship – When you’re on the lake enjoying an outdoor activity, you’re perfectly positioned to pass along the basic tenets of environmental stewardship without seeming like you’re lecturing or preaching. In fact, you can guide your son in the right direction simply by modeling earth-friendly habits.
Establishing a Shared Hobby – A shared hobby allows you and your son a bit of common ground, something that will become even more important as he gets older and looks for ways to assert his independence. The love of fishing that the two of you share during his formative years may be one of the few ways you’re able to effectively communicate during the turbulent times of adolescence.

No matter how many lessons and exciting experiences you share with your son on a fishing trip, it’s important to remember that young children have a finite supply of patience with any activity that requires them to be relatively still. You might be thrilled to stay on the lake from dawn till dusk, but your little man will probably only be able to handle one or two hour sessions scattered throughout the day. Remember to take plenty of breaks, and to be patient when your own fishing time is interrupted by an active little boy’s need to explore.

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Celebrity

Cardi B’s Bare Bump Covers ‘Rolling Stone’ Magazine with Fiance Offset

Posted on June 18, 2018

Cardi B and her fiance cover the July issue of Rolling Stone magazine.

Posing semi-naked in an open ballgown whilst Offset kisses her baby bump. The “I Like It Like That” performer sports heels, and an off-the-shoulder dress, which hangs completely open, showing off her peacock tattoo.

Rolling Stone writes in the caption for the social media release of the cover: “Here’s a first look at our upcoming cover featuring Cardi B and Offset. You can pick it up on newsstands July 2nd. Photograph by Ruven Afanador“:

Here’s a first look at our upcoming cover featuring Cardi B and Offset. You can pick it up on newsstands July 2nd. Photograph by Ruven Afanador (@ruvenafanador)
A post shared by Rolling Stone (@rollingstone) on Jun 15, 2018 at 5:27pm PDT

The “Bodak Yellow” rapper followed up with her own post:

“I guess it was too much to ask to wait until the official July release of our @rollingstone cover! This cover is so special to me and means so much! Thank you to everyone who helped put this amazing cover together! Even tho it was leaked and suppose to be In gray fuck it ??‍♀️??‍♀️??‍♀️My daughter made it to the Rollin Stone cover !!!! Official release in July.You can’t ruined what’s for me ❤❤❤❤ROCKSTARS @offsetyrn.”

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I guess it was too much to ask to wait until the official July release of our @rollingstone cover! This cover is so special to me and means so much! Thank you to everyone who helped put this amazing cover together! Even tho it was leaked and suppose to be In gray fuck it ??‍♀️??‍♀️??‍♀️My daughter made it to the Rollin Stone cover !!!! Official release in July.You can’t ruined what’s for me ❤️❤️❤️❤️ROCKSTARS @offsetyrn
A post shared by MOSTHATEDCARDI (@iamcardib) on Jun 15, 2018 at 5:57pm PDT

Congrats!

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The U.S. Workplace Is Still Hostile to Pregnant Workers

Posted on June 18, 2018

U.S. companies have spent years trying to become more welcoming to women. They have rolled out generous parental leave policies, designed cushy lactation rooms and plowed millions of dollars into programs aimed at retaining mothers.

But these advances haven’t changed a simple fact: Whether women work at Walmart or on Wall Street, getting pregnant is often the moment they are knocked off the professional ladder.

Throughout the U.S. workplace, pregnancy discrimination remains widespread. It can start as soon as a woman is showing, and it often lasts through her early years as a mother.

The New York Times reviewed thousands of pages of court and public records and interviewed dozens of women, their lawyers and government officials. A clear pattern emerged. Many of the country’s largest and most prestigious companies still systematically sideline pregnant women. They pass them over for promotions and raises. They fire them when they complain.

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Celebrity

Bey and Jay Release Joint Album: Planned Blog Post Canceled!

Posted on June 17, 2018

I was going to blog about something totally different this afternoon, but you know how Beyonce releasing an album has a habit of throwing all of my plans in disarray. [See review of Beyonce projects here] and [here] She and her husband Shawn”Jay Z” Carter released a 9-track album called “Everything Is Love” smack dab in the middle of their On the Run II tour. [This is right after the Beychella performance which was right after Jay’s album “4:44” which was right after Bey’s “Lemonade”]

These two don’t want us to keep our coins in our own pockets this summer. Anyway, I digress…

Dee Locket of Vulture did an excellent job summing it up for me so I’ll syndicate her opening paragraph to an excellent review you can read in its entirety HERE:

Your weekend plans: Canceled. Yeezy season: Dismissed. Drake: Who? Beyoncé and Jay-Z have pulled a Beyoncé and Jay-Z and surprise-dropped yet another album — but this time, as a couple. Their first-ever joint album Everything Is Love — the one that’s been percolating since even before Lemonade and 4:44 — was released on Saturday evening at the end of the duo’s London show on their On the Run Tour II with one casual parting announcement: “Album Out Now.” Out! Now! The nine-song album, complete with one visual component and a bonus track, is streaming in full on Tidal as we speak. With their trilogy recounting marital strife to remarried bliss now complete, what do we make of this closing chapter? From the shots at Trump, the NFL, Spotify, the Grammys, and Kanye West, to the Blue Ivy cameo, to filming a music video in the Louvre, here’s everything you need to know about the conversation the Carters have caused now.

Phew! What an intro. Well, today is Father’s Day and before heading out to celebrate, while the men are busy watching World Cup games, I hopped on to pen a few thoughts.

First, I don’t have Tidal, where the album exists exclusively. Yes, they are still trying to make it happen, and even have gone as far as declare war on Spotify. No really, they mention the streaming competitor in one of the songs. My subscription expired so my options are to re-up it to listen to the complete set or wait until it slowly releases on other platforms. le sigh.

I hear it’s getting mixed, but mainly good reviews. Because I have nothing to add substantively, I’ll share that I loved the only released-to-the-public video out: “Apeshit”. Imagine! They rented out The Louvre in Paris, France for the video shoot! Wow!

Surprise! pic.twitter.com/SYnAm6zCy7
— BEYONCÉ LEGION (@BeyLegion) June 16, 2018

The video for the song is a cinematic and visual treat. I love art. All art. Musical, visual, performing but especially art of yesteryear and religious art so it was a bonus to get to see flashes of famous pieces in the video.

And it is also a bit political. In the middle, there is an overt swipe at the anti-Take A Knee movement.

There is a lot to digest and there have already been publised a bevy or reviews. One thing I can offer that may not have been shared by others about “Apesh*t” is some of the similarities to other visual stimuli in other pieces.

Screeeeech!! Hold up, before I go there, I was also taken by the fact the song is Trap and besides both dropping some serious bars and Jay Z delivering an exceptionally good performance, he later gets side-graded (*is that a word?*) in my opinion to be to the sound effects emoting guy to Beyonce’s shine when it’s her turn to spit verses.

You know, like the guy Takeoff in the group Migos? ha!

Anyway, back to the visual similarities I spotted…

First, her sister Solange is famous for her love of dance and art combined. Her wedding reception took place at the New Orleans Museum of Art, and earlier this year, she unveiled a performance piece at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, and performed her title song to her first Grammy-winning album “Cranes In the Sky” at the Guggenheim in New York City.

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"An ode to" 2017
A post shared by @ saintrecords on May 19, 2017 at 10:09am PDT

And so her big sister went bigger.

The second similarity. The dancers in all brown reminded me of the all Brown clothing the dancers in Remy Ma (featuring Chris Brown) video “Melanin Magic.”

And finally, the album cover is of a woman braiding a man’s hair. It was reminiscent of Rihanna shaving dancer Mette Towley‘s hair in the intro to N.E.R.D.’s song Lemon.