Goddess Art: Black Fireflies

Black Fireflies by Paul Goodnight

I was initially attracted to this painting because of its vivid colors. Now when I look at it, all I see is freedom--freedom to move, dance and be. So, I thought it was pretty fitting to post on a blog called Free The Goddess :-)

These ladies look completely uninhibited (from everything) and seem to be glowing from the inside out, like fireflies. We could all take a cue from them.

The artist, Paul Goodnight, has an interesting story that I want to highlight here, taken from his bio:

"Art has been Paul Goodnight's saving grace in his recovery from his traumatic experience in Vietnam when he lost his ability to speak from seeing the horrors of war. Though some thought he had lost his mind, he knew he hadn't and began to communicate with his drawings of the horrors of war. With the regaining of his voice, he enrolled in Vesper George School of Art and eventually earned a Bachelor's Degree from Massachusetts College of Art in 1976. Goodnight has developed his own unique aesthetic philosophy to document the humanity of Black people around the world. He often incorporates African themes and symbols to provide depths of history and culture....."

His story is a testament to the fact that God will use everything around us, even the not-so-good stuff, to lead us to our purpose...if we let Him.

Life Is Short: Hold Hands, Not Grudges

Today, I had an early morning meeting at one of my restaurants to conduct a customer service training. Since it was so early, I decided to buy the crew members coffee from Caribou Coffee located next door.

I walked in, placed my order and waited a few minutes for everything to be prepared. While I was waiting, I noticed a pamphlet on the counter that looked similar in style to something my company is producing as a take-away for our customers. So, of course, I was drawn to it and decided to pick it up.

With each page turn, I got a little bit more information about Caribou Coffee's start, where its beans come from and its philosophies. Caribou's tagline is Life is short. Stay awake for it. And as I read along, I started liking Caribou more and more. "Good marketing," I thought.

By this time, my coffee was done brewing and I was ready to go. I took the pamphlet with me, and read it again once my meeting was over.

My favorite two pages read this, Life is short. Hold hands, not grudges. Max out your passport. Grow older without growing up. Shave your head, at least once. Make time for silly. Savor every sip. Walk, don't drive. Skip, don't walk. Do it for love, not profit. Be the first to apologize. Plug the meter for someone else. Plant lots of trees. Learn to dance a jig. Listen first, talk second. Build communities, not empires. Thank a teacher. Stay awake for it.

Basically, ENJOY YOUR LIFE! Thanks Caribou, for the reminder.

Goddess Zuri On The Move: Women's Empowerment

Goddess Zuri will be a first-time vendor at this year's Women's Empowerment Expo in Raleigh, NC on March 20th!

We will be selling our inventory of tees and accessories at special show prices! We'll even have new jewelry on display and be giving away a free gift with each purchase (while supplies last.)

So, if you're going to be in the Raleigh area, please plan to check us out at Women's Empowerment!

About Women's Empowerment: Women’s Empowerment is Radio One Raleigh’s largest and most anticipated event. Year after year, thousands of African American women (and men) come to Women’s Empowerment for an entire day of education, entertainment and empowerment.

Created in 1994, in honor of Women’s History Month, Women’s Empowerment was designed to enhance the lives of African American women by addressing issues that specifically impact their “health, hearts and pocketbooks.” Throughout the day, this expo-styled event offers seminars, workshops, demonstrations, sampling, and shopping.

Goddess Inspiration: Robert Louis Stevenson

Goddess Zuri: 20% OFF SALE!

Yell it from the rooftops!!! Goddess Zuri is having a sale. Get 20% off of orders $20 and over thru the end of February.

Use coupon code FEB20PRCT

Simply visit http://www.goddesszuri.com/ and start shopping!!!!

**Sale ends February 28th.

I just Think She's Fly: Vivian Green

Love her!

Brief background: Vivian Green grew up in Philadelphia, where she started singing at an early age. She began playing the piano at age eight and writing songs when she was 11. At 13, she joined a girl group called Younique. Her break came when she was hired as a backup singer for Jill Scott, who took her on tour internationally. That connection eventually led to record company interest, and Green signed to Columbia Records in November 2001. Her debut album, A Love Story, was released one year later. Vivian followed in 2005. Both albums went Gold.

I had the privilege of seeing Vivian live in concert a few years ago in Chicago, and the girl is bad! What makes her different is that she sings about side effects of love without the anger and hate that you may hear from other artists. She's more of a "hey, this one just didn't work out but I'm going to learn from it" type of artist. This makes her so fly! Simply accepting what is....

In her new song, Beautiful (new album coming this Spring), she sings about a dude that she loved but the dude was too scared to love her back. So, Vivian is like, "ok, cool. But when you do find that lady that you're ready to take the risk with, here's what you need to know."

Take a listen, great song!

Goddess Zuri: We're Back In Business!

Yay! Our site is back up with a new look. It's a work in progress, but we're happy to get it running again!

With this site, we'll be able to make changes a lot quicker and offer our customers coupons!

Check it out at http://www.goddesszuri.com. And please let us know what you think about the new and coming changes.