I love what Mondays have to bring. It’s a new start to get things right.
Mondays are awesome
National Lipstick day is made for makeup mavens like Jestina Howard
Aware Cosmetics founder Jestina Howard believes in beautiful faces and healthy bodies. She started her Birmingham, Ala.-based company in 2003. Check out her line on July 29, National Lipstick Day and every day. Her products are free of paraben, talc and gluten. (Photo by Liesa Cole.)
By Chanda Temple
For years, I wore Desire, a plum lip color from MAC. It was my signature shade.
Little did I know I was only supposed to wear it in the colder months. (It took my aunt to break the news to me when she saw me on TV one morning. She said it was too dark and not the best look for spring.)
I lightened up on the lip color the next day.
But I want to also credit Birmingham, Ala. makeup maven Jestina Howard for challenging me to step outside my makeup comfort zone. In 2013, I contacted her to buy my favorite plum color from her line, Aware Cosmetics. (Hey, let’s just say I’m addicted to plum.) Anyway, Jestina said that color no longer existed in her line. Then, she encouraged me to try a bright red.
Ummm, excuse me. Bright red?!! Oh no, I thought. That’s not me. (more…)
There’s power in your potential
If you have the drive today, use it today. Don’t put it on a shelf and “save” it for another day. Pick it up and go while you have the desire to do better. it could lead to the next big thing.
By Chanda Temple
A friend texted me today, saying he wanted to work out but it was raining where he lived.
He knows I’m a big supporter of fitness, so I encouraged him to go for it. He texted back: “But I’m tired and sleepy. Plus, I left my headphones at work.”
I saw this exchange was gonna require some tough love. I texted back: “Did you have your headphones when you were downing that meal at P.F. Chang’s?”
When they go low, we go high…
First Lady Michelle Obama’s quote of “When they go low, we go high…” during the 2016 Democratic National Convention set the tone for a memorable night and life. When bullies come knocking, turn the other cheek and strive to be better than them. You will be better for it. To see the whole speech, go here.
Motivation Monday: Just Start
Stuck on start? Get your engines going and just begin. Know this: It will be a beautiful journey because you are in the driver’s seat.
By Chanda Temple
I ran into a friend at a coffee shop this morning and she said something that got me to thinking.
She talked about life and then expressed how she really wanted to write. She said she liked to write poetry and maybe write even a book. I had no idea she loved to write, so her words intrigued me.
When I asked her why she had not started, she said, “It’s not that I’m scared. I’m just worried no one will like it.”
Wednesday’s Word: What are you afraid to do?
What fears are keeping you from pursuing your purpose? Ignore them and jump in. Your destiny awaits.
Wednesday’s Word: Discover your ‘Why’
“When you figure out what your ‘why’ is, life is a beautiful thing.” – Mario Armstrong, radio and television talk show host
Write your own story
Write your own story
By Chanda Temple
What makes you smile? Do yourself a favor and do it.
Silly? Maybe. But it’s your first step to getting to your happy.
Stop letting others set your agenda. You are in charge, so take the lead.
By the end of the day, you’ll be glad you did.
Chanda Temple is a veteran reporter now working in public relations. She blogs at http://www.chandatemplewrites.com. Follow her on Twitter at @chandatemple.
Wine and Food Festival set for Sept. 25 at the Birmingham Zoo
Bottles of wine will be fore sale during the Wine and Food Festival on Friday, Sept. 25. (Photo by Sara Franklin)
Discover new wines and support a good cause during the Wine and Food Festival on Friday, Sept. 25 at the Birmingham Zoo from 6 to 9 p.m. The zoo address is 2630 Cahaba Road.
There will be more than 500 wines to taste, plus winemakers and experts to answer questions. And while you’re there, enjoy tasty food from 35 vendors including Bryant’s Seafood and more.
I’m here because of them
In honor of the four girls killed in the Sept. 15, 1963 bombing of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, I look back at how a Birmingham memorial in their honor became a reality in 2013. Located at the edge of Kelly Ingram Park in downtown Birmingham are statues in honor of Denise McNair, Carole Robertson, Addie Mae Collins and Cynthia Wesley, all Birmingham City Schools students at the time of their deaths.
This story looks at how Mountain Brook native Elizabeth MacQueen, the Four Spirits Inc. and the City of Birmingham worked to see the memorial completed. All photos by Chanda Temple
By Chanda Temple
In 2012, a Birmingham organization known as Four Spirits Inc. launched a national competition in search of entries for a memorial to honor the four girls killed in the 1963 bombing of Sixteenth Baptist Church.
There were five entries from men. Elizabeth MacQueen was the only female.
When MacQueen’s design was selected in April 2013, she halted a project she was working on in Thailand so she could dedicate all of her time to the Four Spirits memorial.