Life's Journey (Collection of Poems) Available Now!!!

Hey Peeps!!

Just wanted to share the good news!! Life's Journey is finally here!!!

This is the second of three poetry books I plan to publish. Its available on Amazon....CLICK PIC ABOVE!

If you have a Nook then you can purchase it here 

I'm working on a Romance Novella that I will post about when it's done. I've been learning as much as I can about my craft and improving my writing. 

I intend to be in this for the long haul so I will keep this blog updated more often but among personal things it will document my journey to best selling author status!! :-D

Stay Blessed!

SIGN UP FOR AUTHOR YOLANDA ALLEN'S NEWSLETTER: NEW RELEASES

FINALLY!! Published My Poetry Book!

Hey Peeps!!

Just wanted to share the good news!! Blues Of A Sister is finally here!!!

This is the first of three poetry books I plan to publish. Its available on Amazon....CLICK PIC ABOVE!

If you have a Nook then you can purchase it here 

My second book will be available online shortly....I still have to write the third one but I'm hoping to have that one done by the beginning of next year!!

Happy Hump Day!

Stay Blessed!

SIGN UP FOR AUTHOR YOLANDA ALLEN'S NEWSLETTER: NEW RELEASES

JUST ENTERED TYLER PERRY'S TALENT SEARCH!

HEY THERE!!


So I'm excited!


If you know me, then you know I love me some Tyler Perry (Madea, that's my chick right there lol)


Well he was gracious enough to start a Talent Search! He will choose from the Top 10 Most Voted For!!! The winner will get a walk on role on one of his movies or TV shows!!!


SO if you would be so kind and go vote for me!!


Click on link: http://www.youtube.com/tylerperrystudios?x=us_showcase_36388


THANKS SO MUCH IN ADVANCE!!!

STAY BLESSED!!

****OH.....REMEMBER TO CHECK OUT MADEA'S WITNESS PROTECTION THIS WEEKEND! IT OPENS FRIDAY JUNE 29TH!!!****

Michael Ealy's New Show, Common Law!

SOOOO...if you know me then you know that I heart Michael Ealy! He's just so....handsome and down to earth! And he's a great actor! I met him once, about three years ago! Here is a pic of us:

We took this at Negril's here in NYC!! I was actually able to sit down with him for almost an hour talking about the acting biz, getting his insight and advice! (Thanks to my friend Abbe!) It was so nice of him to take the time out to chat with me. He's very nice and it was like just talking to an old friend!!


No I did not get his number..but I do hope to work with him in the near future!! Michael if you happen to read this....hit me up!! :-D


ANYHOO....lol


He has a new show out now, Common Law and I really like it...I think it's very funny! Him and his co-star, Warren Kole (another cutie patootie) work well together. They have a great chemistry in the show. If you haven't checked it out, it comes on every Friday at 10pm on USA. I watched it on Hulu.com because I don't have cable anymore..ha! SO if you're like me, then you will have to wait a day or so before it's available to view online.


ALSO...if you have or have not read Steve Harvey's Book Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man, you should go see the movie Think Like A Man!! It's very funny....thanks a lot to Kevin Hart!!! 


I read the book, but of course having Michael in the movie made me want to see it more hehehehe...I'm a big fan of all the people in the movie...even Chris Brown....ha!! He had a cute role in the movie..it was funny!


Alright....I just wanted to drop my two cents.....if you have seen or decide to watch the movie or the show, let me know what you think...


Until next time....Stay Blessed and Stay Tuned!

In The Midst Of It All

This song by Yolanda Adams just touches my soul!!! (side note: when I was typing Yolanda's last name (Adams) I accidentally typed my last name (Allen)...I've done that before when writing about Ms. Adams lol)


This song is on her Mountain High Valley Low album. I was listening to it this morning on the way to work....if you don't know that I'm talking about here are the lyrics:

This is the truth:

I've come through many hard trials

Through temptations on every hand

Though Satan's tried to stop me

And to place my feet on sinking sand

Through the pain and all of my sorrows

Through tears and all of my fears

The Lord was there to keep me

For He's kept me in the midst of it all

Not because I've been so faithful

Not Because I've always obeyed

It's not because I trusted him

To be with me all of the way

But it's because He loves me so dearly

He was there to answer my call

There always to protect me

For He's kept me in the midst of it all

He's kept me when times were hard and rough

I thought I could do it on my own

But Jesus, He kept me

When I wanted to do wrong, He kept me

When I thought I was going to lose my mind, Jesus kept me

With His power, Jesus kept me

He didn't let me fall, Jesus kept me

Right there in the Midst of it All

I don't know what you're going through

But will you allow me to encourage you?

I know if He did it for me

He will do the same for you

I don't know nobody else

To call on in times of troubles

I tried my mother & I know she loves me

I tried my family & I know they love me

But nobody but Jesus

He held my hand

He brought me through

He wouldn't let me fall

So let me encourage you

Don't give up; Don't give in

I don't care what nobody else say

You can win with Jesus

With Jesus you can make it

Come on and understand

You have everything inside of you to take it!

~Yolanda Adams

I've definitely been kept in the midst of it all...Stay Blessed!!

The Adjustment Bureau: Do We Have Free Will?

I watched the movie The Adjustment Bureau at a free screening last Tuesday. It was basically about our free will and an already written out plan for our lives.


I then received an email from Joel Osteen and his message that day was about God's plan for us. Here is an excerpt:


“Those who plan what is good find love and faithfulness”
(Proverbs 14:22b, NIV)


"The scripture doesn’t say, “Plan for good as long as the economy is booming.” It doesn’t say, “Plan for good as long as the housing market is strong.” It doesn’t say, “Plan for good as long as you aren’t facing any adversity.” No, we can plan for good because we serve a God who is good, and He is ready, willing and able to bring us through any adversity we face! Boldly plan for good today and watch God show up in the midst of your plans!"-Joel Osteen


Now my opinion about the whole Free Will vs Fate thing. I believe that God has a plan for all of us. And the plan consist of all good things. I believe that we go through tough times and trials to make us stronger and more prepared to handle the good and/or appreciate the good more when it does come into our life. I also believe we go through trials in order to draw us closer to God. By that I mean, some people tend to only seek Him when they are in need, and they tend to not give God that much attention when things are going well in their life. We have to give Him praise FOR ALL THINGS!!


I believe that there is a Divine plan with multiple outcomes. Your final destination is the promised land where you live abundantly. Abundance is our birthright. There are multiple outcomes based on what decisions we make.


The free will we have is basically our choice to serve God or not. Our free will is our choice to do good things or bad.


So yes there is a Divine Plan but we are also in charge of our own destiny. We are co-creators with our Father who lives inside of us. Depending on our choices in life we either walk the divine path to our promised land (with divine guidance & wisdom) or we walk our own path and either live a life of destruction or live a life that's less than fulfilling.


So when we ask for God's will to be done, we are simply asking for divine guidance and intelligence to make the right decisions because we know that His will for us is all good. His will for His children is one of abundance, peace, prosperity, wealth, perfect health and love. His way is the best way! His way is the perfect way!


We have the free will to choose whether or not to trust God and to put our trust in God! And I choose Him! I have an outline of what I plan to do with my life but I ask for God's guidance because I know whatever His divine plan is for me is what will make me the most fulfilled.


We only see half the picture, He sees the whole thing! Shoot He wrote the book, so of course He knows how the story ends! :-D


Stay Blessed my people and know that God only wants good things for you! Remember to praise Him through the storm and the sunny days! Keep your mind on Him and stay in gratitude!


God is a faithful God, he delights in our prosperity, He loves us unconditionally and He wants the best for us. Accept the victories that He has planned for you, no matter how hard the path may seem. In the end, we shall all be victorious, because we are children of the Most High!!

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father in heaven, thank You for the good plan You have for my life. I choose Your plan and ask that You direct my mind and thoughts according to Your purposes. Fill me with Your peace and joy. I set my mind on You and boldly embrace the good things You have for me today. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

— Joel & Victoria Osteen

GOODBYE CABLE!!! IT'S BEEN REAL!

THIS IS WHAT MY TV LOOKS LIKE NOW !!


THEY JUST TOOK MY CABLE BOX AWAY!!


BYE CABLE!!


A LITTLE SAD....TV IS MY LIFE....


THANK GOD FOR THE INTERNET....:-D

I'm Saying GOODBYE To Cable!!!

Okay....so I decided over the weekend that I am saying goodbye to cable! *tears, tears, and more tears


My cable went out on me for like 40 minutes or so Saturday night.....and this happens more often than it should, not for that long of a time but...it still happens.


I currently have the Internet/cable bundle with Time Warner. Up until September of last year (or 2009) I was paying less than a $100 for this. That promotion ended so my bill kept increasing on a monthly basis. It went from $98 to $105 to a whopping $120/mo!


So I called Time Warner Saturday night when my cable went out; while I was on the phone with them I mentioned that I may be letting cable go altogether. They offered to lower my current package down to $105. Then they told me if I downgrade to basic cable with the Internet it could be approximately $85-90/mo. With only Internet its approximately $50/mo.


After thinking about this for a short period of time, I told them to come pick up the box! So on Jan. 26th I will let my cable go!


I haven't been without cable in 9 years!! So how will this affect me?


Well for the most part, a lot of my TV shows that I MUST SEE come on the regular channels like CBS, NBC, ABC...and I can find them online. I already watch my movies online....and since a lot of my shows come on the same day at the same time I was watching them a day or so late anyway....so....it won't be that much of a difference.


Recently I've been watching TV in the mornings to watch The Early Show on Channel 2 just to get weather updates and see what they are talking about. But I'm not a news watcher and I'm not a sports watcher. 


I was thinking of getting a Netflix account again. I was a Netflixer back a few years ago...and I liked them. They now have the Watch Instantly thing going on with movies and TV shows. You can stream on your PC/Mac or on your TV through a certain device like your gaming console, Roku, Blu Ray Player etc. 


I just read about the Roku thing over the weekend. It's not that expensive to get. I don't mind looking at movies & shows on my computer monitor but if I can watch on the TV screen that's great! The Roku has other channels too that can be added to the channel store. For hard to find shows on the Internet, I may get a subscription package to Netflix that includes DVD rental as well as the watch instantly feature; its just $2 more.


I haven't decided just yet how I'm going to handle all this. Netflix will definitely come in handy for catching up on past seasons of a particular show that may not be available online. For instance, I've been trying to watch the first season of Justified. I've found videos but with free content comes complications like the dreaded buffering! So sometimes its just not worth trying to watch the movie or show if it's going to buffer every 5 seconds...so Netflix would be good for that.


So the main reason I'm saying goodbye to cable...MONEY!


Going with the Internet only plan and a Netflix subscription would probably cost me about $50-55/mo. If I do decide to get the Roku later that could cost about $60-100 (but its a one time fee).


Yes, I can afford to continue to pay $120....but why? Saving $70 a month will do me good. I've already found another place where that money can go! ha! 


So we'll see how this goes....Sunday I kept my TV off all day (trying to prepare myself)....I only turned it on at 10p to watch the reunion of the Atlanta Housewives.


I'll keep you posted.....

SKINS: New Show on MTV

SO....people have been really voicing their opinions about this new show on MTV, Skins. The show is about teens participating in sex and drugs and being able to successfully hide it from their parents. Some parents want the show removed because the cast is underage. But COME ON PEOPLE....y'all don't watch Intervention? Majority of the addicts on that show said they started drinking and doing drugs as young as 7yrs old!

I mean how do you get drugs and alcohol at 7yrs old?!! So wake up parents....this show is a true portrayal of what a lot of teens are doing....I don't think that it will encourage teens to partake in these unhealthy activities..the ones that are going to experiment...will experiment; the ones that won't...won't....

But I do think that these parents need to stop having a hissy fit and use this show as a platform to talk to their kids about drugs, alcohol and sex! They get started younger and younger these days!!

Stay Blessed!!

Ted Williams is Proof That Prayer Works!

I'm sure you've all heard the story about Ted Williams the homeless man with, quote, "the God Given Voice". And I must say, it is an amazing voice! Click Here to see the story!

When I first saw the post on yahoo.com about Ted, immediately I sent up a prayer for him, asking God to bless him. The next day, we were being told that Ted had received many job offers and was able to reunite with his mom!

I saw an interview on the Today Show and it just brought tears to my eyes! God is Amazing! Prayer does work...it may not happen right when you want it to but people please believe me....it will happen when it NEEDS to!

God is always on time. I am truly proud of Ted and I know that if he keeps his mind and heart on the Lord that he will continue to prosper!

Stay Blessed and Keep Praying!!

Black Women....Your Nose Looks Fine!!!

I don't know about you but I have a problem with the current trend of these black celebs getting nose jobs and coming out looking completely TRANSFORMED...or more like DEFORMED....


Okay deformed maybe be a harsh word to use....I love me some Janet Jackson....I've always thought she was a pretty lady but nowadays that nose! Boy Stop!! I can't stand to look at her nose...is it getting smaller??

Just Say No!!


Then you have Pep from Salt & Pepper. One minute she's looking like a cute black woman the next minute I'm like, who da hell is that?! OMG it's Pep!! What the hell happened to her face?! Oh Snap!!! She got her nose did!!!

Not cute...she just looks weird now!


Just Say No!!


And I'm sure there are others that I can point out that should have Just Said No...but I will leave this post by pointing out the most recent tragedy....Nene Leakes from the Housewives of Atlanta!

Her nose was FINE!! She messed it up now she just looks all crazy!!


Nene.....you are D-Wrong for that!!


I'm done!