1. Android MyTouch Smartphone: I don't know if it's a lack of interest in the latest technology or the fact that I work with technology for a living, but I've never been one who has to have the latest upgrade or invention first. (Clearly you won't see me in line for the iPhone 5.) My grandfather got a computer before I did, and the only reason I got one was because it was mandatory in my college tuition. My mother has an e-book, and I still don't. I got a cell phone after much nagging about driving back and forth eight hours while in Missouri at school. The only reason I got an mp3 player was because I got tired of my CD walkman falling while I was working out and getting bored listening to the same 12-16 songs when I was out jogging or walking for exercise. So clearly I would be the last person to get a Smartphone. (My grandfather and I had matching flip phones. That's how much I rebel against what's "in," especially when I'm staring at computers all day long and used to be glued to a phone back in the day when I was a receptionist.) With all of that said, I'm obsessed with this phone. Now I finally understand the hype of these gadgets. I've messed around with the games, the music, the Internet, loyally check the weather application, everything. I'm still not going bonkers over technology and think texting is entirely too much trouble (why pay when I can send a free e-mail?), but I do understand the hype now. I bought it solely to have GPS (got tired of getting lost while driving) and for a camera phone, but I have yet to use either. I've been playing around with the rest of the applications on there.

2. E-mail invite from my cuz: I got an e-mail from my cousin Saturday afternoon dropping a super transparent hint about how we shouldn't just see each other at funerals. She always was a straight shooter. Good to hear from her (every time) and will be happy to catch up with her this week and hang out. It's always a lot of loud talking, a million stories about what drama we're going through, and cracking jokes and laughing. She and I couldn't be more different if we tried (physically and mentally) but I love her to death. She's great, even when she drives me nuts (on occasion, NOT NOW -- in case she reads this).

I got a call on Monday that I let go to voicemail. It was from a family friend who had given me some bad news about the health of my aunt. I didn't feel like hearing anymore bad news so I shrugged and walked away from my cell. But when I heard "I'm sorry to hear about your aunt" on my voicemail, I went into straight panic mode and called my mother asking her why was someone calling me to say she was "sorry to hear" about my great great aunt. And that's when I got the news and sobbed so much I couldn't even talk. On September 10, 2012, she died.

I'd just hung out with her on her 100th birthday on February 8 and she was about as upbeat as she was when I was a kid. The average person may think, "Well, she lived to be 100" and maybe I should've been prepared for the news. But I wasn't and I spent about four days walking around, ignoring phone calls and not talking much. When I got the news, I jumped in my car and went walking for three hours. I walked, I wrote in my journal and just looked around. Best dressed person on a bike trail because I never took off my work clothes. I'm usually really level when it comes to bad news, but she'd been so much a part of my life. At her funeral, I talked about how she made it to my high school graduation and college graduation when my own grandmothers passed away (my maternal grandmother in January 15th before I graduated from elementary school and my paternal grandmother January 11th before I graduated from high school). I was terrified the year I graduated from college because of the pattern, but my aunt made it there with a smile. We could argue like nobody's business, but I was crazy about her.

So to be honest, I don't recall smiling at all this week. I got through the week. I got through the next three workdays. I got through the viewing on Thursday. I got through the funeral on Friday. But it wasn't until Friday evening after I left the cemetery that I finally felt like myself again. With that said though, I'm going to do this blog anyway. I have countless moments where I smiled around her so I'll do a top five of that.

I love funny people, but sometimes the funniest moments are from people who you wouldn't expect to do certain things or say them aloud. Pretty much all of my "smile" moments were from those instances.

1. The Booty Grabber: I was talking with a co-worker about how much I can't stand it when guys grab women's butts in public. I've dated three different guys who were into that sort of thing, and I'm not really big on PDA. I can't stand holding hands, linking arms or snuggling up and hugging all in public. It seems like the couple is trying to prove a point to me and holding hands makes me feel like I'm on a school field trip. I'm just waiting for a teacher to start taking attendance. Ironically enough though I have no problem with public kissing and do it plenty of times. I don't know. I'm weird that way. But anyway, my co-worker and I were talking about PDA and ass grabbing and she said she hates it, too. She said the only time she does it is with her son where she'll grab his bottom and go "honk honk." And she literally demonstrated this in the air. I almost fell over a fountain we were sitting on because I was laughing so hard. I just wouldn't have expected the demonstration and I couldn't even finish the rest of the story I was telling because I kept laughing. I won't say her name, but I will say as professional as she is to viewers she is super funny "behind the scenes."

2. On life support: Now someone talking about being on life support is never funny but leave it to my grandfather to find a morbid joke. I was talking to him about a family member on a feeding tube and he started ranting about how he doesn't want to be on any of that. He complained about how horrible nursing homes are and how he never wants to be hooked up to any tubes and wires. He is determined that he's going to go out like a Native American tribe does (don't know how to spell the name he always says) and just go to a tent and take care of himself until he dies outside. Yes, this is morbid but he's said it so much that it has lost its punch. But he had specific instructions about feeding tubes.

Him: "Don't put me on any life support or feeding tube! If I get to that point, you bring me a double cheeseburger and let it kill me while I'm eating it."
Me: But Grandad, you don't eat double cheeseburgers at all now.
Him: I know! That's why I'll want one. No, make it a big bowl of chitterlings. That'll take me quicker. And if neither one of those work, you get me a big, greasy possum sandwich. I hate possum sandwiches so much I'll definitely be gone soon.

Been a minute. Plenty to grumble about but the point of this blog is to remind myself about things I've smiled about. I missed last week so here's 10 instead of five.

1. Ma Po Tofu at Lao Sze Chuan: The spices on the food still kill my stomach, but I love it. I haven't been to Chinatown in a couple of years (although I've eaten a lot of Asian food at other locations) so it was cool celebrating someone's birthday there yesterday afternoon. The food and service were great for both of us.

2. Jennifer Lopez purple dress: Retail therapy is something else, and I got a beautiful dress from Kohl's for a great sale price today. I know retail therapy can hurt your wallet, but new clothes do something for women who get into style. I can't wait to wear this dress any place I can think of. I like it almost as much as my Daisy Fuentes blue and green dress. Almost.

3. Kohl's Cash: Yeah, NY & CO has City Cash, but it takes so long to use it that I usually forget about it. For every $50, you get $10 from Kohl's and you don't have to buy something else to use it. You spend it like you would a regular gift card or cash. I got two today from my retail therapy session and finally got a new watch after I'd torn mine all up at Great America (scratches from falling during Fright Night), dying battery and fading silver. I loved the watch, but it was time to get something new.

4. Silver and blue watch: I love my new watch. It goes with my blue jeans and since I wear so much gray, it looks nice with that, too. I don't want my whole list to be materialistic, but I'm feeling the shopping trip I just went on.

This week was rough. A couple other issues happened, but the third and most important issue was seeing my great great aunt in a nursing home on Saturday. Whenever you see a loved one in a nursing home who you know despises nursing homes and doesn't look as phenomenal as she usually does, that can tear your heart apart. It temporarily makes me rethink about my stubborn attitude when it comes to having zero interest in motherhood. You kinda want someone to be around to take care of you, but then I rethink that and think of all of the relatives who came around to see this family member who aren't her children. You don't have to have kids to have someone take care of you when you're older. Then again, a couple of things I smiled about this week wouldn't have happened had my parents not had me so...um, yeah, no plans for children but it's making my arms fold a little looser on the topic.

And through it all, I still found things to smile about.

1. Hanging out in Grandad's backyard: For over 60 years, my grandfather was a smoker. I didn't know much about second-hand smoke, but I did know that every time he went outside to smoke on the back porch, I'd run under his heels and balance myself on the porch rail so I could be right next to him. He hasn't smoked in a couple of decades now. This time around I spent the weekend at his house just to clear my mind. Some people get massages. Some get manicures and pedicures. Some have girls' nights out. Me? I go to Grandad's. It is the best place to clear my mind. On Friday, we hung around, ate watermelon, laughed at episodes of "Roseanne," went to our favorite Asian food restaurant for dinner. I spent the night and, on Saturday afternoon (after visiting my great great aunt with my mother), my grandfather and I got two lawn chairs and sat in his backyard drinking Mogen David Classic American Wine Concord and talked about politics, relationships, family and how weeds are tearing up his backyard. I even left with a big bag full of collard greens, tomatoes and banana peppers from his garden. He's better than the grocery store!

2. Angela Davis autobiography recognition: A guy walked by me last week while I was reading Angela Davis' autobiography. He stopped to ask how far I'd gotten into the book and gushed about how much he enjoyed it. Now normally this wouldn't be something that would've caught my attention so much, but the guy was white. Yes, that may sound close-minded, but I just wasn't ready for all of the compliments and the look of admiration he had for her. It made me want to dig through this book that much quicker because from what I've read, she's had quite a few problems with dealing with people being racist to her so I wondered if other cultures would relate the same. I know far too many people who are too close-minded to read "The Autobiograpy of Malcolm X" to find out where Malcolm X was coming from so I expected the attitude to be the same way about Angela Davis. It is not. I couldn't be happier to hear that. I haven't finished the book yet, but it's due this week so I better hurry up. 

Strange week. Some great moments, some not-so-great moments, but you already know that this blog will focus on the great moments.

1) The Avon Store compliment: I went to The Avon Store to get my favorite perfume and Emma moved her store a block over from 7062 N. Clark to 7108 N. Clark St. She asked me if there was a way to change the address and I told her I'd take care of it. But what I found more important was that she talked about how many customers she got from that Examiner post. I love to hear that articles I write get people more customers, especially from entrepreneurs who I think are delightful to work with. I'm a loyal customer of Emma's because she's consistently been professional, friendly and reasonable. Click here for the perfume post.

2) Tuesday evening to Wednesday morning: Special look of gratification for Wednesday morning. Wow. Fun company. Interesting moments to learn about someone's background. I don't care how much you think you know about a person. You can always learn more, and if you never learn anything new, life gets boring quickly. I didn't even want to go to work that day. Wednesday morning could've traveled on to Thursday, but bills must be paid and I love my job. So off I went to work (and a horrible traffic jam).

So much has happened between Saturday afternoon and now. Not just random stuff but life-changing events, things that put future plans in perspective and make me smile just a little bit wider. I rarely dedicate all five things to one topic, but this time around I'll dedicate my five things that made me smile to one particular person. Those in the know, know!

1. Going to see his new apartment: Anybody can ask you to go out on a date or to hang out around each other's house, but it's flattering for someone to want you to come by and help them make initial decisions about where they want to live and give you a tour. And then really want to know what you think of the place and your thoughts on what it should look like. I didn't really understand the point of going to someone else's apartment until I realized it was less to do with going and more to do with being interested in my opinions and showing his accomplishments.

2. My mother's voicemail message: There are very few people who can reach me through my mother outside of family. I have old friends who wouldn't dare pick up the phone to call my mother about me because they know they wouldn't get past the first sentence. My mother is a lovely person but she will guard me from anything or anybody who she feels isn't in my best interest. So the call she got to let me know a certain someone was in town for good and the meeting afterwards was memorable to say the least.

Four this week since I did 11 last week.

1. Lupe Fiasco's interview on The Breakfast Club: Minus stupid questions about bodily functions and praying over white women, this interview was pretty intelligent. No matter how many goofy questions were asked, Lupe kept the interview from going left and his views on positive hip-hop and lyricism were so dead on. I still don't agree with him when it comes to voting and the presidential election, but I was very impressed with "L.A.S.E.R.S.," love "Bitch Bad" and will definitely be checking out "Food and Liquor 2."

2. Nas' "Life Is Good" CD: I heard "Bye Baby" and "Daughters," but I have an interesting track record with Nas' music. I've seen him perform live in grad school and loved it. I think he's absolutely gorgeous. I thought it was cool how unapologetically in love with Kelis he was and crack up on "Behind the Music" when he talks about her. I gushed over his CD with Damien Marley and still constantly listen to "Distant Relatives." I even leaned more his way with the Jay-Z beef. But sometimes he'll make a song (or an album title) that makes me wonder about him. This CD though? I play it straight through. I'll review it later, but I just really enjoyed it. It was such a relief to hear a hip-hop CD and actually want to listen to the lyrics while bobbing my head to the beat. It's rare that I find both on one CD. I see why he's had so much success on the Billboard charts with this one. The Deluxe version with the bonus songs is the best. Buy it on Best Buy or Half.com. (I will review the CD some time this weekend when I'm at home. Hanging out on my days off right now though.)

Plenty to smile about these past couple of weeks so let's get this thing going!

1. Watching 'The Marvin Gaye Story: Don't Talk About My Father Because God Is My Friend': I've said pretty much all I can say in this blog post, but I was talking to my mother today who said, "I'd go see that again." My response, "I knew I wasn't the only one." It was that fun to see.

2. My great great aunt at my cousin's wedding: Everyone was a little concerned about whether my great great aunt would make it to my cousin's wedding. She's 100 and, although still spunky, people are starting to get more worried. I knew my aunt really wanted to be there so it was cool to see photos of her in attendance. How often do we have centenarian relatives who are around for special events?

3. Hanging out with Mom on her __th birthday: She probably won't care if I publish her age but just in case. It was fun hanging out with her to attend the Marvin Gaye play and have a cooked meal ready for her to eat (cabbage, hot water cornbread, iced tea). She enjoyed it, too.

1. VH1's "40 Greatest R&B Songs of the '90s": I checked this out and it made me so happy to be an '80s baby. Bel Biv Devoe. Montell Jordan. Whitney Houston. Brandy. Color Me Badd. Jodeci. R. Kelly. Blackstreet. There were countless great songs in the '90s. It made me temporarily miss my elementary school and high school years (and that never happens), but I reminisced on where I was when I first heard all of these songs. And my first boyfriend favored Montell Jordan. High-five for me! (Click Shamontiel's Favorites for a juicy story about a couple of these songs.)

2. The photos inside of Stephen Krensky's "Biography: Barack Obama: A photographic story of a life": There were some really good shots in this book that I'd never seen before. I didn't know Sasha's real name was Natasha either. I read "Dreams from My Father" years ago, but this book dusted off my memory bank about our president.