Lo Life Platoon in Milwaukee

I need an escape. A getaway. Somewhere to go and eject all the negative and toxins from my system. All the ill thoughts and impurities, which birthed themselves onto me since March of last year.

I'm building my Lo Life Platoon and things are getting very exciting!!!

"Me and FaceBook..."

Well, I did it. I did it and my phone wasn't affected like it was a few days ago. Earlier this week, I tried to Deactivate my Face Book because I was on it a lot and wanted a break. Unfortunately, when I tried to, Face Book Connection Notifications would pop up. It was irritating so I re-activated the account. This time, I deactivated the account through my settings in my phone, which cleared it out and now I don't get those notices.

I enjoy Face Book, like most people do, but I began feeling like many people when most of my day would be consumed with being on as far as checking and posting on FB. I'm on Twitter, Instagram, Link'D In and Google Plus, but Face Book seemed to have this ability to enslave you mentally and nearly hypnotize you into signing in or remaining signed into the site.

An hour later...

Okay, I'm back in Face Book, but I'm trying to maintain. Damn social networking!

After Happily Ever After

Pink has a song talking about learning to love again... I wonder if I'm being selfish by not thinking about loving again?

I've always had an idea about Love. My philosophy on Love was that being in Love was being in a spiritual place. The location of Love was anywhere and everywhere with one particular; the population of this place was always an even number. I've always believed for a person to be in Love, you have to be in Love with someone who is in Love with you. You can't be in Love alone. With that understanding set and locked in, you are omitted from Love as an individual by definition.

Love is an amazing and glorious place. Love is full of peace and caring, it's a place where your focus and hard work is reciprocated back to you from the person you are in Love with. Love is full of trust and honesty. Being in Love makes you a better person; an unselfish person. Damn, there's my cockiness again. I wore my being in Love like a suit of armor and would dare someone to question it. "How could you question the glory you're not even worthy of experiencing yourself."

I had total faith in Love and was a loyal champion to shine as an example for those to aspire to be like me. To find someone to fall in Love with and share the blissfulness of residing in the rolling fields of Love's awesomeness with.

Unfortunately, my armor was cracked... My shield shattered and my faith died along side of my passion. Once my faith died, I was kicked out of that place I cherished and championed. I was banished out of Love with the inability to Love or be Loved. Now at 3:23am in the morning, I can't sleep. My insomnia is at it's peak. I think about our products of love; our four pillars of faith, our children and remember days of being in Love, which born then to us.

Nothing equals the feeling of being Loved in Love with someone who Loves you. If you are blessed enough to be in Love, I beg you to cherish it with every breath you take. Because it will end as all things do... As all things must. I am the result of after Happily Ever After!!

RM

The Walking Dead

Hey family and friends, I'm watching 'The Walking Dead' with my group of survivors. My blood is boiling. This is uber exciting. I just like the word "über". Tonight you get more in depth in the psychotic nature of The Governor.

Pizza and human flesh are on tonight's menu...

Is It Really Healthier???

I’m smiling a tad this morning. I’m smiling because while I think about what to eat for a healthy breakfast, heard this morning’s ‘Steve Harvey Show’ and it was about Healthy Living. Everywhere you turn, people are promoting healthier living. My push is due to knowing I need to be healthier and my doctor (Dr. Hartlaub of Wheaton Franciscan) is awesome, but promotes a contradiction to what I’ve seen and experienced in my life.

As many of you know, I spent the formative years living in El Dorado, AR. El Dorado is a small town very dear to my heart. My Great-Grandfather, Andrew Matthews was awesome. I wonder what people today would have thought of his diet. He raised chickens and pigs/hogs and he even had a small garden. Neighbors would bring food and trade for, you know how small southern communities do.

Wow, the things he ate…

He’d eat almost every part of the chicken. The pigs were crazier. He’d cut and cook ham, bacon, and everything you can imagine. He ate what’s called Hog Head Cheese, Pigs Feet, etc. I’d be like, “DAMN!” he ate pork everyday of his life. “EVERYDAY!!” I know his diet was or today would be considered so unhealthy. His doctor told him once, he would need to stop eating pork and start a healthier diet. His doctor was very health conscious and was even known around the community to run and workout daily. A few years later, his doctor died. Then the doctor’s son, who was a doctor died soon after.

My Great-Grandfather did, eventually, pass away…when he was 96-years old.

I say this to say, I know I need to reassess my diet and do something’s healthier, but being healthy isn’t all in the latest diet or fitness craze. It’s part of your culture and a way of life. How do you tell a 96-year old that his diet isn’t adequate? Haha, you can’t. He isn’t the only one. Many of the elders in and around El Dorado live to those upper years. I laugh because the contradiction of “living healthier” apparently doesn’t always mean living longer. Daniela (my wife) always cooked and ate healthier. She wasn’t a health nut or fanatic, but she was into natural and fresh (what she called…) clean eating. That’s what I’m trying to get back to. A family friend is going to teach N’kya how to cook a few things and get that “Cocina Espanola” popping off in our kitchen.

"Scrambled Eggs..."

Okay, it’s happening again. Every now and then, I fall into this endless feeling abyss of confusion and self-doubt. Not that I’m doubting myself now, but not sure where or which direction I should focus on heading. In my heart, I find comfort in volunteering, community service and helping others. The only problem with that leans towards not being financially secure or working in a field of financial growth or development. I find it with four children to raise and living in a one person (not income  - because, I have multiple incomes at various times) household, it can get tough very quickly. Some would question the time I would miss spending with the children and their development, but as Matthews History shows, it wouldn’t be a concern because the children and I bond on layered parallels with one another. The children and I share common interests and hobbies, which would actually build that bond even stronger.

Personal business development seems tough right now because creating the opportunities to start and launch a business concept is based in creating a financial base or springboard, which would launch the business forward and allow it to create a self-sustaining cash-bank without affecting personal finances or going into financial debt/hardship.

Many of my friends and acquaintances question my high visibility on different social networking platforms. They think I’m doing what so many people are doing on Face Book, Twitter, Instagram, Socialcam, etc. by just gossiping and being “social” when in fact, I’m building my network connections to explode and succeed through reaching out to the masses. For example, being a self-published author, I need a way to market and promote my projects to get the greatest return on my novel and investment. How would I reach the numbers I can without social networking? I wouldn’t be able to. Social networking allows me to connect with many more people and be continuously constant via email, SMS and social networking advertisements.

A few ideas, which settle in the cradle of community service pays via through non-profit classifications and doesn’t create a massive or growing financial base. Non-profit classification only pays for what the service program needs to formally operate. It’s not a financial growth magnet. Hence why few people (especially, MBA’s) flock to non-profits for employment careers. The longevity of non-profits and these programs are strongly based on the political atmosphere in America at the time. I don’t want to get into that so I won’t.

GGGGRRRHHH!!!!

"Relationship Advice: Player Coaches..."

Earlier, I got a call from a friend. It wasn’t unusual for him to call me nor was it odd what we discussed. I’ve always been that friend who people came to for relationship advice. I was telling my nephews how I would get paid to write letters to girls for their boyfriends, but I’d then start falling for the girl. Wow… I’m still always doing too much.

My friend called to get advice on his current relationship. This week’s issue isn’t anything super important. Well, not to me, but I’m always there for him. Anyway, I had an epiphany of sorts while he told me about their current problems. I want to share it with you and see how you feel and your opinion on my analysis.

Being in a relationship is like being on a sports team. Actually, it’s like each person being a player/coach on the team. Like a sports team, everyone has his/her position and duties in that position to be successful in the game or relationship. Everyone can’t coach all the time nor can everyone play all the time. The art of being a winning team is to know when to lead and when to be led.

I don’t understand what people who claim to want to be in relationships don’t get. These people wave a banner of looking for a companion or searching for the perfect person, which there’s no such thing yet, don’t put the work in themselves. They believe it’s just supposed to happen. In relationships, you can’t be that darned selfish! Too many people are on that “Me, Me, Me….” crap. If you spend a majority of your time focused on doing for your mate and keeping them your focus, you can only win as a team.

We spoke for a little over an hour. I knew he heard me, but I also know he didn’t get it. Damn, bro, why do you have to make it so hard. You claim she’s the one, but you do things to jeopardize the relationship at every turn. The relationship or team should be about one another and not the individual. Find someone you want to “Do” for and just do it. You’ll have everything you need.

Men Without Women...

I've come to the realization that most men are psychotics. Well, I know I am. It it weren't for my mother, my wife and now my younger sister, I'd be totally lost without a clue for personal salvation. I'm just saying!!!

I've been spoiled for my entire life. My mother treated me like a baby until I was 26. My wife, Daniela and I had a partnership where we each had our own primary and shared duties. It just so happened hers were about taking care and organizing for the family. Today, my sister does all the medical, school, and activities for the family. Darn it!!! What would I do without these women?

"Self Improvements"

Hummm… As we grow older and advance up the developmental ladder, we experience situations, which will, in fact, measure us while defining who we become as human beings. Who we hangout with when we’re growing up or how we perform in our 10^th grade Geometry class, all define the person we’ll grow into becoming later in life. My writing ‘Pine Hill Road Diaries’ about growing up in El Dorado, AR and the time I spent in Milwaukee, WI right after my father was shot in the line of duty as a Arkansas Law Enforcement Officer all had great affect on the person I am today.

Also, the choices we make factor in as well. Those choices define us like to live here or move there or to attend school and major in engineering over Pre-Law. In my case, one major life-changing factor was to put all fear aside and pursue Daniela with reckless abandonment. I was focused on following a dream before I met Daniela, but went in a totally different direction after meetings her. Never did I think I’d study Human Services and work 20-years in a field to directly help and assist youth and families. I would never think I’d obtain multiple graduate degrees and not focus on financial rat race.

Some people believe I’m a good man. I don’t. I just understand this concept of cause and effect pretty well. When you desire an outcome based in trust, faith and understanding, it’s like a mathematical equation. You never see the answer until it’s too late and once it’s there, everything has been set in its place and then it’s too late.

As I try to get back to some sense of normal, I’m truly contemplating on returning to school in pursuit of yet, another academic goal. It’s the trust, faith and understanding Daniela had in me, which is motivating this desire and push to continue improving myself while being a positive influence on our amazing children.

Thank you for listening and Good Night!!!