As we all know, February is Black History Month and so the timely honoring of Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson at Musicares for Grammy weekend was doubly meaningful. To pay witness to such a deserving duo, who were trailblazers responsible for changing the sound of an entire generation for a cause as necessary as Musicares, which supports musicians who have fallen on hard times was impactful.

The story unfolded of how Berry Gordy received a $800 loan from his parents and took a chance and started Hitsville USA in Detroit. He along with Smokey Robinson the talented song writer behind such hits sang by John Legend, Cheryl Crow, Stevie Wonder, Dionne Warwick, and Brandi Carlisle left everyone in attendance including Sir Elton John mesmerized.

I met Berry Gordy at Musicares a few years back along with my cousin, Martina Jones. (see photo). I was in awe of a man, the same age as my father who also hailed from Detroit and the unimaginable bravery and vision that it took for him to be a pioneer. I cannot, let me emphasize this- CANNOT imagine life without the sweet music born from that small studio called Motown.

The evening started with a silent auction, where my sister and co-blogger found ourselves as the lucky bidder of a piece of art commissioned by artist Malcolm Farley of our uncle, music impresario, Quincy Jones. I battled out another auction item of the Beatles and lost the bid, but gained a friend, Regina Banali, widow of Frankie Banali of Quiet Riot. We also connected with up-and-coming talent, The Bros Fresh which my sister and co-blogger will share their journey in an upcoming post.

Tracie and I attended the gala with our girls, Patti, Debborah, Lisa, Rebecca, Afshan, Cathy, Shari, Rosemarie, another new friend, Randy and one lucky man, George. By the end of the night, we were on our feet dancing and singing along to great hits such as The Tracks of My Tears, I Second That Emotion, Baby I Need Your Lovin’, My Girl, and Being with You.

At the end of the night, there were no tears from these clowns.

So here we are January 31, 2023 a month into our New Year and those RESOLUTIONS. How is it going? Have you exercised more? Gone DRY or in my case DAMP for January on your alcohol consumption? Have you read more? Started a new job? Got a new attitude? Out with the old and in with the new?

Well, if you haven’t fulfilled your enthusiastic ambitious resolutions, know that you are not alone. 23% quit within the first week and only 36% make it past the first month. We are creatures of habit. Statistics show that 38.5% of US adults set New Year’s resolutions.

Despite the dismal rate of success, with that being said, one tradition I love and keep is every January, I get together with some of my framily (friends who are family). Namely, Patti Savoy (who gifted me the Manifest That Shit book photographed here), Stacy Lill, and Kim Ross. It’s our time to reflect on the past year including highs and lows. We review what our aspirations are for the New Year and how we hold each other accountable to make the changes to live the lives we desire. We also come up with a word or phrase that foreshadows what we hope for in the coming year.

This year, my words are BREATH, BE BRAVE and BOUNDARIES. Just take a moment and inhale and exhale. I am guilty of multi-tasking, not being fully present, the cell phone cradled in my neck, while cooking, working, doing laundry, and playing counselor to my friends and family. As my one therapist girlfriend calls it, I shrink and drink (lol) . Hours will pass before I just take a moment and concentrate on me. Often, I find that fear which for me is the opposite of bravery restricts growth. At the end of the day, I am most proud of myself when I have pushed myself out of my comfort zone, felt the fear and forged ahead. Setting boundaries is also a huge component of my goals for 2023. My friend, Tony Shellman, co-founder of sportwear clothing brands Enyce, Mecca and Parish as well as founder of Blue Deluxe Group Consulting Agency gave me the best advice years ago. “I’m not anti- you, I’m just pro-me.” Tony told me this years ago as I watched him get pulled, prodded, requested, and drained and I asked him how he drew the line to set boundaries. Tony has always been extremely generous with his time and sharing his talents, however, he has learned to prioritize and set boundaries. It’s not selfish to be “pro-me.” Even on an airplane, you are told to put on your oxygen tank first, before you can help others.

Breath…Be Brave… Boundaries

So, I will leave you and your resolutions here…

Manifest that shit and Know the Best is Yet to Be!

I WOULD BE REMISS

not to ask you on this gloriously sunny, yet crisp Seattle Monday, if you can imagine how much brute force it takes to severely beat someone with your bare hands to the ground, kick them repeatedly in the head, beat them with a nightstick (or truncheon or billy club–as you like), and drag them handcuffed along a paved street–basically, pulverize them to a pulp until they are left as only a fragment of their former selves, and then let them die? How much violence that takes, how much core anger that takes, how much-unadulterated hate and pure evilness that takes?”

I would be remiss not to ask.

The disregard that the Memphis officers –members of the so-called SCORPION group had for Tyree Nichols’ life as they terrorized, overpowered, and slowly pummelled this young man to death is simply incomprehensible. The Memphis Police Department disbanded its specialized SCORPION unit on Saturday, after five officers from the group were charged with murder for beating Tyre Nichols during a traffic stop—thus, eliminating a team that was started in an effort to curb violent crime but has faced criticism from Memphis residents and advocates for using heavy-handed tactics. Two central ironies must jump out at you here:

#1: The adjective to describe this unit: ‘specialized’.What were they specialized in? Their stated purpose was “to stem violent crime.” So, how does a traffic violation denote a violent crime? It by absolutely no means falls under this ‘specialized’ unit’s mandate to address violent crime.

#2: The actions of this ‘specialized’ unit were heinous, and inhumane and showed the world the indisputable definition of violence.

Oh, the irony of it all.

The Memphis 5 or 6 or however many were involved with this murder were charged with protecting the Memphis public. What they are in fact is a mob of thuggish criminals and must have been raised with or are sleeping with very angry animals–perhaps wild meerkats.

Oh, the irony of it all.

I would be remiss not to mention.

So my question is, when, just when are we as a human race going to align ourselves with a practice of a basic, just a damn basic conscious linear evolution towards the good of all of us, of all of humanity? Our nature is inherently good. Babies are not born evil. We are born with the ability to distinguish right from wrong–but we are not exempt from acting violently or selfishly.

When will we ever, when will we ever harness that deep darkness leading us off track and get steered back to the morality we were born with?

I would be remiss not to ask.

We were both tired, but we rallied for the show and we came out inspired and refueled. My sister, and co-blogger Tracie knows when she is home from Germany, we have one agreement- as former Temptations Eddie Kendricks sang, We Gotta Keep on Truckin’ Baby.

Music nourishes the heart and soul. Tracie and I danced and listened to the sounds which made history and watched as the story unveiled of one of the top artist groups of all time. The journey, struggles, success, drugs, and deaths resonated in their steps and lyrics, from Ain’t Too Proud to Beg, Just My Imagination, I Wish it Would Rain, My Girl, and one of my personal favorites, Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone, which the band did not want to record and of course became a number 1 hit.

The play now showing at The Paramount Theater recalls the history of Otis Williams, Melvin Franklin, David Ruffin, Eddie Kendricks and Paul Williams along with Motown’s Barry Gordy and Smokey Robinson as the primary writer as they crossed over audiences from Hitsville to American Bandstand. Through the violent segregation of the 1960s to celebrating their 60th anniversary in 2022, the faces may have changes, but the music lives on.

I ain’t to proud to beg… Go see the play- it will give you sunshine on a cloudy day. All of my friends that I ran into including, Barry & Shelly, Paul, Ronda, Wanda, Winston, Barb & Jerry would agree! Carmen Gayton- you were missed xoxo

AH…THE YEAR OF THE RABBIT!

Did you know that the Lunar New Year signals the beginning of spring? Yep, it may be grey and drizzle-ish here in Seattle, but spring is coming! Actually, quite fitting as these prolific procreating animals represent life, spring and renewal. AH…

The energy of the Year of the Rabbit focuses on relaxation, quietness and contemplation. Lovely, right? We can all embrace some of that! And along with that I wish you all energy, health, and prosperity! I really do and here is a little Something for Your Toolbox from Winston Churchill:

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

Hippity hop all!!

AH…

I’ve been coming to Scottsdale for thirty years and finally attended my first Barrett-Jackson auto show. In 2022, a total of 266.7 million was spent on 2,107 collector cars. Entering the packed facility, I was curious about the hype, so I did my research. Started in the mid 1960s, when Scottsdale was just a Wild West town, the founders Russ Jackson and Tom Barrett hosted their first car auction. In 1971, the twosome featured a Mercedes 770 Phaeton that was priced to sell at $153,000 which garnered attention of auto collectors around the world. Both of these auto visionaries have passed away, but their dream and passion lives on. My first car was a 1965 mustang convertible. At the show I saw the electric version. My husband wanted a Baracuda, however had to settle for a Volkswagen. The restored, vintage, new and improved models left something for everyone and had me singing, Get Your Motors Running…

Pinch me… I’m looking out of the window of the snow covered grounds of the Stein Eriksen Deer Valley Ressort in Park City, Utah. I’m here with my husband for the Real Estate Investment Banking CEO Forum. The event includes screenings of the Sundance Film Festival which has always been a bucket list on my experience list. Eric is gonna have to keep on working… I could get used to this.

Last night, we attended a showing of Radical, a film which had the packed audience in tears and emotional. Based on the true story of sixth grade students at Jose Urbana Lopez Elementary in Matamoros who are among the worst performing students in Mexico. Their lives dominated by extreme poverty, gang violence, and the children forced to raise their younger siblings and drop out of school as their uneducated parents continue to conceive more. The story reveals how one person can make a difference. Enter Sergio Juarez, a teacher with an unconventional teaching method and heart who brought out potential that even the students didn’t know they possessed.

As I left the theater, I was reminded of one of my all time favorite movies, To Sir With Love.

It is true, one person can change the trajectory of a life and how powerful is that? Be Radical.