My friend J Moore once wrote a blog about the things that the modern man needs to navigate in our times:

http://soulternative.blogspot.com/2006_05_01_archive.html

On of the things that he mentioned was a true friend — the one who would bail you out of jail with no questions asked. For me, those same friends are the ones who help me recharge; I can let my hair down (figuratively, you know I rock the short style), and I can turn back the clock on my “real age” with a good dose of laughter. (See previous post on my “real age”).

I’ve been blessed to have a few good friends like that in my day, and I got to spend time with two of them this past weekend. Erika and Kee were my best friends and college, and the three of us were as different as they come. Erika hid her brillance and sensitivity with a tough demeanor, and Kee was the social butterfly who never left the dance floor. I was quiet one, the one who had opinions, but not always the voice to express them.

We’ve not been together in about five years. Career and motherhood have helped me find my voice. Life and love have softened Erika’s demeanor. And marriage and motherhood have tamed the social butterfly. But one thing had not changed — Kee still needed some new clothes. In college, the girl had a closet full of sweats and evening wear. And five years ago, she was wearing maternity clothes months after her son was born.

So a trip to the mall was imperative. Kee surprised us by bringing a great pair of jeans, but she needed to build up her wardrobe. Erika and I dragged Kee from store to store, looking more for things for ourselves than for her.

By the time we got to Macy’s, I was starting to run out of steam. But then I found a pair of peach faux snake (but real leather) four-and-a-half-inch slingbacks on the sale rack. When I stood in the middle of the shoe department with my foot pointed toward the mirror, I was instantly revived.

Kee looked at me and said, “You are such a shoe ho. I love you for it, D, but you are such a ho.”

I agreed. “But,” I said, “Every ho has her standards.”

Then I explained my Shoe Rules:

You’ve got to love them. It’s your foot, and it’s your money. You work too hard to blow it on shoes that you like only a little bit.

If they hurts, leave them at the store. Again, it’s your money. A pair of shoes that you wear for a hour and give to your girl the next day is money down the drain. Some shoes will give over time, but usually not enough to ease the pain. And in case you were wondering, patent leather doesn’t stretch. Most times, it’s not even leather.

Buy leather. Please see the note above about stretching. And if you are a member of PETA, sorry, but it is what it is.

If they cost too much, don’t even try them on. Guilt over a hasty expense cheapens the thrill of a new shoe, plus it’s more important to keep the lights on.

As I was going through my rules, two brothes walked past us. “Yo, that’s hot. That shoe looks good on you.”

“Rule number five,” I said. “If a man walks by and tells you that you look great in the shoes, buy them immediately.”

Kee laughed. “Do you think they have that in my size?”

Needless to say, we both bought the shoes.

I’ve been 30 for a while now. As a matter of fact, I’m 33.5. I’m not bothered by my age (today or most days), but every now and then, I will blurt out that I’m old. Especially when I’m talking with my brothers, who are still in undergrad. When they ask me something about college or life in general, my answer is typically out-of-date. I respond to their puzzled looks with “Well, I’m old.” Brian tries to make me feel better with a pat on the shoulder and a rebuttal to my comment, but James just nods his head.

I recently took an online test at realage.com. You answer a barrage of questions, and the site calculates your “perceived” age vs. your calendar age. My lifestyle, surprisingly, is in line with my actual age.

Even so, it is nice to have affirmation from time to time that, regardless of my age, I am still fly. And yes, I know that by saying “fly,” that I am once again giving away my age. No matter. Here’s the story.

My long-time sales rep from Verizon Wireless, Logan, was promoted to corporate, but I still turn to him for advice when it’s time to upgrade. He advised that the BlackBerry Pearl would be life-changing, and he was right. (Did I mention that it’s pink?) In order to access all of the features, I had to get a memory card.

I went to my local Verizon to pick up the card. I couldn’t find Carmen, the sales rep Logan referred, so I went to the accessories section. A sales rep aproached. He was tall, dark, and smiling.

“How can I help you?” Smiley adjusted his tie.

“I just need a memory card.” I held it up my pink BlackBerry.

“Oh, you got the new Pearl. How do you like it?” His smile widened.

After I explained how much I love the Pink Pearl, Smiley showed me variety of memory cards. I chose the 4GB. We went to the counter to check out, and Carmen and another guy emerged from the back. This guy was short, dark, and smiling more than the first guy.

“Are you married?” Out of the corner of my eye, Carmen was shaking her head. Unfortunately, I got the hint too late.

“No.”

Shorty’s grin was from ear to ear. “Any prospects?”

“Yes, I have a prospect. I’m in a relationship.”

“Shoot! That’s all I needed to hear!” He grabbed a business card and a pen off of the counter and proceeded to scribble down his phone number. By this time, Smiley was finished ringing up my sale. Shorty ran to the end of the counter and handed me the card.

“Sweetie, I can’t take this.” I handed the card back.

Shorty’s smile faded. “Why not?”

“I told you that I have a man.”

“Oh. I thought you said that you don’t have a man. Well, you can’t fault me for trying.” Shorty went back into the breakroom.

I said my goodbyes to Carmen and headed for the door. Smiley was right on my heels.

“I want to give you my card. I know you have a man, but you don’t have a sales rep.” He was still smiling.

“Logan’s my sales rep.”

“But he’s in corporate.”

“She’s his business customer!” Carmen yelled. I turned and gave her a look of gratitude and high-tailed it out of the store.

I didn’t think anything else about my experience until I got an e-mail from Logan yesterday. “Hey you didn’t tell me you had admirers at the Verizon Store. Carmen said you had to turn like 3 of them down. And when u said I have a sales rep they were all like man. And there were some who admired from a far. You are a superstar lady.”

When I told him that I wished I could remember what I was wearing because it seemed to be such a hit, Logan responded. “It’s just ur daily swag. Own it.”

So I think because of my “daily swag” and the three suitors from Verizon, I can dial my “Real Age” back to 30.

I asked my friend B. Holcomb to make sure that I blog on a much more regular basis. I know it’s been a year, so I understand if you are skeptical about my return to the blogging game. It’s 11:56 on a Thursday night, and I just got finished watching my DVR episodes of Top Model. Anyway, I digress. I said that all to say that this post will be quick.

I work in pretty tech-savvy environment, but my lifestyle is still in the previous century. I didn’t get DVR until a few months ago (It changed my life!), I have the mininum cell phone plan ($35/month) with no text messaging plan. And I just found out that my digital camera can record short videos WITH sound.

Last week, I decided to upgrade my cell phone. The Blackberry Pearl is just lovely. It’s small, so it fits into my cutesy bags (If you don’t remember, I do have an addiction to those). I can make calls, check my personal e-mail account, surf the web, and use a navigational program if I’m lost. And to top it all off, it’s pink. And I bought a nice pink silicone case to match.

So I am now a Crackberry junkie after six days. I check it in the mornings, before I go to bed. Walking to lunch. Riding in the elevator. I think I’ve been more in touch with some of my friends in these past few days that I have in months. I even watched the Star Wars trailer on You Tube. (Looks good by the way)

But, I still don’t have a text messaging plan.

When I fell off of the blogging map, the reminders to post came weekly. Then bi-weekly. And now nearly a year passed, and I haven’t written a thing.

I don’t know who those dedicated souls are who can keep up with a blog, but clearly I am not one of them. Life keeps getting in the way. I have a daughter who is almost three now. Our daily adventures have kept me hopping; some of it would be good fodder for a blog, but I haven’t had the energy to make it happen.

And I’m not sure if I do now. It’s 11 p.m., and I think I’m going to pass out. But here is an update on most things so that I can make an attempt to get back into the swing of things.

The Baby: Someone should tell you before you have a baby that being two-and-a-half is synonomous with being sassy. I swear Elyse thinks she’s twenty-two.

Mike: Mike hasn’t had any major bouts with home repair lately, other than a battle with a squirrel this past spring over our tulip bulbs. I only saw about five tulips this season, so I think the squirrel won.

Work: What is there to say? Politics, overworking, underpayment.

My hair: It’s still short, and my stylist Lisa keeps it in line. And, I just saw The Deacon this past weekend. He still hasn’t gotten that phone call he was hoping for back in July 2006.

So that’s about it. Hope to be back soon.

I can’t remember the last time that I’ve seen a movie, but I catch quite a few teasers on TV as I’m chasing Elyse around the family room. Based on what I’ve seen of late, I have missed about 10 movies that are “the (comedy, drama, thriller) of the summer” and countless other that have claimed to be the best of the year, regardless of their genre.

Those little teasers in the TV trailers have always made me suspicious. How do we really know what the critic has to say if they don’t show us the whole sentence? Every time I see a blurb, I imagine that the sentence went a little something like this: “That movie was not the best comedy of the summer.”

My interest was peaked this past week when I saw a teaser for Idlewild. As usual, the critics were buzzing. Idlewild is “a magical experience,” “the movie of the year,” and about three other things that I can’t remember. What caught my attention was not so much the quotes as it was their attribution. Shawn Edwards of Fox-TV, was the owner of all five accolates featured in the trailer.

They couldn’t find more than one person to give their film a thumbs up? Did only one person see the movie? And who is Shawn Edwards? What happened to the well-known critics?

So I did a little research on Mr. Edwards, and it turns out that he is known by cynics as a blurb-meister. He’ll say good things about even the worst of films. Crossroads (with Brittney Spears), Underclassmen (with Nick Cannon), and Are We There Yet? (with Ice Cube) are among his favorites. Shamefully, I’ve seen all three of those movies, and they are not the greatest of anything.

Check out these sites on Shawn Edwards and his fellow blurb-meisters:

http://www.hollywoodbitchslap.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=37494#37494

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117935524?categoryid=4&cs=1

I’m not sure if Idlewild is a good movie, so let me know if you see it. I’m not hanging my hat on the critic’s say-so.