Author: Roshonda B

My name is Roshonda Blackmon and I have been known in life as “the encourager” God gave me that gift before I even realized what it was or what it truly meant, the only thing I knew is that a vast amount of people liked to come to me for advice and once that advice was received, I never heard from them anymore until they wanted more advice. That gifting soon became my ministry. I’ve been through quite a bit of challenges in life from dealing with suicide, low self-image which resulted in low self-esteem, to the difficulties of growing up in a one parent household and the list goes on and on. But God in all his Mercy and Grace blessed me to overcome those obstacles and situations and gave me a “second” chance by allowing me to live through all that darkness in order to help spread an encouraging light to others. In a world of uncertainty and negatism’s I want to encourage you to LIVE. Yes, Life does get hard sometimes, But if we keep looking up at the SON; we gain strength, we become empowered and we grow in the process with God’s help; for it doesn’t matter where you are in your life at this moment in time; God is able and will meet you within that dark place and change your life from Dark to Light, I’m not only a witness to this; but JustsumInspiration to show you, That you too can make it.

Let the DECORATING Begin! – Decor Tips 101

Published on March 28, 2019April 18, 2019 by Roshonda B3 Comments

Featured Image above: Photo by Martin Péchy from Pexels

You made IT!

You decided you were moving, check!
You cleaned up the OLD place and got your deposit back! (Yay!! – double check!)
Now it’s time to get Creative with your NEW space (Oh Yeah!!)

Of course these were clearly the steps I went through but hey, it’s really the process that all movers go through. Whether you’re renting or just bought your first OR second place. Finally getting in and settling down into your new digs can be exhilarating as well as extremely EXCITING!!!

I WANT EVERYTHING NEWWWWW!!!

Okay, so that’s how I feel every time I move. It’s almost like I don’t want ANYTHING that reminds me of my old dwellings – new space, new stuff – Right?? Well, that’s right if you have the money to do that sort of thing, I mean c’mon….none of us are Oprah nor Warren Buffet. However, someone may be close if that $750 million dollar Powerball hit this week (hmm, will it be you?).

But reality says, I don’t have it like that now and that’s okay. Tip: Save Your Coins – While you may be able to buy a couple of new pieces, you can still totally use the old pieces you had in the old place and place them differently in the new place. Which will make them look like they were new finds. It’s all about placement.

Things that worked and looked good in my bedroom or pictures that went so well in a hallway, when you get to your new place, putting those same items in the same space as they were in the old space may throw off the new space completely! Because you have to consider how the walls look, how they’re shaped (you may had fuller, wider walls before and now you have much higher, swooped or curved walls, you see what I mean?

Tip: Slow and Steady – While the excitement of getting everything up and nicely placed may be on the top of your list (because it’s always on mine, as I hate living out of boxes for 3 to 4 months) it’s best to take your time, lay your decor out and do a complete tour of your new space to see what looks good where or can fill in a corner over there.

Which brings me to my next Tip: Really?, Every Inch? – Every inch of wall DOES NOT have to be covered, that’s if you’re obsessed with this as I am. Try buying bigger/larger pictures to fill the space, such as the picture below from my own bedroom. Yes, it’s a large picture but it covers up much of the wall and guess what, not only is it light but it only required one nail.

**My Bedroom is Paris Themed – This picture is bigger than it looks but it completes the look I wanted without a bunch of nails or extra pictures**.

Now, my next Tip: Nails vs. Thumbtacks/Pushpins – I say only use nails when it’s necessary and when you do, make sure they’re small. I prefer thumbtacks and I’ll tell you why. Thumbtacks not only make less than smaller holes in the wall but they can also serve as a guide until you make up your mind if that picture will really look good beside that sconce. You can actually put those items up using thumbtacks and if it doesn’t mesh well, you can always change it up without taking out that heavy hammer. That’s another thing that makes thumbtacks great….you can push in and easily pull out. Once you’ve settled on where you truly want things, then you can utilize nails, However….

Don’t underestimate the power of the push pin!

**Push Pins can become your bestie when it’s time to hang those pictures.**

Apartment living has advanced so much since the 90’s and although I was still in school at that time, the little decorator in me had BIG dreams of one day having a very “chic” living space and that much I have accomplished, no matter what space, Big or small that I’ve lived in. I always wanted to make it an oasis for me as well as a home away from home for anyone that visited. If you’re a avid HGTV, DIY network watching type of gal or guy like myself and If you’re still renting, like I am for the time being then you may want to have a talk with your landlord about what you are and are not allowed to do to your new digs, in which the most common thing people usually want to know if they can do and that is, PAINT!

Less than a few landlords will allow it as long as you agree to paint it back to the original color it was prior to move in. BUT, if you can’t then that’s fine! There are a slew of stick on’s and peel and stick wallpaper such as this one here:

It’s things like this Brick Peel and Stick – Easily Removable Wallpaper, sold on Amazon that can easily turn your apartment or rental space from a boring space into a great space with just a few adjustments. It goes on easy and comes off easy without making a scratch on the wall.

This would go well as an accent wall or even a kitchen back-splash. Remember, all walls are not created equal so be sure to do a test run of any “stick-on” first.

Whatever your decorating style may be for your new space – have fun with it. It’s your new home and it’s readily awaiting on you to help give it a fresh new look.

Happy Decorating – Whenever you choose to do it that is…No rush!

SPECIAL SHOUT OUT TIME!! I want to take this time to thank and give a HUGE shout out to my most recent followers:

At the end of each month, if I gain new followers I’ll not only give them a shout out but post a link back to their blogs so you can go, read, like, subscribe and hopefully follow them too! 💚💛

Can I have My Deposit Back – PLEASSSSEEEEE!!

Published on March 21, 2019April 18, 2019 by Roshonda B2 Comments

True Story – I mean all my stories are true but you get it =)

In 2007 after living in an apartment with someone with HUGE feet living above me, Oh gosh – the noise and stomping. I can’t even begin to explain the torture, any-who I decided to move out and move into a nice little quaint house on the other side of town. I inquired about it, looked at it and had a sit down with the landlords in which were an elderly couple (names I shall not say), but they were super nice. The only thing they wanted was someone to take care of the place. While the place was really small, it had a load of character in which I loved.

Immediately I began to see where I would put all my furniture and how I was going to make smaller areas, such as my bedroom work. The washer and dryer was going to have to be in the kitchen, a feature I didn’t particularly like, but hey. It had loads of charm and it was well maintained. It had a very nice backyard with a storage building. So any furniture I was not going to be able to fit into the space, could easily go into there.

Another feature I didn’t notice but quickly became annoyed with was the fact that the house was 15 steps from the local AIRPORT!!! Geeshhh, you know how you get so gung ho and excited over something until you forget the MAJOR details! I’m so like that. But, it had loads of charm! A three bedroom 2 full bath, who can beat that and the kitchen was even big enough for me to put in a computer desk for my office. How cool was that!

Immediately with the place, I would say about a week or two in – I seen a huge water bug making it’s way out of the kitchen. Scared the living daylights out of me…but it wasn’t the last one, it seemed like when we moved in – a whole other family moved into the furnishings as well. It was indeed water bug city! I immediately told the couple about this and they suggested I put down sticky traps along the walls and that I did…while it helped some, the kicker was a BIGGER than life one crawling across my TV screen as I watched the news one morning….I was livid! I had a 8 month old and a 1.5 year old at the time and I was so scared one of those suckers was going to bite them or get into my son’s crib or my daughters BED! Needless to say and to make a long story short, after living there for about a year and a half, I decided it was time to go.

The elderly couple that seemed so nice in the beginning turned into monsters in the end!

I cleaned the place to the best of my ability and mind you, as with moving you will have a load of stuff to throw away and I made sure it was placed neatly in front of the house so the garbage people can pick it up. I left the house in good standing. No rips or tears anywhere and it was clean….so now I awaited my 500 dollar deposit to come into the mail. A deposit that I never received.

What I did receive was a letter from the couple citing that I had lost and/or misplaced a couple things of theirs and they charged the heck out of me for it:

Missing curtains that were hung up to the window when they showed the place that were no longer there. Now I don’t know if these curtains were new, but they charged me store prices for all 4 curtains!
Missing stove and AC unit manuals that were not in the drawer when I left.
Burners for the stove that were not replaced
The trash that was left out front – Yeah, they charged me for that too.
The clear shower curtains that were not on the shower rods and they charged me for the rods as well.
Painting and a whole lot of other stuff that I can’t even name or was unaware of and they tacked on the charges majorly….like those manuals? Yeah, they called the company and found out how much it would cost to get another one and it wasn’t cheap!

By the time they got done calculating and adding things up that didn’t make a lick of sense, I not only wasn’t getting my deposit back but I had owed them money, money in which they put me on a payment plan to pay back $25.00 a month until the balance of 200.00 was paid in full, this was two hundred after the five hundred I didn’t receive. I was SOOOOOOOOOOO (excuse my language) PISSED! I called them both RAGING in fury, crying and cursing them out to the top of my lungs and then I hung the phone up in their faces.

Now, I’m not proud of my actions as they were elderly and I should’ve showed them respect, no matter how they acted – but I wanted my deposit back!!!!!!! Hence the move, I ended up back at my parents house and was looking forward to that money to help alleviate some irons I had in the fire – owing someone was NOT what I was expecting, BUT it happened.

Recently, I just moved and since that move. I got my full deposit back. While that issue with the elderly couple was a tragic one, it was also an eye-opening one that taught me a valuable lesson going forward and I want to share a couple of tips with you in regards to it!

FIRST THOUGH…..

Image credit: Bing/livingwordmontrose.com

Every landlord is NOT created equal. People say private owners are better but I’ve had both and each had their own set of rules and regulations. Private owners are a little more relaxed but you have to make sure – you get all your “I’s” and “T’s” crossed! and please by ALL means, if you don’t understand something – ASK QUESTIONS and read the lease thoroughly (especially the move out section), because the information that’s contained in it, can come back to haunt you later.

NOW FOR THE TIPS….

Image credit: Bing/steinbachapartments.com

1. Do a complete walk thru of the place before you move in. Make sure you look for anything that may not look right to you. Bulbs, sockets, paint, previous holes that may be in the wall, under the sinks, the toilets – I mean everything and make a list of those findings and give it to the landlord, this ensures that you are not charged with anything that was previously there prior to moving in.

2. Be careful of the pictures you hang on the wall. I know in my earlier years of renting, I was a landlords nightmare! because I absolutely love decorating. I would hang big art on the walls and some of it would be heavy, causing me to use an anchor or a heavier nail or screw. And trust me, I got dinged for my creativeness when it came down to getting back that deposit. While landlords cannot take away your deposit due to normal wear and tear of a property, such as (paint, carpet and etc – depending on how long you’re there) They can deduct if the walls are damaged from either hanging pics that are too big or major holes caused by you. Make sure you get those patched up before leaving.

3. Are there things in the apartment or house prior to you moving in? As I stated above in my own story. The landlords had put up curtains and shower curtains and rods and so forth to make the place look nice. If there is anything of the such hanging up prior to your move in, ask the landlord are those your items to keep or would they like them back. Another thing you could do is take them all down and place them in a box labeled “Decorative items prior to move in” so you can make sure those items go right back up when you leave. It sounds petty but….as you seen with my story, it was a SERIOUS thing!

4. It’s wise if you do a walk-through of your place prior to leaving. Check everything and determine what you need to do to either fix it or call a professional to get it prepared. And if you can, try and replace the things that may have gotten damaged prior to you staying there, especially if it was in good condition before you moved in.

5. Take a video and or pictures of the place prior to moving out and keep receipts of everything that you might have replaced or gotten fixed. This covers you should you have a slumlord that thinks he’s keeping your deposit. Speaking of which and every state is different. Make sure you check with your state to see the time-frame a landlord has to return your deposit. For NC it’s 30 days, some landlords will give it back to you sooner than that, while others will stretch it out. Knowing this information will help you know when to expect it.

Bonus Tip: Be clear in the beginning about what your deposit will be used for. Either the last month’s rent or the deposit in which you’re expected to get back, should the place be in good standing. Talk with your landlord about this as most people confuse the deposit to be the last month’s rent and unless your landlord has told you differently. Then know that it’s clearly a deposit only.

I have one last tip and that’s How to Properly decorate your new “rental” space! Sometimes we can go a little overboard. That’s next week, so stay tuned!

It’s Moving Season! Are you Ready?

Published on March 14, 2019April 18, 2019 by Roshonda B9 Comments

Yes, Yes, Yes – As the season’s are changing, so is life. Now that we’re into the month of March, this is the time of year where weddings are being planned and some lucky bride or bridezilla is looking forward to going down the aisle to her prince charming. But you know what else this is the season of? ….. the BIG MOVE!

Yessss, this is the time of year where rental contracts are up and people are either looking for new digs or contemplating on if they should continue staying where they are. Let me just say, that that’s what I just did, I did the BIG MOVE and let me tell you – you learn something different and new each time. Will this be my last move? According to my aching body, YESSSSSS it will be – but in 2, 3 or 5 years tops. That statement may change, yet again!…LOL

So what did I learn during this move? Chile, A WHOLE LOTTA STUFF…

Moving just happens to be one of the toughest and hardest things you’ll do – it’s not only rough on your body (especially if you were sick with the flu the week before the move, like I was – this move liked to killed a sista…lol and I’m still recovering!) but it’s also rough on you mentally as well. Of course with anything you have to have a PLAN and moving is no different. As someone once told me, you have to…

So, if you are or do plan to take that step out of the old and into something new….you’ll have a couple of tips that hopefully could help you “plan” well along the way.

Tip #1 – Room to Room

I’m the type of person that can’t just clean one room – I have to clean multiple rooms at one time. My cleaning starts in the kitchen and then before I can get the kitchen done, I move to the living room and before that’s completed I’m in the bathroom. It’s a little insane but honestly it’s how I work. I figure if I touch everything – then I’m getting more done, which is totally wrong but I do it anyway. However, when you’ve decided that it’s time to move, my suggestion is to take one room at a time and get rid of things you don’t want NOW as well as things you might want to sell (I’ll get to that in a jiffy).

Doing these things now and hopefully you’ve given your landlord a proper 30 day notice. Will help you when move day officially comes, because who wants to take junk into a new place? I don’t and trust me, you don’t either. So now’s the time to decide what stays and what goes.

Jiffy moment here >> Do you know that I had papers (boxes of it) things such as old rental receipts from other places I stayed, old check stubs from years ago, cards from when I graduated high school (let’s not talk about how long ago that was), old letters from a best friend of mine (they were 20 years old!) I even found a love letter I had written to a guy I had a crush on when I was in my last year of high school/first year of college (that I was too nervous to give to him) – So what am I saying? I was carrying ALLLLL this stuff around from place to place for years!!! We never know what we have, go through everything and trash it or dispose of it safely (shred it!) It’s amazing the things we keep hauling around that’s not necessarily pertinent to us now. SO PLEASE, LET IT GO!

Tip#2 – Sell Those Items!

So you know those clothes that you’ve been vowing to get into or that treadmill that’s become your clothes hanger instead of a walking machine? Yeah, sell those items. I’m sure you’ve seen your new place and if it can fit the treadmill, great! but what if it can’t and no sense in taking it over if it’s still going to serve the same duties it’s doing now. SELL IT! that’s exactly what I did.

When it comes to moving I realized that people don’t have traditional yard sales anymore, I mean some people do but now that social media is a gem. Guess what, that’s where the sales are happening! In my county alone there are about 6 different ones and I joined all 6. Let me tell ya, my stuff went like hot cakes – I had so many people inquiring about things until, I was saying things were sold when they really weren’t…..It was crazy but it helped me get rid of a wide variety of things that I either wasn’t currently using or the new place was providing, such as a new washer and dryer. Can I get a WHOOT-WHOOT!!

So check out FB and see if there are online yard sales in your area and say bye bye to the old and yes to getting money for something totally new!

Tip# 3 – Be Safe

While it was exhilarating to sell off my items, I also had to be careful as everyone “online” is not who they say they are. So whether you decide to sell online or some other way, be safe in doing it. People are scared of you just as you are of them…

a) If what you’re selling is something big that cannot fit into your car. Don’t give out your address until you know for sure it’s a sale. I had many people to ask for my address but didn’t actually want to buy the items. It’s okay to let them know the county you’re in but not your address. b) If possible, have someone at the house with you – don’t be alone during an in house transaction. c) Ask that they have correct change before arrival as you don’t carry extra money.

*Bonus Tip* – Try to plan what you’re going to do by a week to week basis. Write it down and stick to it. When you’re in the process of moving, there are many things you can do to get prepped for the big MOVE and if your place looked anything like mine? Trust me, you need to make sure a plan is in place and you’re consistently working on it daily. This will ensure that come Move Day, you’ll be prepared and equipped to only take the items you’re truly going to use and it helps with clearing up your place as well.

Well, these are just a few tips to get started – I have more. Next week I’ll be discussing things you can do to get prepared to prep your rental so you can get that deposit back!

STAY TUNED!!

I Ain’t Got Nuttin But Love For Ya, Baby!

Published on February 28, 2019April 18, 2019 by Roshonda B3 Comments

That was one of my favorite songs by the late, Heavy D. In which the Five Heartbeats way before Heavy D took it over, had their twist and spin to it. However; both renditions are EPIC to say the least.

Image credit: Bing ( Heavy D & The Boyz)
Image credit: Bing (The Five Heartbeats Movie)

There’s a song we used to sing in church a LONGGGGG time ago, while we were marching around to put our offering in the collection plate at the front of the church and it was a song entitled “Give and I’ll Give it Back to You” – The song went a little something like this…

“Give and I’ll give it back to you / Give and I’ll give it back to you / Give and I’ll give it back to you / Pressed Down / Shaken Together, Running Over/ Back in Good measure / I’ll give it back to you.”

I used to love that song, I don’t know who the original writer was or is, but it was a nice song that indicated, what we put in the collection plate, would be given back to us 100-fold. I said all of that to say, in life – it’s good to give back when someone has given something to you. Or at least in my mind that’s how the world’s supposed to work.

I have never been the type of person to allow someone to do something for me and not repay them back. It may have not always been in monetary form, but small gestures of kindness go a long way.

Well, since today is the last day of February – I know, I can’t believe it either!! I thought I’d share an act of LOVE for a couple of bloggers whom either followed me recently or went through and seemingly liked everyone of the previous posts I created. It truly made my day and week most days. While I have gone through and showed love back to them by either “reading” and liking their posts or becoming a follower. I thought I’d be cool for you to get to know them as well as their engaging blogs.

So, in no random order – please go, read, visit AND perhaps give them a follow, if you’re not already. While LOVE is an act that should be shown EVERYDAY. Let’s close out this month by giving some of that love away, pressed down, shaken together, running over and back in good measure!

William J. Fulton (blog) – About Page
Diary of a mEs$eD-uP College Mom (blog)
Peace of Life Today (blog) – About Page
Ogazie’s Theory (blog) – About Page
Livinginleuvenbelgiumeurope (blog)
Motherhood Menageries (blog) – About Page
Interdimensional_Refugee (blog) – About Page – Check out his novels (they’re good!)
Motivation, & The Environment Positivity and Sustainability (blog) – About Page
Inspirational – derealblood (blog)
Fynding Hope (blog)
Ailish Sinclair (blog) – About Page
Being Better (blog)
PeoPlaid – People, Places, Ideas (blog)
Suzdal, Russia – Alex Markovich (blog) – About Page

For all the bloggers that have checked out, liked, viewed and or followed me within the last month or two. I just want you to know that I Ain’t got nothing but LOVE for ya! Thanks for your support, comments and the follow. I really do appreciate it and YOU!

What has the World Done to Us? And, Why Am I Crying About It!

Published on February 21, 2019April 18, 2019 by Roshonda B5 Comments

There’s a saying that says, “One Bad Apple, spoils it for the Rest” and the older I’m getting, I’m finding that statement to be even the more sadder by the minute, hour and day.

The World is a Cruel place.

Now I know what you may be thinking, “Okay, whose peed in my cheerios” Well, it’s not about “Who” but “What” – While the world is cruel and evil and sometimes (okay most times) unforgiving. There are still quite a few people in it, that are cool, personable and have a way of turning any blue day into a shiny one, just by their personality alone. I happen to be one of those people…

Recently, I put a couple of things online to sell. I posted these items across the yard sale boards and I tell you, I have never, ever in my life received so many responses. I mean, I couldn’t finish answering one question before I could answer another one. It became SOOO overwhelming, I began telling people that certain items had sold – just to calm down my inbox. It was then that I understood why celebrities have designated people either checking their emails or handling their social media handles. I guess you can say that experience was my 15 min of fame as I surely thought I had become one, OVERNIGHT!!

I was successful in getting certain things sold but after a couple of failed promised deals gone bad – I decided to go down the list to other people interested. What I noticed is that although I had stated in my post that there would be “NO DELIVERIES” I had quite a few people whom opted that I meet them in a public place, a common area where a lot of people are. I did this for one person but when it came to the other person wanting me to do the same thing, I felt a little disheartened.

In Honor of Black History Month >> Check This Out >> Which Black History Hero Do You Identify With (Quiz)

They were interested in an item I had but clearly stated that their circumstances would keep them from meeting me as they don’t do anything or go anywhere, especially to someone’s house without their spouse tagging along. They went on to mention that if they did meet me without their better half, it would have to be at a police station and because their spouse would be unavailable. They asked to be passed over for the items and that I move on to the next person.

In that moment, I felt some type of way, I felt dehumanized – if that makes sense. I suddenly thought – the world is a cruel place indeed; it’s been crippled by so much FEAR.

Thinking about the response from that individual suddenly made me cry. I admit, sometimes I can be a very emotional person, depending on the situation and especially during a good chick flick; pass the tissues because this girl will be crying. I mean, that’s just me.

Now, I know my actions to that situation doesn’t make a lick of sense to you and if I can be honest, it really didn’t to me either, like “Why was I crying??” I felt sad because of ALL the negativity, scams, killings and so forth in the world, nobody can be trusted!! The first thing I thought was, “I wouldn’t hurt anyone” I remember crying one day because I’d accidently run over a dog, who came bustling out in the road from nowhere it seems.

I believe I cried too because I KNOW what type of person I am, but just because I KNOW, doesn’t mean that someone else does and you can’t be too careful these days, not even a little bit. People that speak nicely on the phone or appear nice, can easily turn out to be a terror in disguise, the only thing they need or seem to look for is an open heart to let them in and the next thing you know, your world, is turned upside-down. “Can’t people just be Good??, I mean, can we just have Good people, who want to do GOOD things and NOT bring hurt or harm to anyone? Can’t we just have GOOD PEOPLE? Are there NOT enough good people in the world??

While I was having an emotional moment of silence to myself. There was a little voice on the inside of me that said, “You Keep Being Good, no matter what, just keep being YOU!” It’s amazing how something so small can change our mindset about life and question who we really are.

I said all of that to say, Yes, while the world seems to be going to HELL in a hand-basket. There’s still some good and good people left in it. There are still organizations, companies and non-profits whom are changing the world – even if just for one person.

You can’t make people see the good in you, especially over the phone or thru a message board…lol, and please don’t try to make them. All you can do is just BE YOU. If you’re good, continue being good and don’t let anyone dull your shine, no matter how NEGATIVE the world may continue to get.