What is instagram? I’ve been hearing about this app for ages since it came out on iOS and to see my other friends who are iOS lovers use this app had me envious. Instagram is a photo app with a social media flare. This app gives you the ability to share pictures adding different filters.

A lot of people love the different filters that give a variety of effects to pictures. I personally love the choice to upload my pictures with a different look and feel. For those of you who are on iOS you are maybe saying that is so old, we on Android however, value a great app that will be useful to us. Yes there are many other photo filter apps out there that may be equivalent to Instagram, but in my opinion this is the app of all filter apps.

The instagram app is slick and well built. It is flawless in design and it’s layout was well planned. It’s not often you see an iOS to android app that works with little to no flaws. Setup was simple, and uploading the pictures was done in under 30 seconds. Figuring out the application and how to upload was also simple. Sharing to Facebook, twitter and any other social media app was straightforward.

If you’re looking for a photo app that could add some effects to your pictures Instagram for Android is the app you will need.

My friend Tony had this to say:

Good. Best of the android pic apps. Very nice looking. Very organized with great options. There are some bugs currently other than that it is great!!!!

I’ve had a lot of changes happening in my life. A new job, new friends and I’ve made some decisions that affected my long term goals. Looking forward to a new day with a positive attitude, enough with the negativity. My sons are now older they are the joys of my life.

I have a few new gadgets and I looking forward to get some new ones this year. I now own the Motorola Xoom 4G LTE, Motorola Bionic and the Kindle Fire. I got the Bionic in September as an early birthday present. I got the Kindle Fire because to me it was so hot. The Xoom I got as a reward for getting a new job. I’ve been trying different ROMS and different apps.

Pretty soon I’ll be posting my journeys with my gadgets and the decision to get a new one. I miss the days of posting reviews and letting others know the benefits of some of the gadgets overlooked.

Anyways  I have to leave now. I have to prepare to pack for the move.

It could be that they have no brain power, they hate their body, or they just hate themselves, who knows. All I care about is that they are happy. Some of them do not realize that and take my kindness for sweetness or better yet they think that I am dumb. Little do they know I could see their actions and I am just being a friend. To those people I say, pray a little, talk to someone about how you feel about yourself. The saying is true you can’t love someone else before you love yourself.

Some of those people with a low self esteem tend to  think that having the best of the best makes them better, it doesn’t because the underlying problem is still there. The insecurity, the self doubt all of those are still there and it’s eating away at them. The only way they know how to deal with this is to make other people feel small, and to make themselves feel bigger. It doesn’t work you know, it is just a screen covering all of the pain.

People with a low self esteem tend to be envious of the people around them even their own family. Their brother’s success or their sister’s success. For example, their brother is a successful business man, with a family, or their sister is a successful business woman with a family. They however, have nothing to show that they were successful and have everything negative to say about the ones who were. That is the only way they know to make the pain go away.

I woke up this morning with a smile on my face, and it is a beautiful day. I can enjoy my family and the friends I have and I can be happy. You know why? Because I love me!!! Smile a while and give your face a rest, . Everything happens for a reason. IT’s a beautiful day!!!! Enjoy life!!!

Someone shared this with me today and I have to say I hear it on a few occasions. I am someone who has a very low tolerance for ignorance, and plain out stupidity. There are some people I would rather not be around as they live and breath ignorance. The things they say, the way they act, makes you wonder are they aware of what is around them?

The things they sometimes say to you may send you to an eruption almost immediately. I don’t know about you but I am a person who remembers everything and I let them have every bit of it just incase they forgot. You know the human brain has a switch that people tend to turn off the memory switch.

It’s always good to keep the hand that fed you and to keep the bridge strong for someone who helped you. Some of us tend to believe that rules are meant to be broken hence they can go and come as they choose. This is not a wishy washy world where you play with people’s emotions or feelings. When you let those wishy washy attitudes get to you though, you begin to fall under their spell. They then have control over you, they know what makes you angry what makes you tick. They know what buttons to press and they get the reaction from you. It makes them feel powerful, little do they realize they suffer from an inferiority complex.

He who angers you controls or conquers you. I have to tell myself that everyday because again my low tolerance for ignorance sometimes gets under my skin. I have to realize too that not everyone thinks the same way as I do and so not everyone is on the same level as I am. It is a lesson learned and I am gaining progress. There are some people you feed with a long handle spoon and then there are others you just have to give them a football field distance. There are some though I feel sorry for. They are uneducated, and think that having big things will make up for their lack of knowledge. They make the same mistakes over and over again, and you wonder what is wrong with their brain? Do they have their thinking cap on wrong? Is the light bulb working? Those are the ones who tend to get under your skin because for some reason their stupidity is overbearing. The stench is so strong it suffocates you.

This quote is my motto and my anthem I tell myself this: “What you fail to conquer will conquer you what you fail to master will master you what you fail to rule over will rule over you”.   You say this everyday to yourself and you will realize that some things are mere mole hills and any mountain could be turned into a hill. Perseverance and courage, the will to say I will get over this is what will help you overcome your anger and the control that is over you.

It’s an everyday learning experience one that takes time, but as you get used to it you will learn how to deal with the ignorance.  Life is not always as you want it to be but dealing with the problems make it easier to bear. Life is too short to settle. Surround yourself with positive people who love and respect you. 

You try to use the route that would have me thinking well maybe he’s right, maybe just maybe I am just like her. HAHA…nah that won’t work sugar, I am nothing like her, I am my own entity, I stand on my own two feet and do not require a man to carry me. You tickle me senseless with that pointer of yours or should I say what a small pointer it is. You can’t handle the truth that you are a down low creature who has no idea what he wants or who he wants. Do you want to be with a man or  a woman? Make up your mind.

And you missy, shame on your lazy self, you disgust me knowing that I pay precious taxes to have you sit at home while you are able to work. And sir you talk about standard? What kind of standard will a woman have when she has nothing to show for herself or her character? Don’t try using words with me either, I am very good with words and when I say them I mean them. I pull the tooth, the whole tooth and nothing but the tooth. It hurts doesn’t it? You’re a pedophile looking to get young teens online and to make yourself feel good about yourself. Who does that???

You are only a speck of dust which I will now brush off my shoulder and say adios. A strong woman never looks back at scum and feel sorry for them. A strong woman looks forward and smiles as she brushes the dust of her shoulders, for she was carrying a heavy load that made it difficult for her to move forward. Hey wait a minute you spoke about credit didn’t you. Who was the one who had to pay 2 deposits to move in, no wait he can’t even get a phone, or cable…smh. Never burn that bridge buddy, because there is no repair.

The burnt up pot is calling the kettle black? Before you point a finger three are pointing back at you always remember that. Be able to eat what you dished out because I love cooking a 5 star meal with the dishes I got served. Is that you talking? You love being dogged out and you love coming back for more because you are insecure of your body and your self. That is why you have to have everything big to compensate for the other small features that are not adequate.

I came I saw and I conquered!!!! A strong woman looks forward to a world of success. A weak woman on the other hand tries to find success the lazy way. You’re insecure about your body, you suffer from depression all of which occurred because you are head over heals over a man who could care less for you.  You can only take head shots of yourself and place them online, aren’t you ashamed of those? I would pull them down if I were you…just saying. I guess you’re both suited for each other as you’re both on the “big side”.

Now there, time to stop all of this, we’re all adults let bygones be bygones. Just expect the truth because this little voice tends to say a lot. I can’t really dress truth and hand it to you, I have to give it to you bare with no cover as that is what hits the spot the most. I am stronger than your standard woman even your stay at home, welfare hugging woman.

A little voice whispered to me that I am wasting my energy on insignificant nonsense. I am not one to play games nor do I  like wasting my time. I think I’ve said all I wanted to say.

My name is Independent and I approve this message.

Ladies you are worth more than that. No man is worth you making a fool of yourself, most especially a man who enjoys you doing it while he continues to dog you out in front of the other woman. Yes there is someone else looking on and watching everything and everyday that goes by where you belittle yourself that person sees and they can only just shake their head. You have children to take care off, you’re not the only single mother out there! Maybe if you had a job you would not have the time of day to give to that man. Maybe if you set your priorities straight and stop being so lazy you would see straight.

Women constantly put themselves in a situation where they cannot depend on anyone else but their “baby daddy”, and the baby daddy likes that because then he knows that she belongs to him. Girl please! You’re not a piece of meat! No one has claims to you. You tell a man you will never be with another and you will never see another man in the same light, you’re building his ego. While he is out having “fun” you’re at home texting him begging him to come back. Begging him to talk to you, begging him to give you the time of day.

Why would you play such games? Why don’t you just say enough is enough? Men you know who you are, you need to stop that nonsense. If you do not want the woman tell her straight up you don’t want her, keep the conversation strictly about the children. Wait, there are some weak men out there though, who believe that a woman telling him she is all his that she is really all his.There are some weak men out there who get off on a woman chasing after them and making a fool of themselves just to be with them.

It’s not only disturbing but some of those men prey on women who are weak and then they enjoy making them feel like the world is going to end. You want to subject yourself to such behavior go right ahead. Just know that to the other women looking on your behavior is atrocious and disgusting. Lift your head up high and see how much you’re hurting your “CHARACTER” and how weak you look. You’re worth more than that, we’re all worth more than that. You’re special, he’s not the only man out there. Wake up and smell the horse poop!

Having tested out Gingerbread I was very excited about the changes that were coming including those Motorola made to ninjablur, well gingerblur. Heck I will admit it’s sexy, it’s smooth, its yummy!! Now I know why I never went to the Droid Incredible or even the Thunderbolt (even though I’m jealous of the 4G access). Motorola and Verizon Wireless seem to be standing by their word even though it took months we still got the update. So I shall wait for the Droid Bionic/Targa or whatever the name is of the next device as I have confidence I’ll receive updates to my phone.

Back to the Gingerbread review. The phone seems faster. After installing gingerbread on my phone via the update.zip no root, everything is in tap and go mode. Access to options I will say is better and having the new app launcher is great. They did fix the bug from Froyo which caused WIFI to disconnect after a few minutes of use and WIFI now stays on without the need to worry that it will disconnect.

User Interface (UI)

Motorola has done a lot to improve the user interface of their phones. Implementing the new darker look of Gingerbread in with the not so overbearing skin of ninjablur, was flawless. We have the same lock screen and pattern screen except the pattern buttons are white. I love the clean look and feel of the skin as its not too overbearing as other phones.

The notifications bar has improved giving you the option to clear notifications one at a time or all at once. It’s actually quite spiffy I should say.

Copy and paste is now easier!!!!!! I have to give a standing ovation for this feature! Press and select and tap again and text is copied to clipboard! That is really a major improvement as one can copy from any application, be it the browser, Gmail or the Catholic One app.

App Launcher:

My favorite app launcher is Launcher pro, but I also love the new app launcher! You could change the icons to the apps you use the most, instead of leaving it as default. The options are very simple and one could configure their app drawer to their liking by adding groups of apps, viewing the recently used apps or the downloaded apps. Notice you could now view a lot of recently used apps so it is not limited too only six or eight apps.

Access to Options:

Clicking the menu button and seeing manage apps is a life saver, I don’t know for anyone else but having this option available cuts out the need to go through settings applications then manage applications. They changed the options under application settings adding a little more to that setting.

Profiles

Customization seems to be the focus of this update, with profiles, which was introduced with the Droid Pro late last year. You have the choice of home, work and weekend, I only chose home for now since I use everything on a daily basis and not just the weekend.

Keyboard:

The keyboard now has predictive capabilities you know like swiftkey. It brings up quite a few words at  times don’t you think? It highlights the words spelled incorrectly giving you suggestions as it is highlighted.

The update is in no way perfect, but the improvements are massive. I can’t wait to see what the Droid Bionic has to offer!!!

Let’s talk about the crazy love, the love where a woman or man proclaim that they love you so much they would do anything for you. A love where the woman or man would do a vasectomy or hysterectomy, a love where the woman or man would text you constantly that they love you and they need you. Now that is crazy love. What about the love hate relationship? One time the man or the woman hates each other they separate and the woman keeps on chasing and the man says nothing about it because he is so weak. He has a boosted chest and a huge ego because he feels like he is needed. What about the woman who would text the man begging for him to come back? No wait, what about the man who is so confused he would try to get into another relationship and he keeps on having thoughts of going back to his ex but won’t admit it.

Tell you what, there are some men or women out there who do not know their butts from their head, you cannot go looking for love it finds you. I have to admit, I was foolish, I have found love, yet I keep on saying that it wasn’t. A revelation is what I needed and after evaluating the factors I have to say, I did find love. Some of us could be blind and we tend to look the other way until someone or something happens letting you realize what you have.

I admit I went looking and I got nothing but B.S. in a soda can, while all along my cured wine, which aged gracefully was in the cabinet. The nasty soda taste left me wanting to reevaluate my decisions, and to look back and remembering everything that has happened. When I looked at the other person, I saw nothing but confusion, stress and insecurity. There is a kind nature but then it becomes unstable, like that person was broken from a previous relationship and could not get over it.  You know like a Schizo they are two persons in one. One comes out when they needed you and the other pushed you away when the other was full. Yes I know confusing.

Love is understanding the other person, wanting to learn more about them, there is a bond so strong you could feel the way the other person is feeling. You know when something is wrong, you’re not selfish and you give willing to help your significant other to get back on their feet. Love is not about wanting only the best part of a relationship and then pushing that person away when it comes to the other part of it. It is about everything. I guess not too many people know that and tend to mix up lust and love.

Love is not about trying to test the limit of the person to see how far they will go to prove their love for you. Too many tests will cause the other person to throw in the towel and say that you are not worth the time, energy and headache that is constantly given.  Love is not about games, stop playing with other people’s emotions. There are idiots out there who feel like they could play games but the ones affected by the games will say this, enough is enough.

Love is a unique feeling and it comes at different levels, when you find the one who makes you feel all of those different levels at the same time, keep them. I’ve found my love whom I intend to keep , I could  not ask for a better person, my lover, my best friend and confidant. It took a game to make me realize that I had no reason to put up with childish antics, you know who you are. I love you.

I always looked at Facebook as a nosey book and a read all about who broke up today website. People tend to let everything out on Facebook, the statuses I saw were either  making no sense at all or it was about people fronting. You know the fake people who want to make their friends to believe that they have a life? The ones who stay at home all day, doing nothing not even making an effort to find a job, and they act like they have everything?

Mark Zuckerberg sure did not have any idea of the impact Facebook would have on people, when he founded this idea for a social networking site he did not know how huge it would have gotten. Now it is, should I say and integral part in businesses and homes? I admit I was stuck on Facebook it was routine to check it when I woke up in the morning and before I went to bed at night. I had it on my computer and on my Droid X. I could open it on random to view statuses from my friends and comment on the go. I got excited when Facebook for android began to improve because that meant easier access.

I did get weary of it though, and whenever I get weary of something it’s time for me to let it go. I no longer reach for my phone to click on Facebook and I no longer log onto to Facebook on my computer. The urge to do it is not gone, but I would rather say, I’ve learned to live without it. Yes there is a life without Facebook . It’s actually life as it used to be before Facebook and you get to  do other things. You get an added asset called TIME!!!

A word for the people who like to front, it’s useless trying to impress people with the things you don’t have. A job could very much occupy your time and if you have children, your children should take up that wasted time on Facebook. It’s an awesome place to share, but then people get jealous of other people’s accomplishments or maybe they are ashamed and they tend to go above and beyond to impress others. GET A  LIFE!!!!

When I left Facebook I told the people I spoke to the most, which meant that if you really needed me or wanted to check on me you knew how to get me, text, talking over the phone or email. People who did  not know my personal information but knew someone close to me asked about me. Most of them actually thought I deleted them off my friends list.

I’ve gained something valuable that people tend to take for granted which is time. Use it wisely, don’t waste it trying to impress others, but impress yourself by making some changes. Will I get back on Facebook? Mmmm…maybe some day .

I remember my young days, (not saying that I am an old woman), during the summer time, climbing the mango trees, going to Woodfordhill beach, going to the Londonderry or Melville Hall rivers. Man those were the days. One day they will get to experience it . It was not all fun though, I still had to read a book every week and I had to get a head start on the course work for school for the coming year. I am going to pass on the same tradition onto my sons so that they too could get into the routine of doing something during the summer instead of being idle.

They are missing out however on the fun I had when I lived in Dominica. There was always something to do. Summer school for one, the hiking trips and going to the garden  in the mountains with family. Eating tons of fruits, guavas being my favorite and tin mangoes . Sometimes during the summer I got the time to spend with my cousins and my brothers and sisters. Again I will say those were the days. We looked forward to August Monday, because that is when we got to “sewo” on the beach. My youngest already know what time it is when he hears the song “Balance Party”, and no I did not teach him how to stroke back!!!

On a serious note though now is a critical time to spend with your children after they’ve been in school for more than half the year, now is an ideal time to get to know them more. Play with them, learn with them. Make learning and reading fun during the summer. I can’t wait to go book shopping for them so that we could have fun learning new things together. As you watch them grow you get sad, in a sense, that your children are growing and soon they will be out of the house. Also you get sad because you’re getting old . Seeing them mature and grow before your eyes takes you back to your childhood days and you remember what you did for fun.

Make an assertive effort to interact with them this summer, give them the boost that they need for the new school year. I know my children will be looking like burnt up cookie dough by the end of the summer as I am going to let them play outside in the sun. A pity some of us have to work, but there is always the weekend and the afternoons. Enjoy them while they’re young because once they’re older they have their own life.

Picture courtesy: Summer sun in Europe