In the Mix with Aaliyah Miller

Another year bites the dust. This is my final blog post for 2013! I’m happy to have made it through another year. I thought it would be both fun and reflective to recap with photos of some of the people, places, and special events that made my year memorable. They say pictures say a thousand words. Enjoy the montage and feel free to post a comment on one of your special moments in 2013! Happy New Year!

Today I must vent! I'm pretty pissed with the U.S. Department of Education at the moment. Why? I'm pissed because they have no record of my $5309.00 loan repayment that I made last January, I had the blessing to be able to repay my undergraduate and graduate loans thanks to my severance from my former employee. While I wasn't have to be leaving the organization, it was a definite plus that I could be college debt free as a result of it. I paid off all my loans in January of 2013. I made the payments online through Chase Bank  and have the transaction statements to prove it. Thank goodness I do because a couple of months ago the U.S Department of Education sent me a letter saying I owed interest on a loan of $5,200.00. That caught me off guard because I had paid it with the accrued interest back in January. I do my due diligence and call them to find out what is going on and to my dismay they have no record of my payment. I don't understand how this is possible whe

Yesterday my cousin Benjamin Rhodes III aka Ben Righter dropped his single WHY! Congratulations are in order! I would be remiss if I didn't plug him and his hard work as a singer and songwriter. He has been singing all his life and I've watched him grow as an artist over the years. It's really impressive to see his evolution! I also admire the fact that he hasn't giving up on his gift, passion for music and continues to hustle! The writer in me can identify with that struggle. I love the single and just had to share it with you! Check out his video below! If you like it, you can download the single on iTunes and Spotify . It will make a great gift for the holidays, trust me and don't ask why!

Are you in the holiday spirit with Christmas only 13 days away? Despite the fact that I don't celebrate the religious parts of the holiday, I do enjoy holiday commercialism. Funny how that works out. I'm happy to report my holiday shopping is almost done. I'll be wrapping and mailing out packages next week. While I'm wrapping and bagging gifts I enjoy watching holiday films too. One of my favorite Christmas films is The Christmas Story . Absolutely classic! I can watch it again and again and again. Today's Friday Flashback is a short clip from the film. In the scene below Ralphie proves he's no punk. Enjoy and happy watching!

The term  "selfie"  made a big splash in 2013. It was officially anointed when the Oxford dictionary added it this year. Pope John Francis may be Time magazines man of the year but I would have to say "selfie" is the word of the year, even if my spell check doesn't recognize it. The  Oxford Dictionary  and  Lakeshore Public Media  made it their word of the year. Everyone from your average Joe to President Obama is snapping one. It's the in thing. I've done my share. Have you? With my personal need to reflect as this year comes to a close  I've decided start my process with a fun "selfie" recap. I've to combed through mountains of "selfie" photos online and bring you my top ten. The word is here to stay but  I'm already  wondering what next year's created word will take us and the media by storm. Aaliyah's Top 10 Selfies for 2013 10. Kim Kardashian.  Where would my list be without the infamous  Kim ? I'

Yesterday the world lost Nelson Mandela. He was an activist, freedom fighter, father, humanitarian, leader, who was also pragmatic and a forward thinker. These past couple of years he had many health struggles and although I wasn't surprised by the announcement of his passing, I still felt a tremendous sense of loss. I believe Mandela was an exceptional human being. I would place him on a humanitarian list that would include Mother Theresa, Oskar Schindler, Mahatma Ghandi, Martin Luther King, and others. This Flashback Friday I'm remembering the life and accomplishments of Nelson Mandela. A 1961 video interview with a young Mandela is at the end of the post for your viewing. I get angry when I think about his early life and the pain, suffering and injustice he and many other black and colored South Africans endured for more than 40 years because of apartheid . It reminds me of the United States " Jim Crow" days in the south. The two discriminatory systems are p