In the Mix with Aaliyah Miller

A six word blog, not exactly, but I will some up my 2014 in six words. All roads seem to lead me back to NPR and it should be no surprise that this blog was inspired by National Public Radio (NPR) . It plays such an integral role as one of my main sources for news, media and stories that keep me informed and entertained. Shout out to my mom for turning me on to my local NPR station, WNPR . While there are a number of shows that I love to listen , here's my short list. They include All Things Considered , Car Talk, Fresh Air, Radio Lab , Latino USA, and local programs like Where We Live , and The Colin McEnroe Show , but this blog is inspired by journalist Michelle Norris ' project Welcome to The Race Card Project . The project asks individuals to sum up their feelings about race in six words. People from all across our nation have taken up the challenge and shared their candid feelings about race in America. Listening to others share their personal feelings about race was...

The holidays are still a couple of weeks away, but the folks at YouTube are already out with their 2014 Rewind. The video gives the viewer a nice little highlight of 2014's "pop culture" buzz. Considering most attention spans these days, it feels a bit long, but the music and celebrity cameos make it fun to watch. Instead of a rewind I tend to be more reflective about the activities in my life and the impact they have. I look for the game changers. However, I like the YouTube 2014 Rewind approach because it reminds me to keep it fresh, fun, and that some good things did happen in 2014. Besides, we can always use some entertainment and a good laugh.  When I rewind 2014 here are a few of the moments I really enjoyed: Adopting Billy Getting a new job with Aetna Receiving my second masters from Gonzaga's Communication and Leadership Program Publishing my thesis,  " A Post-Femin ist Look At HBO’s Girls: A Critical Analysis of Character, Career, Gender,...

It's officially a week since the big Black Friday shopping extravaganza. I don't know about you, but I was disappointed by the Black Friday deals this year. I'm not sure if it's because it seems like we gear up for holidays earlier and earlier each year allowing retailers to stretch out their deals. While Black Friday isn't an official holiday, that fact that it comes right after Thanksgiving and leads us into the Christmas shopping season has me feeling like we should make it one. I don't need a large screen T.V., a new car (not yet) or other big ticket items and I didn't feel like hitting the stores after I stuffed myself with a fabulous holiday dinner. Thanks Nat! I'm not a morning person either, so you won't catch me waking up at four a.m. to stand in lines to hit the stores at five a.m. Not happening. I did it a couple of years ago and while I was happy with my purchases I'm not sure it was worth the gas and time I put into it. The...

I look forward to Thanksgiving every year. It's my favorite holiday and not just because I get to eat dishes that I only eat this time of year, it's about reconnecting with family and friends. I have the down time to reflect on what I'm truly thankful for and count my blessings. This year's turkey day celebration will take me to Atlanta where I get spend time with my bestie Nat. Since she has relocated to Atlanta, I only get to see her a couple times a year, if I'm lucky. This is a special Thanksgiving for her because it will be the first in her new home. Many of you will hit the road today or tomorrow and head to your holiday destinations, some of you will be hosting family and friends, and others will be welcomed guests. Thank you for sharing and participating in my "Thankful and Giving"challenge and reading my blog. I wish each of you a safe, relaxed, and Happy Thanksgiving.

As this week comes to a close, Kim Kardashian's latest magazine cover remains this week's celebrity hot topic. She claimed to " Break the Internet ." I thought her butt selfie a year ago made my jaw drop. She manages to top that. Even The View's Rosie O'Donnell weighed in and came to her defense. While I get Rosie's point that if she had that body she would do the cover, however, I wonder how much of it is actually her body. Thanks to Photoshop, graphic designers and magazine editors can make even imperfect celebrities have the perfect smile, teeth, and body. Kim's skin is glistening a little to much for my taste. Feel me? My mother also used to tell me, "Just because you can doesn't mean you should." I have to say this week feels much better than last week. I got four work out days of the gym in. I finally began chipping away at revising a script (as of last night 15 pages) and am currently reading Toy Story 3 . In order to sta...

Happy Friday folks. I'm pleased to be kicking this blog off with a challenge to each of you. Don't we all have something or someone we are thankful for? As we approach Thanksgiving I thought it would be nice to share what we are thankful for or how we give back to our communities. At work I kicked off a "Thankful and Giving Challenge" campaign with the Aetna University community and now I'm sharing it with you. Check out my video and I challenge you to share what you're thankful for or how you give back to the community. I also encourage you to share this challenge with your family, friends and colleagues. Lets have fun with this and have a great weekend!

"You can a lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink." When it comes to addiction, I've learned that you can't even lead the horse to water. Recently, an individual close to me has relapsed. He/she lost their job as a result of going back on drugs. When you find drug paraphernalia hidden among their personal items, it isn't theirs. Drug addicts live in a world that is built on a foundation of lies. They lie to themselves about their addiction, after all it wasn't going to happen to them. When he/she finally accepts their dependence on a drug, he/she goes to great lengths to hide the addiction. I've seen and heard a plethora of stories about addiction. It's the problem that happens to other people until someone close to you falls victim. You can only hide it for so long before the drug catches up with your body, behaviors, and actions. The addict doesn't accept this notion. He/she thinks they can lie their way out of any situation. ...