What the Saturn Return brings, let no BS put asunder. Some people blaze a new trail of understanding in your life. When you meet, you discover you have similar laughs and senses of humor. You learn from one another and embrace their family as they’ve embraced yours. I sat down with a bowl of the best ramen in the city to chop it up with the Sauce Lord himself.

Have you ever answered a call that changed your life? That’s what I thought after first speaking with Kwame over Messenger in 2020. During that time, I was smack in the middle of another crisis of faith and theology, unlearning all that held me in bondage under the guise of religion. Kwame embraced my questions and confusion with patience and humor. Since then, she’s become one of my sisters I run to when that ole time religion begins to bring up old wounds. She’s real, she’s raw, she’s everything. Read more of our conversation below.

What’s your favorite coffee shop order? Mine is a vanilla chai tea latte with almond milk. It’s warm and grounding, a signal that I’m doing something worthwhile. That’s what I ordered when I first met Lindsey in person at Philz Coffee in Bethesda, Maryland. We shared about puppies, working with tweens, how doing this work can be both rewarding and exhausting. She’s been a light as 2020 threw a shadow over all of us. After some time, I finally got to get her into my interview chair.

Some people surpass introduction.

What truly is power? Is it an action? A presence? A state of being.

Is power used to justify or villify? Can power be passed down, like a sacred heirloom only those trusted with the legacy can hold onto? Can abused power be reborn? I asked Nikkea Sharee and Shivawn Mitchell these questions and they provided me some thought-provoking answers. Read along with me.

They say life is not a race, but a marathon. It takes training, a solid will, the tenacity to keep going, especially as all around you begins to disappear. The Runner’s High is said to be one of the most intoxicating feelings to exist within. It’s where the pain of running lifts and you reach a state of euphoria. I sat down to ask Terence about his race long enough for him to catch his breath. Read our exchange below.

Robin Thicke wrote a whole album named Paula. Not this Paula - another Paula. A Paula that is not this Paula. Because this Paula doesn’t require other people to write sonnets and ill-fated love ballads to her; she writes her own things. And not in a creepy, self-aggrandizing way. I sit down with Paula - again, not that Paula. That’s the other Paula. This is Paula Paula. Anyway, I sit down with her to ask a few non-Thicke questions.

Imma give it to you straight: Ashley Cobb don’t play about shit. That shit being: outdated mindsets towards and about sex, gender roles, sexual expectations, wack sex and pity moans. Fall into the gravity of her Facebook page and community and you’ll find spirited conversations with folk from all walks of life. Ashley is never with the negativity bullshit and I’m happy I got to chat with her about it.

Some people enter your life via IP Addresses. A slide down a timeline can change the course of both of your lives.

Give it up for the queens with Qs in their names. We can never seem to hear our names right, and when I first met NaQuetta, I made a point to pronounce her name properly and let her know, “sis, same.”

Once the smoke cleared from her ears, she began to cuss me out, asking me how am I running so many businesses while hiding behind my gifts and threatening me not to add another thing. She did all this with a smile and level of warmth only an auntie and/or your fave big cousin can muster.