How to Use Placeit.net

Hi guys....I recently mentioned in a former post that I've started doing T shirts and in creating those I started selling them on Teespring, Redbubble, Teechip and I'm trying to get unto Merch by Amazon. but the greatest part of all of this was my discovery of the platform called Placeit.net. I'm so in love with this platform that I introduced it to my son who is a craze on social media here in Trinidad. It's how he gets his clients. He is a millennial coach and thats the best way to reach them. But he was paying to get his intro videos done and when initially showed him placeit.net he kinda brushed me off, but later he asked to use it and now he sees the value of being able to easily create your own intro at a very low cost. So I decided to do this post explaining how to use Placeit.net, and so eeeeasy it is.

So let's get started. There is a cost to this platform but as I said before, book it for a moth, make as many videos or mock ups as you can based on your plan then you can always cancel your registration.

Step One - Register on Placeit.net

Step 2 - Choose the first payment plan of $14/month. You get unlimited designs, mock ups, videos etc and even logos.

Step 3 - Designing a tee

If you want to design a tee, then type in the niche in the search area, eg. cats. An array of designs will come up, choose one and click on it. This is what you will see.

Step 4 - Make changes.

Now change things around. You can change the words, the type of fonts, the actual picture or even the colour. Start changing the words. Here I added the words "Sleepy Cat" at the top and - "Don't you dere wake me!!"

You do this by clicking on "Add Another Text" write what you want and click on the text itself to move it to where you want it on the design.

Make sure to choose a transparent background, by clicking on the background colour on the top right. It was lilac but I chose the transparent, so when you place it on your tee it looks good and doesn't have a white box around it.

Step 5 - Download Design

Once the design is the way you want it then its time to download it by clicking the download button. Give it a few minutes then it comes up for you to save it in a file on your desktop.

Download it, give it a name then save it in a file to use later. Its just that easy.

PLACEIT.NET - Making an Intro

Step 1 - Chose what video you want to make

We're making an intro so choose Intro templates

Step 2 - cChoose the Template

Once you've chosen the template from the vast array. it will open the template and then once again you can change things around, like the colour, the font, the words etc.

Step 3 - Start Making the Changes

You can add your logo, choose you brand colours, change the wording of the main text and even add additional slides to you video.

I chose this template, I duplicated it and added my 2 business logos for my Podcast intro. Lets see how it looks.

So this is what it can do for you. Isn't that just the Bawm!!! People check this platform out, you know i tend to go crazy for the different creative mediums and this is one I really like. Placeit.net is my new go to for videos, mock ups and Instagram posts. I have to mention that I had to search all over for mock ups for my art before and they were very cumbersome to use and I never had the ability to make them so versatile like a video. Technology is just exploding and we really have to enjoy the ride

Check you guys next time and don't forget to check out Placeit.net

Disrespecting Other People's Time

Hi guys...I went through minor surgery a week ago and while I was home recuperating, I kinda didn't get an opportunity to write a post but since I didn't lose my voice as I thought I would I did this Podcast which I'm sharing with you, its about a situation that happened to me recently. I'll be up and about in full vigor, don't worry.

Listen to the most recent episode of my podcast: Disrespecting Other People's Time https://anchor.fm/gail-francis/episodes/Disrespecting-Other-Peoples-Time-e985d7

Amazon Reviews - Episode 1, Part 1

Hi Guys....I had an epiphany. I guess I was watching one of the usual Youtube videos that I'm always watching and they started talking about the things we buy on Amazon and that most of us get all of out stuff on Amazon or online and sometimes we don't know if what we're getting is good or not. Yes we can read the reviews and those help but you still aren't sure. So I decided to do my own Episode of reviews on the products I've bought through Amazon so if you were considering getting any of these you can get a better idea of how good the item is. I'll do it in categories....and no I'll also be posting other normal posts in between the Review Episodes. I'll also put direct links to the products in case you want to see them on Amazon. Men I'm putting the list first so you can either read on or this just might not be for you unless you're interested in buying something for the wife or girlfriend.The Items are:

Riding Breeches

• Riding boots

• Maxi Dress

• Office Dress

• Retro Bathing Suit

• Lace off shoulder top

• Dockers Sweater for men

• Poka Dot Maxi Dress

The Format of the Comments/Reviews:

I've bought lots of things and some of them have been really crappy and some I still use to this day. Unlike most countries sending back items for us here in Trinidad is a little more difficult and costly, so we tend to just accept the loss and dump the product as a mistake. That has happened to me with shoes, clothes and other items that look one wy on the pics but when it arrives you're like..." goodness this things is wayyyyy smaller than I thought"...kinda reaction. So the categories I was considering were:

• Clothing & Shoes - Episode 1

• Home & Garden - Episode 2

• Art Supplies & Stationery - Episode 3

• Beauty & Jewellery - Episode 4

• Books & Tapes - Episode 5

Now how will this flow? I'll show the product, with it's link, place its details then below share what I think about the item/product, that is, the good and the bad aspects from my perspective. Then if you were considering getting something similar, at least you have my feedback, if you don't trust the reviews in Amazon, because I've been fooled by reviews as well.

OH!! and I haven't forgotten you with the short story from my client. I "buffed him last week because he hasn't delivered it and it's past due. These writers.... hmmmm!!

So, leets get started.... Surprisingly the first piece of clothing I bought on Amazon was a pair of Breeches because I had just started doing Horse Back Riding lessons with Trinidad's Police Canine & Mounted Branch. The Police Mounted Branch has a program that teaches the public all about taking care of a horse, riding, and more and I had just joined that program in April 2013 and I wanted to have all the proper gear so I went online to buy my breeches.

Ladies Tuff Rider Ribb Knee Patch Breech Black 24R (10013-33)

GET THEM HERE - I rank this a 9

• polyester-blend

• Stay cool and dry with the knit "Ribb" fabric

• 92% polyester, and 8% spandex for outstanding comfort

• Washable UltraGripp imitation leather knee patch

• Fabulous for hot weather riding

• Outstanding quality at great price

• Price USD $53.10

MY COMMENTS/REVIEW

These breeches were the BEST!!!!! No, understand me when I say that, while learning to ride I started off wearing jeans and anyone who rides knows you use the thighs and other delicate parts allot. These breeches were comfortable, stretchy, easy to put on, didn't shear, very durable, washed extremely well, kept that dark black without fading and I still have them to this day and I have no plans to give them away, even though I don't ride anymore. They were so good some of the other riders asked me to order for them which I did at no extra cost to them...of course. They stood up to the 2 and half years of riding and falling off (sometimes). Of course to go with the breeches I needed some Boots. See them here: From 1 to 10 - I give this a 9 rating.

Journee Collection Women's Regular Sized and Wide Calfed Ankle-strap Buckle Knee High Riding Boots' - GET THEM HERE - I rank this a 7.5

• Faux leather

• Imported

• Synthetic sole

• Shaft measures approximately 14 from arch

• Platform measures approximately .50"

• HIGH-QUALITY BOOTS: Every women’s shoe in our collection of boots at Journee Collection is created with the finest materials available.

• Price USD $69.99

MY COMMENTS/REVIEW

These boots were nice, getting into them was a little weird and little difficult but once your foot was inside it was a good fit. It was comfortable, no squeezed toes and I need the small heel for riding. It held up nicely during my riding gig. It was tested by water, mud, being stepped by a horse and more. It stood up well. When I stopped riding I because i didn't really use it it, the faux leather started to peel so I had to get rid of it. But it lasted at least 4 years. But it was a really fancy looking boots so I got a lot of comments. See them here: From 1-10 - I give this a 7.5 rating

The boots I bought in 2013, 2 years later is when I bought my first maxi dress and an office dress.

Women's Long Sleeve Full Length Ball Gown Beach Casual Loose Maxi Dress Gray S 2 - Ranking 5 - GET IT HERE

This dress is no longer available right now and it was an alright dress, but my only issues were: it was extremely long so I had to cut it but other than that if fit OK, it was comfortable but it seemed a bit larger in size than I though a medium would be so I gave this away. Price USD $23.99

Amoin Women's Vintage Polka Dot Print Dresses - Ranking 3

the Amoin dress was the worst thing ever. It didn't look the way it does in the photo, the quality was bad, it didn't fit properly, in fact it was weirdly made to go over you head which made it very difficult to get your hands into the sleeves while trying to get the rest of you body into it. Poorly made. But I guess you get what you pay for this cost USD$11.23. NEVER again!!!

Next came the bathing suit as we were planning to take a drive down to one of the hotels by the beach and I wanted to be comfortable and that is when I sw this online:

zeraca Retro Halter Push up High Waisted Bikini Carnival Swimsuit - GET IT HERE - Ranking 8

• Main Fabric: 86%polyester/14%elastane , Lining: 100% Polyetser

• Hand wash cold separately, only non-chlorine bleach when needed, do not iron,do not dry clean,do not wring or twist line dry , for best results, rinse and line dry immediately after use

• Molded push-up padding bikini top featuring a knot detail at front and adjustable ties at back and neck

• Romovable Enhancement Padding, underwire

• High Waist Bikini Bottom with Ruched Sides with Support provides Moderate coverage

• Fully Lined for top and bottom

• Model Bust 34in Underbust 28.5in, Cup B, Waist 26in, Hip 37in, Which Suit for Size S

• Price USD $26.65

MY COMMENTS/REVIEW

I love this bathing suit. As we age, we women want to look cute but we need to hide certain areas and this bathing suit does exactly that but in a very retro way. The high waist bottoms is so comfortable and just fits well. The bikini top is also adjustable for those of us who don't carry allot...sorry guys... What got my attention was the ruching because I tend to buy wrap dresses that ruched because the hide bulges especially if the material is patterned and they fall better. So this bottoms does that very well. Love this suit. I still have this in my drawer and its the only one I wear when I go to the beach, in my beautiful Tropical Island of Trinidad. See it here: From 1-10, I give this a 8

I then started the real zest for shopping online after realising that i got good quality clothes online.My next purchase was n off the shoulder top. Which is no longer available but I'm putting a similar top that i have my eyes on.

PattyBoutik Women's Lace Smocked Off Shoulder Top - Ranked 7.5

So I chose this and bought it. It looked exactly like the photo but the quality of the stitching wasn't the best. It was still a very nice top but the other issue for me was it didn't look good on me. In fact the style didn't suit me and the top ended up in my drawer for a few years until i gave it to charity. I bought it in 2015 and at that time it cost USD $29.99. I rank this a 7.5

This is the top I'm eyeing now.

Sarin Mathews Womens Lace Off The Shoulder Tops 3/4 Sleeve Casual Summer Loose Blouses Shirts - GET IT HERE

• MATERIAL - High quality lace fabric, the lace is soft and not itchy or stiff. The lace is very elegant and has an inner lining, which is perfect in all season.

• This blouse is very feminine and well made. You don’t have to continuously pull it down on your shoulders it stays in place.

• It can be dressed up for a night out or just a causal day out kind of shirt. It’s so comfortable and stays put. It covers your butt and looks absolutely amazing.

MY COMMENT/REVIEW

I can't rank or say anything about this lace top until I buy it which might be soon, after all it is Christmas. The price is right at USD $19.99 so we will see. Maybe I can get someone in the family to buy it for me. See it here.

I finally bought something for my husband. Wanted to surprise him with a gift for Christmas so in 2015 I got him this:

Dockers Men's Fair Isle Chest Stripe Zip Mock-Neck Holiday Ski Sweater - GET IT HERE - Rank 7.5

Yes I know we don't ski here, but we do have air conditioning that can be quite cold.....

so this Dockers Men's Ski Sweater, again as I bought it so long ago, its no longer available but in looking around the sweater below is what seems to have replaced the one i bought years ago. How style has been simplified....see below

Dockers Men'sQuarter Zip Soft Acrylic Sweater - SEE IT HERE

MY COMMENT/REVIEW

Boy things go out and don't come back so I can't say anything about the new style. I can say that the one I bought, the quality was great, the fit was great and we still have that sweater today. I rank it a 7'5. This new design...sorry I don't know yet.

In 2017, Another Maxi Dress....I'm looking for comfort in my life...

LILBETTER Women V-Neck Polka Dot Print Spaghetti Strap Boho Long Maxi Dresses - GET IT HERE - Rank - 9

• Material:95% Rayon,5% Spandex,Comfortable and breathable.

• Attention:1)The front length is shorter than the back, 2)The seam of this maxi dress is in the front,3)The polka dots in the seam is random, some are no close matching. Please kindly look the details in the last image before you place the order.

• Feature:Sundress,Polka dots,V-Neck,Sleeveless,Adjustable spaghetti strap,Sling,full-Length,Long beach maxi dress

• Price USD$22.99

MY COMMENTS/REVIEW

I love this dress, I wore it just 2 days ago and it's still in the same condition and quality as the first day I bought it. Easy to wear, comfortable, great style and stitching, colour hasn't faded, it irons well and you don't even have to do that if you hang it right after drying it. A Great maxi dress, so mush so that my daughter saw it and i had to order one for her but this time a red. And we inter borrow ever so often. Love this. See it here: Rank 9

Please know that this post does have affiliate links and i will get a small commission if you should purchase an item but this helps with my expenses to continue my site and I thank you in advance.

OK I'm leaving some room for the other clothing and shoes in Part 2. See you then.

Later guys. Sorry men...that there isn't much here for you unless you're looking to buy something for the lady in your life.

Teespring & Placeit.net

Hi guys....I had a great weekend and a great week. This weekend I did a lot of online work and I recently discovered a site where you can place your designs on different mock ups ...for tees, phone cases, in art frames etc. I fell in love!! The best part was you can also create videos for your different social media platforms. Now if I didn't mention before I've recently gotten into designing and selling T shirts online. It's another creative outlet. So lets take count of all the different creative outlets I'm involved in? hm hm hm hm

Wall Art - Listing Abstracts and Watercolours on my 3 websites

1. Printable Planners

2. Art Prints

3. Youtube Demo Videos

4. Blogging

5. Video Creation

6. Selling Tees Online

7. Selling Products Online

YEP...I've gone overboard...but at least I'm having fun and I'm letting out my creative energy. Plus, I love learning new things and this was really new to me but extremely fun to do and quite useful for my Art Websites, Instagram, LinkedIn, and my Coaching Business. Because through this platform I was able to create some amazing Intros for my Businesses, my Youtube Channel videos and mock ups for my art and my Tees. Check out one of the videos I created using Placeit.net and you wouldn't believe how easy this was to do. They have everything set up and you simply choose colours, templates, etc. Judge for yourself.

Wasn't that great?!! It looks like a professional created it!!! What do you think, leave me a comment .....I'm so excited and proud of myself. When you create something you never thought you could even think to make, you feel exceptionally excited, proud and it builds a level of confidence you didn't know you had. You should all try it!

So what did you think?..... OK! Back to the topic at hand. Let me step back a bit and explain how this came about. I was listening to a Youtuber called Greg Gottfried and he talks about how he made money via Print on Demand because he lost his job suddenly and in looking for a way to make ends meet, and make some money without depending on the corporate world as he didn't want what happened to him to happen again, he discovered certain Print on Demand Platforms. With these different Print on Demand platforms he started to make a lot of money at the age of 23years. He still makes his money that way as well as via other online businesses. In one of his videos he introduced us to the platform Placeit.net. TADA!!!!! This is the site where you can create videos like the one above and much, much more.

I got so excited about it, as it also helps you come up with designs for your Tees to place on Teespring the platform where you can sell Tees based on a niche you love. So with your tee shirt platform you list the different designs on tees and they market them, ship them, in fact they take care of everything once the customer buys and you get a commission on every tee purchased. They actually show you the amount you can make on each tee when you list in the price you want that tee to cost. I want my tee to be very affordable so They're all $19.99 USD and I know the quality is good because I ordered 2 for myself. The Placeit.net platform is where you can make some of your designs as well as do mock ups to let them look more professional. So Placeit.net allows you to:

Make designs for your tees,

1. It helps you present them on mock ups,

2. It helps you develop Intros for your videos or

3. Videos for your social media platforms whether it's Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook or even Youtube.

GET YOUR CLOTHING HERE

I've used it for all or both of my businesses. It does cost a fee of $14USD/month, but you can simply keep it for the month and create as many videos, designs etc for your different medias then cancel the subscription. That's what I intend to do as I don't really need the platform for a lot of months, only until I have the relevant videos that I need. But the way I'm having so much fun with this platform, I don't think I'll just keep it for one month. I think I'll keep it until I think I no longer need it. It has allowed me to make some major videos for my Coaching Business - Rebitltd.com.

I've saved quite a lot by not having to hire someone to create my Intros as well as my Instagram videos. If any of you have read my blog post on Squarespace? I just want you to know that I don't talk about something that I don't use, this site, plus my other sites - gafra.org and rebitltd.com were both created by me on Squarespace. It's extremely easy and I enjoyed every minute. The same goes for Placeit.net and I also had a conversation with my brother who is a videographer. That's his business. He said yes, people like him are being put out of business by these platforms because it is cutting out the middleman and allowing a person to do things themselves, similar to self publishing and many other do it yourself platforms. That's the way of the Internet and all things Online.

So if you're interested in setting up a Tee shirt store? In my investigations there are quite a few platforms that allow you to do this, one or two of them I think I've mentioned before but recently I've started on some new ones - only 3. I was originally on Redbubble and I've been on Redbubble for about 3 years but I haven't made any sales. I was on Printful, and I liked the variety of products they have available for you to place your design, but then I thought it was free and recently I've been seeing a bill coming from them so I closed that account. don't get me wrong, if I had the funds I would keep some of these sites but you need to be picky about what you spend on these days. So the free platforms I have recently signed onto are the ones in bold, the others I've tried or still registered, or not:

Teespring

1. Redbubble (still with them)

2. Teechip

3. Zazzle

4. Society6

5. Merch on Amazon

GET YOUR SPORTS TEES HERE

Teespring - OK Let me explain that list. I recently started on Teespring and that is pretty easy to use, it's free but you have to choose a niche and stick to designs that fit that niche then design and post at least one hundred tees on the storefront.

1. Redbubble - As I mentioned, I've been on this platform since 2017 and no sales to date. not sure why as i list it on all my sites but nothing yet. I do like the products it has for you to place your designs on but it does take up a little of your time.

2. Teechip - This is new to me as well but also very simple and easy to use. It is also free but I can't say how the sales will be yet. Time will tell.

3. Zazzle - very similar to Redbubble but easier to use but just as good. I've recent not listed t on my sites as there i haven't made any sales to date as well and I've been on that site since 2017 as well.

4. Society6 - I left this platform as the requirements for the designs gave me trouble and I couldn't get it on many of their items and I started getting annoyed and their mark up was too high so the product to the customers would be very high and I didn't want that so I closed that account.

5. Merch on Amazon - This is new but you have to apply and wait for approval and they have an entire application form to complete and they tend to reject you quite a few times. I' haven't applied as their are account info they need and because I live in the Caribbean I have to take the time to get the account info and i haven't had time yet. Plus as I mentioned you will probably have to apply quite a few times before you get approved. but they are very good where sales are concerned as they are Amazon's Print on Demand, so there is a lot of access to the Amazon customers.

If you want more info on any of these platforms that I've mentioned let me know and I'll do the research and give you as much info as I can find.

Check you guys at the next post.

Regards,

Gafra

Some of the Woes of Having Your Own Business

Hi guys...No my business isn't doing poorly but we are going through tight times in this Country. Many businesses have had to close their doors or downsize. Yet despite that people are clamouring for more money or promotions or whatever, but I'm not sure the Government can give the increases. Yes! people will say, why not as they spend money on some unnecessary things or don't seem to be doing what is necessary for the people. It depends on your how you view what they do spend the money on. Lets get into the woes of a business.

VISIT MY ESTY SHOP, TEAPRINT, NOW

Having your own business is a difficult thing, it means selling all the time and ensuring that your finances are always as it should be to deal with all of your expenses. More so, if you have a lot of staff and their livelihood depends on you. One of the biggest problems you can encounter when you have your own business is Cash flow. Money problems in their various forms are top of most lists of company woes, and for small businesses the major worries are clients stalling payments, unexpected outgoings, and outstanding bills that won't wait to be paid. This is an area you have to be very diligent with, following up on your clients and their payments. Late or non payments can break a business if it isn't handled properly. Cash flow management.......the bane of the business world. The challenge? Cash flow is essential to small business survival, yet many of us small entrepreneurs struggle to pay the bills (let alone ourselves) while we're waiting for checks to arrive. That is the worrisome part, and that is what keeps us up at night. Will the payment come in on time so we can pay salaries, or pay off the loan or, or, or?????? But that isn't the only challenge.

So outside of the Cash flow issues what are the other challenges a small business can encounter?

The 10 biggest challenges businesses face today (and need consultants for)

• Uncertainty about the future.

• Financial management.

• Monitoring performance.

• Regulation and compliance.

• Competencies and recruiting the right talent.

• Technology.

• Exploding data.

• Customer service.

Within my Coaching business and in any business the first point goes for everyone. You can't run a business without worrying about the future and hope that everything runs smooth but that is not the reality. Every business runs into some type of challenge at some point whether its finances, staff, clients....something must and will go off at some point, it's how you ride it out and deal with the situation. It's the same in life...no matter what comes at you it's not the problem but how you deal with the problem and what you learn from it and how it made you grow. Everyone is the way they are due to the challenges they encountered in life and what they learned from them.

VISIT MY ART SITE AT WWW.GAFRA.ORG

One thing to note though, we small businesses are critical to an economy and although we don't always get good treatment from the banks or other financial institutions we matter. Us Small businesses contribute to local economies by bringing growth and innovation to the community in which the business is established. Small businesses also help stimulate economic growth by providing employment opportunities to people who may not be employable by larger corporations.

All in all despite the challenges we face, we've been in business since 2004 and still going so that must say something for our business acumen. It's mainly all to my husband and his hard work and his level of detail and his willingness to take on the hardest part of any business....sales and finance. I pray that we are able to main this business as a legacy for our kids and then retire worry free. That is the goal. I hope everyone of you, if you run your own business, I hope that you to can set and achieve such a goal if that is your aim.

So later guys, until Thursday, I'm keeping it short today, I'm a bit tired as I did 2 Markets this weekend. Go figure.

References:

• hiveage.com

• hiscox.co.uk

W2 - Women & Weight

Hi Guys.....hope you had a great weekend, I definitely did. I attended something called the Jesus Explosion. It's like a giant prayer meeting and conference for all to praise Jesus, attend workshops to help us understand our faith and to attend Mass and help the youth know their faith as well. It was AMAZING!!!!! It was like a praise fete. A fete is what we cll parties in Trinidad. I'm Roman Catholic and also what is known as a Charismatic Catholic so we praise and rejoyce like if we're partying. I had a real reconnection with Jesus and my God so I'm on a high. But that's not what I want to talk about today. I wanted to talk about something that we all have an issue with especially as we get older and sometimes even before that, while we are young....and that is weight gain.

I did one or two blogs on this topic, one was from the standpoint of when a woman reaches menopause and the weight starts piling on no matter what you do to try to get rid of it and the other blog was where I shared on an exercise routine that really helps you lose the weight using kettlebells. Today though I've reached ROCK BOTTOM ......I'm burnt out where exercising is concerned ........I just don't have the mental zest to do it. I just can't seem to want to exercise or even be able to push myself to start or try.

I think I really think I have exercise burnout. So what is my solution to that...since I can't even think about doing exercise...I think I need to start looking at my diet. I eat well and I try to eat properly but I met a young man who was fairly big in size and ...IF YOU SEE HIM NOW!!!!!OMG!! he is so slim and trim and I was in awe. Actually I didn't even recognise him. So what was his solution? Diet...and I don't mean all these ridiculous starvation diets or SlimFast diets etc. No he did the natural thing that we all should at some point.

GET YOUR PRINTABLE PLANNERS HERE

He stopped eating dairy, meat and consuming sugar. His consumption of meat is nil and he cut out flour and sugar. Now i'm sorry, I'm a bread mouth......I love pastries, bread, pies and anything flour but I do agree with him because last year I did my own experiment to see if I stopped eating bread for a month what would be the effect...and people......yep.....that was it. My stomach went down and I no longer felt bloated. But staying away from bread when you are surrounded by it everywhere and it's the easiest thing to consume and stay filled is mighty difficult.

Lately as I've stopped exercising at the rate I used to (I did gym in the morning doing kettlebell exercises for 1 hour then walked Chancellor (a very long steep hill) in the afternoon) and although I lost 7 lbs it became too much and I was too tired in the mornings after gym and this affected my ability to coach my clients during the day. I was just too tired. Unlike most men or even women who get more energy for the day when they do the gym in the morning, I am the opposite...I get very tired, so what now?

Now I'm looking to change how I eat because I'm fed-up of this back fat and it makes me very uncomfortable. I'm going to try the process of cutting out carbs in the evening as my first step. You can't change habits just like that, you need to inch into them slowly and build a routine first then it becomes the norm and easy follow through. So My first act is to eat normal during the day, good breakfast so I had half of a turkey sandwich with Chai tea this morning and I'll have food for lunch but this evening I might (hmmmm) walk in the gym with my husband, but dinner will be a protein shake and salmon or crix and peanut butter and jam. I'll do this for a few weeks and let's see what happens.

GET YOUR DIGITAL WALL ART PRINTS HERE

Not sure what I'm having for lunch, I usually eat with my mom and we buy something really filling but this week not sure what I'm eating. I'll will probably share a pasta and chicken meal with her before I leave her and that will be lunch. When I researched how to lose weight via a better nutrition I found this:

• Cut back on sugars and starches

• Eat protein, fat and vegetables

• Lift weights 3 times per week

10 tips to lose weight even faster:

• Eat a high-protein breakfast. ...

• Avoid sugary drinks and fruit juice. ...

• Drink water a half hour before meals. ...

• Choose weight loss-friendly foods (see list). ...

• Eat soluble fiber. ...

• Drink coffee or tea. ...

• Eat mostly whole, unprocessed foods. ...

• Eat your food slowly.

Protein Sources

• Meat: Beef, chicken, pork, lamb, etc.

• Fish and Seafood: Salmon, trout, shrimp, etc.

• Eggs: Whole eggs with the yolk are best.

• The importance of eating plenty of protein cannot be overstated.

This has been shown to boost metabolism by 80 to 100 calories per day.

GET YOUR PRINTABLE WALL ART HERE

High-protein diets can also reduce cravings and obsessive thoughts about food by 60%, reduce the desire for late-night snacking by half, and make you so full that you automatically eat 441 fewer calories per day — just by adding protein to your diet.

Low-Carb Vegetables

• Broccoli

• Cauliflower

• Spinach

• Tomatoes

• Kale

• Brussels sprouts

• Cabbage

• Swiss chard

• Lettuce

• Cucumber

Fat Sources

• Olive oil

• Coconut oil

• Avocado oil

• Butter

HOW I PLAN TO LOSE MY WEIGHT?

Despite what was recommended above I want to try what the young man I mentioned earlier did and that was to cut out all dairy, meat and sugar. Not sure what he did about carbs so I will talk to him to find out more. I'll let you know what I discovered.

Later guys.

Reference:

1. How to Lose Weight Fast: 3 Simple Steps, Based on Science by Kris Gunnars

MORE POSTS:

How to Delegate: An Easy Method

Hi guys…...so you must be really fed up with my series now….well I hope not because TADDA!!!! I have one more and I will let this one be the last unless you want more. If you do want more let me know, drop me a line at gfrancistt@gmail.com and simply say……”continue the series!” and I will. I enjoy helping you understand how to delegate along with information all about delegating.

Delegation as a Leadership Style. ... As a supervisor, manager, or team leader, you make daily decisions about the appropriate leadership style to employ in each work situation. You want to foster employee involvement and employee empowerment to enable your team members to contribute their best effort at work.

The Importance of Delegation. To delegate is to assign responsibility and authority to someone else in order to complete the task at hand but you retain the overall responsibility for its success. Delegation of authority is very important to any organization as it empowers employees or team members.

Through delegating powers, the subordinates get a feeling of importance. ...Delegation also helps in breaking the monotony of the subordinates so that they can be more creative and efficient. Delegation of authority is not only helpful to the subordinates but it also helps the managers to develop their talents and skills.

The Common Barriers in Delegating Authority:

• Reluctant To Delegate. Some managers are reluctant to delegate authority to subordinates.

• Fear Of Losing Importance.

• Loss Of Control.

• Mutual Distrust.

• Fear Of Subordinates.

• Incompetent Subordinates.

• Lack Of Motivation.

Here are the six steps you should work through when delegating:

• Prepare. Employees can't deliver quality results if the task delegated to them isn't fully thought out, or if expectations keep changing.

• Assign.

• Confirm understanding.

• Confirm commitment.

• Avoid “reverse delegating”.

• Ensure Accountability.

Delegation involves following three elements:

• Assignment of Responsibility: The first step in delegation is the assignment of work or duty to the subordinate i.e. delegation of authority.

• Grant of Authority: The grant of authority is the second element of delegation.

• Creation of Accountability

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Seven delegation strategies to practice:

1. Learn to let go.

2. Establish a firm priority system.

3. Play to your workers' strengths.

4. Always include instructions.

5. Don't be afraid to teach new skills.

6. Trust, but verify.

The Easy Method

I want to introduce a method that is simple and I created a Delegation Planner for anyone to be able to follow very easily. The planner has the following pages:

1. Year to Date Calendar – know the dates

2. Meeting Organiser – determine the meetings you will have to arrange

3. Meeting Agenda

4. Project(s) Organiser Sheet – What are the projects and who is best suited to do specific tasks

5. Project Task Listing – What are the projects and who should be involved

6. Delegation Task Planner – List who will do what task based on the listing of tasks needed to complete the project

7. Delegation Follow-up/Tracking Sheet – follow up on the status of where the person has reached with the task they are responsible for

8. Delegation Call To Action Planning Sheet – Plan out all that each person does

9. Monthly Plan – for each month where does the project need to be

10. Weekly Plan- the plan for the week and the status

11. Daily Planner- what has to happen each day

12. Today’s List – the list of tasks for each person to know what they need to do

13. Scheduling Sheet- block the times for every task that they are doing

14. Notes to Remember – general notes

15. Delegation Process Instruction

Why Subordinates do not accept Delegation:

Subordinates may reluctant to accept delegation of authority for the following reasons: Subordinates may lack confidence in their ability to accept additional responsibility. Subordinates may reluctant to accept authority and make decisions for fear that they would be criticized or dismissed for making wrong decisions.

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What You Should Not Delegate:

• Boring Tasks. Delegate tasks that your teammates will be interested in. ...

• Crises. Real crises may need your authority or expertise to resolve. ...

• Ill-Defined Tasks. ...

• Confidential Matters. ...

• Praise or Reprimand. ...

• Planning the Development of Your Team. ...

• Tasks for Which You Are Responsible.

I hope this was of some help and I would like to encourage you to try the delegation planner to help you be better at delegating.

References:

1. Accountlearning.blogspot.com

2. Fastcompany.com

3. Inc.com

4. Projects.ncsu.edu

Let's Chat with Gafra - Episode #2

Hi Guys......I wanted to do my post a bit different, in fact every now and then instead of writing I'll be doing a mini Podcast like this. I've done this before in one of my former posts and as I really enjoyed it I plan to do more. Leave me your comments or suggestions of anything you would like me to talk about. Life is just so interesting, we can talk about anything. So I hope you enjoy this chat.

Listen to the most recent episode of my podcast: https://anchor.fm/gail-francis/episodes/ep-e87l4u

Later people, luv you all.

Regards,

Gafra

Christmas in Mayo

Hi Guys.....I have a surprise for you. Well!! TADA!!!! One of my clients that I coach was a journalist with a published short story and today I'm sharing that story with you. Why you may ask? Good question. I'm sharing it to kill a few birds with one stone (I hope you're familiar with that saying, if not ah well). So in coaching my clients I normally try to encourage them to get back into doing the things they love. It not only fills them with joy but it allows them to realise that even though time has passed you can still do whatever you want. So one....sharing his short story has excited him back to the time when he wanted to write an anthology of short stories, so based on this new drive we may get to read a few more. Second, from his story you get a glimpse into how life used to be and maybe kinda still is in the Country areas of Trinidad.

In Trinidad you're either from the country or town, from north, south, east or west. His story brought back nice feeling of Christmas for me but my Christmas was totally different to his, because he is a country boy (like my husband) and I'm a town chick, so I didn't do the things he mentioned. He is from the south while I'm from the east, but let me stop writing and share the short story. I hope you enjoy it and there maybe some things mentioned you don't understand, but I'm sure you will get the gist. If you like the story give it a thumbs up in the comment section of my blog and check you later, love you guys.

CHERISHED DREAMS OF CHRISTMAS IN MAYO

A small rowdy bunch stood outside the iron gate at our home in Mayo Village, shadowy figures looming out of the darkness on Christmas morning. It was about 5:30am.

As fas as I could remember they were always there to greet us and seemed to appear out of nowwhere. All you heard were the dogs in the village barking, and before you knew it they were at the gate.

In the dawn I could barely make out the faces of Papa Flood, Slade, Aunty Patsy, Uncle Richie, Reuben, Pappy, Tantie Beryl, and Mandrake, the only East Indian in this riotous assemblage, and several other intoxicated villagers.

Pappy, who was already in his 80's, was tall and sinewy, Papa Flood whose passion was hunting had teeth missing, spoke with a whistle. Slade, a robust looking individual was always picking fights and Aunty Patsy who chattered ceaselessly.

"Philip," shrieked Aunty Patsy, calling out to my father. "You doh see us out by de gate? You better come and hold this dog."

She was already a bit inebrieated from other early house visits and her speach was slurred. This eccentric group, somehow blessed with stamina and an insatiable appetite, was able to parang throughout the night.

Now mayo is a very small village so it was no problem to parang at a house twice during the course of the night. Whether the "paranderos" knew that was another matter.

It was considered a crime not to open the gate, and you were expected to come out no matter what the hour. My father, groggy from the night before, would rush out to greet them. Angela, my mother on the other hand, reluctantly made her way to the living room.

Newspapers had to be spread quickly on the wooden floor because the varnish had not yet dried. As the village crowd made their way in, I heard mummy shouting: " All yuh better walk where the paper is. The varnish still wet." Actually, she was the onlu sober one in the bunch, so what she was saying must have sounded like gibberish. By this time, my father, grabbing a bottle and spoon, joined the noise.

But this was Christmas in Mayo, what it was about: fmily and friends coming together for a bout of merriment, bacchannalia and abandon, a time when strictures were loosened.

It was a little rural village that took on a pulsating life of its own at Christmas. Just on outskirts of Tortuga, Mayo bristled with activity. The characters here one would meet no where else.

But even before the tuneless parang songs were sung at out modest home, our family had attended midnight mass, a solemn affair that didn't last too long. My three younger sisters and I were all dressed, bundled up and marched up to church.

Whether we were sleeping or not made no difference to my parents.

"De best place to meet Christmas is church," I remembered my father saying.

The Priest, Father Ging was not too keen on long sermons so before you knew it, it was over.

In those days having your father in church was a big thing. Apart from the older men, most fathers were conspicuously absent. My father though never missed a Midnight Mass.

Under an umbrella of stars and with a chilly breeze blowing, my father with my youngest sister in his arms, and holding my hand, trudged back home with his family. Mummy walked at his side.

On the way, scents and sounds punctuated the air. Some people would still be putting up curtains and some were already asleep. The parang band could be heard in the distance.

By the time we got home, tiredness took its toll. We eargerly anticipated Santa Claus' arrival. As I made my way to the bedroom I often took one last lingering look at our spartan home: the new curtains were up, the smell of baked bread wafted through the air and the ham was still in the oven. The world itself seemed to take on a whole new glow. For a moment time stood still.

What stands out the most in my mind is the christmas tree that stood in the corner - a dried branch in a pot of sand. From it hung home made decorations made by my mother. In those days the tree remained unlit.

Our sleep was usually cut short by the paranging at our gate just before dawn. If signalled the arrival of Papa Flood and the rest. By the time they left, the ham was already whittled away, all the rum bottles were open and all that remainde of the manicou was the oil it was cooked in.

The floor with the wet varnish had footprints all over it. It was as if a whirlwind had passed.

The rest of the day was spent gorging ourselves on homemade ice-blocks and sweet fudge. A swim in the Mayo river which flowed at the back of our home was mandatory.

My Father always made it a duty for us to visit his mother, who lived almost poosite the Mayo cemetery. She was the most genial grandmother one could ever come across.

Looking back now, these simple people were part of the fabric of our lives. Each of them I held in awe. At that time they all seemed larger than life. even when my father joined Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and the rum stopped flowing at our home, they still came.

These cherished memories live on and every Christmas I relive them. I can still hear Pappy's quatro strumming and Auntie Patsy's shrieks. The Old Church where we all celebrated Midnight mass has since been replaced by a new one, the house to house tradition has died out and Christmas in Mayo is quieter now.

Most of the stalwart characters have since passed on - Slade, Pappy, Flood, Patsy, Mandrake and my father - my idol. But these were memories of boyhood dreams I now cherish as a man.

What is Quantum Physics?

Hi Guys...recently I stumbled upon a process called Art Therapy. As I always mention, I'm an artist as well as a Coach and Blogger, so this process sounded very interesting to me. I'm always looking for ways, fun ways to help others understand them selves or understand a point I'm trying to make. For example, when I'm doing the topic communication, there is an exercise I use that helps them undertsand the different communication personalities or styles they and others have. When they understand that then they understand why people react the way they do during an interaction. The Art Therapy caught my interest because it may provide exercises that will allow my clients to let out or free themselves from some of the emotional baggage they carry.

So what does Quantum Physics have to do with Art Therapy? Before I answer, I have always believed that we are all made up of energy. Everything has an energy force and our energies intertwine and inetract or come into contact with each other. That is why sometimes you just don't feel comfortable around a particular person, because their energy or frequency doesn't mesh with yours, or it could be that you are pickng up something about that person and that is why you feel uncomtortable.

We are all sensitive to each other, some more than others. If you follow the zodiac....not the readings...but the personality types for your birth month, depending on which personality profile you read, most of them are spot on in the behaviours, likes, dislikes, habits, attitudes of the person born on that month....give or take a few points. Pisces are people born between February and March. They tend to be very sensitive to other people's emotions or frequencies.

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I'm a Leo, so I'm feisty, know what I want, generous, can be a bit controlling but I'm also very decisive and I don't take S...T from anyone. Oh!! and don't try to control me, I'm extremely independent. Anyway, back to the frequencies and how they affect how we interact. Quantum physics is a concept where it is believed that everything is made up of energy, so much so that your thoughts are energy and even your feelings.

What is Quantum Pyhsics?

Quantum theory is the theoretical basis of modern physics that explains the nature and behavior of matter and energy on the atomic and subatomic level.

Quantum mechanics (QM; also known as quantum physics, quantum theory, the wave mechanical model, or matrix mechanics), including quantum field theory, is a fundamental theory in physics which describes nature at the smallest scales of energy levels of atoms and subatomic particles.

What is the difference between Quantum Physics and Quantum Mechanics?

Quantum mechanics (QM; also known as quantum physics, quantum theory, the wave mechanical model, or matrix mechanics), including quantum field theory, is a fundamental theory in physics which describes nature at the smallest scales of energy levels of atoms and subatomic particles.

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Where does this come into play with my discovery of Art Therapy, welllllll???? Art Therapy uses art exercises to help us relieve ourselves of any emotional issues we may have and I feel that in knowing that other people's energy can also affect you you are better equipped to deal with challenged and issues.

I also stumbled upon a workbook one person mentioned that has a lot of symbols that are representative of the different Chakras that exist in everything and these chakra symbols help ground you in different ways. So what is a chakra?

Literally speaking, the word “chakra” from Sanskrit translates to “wheel” or “disk,” but references a spiritual energy center within the human body, of which there are seven along the spine, and through the neck and the crown of your head, according to the Chopra Center. I'm sure you are all familiar with Deepak Chopra, an aazing man, very much loved by Oprah and quite a deep spiritual individual.

I've been to one of his seminars, it was amazing. Anyway, these chakras, there are 7. Were mentioned in this workbook and they can be used to deal with different emotional issues. I found this very interesting as I am always looking for exeercises to help my clients. what are the chakras?

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Chakras are the circular vortexes of energy that are placed in seven different points on the spinal column, and all the seven chakras are connected to the various organs and glands within the body. These chakras are responsible for disturbing the life energy, which is also known as Qi or Praana. Chakra, also spelled Cakra, Sanskrit C̣akra, (“wheel”), any of a number of psychic-energy centres of the body, prominent in the occult physiological practices of certain forms of Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism.

What do the 7 chakras mean?

1. The Root Chakra -

Root Chakra – Muladhara

The official name of this chakra, Muladhara, comes from the words Mula, which means root and Dhara, which means support.

So, this chakra’s role is to connect all of your energy with the Earth, which is called grounding

2. The Sacral Chakra -

Sacral Chakra – Svadhishana

The 2nd chakra is the sacral chakra or svadhishana which translates to “the place of the self.”This chakra is all about your identity as a human and what you do with it. From of all 7 chakras, this chakra is responsible for bringing you creative energy to help enrich your life.Your sacral chakra is the home of the creative life force energy that helps you enjoy your life here on Earth.

3. The Solar Plexus Chakra -

Solar Plexus – Manipura

The 3rd chakra is the Solar Plexus or Manipura which translates to “lustrous gem.” This chakra is where your self-confidence, identity, and personal power are born. Have you ever been in a situation that you just knew wasn’t right for you? Where did you feel those cues in your body? Most people say they feel those types of cues in their “gut.”In reality, this is the seat of your personal power, your solar plexus, and you can physically feel that confidence and wisdom in its location.

4. The Heart Chakra -

Heart – Anahata

The 4th chakra is the Heart or Anahata chakra, which translates to “unhurt.” This chakra is where your love, compassion, and kindness are empowered. It’s not hard to understand this chakra. We all associate our hearts with love, and that’s exactly what the 4th chakra is all about. And this includes love for others and love for yourself, which is why this chakra is also associated with health and healing.

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5. The Throat Chakra -

Throat – Vishuddha

The 5th chakra is the Throat chakra or Vishuddha which translates to “very pure.” This chakra gives a voice to your personal truths. So, where does your voice come from?What provides the energy for you to speak? On a physical level, of course, the answer is the throat, but on an energetic level, this energy actually comes from your 5th chakra. This chakra lets you speak your truth with clarity. Resting right above the heart, the throat chakra is connected to the compassion and love you have for yourself and others.

6. The 3rd Eye Chakra -

The Third Eye – Ajna

The 6th chakra is the Third Eye Chakra Ajna which translates to “beyond wisdom.” This chakra opens up your mind to information beyond the material world and the 5 senses. Extrasensory perception, intuition or psychic energy, all come from the third eye. There is actually a small pinecone-shaped gland in your brain that takes in light. This gland, the pineal gland, is responsible for helping you feel awake in the daytime and sleepy at night. Long before brain imaging, ancient cultures knew this Third Eye existed, and they also realized it received information from sources outside of the five senses.

7. The Crown Chakra -

Crown – Sahaswara

The 7th chakra is the Crown or Sahaswara, which translates to “thousand petaled.” This chakra is pure consciousness energy. The Crown chakra is one of those energies that’s hard to explain. You can think of it like magnetism. When you hold a piece of metal to a magnet, you can feel the energy and tension, but you can’t see it. Consciousness energy is everywhere and in everything. It connects us to the entire universe. Our own personal consciousness is located in the 7th chakra, but it’s really more like the seed of a universal energy than something personal or individual.

So again,  what does this have to do with Art Therapy?All of this is very interesting to me because although I am Catholic and I do believe in the energy that surrounds us and is in us. God is the center of that energy and we are all connected. These chakras have their place in our existance but my interest was in the different symbols for each and as I love Mandalas, they seem to fall right into those categories. Mandalas are very soothing and relaxing for me to draw so i'm sure they will also be relaxing for my clients. The Chakra symbols, the Mandalas, The whole combination with Art Therapy is defintely going to take my coaching to a different level once I know how I'm going to incorporate it and when. The Chakra symbols can form part of the Art Therapy exercises,  so kill a few birds with one stone. Get them into healing symbols that are also good as therapy but in an artistic way.

What is a Mandala?  I drew this one. They are balls with Mandala designs.

SO WHAT IS THE PLAN?

Next to my Mandala is the Root Chakra Symbol.....Looks like a mandala to me, don't you agree. ok!!! So, if you want to know more about Quantum Physics, check youtube, even Will Smith had something to say about it's importance and its impact on us as individuals and on our lives. I eventually want to use what I learn about Art Therapy to help others, to help my clients. Hope all of this was interesting, check you at my next post.

I'm On Youtube

Hi guys…I’M ON YOUTUBE!!!!!… Yes!! I’ve joined the gang of video makers, I’ve taken the plunge. I started a Youtube channel, and I’m sure you’re wondering what it’s all about?…Welllll!!! I’m gonna tell you. First it's under my name "Gail Francis" and as you know I love art and I love to Paint. I've been a self taught Artist for most of this painting life except when I took the classes in the beginning, if you can call them classes as they wee more like High tea with some wonderful older women. Anyway, check my earlier blog to read that story. So, yes I love art and I love to paint but there were lots of stuff I learned by chance, by looking at other artists or based on my research. To this day I'm still discovering tips and tricks I didn't know about and that's what I want to share on my channel....the tips and techniques I've learned. I want to share them with other start up artist who are just as confused as I was when I first started painting.

I started off with watercolours, but I've since diverged into acrylics and now mixed mediums. I used acrylics for my abstracts only but now I'm using them for my expressive paintings and I've started creating different series. One such series is my Women in the water, the other is my Daisy series, and now I've started my Angel series and my A Series of Feelings paintings, starting with Gratitude. I still do watercolours and I'm working on one called the Last Supper, but I tend to take longer to complete the watercolours as I keep getting pulled to the Impressionistic and abstract paintings. I also discovered Intuitive painting and this has me in a grip, as it allows me to be loose, uncaring, unafraid of mistakes and unafraid when the piece looks ugly. In fact ugly is good. What a change for me.

Here is my Intro. launch of my youtube channel:

If you're curious for more go check out my video on How to paint an Angel. Now please note I'm a beginner at this Youtube video stuff so I still have a lot of improvements to make, but it's a start. If you have any feedback or comment to make, all are welcomed....the good, the bad and the crazy and don't forget to subscribe.

My Comments

I have to say though that being on youtube is fun but it's also a lot of work. I learned today that you can't simply upload a video once a week my making the video that week. You have to do a mass of 3-4 videos in one day then schedule the uploads once a week. No wonder people are always in the same clothes for a few different videos. Duhhhh!!! Not sure how that will work for me but it does make sense. It also means that you have to plan what you want to show and plan out all that will be needed for the 3 or 4 videos to be made. The next lengthy task is the editing. OMG!!!! That one is a pain in the butt,,,,,,fun but time consuming. People all those youtubers have to love making videos because its no simple task.

It took me a while to get the hang of editing and I'm still learning how to do certain effects. I had to use imovie on my Mac as I wasn't able to download or pay for the fancier editing app, maybe soon. I think I'll do a post soon on what I've learned when it comes to doing a youtube video, how about that?!!!! But for now I hope you enjoy the video and go check out the others. AND DON'T FORGET TO BE MY FIRST SUBSCRIBERSssssss!!!!!!

Love you guys and later

Regards, Gafra

Monetising Your Blog

Hi guys…..I’m going to talk about blogging and how it has been for me so far. I'm not on a rant this time because you learn so much when you do all your research and from all the reading I’ve done I’ve learnt quite a bit about blogging. I've also been doing it since October 2018 (and I can only talk about my experience). Firstly, I have to go back to the beginning as to why I started blogging. I went into blogging for different reasons.

1. I wanted to share and sell my Art…….gafra.org....gafra-art.com

2. I wanted to be able to share my thoughts about different topics……triniartstudio.org (formerly triniartstudio.net)

3. I wanted to share my Natural Hair journey through my experiences…….gafraihairu.com, (this blog has since been placed on hold.)

4. Blogging was a great way to make another income stream. (I am still to see that happen.)

5. I wanted a voice and a way to journal my thoughts and share them.

I've enjoyed writing for my 4 blogs but learnt that that is way too many, plus I sorta ran out of zest for my hair blog an it was also too much to think about topics for all 4 blogs, so I whined them down to 3 blogs......2 for my art and one for my Cultural lifestyle/thoughts. No one mentions how much work is involved and that you need to be able to write well…your posts must at least be able to keep the attention of your audience., so keeping up with 4 blogs got the better of me and I had to streamline. I've kept what I learned from all the different research I did via Pinterest, Google, etc, where they all say that its your blog and just be you and speak as if you’re talking to a friend. That was fine but it’s not easy to write content that is well written and keeps people’s attention. I must though that so far I've gained some really nice followers and I hope I add value to their lives based on what I share in my blog.

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I love English and I like writing, I didn't realise how much until I started blogging and I don't really care too much if people feel my writing ins't good enough. I do my best to be clear and to be me and I just want to have a voice to say and share what I wanted to. But the other side of this, if you want your blog to be a means to earn a living then I've encountered some big differences with what I've researched and what other bloggers say, who write blogs about that topic and what I've experienced. It's wayyyyyy more difficult to monetize a blog and more so if you're outside of the USA. I remember speaking with my brother-in-law about this, that was at the start, when I was now beginning my first and only blog ( now I have 3).

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In starting this blog…www.triniartstudio.org…it was originally to share my Artwork and to try to sell it online, but as I went along and time passed, I went through a transition and that name and the look of the site no longer reflected me artistically, so I kept triniartstudio.org as my lifestyle blog and I rebranded my art blogs to GaFra…..www.gafra.org (my wordpress art blog)….and gafra-art.com (more recently, my squarespace art blog) because my attitude and mindset had changed, as well as my art and lifestyle persona, so I needed to change the image. As usual I did a lot of research because now I wanted to sell my art online and I wanted to share my skills and offer certain aspects of it for sale very reasonably (my printable planners) online as well through my lifestyle blog. After having tried all variety of marketplaces: Fineartamerica, Big Cartel, Artpal, Etsy, ArtFinder and many more none of them worked. I sold nothing.

I've kept my Etsy Shop called Teaprint for my Printable planners and rebranded the shop to be a lot more professional as per what I learned in the different Pinterest articles and youtube videos I watched, but still I haven't sold anything and I've had the shop since February 2019. I'm a bit concerned as to why and that is my major focus lately....figuring out why I haven't sold any planners or Art prints.

Let's start at the beginning:

So when you start a blog, there are few things you need to consider:

1. Can you write well enough to hold a person’s attention

2. Is what you have to share interesting or not?

3. Do you really need to build a list of at least 100 topics so you never run out of things to talk about?

4. When you share your information is it properly written?

5. Do you know how to create proper cover pages for your blog post? And do you know where you can go to do that?

6. Do you even know how to build a blog?

Oh and there is even more....I also wanted to write a book. So aside from knowing if you have the writing skills to write the posts I wanted to go further. I wanted to write a book. I put together my husband’s poems to develop an ebook and publish it for him. That was my test run and it went OK. My ebook will be a different matter, I'm still deciding which topic to write on...sigh.

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I’ve always had a book on my bucket list and after reading all the different blogs about how you can do this, I am still tentative, it takes more than you think and only when you're in the midst of doing it do you encounter all the issues, but I tend to be very determined once I start something, and I go until its completed. Guess that's why I haven't started the ebook yet. (smile)

But what is great, is that through the research, like I mentioned above, you encounter all these sites that can help you and I also read from other book publishers, that you can publish it yourself via Amazon Kindle Publishing, but there are also courses that help you go through the process easily. I discovered one of these programs, of course I found it after the fact. It’s always after you struggle you discover all these helpful sites. I recently came upon this program:

Its called The Low Content Mastery training package. It's a course that teaches you how you can make money publishing journals, planners and other profitable low content books on Amazon KDP Print. The program includes:
Module #1: Step-by-Step Training Guides (10, plus free updates)

Module #2: Done-for-you book templates (all sizes)

Module #3: Pre-made Book Covers with Source Files

Module #4: Niche Profit Reports

Module #5: Over-my-shoulder video tutorials.

So don’t be like me and struggle, invest in learning the correct way to publish so that you don’t get lost or go off track like I did.

So what were some of the errors I made and eventually corrected?

1. Write out the 100 topics so I had a flow for my blogs

2. Learn to develop covers for every blog posts

3. Understand the correct format for the posts and how to pull readers.

4. Understand how to use Amazon KDP.

5. Understand how to use the book templates correctly.

6. Didn't use Viglink to earn money

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So I know I don’t want the same errors to occur again with my book attempt. When I start my book, which I want to start very soon, sorta. People do your homework and make sure you understand the best process to follow to get your book online and to even write good content whether its for your blog or your book. If you want it to be purchased, do the right thing, be properly prepared so that it’s purchased. See if the mastery course can help you.

Check out Low Content Mastery.

Another aspect they don't warn you about is understanding the entire process of auto-responding to the clients or traffic that you gain. luckily I set up two of my blogs with Squarespace and one with Wordpress, but now I have 1 with Squarespace and 2 with Wordpress.  I learnt that you have to link to a site that can organise all your emails like:

• Tool #1: Aweber....

• Tool #2: MailChimp. ...

• Tool #3: iContact. ...

• Tool #4: Constant Contact. ...

• Tool #5: InfusionSoft. ...

• Tool #6: GetResponse. ...

• Tool #7: 1ShoppingCart. ...

• Tool #8: Autoresponse Plus

• Tool #9: VigLink....

GET YOUR FREE CHEAT SHEET of all the sites with tools to help you with your Blog.

Right, so with my Art, below is a sample of one of my watercolour art piece, as well as what my wordpress site looks like

GET YOUR ART HERE

The things I've learned about trying to monetise my blog are:

Not only is it difficult to drive traffic to a blog, but it's also hard to monetize the traffic that you do receive.

Monetizing your blog via:

1. Affiliate marketing. ...

2. Advertisements. ...

3. Email marketing. ...

4. Sell ebooks. ...

5. Sell courses. ...

6. Sell digital products. ...

7. Sell coaching services. ...

8. Secure sponsorships.

9. Re-affiliate links....

1. I tried the Affiliate marketing but the money is extremely small and I made nothing from the few affiliates i used. I picked affiliates that I added value to me and whoever might be interested in it, but nope...didn't make anything

2. I've had Ads on all my blogs from day one. It was said that it would clog up my site but it hasn't and i kinda like the Ads but I haven't made anything from that either.

3. I haven't tried this yet...not sure why...guess still researching its viability

4. Did the ebook but using my husbands poetry book that put together and I've even offered it as a bundle with one of my printable planners but nothing there either.

5. I created a course and set it up on Teachable. I liked the whole process but no one has registered plus I need to go back into teachable to reactivate the account but I'm considering moving the ecourse to squarespace. Just have to understand how to set it up first...research. lol

6. This is what I do. I sell Digital Artwork and planners and again nothing.

7. I haven't tried this, not sure how to set it up plus I do coaching here in the Caribean and I don't think I'll have the time to do it Online as well as I see 3 clients sometimes 4 clients a day.

8. Not sure about this and I don't think I understand what that is about...research.

So people....I need help...any and all advice is welcomed. I'm still doing research on why I haven't had any sales and what do I need to do to have people buy my art which is all I want. I want you to enjoy my pieces and place them in your homes, on your walls and anywhere you can look at them and feel good or at peace. I'll figure it out, eventually. If anyone has some advice about selling online I'm open to any advice. Ask me anything and maybe one of you can get me out of this no sales rut. I would be greatly appreciative and grateful.

I look forward to hearing from you...gfrancistt@gmail.com

>Research, research, research<

>Emotions Good and bad<

With Love, Time Matters Not

Hi everyone....sorry I'm late but I was sooooo busy this week, I didn't get to do my post, so I'm doing it as we speak,  and thank God in Trinidad we have a lot of holidays and today is one. We are celebrating Corpus Christ today and yesterday was also a holiday - Labour Day. Isn't that great? 2 holidays in the middle of the week...yipeee!!!

But that's not what I wanted to talk about, just giving you an intro....yesterday with 2 other friends we organised a Prayer Meeting....well actually it was like a Prayer Group Reconnection, as my husband and I once belonged to a Prayer Group while at University in Trinidad (UWI) and that group became our extended family.

We did many things together as a Prayer Group, we went on camp outs, went to areas to help pray with people, we did talks in different communities, we played cricket against other prayer groups and we basically ended up marrying within the group. That is where I found my husband, and friends for life, in fact many of the married couples I know today came out of that prayer group.

Amongst the couples, we all have 4 or 5 kids and our children grew up together, but as time passed the Leader grew tired and the prayer group sort of dissolved right under our noses without us realising what was happening and people scattered. It was sad but it  happened subtly and quickly, but we knew, in our hearts, that everyone still belonged to the prayer group even though it didn't exist anymore. We were all still connected in our hearts especially because the group had changed so many lives, built so many foundations within individuals and transformed many. We 3 ladies organised a reconnect and it was an amazing success.

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I have to explain that me and 1 of these ladies had been trying to get together for ages to try to plan this reconnection but was always diverted or not available or thwarted in some way. We even met once then had to cancel because an issue occurred for one of us and she had to leave, so it was postponed. It's only when we brought in lady number 3 that things happened quickly. And as someone pointed out, we needed the 3 of us to let it happen for God is the Trinity, 3 in one and Trinidad is known as La Trinity, so nothing can happen until there are 3 working on his plan. We know that God had this happen for a reason, we know he needed the 3 of us to start it and it became clear why based on what words and prophesies we received at the meeting.

You must be wondering...what the heck is prayer group?Well.....

A prayer group is a meeting of lay people from all walks of life for the purpose of prayer as a group. The Prayer meetings are normally conducted outside regular services. Prayer groups are made of small numbers of Christians, often between 6 and more, and led by a Prayer Group leader(s). ... Prayer meetings may consist of praise and worship (singing), prayer, worship, Bible sharing, testimonials, discussions and a fellowship meal/snacks.

GET THEM HERE

Our country and the world is going through many difficult psychological and economical times. There is a lot more stress at work, thus causing a lot more anger, violence, illnesses, worry, poor decision making, bad relationships and so much more. People are looking to be loved and are betrayed, people are angry with injustice and rise up in protest and many are running from persecution or political wrangling.

So now was a great time to resurrect a group that was spiritually guided and blessed. We were and are a Prayer group that was created to help the students on Campus and todate the spirituality of the students at the university is in peril. The Catholic group on Campus is not as vibrant as it once was, so we know that is why this reconnection was necessary. It was necessary to feed life back into the spiritual group of kids at the University because they needed help. Not only that but we found out that many students were struggling to stay afloat at the University because their grants weren't coming in on time or they were short of cash for food and more. This is where we plan to help. we could feed the body as well as the soul.

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We planned to help feed some of these kids, provide a spiritual place they can come and fellowship and be at ease and help with fees where possible. So just to clarify, I am a Catholic, more than that I am a Charismatic Catholic which means we praise Jesus in a similar way to the Pentecostals but within our Catholic religion. We are not traditional in our praise and as a result many of the traditionalistic priests of the Catholic faith are totally against us and how we operate, but we all praise and worship the same God so despite the barriers we encounter sometimes we continue on, for the love of Jesus.

No guys...I'm not preaching to you or anyone else, just explaining where I stand. God has been my foundation and strength all through my 55 years here on this earth. From young I've felt his presence and known he was with me. At that time I didn't know what is was and I started searching to find which religion or spiritual group could help me strengthen the connection. I tried Raj Yoga, Rosicrucion, Pentecostal, transcendental meditation, then I heard about the prayer group while I was on Campus decided to attend a meeting, and that was it for me....I had come home...I found my resting place. As a Catholic family growing up we didn't really go to church much and I didn't really follow the traditions but I knew something was with me or someone, just not sure who. I knew it was God but where did he want me to make my link so I could build myself according to his will...and this group was it.

There I discovered my gifts of the Spirit and I discovered deep friendships, so much so that we are each others children's Godparents, and that is how it should be. We are a strong spiritual core and I thank God for sending me to them. There is a deep love between us all even though as the group scattered we still felt the same about each other, coming together after 24 years. Yes....!!!!!.......we had our last meeting in 1995. I was appalled to realise how much time had passed, but as someone mentioned in the meeting yesterday, to God, 24 years is but a few minutes, probably 24 minutes. After thinking about it like that I was fine, in fact it always amazes me or puts me in awe of how God works and we really don't understand how he operates, even though he has described his ways in the bible, I know I still don't get it.

CLICK HERE TO SEE MY ART

As humans we haven't developed our psyche enough to make that incredible spiritual link to our Heavenly father here on earth. I tried and was distracted by the world, so I lost my footing, stumbled and it is taking me a while to catch myself back, especially as I kinda blamed God for allowing me to trip. I felt he could have prevented it if he wanted, but life is a choice, as I always tell my clients who I coach, we need to take personal responsibility for the decisions we make and therefore accept the consequences, while not placing blame on anyone else. I take my blame and I have accepted my punishments or consequences, but God loves me and my reprimand although hard and I still pay today, has made me stronger and wiser and opened my eyes to discern certain issues better.

One thing I must mention, when I discovered this group, I brought my mother and brother into the fold and their lives changed. At the time my mother was estranged from my father and he was being very malicious towards us, but that worked itself out, my father died (killed by his way of life) and I thank God again for leading me to the group and helping my family find the spiritual family and foundation they needed to go on in life. It also helped build the spirituality within my kids and they have all been blessed and they are a strong group of kids ( I have 4). In fact all of the children born out of the Prayer Group are amazing individuals and are all doing extremely well. God is good, all the time.

So people, find your connection to your God, who ever or whatever that may be and if that feeling inside you saying that there is a Spiritual Being linked to you, go find it and let it guide you because for me God's guidance is unmeasurable and without him I am nothing. I thank him for my journey in life and I thank him daily for all that I have and I thank him for all the love he spews on me and I thank him for you my followers and virtual friends. Be blessed people. God is Love.

What is a Harvest?

Hey guys.....Well last weekend I was involved in my Church Harvest. In Trinidad almost every Catholic parish has their own Harvest, schools have something similar but it's called a Bazaar. Our Church Harvest is one of the best and most popular because we have the best prizes and entertainment. I am a volunteer with a stall called Lock & Key and another stall called Cat in Bag. What are stalls? And what is a harvest?

A harvest is like fun family day with games but you have to pay to play because these harvests are how the different parish churches raise funds to deal with any expenses, repairs or major renovations that needs to be done to the church. Our church had to change the roof 2-3 years back and it was funded by the money made from the different harvests we've had. It is normally either held in a school yard or as we do, it's set up under tents on one of the community's larger grounds, which is named after our famous cricketer, Brian Lara. So on the Brian Lara Grounds, all the stall tents, church tent, food tent, chit tent, Kiddie tents etc are set up based on the committees layout.

At these harvests there are stalls which are different booths with a particular game, for example, of the 2 stalls we run one stall is called Cat in Bag. What is this game? Well this one isn't so much a game as an old time concept where for $10 you get a bag and you have no idea what you'll get in the bag. It could be something unexpected, something really nice or something not so nice, but we make sure to have great prizes in our Cat in Bag. For the women you might get a stretchy jeggings, a purse, wallet, bowls, pot spoons, something to massage yourself etc. We have bags for women, men, girls, and boys. We tend to get a crowd and everything disappears really quickly.

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Our other stall, Lock and Key is a game where you pay for a certain number of keys, $10 for 2 $15 for 3 and $20 for 4 keys. Then if the key opens the lock I have, then you pick a card to get a prize. The hitch is the key that opens the lock is in a bag with other keys, and you have to choose the number of keys you paid for without looking in the bag and hope one of the keys you chose is the one that opens the lock. I know it sounds difficult but it's not as bad as it sounds, because people win often. It's based on the more keys you buy the higher your probability of getting the right key. We have great prizes like food hampers, beer hampers, alcohol and small appliances, so we get quite a crowd.

This year as with every year it tends to rain mid day then stop and the day flows as usual. This year it rained but it was the heaviest we've ever gotten, but it didn't dampen the Harvest and people stayed around. They ate, yes because lots of food is on sale. They played games, won a lot of stuff, enjoyed the entertainment and went home happy. It was also extremely hot, we've been having some really high temperatures lately that are crazy!!! You have to keep hydrated, drink your water and avoid going outside. I was pretty cool that day though because although it's been hot these days, there is also always a lot of breeze. Where I sat I got a lot of breeze and my friend was next to me so we had a ball.

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Coming down to the end of the day and especially when the main prizes are approaching, the crowd gets bigger and more aggressive. So I had to be very strict and lay down the law. No pushing ahead of anyone, wait your turn and then at a certain point when the crowd gets too much we stop the game and we go one at a time in dealing with a customer. There are normally 6 of us doing the same Lock and Key game. This is where it gets noisy and frantic because the main prize is a Toaster Oven.....Goodness....the excitement!!! One of my players won it and that is why every year certain people play with me because they tend to win and win big. I love when they leave happy and with our stall, when you lose the first time you, still get to go away with something, we give a consolation prize. They may not be as amazing as the hampers, oven, small appliances or alcohol but people still feel good that they got something.

So that was my weekend. I worked hard before the Harvest and during. I made up like 90 hampers for the prizes and I begged clients to get prizes. The owner of the stall was even better at this than I was but we did well and I hope the stall made a lot of money. In fact I hope the entire Harvest was able to make a lot of money for our Church as it is needed to repair a wall that is falling onto the cemetery and to build a retaining wall so that we can have a safer Car park. God is good all the time. Have a great day people until next time.

P.S I apologise for my non-existant post on Thursday 12th, don't know what happened, Guess age is catching up with me as I seem to have forgotten to post that day and my day late post today. SORRY GUYS!!

How to Paint an Angel

My first youtube video tutorial www.gafra.org

Hi guys…Had a great week and a busy one because I’ve been learning how to make and edit videos for my Youtube Channel. Much harder than I thought and verrrry time consuming. I’ve been able to complete one, not the best, not the smartest way to video how I do a painting, but it’s a start and I’m now learning…so don’t be too hard on me. I recently painted a 6x6 Acrylic painting of an angel on a 6x6 canvas block and i wanted to share it with you. I am also attaching a PDF of the drawing so you have the sketch to start and hopefully my video isn’t so bad that you can’t follow along.

So here goes, CHEK THE VIDEO BELOW on:

How I Painted My Angel

ENJOY!! AND SUBSCRIBE HERE IF YOU LIKED IT.

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The Difficulties of Ageing

Hi guys....I'm writing this because I was in the nursing home this weekend with my husband, because his father who has started to get dementia and who was wearing a catheter, pulled it out and of course had difficulties urinating which could also cause infection. We had to rush him to the nursing home for his doctor to reinstall the catheter.

Ageing is so difficult when you've lived your life doing things for yourself, handled issues yourself and your memory wasn't an issue. I watch how both our parents are ageing and it has become such a sad and difficult period. My husband's mom has alzheimers and his father the first stages of dementia.

My mom has memory loss but it is mainly short term memory. You will tell her something now and a few minutes later she will ask the same question or she forgets what you told her and will again ask the same question a few minutes later. She also gets confused when we are at the supermarket and too many things are coming at her at the same time. Like looking for her linx card while the cashier is asking a question and not remembering where her card is.

But that's why parents have kids. We are there to guide them and support them through this difficult, confusing time of their life and I can only hope that my kids will do the same for us. I tell my mom you don't have to worry about things because me and my brother are here to deal with those things for her and with her but she still tends to worry.

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My feeling is that where my mom is on concerned she is bored. Being home doing nothing all day is boring and mind numbing. She has us to take her out and she sees me every Monday and sometimes Thursday. She sees my brother once or twice in the same week. She has friends who call her every day and all her neighbours know and look out for her. She goes to church and still serves as Lay Minister. She walks on mornings with her neighbours every morning, and she sees about her small garden⁸.

For me all she needs is some activity that will force her to use her brain a bit more. Her niece is staying with her while she studies at University and I take her prayer meetings on Thursdays plus at every opportunity I take her out or the kids go visit her. I took her to the Mall down south this weekend then the day before she went out with my brother to celebrate her grand daughters success at O'levels.

To me she has a fairly active life but she still harps on wishing that we lived with her or next door.She doesn't want to live with us because she finds it too boring where we live. It's hard to please them but you basically have to be patient and not get angry with them.

My friend has the same dementia issue with her mom but she has it even worse, as the dementia has her mother accusing her of having a boyfriend who she is bringing home at nights, in her house, which isn't the case at all. Her mother also accuses her of stealing her money and gets angry and combative, yet with her grandchildren she is cool and loving.

If my friend argues with her mom it gets worse but her patience ran out recently and she ended up shouting at her mother. She felt bad after but she just couldn't handle the accusations anymore. I understand because it can very frustrating repeating the same thing over and over or hearing things told to you that are incorrect but your parent is speaking as if it's true and they don't listen to any explanation and never change their attitude to haring the correct info. Frustrating is a mild way to describe it.

CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE STORE

With me it's taking the negative attitude and repeated negativity....the "poor me", "sorry for herself" attitude that drives me crazy. As a coach I can't handle negativity especially since I teach positivity and a "you can" attitude to all my clients. I encourage and guide them to achieve their life and professional goals.... so hearing the opposite from my mom is difficult.

I have to drum up the strength to ignore it and just redirect her to a more grateful way of thinking and to thank God for all that she has. She is lucky that with only 2 kids she got 8 grandkids. A friend of ours has 7 kids but only 5 grandchildren from all those kids she has. So one has to be grateful for all the blessings we get but at that age they wallow in repeated " I wish....." at least that's how it is with my mom.

My husband has it hard with dealing with the finances of his parents, handling the nurses and any emergencies that occurred this weekend and we don't live close to his parents so it's quite a drive to get to them or to meet them at the nursing home. But my husband is from a country area and country people stick to one another, look out for each other and are also very helpful for each other. He just has to make a few calls and he has someone to transport his father to the doctor where we met them and blessed for us, the doctor was there, the catheter was reinstalled and his father got a check up one time, which isn't normal. So everything worked put girl the best and his father is fine. God is in control you just need to ask him to help, which is what I did the minute we left home to come to the nursing home.

Like I mentioned, I hope me and my husband stay healthy for a long time....although with all these parental challenges my huzzy now has high blood pressure and has always suffered with sleep apnea. Me on the other hand, I only have the menopausal aggravations but I'm healthy otherwise. So people, make sure you have great family relationships, that you do all that's necessary to stay healthy because you do age and you could end up sickly with dementia or worse yet alzheimers, and you want to know that there is someone there you can rely on during that period when the memory fails, the body fails and you need support. Good luck guys....check you Thursday and think about what I said. Luv you guys.

A Day To Be Thankful.

Hi Guys....I had a great time with some old school girlfriends this weekend. We visited the beach house of one of the girls and it was wonderful. The house was in Mayaro. Mayaro, is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Trinidad and Tobago and is a large county in southeast Trinidad. The end of the word, 'ro' is the Arawak term meaning, "the place of," hence "the place of maya" or "Mayaro". The house was amazing and the it was soooo breezy and relaxing. The sound of the waves crashing on the beach was just soothing and peaceful.

There were eleven of us and each person brought food and there were lots of drinks. We also had some wine and two friends went out to get more wine. Boy was there a lot of food!!!!

We sat around and talked and had a great time. Later on, we went for a walk on the beach. I've put some of the shots I took. And even later we decided to take a dip in the water. The water was fantastic. It was warm and that is surprising sometimes because you normally expect the water to be a little cold but, OMG the water was sooooo warm and like a soothing fountain. The only negative is that the water is pretty rough, with waves coming in and really pushing you so you can't even go to much into the deep, but we sat in the shallow and just had a ball.

The drive to Mayaro is a long one it takes about 2 hours. Five of us were picked up in the town by a maxi we hired and the other four were picked up by one of the popular Malls. Then off we all went. We talked and laughed and watched the sceneray and i have to say, every time I do some type of trip in Trinidad I'm always surprsed by how great my country is and how many amazing places there are to visit and see. I've been to Mayaro but this trip was really cool. Mayaro has a lot of fishermen and we were going to buy fish from some of the fishermen who were going to return from the see at 3pm but unfortunately that crew didn't sail that day, so no fish for us. Maybe next time.

Mayaro Beach

A River Joins the Sea

3 Fishing Boats on the beach

We also had the fortune to see our friends handy man come to cut down some coconuts for us to get fresh coconut water to drink. I'm going to try to place a video as it was something else to watch.......let's see how good I am.

Hopefully it came out alright for you to see how he did it.....climb a coconut tree . It's quite a treat and they are so dexterous. After the coconuts were picked we all had a drink straight from the coconut. Now please don't go all AWOW!! We drink coconut water all the time, any time because it's sold almost everywhere so i's no big thing over here, but drinking it from the trees that our friend planted herself and who is now reaping its fruits was something so alluring....that is what made it special.

The day passed quickly unfortunately, so that by the time we had taken a swim, we realised it was 3:00pm and we were carded to leave at 4:-00pm...OH! OH!! The Maxi driver stayed with us the entire day so we didn't want to keep him back too long. We decided we would have to take an additional hour to pack up, which we did, as well as take the final farewell photos. Trinis never stop chatting or taking pics even as they are leaving. Now for the trip back. As usual going back always seems to happen faster than going. Along the way one friend wanted a bottle of Honey....yes people sell honey, fruits, detergent, food almost anything t the side of the road, normally in little huts.

We saw a guy in one such hut with a few bottles of a dark substance which we thought was honey, so the maxi driver stopped reversed so we could make our purchase. But, it wasn't honey. he was selling home made rum punch, but hen we noticed a weird looking fruit. I didn't know but one friend did, she asked the driver to find out the price and then she bought 15 of the fruit. She said since we didn't know it that we should try it as it is quite sweet and quite a lovely fruit. I had my doubts as it was an ugly looking thing. It looked like an alien. She showed us how to open it and how to eat it. People, that was the most delicious fruit ever!!!! I've been thinking about it since. It's called Rambuten.

Rambuten

The Rambuten Fruit Inside

I fell in love with this fruit, ugly as it was, but on looking closer you realise that the egg like seed that is covered with delicious sweet flesh, has a perfect oval, compact, neat look. It was perfect, I had to get me some more. I ate 3 and wanted more, but they told me that outside of the countryside or areas like Mayaro, it was pretty expensive in town (the city) or around where I lived. Damn!!! I was also sure that a fruit like that was packed with health benefits. This is what I found out:

Health Benefits Of Rambutan

• Decreases unwanted fat. The fruit can be effective in reducing the body's fat content because of its high fiber and water content and low calorie count.

• Source of iron.

• Skin and hair care.

• Rich in Vitamin C.

• Improves sperm quality.

• Anti-Cancer.

A rambutan is a tree from southeast Asia. The fruit that grows on the tree is also called rambutan. It is like Lychee. The name rambutan is an Indonesian word that means "hairy". Native to the Malay Archipelago, the name of this fruit is derived from the Malay word meaning "hairy," and you can see why. But once the hairy exterior of the rambutan is peeled away, the tender, fleshy, delicious fruit is revealed. Its taste is described as sweet and sour, much like a grape with a large, long inner seed.

So guys, i'm definitely going to buy me some more rambutan.

We made it back to town in no time and three of us waited for our husbands, who as usual didn't gage the time properly so they weren't waiting for us when we arrived at the pick up spot. I waited about 15-20 minutes then my husband arrived and the other two friends left a few minutes after me. A great end to a great day with wonderful weather. I need to do that again, it was truly refreshing. Wish i could buy me a house like that on such a perfect spot. Hearing the waves is so soothing and can you imagine waking up to that every day. What a life.

Hope you enjoyed my beach weekend post and I'll end with a selfie.

Hope you enjoyed Mayaro with me. Gafra.org

Bye for now until my next post. Hope you had a great weekend as well.