Everyone has experienced a clogged sink at one point or another! And if you're like me, you wash your hair at home sometimes. And for all the mothers with girls, bless your heart, that's on a regular basis. If can be expensive to call out a professional plumber to unclog your drain. This is an easy do-it-yourself project! I put this post in the home maintenance section because it should be done regularly. I don't suggest waiting until the sink is clogged or the water is draining slow. Schedule cleaning out your drain at least monthly, if you can't do it weekly. The more often you wash hair, using a certain drain, the more often you should clean in it.

Here are different techiniques used to clear a drain:

• Plunger: This is the most common way to unclog your sink. A toilet plunger and a sink plunger are not the same. Go to your local hardware store and request a sink plunger. You'll get better results. Plus, I don't want to use the same plunger in my sink as the toilet. You want to use a rag to clog the over-flow drain before you start. Take your plunger and move it up and down aggressively. Make sure you use gloves. What comes out won't look pretty!
• Drain Auger (Snake): Drains snakes have been used for years. But recently they shorten them and started selling them for DIY. This is my favorite! I first saw them on TV. At first I didn't believe it was that easy. My neighbor suggested I try it; and I loved it. I don't like pusing hair and or chemicals down the drain. I like to pull out what I can and put it in the trash. You put the "snake" in the drain. Make a few turns. The hairs catches on and you can pull it out. It's nasty, but it works! Turn off the electricity to the garbage disposal if you're doing the kitchen sink!
• Chemicals: When you use any chemicals you should always were gloves, mask, and eye protection. These chemicals are not only harsh for your skin, they're not good for your pipes. I recommend only using chemicals when you have a bad clog. This is after the "fishing" and plunging doesn't work.
• Remove P-trap: Turn the water off first! I don't want you to forget you took the pipe apart and run water on the floor. This is the last resort for me. If you don't know how to remove the pipe and put it back; don't! Have someone on standby to help you if you get stuck. A pipe wrench is needed. The P-trap is the U-shaped part of the pipe under the sink. Take it apart using the wrench. Clean the pipe. And before you put it back you want to use "plumbers tape" on the threads of the pipe to prevent leaking. Put the pipe back on using a wrench. Get it as tight as you can. Hint: The longer the handle of the pipe wrench, the more leverage you have. And you can get it tighter.

Again, I wouldn't wait for the sink to get clogged before I clean it. You want to keep your pipes clear and clean as possible!

This post is dedicated to www.frofashionweek.com! I would like to say welcome to all the participants of Spring Fro' Fashion Week! Thank you for visiting my blog! Please stayed tuned there is more to come!

Song for today: 'Whip Your Hair' by Willow Smith

Kathryn Bigelow says that she would rather be considered a film-maker rather than a female film-maker.  Bigelow has changed the game in the film industry.  And even though she has resisted gloating about her win over her ex-husband Cameron, I know it had to feel good! This blog post is dedicated to my fellow members of WIFTA (Women In Film and Television Atlanta) as well as other chapters around the world.  Kathryn Bigelow's Oscar nomination and award was a win for all of us!

The young women and girls today are more outspoken and daring.  But they need our help and guidance.  Find a way to contribute in your community, local and state government, schools, churches, and charities to help women.  We can't depend on men to tell us who we are and where we should be going.  It's the future of women that will influence and shape our world!

Jenny Sanford was an investment banker on Wall Street before she was married.  Her boss said that she was one of the pioneering women that trail blazed a way for other women on Wall Street.  She has been married for 20 years while raising four sons and is currently the First Lady of South Carolina. She is now a author.  Her book, "Staying True", is about her life with her husband Governor Mark Sanford.

I will purchase her book.  I'm not particularly intersted in the details of her marriage.  I want to support her.  If there was a rule book she would't have broken one rule.  She has done what many women do.  We work, raise our children, support our husbands, and we still find time to help others.  Jenny is a strong woman and I have no doubt she'll make it through for herself and her children.

Imagine a woman who has acknowledged the past's influence on the present.
A woman who has walked through her past.
Who has healed into the present.

Imagine woman in love with her own body.
A woman who believes her body is enough, just as it is.
Who celebrates her body's rhythms and cycles as an exquisite resource.

Imagine a woman who has access to the full range of human emotion.
A woman who expresses her feelings clearly and directly.
Who allows them to pass through her as gracefully as a breath.

Imagine a woman who tell the truth.
A woman who trusts her experience of the world and expresses it.
Who refuses to defer to the thoughts, perceptions, and responses of others.

Imagine a woman who follows her creative impulses.
A woman who produces original creations.
Who refuses to color inside someone elses's lines.

Imagine a woman who authors her own life.
A woman who trusts her inner sense of what is right for her.
Who refuses to twist her life out of shape to meet the expectations of others.

Imagine a woman who has crafted a fully formed solitude.
A woman who is available to herself.
Who chooses friends and lovers with the capacity to respect her solitude.

Imagine a woman who refuses to diminish her life so others will feel better.
A woman who brings the fullness of her years, experience, and wisdom into each relationship.
Who expects other to be challenged and blessed by her presence in their lives.

Imagine a woman who values the women in her life.
A woman who sits in circles of women.
Who is reminded of the truth about herself when she forgets.

Imagine a woman who has grown in knowledge and love of herself.
A woman who has vowed faithfulness to her own life and capacities.
Who remains loyal to herself.  Regardless.

Imagine your as this woman.  by Patricia Lynn Reilly

I do. Have a blessed, prosperous, and productive week!

I cannot rush into 2010 without first reflecting on 2009.  This has been a great year!  I have had the opportunity to meet so many phenomenal women.  I have received so much love and support from them as well as my family and friends.  God has blessed me with good health, a sound mind, and a growing heart.  If I had to to describe this year with one word it would be: prosperity.  I have prospered in so many areas of my life in 2009.  No matter what my challenges were, God worked things out for my good.

I would like to thank my family, friends, and all the people that work with me on my various projects.  I would not be able to do all this without you.  Moving forward we know that there will be challenges, disappointments, and maybe a few loses.  But with God all things are possible.  And everything I have gone through in my life has prepared me for today and tomorrow. 

Happy Holidays to everyone. Be safe and have fun.  The best is yet to come!