Many blessings to you as you step into this new year of 2020. One of my usual expressions is “a new day, a new possibility” and in the spirit of that expression, today I’m excited to launch “Creations by Fredi Nyashia”!!
“Creations by Fredi Nyashia” are unique and custom crafted pieces made by me that represent my artistry, athleticism, as possibly more (as it grows) aspects of who I am. These are typically wearable pieces sold online and in the future at select events and physical locations.
Visit the online store to see the latest pieces and to purchase AND check back in the coming weeks as new items are to come.
Well, in 3 days it will be done. At the end of October, I embarked on the challenge of not drinking coffee for the month of November. Not that I’m an obsessive coffee drinker, I wanted to reset my body. Over the last few months, I noticed an increase in my coffee drinking. It’s funny how I used to not really like coffee and then would occasionally partake in the last few years. I’m very much a tea connoisseur. However, with early and long days, awkward sleeping or minimal sleeping habits and at times increased crunch time with my work, I found myself starting to drink coffee 3-4 times a week in the last weeks. I know for most that is not a lot, but I found myself not wanting to create a dependency on needing or wanting coffee to get me through my mornings or days. And with the fall/winter drop in temperature, it became very likely to pour or purchase a cup of coffee many mornings. So, upon the close of the month of October, on came “No Coffee November”. Why am I sharing this? Well, for a few reasons… Some of you may be wanting to cut coffee or something else and to share insight on how I’ve been succeeding at it may come in handy. I also want to share what that journey has been like, as well as why. First and foremost, when “giving up” something, as it relates to eating, fasting, changing eating habits (temporary or permanent), I like to have the mindset of focusing on what I can have so it’s not seen as a negative. Finding alternates to that which I’m changing works for me. There were 3 things I considered which include 1) having hot drinks for the cold weather, 2) fulfilling the creamy taste I get from the types of coffee I would drink (ie vanilla latte, mint mochas, coffee with hazelnut creamer), and 3) fulfilling the caffeine or “kick” I would get from coffee. So these are the alternatives I’ve been drinking: 1) Mint tea with chocolate syrup (replacing the mint mocha) 2) Vanilla chai tea with almond milk (for warmth, creaminess and caffeine) 3) Hot cider 4) Hot chocolate 5) Other various teas (for warmth) To be honest by day 6, I was thinking, hmm, maybe I will just do a week, because I really wanted some coffee by then. However, another thing I did was to tell people at work and various friends about my challenge. This way it forced me to be accountable. Yes, I could sneak and drink coffee anyway and it’s not like anyone else was really holding me to doing it, but I find that when I share things with others, it’s easier for me to hold myself accountable. One, I want to serve as an example, to encourage and inspire. Two, I have a strong sense of integrity in doing what I say I’m going to do, in particular when I tell others. And three, well, you know what they say about the power of the spoken word. I put it out into the universe. Towards the second week, I started to not miss coffee at all. I was having fun with making my different concoctions and having the diversity of tropical teas, honey-bush caramel tea, and other flavors. I even thought to try green tea for the caffeine, however, I’m not a fan of the way it tastes. Now as to why? These last few weeks I’ve been relaxing more, eating, and enjoying my 2019 post-race season. I’m preparing to start my winter training, which means getting back to a more disciplined scheduled and cutting back on some of the things I’ve been enjoying (food & drinks). To get me started, I decided to temporarily eliminate coffee. In the next weeks, I will be decreasing or limiting some of the other things (ie. alcohol, sweets) so this past month has been setting me up for the mindset to do so. As we enter the holiday season, it’s easy to get carried away eating all the celebratory dinners, indulge in many holiday parties and events flowing with food and drinks, and then of course to enter the new year with resolutions. And it’s great to enjoy this time of the year, the food and celebrations. However, why wait until the new year to refocus on goals, reset, and start building habits to get you towards your goals.
I tweeted years ago “There is strength and beauty in vulnerability”. In particular, in a world that socializes men’s strength with being tough, hard, taking it, not crying, not showing emotion; to me the idea tying that to the vulnerability of a black man is not authentic. That is not REAL. Society associates vulnerability with only being weak, when in actuality if one shows his/her most authentic self (joys, pains, hurts, highs, lows), that is their most full and beautiful self. That is the complete picture, versus portions that people WANT to show or others WANT to see. 
Escape To Miami Triathlon turned out to be my first race I’m not sure how to feel about. I mean the event was well run, organized, a great race and heck..it was in Miami. It was my personal experience and performance that I’d have to say was a whirlwind literally and figuratively. Throughout the weekend, the winds in Miami had been increasingly high from the Atlantic Ocean’s tropical storms that though they were hundreds of miles away still impacted the area. The day before the race participants are required to rack their bike and just riding 3 blocks from the bike shop to packet pick up, a gust of wind nearly threw me off my bike. From this alone I started to feel a little disheartened about the race. If you have followed my triathlon journey for the last few years, you will know that the swim portion still creates levels of anxiety for me. So, to know that the winds would not only impact swim conditions, but to see how it could potentially also create havoc on the bike, things began to look real grim. Seeing the choppiness of the water on Saturday with wind gusts from 25-40 miles per hour, I knew going into it, I would have to focus to get in the zone. Rising at 5am the morning of the race, I went through my typical prep and headed to Margaret State Park to set up in transition. We could see that the waves were still rough. I knew then I had made the right decision to do the Sprint distance instead of Olympic. With Olympic distance waves starting at 7am and Sprint distance waves starting at 8am, I had a bit of time to observe with me having a 8:30am wave start. During that time I ran into Max Fennell, the first Black professional triathlete, who I’ve had the chance to talk with at this year and last year’s Chicago Triathlon. Max had just tested out the Sprint distance swim and told me it was “quite choppy”. Needless to say, it was what I figured, however, I had to get my head in the game because unlike Chicago Triathlon where the conditions called for a cancellation of the swim, the swim for Escape to Miami was a go. By the time, I was lined up in my wave and a couple of waves in, I set my game plan to remain calm and swim boat/canoe to to boat/canoe (as Coach Mo) would say. Unlike previous triathlons where I had a running beach start or treading start, this was a jump off the pier and go (3 at a time every 5-8 seconds). Holding onto my goggles as a jumped in and went under, I concentrated on getting to surface and into a smooth rhythm. Having done South Beach Triathlon the year before, I was quickly reminded how buoyant the ocean water was. Oh, and did I mention that the water was 79 degrees, so though I’ve never worn a wetsuit, no one else was wearing one either as it was not legal at this temperature. Though choppy, I was steadfast with my bilateral breathing, just turning a little more on my right side. Eeeing the waves were coming from that direction pushing us into the shoreline. At times I could feel my heart race a little, but that self talk back to calmness was easy knowing that this was a shorter swim. It seemed as though I was swimming better than usual as I was passing people, but that was just what it seemed like as later comments from other participants indicated many people had a longer than expected swim. For the Olympic distance participants, the NE wave were pushing them in, whereas for us Sprint distance participants, we were swimming against the waves, until we turned the last buoy. Once out of the water, it was dash into transition, which took longer than I’d like as I really need to work on my transitions. I didn’t know what to expect on the bike with the winds, though they eased from the day before to 15-25mph. Things felt pretty good at the start of the bike, however, once I approached the first bridge, the head wind and the long upward hill slowed me down to 8mph. The plan of attack was whenever the wind was not gusting, I had to make up ground. By the time I hit that same hill on the way back, my legs were pretty warmed up so it didn’t seem as taxing. So much so that at point, I surprisingly got up to 31mph with the wind. The second transition to the run went smoother as usual, however, my plan of attack for the run was soon foiled. Though I got into a relatively nice pace to start around our first turn not only did we hit a bridge with a seemingly even longer uphill slope, but the head wind added to the challenge. By the time I was midway up, while many individuals were walking, instead of pushing it, I focused on relaxing so I didn’t exhaust myself or overheat. After hitting the turnaround, it was key to gear up for saving something for returning to the the alternate side of the same bridge. I tackled the hill by using other runners as goals to surpass so that by the time I reached the downhill, it was smooth sailing back toward the finish. As usual, I saved enough for a kick to the end. After reviewing my results, I saw the choppiness of the water made for an inefficient swim. My typical open water pace of around 3 minute/100 meters was a 4 minute pace. And I thought I had a pretty good pace relative to the conditions. My bike pace, as well as my run pace were also disappointingly slower, though compared to the field, it was competitive enough for a 6th place AG and 36th overall female. So, interestingly enough I really don’t know how to take this race. I missed all of my marks for what I would have liked to do, but it was definitely a learning experience. And after that swim, simply completing it, I feel like I can almost swim in anything Lake Michigan could throw at me…ALMOST! Overall, Escape to Miami was a great experience and I’m sure I’m looking forward to racing and more in Miami soon. Until then, it’s on to the next race! Photos in gallery by 
Well, I guess it’s that time. For the last week or so, it’s been increasingly on my mind…oh, how 4 years can seem like only 4 days or 4 minutes… There are certain visuals and emotions from then that are permanently seared in my mind & heart. Though I think of my dad very often, this time of year for the last few years have had a particular resonance. I’ve had these thoughts before, but never put them to paper or keyboard, but it seems like the time to release. To actually watch a loved one physically pass away is something I wouldn’t wish on anyone. The idea of being there to provide comfort or see them through to the final breath seems like a good one, but to actually witness the physicality of it, I would say for me was traumatizing. To see the man who represented love, strength, devotion, authenticity and so much vitality slip away was almost unreal. Without being graphic, seeing what the body does, what cancer did, in those final moments was not peaceful. And needing to be the strong one, not wanting the only other family member in the room, my mother, to see me cry and knowing I had to be there for her (as well as to my dad) was important. I knew even then, that it would be a while before I would really get over witnessing life leaving the body of a man who carried me on his back and took me to the park when I was child, as well as could sit in a room with him silently watching the History Channel and feel like we had the most robust conversation. His final breath on Friday, May 14, 2015, was a culmination of a week of very spiritual occurrences. It still amazes me how the week beforehand, when the doctor at the hospital said dad had a few weeks to a few months, I remember thinking “well, he doesn’t know my God”. Being the realistic optimist, and spiritually grounded person that I am, I went into the next couple of days not knowing how little time he had left. Transitioning to the hospice facility, which was gorgeous, and in retrospect, was peacefully fitting for the care dad would need. He had been alert and talking, however, by Monday, he mainly acknowledged us and visitors by slight head nods. It was only then, that it began to seep in, that those “few weeks to months” we were told, would actually be only a few short days. For those next days, staying in the hospice room where I could see dad staring up at the ceiling, I wondered what he was thinking. Though not very physically affectionate, I remember at one point wanting to resort back to being a little girl and lay next to him, cuddled under his arm, but instead a sat in a chair holding his hand and prayed. That Tuesday/Wednesday, I woke up in the middle of the night. Mom was asleep on a couch in the room. I felt compelled to walk over to dad’s bed and hold his hand. I’ll never forget that night. Though many may not believe in our connection to the spirit realm, I’ve long embraced it as other relatives previously passed. The following may seem crazy to some, however, in the time I was holding dad’s hand, I felt the presence of others in the room as well. I had on various occasions previously sensed my dad’s mother, Ma Maude often since her passing 10 years ago, and on that night her presence was there almost as clear as day. Her along with my dad’s dad, Grandpa, my great-uncle Henry, my brother and seemingly others that I couldn’t identify. It felt as though the spirits of passed family were coming to comfort and assure him in his road home. (Whew, as you can imagine, I’m in tears writing this). For a while I was just quiet, but felt a sense of peace in the room. For those that knew, Fred Allen Holloway, you knew that he was quiet, and though not very tall in stature, had an strong unassuming presence. In the final months dealing with health challenges, he never complained, never acknowledged any pain or difficulties, and honestly, you never would have known what he was dealing with until the last 2 weeks. He was always there for everyone else and in being “our rock”, it became clear to me what I needed to say. I had previously hoped we could do or find some regimen to fight what cancer was doing to his body. In my prayers, I knew God was listening and hoped His answer would be ‘yes’. However, in that moment that night, I accepted what was to be so. And while holding and caressing dad’s hand, I leaned towards his ear and told him, “Daddy, it’s ok. You can let go..you can rest”. I imagined he would concerned about my mom and things she had been dealing with and I wanted to assure him. And then I told him, “I got this. We will be alright”. ..and two days later, he was gone. I often don’t share in this way because of the positive and uplifting person I seek to be. Well, I’m sharing this other side of what it can be like to grieve or miss someone no longer being on this earth. One reason is because its real. Death and loss is at times very difficult and has long lasting impacts. It’s important to recognize, accept and embrace all shades and sides of it. Typically, you will see me sharing even about this experience from a space of gratitude. I recognize we miss loved ones and long for them to be with us, but as I often say..my dad was God’s first and foremost. And I’m simply grateful He gifted my dad to me for the almost 40 years I was blessed to have him in my life. For that is time that I will always cherish. Though this time of the year can be challenging in remembering this time 4 years ago, it pales in comparison to the the days, weeks, and years of time, experiences, words, memories shared with my dad. And if anything, out of respect to his legacy and being his child, his namesake, like him, I embrace that quiet strength that he always had. And I’m grateful to him for giving that to me…and so much more.
I was recently nominated to participate in a 10-Day Movie Challenge on Facebook by a college buddy. Ok, it’s taken a few weeks for me to have a moment to accept, but I thought to make this a post for a key reason. First, let me say that the challenge is to post 1 image per day for 10 days with no explanation from movies that had an impact on me, as well as to nominate someone else each day. After reflecting on a few movies, I decided to blog about it to share why I chose these movies, as most of them are symbolic in representing 1) my perspective on aspects of life, 2) people and things I’m passionate about, and 3) in some ways my personality and experiences. So, let me go ahead and jump in… (Note: these are in no particular order) 
When you’ve known someone as multi-talented as Erica Faye Watson and have seen her accomplishments, you can’t help but say “yes, that is one dynamic woman, right there!” Entrepreneur, comedian, actress, director, writer, blogger, featured columnist and contributor are just handful of roles, she has held over the years. 
