"Cocktails & Cupcakes With Belle"

Last week, a friend and I attended "Cocktails & Cupcakes with Belle." ESSENCE Magazine's
relationship editor Demetria Lucas finally came out with her long-awaited book titled "A Belle In Brooklyn: The Go-To Girl for Advice Living Your Best Single Life" and is touring the States promoting her latest literary venture.

I discovered Demetria when I interned at ESSENCE where I came across her personal relationships blog. I became addicted to her dating tales and fell in love with her brand, so attending this event was a no-brainer.

Early Friday evening, we finally arrived to the Art Sanctuary -- filled with 20-something to 30-something fashionable, natural-hair-wearing women waiting to hear dating knowledge from the "go-to girl" herself.

After grabbing an X-rated drink (a cocktail that came from that pink bottle you see in the photo, which made me sick by the time we made it to PYT later on that night) and getting over the fact that there were no cupcakes to be found, the "Belle" portion of the event finally got began.

She answered a few questions from the crowd ("How do you feel about online dating?" She's not opposed to it. "You meet a guy in the club and you know nothing about him, either.), read an excerpt from her book (a story about her LA adventure with two girlfriends and...Suge Knight) and signed books for those who purchased.

I purchased the book and waited in line for her to sign. After long chats from buyers and friends, we finally made it to the front.

"Guess what," I start.
"Shoot."
"This is my best friend and I met her at ESSENCE!"

Short story shorter, she remembered my friend but not me (even though I had more interaction with her in the office than she did), asked her if she liked Philly (she "LOVES" Philly), said goodbye and went for another pink drink. However, this is all before we left abruptly when my friend ran into an old nemesis. Yup, night's over.

I'll discuss the book in another post...