Parker Wayde being interviewed by Laila Muhammad, Bean Soup Times correspondent

By Laila Muhammad

Upon first entering the beautifully decorated Brown Sugar Bakery, sitting at a table with a stack of books in front of her, I had the opportunity to meet the mysterious and beautiful author of “The Boojee Informant.”  She was dressed in yellow, dawned a pair of dark shades and a large sun hat to keep her identity secret. I wondered what all the mystery was about.

So in a one-on-one interview I asked her about the purpose of her book. Her advice she so candidly gave, was very practical and useful. Her "name" is Parker Wayde and she’s an employee in corporate America advancing in a lucrative career at a very prestigious institution.  She’s advancing because she knows how to play the game, but nobody knows that she is secretly acting as an informant for Blacks seeking success in corporate America. Her creativity, once suppressed by corporate America, has exploded onto the pages into an fiction thriller that reveals strategies that will lead you to your corporate dreams and ultimately, hopefully, to entrepreneurism.

It’s an urban, modern action thriller self-improvement book. It's what happens when a self-help book unites with a Sister Souljah urban thriller.

LM: What inspired you to write this book? How did you come up with the idea to merge self-help and a fiction novel?

Parker Wayde: I had the strong desire in wanting to succeed in my field of work, and wasn’t sure where to start. When I reached out to mentors, no one was there. It seemed as though everyone else knew how to play the game. So I decided to write a self- help book. First, I read a lot of those types of books and still wasn’t in a better place. The only thing those self-help books did was put me to sleep. So after years of studying my co-workers, I decided to give valuable advice and make it into something my readers would enjoy reading.

They are all reading The Boojee Informant 

LM: What do you hope to accomplish with your book?

Parker Wayde: I want to give our people the knowledge on how to play the game so they can become successful. The goal is to encourage entrepreneurship. Once they understand that people’s perception is their reality, they will know exactly how to operate and deal with certain types of people. Not that you should change yourself, but you should change their perception of you.  I want to bring excitement to the work place. I want to get more blacks in the boardrooms, and help them to become self-sufficient. I speak our language, so my readers understand me, and I understand our culture. That’s what I am, and what I represent.

LM: What advice can you give to everyone, and Black women in particular who are just now coming up in corporate America?

Parker Wayde:  (With a smile on her face, she sits up straight and tells me) A lady always knows when to leave. To always help each other and remember there is someone coming after you that you can help guide and pull up. The bottom line is that “perception is reality”!

Customer buys three books!

LM: Give readers a sneak peak into this “memo” or an example of something that most of us don’t know?

Parker Wayde: Yes of course. Let’s say you work a 9 to 5. What I’ve learned is that most of us start packing up, clearing off our desk, and getting our coats to leave for the day at 4:59p. The others are still sitting at their desk, probably doing nothing, and they won’t leave until a few minutes after 5p. So it’s all about the perception, the bosses will perceive that they value their jobs more.

LM: You also are giving back to the community. You are offering a monetary prize, via an essay competition to help pay for college, why?

Parker Wayde:  Because someone did it for me, I know people who are still paying back student loans 20 years later. If I can just give someone a small break and encourage him or her to continue their higher education, then we all will become successful. I look around the boardroom and there are not a lot of us there. I’m hoping to change that.

LM: Thank you for your time, and I pray you are successful.

Parker Wayde: Thank you!

For more information, visit www.boojeeinformant.com.

By Dr. Robert J. Muhammad

Water consumption and its relationship to health and disease is an overlooked fact. When we consider the fact that our bodies are 75 percent water; our brains an estimated 85 percent of water, and the plasma portion of our blood which makes up 55 percent of the blood is 90 percent water, it is no wonder how the impact of sufficient amounts of water can play on our overall health and well being.

Water should be the drink of choice, instead of pop, tea, coffee and juice. While these other drinks have their place, nothing takes the place of water. Water is absolutely essential to the effective functioning of all body systems. It is the presence of water that ensures that food is digested and absorbed into the blood stream. It is the presence of water that removes toxins from the tissues of the body and blood. It is also water that regulates all bodily functions.

Despite the essential need of water for the body, it is estimated that 75 percent of Americans are chronically dehydrated. Dehydration is defined as a condition, which results in excessive loss of body fluid that occurs when fluid loss is greater than the fluid intake. A loss of 2 percent of the body’s ideal water content causes dehydration. Symptoms of dehydration include: increased thirst, dry mouth, weakness, dizziness, heart palpitations, confusion, sluggishness, muscle cramps, nausea, decreased sweat and urine.

Through the skin, lungs, feces, and urine, our bodies lose about 10-12 cups of water daily. If we exercise, perspire, drink caffeinated beverages or alcohol, the water loss is greater. Similar to the body, we can readily see the need for water in a plant because without it the plant displays droopiness or withering leaves. Yet, we mistake our own cravings for water as hunger. So we consume more food, only to compound the problem.  The recommendation for water intake is 6-8 glasses a day, which, according to the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad in the book How to Eat to Live is based on eating three meals a day. 

In conclusion, water is invaluable to our health, Dr Fereydoon Batmanghelidj writes in his book, entitled, “Your Body’s Many Cries for Water,” that “Chronic and persistently increased dehydration is the root cause of almost all currently encountered major diseases of the human body.” He also asserts that there is a direct relationship with dehydration and asthma, hypertension, allergies, diabetes, back pain and headaches. Lastly, Dr. Batmanghelidj argues that  “Chronic pains of the body are signals of chronic dehydration.”

To contact Dr. Robert J. Muhammad please call (773) 873-5000 or e-mail him at Docmuh@aol.com.