[Plugin: BuddyPress] Activity Stream Filtering

Before saying I am posting in the wrong place, I will say I have asked for help many times with no resolution on buddypress.org. I have searched the forum to the beginning of its inception still with no resolution. Many others have asked the same question, and no one there seems to have a definitive resolution to this issue. The codex there is not very clear as to the specific goal I am trying to attain so my question is:
How can I filter the activity in the activity-loop.php so it will show your own activity and just your friends? The code I posted below filters the activity to only your friends but does not display your own. What can I do to show friend only activity as well as the current users activity so I can resolve issue, and close this topic and share it with the others that want the same question answered?
<?php if ( bp_has_activities( bp_ajax_querystring( 'activity' ) . '&scope=friends') ) : ?>
Thank you in advance for any assistance!
shawn38