Note to self

Not sure what part caught my eye. A status update from a past classmate, Junior High. Part of me was He, and I felt where He was coming from. Part of me felt like shit. Part of me didn't feel good enough. I knew I wasn't doing enough. Enough. Worth it it's gotta be. Even if you don't see the whole staircase, take the first step in faith. It can be intimidating to take, but how you learn if at first you don't make mistakes? The best start to a day is with a renewed spirit and heart. Do your best to awake that way. Please and thanks that it started, could've easily been one of the departed. If its skills you lookin' for, enroll in a class. If you dont' know where to begin, ask. You made it thus far, you veered but now en route, remember to breath, in...out. A toast to the footprints left in the sand. Life is the greatest opportunity, a canvas with no room for bland. 

Well said

All American

Preach

Been. there.

Apprehension

A long way from Mr. Roger's 'hood

 It was comforting to see red, white and blue paint the sky while riding home on the train. I spent my July 3rd working while some celebrated the holiday coming, so it felt good to be somewhat  part of the festivities. Home now and firecrackers are still shooting. And so are they. Somebody's life possibly just ended. Down the street from me so nine times out of ten they are black. It was a good 7-8 shots back to back. Can't just sit back and make good memories. That's somebody's son, brother, friend...nobody thinks about that. Then they gotta go get the tat. When this could be prevented. Why are we not hearin'...or do we just not care? Who really wants to greet the holiday next year, with tears, and spears to the heart--- broken, gone is another one of life's tokens. Guess God has spoken. #Shaking my head...when will we learn? Can we not discern? We should be tearing up the street for the birth of a nation, which is so fitting for the occasion. And stop blaming others for our own segregation. Instead of we all we got, its more like we hold we back. Because of what we lack. Up to them some try to stack. But this ain't that. Can't worry bout what all them do. At the end of the day the finger points at you.  The hardest is the first one so take the first step in faith... dream, inspire, whatever. Life is abbreviated pause so it is really your loss, if you don't keep on riding until the wheels fall off

Who is knocking at the door!?

In the basement throwing the last load of laundry in the dryer, my Grandmother, standing beside me says "I hear somebody knocking...somebody's at the door." Now my grandmother is 87 and will tell you quick "now I know I ain't sa-nale (senile). After starting the dryer, I listen, smile and shake my head, as if to say nobody's at the door. To calm her worry, I run upstairs, walk through the kitchen, dining and past 2 front rooms to the front door where I found two things. (1) nobody at the door and (2) what was making the knocking sound. Across the street was a guy talking on the phone, sitting in a 1984 silver Chevy Cutlass. Now how he was managing a conversation was beyond me because the knocking sound my Gram heard, was the bass coming out of the speakers. 

When I told my Gram what the "knocking" was she said "see...I know I ain't crazy." 

#DidIt

A Cornered Soul

I wonder what inspired

homeless man on the corner

What he wanted to be

I'm sure as a kid

his dreams

could span centuries

Firefighter, Pilot or Police Officer,

We all got a story...wonder how his book would read

Bet he didn't envision

talkin' to himself on a corner,

Low in defeat

struggling to keep cold from his hands and feet

Maybe I should rob,

fuck it

I ain't got shit to eat

Then I notice him lookn' at me

At this moment struggling to stand on own two feet 

We alike

just in different boats,

rockin' different currents

and strokes

So I sent a prayer up for him

God got a plan for everybody

where hope is lost 

especially

I hope you make it back on your feet

in the arms of love ones and retreat

And never again will circumstance

diffuse your fire

allowing confusion and defeat 

to transpire

My hope to him whose soul is cornered.

Constructive comes before criticism

Wonderful days equate to beautiful nights...feeling inspired I'm sitting down to write. The wardrobe-nista in me landed on Necolebitchie.com and then pain landed in my stomach. The heading, "Donald Trump blasts Bill Cosby." The gist or the story? Donald Trump is allegedly running for president and Bill Cosby replied "the only thing he's running now is his mouth." Donald Trump replied  in so many words that "he (Bill Cosby) got more attention talking about me than he did on the merits of his own appearance-maybe he is not as dumb as I thought."

What a wonderful place the world would be if we were more mindful of the things we say.. If you don't have anything constructive to say, don't bother.

Scrolled down a lil' further in search of fashion...

Amber Roses swimsuit, Rihanna's hot hair cut and coat. Killed it with Christian Louboutin's. Singer Ciara named one of People's 25 most beautiful people :) Model/actress Eva Marcille rocking one-of-THE-hottest pair of over the knee lace up boots I EVER seen with an even smokier price tag...$5,200. Not mad at you ma...

Rihanna teamed up with Britney Spears for the remix of her S&M single. Girl power!! 

Nicki Minaj continues to excite her female fans by offering them lap dances

Gentleman's Quarterly could be making a business mistake by not putting Chris Brown on the cover

Never knew much about the rapper Jim Jones or the cult leader Jim Jones for that matter but the rapper is growing on me. He's evolving in the rap game...jumping out trying something new. A breath of fresh air. He also nicely got back on topic during the interview with Gina Torres, All Hip Hop. Go Jim Jones :)

Do we really have to compare Kanye West's new girlfriend to Amber Rose? Give the girl a chance :/

Page number 2...

More about Kanye replacing Amber Rose...on to the next one

Beyonce has teamed up with first lady Michelle Obama to help fight obesity. If I hadn't realized the time (7:24 pm) and realizing I had a date with my rollerblades along Lakeshore Dr., I would've kept scrolling. I did watch the Beyonce video and I am so proud of the initiative. Choreographed to a remake of Beyonce's #1 hit Get me bodied, the routines embodies easy to follow dance moves laced with the newest dance steps. It'll get anybody moving. 

Hope we can get it together. 

Its not what you say but how to say it.

Constructive comes before criticism.   

That is all.

  

Leave the man alone already...

Heard through a friend today they got Chris Brown again. " Girl all on 107.5 WGCI...He was on Goodmorning America today. Asked about Rihanna again," she said.  "He shattered a window." All this, hearsay at this point. "But you all are going to drive the man crazy is what I say. You don't want the man to move on? How can he grow, learn, give, forgive, if we constantly point out his faults.

I commend Chris Brown for being the bigger person. He did what he came for, to promote his new album F.A.M.E. released today. I think there was a better way to handle it on the other end. You know you shouldn't be asking if its that uncomfortable getting the words out. You're our hero because your hair grew back, re-iterating your joke from earlier that you beat cancer with a bat. What a survivor, what a feat to overcome. He's a hero because of that energy and ability to cause an eruption of fun, laughter or sensuality. Who saves the hero, after he saves the world?

And maybe its me but not once did I hear anybody say 'stay up man, you'll be fine. Overcome this you will, take  it a day at a time.' We all know what its like to be down. And when you down, the last thing you want to be is kicked. The judge said he served his time. And if you don't like it, that's fine but move out the mans way and let him shine.  And no I don't condone violence but I do forgive, especially if it wasn't my business to begin with.

Thank you ABC News Youtube channel for disabling the comments to the video.  

Mr. Brown for once and for all, I'm glad you made it through that storm...keep your head up.

STOP Being Niggardly

The title, "Stop Being Niggardly And Nine Other Things Black People Need to Stop Doing," was an eye opener itself.  'Excuse me,' I thought as I flipped the hardback over, staring into Author Karen Miller's eyes, which seemingly said "I dare you to read it." The word Niggerly in white letters on the front cover spanned across a red banner to me meant ghetto, ignorant, selfish and cruel, yet dictionary.com classifies it as stingy and not generous.

Refreshingly delivered with a blazen boldness, she tackles issues and turmoil, along with the sacrifice, support, strength and power needed to help recifty the rage and spirit of hopelessness in the black community. This book was started out of frustration the same way this blog was concieved out of a desire for hope and change. Too often we as blacks get bent out of shape over what we can't control but are content to complain about what we can. Instead of focusing energy on the "white man," white power and the odds against us, how about shifting our focus and energy on educating our youth, flourishing our communities with black business and home ownership while attacking detrimental issues like gang violence, teen pregnancy, black on black crime and the rampant rate HIV is currently thriving? It takes a village right?

Inspired by Nannie Helen Burroughs, the daughter of ex-slaves, and her book Twelve Things the Negro Must Do, penned in the 1890's, her motto spoke volumes: "we specialize in the wholly impossible." Even with the decked stacked against her (denied a teaching position after graduating with honors; she started her own school) she allowed her drive and thirst to achieve more, guide her. Here we are in a world full of freedom, experience, opportunity and possiblity and yet we limit ourselves. Out of the 10 things Black People Need to Stop Doing, my three favorite:

1. Stop Complaining and Start Planning:  When you fail to plan, you plan to fail and we owe it to ourselves to get our lives in order. A map is a needed guidline of where you're going and how to get there.

2. Stop Tearing Down Our Heros: Its as if we can't wait to tear people down. Hero's make the world go 'round. They inspire hope, can empower the soul and motivate being. Without them, we have nothing to base a foundation on.

8. Stop Being Fat!: Blacks are the line leaders in major health- risk categories including cancer and diabetes, with "four out of five African-American women either overwight or obese." Once your health is gone, that's it. Stop making excuse for poor health and kill the bad habits because if you don't, it'll kill you.  Nothing feels better than healthy.

"I have learned that change doesn't come in comfort. We make changes when there is pain and discomfort. I want people to be upset, and I want them to talk about it, and I want us to come together and work toward some solutions and make some plans." - Karen Hunter

HIV...you want it?

No? You sure? So why is it that AIDS continues to spreat at an alarming rate, especially in the black community? Coined by Jay-z "men lie, women lie, numbers don't," these numbers tell it all: African American women comprise 72 % of all new HIV cases; every 35 minutes a women is diagnosed. AIDS in the NUMBER ONE killer of African American women between the ages 25-34. Black Men account for 65% of new cases among all blacks while African Americans make up 50% of new diagnoses. Scary Right?

Its obviously not enough to be scared because these statistics continually increase. We have to stop being scared to speak up and educate our people out of fear because fear is killing us. AIDS is alive, thriving and preying on our community. The rate of HIV/AIDS in our nation's capital, Washington D.C. rivals that of some developing nations. And some still believe that only gay people can be diagnosed with HIV. Yes the Down Low in the black community is still running rampant but the sad thing is these black men don't consider themselves gay and still sleep with women, further passing this disease along. Heterosexual contact follows close behind with intravenous drug use, then male-to-male intravenous drug use trailing.

The H in HIV stands for Human which means this is a humans disease and any part of the body that breaths is susceptible.  We have to make education a priority so we can silence this deadly killer. In honor of World AIDS day, do yourself a favor and get tested today. Being knowledgable is sexy; ignorant is not...who's with me?

The possibility of Detroit...

The region responsible for birthing life into the automobile industry has recently been deemed the Motorless city. What once boasted diverse filled summers swimming in festivals and events, celebrating everything from international ethnicities and the blues to the syrupy smooth sounds of the Motown era has been nicknamed the city of Death. Streets that once bellowed tunes, trumpets, bright lights and casino lined streets now lay in ruins of debris, busted dreams and broken spirits. Some say Detroit has flat-lined; Palladium Boot Co. begs to differ.

Underneath the gory, dark, drastically violent and poverty stricken  images that have plagued television sets across the world, lies less than one million people who still call 'The D' home.  The city feels like a forgotten one, with the most important asset being left behind: the people.Clad in black Baggy Canvas style Palladiums along with a few Detroit locals including entrepreneur Phil Cooley, Johnny Knoxville journeys through the city limits, soaking up the magic, beauty and humility of a city that was left for dead.

Detroit represents more than what Dateline showed. Sure, there's violence, high crime and unemployment but name one city where that's not the case. I'll wait. Exactly. As Johnny walks through the fragments and remains of the East Town Theater, which was converted into a rock venue in the late '70's, you can almost feel the guitar riff of MC5's guitarist Wayne Krammer or picture Alice Cooper and his top hat roaming the stage rocking out hit after hit. Detroit Lives doesn't feel like anything you've seen recently about Detroit or any other city for that matter. Its a living testimony of what happens when achieving the American Dream has nothing to do with race, violence, crime and poverty  and focuses more on fostering opportunity, preserving a legacy and the possibility of hope within a community.

Ever wonder how to combat a drug epidemic? Take a page from the Heidelberg Project play book where creator Tyree Guyton took abandoned houses in the Ghetto, cleaned them up, injected color, toys, stuffed animals and resurrected it into an outside art gallery. In response to the lack of food in the city, one Detroiter took impoverished areas occupied by  abandoned lots and harvested farms filled with produce that will find homes in local restaurants and on kitchen tables. The Russell Industrial Center, an old warehouse that has been converted into loft style spaces, are bringing artists from around the world into the city to hang out, set up shop and create life and art in Detroit. To shine positivity on a city the world sees drowning in a sea of hopelessness, Art Director Katie R. created North End Studio and filled it with lights, music and art as a means to give Generation Y and Z a creative outlet.

Detroit Lives took the hope, survival, possibility and spirit of a city and its current state of crisis and turned it upside down. A city that has for so long been misunderstood, ridiculed and stereotyped is a volume speaking spokesperson for its people. A savior in the form of large chain stores is not what Detroit needs. Its needs entrepreneurial spirits from people looking for a fresh start and a chance to empower, invest and build their own communities. A place where homes and property can be purchased for little, food can be grown locally and spaces rented for next to nothing feeds the imagination and opens the door to endless possibilities. End of Detroit? More like the beginning of a rebirth. Thanks Palladium.

Real men don't sag

These days, a sagging pair of jeans is as common to see as a car on the streets. They're everywhere! Enough already...don't you agree? And whoever said that having your drawers showing was sexy? Such a jail house mentality. Its really time to wake up already. And boy did I feel refreshed after reading the November 2010 issue of GQ featuring Swizz Beatz.

Baggy jeans was so 2010. With the ringing in of a new year in less than 2 months, 2011 is all about presentation. Its how you rock it that counts. Giving old-school a fresh twist this season is...Bow Ties? Absolutely, agrees Beatz. So much that you can find footage of the professional beat maker posted at www.gq.com giving a personal how-to on the art of this fun accessory.

Polka dot Bow Ties, wool checkered suspenders and fedora's O my. From Uniqlo, he rocked kangol styled hats and Michael Kors sexy specs.  But I absolutely admired the purple Versace sweater. Somehow that David Hart Bow Tie brought it all together.
You rocked it Swizzy.