Thursday, August 14, 2008

Men & Their Sports...

Am I the only one who's been party to one of the long drawn out manly man conversations where the guys get together and talk sports?? I seem to be the only one who audibly laughs as each guy trys to out do the other with his display of random sports facts and random tidbits amid grunts, yells, and pats on the ass... Funny stuff.. true comedy. Who knows where it starts.. a sports mobile above the crib, a Fisher Price plush football, or damn sports video games.

From a young age I was made to understand that boys play sports. Period. Real men either played sports, or "faked" this obsession with them. These gender normatives follow us into adulthood and greatly affect our relationships with our kids. If you're the guy with the All American Quarterback Kid who gets a full ride to UCLA to play football, great for you. Hmm... what happens if your kid is into geology and decides to start a rock collecting club or directs his high schools fashion show? Then what? Hmm.. My 20 year old brother recently had twins--a boy and a girl--and is already planning out their lives in the NBA and WNBA, respectively. Unfortunately this is despite their wishes and is solely based upon his wants. He specifically articulated that he'd be upset otherwise.. Very similar attitudes to our father. Funny thing is my brother didn't play sports in high school and neither did our father.. Funny how our dreams for our kids can often stunt their futures.

Sports are just OK to me. I don't love them, I don't hate them. I don't pretend to know everyones stats and all that jazz. Sports are like crack.. those who are into it feel this need to force it on everyone else.. As good as I'm sure it is, I'll pass. I'd encourage you all to check your parents yearbook and I'm sure most of you won't find your fathers in the football team picture either. Chances are my mom knows more about sports than most men I know!

Monday, August 11, 2008

...with a greatful heart!

Not sure what I'm going through tonight but I'm trying to give thanks for what I have despite what I don't. It's increasingly difficult to look past our lack and give thanks for what we have.. lonely I guess... ::sigh:: LOL

Aaron McGruder's Nightline Interview

I am so sad that the Boondocks comic strip is no more. In a nation saturated by reality shows and articles about Brittany Spears coochie, it was that ram in the bush that we needed!



I love the fact that he's speaking truth without apology and without fear of reprisal. Poverty is poverty and unfortunately there are far more people in this country experiencing extreme lack then popular culture would like us to believe. Most of us are not living the carefree life of Paris Hilton. This manufactured outrage is laughable. Who's offended by Boondocks?? Often, we need to be offended so we say enough it enough and start brainstorming solutions.

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Please Complete Me..

As I continue on my journey to complete, authentic, and unrelenting happiness I had a conversation with a buddy today that got me to thinking about the mistakes we makes with regards to happiness. He recently reconciled with is girlfriend after working through some of their issues and while things should be okay as they enjoy their new rekindled "post lust/pre-love", she's still not happy. It's nothing he's done or not done to cause this, she's just unhappy.

Happiness is the only thing in life that is completely self defined. Stupid is stupid. More or less, ugly is ugly. Happiness is the only state where there are no absolute presets. I've been there.. I could never actualize happiness because I always thought it would come when I lost the weight. Then I though it would come when I gained it back! I thought it would come after I bought the new cloths, but sadly I couldn't quite pull off the look. I thought happiness would come with the relationship, with the degree, with the care, with the friend, or even by way of a microphone and a state. Sadly, it didn't. With each level of graduation, the bar was only raised. I decided I wasn't go to be that guy who works my whole life to get "stuff"--whatever stuff may be for you- -and then drop dead the day after I finally get it.
Ironically, we expect those around us to complete us. Sadly, often that expectation is not reciprocated as we live to force our habits, idiosyncrasies, insecurities, past, and personalities down others' throats while we expect those around us to be the "perfect...."

-Roderick Griner, July 2008

Love, things, people, places, etc.. cannot make you happy. Didn't work for me. Things are great. People are cool too. Love is the best.. but they only serve to supplement the state you go to on your own. The flip side is, the lose of any of the aforementioned cannot topple you from that state of happiness because they didn't aid in getting you there!

Saturday, August 9, 2008

Where's All The Good Music Gone? Vol. 2

I discovered this great video of Jazmine Sullivan singing "IN Love with Another Man" today. Listen to this girl belt this song with little more than a keyboard to accompany her! She can sing like this and you can still only find her music on Youtube and through various peer2peer sharing sites. Funny thing is I was in Target yesterday and they had a whole freaking wall of that trick Ashantie! All I can say is she must give bomb head cause she surely isn't a singer.

Friday, August 8, 2008

Be Strong My Friend

Hey Peeps... been a lil down and stuff but how many know that God is! Check out my girl Chantae Cann singing Be Strong. Enjoy her voice, but listen to the words.. they'll bless you.


Ok, So now what George W.?

Do you remember when they first started talking recession? Fox News and Republicans everywhere passed the warnings off as alarmist speculation. Just months later people are actually celebrating that gas prices have dropped to $3.87. Seriously? For the first time in my lifetime, everyone is broke. Blacks & Whites, College Grads & GED holders, Young & Old. Everyone is feeling the pinch. Well everyone except our leaders. We live in the most dichotomous governmental system that exist. We rely on wealthy, Yale educated elitists to make the decisions that affect people who will never have enough to eat, never make enough to keep things turned on, and will never know excess or extravagance. We have a system of government where regular people cannot be success. Look at Hillary. Obviously you cannot run for office unless you have 5 or so million dollars sitting around to subsidize a campaign that started out failing. Sorry Hill.. that was mean. Oh I digress...

I've been unemployed since mid June. Lost my job because they needed to cut a position and I was too smart. No, I'm not puffing my head up.. they told me I was too smart. The irony is we're raised to shoot for the stars. "Do well in school" they tell us and all things will be at your disposal. Not so. Mediocrity will keep you employed while ambition scares folks. I was at the unemployment office today to get a letter to send to my student loans guarantors to show that I am in fact unemployed. The woman working at the Department of Labor, who looked at least 40, told me that she has an "economic hardship" deferment of her loans. Imagine that.. the people at the state unemployment office are a paycheck away from being other side of the counter. On Monday I went to the Department of Families and Children to see if I could qualify for any other type of assistance. Shit.. I pay taxes, why not.. I read my entire Newsweek while waiting. The whole thing! Advertisements and all. Can I just throw in her that government office are organized confusion?? Jesus Christ. Who the hell is in charge?? Well I finally go into see a counselor who after looking at all my past due bills and then looking at my weekly unemployment benefits and told me I made too much money to get ANY assistance. Unemployed, I make too much money! This bitch had the audacity to tell me she works at the office and is on food stamps. Ain't that some shit?? Our system is set up to sustain functional poverty. A culture of working poor. Am I the only one who thinks things are broken?

...Reality is what they need.

Sometimes I feel like Disney is responsible for everything we see on TV, and everything we experience a the movies. I understand that these mediums are based in make believe but must of it is down right fantasy. I think that TV shows like Friends and Martin are very apt examples of real life. White people with White people and Black People. It almost seems like there is this new formula for TV shows... you have to have your overly horny Black guy, your angry Black woman, a ditsy White girl, a gay, and either a White or Asian "all American" athletic type. In this fantasy world, everyone gets along, nothing offends anyone, and somehow everyone fully understands the respective experiences of the other characters no matter how diverse their stories. In a perfect world this would be great, but unfortunately it is not a realistic characterisation of how we really interact. It is so much easier to tell the story this way than to open a dialogue about the fact that we all are fearful of what is different. If each group new the conversations that the others were having about them when it's "just us."

I'm sitting here watching the movie, The Fighting Temptations. I cannot get over the opening scene. The setting is an old school Baptist church featuring an energetic church choir led by Pastor Shirley Cesar. The time seems like As the camera pans the congregation... everyone in the church is IN. Folks are shouting, dancing, falling out, etc. Funny stuff... The funniest part is the church congregation is more mixed than any church I've been in.. and I grew up Methodist and went to Catholic School! Interracial couples, White men, women and children, Asians, and blacks... as though this naturally occurs. The only thing there were missing was the gay! But lets be real, it was a Black church! Don't get me wrong. I love the idealism of tinsel town but I'd rather we tell the story as it is and force people to admit to and work through their fear of what's unknown.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Today Is Jamaican Independence Day


Today I'm celebrating Jamaican Emancipation and Independence Day. The official holiday is August 6th but it is celebrated the first Monday of every August. The flag and it's colors have become so cliche to American's but they surely mean something to my kin folk! The Jamaica National Flag was first raised on Independence Day, August 6, 1962. It signifies the birth of our nation.

..::Listening to The Jamaican National Anthem::..

Listen the Anthem

Jamaican National Anthem

Eternal Father, Bless our Land,
Guide us with thy mighty hand,
Keep us free from evil powers,
Be our light through countless hours,
To our leaders, great defender,
Grant true wisdom from above,
Justice, truth be ours forever,
Jamaica, land we love,
Jamaica, Jamaica, Jamaica, land we love

Teach us true respect for all,
Stir response to duty's call,
Strengthen us the weak to cherish,
Give us vision lest we perish,
Knowledge send us Heavenly Father,
Grant true wisdom from above,
Justice, truth be ours forever,
Jamaica, land we love,
Jamaica, Jamaica, Jamaica, land we love.

Words by Hugh Sherlock, music by Robert Lightbourne