"My years are not advancing as fast as you might think..." - Phil Conners in 'Groundhog Day'

A couple of recent events made me realize that I'm 30 years old:

• My friends and I have to coordinate via email 2-weeks in advance to play basketball together next Saturday.
• My wife and I chose to stay home and watch Battlestar Galactica (a really great show) drinking iced tea instead of going to the club to hear our friend DJ a hip-hop set.
• We decided we'd go next Sunday nite to the club, only because it's a holiday weekend and we don't have to get up to go to work in the morning (I used to be able to kick it all nite and still get up and go to work).
• I got way too excited in a couple of conversations I had with someone regarding low-interest loans.

...sigh.....

"This place makes Cambodia look like Kansas..." - Blain in "Predator"

I think if I had unlimited resources & money, and nothing else to do, I would spend the rest of my life "making the Travel Channel come to life" (as Ludacris would say). I would hire the best travel guides in the world, and travel to as many diverse countries as possible. I'd tell the guide, "Come up with a schedule that lets me see & experience the most comprehensive view of this country that I can achieve in 1 week".

I think it's one thing to see stuff on TV, but I would imagine that actually being physically immersed in the location and culture would have a totally different 'feeling'.

I would definitely start in Africa. I would begin by visiting the countries of which I have friends that are from there, like Liberia. I would have them show me everything they could, and even live as a guest of their family - I bet that'd be better than a travel guide.

I would also like to get a better feel for all the political drama going on there. Hopefully I'd have enough money to provide myself adequate 'security'. :-)

Then I'd do Central America, since I've got some roots there. Then further down to South America - I'd love to hike thru the Amazon.

Oh, well. It's nice to dream. Well, since I ain't rich [yet], I guess I'll just go to Cincinnati....

"...Ho, Haha, Guard, Turn, Perry, Dodge, Spin, Ha, Thrust!" - Daffy Duck in "Robin Hood Daffy"

I bought a bookcase yesterday so I could shelve all my spare computer parts and stuff. It was one of those Sauder some-assembly-required type shelves. I've probably assembled over a dozen different types of Sauder furniture items in my life. You'd think I'd be an expert at putting them together by now, using the simple step-by-step instructions.

Drats. I flubbed it. I put Part A where Part C should be. Son of a...

Can somebody tell me what good is a college edumacation if I can't screw 2 pieces of wood together properly???

"...I think if people see this footage, they'll say 'Oh, my God, that's horrible'. And then they'll go on eating their dinners...." - Jack in "Hotel Rwanda"

Is it better to not watch the news, and feel a little better about life while you bask in the bliss of your ignorance? Or should we watch the news daily, even though it's 90% filled with all the negative stuff going on, so we can have a 'realistic' view of the horrors of life?

Would a news channel that only reported on positive things be watched by anyone? And if not, what does that say about our society?

hmmm......

"...See, this is why I don't be DJ'ing for free no more - cuz ni**as don't be appreciating s**t!..." - Bilal in "House Party".

I've been doing the entrepreneurial thang for many years now. Among other things, there's one thing I've learned - folks will ALWAYS want a hookup. I don't know, man - something about our People.

In a time when we should be supporting and encouraging the growth of Black business, you would think that we would start to have more respect for the businesses of our brothas & sistas. We need to start to be willing to not just pay for each others services, but pay REGULAR PRICE, and not always look for a discount.

I've had folks try to get me to give them like 90% discounts! That tells me they don't respect the value of my work at all. When I say "No", guess what they probably do - go outside our Community to someone else and pay them full price without asking twice.

Now, what is we gon' do?....

"...your dirty laundry gets out of school at 2:30 every day. It's cursing on the way home, on the bus, train, in the candy store..." - Bill Cosby at the annual Rainbow/PUSH conference

So what side do I take regarding Bill Cosby's comments on Black folk - am I pro- or anti-Cosby? I am definitely down with the Coz!

I appreciate his unwavering stance. Who knows exactly why he's doing this, but here's my thought. I think he realizes two things -

1) it needs to be said, and nobody [worth listening to] is saying it.
2) he can say it and not give a hoot what people think about it.

Cosby doesn't have fans that he fears losing - if he loses his 'fans', that ain't no money out of his pocket.

He has no reputation that he needs to uphold in order to keep working in entertainment. In fact, he doesn't need to keep working!

I'm glad to see that he recognizes his position. Many times we talk about big Black superstars who don't use their position and prestige to make a difference. But that's because those stars know that if they step out there, We as a Community won't back them up! But Cosby doesn't need any backup.

From what I know about Cosby's history, I don't think his actions are unprecedented either. People are trying to act like he's just saying all this stuff from some elevated, holier-than-thou position. But I think Cosby's been there, seen it and done it. I think he's done his part for the Cause on more than one occasion. I think he's earned the right to speak.

Shoot - you give me about 90 million dollars and you'll hear what I got to say about some thangs, too! I'll say my piece and be like "now, what?!?..."

"So, this is planet Houston?..." - General Zod in 'Superman II'

Another space shuttle goes up & down successfully....or so it would seem.

You've heard the conspiracy theory - no man has ever been into space. The pictures we see of guys walking on the Moon are done in a sound stage somewhere using special movie effects.

It sounds preposterous - but why? I can't prove that they're wrong. I can't say, "of course people have been on the Moon. I've been there myself, and that's exactly what it looks like!"

It makes me feel powerless to have to just take the government's word for it. But that's what we do. We plug into a NASA-funded Matrix and we accept their kung-fu.

Maybe the Moon is actually made of cheese, and is used by God as a Heaven for mice....

"What is your deepest fear?" - Ken Carter in "Coach Carter"

I finally saw the movie Coach Carter the other day, mainly because my Pastor mentioned it in his sermon. Great movie. I give it an A.

My deep thought - our Community really doesn't do a good enough job of giving credit (awards, ceremonies, news articles, shout-outs) to our community heroes, who are doing huge & great things for people in our Community, with all the best intentions and no need for praise. I'm not talking about folks who help the community because helping the community is part of their job - but people who do it out of self-conviction, and who make personal sacrifice to do so.

It seem like we don't give folks props unless their work affects 125 people or more. If you only affect 17 people, you're not yet worth the praise. That sucks.

Ken Carter had a good spirit, and was also blessed with fantastic teaching ability. A kool prequel to the movie could be "Coach Carter II - Who Inspired Coach Carter?"

"Industry rule number 4080 - record company people are shady..." - Q-Tip in "Check the Rhime", A Tribe Called Quest

I can't imagine how any up & coming rapper in 2005 could still be susceptible to the financial and legal pitfalls that ultimately knocked down so many of our early rap & hip hop stars in the 80's. I mean, there's been so many news reports, hollywood insiders, exposes, true-life stories, books and interviews about how NOT to get caught up in the bling and then be left without enough money to pay your rent, that I figure I could protect myself if I became a rapper today - and I don't even know nuthin' 'bout the music biz! Jeez! Young rappers - it's called the Internet - use it.

by the way.....I may not know about the record business.......but I knoooow my music!:

"On and-and on and on on and on
Like hot butter on the pop the popcorn..."

fresh.....

"...How can you just leave me standing
alone in a world that's so cold?
Maybe I'm just too demanding.
Maybe I'm just like my father - too bold..." - Prince in "When Doves Cry"

There are two types of people in this world - those that react to the world, and those that cause a reaction.

We all need to be bold enough and confident enough in ourselves that we can commit to being an assertive force in this world, and not just reacting to what life throws our way.

Many live their wholes lives trying to "maintain". They react to the bills and the blows and the bad times that come their way, hoping to just fix this problem and then maintain until the next problem comes along. Their life is a constant attempt to break even.

We need to step out. Step up. Step ahead to something better. The only person that tells us we're not meant to be more than what we are is ourselves.

"...UN researchers predicted the current food crisis in Niger months ago. But only now, as millions face starvation and images of dying children sweep the news media, has the international community begun to respond with food aid..." - NewScientist.com news service

"...the sad fact remains that a country struck by disaster is in real trouble as far as Western governments are concerned, unless it has one or all of three things--resources worth stealing, beaches for European tourists or oil in abundance..." - Daily Trust (Abuja)

My wife was telling me about a news report she was watching on tv that talked about the Niger famine. Besides the gory details of the slow death of thousands of children, one point stuck out in my mind - the lack of humanitarian aid. She said that the report pointed out that, once the Tsunami aid effort got going (which was the "kool & hip" aid effort to be a part of), folks just packed up and said "see ya - we'll get back to ya" to the Niger people.

Lesson to be learned - remember to never assume that this world is inherently good in nature. The world is inherently evil, and we should never assume that anyone in it is looking out for our best interests.

"Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind..." - Romans 12