"...I miss lots of foods. I miss fresh meat, you know...because, in Brazil we are predominately carnivores - you know, we are not vegetarians. We don't like potatoes - we like meat! Fresh meat!...." - A zoo lion giving an interview about how he feels living in the Zoo, in "Creature Comforts"

I don't eat red meat or pork. I've been that way for about 10 or 11 years. It started in college when I just decided (based on evidence) that red meat is not healthy. I was tired of knowing that the meat was sitting & rotting in my intestine much longer than, say, chicken.

So, it was a health thing at first. I had to conciously deny myself red meat & pork. But now, I can't stand the thought or taste of it. Even if I have a turkey burger that's prepared too much like a beef burger, I can't eat it. (People should really switch to ground turkey instead of ground beef - you can prepare it such that you can hardly tell the difference!)

One time I was out picking up pizza for me & my sister. Mine was mushrooms & chicken & stuff. Hers was pepperoni. Yuck!. The smell of it filling my truck was making me wanna puke.

I just thought about this today cuz I went out to lunch with a couple of guys, and the subject came up, and they asked me why I don't eat it, and I was amused by the fact that it's been so long that I actually had to think for a sec to explain why I didn't eat it anymore.

"Oh, well - I'm a carnivore. I need something with a face - bring on the meat!" was his reply.

"I ain't lyin',
girls be cryin'
cuz I'm on TV
They even bother
my poor father
cuz he's down with me..." - RUN-DMC in "Tricky"

One of my new favorite shows is MTV's "Run's House". Check it out. I'm not at all a fan of reality shows, but I appreciate the ones where folks be having some sense, and some family values. The Venus & Serena show was an example of this, and now so is Run's House.

Judge for yourself, but here are some scenes that I thought were kool in the 2 episodes that have aired so far:

• Run is talking to his high-school daughter and her boyfriend. Run clowns the kid a little for not necessarily having good goals in life, but eventually gets serious and says to the boy that his daughter is very special to him, and that the boy's intentions need to be high, like a high note that breaks the glass in the windows. Thru all of this, his daughter says nothing, but listens. To me it looks like she understands that her father is talking, that he's serious, and she listening too. I believe this is an example of how fathers should set an example for their daughters, and fill their roles as figures of authority.
  
• After talking with brother Russell Simmons about having a "birds & the bees" talk with his sons, he resolves that he should "lead by example" - walk the walk instead of just talking the talk. Good answer.
  
• Run & his wife sit his boys down to explain to them why their sister is getting a big graduation party - because she gets REALLY good grades. I liked seeing these parents make sure that their kids weren't having any issues with jealousy or feelings of neglect. During their talk, Run tells them "Life gives to the givers, and takes from the takers". He tells them to repeat it. They do it without hesitation - even the 16 year old.

Check out an episode, then hit me up with a Comment. I'd be interested to know what y'all out there in blogland think of the show.

"...I'm sure you've discovered my deep and abiding interest in pain. At present I'm writing the definitive work on the subject. So I want you to be totally honest with me on how The Machine makes you feel..." - Count Rugen in "The Princess Bride"

I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth extracted on Tuesday.

Yes....I know. You can stop making that face.

I gotta first give props to my dentist. That brother helped me maintain my manhood by making it as painless as possible, and keeping me from becoming a blubbering, wimpering girly-man screaming like a white woman in a 70's horror flick. I was awake the whole time, but with plenty of novocaine or whatever they use. I kept saying the same thing Busta would say - "Gimme Some More"!


You know, I had no idea that these teeth were going to be extracted by brute force. I assumed that in 2005 we had some technology that would use some complex laws of physics in order to separate the teeth from the gums. But apparently the dental practices rampant in the 1700's are still applicable today.

I had at least 2 people who were freaking me out after the fact, warning me of "intense pain", "air pockets", multi-day gum bleeding, etc. None of that stuff happend, tho. Praise Jesus. PRAISE HIM!

Cuz I don't handle pain well. I mean, I'm a Man and all.. shoot. I'm saying... I can take some stuff. 'Nah mean? But...not TOO much stuff....you know?........

"...Say Hello to my lil' friend!!!..." - Tony Montana in "Scarface"

I have 2 nephews, both about 4 years old. They don't see each other often - two different cities. I think in their whole long lives of 4 years, they've seen each other a total of 5 times for a few hours each, and we're talking many months between visits. The point I'm trying to make is, they're not best friends or anything, if there is such a thing at age 4.

They both visited a few weekends ago. That's them in the picture. It took all of about 90 seconds for them to start playing together like they were brothers who had grown up together! I'm talking loud shouting, spinning around holding hands, imaginary gunfights, coloring, sharing toys -type playing. It's like, I go to the bathroom, come out and find that they're best friends already. Wow.

I know adults who would haze you for two years before they would decide to let you be their friend. Why can't us grown folk learn how to build relationships like 4-year olds?

"...You ask me
'Child, do you love me?'
And I say 'Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!'
'But will you
Just give up everything
[And] follow me?'
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!..."
- Yolanda Adams in "Mountain High...Valley Low"

The other morning I took Yolanda Adams new CD, "Day by Day" into the car with me for the ride to work.

Traffic that morning was a little slow. I got thru about 5 tracks before getting to work.

After work, traffic on the highway was a crawl. I got thru the whole CD before getting home.

Do you think God would jam up traffic just so I could have the undistracted time to listen to the ministry of Yolanda's new album? Would He do all that just for me? Cuz I sho' nuff had a lil' praise party in my car that afternoon! Yolanda be speaking to me!!

"...I used to be on floors just like you. But see...now I'm washing lettuce! Pretty soon I'll be on fries. Then the grill. A couple of years from now, I'll make Assistant Manager. And that's when the big bucks start rolling in!" - Louie Anderson in "Coming to America"

I decided to stop by my friendly neighborhood Burger King the other day for a chicken sandwich. I knew it was probably a bad idea, cuz that Burger King location is notorious for slow service. But I thought, well, it's the evening time, and I'll walk inside instead of doing the drive-thru.

I get in there, and already I'm behind two other customers. Mere seconds after entering, I could already sense that the same taking-too-long shinaningans were occurring tonite as well. The young teenage girl behind the cash register had that familiar "I hate this job" look on her face.

As she paced back and forth, checking order #s and waiting on food from the oh-so-sanitary cooks in the back room, I caught her mentioning to one of the customers in front of me that she had been working there only 2 weeks, but already she was sick of it. She was finally given a real opportunity to vent when a co-worker whispers to her, "I'm ready to get out of here."

"Me, too!", she replied. "My shift is almost over. I can't WAIT to get out of here. I'm sick of this place! As a matter of fact..." She looked up at the clock hanging on the wall. "....my shift is gonna be over in....1....2....3...4..." (counting and pointing at the clock) "....5.... in fifteen minutes!...."

...................................now what is we gon' do?

This poor child doesn't realize that she needs to be counting her blessings that she's got a job at Burger King, for there are only so many retail outlets in America that will accept an applicant who has to count the ticks on a wall clock in order to determine she has 15 minutes left in her shift. Instead of going home and turning on the TV to relax after a grueling day of fast food frenzy, she should sit down with her parents and have a heart-felt discussion about how they've failed her in the area of education and proper Burger King etiquette...

I left shortly thereafter, fearing I would be there too long. How long? (looking at my watch) ...1..2..3..4.........