Are We Losing the Right To Get Angry?

The scene is a raucous loud party where everyone is dancing, drinking and having a great time. Then, the camera zooms in on one party goer. This person is wearing a bright outfit, around his neck are a couple of super thick gold chains and in his mouth are gold teeth or grillz. He's out on the dance floor drinking from a bedazzled chalis and grinding his pelvis into the behind of a full bodied girl wearing nothing but a bikini. (Oh and there is no pool in sight.)

Does a scene out of Hollywood Shuffle come to mind or a Lil John video? Remember when you first saw the movie Hollywood Shuffle and you laughed because the scenes were so ridiculous and far fetched. You could look at that movie and know that it was a satire...a stab at how main stream Hollywood stereotypes Black Americans.

Now, fast forward to movies and videos available today. Those once satirical images are no longer meant to be facetious. They're meant to show 'the real' life of people in 'the hood'. So, now, we're claiming these representations as valid and fair examples of how we live. So, can we really get angry when white people, who are trying to be like us, don the same gear and have a party...calling it a an MLK celebration?


Link to Story

It seems some students at a university in Texas did just that. Read all about it in the link above.

Granted, these kids did take it too far. But, where do we draw the line? As a community we have to do a much better job of managing the representations of us and our culture that are out there in the media. We can't blame 'the Man' when we're the ones directing the movie/video, producing the music and writing the songs. And what's worse most of the influential artists in music today are over 30. Shouldn't they be stewards of our culture and not panderers to the masses?

Just a thought...

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Corrine Bailey Rae Videos

You guys know how much I love her. Well, I found some new videos from her CD. Check 'em out.

http://uk.launch.yahoo.com/corinne-bailey-rae/


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The DC Auto Show 2007

So, a friend invited me to the DC Auto Show Preview night on Tuesday. I had been wanting to go, so I was amped. Plus, on preview night, it's free food and open bar.

Maybe you've been to an auto show before and you know what to expect. But, this was my first time. So, I spent all day surfing the net for pictures of concept cars and rare rides that I hoped to see at the show. At the top of my list of course was the Maybach Exelsor, that's what Jay-Z is pushing in the Lost Ones video. The car is not 'new' though, I think it came out in '05. But, it's wicked.

Ok, there was no Maybach exhibit but, all the usual players were there. The new Mercedes and Jags were there. There was also a cool JEEP exhibit called Camp Jeep or something like that, where you could ride shotgun in a JEEP through this rollercoaster-like floor display. RM, why didn't we stand in line for that???

We saw a few concept cars that looked really slick. But, the big draw was the luxury car section. The Lambo, Ferrari and Phantom were all there just mocking me. LOL People were waiting in line to get a picture next to each of them. Call me crazy, but, I only want a picture of me in front of a luxury car when I'm driving that joint off the lot. So, I'll wait for my photo op.

Another cool exhibit was at Nissan...I think. They had a little setup where you could tape your own commercial. Then, they burned a copy for you on a DVD. It was funny watching this one man. He had all this mouth when he was standing in line, but, as soon as the camera and lights turned on, he looked like a scared duck. Hilarious.

In addition to the cars, there will be 'celebrity' appearances on each day. So, you might want to plan your visit based on who's gonna be there. More info can be found at the link below.

Whatever you decide to do this weekend, have fun!

http://www.washingtonautoshow.com/


...it's been 2 weeks.

Thursday Thoughts

So, it's been a looong week. I've been buried in visio diagrams and briefings. To break the monotony and give me some laughs, I've been catching up on my podcasts. The one I've been loving this week is Man & Wife. This podcast features Fat Man Scoop and his wife Shanda. It's kind of like a black Berman and Berman show. I didn't know much about FMS before this week. Other than that he's the hype man on some of my favorite tracks. I didn't know he was married or that he and his wife were getting it like they describe on these mini-shows. I've got to warn you, some of the episodes are not appropriate for work, but, they are HILARIOUS.

I'm amazed, this is a really big dude. I don't know what else to say. Check it out...

My other favorite podcasts are chicagogroove.com, DJ House Foundation and VH1 Best Week Ever. What other ones should I check out?


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TGIF in Houston

I woke up this morning to a slightly overcast 68 degrees. I soo love this weather. But, this has been a really long week. I am looking forward to getting on that plane and snoozing til landing. After this trip I think I'll be taking a hiatus from Tex-Mex for a while. I've had enough this week to last me for a long time.

So, last night I did my walk around the Galleria mall and I ran into this rapper. I didn't know who he was, but, he was close-talking me. I hate that. Anyway, his stuff is on iTunes and he has a myspace. Who knows he might be the next Slim Thug, I'll post his info next week. Then, if he blows up, you'll be able to say that you heard it hear first.

Another big thing this week was that Houston won the game against LA. We watched that game at the Fox Sports Bar at the Galleria. This seemed like the spot to be, lots of attractive black professionals just chillin. It was a good time.

I had to suspend my shopping ban. I have to buy a t-shirt from French Connection everytime I visit a new city. Even though, I've been to H-Town before, there wasn't a French Connection in the mall on my last visit. So, now I can add my new 'FCUK in Houston' shirt to my collection. So, far I've got 'FCUK in Vegas'. In Miami I was a 'HUSTLER'. It was so funny because my boss saw my bag and asked, 'What did you buy?' I showed him the shirt and said, 'Now, I can FCUK for almost a whole week.' He nearly died laughing. Luckily we have a great casual rapport.

Well, I'm about to head out to catch my flight. Have a great weekend. I'll be back in Fentyville on Tuesday.

Holla

Wednesday in Houston

Howdy from the great state of Texas!

I've been in Long Horn country since Monday morning. First I was in Austin, this morning I flew into Houston. Unfortunately this is a biz trip, not much pleasure. Still, the weather is mild and sunny. Last night my colleagues and I went to 6th street in Houston. It's kind of like the village in NYC and kind of like Haight-Ashbury in San Fran. This was my first time in Austin, so, I was looking forward to seeing what the city has to offer. There were many blocks of restaurants, bars and clubs on this strip, but, since it was a Tuesday night and since U of Texas is not back in session yet, it was pretty dead. Still, we stopped at a little (by Texas standards, big by everyone else's) bar for some drinks and a friendly game of fooz-ball to let off some steam. How strange is it that I've NEVER played fooz-ball before? LOL I had a blast. Now, I can add that to my repertoire.

Tonight we'll probably go out to some typically Texas restaurant for dinner. I am looking forward to getting back to my room and having some 'me-time'. My social battery is running low.

Well, I've gotta rush off to a meeting now. Enjoy your day. I'll try to post again before I head home on Friday.

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Too Soon for a Relapse

Ok, why did I almost just buy a t-shirt. There's this website, www.customizedgirl.com where you can make your own tees. I was about to click the 'Next' button after I designed the flyest little t-shirt, then I remembered that I'm not supposed to shop for apparel this year. AARRRGGGHHHHHH

It takes 21 days to form a habit, so, I'm just barely a third through my process. Can I just say that my customized shirt was hot too. This totally sucks. I've just got to repeat my new mantra...

"I work to travel. I work to travel. I work to travel."

Giving up the soda has been a little bit easier. But, I think I'm experiencing caffiene withdrawal symptoms. I've been super fatigued all week. But that could be because I was able to take a nap every day last week and this week, I've had no such luck.

Well, I'm going to get back to work now.

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Credits Please!

I have very strong scorpio tendencies. The good ones...I'm fiercely loyal. I would never and have never cheated on a boyfriend. I keep my friends' secrets. I feel things deeply or not at all. Luke warm is not a term that someone who knows me would use to describe me. And the not so good... Bad experiences get stuck in my craw like teeny splinters get stuck in your feet. And I hold grudges.

The grudges, I'm totally working on. The funny thing is, I can be going along with my life, being happy and productive and then, something will remind me of a person that lied to me, betrayed me, cheated on me or just plain did me wrong...and my good mood is immediately blown. Being the ever over analyzing scorpio that I am. I decided to pick apart my feelings. Why is this still bothering me? "I thought you were over that", I'll say to myself.

Then, I realized that the situations that cause me the most post traumatic stress are the ones that happened too quickly for me to respond. Or the ones where I didn't find out what really went down until much later. In at least one case, a couple of years later. This left me feeling like I didn't have closure. So, maybe that gut-wrenching feeling I get is because I can't express my feelings on the situation. It's like I'm in a slow motion silent movie. My mouth slowly opens to speak and then I'm zapped frozen. Trapped in that moment until the credits roll.

I don't really know. I'm sorting this out as I write. I just had one of those moments and I'm trying to figure out how to fast forward this flick and get out of this movie.

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Happy New Year!

I hope this new year finds you in good health and spirit. How did you bring in the new year? I went to church that night. It was awesome. It's so funny, b/c I spent the better part of 3 days leading up to NYE trying to figure out what I would do that night. I had a couple of date invitations, one house party invite or the always appealing, stay at home option. I think NYE is like the prom. There are so many expectations placed on this one night that it can't possibly live up to all of them. I was just not interested in spending such an important night with a date that I wasn't really feeling. And the notion of chillin at a house party where I only know a few people wasn't that attractive either. So, at almost the last minute, I decided to go to the Watch Light service at church. Of course the service was outstanding. The singing, the messages, everything. It was a great way to start my year.

I can't believe I'm back at work. I thoroughly enjoyed my week off. Aside from seeing Dream Girls, I finally caught Casino Royale. I thought it was really good. I caught up on some TV too.

My resolutions were simple this year...in theory.

#1 - No soda. I LOVE carbonation and Diet Coke is my bubble of choice. This is going to be a real challenge for me. I'm not a big juice drinker. Too much sugar. I drink plenty of water, but that gets boring after a while.

#2 - No apparel shopping. This is going to be really difficult. But, I just have to claim the victory on this one. My wardrobe is extensive enough to clothe a small country of small people. I have stuff that I bought months ago, with tags still on it. I don't NEED anything new to wear. To ramp up for this, I did a little bit of shopping last week for things that I might need next year. I bought some Rock and Republic skinny jeans, a couple of new all weather suits, and a couple of work dresses. It's my plan to rock this stuff, in addition to what I already had in my closet, for the year. I'll keep you posted as I go through my symptoms of withdrawal. Pray for me!

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