Where Do I Begin?

Where do I begin,

It's hard to put into words the thoughts that are going through my mind at this minute. Two weeks ago the only thing on my mind was my tailgate party for the Saints first game. Today I am at square one in life having lost every possession I own in Hurricane Katrina. It's quite a shocking turn of events when you wake up one day and realize that 31 years of life, memories and work are swept away in an instant. My entire family and most of my friends lost everything. I never thought we would all be starting over together at the same time. Who do you lean on? Everyone is in the same situation. If I had to describe what I feel at this moment it would have to be shock, depression and a lost of will. I just wish I knew where my grandmother was right now. The pain I feel inside is compounded by the realization that the government and the rest of the world looks at the people from my hometown as second class citizens not worthy of dignity. The treatment we have received in other cities since this happen has been helpful but also degrading. Don't let the images on TV fool you. On April 28th I had a job, a house, a dog that I loved dearly, and a wonderful circle of friends and family support. I didn't depend on a handout and I really don't want any now but since my life has been washed away in toxic flood water I have no choice. Where do I go from here? Only time will tell. I don't know if I can ever feel truly secure in my own city again. I don't know if the circumstances of how I left will ever allow me to feel like I truly belong anywhere else either. I guess I am in emotional limbo when it comes to my place in this country. I would be lying if I said that New Orleans was the most cleanest, honest, and most rewarding place to live. Some of the things that go on there can take allot out of you mentally. I won't mention the draining humidity and heat and the unwritten racism in the area that almost assures the entire area won't prosper. Even with all that, I have an almost obsessive love for the place that won't die until I do. Call me foolish but I have always waited for the day when things would turn around. I guess that day is near because it can't get much worse than it is now. I don't know what the future holds for me or the Big Easy. I do know that there are some friends and people that I may never see or hear from again because of this storm. Some are deceased and others will be too shaken emotionally to ever come back. The hardcore people like myself will be back one day. I just don't know how you get over something like this. I want one night of sleep without dreaming of something back home and one day where I don't start crying out of the blue. I don't know if that will ever happen again. I hope I find my grandma.

Mind Blowin Volume 20

On Thursday this bloc will be a full year old. I have to say it's been very therapeutic. I can actually look back and examine exactly where my mind was during certain times through the year and it might scare the hell out of me. I have truly been twisted during the past 365 days but I think I handled it pretty good. No one got shot and I didn't overdose so it couldn't have been that bad.

I think today I had the funniest and most black thing to happen to me in a long time. I went to get gas at lunch time and was talking with the lady in front of me about the prices. We both noticed the look on the guys face at the third pump that only had enough to get two dollars of glass in his truck to get to work with. Realizing that I only was saving my extra 1.50 for a cup of coffee, I gave the brother my caffeine money and the young lady did what she could so the man could get enough to drive to work and back. Times are getting rough when black people are being their brother's keeper just to get two gallons of gas. I could almost hear the theme from Good Times playing in the background.


I need to document this so I have it on record for evidence. If my eyes keep getting worse, back continues to hurt and this carpal tunnel syndrome gets to the point where I can barely hold a fork in my hand to feed myself, I am going to sue Yahoo, Black Planet, Microsoft, and Blogger for finding a way to make it a necessity for me to log into a computer somewhere everyday of my life from now on. The internet is sucking the life out of my people skills. No wonder my charisma is getting weak. All I do is type what I have to say all day and rarely talk. Starting next week, I am going to just go hang out at the free clinics, libraries, and DMV and just strike up conversations with strangers all day to get some real conversation. All I need to do is come up with a username and an alias as I'm ready to go.

I hate naming names in the blog when I am about to make fun of somebody. Since I know this person probably will never see this I am going to write it anyway. This is dedicated to my homeboy Louis I saw yesterday for the first time in years. Now I love running into any old friends from my childhood and teenage years and I was happy to see Lou alive and kicking. However, if you are 30 years old and over your identity should be defined by something more recent than your 8th grade football team. As a matter of fact, the following things should give you pride and memories but not be your reason for living.

High School Bands
Flag Girl Teams
Fraternities if you have been out of college more than 10 years
Sororities if you have been out of college more than 10 years
Little League Football
4 H Club
Any group that was called a crew, posse, or mob back in the hood.

If you are still wearing a jacket, hat, or t-shirt for any of these groups and it's not a reunion, you need to re-evaluate your life and find out what's the problem.

Drugs, Apathy, Ignorance, Fear: The New Orleans Murder Problem

If you clicked on the link below or read the headline you know that my beloved city's murder rate is now ten times the national average. While almost every major city's murder rate is falling, ours is going back up. This does not surprise me at all. As I am writing this there are 200+ murders in the city to date. I don't have the accurate count because it probably just changed a few minutes ago. The fact that some researchers fired 700 rounds in the air and it wasn't reported doesn't surprise me either. If you live here and love it like I do, news like this can only depress you. If you are a young black male(the majority of the victims) it can depress you and scare you at the same time. Of course, I am not an expert at these kind of matters but just like I said about the school board, I can't do any worse. Here is what I think the problem is and the solution.
Drugs everywhere
I could be exaggerating but it would not be a hard to believe that a third of the people in this city are on some kind of illegal drug. Drugs have taken over almost every neighborhood in this city. Lots of users equals lots of dealers and lots of dealers equals lots of competition and that's when the violence starts. There are too many adult men in this city that depend on drugs as the way to make a living. Unfortunately, violence is a bi product of that trade and many do what they have to do to survive.
Nameless, Faceless Victims
One of the reasons why the murder rate goes up and it seems like no one notices is the fact that the news coverage of the victims is so passive that no one even realizes what happened. You have to tell the truth about everything in order to bring about change. My daddy always says that when you control the media, you control what everyone sees. Whenever there is a murder in this city that doesn't involve and elderly person, a white person, or a child, it is placed somewhere in the middle of the metro section of the paper or mentioned on the news in passing. Maybe, if we act like someone shot the president when the first murder happened and make that person's life have some meaning we would take notice before the count got overwhelming. Give those young brothers laying in the streets a face like the other victims and see if that changes everybody's outlook on it. They are people too and loved by somebody.
Hopelessness and Ignorance
It's pretty sad that in a country that's spending billions of dollars in Iraq, has school systems in it that are so poor and badly run that kids 9 and 10 years old are basically giving up on life and hitting the streets. These young men simply have nothing in their life that tells them there is hope beyond what's going on around the block. Yes, they are ignorant but they were not born that way. There are no daddies, no opportunities, no education and no self worth. When you have those going on, you will always have a group of people that just don't care. Why should they? In their minds, no one has ever cared about them anyway so killing a man is no big deal.
Doing the Crime but not the Time
There are allot of killers walking around the streets of New Orleans. Many people know who they killed and why. The problem is that while someone may call and report the person, no one will come and testify against them. There are two reasons for this. The first and main reason is that people are scared to testify and the police and DA's office has done a poor job of protecting witnesses. No one really wants their neighborhood to be dangerous and have killers walking the streets preying on everybody. At the same time, no one wants to put themselves or their family in danger so they make the safe decision for themselves and be quiet. I actually think that this wouldn't be as big of a problem if people in this city actually served the time for what they did. There's too many people let out on technicalities or back door deals to think it's worth the risk of testifying only to see the same guy walking up the street six months later because the police had the wrong date on the warrant papers or something minor like that. The second and less talked about reason is something that is totally our fault as a community. We are just too close sometimes to get the heart to turn in somebody. If you have been knowing Ms. Jones for 40 years, you won't be so quick to call the police on Ms. Jones crazy grandchildren as fast as you should. As much damage as they do, we simply don't have the heart to turn in certain people. (Did I just agree with Harry Lee?)
No one really cares
There has always been a carefree charm in New Orleans that draws people here. That same care free charm has manifested itself into apathy as it relates to crime. With all the murders in the last 15 years, I still don't think most people see it as a problem affecting them unless someone they know gets killed. Outside of friends and love ones, we are not really shaken by the news of another killing unless it's a child or the elderly. The reality of it is that in some cases people are happy the victim is dead because more than not they are usually responsible for allot of death and crime themselves.
Sometime else that bugs me is that I watch all these national news shows and read all these magazines and newspapers and I never see all these media hogging black leaders expressing any outrage for the state of a city that is one of if the most predominately black in the nation. I guess we don't have enough money or influence for Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson to come and find out why the school system and murder rate is as bad as they are. I figured out a long time ago that for better or worse the poor and working class of New Orleans is on their own. We got to get it all turned around on our own.

Coming Soon.............Part 2 The Solutions

N.O. murder rate is 10 times national average

WWLTV.com | News for New Orleans, Louisiana | Local News


I will speak my peace on this later.................

triplexgoldteeth.com- Spinning teeth page 1

The day I see someone with this in their mouth is the day I pack up and move to Japan. I will not want to be an African Amercian anymore. I mean the rims are bad enough. Why does being from the hood have to mean you are tacky? You know who they had in mind when they made this junk. The first time the commercial airs during 106 & Park it is all over. Kids all over America will be cutting up their lips and gums trying to make their teeth spin.

Cliff's Tripping

As I sit here looking out at the rain...............

• Family is the most dangerous people when it comes to matters of the heart. Not only can they hurt you more, but you will let it happen over and over.
• My only real regret in life is not going to Tuskegee when I really wanted to go. It bothers me still because the reason I didn't go was fear.
• Nothing pisses me off more than someone or something not being what they have been portraying themselves to be.
• The one thing I wish I could do that I probably never will is play the piano and a guitar. I have no musical ability whatsoever.
• Life is easier to deal with when you realize that some people are so screwed up before your paths cross that it doesn't matter what you do. They will never be happy anyway.
• It doesn't matter what I say or complain about. When it's all said and done, the only reason for me not fulfilling my potential is my laziness and fear of failure. Things would be different with more effort.
• After you have a daughter, strippers in the club make you more sad than they do excited.
• I know it was not good for me to drink everyday and I haven't been but honestly.......Crown Royal taste better than water.
• We have created a culture of excuses that assures the next generation of our children will be totally comfortable with being failures and dependent on us to take care of them.
• People are always talking about eating healthy. I went to the store and all the healthy food cost twice as much as the toxic, poison, and fattening stuff. Good health belongs to the rich. A mother of five working two jobs is not counting carbs when she goes to the store.
• If I was a rapper, my name would be Big Cliff a.k.a The Black Super Hero.
• If I had to choose one profession I think I would be a wrestler and my name would be The Hammer.
• I can't figure out why I keep having these visions of being a child again. When I think about the past I realize that I didn't really like allot of other children as a child and can't stand most of them now.
• Never tell a woman you love her just to get in her pants unless you are prepared to deal with her feelings afterward.
• While I was out playing basketball and ran into someone from my past. I started thinking that as complicated life's journey is, the entire course of it can be changed by something as quick as one missed phone call or forgetting to make one. We spend allot of time thinking about the big decisions in life but the smaller events that we don't pay attention to can change everything.
• No man should ever want a woman to love him just for him in his present form. Every man should want a woman that wants him to recognize his full potential for himself. Anything other than that outlook is a waste of his time and hers.
• Woman pray all the time for the ideal man to come along. When he finally appears they have no idea what to do or how to handle it. They are just as scared of what true commitment means as men are. True commitment means letting go of your own world and creating a dual one with your partner. That is hard for everybody to do.
• I have never cared if I was popular or not. I would much rather kick it with one real comrade than have a bunch of phony ass people around me.
• It is real humbling to realize you are the least educated and least traveled person in your office at work.
• I am ashamed that at 31 years old I have no idea what my credit score is at the moment.
• If you really want to make sure that you will be happy with the person you meet tell them all the negative and aggravating things about you from the beginning and if they still hang around you have a chance.
• If I had to make an apology to all the women I ever dated it would be an apology for all the promises I made to do something, later changing my mind but never letting them know I did.
• Is it wrong that after 31 years I don't carry any guilt for anything I have ever done that might have upset somebody other than myself?
• One of these days my people are going to realize that we have been glorifying and making heroes and sex symbols out of the wrong ideal. The truth of the matter is the weakest man in the world is the thug. The thug is the man that wasn't strong enough to pull himself up so he gave in and did the bidding of the enemy by killing and terrorizing his own people. They have infiltrated neighborhoods the klu klux klan never could have. We have labeled them soldiers when in reality they are just pawns in the big chess game of America used to manipulate and erase the image of the honest black man. The real strength is in the man that gets up everyday and goes to a job he doesn't want to go to. He takes shit off of men that are not his equal. He tries to keep his wife satisfied, his kids clothed and fed and all the time trying to find some dignity in a world where his image is being defined by some fool with his pants by his knees and platinum teeth. Try to that for 75 years without killing somebody and then we can discuss being a soldier.

What the hell do I know about anything anyway. I will keep the rest to myself.

Editorial: Up is Down, Black is White

HipHopSite.Com

At the bottom of this page is an editorial by Pizzo concerning the hip hop rating system. If you like the music then read this editorial. If you don't so what.

Mind Blowing Volume 19

These are the dog days of August and it's hot as hell. I picked the best time of the year to decide to get out, play basketball and start exercising again. Running around in the Summer doesn't feel the same as it did when I was in my teens. Back then I could run around all day and night and no realize it was 100 degrees outside. Now, after about 15 minutes I am ready to go get back in the car by the air conditioner. That's what happens when you eat and drink too much for ten years straight and then try to become 19 again. I am very encouraged by the fact I haven't had a heart attack or heat stroke yet. It should be even better in a few weeks once we go from 90 degree temperatures to 80 degree temperatures. One thing about not playing basketball all the time like I used to is the way your skills evaporate and take forever to come back. It's also depressing to have a bunch of guys that smell like a blunt factory run circles around you but that will change soon.

Staffing Agencies
Staffing agencies make me sick. I took a whole day off from work to go an interview for a position I thought would double my salary. I get there and that position doesn't exist. They gave me an hour interview and skill test just to add me to their roster of potential candidates. Staffing agencies rule the IT field in New Orleans to the point where you can barely find an opening without their help. It's just really frustrating to think I wore my fake gator shoes for nothing. I won't even talk about the fact that they want you to do all this extra stuff when you get there. They want you to change your resume, take tests, and coach you on interviews without even sending you to any. It's all enough to make me love this low paying, boring, dead end job that I have now. At least I know this check will be here all the time (I hope). Who cares if I only have 20.00 to spend after I take care of everything I need to. I hope I sound aggravated because I am.

How come Bush can't meet with that lady who son died in the war?
Whatever happens to his political career because of this is deserved. He could have just met with this lady in private a few weeks ago and eased her mind. Now he can't because it's a media event and she is camped outside his ranch holding up pictures of her son while he goes fishing. If he keeps this up there will be 100 mothers outside his ranch by the weekend. He's really in trouble if the black mothers show up because they will bring the grandmothers and aunts too. Could you imagine all those ladies outside the ranch in Crawford while George is inside BBQing. This is going to be interesting to watch.

Heat and Gas

I normally don't make daily random entries but today I have to talk about the heat outside and this enormous gas price. Did the Earth move closer to the Sun and nobody told me? It has to be 100 degrees outside. It's days like this that make me glad I took the time to get enough education and have enough luck to get an office job. I wish my dad didn't have to be out there and I hope he found him some indoor jobs for the rest of the month because this is ridiculous.

Speaking of ridiculous................

I am going to keep saying this until the right person searches the net and comes across this page. If our troops are going to die to bring freedom to the Middle East the least we can do is take us a few million barrels of oil a day and bring the price of gas down. Anything over $ 1.50 a gallon for gas is too much. This makes no sense. Everybody already thinks we are there for oil anyway so lets go ahead and take it. I need some gas and energy bill relief. It's a good thing I am trying to go clean and sober for awhile because there is no way I could support my bourbon habit and get to work at the same time.

R.I.P. John Johnson

Mind Blowin Volume 18

Rest in Peace to John H. Johnson. He was a man that had two magazines that never made you embarrassed to be black. He passed away at 87 years old and I hope his soul is at rest. Thanks for Ebony, Jet, and the Top 25 Countdown. He didn't do too bad for a man that started his company with five hundred dollars.

I am glad the shuttle landed safely without anything going wrong. What is going on at the space center here in New Orleans? How come they can't get this foam right? If you are working out there and read this I suggest you get your resume updated just in case. I saw a example of the plates and the foam that causes all the trouble on the Daily Show and there is no way I would ride that far on the strength of that stuff.

Why are all these federal agents searching William Jefferson's personal files and still have not told him why? The man has been a public servant for 20 plus years and they are treating him like a neighborhood dealer. I hate to say it like this but I bet you they wouldn't just show up at David Vitter's house and take a bunch of stuff from his office and cars. There is a double standard when it comes to how public officials in this country are treated and it is about color. Make no mistake about it, the first black president will have to be raised in a convent full of blind nuns and have no friends at all to make it four years without getting investigated. He also better be ready to explain every party, girlfriend, donation or sexual experience he has ever had in life at any giving time. Bill Clinton had a black man for a best friend and they didn't let him get away with anything. Imagine if the brother was actually sitting in the oval office.

There is another interesting thing I am noticing around this city. For many years now people from New Orleans have been moving to cities like Atlanta, Houston, and Dallas in search of good jobs and better opportunities. There just never seemed to be any positions or openings compensating them properly for their education and training. I have been employed by a non profit organization for a year now and I am the only one on my team that was actually born and raised here. When everyone was moving out, outsiders were moving in right under their noses and taking the jobs that they swore up and down were not here. Now the reasons for why the natives weren't able to be considered for these positions is beyond me but I just think it's a shame that so many people want to move back home close to their families and don't have a chance to even compete for the jobs they rightfully deserve. New Orleans is a city that is controlled by people that don't live here or wasn't born here. Like Sandra Hester said on TV, "it's the Erleans Plantation".

I am going to close this chapter out by saying that this is a city built on custom, history and tradition. I know the school board has problems but there is absolutely no way we should have ever let Booker T. Washington School become what it is now. They are basically making it a trade school. Booker T. and a few others should always be kept up and preserved. If we can't keep those schools alive, then we need to just restructure and rename all the schools because the history means nothing.

The Uneducated Guide to Reforming New Orleans Schools

I know what you are thinking and you are right. I have never even taken a class in education. However, judging by the condition of the public school system at the moment, I can't do any worse than the educated people have. 73 schools in my beloved city are considered failing. When you add the 50 zillion dollar budget deficit, the only way I could be worse than them is to just hand out guns on the first day to get all the kids prepared for their future careers as criminals. New Orleans is a unique place. Anybody that comes in attempting to turn these schools around will have to take into account the special circumstances than contribute to the problems. With that in mind, here are my 10 rules designed to turn around the public schools system.

1. The superintendent job should be split into two separate positions: The job of straightening out the money and test scores of this city is just too much for one person to carry out. I say you make it two positions. The academic superintendent reports to the school board and the Financial Manager reports to the city's CFO. The school board and city officials can work out the budget along with the finance manager and superintendent so theirs no confusion over who has what to spend.
2. Any Contract over 50,000 dollars must be made public before and after it is awarded: This will stop all the hook ups being giving out that drained all the money in the first place.
3. All New Orleans teachers must be able to pass the Leap or Iowa test for the grade they are teaching by at least 90%: I know this sounds crazy but it makes sense to me. A fourth grade teacher should be able to pass the 4th grade leap test by 100%. If she can't, she needs a lower grade to teach.
4. Any child suspended for fighting more than three times in one year shall be out for the year and their parents will receive a citation and fine: Because fighting at school in this city is bigger than reading. Lack of parental involvement is even bigger than the fighting.
5. A portion of the budget must be set aside each year to rebuild any school over 20 years old: I bet you I could go to my old middle school and find some gravity I put there in 1987. Appearance and surroundings are related to self esteem.
6. A portion of the budget must be set aside each year to finance music, arts, and other extra curricular programs: Because these kids would be much more excited about going to school if there was something else to look forward to other than just sitting in that chair listening to the same person talk everyday.
7. All homework and test must be signed by a parent or guardian and no reports will be issued without a parent/teacher conference: If you do not show up to pick up the first two report cards you will receive a citation and fine for that. We have to get some parental involvement.
8. After 2nd grade, all kids shall be evaluated on their behavior and placed in classes accordingly: Every generation of kids growing up in New Orleans miss loads of material because their teacher is too busy chasing some fool back to his or her seat. It may be wrong but the clowns need to be separated and placed with specially trained and well paid teachers who can handle them.
9. There should be one hour of black history, current events and conflict resolution discussion every day : Our kids need to understand who they are now, where they came from, and how to get where they want to be. I child with no hope or understanding of himself feels no need to sit there and listen while you are trying to teach them things that won't matter. Self worth fuels human beings willingness to learn.
10. Citywide dress code: New Orleans is a very territorial city. Wars break out between two groups living as close as a block away from one another. Has anyone realized how easy it is for a group of people from one school to jump on people from another with those uniforms on. I say we go to one standard color for everybody or drop the uniforms all together. It was allot easier for me to get home with my T shirt and jeans since no one knew what school I went to.

Hand Pounds, Hugs, and Middle Fingers

Since I can't think of anything in my life worth writing about today. I want to give some hand pounds and hugs to some of my people.

A big hug to Tara because you always say I never mention your name or acknowledge you. I am putting you first.

A hug to Big G. because I am so proud of you for hitting rock bottom and working your way back to being a good man.

Hand pounds and hugs to Cedric for your promotion. I won't say anything else because you always make stupid comments when I say something nice.

A middle finger to the state of Louisiana who can't pay teachers enough and caused my big cousin to have to move to Texas just to feel good about her career choice.

A hug to my parents because whatever I do they got to get credit.

A middle finger to Harold for not getting up from your card game to help us last weekend. I would be worried about you reading this but you wouldn't know the first thing about turning on a computer..............I still love ya though...........Jackass.

A hand pound to Kevin for hooking me up with the job interview. I won't hold it against you that it was with the staffing agencies that I hate.

A middle finger to the New Orleans Hornets for not even trying to sign Joe Johnson.

A hand pound and hug to Neecha for creating a really nice blog. The hand pound is for the blog and the hug is because I want to think I inspired it.

A hand pound and hug to Data.

A middle finger to Fran for telling me funds were coming in for a pay increase and then not even talking to me about it. Don't make me quit because I don't want to.

A hug to Yolanda if she gets her album done and a middle finger if she keeps holding back and not singing the songs the way she wants to.

A middle finger to Terrell Owens for being on every damn sports show every single night. The best part about football will be the day you retire.

A middle finger to my body for not figuring out what's causing these headaches and fixing them.

A middle finger to me for still having drinks and coffee even though my head is bothering me.

A hug to all the people that keep trying to get me to go to the doctor to see what these headaches are about. I promise I will go soon.

A hug to David for trying to deal with all your adversity like a man and not doing anything crazy.

A hug to Michelle, Jennifer, Slick, and Walter.....I don't need a reason

Finally, a Big Middle Finger for my road dog who rides with me all weekend without paying for any gas. I take him everywhere with me but as soon as he gets a neighbor with some cool connections he can't call his boy to have any fun. This is why Brian needs to move back home from Atlanta.

Mind Blowing Volume 17

I have been trying to write this post for the last four days and I keep deleting everything and starting over. It is very strange for me not to really have a clear idea on my mind for that long. My brain usually locks into something and then it stays there until I do something to get it out. At least there is nothing serious on my brain that is taking more time off of my 100 year life expectancy.

• Here's a special wish for all the astronauts to come home safe. Did you see the guy floating out there yesterday to pull the foam from the belly of the ship? That man has the biggest set in the world.
• When is someone going to get in trouble for this post Iraq war preparation? More soldiers are dying now than ever.
• 73 schools in the city of New Orleans are considered to be failing. If you give each one of those schools and average of 200 students, you get almost 15000 potential jobless and hopeless people for the next generation. We have got to do better than that.
• A special shout out goes to the state legislature who can find money for everything but teachers' raises. This is why all of my cousins are moving to Texas.
• Fellas, if you are going to wear your pants down by your knees, the least you can do is wear clean boxers.
• If you are not in shape, do not play more than 15 minutes worth of basketball. I still can't walk.
• It is easier to get out of paying the mafia than it is to get out of your wireless plan.
• Is it just me or does every female singer under 25 that is not named Alicia Keyes or Fantasia sound just alike. Tierra, Ciara, Ashanti, Nivea......Who can tell the difference.
• There is not allot of things you can do for a job that are worse than going to an interview at a staffing agency. They try too hard to make you fake.
• I am not sure if this is going to come on again but even if you don't like sports find a copy of Monday's episode of Quite Frankly hosted by Steven A. Smith on ESPN. Allen Iverson was his guest. That was the most real and honest interview and athlete has ever given on TV in my opinion.
• I think this last thought probably should be an entire post of it's own. Between blogs , instant messenger , chat rooms, clubs, and groups; the internet is now the place for the young black working middle class voice to be heard. There's just not allot of other avenues where our voices are heard. Most of the shows on TV are catered to the real ignorant or the real rich. There is not many avenues for us paycheck making young black people outside of the internet. It's too bad that there aren't too many clubs or social places in the city to go mingle with people or your mind state. As soon as a place opens the thugs find it and it's over.

21 Questions

You don't have to like her views but you have to respect where she came from.

1. By the time they reach two years old a baby can mimic almost everything you do. Why is it so difficult to potty train them?

2. Why is it that when a white person gets killed the news report shows their picture, gives their name and a profile but when a young brother gets murdered he's just another young black male? (We have to start putting a face on the epidemic of black on black violence. No one feels sorry for statistics.)

3. Is it possible George Bush couldn't find one woman or Hispanic worthy enough for the Supreme Court?

4. There is constant fighting in Iraq and bombings in London and Egypt. Just how many terrorist are there?

5. Is the Iraq war really doing anything to stop it at all or is making things worse?

6. When is the American media going to classify these bombings as a large global movement endorsed by millions instead of random acts by a few extremist?

7. Although we criticize her for being with George Bush on most of his policies, isn't Condoleeza Rice just as much of a role model for black people as Oprah? ( I don't agree with her politics all the time but you have to give her credit.)

8. Shouldn't she actually be more of a role model because she succeeded in an arena where very few black women or men get to thrive? (Sorry everybody but Oprah has a talk show. Lot's of people have talk shows. Only one sister has been a Secretary of State.)

9. Since the Michael Jackson trial is over, doesn't it feel strange that there isn't a major scandal involving anybody black right now?

10. Why are there so many fourth and fifth graders in New Orleans that can't read on their grade level?

11. Is there something in the genetic makeup of New Orleans residents that will always keep us from having a competent school system? (Everybody that tries to fix it goes through the same thing. )

12. Does that same genetic flaw make us blame every single thing other than ourselves for the fact that we raise our children to be illiterate?

13. Does 50 Cent have an agreement with radio stations that one of his songs must be played at all times? (I think I heard Candy Shop on the classical music station. )

14. If a rapper can't sit down and formulate a statement that explains his violent and misogynist lyrics, should he be allowed to have any time on TV or radio to promote that junk?

15. Why are there so many women that love those misogynist lyrics and sing along with pride?

16. Why do so ,any young women say it's hopeless to find a good man but have never even had a real boyfriend yet?

17. Do any of them really know what a good man is?

18. Since Luther's passed away, who is the next great soul balladeer? (If anybody says Reuben Studdard they need to be ashamed)

19. The next great soul singer should be R. Kelly. But isn't he just too ignorant and caught up in trying to be a teenager to do it right?

20. Shouldn't our community be taking the fact he SLEPT WITH LITTLE GIRLS AND FILMED IT more seriously?

21. Why are there so many sisters on the internet with inspirational poems, biblical scriptures and all those words praising themselves as black women but have profiles with pictures of themselves bent over in a thong right below?

Mind Blowin Volume 16...Who Do We Vote For

Why are so many black people Democrats without knowing their platform? I am not saying we should be Republicans either but lets review where sticking to one party has gotten us today politically. Democrats take us for granted because we are the given number in the equation. They have absolutely no reason to go out of there way for any type or resources for our community. They know we will vote for them anyway. On the other hand, Republicans feel that they have no need to address any of our issues because we never ever vote majority Republican. The reason is kind of understandable.
The Democrats have the congressional black caucus on their side. Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Barak Obama and all the other brothers support the Democratic agenda as the being the best interest of their people. In some cases they are right. In other cases they are wrong. It’s been a long time since the Democrats ever had to worry about losing our support.
It is hard to take the Republicans seriously. They have Trent Lott, Tom Delay, and Dick Cheney and not to mention the great David Duke who almost became governor of Louisiana and single handedly eliminated the black population of the state. We don’t expect anything from that party and they don't give too much attention to us either.
That is why I think we should move our entire agenda right down the middle and hold our vote ransom for the highest bidder. Do you know how much chaos we could cause if we actually voted for an independent or Republican candidate based on his or her platform?
If you really think about it, allot of black people, especially my generation, are closer to being conservative than we think. How many of us talk about the fact we are getting tired of all the people in the hood doing nothing with ourselves. We want more respect for our women. Everybody’s talking about how our men need to be more responsible. We speak about crime. That’s called family values. We want opportunities to start our own business and control our own destiny.
This may be just my foolish opinion but I don’t think that welfare and government assistance has done anything for our community but give us an excuse to have absentee fathers and lack of independence and commitment. Even though I just said that, we are also at the point where we do need some extra resources to help us get things going. This is why we should not claim either party. We should let it be known that our support is only predicated on who will do the most and give the most to us. We have to control our ballots and our dollars or nothing will change.

Mind Blowing Volume 15

• I notice allot of my friends are starting to create their own blogs to write on and that's cool. Just make sure you express yourself and write something that makes sense. The best part about it is that there is no editing and no censorship on anything you say. That doesn't mean you can be wrong and misguided and still feel smart. It's freedom of speech at it's best.

• When you are a black man growing up in the city of New Orleans, or any inner city for that matter, you are expected to like certain things. How many times have you watched MTV cribs and saw all the rappers and basketball players holding up Scarface as their favorite movie or have a big screen with a playstation in their house. Those things are cool. However, it's time we as young black men start expanding our minds and interest. We all can't just watch the same shows, wear the same clothes or like the exact same music. Lots of us have already and are just too chicken to admit it. Here are 5 of the things that I willing to admit to. I am prepared for any laughter or ridicule that comes my way. Sorry Daddy.

1. I know the words to all the songs from the movie Grease.

2. I own a wrestling tape collection and Ric Flair is one ofmy heroes.

3. I like taking bubble baths.

4. I like Madonna's music.

5. I don't really like Scarface.

• I haven't been talking about sports too much because we are in that dark space before football season starts but how do you fire Larry Brown and replace him with Flip Saunders? Do the Pistons think that their team is that good they can hire a man that has only left the first round one time with a top five player and still go back to the finals. The minute Rasheed gets less playing time so they can put Darko into the mix is the beginning of the end for this team. If anybody in D Town thinks Sheed is going to sit and watch Darko play they are crazy.

• I want anyone that reads this post to click on this Link Right Here and tell me how Terry McMilian didn't know that brother was gay. Now, I am not hating on the gay brothers but if you are going to be gay then stay that way and stop getting all these women infected and paranoid. The same thing goes for you bi sisters. Pick a sex and stick with it. Star Jones better be careful.
  

• Finally, there have been many comebacks in show business. Some people have hit rock bottom and returned to stardom using talent and hard work. There has been no greater rise back to the top of the charts than Toni Braxton. I have to keep it real. Almost all men keep a secret list of top ten women in their minds. For allot of brothers, Toni had fell out of the rankings for the last few years. I just saw her video for her new song Breathe. I have to say that when you take into consideration she is 35 years old, had two kids and a messed up breast implant operation, she is looking mighty good and is now in the top ten again. I won't say what number she is exactly but it's somewhere after Gabrielle Union but ahead of Venus Williams (yes, Venus is flyer than Serena in my opinion). I guess true beauty always comes back. Now if Whitney Houston can get her act together..

Mind Blowin Volume 14....Who's in Control

Karl Rove is the most powerful man in America and it's time that everybody realized it. Why do you think that George Bush called him "The Genius" during his victory speech last November. There is no way Karl Rove gets indicted or gets fired for anything concerning the White House leak about Joe Wilson's wife. I don't care what he says to the press. The Republican party owes Karl Rove too much for bringing them to power to ever watch him fall. He would have to do something really drastic for that to happen and this leak isn't enough. If you watch Fox news and look at the way he is being defended, you can tell they know he is the key to any decision that George Bush makes. Anything you hear the Republicans say they believe Basically, Rove is the puppe tmaster in the White House and Bush absolutely needs him more than anyone else. If it wasn't for Karl Rove, John Kerry would be president right now. I wonder how many people in the inner city even know who is the man with the power to total cripple any chance of anything progressing. My people just don't watch the national news enough and stay inform. They have no idea who Karl Rove, Karen Hughes, Bill Frist, Tom Delay and a host of other people are that are making decisions about our lives. They could reverse the civil rights bill and these fools wouldn't even know why they had a separate fountain and a crowd at the back of the bus. It drives me crazy to speak with one of my friends and mention Donald Rumsfeld and they look at me like I am speaking Russian. That ignorance to current events is what allows people like Bush, Rove, and Cheney to send young people to war to keep you occupied while they do all kinds of other things and no one is paying attention enough to create any public outcry. The rich get government contracts and the poor lose benefits and get No Child Left Behind. Four more years of Bush and that is all because of Karl Rove's ability to make Middle America fear gay marriage and Janet Jackson's breast.

Office Space - Dedicated To The Work Day

I think I am getting tired of coming to the office. Some of the people are just a trip to be around. I don't feel like working so I will write about the office. There's a few in every office. Certain people that do these kinds of things everyday. A few of them may even be me. The names of the people who inspired these characters have been concealed to protect the guilty and to keep them from being mad at me.

The Oh My Goodness Here They Come Worker
This is the person at your job that no one really likes or wants to be bothered with. They have bad jokes. They smell a little. Sometimes they are just not that good of a person. The only thing that keeps them around is that they are the CEO's cousin or related to someone else in the company. You have to fake like you want to be around them without saying anything that may get back to mid management. This is the person that never comes to happy hour.
The 30 Minute Breaker
This is the person that is never at their desk because they always have a reason to take a break. These are usually smokers or have a friend on another floor that they want to talk to all the time. You always have to hurry up from your break because they have sucked up all the free time. Every six months you need to have an argument with this person once the break time gets out of hand.
The Potluck Co-Worker
This is the person that can't cook but always wants to have a potluck dinner. Every three months they plan one of these stupid things and ask everybody to bring something. Their dish is usually the worst one on the table. I hate potluck dinners. In every office there's a person that is just a little nasty looking. You try to get them to bring the plates or the cups but they always want to whip up their special recipe and put right at the beginning of the table. They stand there and look to see if anyone eats it. Now everybody has to put some on their plate and figure out how to get it to the trash when no one is looking.
The Company Manual Monitor
This is the fool that actually went home and read the new employee kit after orientation. They know everything about every procedure and always want to point out stuff that is not right. They follow the dress code. Their breaks are 15 minutes exactly. They go to lunch for 60 minutes, clock right back in and go to their desk. These people don't have allot of friends because usually they have gotten a real popular person fired by being so damn correct all the time.
The Wanna Be Manager
This is my least favorite person. This is the fool sitting next to you that makes the same money and has the same title but has been with the company 5 years longer than you so they feel they can tell you what to do. The reason they are in the same position is because they have absolutely no management skills and never get promoted. The wanna be manager always sees the company manual monitor as a threat and they never get along. These are the two that the supervisor manipulates to do all of their dirty work.
The Harassment Dude
Ladies, this is the guy at the office that thinks every woman wants him so he makes all these lewd comments. These guys always get fired for harassment or abuse of the e-mail system. You can always find the harassment dude just standing in the hallway or at the elevator for no reason but to play on women. The funniest thing about the harassment dude is that 80% of the time he works in the mail room or cleans the bathrooms. He still exists because there's that one pitiful woman somewhere in the building that actually breaks him off and gives him reason to keep going on with his routine.
The Hoochie Clothes Girl
This is the biggest test for a young brother working in an office environment. This is the girl who is getting her life and career on track and has never had an office job before. All she has to wear to work are the clothes she wears to the club. Usually, this is mini skirts, tight pants and shirts that show off her tattoos. Hoochie clothes girl is like kryptonite to the harassment dude and extremely distracting to every other guy. As long as she is a nice girl and doesn't manipulate the situation too much everything is cool. A scandalous hoochie dresser can destroy an entire department.
The Gossip Woman
The most dangerous person in the building. This is the person that claims to know who's messing around, who's about to get fired, who's having marital problems, and everything else they really don't know. All of the other people on this list can survive in harmony until the gossip woman is hired. The strangest thing about the gossip woman is that she herself is never in any rumor and no one is ever mad at her. Somehow she knows how to throw the match into the gasoline and pull it out before it burns her hand.
The Potential Postal Worker
Now, I know what you are thinking. You are thinking this is the guy that is probably going to come into the building and spray everyone with bullets. That's true. However, this person is usually really popular and gets along well with his co workers. He is cool with everyone in the building that is not a supervisor. Postal potential hates authority and pressure. He's usually the guy that does something so specific and complicated that it's almost impossible to replace him so the manager puts up with all his tripping. This is the guy that walks out of meetings. He is the one that refuses to work overtime. He is the one no one asks to work on any kind of special projects because they know he is just itching to go off. He knows he will never get promoted and he doesn't care. The funniest part about the postal man is that as soon as he clocks out and hits the streets he instantly becomes one of the coolest people you have ever met. Clocking in is just like turning Dr. Jeckyl into Mr. Hyde.

Memories To Get Me By

Sometimes things come to you in the strangest ways. I have been real negative lately and complaining allot about everything. I was outside feeding my dog Sandy a few minutes ago. I was noticing how she was fully recovered from having a liter of puppies that she tried to kill the day she had them. She destroyed half and the rest went to the SPCA the next day because they were just too small to take care of without her. Then I realized something while watching her bounce around. She had no mental effects of losing all of her puppies. There was no grief, no depression, or any nightmares. Think about if a woman would have lost 8 kids on the same day. If she lived to be 100 years old she would recall that day for the rest of her life. She could never out grow or out live that thought. The event might actually be too much for her mind to take and drive her insane. I lost one three years ago and not a day goes buy when I don't think about it at least once.
The human brain is what sets us apart from all the other animals in the world. It's what puts us on the top of the food chain. I'm not a scientist but experience has shown me that the quality of human life is dictated by how good or bad the memories in your life are and how good those events affected you. Good memory can make you smart, depressed and sometimes crazy. With the exception of names, I am one of those people that can close my eyes and picture exact places and events in my life. I remember very specific times in my life, good and bad ones. All of those have an influence on me everyday. A song, a building, or something on the TV can send me into a time machine and the replay starts. I can not tell you how much money my parents made when I was a coming up. I know it wasn't allot but I couldn't give you a figure to save my life. I would never remember that. I do remember playing LIFE in the kitchen and Michelle getting mad when my daddy would sue her. I remember crabbing trips. I remember the Solomon Burke record my mama used to play. My little Jennifer scheduled her entire day in a composition book. I remember driving to Florida in a rusty pickup and my crazy brother Walter trying to swim with a broken arm. Jerald needed to have Big Bird's Big Red Book read ten times in a row. I remember my grandmother bringing me cinnamon rolls and that crazy song she used to sing before she gave them to me. I remember my other grandmother's sugar cookies and I remember getting up early to go get ice for the family BBQ with my grandpa. When you add all that up with the other ones, you get a pretty swell life even with all my complaining. That's not too bad for a brother from the Ninth Ward.
When I am in a really hopeless mood, I'll drive around with the radio playing and suddenly something will pop into my head. I'll think about watching Monday Night Football with Daddy. I'll think about catching the bus to work with my grandma when I was small. I'll think about the crabbing trip I took with my brothers when I threw the bait away to soon. Sometimes I think about making wrestling belts with Devin out of liquor boxes and black shoe polish when I was a youngster. It makes everything go away for a few minutes. This is the kind of memories I want my children to have. I want my daughter to say to herself "man, I don't know what my daddy did for a living but I remember when me and him played on the swings". If I can get that I will feel at peace with myself.
Young adults tend to live in the moment at hand. The bills are due. The kids are growing and need you more everyday. The people that raised us are starting to get older and they need you more too. There are so many things currently going on that if you ask how life is going the answer may be not that good. Sometimes you just have to put on a good record, grab a drink and close your eyes. If you take a few minutes and use the memories in your mind to draw on good times, that life question may not be as negative as you think. I know I have way more good memories than bad ones. Judge your life on the totality of all the good things from beginning to end. Don't think mine's hasn't been sweet so far.