What Daddy Told Me

One day I am going to write a book called What Daddy Told Me just to show my daddy that I was listening to all the quotes and philosophy he's dropped over the years. I take almost everything he says to heart and try to apply them to my life. When things get shaky I pull out the Cliff Archives and find some advice that fits. I figured I would share this one with everybody since we could all use it. He told me this one around 1987 or 88 when I was a young teenager and we were riding in the truck together.

Two men are born at the same time. One man lives to be 26 and the other man lives to be 100. Now, if the man that lived to be 100 was sad and miserable for the last 75 years of his life , did he really outlive the man that died at 26? The 26 year old man was blessed because for every one of those 26 years he loved every minute. The meaning of that is that it makes no sense living a long time if you are not going to enjoy the time that God gives you.

Yes I remember almost everything Big Cliff has ever told me. Don't ever tell me black fathers don't matter.

Mind Blowin Volume 7

It sure feels good to not feel stressed for a change. I actually had some clear thought for a couple of days. In light of that, I am going to try and be positive for as long as I can. The weather is getting hot and things are changing all around. I think I am changing too. Since the news is full of bad news and depressing stories, there won't be too much of that being talked about around here this week.

The strangest thing I saw the last few days was a lady in her 60's showing off the big tattoo on her arm for Mother's Day. That's the gift that keeps on giving.

Inspired by last weekend...Everybody has a friend that only wants to hang out when their mate goes somewhere on their own. They come and take over your house for the evening and act like they never want to leave.

Inspired by a conversation at work today....These are the five songs that you don't play at a wedding. 1. As We Lay, 2. Me and Mrs. Jones, 3. Secret Lovers, 4. Everything I miss at home, and 5. Agony and Ecstasy

Dave Chappelle is in a mental institution in South Africa. I never seen 50 million dollars make a black man go so crazy. I can finish writing the third season for 5 million and the only thing that will drive me crazy is all the times I would count my money.

I have to admit I have been real hard on hip hop on my blog lately but I must say I have some new excitement. The new songs I heard from Freeway, Nappy Roots, Common and that damn Dear Summer song by JayZ ; who retired just when he found his flow.

Serious message from Clifton: One day when I was 16, I was sitting on the steps of one of my neighborhood friends. We were all just hanging out doing nothing when all of a sudden the subject of money and the future came up. I listened to every single person sitting on that step talk about their plans. Everybody wanted to either be a drug dealer, rob a drug dealer, or find some drugs to sell. I knew right then and there that if I wanted to have any kind of future I had to remove myself from those guys and that mind state no matter how long I knew them. The moral of the story is that there is no amount of loyalty to your hood or your street that requires you throw your life away. In the end, you will be judged alone.

Cliff's Playoff Preview

Before we get into the second round, lets quickly review everything we learned from the first...

• The five all around best players(Iverson, Kobe, Lebron, KG, and McGrady) are not even in the playoffs going into round two.
• The Heat are a good team even without Shaq.
• Yao Ming is overrated.
• The Kings miss Chris Webber way more than they will admit.
• Reggie Miller can't play two good games in a row anymore.
• Vince Carter is still not ready to grab the spotlight on the big stage in the playoffs.

Now lets get to the round 2 matchups. I know the second round has started but I won't use the first games to change my mind out what will happen.

Heat vs. Wizards - The Heat will win this series because they have the better team all around but give the Wizards 2 games because they have three players that could all put up 30 at the same time......Heat 4-2

Pistons vs. Pacers - I know these two teams split the season series but the Pacers look a little worn down. I don't see this one going more than five games. The Pistons are in championship mode now. If Indiana had some scorers on their bench I would give them 2 games but I'm predicting this one as a wash out......Pistons 4-1

Spurs vs. Sonics - When Radmonivich and Ray Allen got hurt in game 1, the series was basically over. The only way the Sonics had a shot was if both of them could play and maybe outscore the Spurs. If they both are hurt for the whole series..............Spurs 4-0

Suns vs. Dallas - I picked Dallas to win this series and I am going to stick with that. Although, after watching what Amerie did to Erick Dampier in game one I am not so sure. My faith in Avery Johnson says that Dallas will come back. I hope I don't look stupid..........Dallas 4-3

Mind Blowin Volume 6

What in the hell are we doing in Iraq when North Korea is testing missles right now. How come we didn't make Kim Jong Il hide in a hole like Saddam. I know why. There are about 2 billion North Koreans waiting to combat the USA. Lets face it, the Iraq war was just a way for us to flex our muscles after 9/11 and for George to get some revenge and honor back to his family name.

I will do my playoff review as soon as the Pacers get rid of Boston tomorrow. The only thing I am upset about is Allen Iverson is eliminated. I'm sure David Stern can fix it so he can get signed by the Wizards or the Sonics for the Sonics for the next few weeks.

I watched the New Edition Behind the Music on VH1. It was actually kind of sad the way their careers have gone. That still doesn't stop them from being the number one group of my generation. Everybody looked good except for Bobby Brown. He sounded like someone had just punched him in the mouth.

The government wants to give a million dollars for Assata Shakur. She's an old woman by now. They didn't arrest the man who killed Medger Evers until he was damn near 80. I figure she can turn herself in at her 75th birthday and that's about even.

Someone has kidnapped the young Cliff and replaced him with this mature clone of himself. I am going to end this edition with a scenario and question for all the hip hop heads out there that have been defending gangsta rap and explicit lyrics for the last 15 years as simply a way of expressing ourselves and nothing more...........

I was driving home from work yesterday when a song by Isaac Hayes came on the radio. I wasn't in a bad mood at the time but even if I was it would have been over with because it instantly brought a smile to my face. There are other songs that I can hear that can instantly make me cry or call my mama. My question is this, if there are love songs that make you happy, and like Billy Ocean said, sad songs to make you cry, then why would songs full of disrespect and hopelessness not make you disrespectful and hopeliess? If you listened to hours of music about bitches and whores, wouldn't you start looking at sisters as bitches and whores in some way? What about if everyday all you heard was how cool it was to be a hustler and kill a nigger? Eventually, some people will think it's cool to hustle and kill niggers too. No matter how much I love hip hop as a lifestyle and an art form, I can't look past the fact that ever since the first NWA album, the climate on the street has become progressively worse and rap music has now become the gospel music to the hustlers religion. Now, I have underground hip hop crawling out the speakers of my jeep every single day. However, at 30 years old, it would be foolish of me to think that some kids aren't adopting some of these lyrics as their doctrine for life.

Classic Cliff.....Dignified Brothers

This kind of goes with the theme for today................


September 22, 2004
I parked my jeep for this morning and this brother came up to me asking if I had some pliers so he could work on his bike. I didn't know anything about him but I could tell that he was not doing so well. I loaned him the pliers and went inside the office thinking that I wouldn't see him or those pliers again. To my surprise he actually came in the office and brought them back. He began telling me about how he was homeless and was trying to find a place to work. I directed him to a few places and he rode off. After he left I got to thinking about the number of brothers I pass everyday or see out my office window that life has totally beat down. The one thing I will never understand is how black men can hurt and mess over one another when we all share the same experience. I could have kept walking and ignored that brother this morning. If I did, am I not validating the same thoughts that everyone else has about him and in turn applying these ideas to my own self. We will never be able to change anything until we get our men to look in the mirror and be proud of what they see. Having a few brothers that are successful will not benefit the community as a whole. Sooner or later, we are going to have to come up with a way for all of our men to feel dignified.

Mind Blowin Volume 5

Madhubuti said the stress of being black takes a special toll on the minds of men. "Men run the world, and now understand that you are not one of the men running the world, and layer on that that men you don't like are always telling you what to do," he said. "Many brothers just drop out."

From The Disappearing Man, Times Picayune 5/4/2005

I had other stuff I wanted to speak about but since I read The Disappearing Man article from the Times Picayune that is all I can think about. I don't know if many brothers that need to read that would care or even understand what it is saying. Being a young black man with knowledge of the world today is one of the most frustrating positions to be in. Imagine watching all of your childhood friends going to jail, being addicted to drugs, or being murdered all the time and none of them seem to realize that there is something wrong with that scenario. Some of them will actually call your manhood cheap because you have never "handled your business". A large part of the black community, men and women, have accepted the thug life/soldier mentality as everyday living and the numbers reflect that. That leaves the hood intellectuals like myself stuck in the middle. We are not rich enough to move away from the madness, and not ignorant enough for any of the madness to make sense. Basically, we helplessly watch our friends and family create their own genocide on a day to day basis. That takes a mental toll on anyone that cares about their community. I wish I knew the answer.

THE DISAPPEARING MAN

THE DISAPPEARING MAN

I was feeling really good this morning until I read this article. It has upset me so much that I can't even write any real comments on it. It seems as if I am looking down the barrell of a gun by being a black man over 30. This is the kind of article that makes me wonder why are we even trying sometimes.

Rebuilding Myself

In one month I will be 31 years old. I was watching the Sixers play the Pistons on Sunday and saw Allen Iverson running around like he was 18 years old again. I couldn't help but think how sad it was that we are the same age. He played 53 minutes of basketball and was barely sweating. I can't run for five minutes without almost passing out. There was a time when I really took good care of myself. My arms, legs, shoulders were all tight. Somewhere between the ages of 18 and 30, I totally let myself go. Now, I don't want anyone to think that I am trying to be A.I. I'm not that foolish. I would however like to be in better condition and at least get down to my weight of five years ago. It's pretty upsetting when you tell some of your newer friends that ten years ago, you used to be atheletic and they all laugh. My pride almost makes me want to head to the nearest ball court and show them. The only problem with that is that I can't run for more than a few minutes so even the ones with no game would beat me and piss me off.
I got to get myself together. My sisters Michelle and Jennifer, who were my quality control staff for years may be the only person that really knows deep down I am one of the most vain and self conscious people in the world when it comes to how I look. I was always asking, "Shell, how does my beard look? or "Jenny does this haircut make me look old?" I do the same thing now, only I ask myself the questions instead of bothering them.

I am now announcing the official Cliff rebuilding project. My goal is to lose 20lbs or to be able to fit into all the XXL shirts that I have that are too tight. I am not going to kill myself trying to be skinny or anything. This is for no one other than me. I'm just tired of feeling sluggish and miserable. I have too many headaches, and pains in my body for no reason at all. Plus, I miss being competitive physically. I wasn't made to feel like a slob or a wimp. The way I look at it, there are only a few things I need to do to accomplish this.

1. No Drinking on Weekdays : I am not an alcoholic, but I live close to their neighborhood. Water and juice during the week will help me.
2. No Rallys, McDonalds, Burger King, etc : It's amazing you can eat a Big n Tasty at 12:00 PM and still feel miserable at 12:00 AM
3. Physical activity : The bottomline is that the last 7 years of office work has made me lazy. I used to actually have to use my body to earn a living. Now, I just punch on keyboards all day. There has to be some time spent outside, or on a treadmill, or something like that.

I think I can handle this. I will keep you posted.

Clones......Where is the individualism?

Me and my boy Dave have two regular drinking events during the week. One is our favorite diaquiri shop where the bartender adds and extra shot of Crown Royal to our picture of beer. The other is the lake on Sunday evenings basically because it's free. While we were sitting out watching everything going on yesterday, we came to one obvious realization....Everybody around us was acting the same way. Now, I know there are trends and fashions that become common with an entire group or certain groups of people. I am not talking about the way they dress, although all those guys can't tell me they are possibly comfortable with their pants hanging down past their knees. I'm talking about speech, music, mannerisms and everything that makes you a unique individual. Personally, I think the majority of them are faking. They are just scared to admit to liking certain things or wanting to do certain things out of fear of getting talked about or being considered strange. I'm not just talking about teenagers either. There are 40 year old men that talk like they are 15 and if it wasn't for the grey hairs in their heads and face, you might think they were that young.
Did it ever occur to anybody that in the last few years black people have become the opposite of everything we are perceived to be? I mean, we are supposed to be the creative, expressive people that push the envelope of art and popular culture. Now, we are simply caricatures of our own stereotypes and we love it. Check the TV, radio, and magazines and you will see the same brother doing the same thing over and over. If you had 25 men ages 20-25 in a room, the only person that would know half of them from the other is their mother. There's just nothing that makes them stand out besides the color of their paint job and the position of their gold teeth. Sisters are no different. Most of them all seem to be talking, walking, acting the same way and liking the same man. We have just become a people full of clones. Just like the Roots said, we are duplicated and imitated clones.
I'm no clone. I don't hide who I am or what I do. My name is Cliff. I am 30 years old from New Orleans. I like Crown Royal, Millers, crabbing trips, strip clubs, the Saints and professional wrestling. Hip hop is my favorite music but I also like Billy Joel, Nirvana , Jimi Hendrix, any old R&B (album collection is on fire!) and even Christina Aquilera. I'm real nostalgic and emotional and songs that remind me of my family make me cry. I like to sing and dance but I am flat footed and usually off key. But, I do it anyway because I don't care if it sounds good or not. That's a condensed explanation of who I am. I am the same way all the time and proud of it. How many of us are depriving ourselves of the enjoyment of being who we are and experiencing what we want to because we are trapped in the cloning cycle.

Mind Blowin Volume 4

Due to GG's recent discovery of television, I am starting to watch Sesame Street again. They are still showing the same skits from 25 years ago from when I was 5. I guess they figure kids won't know. It's not like they were here. Fellas, the day you turn off the NFL draft and the NBA playoffs to watch an Elmo tape is the day you can consider yourself a man and a father.

I know most hip hop connoisseurs are declaring Common's new album to be a classic and that is probably true. However, I have heard some of the Royce tracks from his new piece and I am not so sure his won't be a classic too. Of course, he will get no airplay, no BET, or MTV but it would still be nice if an album like this at least went gold. That means we can't bootlegs the classic sh@t if we want the music to grow. Go to hiphopdx.com and check out the song Politics featuring Ceelo.

Speaking of Common, when the album does come out, all the sisters running behind these full time hustlers buy the CD and listen to the song Testify. If that song isn't the truth then nothing is.

Has Flavor Flav been kicked out of Public Enemy yet for Strange Love? It's not the fact he was in love with an old white woman that kicks him kicked out. It's the fact he let the powers that be exploit him like that. Did he listen to the lyrics of any of his own records? I watched that show waiting for Professor Grif and the S1W's to run in and kidnap Flav to take him to the Drop Squad. I'm sorry, but as a 30 year old black man that was 14 when It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back was released, I hold those guys to a higher standard and VH1 and Flav went too far.

Who is Mike Jones? Shouldn't he know the answer to that already? Why would you spend money to buy a Mike Jones ringtone? Why would you spend money to buy any ringtone? If you have a full time job, most of the time your ringer is not on anyway. If there is any man or woman over the age of 25 that has paid for a ringtone you should be ashamed of yourself.

Playoff Time

Nothing happened last week or today to either spark my interest, change my life, or upset me to the point of fainting. Basically, everything was normal and boring. That's just what the doctor ordered. Since I have nothing to talk about, I might as well give you all my predictions and review of game one from the NBA playoff series.

Eastern Conference
Heat vs. Nets - The only way New Jersey has a chance in this series is if they find some inside offense to make Shaq play defense. Since they don't have any player on their roster that can do that, I am predicting this one to be over with in 6 games. Miami wins 4-2. You have to give Jersey two games because Vince will be unconscious for at least one and they will all play well in the first home game.
Pistons vs. Sixers - I love Allen Iverson. If Philly wins one of these games, he deserves the MVP hands down. This is the worst matchup of the playoffs. Lets go with Pistons 4-0 in this series. The Sixers have no shot.
Celtics vs. Pacers - The Pacers have the pride but judging my the first game, I don't know if they have enough offense to beat Boston. Indiana will fight hard but this one goes to Boston 4-2. I still say the league should give Atlanta something to basically having to give away Antoine Walker for nothing.
Bulls vs. Wizards - Neither one of these teams have allot of playoff experience. I like the Wizards in 7 games because of Gilbert Arenas and Antwan Jamison but I wouldn't be surprised if the Bulls won. There is a direct relation to the Bulls success and the fact that they have allot of players that played at big time college programs. Duhon, Hindrich, and Ben Gordon have already played in front of larger crowds than the NBA has and with just as much pressure.

Western Conference
Suns vs. Grizzlies - I'm still not sold on the Suns. I just can't bring myself to jump on the bandwagon. However, they will sweep the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies have no one player that can take the game over in crunch time and that's big in the playoffs. Lets get this one over with so Stromile Swift can start looking for houses in the New Orleans area.
Spurs vs. Nuggets - The Nuggets took game one with Tim Duncan on one leg. I hope you don't think the proud islander is just going to roll over and let the Spurs lose. I just can't see Tim Duncan losing in the first round unless he is in a wheelchair. Lets go Spurs 4-3.
Sonics vs. Kings - This is going to be a fun series to watch. The Sonics took game one but Mike Bibby was cold. I think Seattle wins this one 4-3 but don't count Mike Bibby out. Never count out Mike Bibby in round one. I just think Seattle has more fire power than the Kings. Did I mention not to count out Mike Bibby?
Mavericks vs. Rockets - This series is a toss up but I will go with the Rockets in 7 games. It's time for Dirk Nowitski to be exposed. I am so tired of all these people thinking these Euro players can come in and lead teams to championships under NBA rules. That stuff works with the trapezoid lane in world play, but the NBA playoffs are basically street basketball with referees. Unless they change the lane size in the NBA, any team with a foreign player as the main player will always lose. They are simply not physical enough to play with these guys.

So that is Heat, Pistons, Celtics and Wizards in the East and Rockets, Sonics, Suns, and Spurs in the West. Lets see how right I am.

New Look

Ok, I have finally settled on a template I like. I will try to keep this one longer than two weeks.

Top Five Songs

1. Must be Nice - Lyfe

2. So What - Gerald Levert

3. Be - Common

4. Conversations - Mannie Fresh

5. Neck of the Woods - Baby and Lil Wayne

Mind Blowin Volume 3

I have lived in New Orleans my entire life and I love this place. However, this has got to be the first time I have felt this much despair and frustration with everything about this town. Nothing seems to be going right and no one seems to care. I personally think that we could fix it all if we broke away from Louisiana and became our own district like Washington D.C. That way we could keep all the money we put into the pie for ourselves and further cripple the rest of the state in the process. I will explore this more later.

The cardinals elected a new pope that is almost as old as the old pope. I hope they still have the logs that made all the smoke this time. They may be using them again soon.

The NFL draft is this weekend and you can tell my life has changed. I haven't bought one magazine or subscribed to one draft site this year. I guess the Saints finally managed to run me away from the sport I love all together. Congratulations Tom.

The NBA is trying to run me away too. If the Nets go to the playoffs, the Toronto Raptor fans should riot the NBA offices. How does the NBA allow this kind of thing to go on? If guys would have been able to get away with this kind of foolishness when I was growing up, World B. Free would have never completed a season.

What in the hell is the hold up with sending Michael Jackson to jail?

Can you buy a hip hop magazine that is fair and balanced? I have about 100 copies of the Source and at lately, I haven't been able to buy it in the past year without getting pissed off. Too much beef and propaganda and not enough focus on the music. Hip hop has too much drama.

There is pop hip hop, there's gangsta rap, and then there are songs that make you remember why you started devoting your life to this music 20 years ago. Please take a moment and listen to Be, by Common. Listen to it over and over.

Speaking of over and over.....I want an investigation done to see if radio DJ's even play songs themselves anymore or just talk between a tape of pre recorded music. I like Fantasia, but there is no way the person in that booth can play Free Yourself every 20 minutes and not get bored or go crazy.

In my intelligent but humble opinion, there is not a more stupid phrase someone can tell you than "Someone always has it worse than you do". How does that make you feel any better? I don't want anyone to have it bad. Seeing a homeless man under the bridge does not make me feel better about my messed up credit. It just makes me wish I had enough money to rescue him from under the bridge.

We've Lost That Loving Feeling

I was driving on the way to work listening to a CD I made full of love songs. I was listening to James Ingram's One Hundred Ways. I started thinking when was the last time I heard a guy my age express that kind of feeling or do those kind of things for a woman like James is singing about. When was the last time I heard one of my boys or a brother my age say "man I love that woman of mine"? I am not sure if I have heard that in the last few years. Where is our outward show of affection? Many of us think it's weak to show that kind of affection. We are so bad at doing this, that women have started to not worry about it either. My dad gives my mother cards to celebrate weekly and monthly anniversaries. I grew up watching them hug, kiss, dance, and any other way he could show her affection. What happened to my generation? I have a few ideas.

The lack of fathers in our homes means that most brothers never got to see that kind of affection between a man and a woman close up.

Right or wrong, most brothers have the idea that the woman in their lives is there because of something other than "him". Maybe that's because sisters always look so miserable when there is something out of line in a man's life. You lose your job, don't have a car, credit is messed up, or don't live up to her "standards", that puts allot of stress on everything. You just can't be romantic under pressure.

The Hotgirl/Hotboy images that are pushed through videos and music that take all romance out of any interaction between young people. Even most of the slow songs are about something other than love.

The fake macho, thug images that young guys take on doesn't lend itself to allot of touchy, feely type moments. How many guys with tattoos on their necks are going to slow dance in the middle of the dance floor.

We have to get back to showing some emotion in our lives. There is nothing wrong with being affection to your lady, or your kids, or even your friends. That doesn't make you soft.

Orleans Parish Schools - Breeding Ground for Hopelessness

BESIEGED AMATO CALLS IT QUITS

Another two to three years, another superintendent has resigned from Orleans Parish Schools. Mr. Amato should not feel too bad. He was in a no win situation from the beginning. The bottom line is this, no matter what businesses come to town or how many police we hire, or where you move, the New Orleans school system will be the one thing that keeps this city stuck in depression and crime. It is so sad and disappointing that in a city like this we can't find enough competent and honest people to run the school system without stealing money or using political power to further their own cause. Meanwhile, we are sending hundreds of men and women into the streets of New Orleans without any skills to be successful or hope that they ever will be. We are just leaving them alone to drink, get high, and have sex to breed the next generation of hopeless citizens. I blame every single person of this city including me. Our indifference has made it easy to let this happen. The mayor, city council, parents, students, teachers, and anyone else that makes their home here needs a share of the blame.
I think it's time to let an outside contractor come in and run the business side of the system while a committee of educators from the city straighten out the educational side. I am not for anyone from the state having hands on contact with this system at all. Personally, I think if this state wasn't so racist and segregated they never would have let the school system become what it is. They have sat back for the last 30 years and watched it deteriorate because none of their kids had to go to school here. Now they are trying to come in with the white horse and save the ignorant Negroes. It's not the Negroes they want to save, it's the federal money that is in jeopardy because New Orleans is so inept that it is effecting the entire state's funding. If it wasn't for that fact, no one would care about the crisis of this school system. Someone would just build a gate around the city to keep the animals out of the suburbs and make sure they didn't go to the French Quarter to mess with the tourists. No wonder people in this place have to work three jobs. You need one to pay bills, one to buy food and gas, and the other for private school tuition to rescue your children.

Top Five Sons-----Ignorant Negroe Helpers

1. Wake Up Reprise in the Sunshine - Brand Nubian

2. You Must Learn - Boogie Down Productions

3. A Day of Outrage - X Clan

4. Break the Grip of Shame - Paris

5. Prophets of Rage - Public Enemy

Mind Blowin Volume 2

• I watched the end of the Masters yesterday. I don't care if he calls himself cablasaisan or not. There is something about watching Tiger win at that sport that gives me some pride. He doesn't show it, but deep down he knows his significance. There is no way he can be that close to his daddy and not understand that.

• It's never good to hate anybody so I don't hate Baron Davis. I just wish his back locks up in the middle of a dunk and he hits his head on the backboard causing a concussion.

• Man, this Pope process is a long one.

• The NFL draft is coming up and I can care less. I am still on my Saints boycott.

• I know he is crazy and likes young girls, but Robert Kelly is a one creative, but ghetto dude. That Trapped in the Closet song is great.

• There is no sadder sight than watching Flavor Flav act like an idiot behing Bridgette Nielson on Strange Love. It wouldn't bother me if he wasn't a member of Public Enemy. I guess Young MC or Tone Loc wasn't available for this gig.

• I had three free Hornets tickets and still didn't go to the game. Did I mention that I wanted Baron Davis' back to lock up on him.

• Does it reflect negatively on me if I say the only show I watch on BET right now is Uncut? Can you be over 25 and enjoy anything on that channel anymore? And if you are 35, and rush home to watch 106 and Park, you might need to re-evaluate that a little.

• Finally, I know this is a little late but anybody who reads this post should Click Right Here to read Jason Whitlock's article on Johnnie Cochran. This was the best article about Johnnie I read.

Crime in the City

Well, I know I said I was going to be negative but I have to touch on this subject. The streets of New Orleans appear to be going crazy again. There are shootings at schools, shootings on the interstate, and people being set up coming out of courthouses. All of this seems to familiar. That might be because for the last 15 years this has been happening year after year. If you drive through the city every day and look around, you will see hundreds of adult men, young and old, standing, and sitting around with nothing to do. They have no jobs, they have no skill, and they have no direction. All of this leads to criminal activity and conflict which leads to murders in broad daylight. We are in a terrible situation. Some of these men will not make it to 25 years old. Others will be incarcerated or addicted to some sort of drug that will render them useless. The hopeless feeling comes from the fact that almost all of them are having baby after baby putting more children into a system of racism, lack of education, and poverty, guaranteeing that the next generation will be just as bad but with more sophisticated weapons to kill more people with. That's the problem and I have no idea what the solution is.

It's Me Again

I am going to try this again. I have been so weighed down with negative stuff and sad events that I have not been able to bring myself to write or post anything new. I am going back to the bright colors, taking off all that black and moving on.

Sometimes I have to tell myself that I am only 30 years old and I have allot of life left to live. I can't stay stressed all the time.