Speaking of 1-10 scales ... I learned my lesson long ago fortunately: Don't ever, and I mean ever honestly rate women in front of another woman unless you want it to come back on you.
I did this one time with one of my best friends in high school, Hot Chocolate, and it back fired big time. We sat on the phone one night talking about everybody in our choir class, I rated every girl in the class honestly, including her. I didn't give any girl more than an 8 including Hot Chocolate. At the time I thought 9s and 10s were reserved for Halle Berrys and Vivica Foxes.
It was a bad decision on my part. The next morning in class there was this big chatter in the alto section when I entered the room. Soon, one girl I had rated a four, she really was a four, came up to me and told me I was wrong about her.
I was upset that Hot Chocolate had divulged my ratings, but I didn't have time to say anything before this girl I had a major crush on - the original QB - came up to me and complained about me giving her an 8. I was in deep trouble because the complaining didn't stop anytime soon.
The girl I gave a 4 didn't let up for two years about the rating. She even told me in coming months "One day I'll be a 10, you'll see." She eventually got up to a 5.5, but nowhere near a ten.
Enough telling on myself. You want proof?
Best Friend of the current day, the Cookie just asked me If I thought Olivia, who is drenched in make up in the pic above, of G-Unit is cute, and I gave her a 6 ... the next question? "Oh, damn. What am I?" ... You're a 10, Cookie. You're a 10.
Sunday, October 30, 2005
The REAL Scale ...
Horrible Weekend ...
So this, as it turns out was a horrific weekend.
The lowdown ...
Friday: I watched a very interesting high school football game between two rival schools. That doesn't happen that often. It usually a blowout that's over by halftime. One of the other reporters asked if I wanted to go out, but I couldn't because of a trip to a place called Wamego, right, Wamego on Saturday morning.
Saturday: Wamego, Wamego oh how I wish "ididnt(havto) go." I thought the drive was going to be 1:15 minutes long max. Turned out to be two-hours plus thanks primarily to bad directions from Mapquest, which sent me through three towns smaller than the size of my bedroom with 85-year-old grandmas dominating the traffic.
Don't forget my Tigers were losing to the Blue Chickens (props to the Cookie, though it was a 13-3 defeat) ... and I got an unwelcomed call from rmattwill with a certain bragadocious tone.
Mind you I only spent 1 hour there chasing down about five or six kids/coaches. Then I had to drive back from the middle of BFE. Four-plus hours during the day on I-70 only to return home. I could have been in the STL, OK City, Omaha or Des Moines. Instead I was home, tired, and still had a story to write.
When I finished writing, I didn't want to do much of anything but sleep, and that's exactly what I did for nearly 10 hours. I waited for the Chiefs game to come on, and watch them get pounded by the SuperChargers 28-20.
The only two good things to happen: dailylight savings time and I didn't spend any money. ... On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the best this weekend must be rated a 4.
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
Carlos Beltran must be next ...
If you don't understand my dismay with Jermaine Dye in a Sox uniform winning the World Series, then you must not live or have lived in Kansas City or be a Royals fan. Anyway, Congrats to Duk and all of the other Southsiders for the end of 88 years of misery. I'm on 20.
Stereotypical Bull(ish)
Air Force football coach Fisher DeBerry said it was clear TCU "had a lot more African-American players than we did and they ran a lot faster than we did," after his team lost to TCU.
"It just seems to me to be that way," he said. "African-American kids can run very well. That doesn't mean that Caucasian kids and other descents can't run, but it's very obvious to me that they run extremely well."
So we lost Rosa Parks two days ago, and guess what? The issue of race won't go away. I wonder why? Is it because the concepts of race, class and ethnicity have been with us since ... forever?
I don't think what DeBerry said hurts anybody, it just proves that racial implications aren't going anywhere. I think he meant to say something like this: "The Air Force Academy is still operating as though Jackie Robinson never wore Dodger Blue and 42. The team I run is nowhere near as competitive as it could be if we recruited the best players. We're stuck in the (18)30s."
That means one of two things: either the Air Force is horrible at recruiting blacks who want to fly planes in Iraq, join the legions who've died for Daddy Bush's cause and play football for a bad team or maybe the majority of blacks caught on when Furious in Boyz N The Hood said something about the military not being a place for blacks. Who knows?
DeBerry implied that on the average blacks are generally better athletes and faster than other races, and used NFL and NBA lines to prove his theory. Is that comment racially insensitive? Not really to blacks, maybe whites because he implies that they're slower than blacks.
Life might be different if we didn't see race, but we've been seeing colors since ... forever, and it's not going to change anytime soon. Blacks are still going to load the rosters of the NBA and you'll be able to point out the only black person at your party because we see race. We see class and we see ethnicity.
If Blacks are fast, Asians can fix your computer, Middle Easterners are terrorists and Africans are "well endowed." As we all know, these stereotypes don't always work.
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
Sorry, but this is funny ...
True story, I was happy. My girlfriend and I had been dating for over a year, and so we decided to get married. My parents helped us in every way, my friends encouraged me, and my girlfriend? She was a dream! There was only one thing bothering me, very much indeed, and that one thing was her younger sister. My prospective sister-in-law was twenty years of age, wore tight mini skirts and low cut blouses. She would regularly bend down when near me and I got many a pleasant view of her underwear.
It had to be deliberate. She never did it when she was near anyone else. One day little sister called and asked me to come over to check the wedding invitations. She was alone when I arrived. She whispered to me that soon I was to be married, and she had feelings and desires for me that she couldn't overcome and didn't really want to overcome. She told me that she wanted to make love to me just once before I got married and committed my life to her sister. I was in total shock and couldn't say a word.
She said, "I'm going upstairs to my bedroom, and if you want to go ahead with it just come up and get me." I was stunned. I was frozen in shock as I watched her go up the stairs. When she reached the top she pulled down her panties and threw them down the stairs at me. I stood there for a moment, then turned and went straight to the front door. I opened the door and stepped out of the house.
I walked straight towards my car. My future father-in-law was standing outside. With tears in his eyes he hugged me and said, "We are very happy that you have passed our little test. We couldn't ask for a better man for our daughter. Welcome to the family. "The moral of this story is:" "Always keep your condoms in your car."
Saturday, October 22, 2005
Cut it OUT ...
So peep the picture. Yeah, that guy looks aight and the sweater is pimp tight. But do you notice what's wrong with it?
It's one of those things that always seems to upset me. That's right, the fact this is obviously a picture that somebody got cut out of. The buzz of facebook clearly has people thinking it's alright to do this. But it's one of the most annoying things somebody can do to a picture. TAKE A DECENT PICTURE BY YOURSELF, AND PUT IT UP. Don't use a pic of you and your ex, but your ex is cropped except for his arm.
That's just wrong. Ok, if you break up with someone and start ripping up physical photos like you just downed a quart of beans I won't complain. Do what you do. But what happens to those pics? They get trashed or burned. Not digital images.
People who think they look good in a picture love to crop their ex-significant others out and put them up on profiles. That's self-serving. I guess it didn't bother me until it happened to me. But now I noticed every time it happens, and I feel sorry for the guy/gal who gets Jerry Maguired in the pic.
If you can't find a stand-alone pic of yourself that's suitable or a pic when you don't mind someone else being in it, then you might as well not have one. What's good is you might want to realize that the person you cut out is the reason for the comfortable look and hook it back up with them.
Neways, so I don't come off as a hypocrite, the full pic is below. It's me and my best friend from college, QB ... 
Friday, October 21, 2005
A sample of the truth
I'm tired of the crunkness of crunk music. You can only hear the word white tee so many times before you yearn for something real, a sound that is about something more than getting a bunch of cats to jump around aimlessly in the middle of the dance floor at a club ... There's no real order to this, but each of these songs was about something. They were the truth. When I'm trying to bob my head to a beat and trying to remember every word to a flow, this is what I wish I was hearing ...
1. One More Chance (Remix) - The Notorious B.I.G
2. My Adidas - Run D.M.C.
3. I Get Around - Tupac Shakur
4. I USED to Love H.E.R. - Common Sense
5. Hey Lover - L.L. Cool J
6. Big Pimpin - Jay-Z
7. Don't Believe the Hype - Public Enemy
8. F&%k the Police - N.W.A.
9. C.R.E.A.M. - Wu-Tang Clan
10. So Fresh, So Clean - OutKast
11. Push It - Salt-N-Pepa
12. Can't Stand the Rain - Missy Elliott
13. I'll Be - Foxy Brown
14. Drop It Like It's Hot - Snoop Dogg & Pharrell Williams
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
You're the one ... But
So today ... I vent. It's rare that I do this, but on this day it's a need.
The most confusing thing a girl has ever said to me in life: "You know I think that you're the one, but I want to be single right now. I want to date."
For the life of me, I can't understand the rationale behind these words. It's hard to put much belief in the first part of the statement when you hear the but clause. It nullifies it. I think to myself, "Why would anyone ever construct a sentence like that? Don't they know how unbelievable that sounds. It's an evil concoction of words. "
You have to think "maybe they really don't know what they're talking about or maybe they don't really mean what they say." I don't know.
I think to myself that if you really know somebody is the one you wouldn't play games. I'm a pretty straight forward person, who calls it as it comes. So, I don't do well by confusing phrases like the one above. I think that if you think somebody's it then you don't play games. You don't act like you're still 13. You grow up.
And beyond that, where does that leave lil' ol' me? Somewhere stuck between lover's lane and the friend zone, not really knowing which way I'm headed in your head. One day you're talking about rocking in chairs at 70 w/ me and the next? You're talking about how you want to be free.
I guess that means that maybe I'm not supposed to understand because I'm dealing with a delusional/crazy person or is there really more to it? Am I missing something?
Whatever the case, I just hope no other good man or woman is ever subjected to such confusion again (although I'm sure it's happening as you're reading this). More over, I pray I never hear these words again.
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Oh Baby You ... Got What I Need
"Can we still be friends?"
This is one of the hardest things a guy or gal can hear from his or her signifcant other. For whatever reason. Another guy. Things were moving too fast. Another Guy. Things were moving too slow. Another Girl. Things weren't moving at all. Hearing the question "Can we still be friends?" is worse than "I slept with your best friend." Well, maybe not. But it's close.
A friend came at me with this situaiton earlier today, and this is what I told her, though nobody nowadays seems to be listening to good advice:
You need to say "Hell No!" drop them, and this specific conversation, faster than Sprint does a signal in the city where it's headquartered and let the phone ring if they call back. Leave it there, and give the situation some time to see what happens.
There are a few reasons why: 1. Avoiding the unnecessary jealous moments. 2. If they really want you, they will call and come back. 3. If they don't want you, they won't call and - more importantly - you won't waste more time.
Two girlfriends ago, I said fell right into the friends role trap - which is just a way so that person has something to do until they find something(someone) more interesting. I knew I wanted to keep the relationship going, and thought that being a good little Vick Damone, Jr. would get me back in the good graces of the Miss. Uh ... wrong answer. Wasn't happenin. She treated me just like she would any other platonic male friend on most encounters. Every guy I saw her with, and there weren't many necessarily, I had to know what was going on. Although there was nothing really happenin', I couldn't get it through my thick skull that what I wanted wasn't gonna go down. Once I stopped trying, I finally got the message.
In another encounter, I caught the words again - and of course thought I had more to offer the situation. This time, I said I didn't need any more female friends - which was the truth - and that it was all or nothing. I didn't initiate conversation with that lady for more than a month. I found ways, another lady friend, to occupy my time. But like clockwork, I got what I really wanted a relationship with "I still want to be your friend" girl.
And hey, if she didn't come back. Her loss, and better yet, you win because you didn't waste more time in something that was going nowhere slowly. The moral of this post: avoid the "just friends" bit. It could save you a few months of your life.
Thursday, October 13, 2005
When do you know what you think you know?
So this is part two of the second half of my last post (whew, that was a mess) - How does a man know that you've found the person he is supposed to marry?
This is a weird one because I have a slew of female friends who have already been proposed to in this lifetime, and they've declined the offer. I guess that just says that there are plenty of guys out there who have little to no standard or no clue as to the answer to the aforementioned question.
I joke with a friend, we'll call her Wildcat-Squared, about once a month or so and ask her for her hand in marriage because she'd be able to take care of me and my expensive tastes with all the dough she stands to roll in. But really, I know I won't seriously pop the question until i know the answer to be a profound yes.
And yes, there are more factors. I'm not just going to marry the first Halle Berry that comes along and give me the wink and the gun. I think you have to get past that the "love at first sight" period, beyond the "eewie-gouey" phase and dip right into the gut of a relationship, which is getting through tough times. If you can't get through an arguement with somebody without cracking a smile, listening and actually thinking about how that person might be right, it won't work.
I'm not crazy, but I believe a good fight is the best part of a relationship. It's at those moments when you realize how much a person actually cares about you, and what you believe. It's when someone has the gall to look you in the eye, and tell you that you're wrong about something or tell you something that you need to fix about yourself, that you actualize a relationship's worth. In turn, you do the same for them, but you're able to take what they dish out, and vice versa.
When you've been through that relationship wear & tear, and the engine is still churning, then I think you might have something. Then a man might be able to think about thinking about asking the question. Then you can start to daydream and maybe utter a word or two about Tiffany's, the dress, the honeymoon and driving to soccer practice.
But really, just give me Halle Berry and all of her physco tendencies. I'll be alright, alright? That's what a relationship is about, right? Sacrifice? Besides, I wouldn't be as 'bad as Eric Benet.'
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Politicians who really don't think/Quarter of a Century Old
these two post are coming back-back-back, so don't get by without reading both ...
First up, there's a proposal in Kansas City proper for a sales tax that would go toward a new downtown baseball park at the price of $375 millio, n-plus.
I first heard the news via radio as I was leaving a fairly afluent high school, and I had two thoughts.
1) I actually like the idea of a downtown ballpark, we just need a team worthy of playing in one.
2) But wouldn't the $375 mill GWs be better spent on the likes of the dismal Kansas City Missouri School District, the worst school district this side of the Atlantic Ocean? Isn't that the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer?
-------------------------------------------------
Secondly,
Best Friend has been working me constantly since Aug. 18th about being a "Quarter of a Century" old. It's not like the talk is new. Since '02, not 1902, she's been calling me Old Man River just cause she can.
But I'm actually starting to feel it. I'm really going through my - I can't say mid because that means I'd die at 50 - quarter-life crisis. When I was 17, and heading to college, I thought I'd be married by the time I was 25, at least engaged.
Neither is the case. Marriage is nowhere near the menu, and its not a bad thing. It's just weird when you look all around you, and every other woman you see has on a rock Shirley Bassey would be proud of.
I'm not ready to pop the question, but I guess my worries have a lot to do with my parents having me when they were 25 and 24. Thus, when I rethink it, it's a positive thing that I'm not emmersed in a life-controlling relationship at the moment because I'm not ready to raise anybody's seed. I guess I just want something more to live for than taxes, a job and Aug. 18th.
Really, I just want to relive the glory days of college, oh did they swiftly pass, with "the fine wine and beautiful women." More so for the fact that there are no 50-hour a week jobs that have a vice-grip on your balls/life. I had more time commitments in high school, and even though I stayed busy in college, that mindset was washed away come graduation, version May 2003.
I'm ranting now, and I need to stop. I need to get to 26 so the number 100 goes away, and maybe I'll find something less trivial to blabber about.
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
Am I Dyslexic, Theo?
Can you raed tihs? Olny srmat poelpe can.I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!
Unreal ...
Youngblood ...
Young Broham #1 is coming along with his blog "Who Knows?" Peep it out at http://rmattwill.blogspot.com . Late.
Monday, October 10, 2005
The Real World ...
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Frustration is mounting in Pakistan and India over the pace of relief efforts in the earthquake zone with many remote regions still not accessible after Saturday's tremor struck.
The 7.6-magnitude earthquake was felt across northern Pakistan and the disputed region of Kashmir, as well as parts of India and Afghanistan.
The death toll has topped 30,000 in Pakistan alone, with another 999 dead in India and one reported death in Afghanistan.
This is the real deal. I wonder why things like this keep happening - the Tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, This 7.6 EQ in Pakistan. All I can say is pray for these people, and if you haven't told your loved ones you love them, do so when you get a chance. Out.
Sunday, October 09, 2005
Slicing Bread ...
In the last 24 hours, I've heard the cliche "... the best thing since sliced bread" at least five times. Five years ago, it seemed novel. About 4.5 million usages later? Not so hot.
Apologies to all of you folks who love buttered toast or think PB&J is best thing since (i'm not saying it) George Washington Carver's birth. But when you think about it there have been a lot of things to come along since 1912, when Otto Frederick Rohwedder introduced the idea of sliced bread. Like, the Bill Gates and Microsoft. The Internet. Television. Color Television. Cable Television. Satelitte Television. The yellow first-down marker during NFL games on Television. Blogging. The Cell Phone. And finally the Plumbing System, just to name a few.
If I hear this phrase one more time, I think I might just throw a shoe at whoever says it. Be it the television or someone in person.
So aside from the aforementioned and "we're taking it one (day, game) at a time," give me some of the most overused, annoying cliches you've know.
Saturday, October 08, 2005
I'll Be Late For That ...
You had to know this was coming. Yes, the breakdown of which Kanye West – The College Dropout or Late Registration – album is better.
Kanye says Late “is killing everything out there,” and it might be doing that. But the Dropout Bear Volume 1 slaughtered everything released in the last five years – The Black Album, The Blueprint, Get Rich or Die Tryin, Country Grammar, Speakerboxx/The Love Below included.
Musically, Late is unbelievable. There isn’t any album – hip hop, pop or r&b – out there with this sound. It’s close to Dropout, but it’s not better. Dropout is infectious because it’s raw. It’s Kanye talking about Kanye before half of America actually understood what the Louis Vuitton Don meant when he was rhyming about pushing a miracle whip. It’s a pure sound and story that you only get to hear once unless an artist’s life’s story is as screwy as Eminem’s, and the lyrics keep coming.
Now, all ‘Ye can rap about is how “this must be heaven.”
I’m breaking it all down for you, and I’m curious to see what you think. Five songs from each album, only one popular single rated on my on personal scale (45 for lyrical content, 35 for the actual musical production, 20 for style).
Late Registration – 445 …
1. Gone (39+35+20=94) – A complex mixture of fluent rhymes, soul, strings and thumping bass. Do you want current affairs: “He got a new bitch, now you Jennifer Aniston.”
2. We Major (45+35+13=93) – The Hook is THE Shit. If you don’t bob your head to this, you’re crazy. It’s Illmatic.
3. Bring Me Down (40+35+15= 90) – Kanye’s flow is cool, but what makes this track? The instrumentation and Brandy’s voice. If ‘Ye dropped a second verse, this would easily be his best track ever.
4. Crack Music (45+27+13=85) – The hook doesn’t need The Game, but Kanye saves all face on the first verse, which is possibly the tightest on the LP.
5. Gold Digger (43+25+15=83) – It’s a hot track with witty lyrics, but you have to get used to J.Fizzle and Ray’s loop.
Just missed the bus: Touch The Sky, Addiction, Late.
The College Dropout – 453 …
Get’em High (44+34+20=98) – The ultimate hip hop song. Common is the shit on this track, but Kanye trying to get some ass off of Talib Kweli’s name on the phone is classic.
All Falls Down (43+33+20 =96) – Lauryn Hill’s unplugged went in circles, and Kanye’s best flow ever brings this lost loop to life. How many rappers do you know willing to talk about their shortcomings to make you see the light? Not many.
Never Let Me Down (37+34+20= 91) – J.Ivy, John Legend and Jigga give this hot track power with diversity and a touch of soul. If you don’t know about J.Ivy, you betta ask somebody.
Spaceship (39+31+15= 85) – The song has soul, and Kanye in a light you’ll never see again: talking about a commoner’s job and the come up.
Last Call (45+25+13 = 83) – The best lyrical content on the cd: “I went to the malls and I balled too hard. Oh my God, is that a black card? I turned around and replied ‘Why, yes. But I prefer the term African-American Express.’ Or ‘Mayonnaise Colored Benz, I push miracle whips.” Enough said.
Just missed the bus: Two Words, Jesus Walks, Through The Wire.
Friday, October 07, 2005
Thought I needed a Nia Long
So, my best friend decided to leave an anonymous post asking if I think the movie Love Jones is an accurate portrayal of true love, and I'd have to say yes. If you know me, I can quote the entire movie, so I'll refer to it frequently in posts.
The ignorant - note, that I use ignorant to mean outrageous though I know what it means - answer would be: "If a man wakes up before you do after a night of good sex and makes you an omelet, hell yes you've found heaven on earth."
On the real, Darius Lovehall and Nina Mosley's flirting had the uncertainty that relationships nowadays have. Everybody is so scared to drop the big "three words" or make a commitment. That's why he so slyly told her they were just kickin it, when he knew he wanted more. Playing it cool until she said something backfired though.
The for sure way you really know if your relationship is committed is if somebody in the situation gets jealous because of an outside interest, and the conversation opens itself up to the exclusivity verbiage.
But if you don't want to play these silly games, you need to take the advice of my fellow blogger, Low End, and be upfront about what you want. In other words, don't be scurred.
Leverage is good in a relationship, but so is the ability to be open. Avoiding the the 143 for too long will leave you singing that Akon joint, Lonely. And you'll end up losing a year-plus of a your life for a misunderstanding like Darius and Nina, who had that love that wouldn't go away.
I open th forum to what you thought happened in the sequel, aptly titled Still Jonesing: (speak)
Something tells me ...
... that this is not an act of God.
OPELOUSAS, La. - After more than a month of living with dozens of displaced relatives in Opelousas, New Orleans evacuee Jacquelyn Sherman told her niece she was depressed.
That all changed when she won $1.6 million — before taxes — playing a slot machine at Evangeline Downs Racetrack and Casino.
“When it happened, I didn’t know what was going on,” Sherman said. “I had just put in my $20 in the ‘Wheel of Fortune’ machine when it hit. My feeling about this win is better than being blessed. Thank you, Lord.”
Want more? Click Here
Thursday, October 06, 2005
I've just been informed that ...
two lovely ladies will be treating me to a meal at Kansas City's finest restaurant, The PeachTree. Stay tuned ...
Click Here to Read More..NBA: No Business Attire, please!
So David Stern is laying down the law like Paul Tagliabue ever since Ron Artest went, well, Ron Artest. The guy with short man's complex who runs a league where he can't see the top of any player's head is out to dispose of the thuggish image of the NBA.
I like the idea, but i think it's two Michael Jordan retirements too late. MJ made GQ, GQ with his well-tailored suits in post-game interviews, when he came off team buses and when he lost millions in Atlantic City.
But this is 2005, and I want someone to tell me when the Allen Iverson last wore a suit? Probably when he shook Stern's hand at the NBA draft in 1996. Back then, Iverson didn't have cornrows. He was almost clean-cut with the downtown fade.
Now about half of the NBA - which according to Kanye West can afford to contract & dispose of AIDS - would look like idiots in Armani and rows. Think about it. Donavan McNabb is a great quarterback, but he looks like a clown when he puts on a three-piece. Maybe if they were forced to press their hair along with the suits it would work. That would be comedy, and it might bring interest to an otherwise boring NBA regular season.
But most of them have one more suit, the one they met David Stern on the podium in that great day, than they did in high school. That's reason enough to shoot down Stern's idea, but I also love seeing these idiots wearing throwback jerseys of other NBA teams as they do interviews. ...
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
Get a Life ...
So everybody and their grandma is criticizing GWB for his nomination of Harriet (Harry from henceforth) Miers. I'll be real with you, when I first read her bio on CNN, I said "no" after a few graphs.
Sure, she's never been a judge, but to me that's not too big of a deal. What sticks out to me is that she's never been married (I wish I could have inserted the word kissed instead, that would have been great). It actually scares me to think that a 60-year-old Supreme Court Justice hopeful has never tied the knot. On one hand, it definitely shows a level of drive and commitment to the job. But marriage is also (perceived to be) a huge sign of stability.
In today's world, though we see more and more people who are so career driven that they don't take the time to worry about relationships or settling down. I have a few friends like that who put career well before the idea of starting a family. I just wonder what the conversation is like when you're 60, get home at 9 p.m. from a 13-hour day and your talking to your walls. If Harry makes it on, at least she won't be alone in this area.
Still Jonesing ...
Whatever happened to the movies about educated Black people the every day person could enjoy? Really, can you think of one movie since Brown Sugar (2002) tha was made around a primarily all-black cast that was truly about something more than a hustled flow or a ghetto charter plane? Not to say that those movies couldn't be worth the $8 of admission. But I need something that's going to perplex the mind like Wood talking about "If God were a woman ..." or Dre lifting a champagne glass talking about his best friend being the "perfect verse over a tight beat" on New Year's Eve.
It makes you wonder if we have just run out of talented African-American-geared scripts or if your commonplace black movie is watered-down to the Hustle & Flow "Whoop That Trick" mentality? Let's just hope that this isn't what we're resigned to watching.
Really, though, we need a resolution quickfast. I'm tired of swiping the d-card for some fruity chick flick like Just Like Heaven, a good movie, that might be 20 times more appealing if Reese Witherspoon's role was modeled after a black female played by ghostly Nia Long and the dude's role (I can't remember his name ... I just know he was in 13 Going on 30) were played by Morris Chestnut acting as flustered as he was about the other sex in Breakin All the Rules. It would get them away from corny bit roles in bad, bad movies ... but that would be too much to ask for.
If I were to write a movie script, what would I call it? Sole Searchin - a movie sampling the lives of four young black people (two males and two females) struggling to find their identities in a white professional world, in their love lives and spiritually. Ha, an auto-biopic of me and my friends.
Anyway, here are my top five fav black movies of the last 15 years with a positive professional spin to them.
- Love Jones (1997) - If Darius Lovehall's A Blues for Nina didn't pull you in, its unlikely that you have any soul ... Bill Bellamy, Lisa Nicole Carson (where is she?) and Isaiah Washington were the start of an awesome supporting cast. Quotable:"Because rather than deal with the fallacy of this dry-ass reality, I'd rather dance and romance your sweet ass in a wet dream."
- Boomerang (1992) - Eddie at his best on the screen, and Halle's coming out party. Quotable: "You gotta coordinate..."
- Brown Sugar (2002) - I wonder how weird it was for Boris to watch Taye Diggs lock lips with his wife. Quotable: "I need to celebrate. I want to order the most expensive bottle of champagne in this place. I need to celebrate ... (dinging the glass with a fork) my divorce!"
- The Best Man (1999) - My best man would have been thrown over the edge of the roof if something like that went down. Quotable: "You F$%k#d Mia?!"
- Love & Basketball (2000) - Who said all b-ballers were dumb? Quincy McCall was a great example of what happens to 65 percent ( a random percentage) of NBA Draft picks, i.e. Jay Williams (of Duke). Quotable: "Who you going to the dance with anyway, Spalding?"
Missed the Bus: Coming to America, Drumline, The Brothers, Two Can Play That Game, Deliver Us From Eva and Soul Food.
Note: This doesn't mean these movies weren't as good as the five listed. It's just those five movies portrayed blacks in a Cosbyish light, to a degree.
Click Here to Read More..YRUN2DP?
I'm sure you're probably wondering why the blog is titled YRUN2DP?, and just what in the world it means. Well if you don't know, you better ask somebody. Preferably not me. I'm not letting the cat out.
It's really not that difficult, and when you figure it out after 60 seconds (hopefully, it doesn't take that long), it might leave you hating me just a tad. This is me to the core - being anal when I don't really have to be, but what can I say?
Motorists in Kansas and Missouri will hate me more whenever I get a new whip. YRUN2DP will be what my personalized tags read. No hints ... figure it out for yourself, and slap yourself upside your head if it takes you more than a minute. Aight, this is enough for one day. There's more to come with the start of a new day. Late.
The World According To ...
So after months of serious contemplation, I've decided to dive head first into this blogging trend that I'm two years late on (Thanks Duk). Yes, it's time to let you into to "The World According to ... Damone." Honestly, I don't know where this will go. But we shall see. Be prepared for lists upon lists. Opinions stack on opinions, and plenty of verbage (not really a word), and less verbiage (yes, this one is) about current events, music, sports, relationships and other shit (I couldn't think of a better way of putting this). The first real post after this ludicrous intro is coming shortly because I'm in need of some NyTol, and I'm not going back to the grocery store. Nope. No way, so here it comes ... Oh, and the picture is about where I wish I could be at this moment - somewhere near a beach in Miami watching the sun rise. But I'm stuck in the Not-So-Land of Oz.
