spoken word .

commentary please.

our generation is a technological one. we are constantly on twitter, facebook, websites, and blogs. I wonder, however, which blogs and sites we surf. I often hear about the media take outs, bossip, worldstarhiphops, june ambrose sites, and Who What Wear (one of my absolute favorites), but where do you get your daily feed of EVERYTHING? i would suggest www.thedailybeast.com .. it's a good place to get unbiased and biased information and articles on world news, celebrity updates, the economy, book/movie reviews ... everything.

the purpose of my post, however, is not to suggest websites but to challenge the way you read these articles on yahoo, cnn, the daily beast, NY times, etc. Some people claim that racism does not exist. They claim that it is a thing of the past and/or people are generally on the same accord about race and class. I challenge you to LOOK AT THE COMMENTS. the comments found on these sites' articles are not like the ones found on twitpic or worldstar. No, here you will read the minds of millions of Americans - we are not as cohesive as many people want to claim.

Btw, In case you are wondering about recent updates about the case:
Trayvon Martin Case

if you're in Los Angeles ...

make noise.

[ On March 26, 2012 at 5:30pm, Atlanta will stand together and protest the injustice of Trayvon Martin's murder. Colleges, Universities, Civil Rights' Groups, and Non-profit organizations will rally together to make noise.  If you would like to be involved, the protests will take place on the state capitol steps : 206 washington street, SW atlanta, GA .

About two weeks ago, i posted a video about the murder of Trayvon. It broke my heart that a harmless kid could be a victim of such cruel and prejudiced circumstances. Last week, Someone tweeted that this situation was about oppression and there was nothing we could do at this point. I wonder ... if my ancestors had a similar mindset, where would i be? I'll be damned if i let hardship and injustice silence my voice. I'd rather go down ...kicking and screaming any day. 


The longer I live in Atlanta, travel the country (New Orleans, D.C., Florida, North Carolina, etc.), and read scholarly work on the ideology of racism, the more I have a hard time with California. They live in such a euphoric, narcissistic place that blinds them from the truth. Racism is a living, breathing, thing that - historically- worked relentlessly to break souls and necks simultaneously. Confederate flags still hang, "reNIG" buttons are being made, and innocent men are being sentenced to death. wake up, please.

I have a 19 year old brother. His name is Dallas. His name is Troy Davis. His name is Trayvon Martin. -->

put a ring on it ... or else.

[ i attended a forum about relationships, sex, and violence at Morehouse last week. We hurried into a classroom, flooded with students from Morehouse, Spelman, and Clark Atlanta University. While men and women battled back and forth about the dynamics of relationships and sex, i listened. ]

We were discussing the validity of the title "boyfriend/girlfriend". A lot of ladies said that they wanted a title. A lot of the men were saying that they did NOT need a title- feeling as though the title is used to merely appease the people outside of the relationship. A girl (with extremely intense eyes) raised her hand and expressed that --> dating a girl without the intention of commitment is disrespectful. She said she needed a respectful man and also stated that certain things regarding dating are just "common sense".

Let me first and foremost say that i see the validity of a relationship (they can be beautiful unions). But right then and there, I saw a piece of me in that girl- a naive piece. When i was in high school (and the beginning of college), i said that i wanted a guy with common sense. i realized a few years later that i was living in a euphoric state of mind. when it comes to relationships, "COMMON SENSE" does not exist.

For example,Some girls said they would leave if a guy did not "make it official" in 6 months. Another girl said 3 months. One girl leaned over to me and said, "nah, if he doesn't know in 2 months ... I'm out."And that's all fine. However, it is unfair to just assume that a man would know his "time constraints" ... considering that every one's preferences are different. nothing is "common" about dating. And "respect" is another fluid term. While the young lady thought it was disrespectful to "lead a girl on", some guys refrain from cuffing because they know they are not ready for monogomy. they stay away from the titles ... out of respect for the young lady.

While i listened to the two genders swing rebuttals back and forth, i suddenly realized something: i was siding more with the men than the women. I realized that a lot of women treat the boyfriend/girlfriend title like an "EASY" button from Staples. They think the title will clear up all of the confusion and grey areas about their relationship ... and they're wrong. point. blank. period. A relationship is a different recipe every time- full of unique ingredients (time, place, personality traits, emotional baggage, circumstances). i know people who merely "talk to someone" who have stronger relationships than people with the title. It's about COMMUNICATION. people have so many different expectations in relationships/dating - what constitutes cheating? what is respectful? what are my responsibilities as a bf/gf? are we discrete? to PDA, or not to PDA? While it may seem like common sense, it is NOT. honestly, what's a title if you do not know what it means?

word.

WHERE HAVE I BEEN? this cover is one of the best i've heard. snaps & claps.

i met someone else. [short short stories]

“He sat across from me, broken. Yes. He sat across from me, just as broken as his bloodied hand. I rose from the cushioned stools my mother gave me and walked to the freezer for ice. I pulled the handle on the freezer door, stopped, considered the chilly state of things …and then preceded back to the marble counter- my man, my shit storm.”

---

"She came back from the freezer door lookin’ all gentle-like.  She looked like the first time I met her – soft and tender like love oughta look. But I aint fallin’ for that shit again. Oh no, with time I have learned to call out a snake wrapped in diamon’ ribbons when I see one. Yeah, she love ta’ slither and be pretty all right. She’ll strike ya’ when ya back turned. Mmm hmm, that’s a snake alrigh’."

---

"I told him that it wasn’t intentional, that I just found something worth holding onto. My mind was battling for my attention. On one hand, I wrapped my million dollar- ivy league words around his head like a python preparing prey. On the other, I wondered who would pay for the destructive hole in my periwinkle walls. He iced his hand and I told him about the man I was leaving him for.  Yes, that night ... I helped ice his hand and his heart."

marry me.

btw, jesse williams. that's all.

... in a perfect world

in a perfect world ...

you wouldnt be wrong for falling in love quickly.
there would be no fault in asking him to meet your parents.
the question, "where do you see this going" wouldn't be equated to an atomic bomb explosion.
you wouldn't have to spread your eggs in numerous baskets to avoid heartbreak and headache.
showing emotion wouldn't constitute being labeled as "crazy"

but we do not live in a perfect world. falling in love is considered taboo and naive instead of what it truly is- courageous and brilliant. asking a man that you care about to meet your mother is an act of respect and care. instead, men think that you want to handcuff them to your bedpost and never leave the house. in this world, being "too nice" gets you taken advantage of and walked all over like a weakling. in the "real world", emotions make men run for the hills and spending your time with one man is a disaster waiting to happen.

you know, i always hear guys talk about "wifey types" but i'm not sure if that is a legitimate point of discussion. PLENTY of women have proven to be capable of love, nurture, and devotion. Yet, they are constantly punished for displaying those traits at full capacity. now, we have every woman running around trying to be some 2012 Stepford Wife. They want to master their cooking, cleaning, birthing, sex domanatrix tricks, refinement, business acumen, and fashion sense - just to be some barbie doll that shapeshifts into what a man wants.

Honestly, I'm tired of seeing so many women beating themselves to a pulp because they feel inadequate and small. Although perfect worlds do not exist, you can get dangerously close. It is okay to give thick, full love. It is okay to ask about the status of a relationship. It is okay TO BE YOU - not some steroid-genetically altered, plastic version of you. at the end of the day, hold men to the same standard as you hold for yourself.

pop rocks.

"There are some people in the world who live lovely, Lysol clean lives. And nothing is wrong with that. There are some people who swim in pools of unblemished waters and dance throughout life in point-toe shoes. And nothing is wrong with that. There are folks who stuff napkins in their collars before they indulge in moments. And nothing is wrong with that.

… But this is not for them.

This is for the people who wade through muddy waters of life. They walk past the locked corners of their minds, afraid to awaken their beasts. Nostalgic tears burn, melt, and dry like crystallized candle wax- the people who gather these tears and hang them like chandeliers for light. Yes, this is for them. This is for the people with demons who haunt them while showering. While raising hands in class. WHILE TAKING IN BREATHS.

This post is for the people who breathe heavily - inhaling just enough hope to appreciate the hour, the minute, the second. This is for the people who squint at the past and dismiss the future. They dodge around the mental landmines that are their memories- afraid to trigger their instability. & we toast to you, soldiers."

-anonymous

P.S.
let it be known that the "stable ones" are the minority .

wow.

repost: "thee love note"

you give me ...
a love that chips away at the hard soul surfaces and renovates the damage .
your UNDYING hope in me that paints the black roses in my heart, red .someone with a green thumb ... willing to pull the weeds of my past & plant potential .

I'd throw my hopes into the air for the sky to catch in the crevices of clouds .
and if my heart should smash against Pasadena palm trees or pavement of Brooklyn brownstones, I'd survive because you're good like that . el corazón duele en las manos de abusadores, pero las manos están hechas de rayos dulces de sol .

in a world that spins on the axis of narcissism, you crumble the spindle until the rules change . crack . smash . decomposing until LOGIC is melted in a steaming pot ofmiracles . a love that sows together the wings of butterflies & lifts me beyond the heights of fabrication .

you are where i start & where i will end . you see the constellations in my eyes, the symphonies in my heart beat, and feel the breezes from my eye lashes . it feels good to be appreciated . you stitched my wounds, fed my soul and love . me .unconditionally . when i stumble on my stubborn, when i TASTE TEMPTATION, and linger in lies, you love me still . all i ever wanted was someone who would stick by me, fight for me, and ride or die until the end ; mission accomplished .

P.S. God, i fell in love with you all over again today .

throwback laughter.