Random "racial wealth gap" thoughts

So news about racial wealth disparity has begun to float around the internet... I read it... Shook my head... And then proceeded to carry on with my day.
Yes, it did bother me. Why then, you ask, did I take is so nonchalantly then? Because its the same old story that's been plaguing the minorities since we marched on Washington the FIRST time and asked for JOBS instead of asking businesses. And yes, while we're talking about it, we have come a long way.  We have a "Black" President (who will systematically go down in history as the most ineffective President that this nation has EVER had thanks to the GOP who will refuse to go along with anything that he says, even if its their own idea. The "nation" will pin this economic failure, that is bound to happen, solely on him and then say to the one black president we've ever had "never again"... But that's another story.)  But nothing has changed when it comes to the financial structure of our nation - the "Haves" get more and the "Have Nots" have even less. 

To get money these days, you need to have money. You need to be smart about buying bonds and stocks, have the money to purchase enough of them to the point where it matters, possibly have your own business, AND your house needs to be paid for.  I personally don't know many of ANY minority in that position.

So we are now in a position where we either extend our families, which most of us can't/won't do, or commence a full fledged assault on the service sector to fill the void created by the recently departed illegal immigrants who began running away as these new immigration laws loom. Let's see: service jobs, a set amount of food money food stamps after being unemployed (aka rations),  living with the entire family under one roof... Sounds a lil bit like somethin else to me... But maybe I'm reaching. Lol.

There is always hope though... I'm optimistic that, by some strange random act of kindness from God, things will get better soon for those of us in the middle that are fighting hard not to sink beneath that poverty line... And that hope alone is enough reason to keep pushing for better.

The Work Out Kid

This 10 year old lil fella embarrasses most of us with his work ethic. No weights - just the will and drive to exercise to a degree that most of us adults probably couldn't keep up with. Every day this guy is going at it with an almost religious dedication to the performance push-ups, crunches, lunges, burpees, etc. Its garnered some attention... enough attention to get him his own personal workout video for kids. Watch the video and then ask yourself this question: How's that couch feel?



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Meet Billie Board

So... I hang around some very talented people (some might even say I'm talented myself...) Now its time I introduced you to yet another one of these talented people...

MEET BILLIE BOARD

I got the opportunity earlier this year to work with the homeboy BillieBoard and let me tell ya... Saying "the fella is good at what he does" is an understatement. Check out the video.

As promised... a few of the shots from the shoot appear after the jump... along with contact info for the photographer.

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The Dark Knight Rises Trailer

The title speaks for itself. I don't know many people who don't wanna see the end of this series. Its one of the few times a comic book movie has been done very well. At any rate, check out the trailer below.

More The Dark Knight Rises Videos

Sidenote: The trailer honestly wasn't too interesting, but I guess it gets the job done of developing some sort of interest... Maybe they'll do better the next time.

Swimming from Cuba to the Florida Keys

I don't care what type of mid life crisis I'm going through... I couldn't do this. 103 MILES?! That is a LOT for ANYONE! Let alone someone at 61 years old... But Diana Nyad's done stuff like this before... and she's an excellent, award winning, long distance swimmer. On that note, I wanna see it done; I wanna see her do it. I hope she conquers this great feat. It would be a truly inspiring achievement. At any rate, check out video below.

And here it is... Its 713.

SevenOneThree

Are They Interested?

The past few days I've been having conversations with numerous different friends about relationships and one reoccurring theme kept popping up: No one knows exactly how to get into a relationship.

(Sidenote: This story is part two to The Backburner Person)

Gone are the days of passing notes that say "Will you go with me?" We now live in a world clouded with ambiguity and mixed signals; where you can be best friends with the opposite sex, have sex with them on a fairly consistent basis, provide all the emotional support (and sometimes financial) that a girlfriend/boyfriend is supposed to provide and STILL be considered as "the homie." Its absolutely crazy.

I hit the homeboy up the other day to talk some business and, after that was taken care of, we started talking about women we knew... and then the question came out: "I mean, how do get a girl to really like you?" He asked it as kind of a rhetorical question and continued talking... But the crazy thing is, as I listened, I couldn't help but stop and think "Wait... How DO you get a girl to REALLY like you?" We've all been taught to play the game; Wait a few days before you call. Don't seem too anxious. Never sweat the small stuff aka "they ain't call me back as quick as I want them to," etc. We've been taught how to be sexy in an effort to make someone lust after what society deems as "fine." But, while those things may trick someone into gravitating toward you with feelings of infatuation from the need to have the best and most attractive, seemingly uninterested individual on the planet, eventually you have to stop that foolishness, come back to reality, start being yourself (as no one can keep up that "uninterested" act for over 3 months if they really ARE interested), and that person has to deal with the real you - at which point you better either be ready to break up or have some substance and "spectacularness" to your personality and character. The sad part is... Most of us don't. We know how to interact over text and social networks but, in person, we're socially awkward. We might know the words to say to get us to the bedroom for a "monkey smang," but that's it. To be quite frank, most can't hold a deep conversation about anything that doesn't involve the music industry, sports or the latest episode of Single Ladies. In order to have something real, you have to start off real; say what you mean and mean what you say. Honestly, I do think, with confidence, well rounded-ness and the basic ability to express yourself, its easy to get somebody to really like you. The problem is recognizing who they are as they tend to look just like all the people who are playing like they like you...

Which leads us to our next question: How can you tell if someone is cautiously pursuing you, or if you're really on the back burner. Peep the video.



I must say, we were being foolish and that may not have been the best advice but, a person that wants to make a relationship work will reciprocate the effort that you put into the relationship and make a conscious effort to make you comfortable with gradually revealing more and more of your feelings while revealing feelings of their own. Once you have discerned to the best of your ability that the person may have genuine feelings, I think the best thing to do is put all the cards on the table. Tell the person what you want and hope to God they feel the same way. Its the only way to permanently get rid of all the guessing games - and the possibility of ending up as "the homie" aka a "best friend cut buddy" with no official title. Assuming one way or the other could prove to be detrimental.

The "Backburner" Person

So I'm finally posting this video that we recorded in the first part of the year (hence the jackets that we're wearing). Me and one of my female friends had previously held a conversation about how today's society makes it quite difficult to date one person at a time. This is mainly because our generation has SO many options - from people we meet during daily interactions to the 50 million different social networks and dating sites that are offered. As a result, if you choose NOT to serial date, you run the risk of falling hard for someone you think is "The One" while you are only a possible option out of many options for them. We've all been victim of this behavior. You like them; they kinda like you... I personally don't like serial dating because somebody always gets hurt... and the LAST thing this society needs is more hurt people hurting people. Peep the video.

My advice: Don't lead someone on by putting them on the back burner until you make up your mind - put them in the "friend zone" and, for your sake, maybe they'll still be there if you choose them 6 months later. In fact, just don't go out with people you don't really like; its a waste of time, energy and money. The next part of the video will probably be posted shortly.