Born December 29, 2007 at 10:40pm.
Amazing!!
12.30.2007
12.19.2007
12.18.2007
Nights like this
Me and my Boo, laid up...
D'Angelo docked, croonin' over
belly-rubs. talkin' to Baby Girl,
Urquilla-Graham
We have 23 days to go, folks! All the books and advice and doctor's visits and therapy have us at least a little prepared for what awaits. But little B.G.U.G. will show us what's up.
Excited, anxious, happy, together. Marta and I are enjoying this last phase of the next phase of our lives. Everything is everything!
D'Angelo docked, croonin' over
belly-rubs. talkin' to Baby Girl,
Urquilla-Graham
We have 23 days to go, folks! All the books and advice and doctor's visits and therapy have us at least a little prepared for what awaits. But little B.G.U.G. will show us what's up.
Excited, anxious, happy, together. Marta and I are enjoying this last phase of the next phase of our lives. Everything is everything!
12.11.2007
Mortified
Apparently, I don't know how to use the spell-check function.
So...
B-a-t-t-l-e-s-h-i-p.
I stand corrected.
So...
B-a-t-t-l-e-s-h-i-p.
I stand corrected.
12.04.2007
Fresh-squeezed orange juice
12.01.2007
Now that that's over...
I took the LSAT this morning at Howard University. (Not in Ernest E. Just Hall, as advertised, but in the Dental Building, as re-located). I chose a seat in the front row, right corner, figuring it would offer me less distractions.
In a bold violation of test center rules, I stowed my jacket, gloves, scarf and (black brushed wool) Kangol on top of the piano in the corner rather than under the desk with the gallon-sized Ziploc holding my pb&j, carrots, nuts-n-berries, and Penland water bottle. Unlike other, bolder violators, I left the cell phone at home. I have yet to ascertain whether Marta is at High Tea with the ladies (as scheduled) or at Virginia Hospital Center (as re-located). Now that I've both called and texted, I hope to find out soon.
The test itself came off as well as I could expect. My front row-right seat kept me from fixating on everyone else. Hewing close to the LSAT prep book strategies, I prioritized the questions that made sense to me in order to increase my score. I hit my targets
The reading comprehension at the end of the day was harder than at the beginning. Still, I finished three of the passages and "bubbled in" answers for the fourth. Not bad.
I am thankful for all the love, support and advice that prepared me to sit in the re-located test center this morning with an open heart and mind. I feel good.
Marta - I love you. We're gettin' there, baby!
In a bold violation of test center rules, I stowed my jacket, gloves, scarf and (black brushed wool) Kangol on top of the piano in the corner rather than under the desk with the gallon-sized Ziploc holding my pb&j, carrots, nuts-n-berries, and Penland water bottle. Unlike other, bolder violators, I left the cell phone at home. I have yet to ascertain whether Marta is at High Tea with the ladies (as scheduled) or at Virginia Hospital Center (as re-located). Now that I've both called and texted, I hope to find out soon.
The test itself came off as well as I could expect. My front row-right seat kept me from fixating on everyone else. Hewing close to the LSAT prep book strategies, I prioritized the questions that made sense to me in order to increase my score. I hit my targets
- 20 questions on each logical reasoning section
- 3 passages in reading comprehension
- 2 of 4 games
The reading comprehension at the end of the day was harder than at the beginning. Still, I finished three of the passages and "bubbled in" answers for the fourth. Not bad.
I am thankful for all the love, support and advice that prepared me to sit in the re-located test center this morning with an open heart and mind. I feel good.
Marta - I love you. We're gettin' there, baby!
11.27.2007
11.14.2007
11.13.2007
Downward Mobility
Depressing realities statistically confirmed. Thanks, Pew!
/lede/
Nearly half of African Americans born to middle-income parents in the late 1960s plunged into poverty or near-poverty as adults, according to a new study -- a perplexing finding that analysts say highlights the fragile nature of middle-class life for many African Americans.
/snip/
"That's a stunner," said Orlando Patterson, a Harvard University sociologist, when told about the Pew finding. "These kids were middle class, but apparently their parents did not have the cultural capital and connections to pass along to them."
/lede/
Nearly half of African Americans born to middle-income parents in the late 1960s plunged into poverty or near-poverty as adults, according to a new study -- a perplexing finding that analysts say highlights the fragile nature of middle-class life for many African Americans.
/snip/
"That's a stunner," said Orlando Patterson, a Harvard University sociologist, when told about the Pew finding. "These kids were middle class, but apparently their parents did not have the cultural capital and connections to pass along to them."
Another reason so many middle-class blacks appear to be downwardly mobile is likely the huge wealth gap separating white and black families of similar incomes. For every $10 of wealth a white person has, blacks have $1, studies have found.
"We already knew that downward mobility was much more likely for blacks," said Mary Pattillo, a Northwestern University sociologist who studies the black middle class. "But this is an even bigger percentage drop than I have seen elsewhere. That's very steep."
11.12.2007
Foreign Corporations, si! Foreigners, not so much...
Northern Virginia welcomes foreign-owned companies while Prince William County is up in arms about the foreigners in their midst.
11.07.2007
Put up or shut up!
Benazir Bhutto has an excellent op-ed in today's New York Times, challenging the world - particularly, Western democracies - to act against Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's Martial Plan.
Much can be - has been - said about Bhutto's own bona fides, but she is correct to call the question: do promoters of freedom and democracy actually believe what they are saying?
Aaaah... now I'm thinking of Sweet Honey in the Rock:
"Ella's Song"
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
I believe.
Last night I spent a few hours driving to and from Prince William County, VA. My wife and I went and had a celebratory meal with Aracely Panameno, her brother and his two daughters. Aracely mounted a write-in campaign for County Supervisor against a 26-year incumbent and really shook some people up.
Election workers had to rediscover the laws and poll duties they have taken for granted. The larger electorate had to face the truth that "a change go'n come."
Big up to Aracely for Upsetting the Setup!
Much can be - has been - said about Bhutto's own bona fides, but she is correct to call the question: do promoters of freedom and democracy actually believe what they are saying?
Aaaah... now I'm thinking of Sweet Honey in the Rock:
"Ella's Song"
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
I believe.
Last night I spent a few hours driving to and from Prince William County, VA. My wife and I went and had a celebratory meal with Aracely Panameno, her brother and his two daughters. Aracely mounted a write-in campaign for County Supervisor against a 26-year incumbent and really shook some people up.
Election workers had to rediscover the laws and poll duties they have taken for granted. The larger electorate had to face the truth that "a change go'n come."
Big up to Aracely for Upsetting the Setup!
11.01.2007
10.29.2007
10.26.2007
Genarlow Wilson - Free at Last
Genarlow Wilson - freed from jail. The Georgia Supreme Court ruled 4-3 that his sentence violated the Fourth Amendment.
10.24.2007
Home Fires are Burning
My family isn't evacuated yet, but the bags and cars are packed just in case.
My alma mater, Mira Mesa High School, has been converted into an evacuation shelter.
Worried. Very worried.
My alma mater, Mira Mesa High School, has been converted into an evacuation shelter.
Worried. Very worried.
Do you like saving online articles?
Check out Times Files - a service of NYT online that lets you save articles to their server.
The cooler trick is putting the Times File button on your toolbar. Presto! You can archive all the stories you like and empty out that 'Articles' folder you've set up in your e-mail account.
The cooler trick is putting the Times File button on your toolbar. Presto! You can archive all the stories you like and empty out that 'Articles' folder you've set up in your e-mail account.
10.16.2007
Constitution? Not so much...
Quaintly, the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution asserts:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Yet, and still...
/snip/
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Yet, and still...
/snip/
Verizon Says It Turned Over Data Without Court Orders
Yesterday's 13-page Verizon letter indicated that the requests went further than previously known. Verizon said it had received FBI administrative subpoenas, called national security letters, requesting data that would "identify a calling circle" for subscribers' telephone numbers, including people contacted by the people contacted by the subscriber. Verizon said it does not keep such information.
10.12.2007
10.11.2007
10.07.2007
Another 10-miler done!
Over 26,000 people entered the 23rd Army Ten Miler.
I had a good race. Although the official results haven't been posted (actually, the race site is down as of this posting), I clocked my Self at 01:41:41:48.
This time around, I ran two miles, then walked, then ran two miles... It was different than last April's Cherry Blossom 10-miler, which I ran in one long stretch. The more I run, the better I am at gauging what my body and mind and spirit need to get from start to finish.
Much love to Marta for getting me to the starting area this morning, and for making me an egg-and-cheese bagel sandwich this afternoon!
Much respect to the veterans and Missing Parts in Action racers. Seeing double-amputees out there brought up plenty of emotions and some anger. But I put that aside and just clapped and said, "Thanks..." as I passed by. After all, most of those kids were kids. I mean baby-faced 18-21 year olds.
Whatever I think about why they were in a position to lose their limbs is ancillary. Today they were out there among the 26,000 completing a longer 10-miler than I ever will. I hope they had a good race. I'll look for them again next year.
I had a good race. Although the official results haven't been posted (actually, the race site is down as of this posting), I clocked my Self at 01:41:41:48.
This time around, I ran two miles, then walked, then ran two miles... It was different than last April's Cherry Blossom 10-miler, which I ran in one long stretch. The more I run, the better I am at gauging what my body and mind and spirit need to get from start to finish.
Much love to Marta for getting me to the starting area this morning, and for making me an egg-and-cheese bagel sandwich this afternoon!
Much respect to the veterans and Missing Parts in Action racers. Seeing double-amputees out there brought up plenty of emotions and some anger. But I put that aside and just clapped and said, "Thanks..." as I passed by. After all, most of those kids were kids. I mean baby-faced 18-21 year olds.
Whatever I think about why they were in a position to lose their limbs is ancillary. Today they were out there among the 26,000 completing a longer 10-miler than I ever will. I hope they had a good race. I'll look for them again next year.
10.02.2007
10.01.2007
9.26.2007
Fascinating story about India outsourcing outsourcing
/snip/
Some analysts compare the strategy to Japanese penetration of auto manufacturing in the United States in the 1970s. Just as the Japanese learned to make cars in America without Japanese workers, Indian vendors are learning to outsource without Indians, said Dennis McGuire, chairman of TPI, a Texas-based outsourcing consultancy.
Some analysts compare the strategy to Japanese penetration of auto manufacturing in the United States in the 1970s. Just as the Japanese learned to make cars in America without Japanese workers, Indian vendors are learning to outsource without Indians, said Dennis McGuire, chairman of TPI, a Texas-based outsourcing consultancy.
9.25.2007
9.24.2007
9.21.2007
9.20.2007
9.17.2007
9.10.2007
8.22.2007
8.01.2007
7.25.2007
7.22.2007
Back on the Vineyard
Our second week-long vacation on Martha's Vineyard is coming to a close. We didn't bike all over the place this year. Instead, we maxed, relaxed and took the car all over the place.
Either way, the island's beautiful, and we had a great time together before Marta heads off to Penland to re-connect with her Muse, via Clarissa Sligh's workshop, for the next 2.5 weeks.
I'm gonna miss her somethin' terrible, but it's all good. Git yer art on, Chitta!
7.12.2007
I feel like crying, too
Courtesy of the Washington Times:
/lede/
/lede/
A question for President Bush on immigration rose up like a ghost from the grave this afternoon in Ohio.
Only the questioner was a 13-year old blonde-headed girl, Jessica Hackerd, from Brecksville, Ohio, who immediately broke into tears after making her inquiry.
7.11.2007
Suchitoto Water Protest
From Tim's El Salvador Blog.
/snip/
Those arrested have been charged with “Creating Public Disorder,” and lawyers who have been in contact with the police headquarters in Cojutepeque confirm that their case will be designated under those charges to the Cojutepeque departmental attorneys and court system. Under Salvadoran law the departmental prosecutors have 72 hours to present charges at a hearing, which will most likely be held in Suchitoto.
Despite the charges of “Creating Public Disorder,” the CRIPDES leaders arrested never came close to the protest activities being carried out in Suchitoto. News footage shown on the Salvadoran Tele-Corporation (TCS) channels clearly show a the police vehicle overtaking the CRIPDES truck on the paved road between Suchitoto and San MartÃn, swerving in front and stopping the CRIPDES leaders. The video also shows the police forcefully removing the passengers from the pick-up truck, and taking them away in handcuffs, several kilometres away from where the protest was staged.
/snip/
Still, the protest leaders and others arrested at the protest are being charged under anti-terrorism laws
/snip/
Those arrested have been charged with “Creating Public Disorder,” and lawyers who have been in contact with the police headquarters in Cojutepeque confirm that their case will be designated under those charges to the Cojutepeque departmental attorneys and court system. Under Salvadoran law the departmental prosecutors have 72 hours to present charges at a hearing, which will most likely be held in Suchitoto.
Despite the charges of “Creating Public Disorder,” the CRIPDES leaders arrested never came close to the protest activities being carried out in Suchitoto. News footage shown on the Salvadoran Tele-Corporation (TCS) channels clearly show a the police vehicle overtaking the CRIPDES truck on the paved road between Suchitoto and San MartÃn, swerving in front and stopping the CRIPDES leaders. The video also shows the police forcefully removing the passengers from the pick-up truck, and taking them away in handcuffs, several kilometres away from where the protest was staged.
/snip/
Still, the protest leaders and others arrested at the protest are being charged under anti-terrorism laws
7.09.2007
A time warp
I agree.
/snip/
To the candidate, the debate says more about America's state of mind than it does about him. "I think America is still caught in a little bit of a time warp: the narrative of black politics is still shaped by the '60s and black power," he tells NEWSWEEK. "That is not, I think, how most black voters are thinking. I don't think that's how most white voters are thinking. I think that people are thinking about how to find a job, how to fill up the gas tank, how to send their kids to college. I find that when I talk about those issues, both blacks and whites respond well." (Barack Obama, Newsweek July 16, 2007 issue)
/snip/
To the candidate, the debate says more about America's state of mind than it does about him. "I think America is still caught in a little bit of a time warp: the narrative of black politics is still shaped by the '60s and black power," he tells NEWSWEEK. "That is not, I think, how most black voters are thinking. I don't think that's how most white voters are thinking. I think that people are thinking about how to find a job, how to fill up the gas tank, how to send their kids to college. I find that when I talk about those issues, both blacks and whites respond well." (Barack Obama, Newsweek July 16, 2007 issue)
6.25.2007
I got a letter from the government...
Americablog/AP - Military: number of black recruits dropping like a stone
Chuck D/Public Enemy - Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos
Chuck D/Public Enemy - Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos
I got a letter from the government
The other day
I opened and read it
It said they were suckers
They wanted me for their army or whatever
Picture me given' a damn - I said never
'nough said.
6.19.2007
6.13.2007
Taxation Without Representation
6.08.2007
6.07.2007
MLK, Jr.
Quote (found poem)
Power without love
is
wreckless and abusive.
Love without power
is
sentimental and anemic...
Power at its best
is love
implementing
the demands of
justice.
And justice at its best
is love
correcting everything
that stands against
love.
Power without love
is
wreckless and abusive.
Love without power
is
sentimental and anemic...
Power at its best
is love
implementing
the demands of
justice.
And justice at its best
is love
correcting everything
that stands against
love.
5.31.2007
5.09.2007
Black Mathematics
Pig guts + Hot Sauce = Soul Food
Kool-Aid + Pickles = Proof that Black people are on some other shit!
We stand on the shoulders of our ancestors, for real!
Kool-Aid + Pickles = Proof that Black people are on some other shit!
We stand on the shoulders of our ancestors, for real!
Back in the Game?
Tonight I went to a nice little poetry reading.
That bears repeating.
Tonight I went to a nice little poetry reading.
That bears repeating.
Tonight I went to a nice little poetry reading.
5.02.2007
Free Art Free Space Project
The text in the photo is a little fuzzy, so allow me to illuminate; it begins:
The Free Art-Free Space Project
This piece of art was created by a citizen of the urbanized world
This piece of art was created by a citizen of the urbanized world
4.26.2007
Dick Cheney Shot a Man in the Face, Son!
Little reported in reference to the brouhaha over Dick Cheney giving the commencement speech at BYU this year is the fact that it wasn't BYU's idea. The VP's office asked BYU to invite him to give the speech, figuring that Cheney'd have a compliant audience for all his "last throes" bullsh*t.
Not so, but hardly suprising. Seems the VP's personal planning is on a par with his war planning.
Just for fun, and because it reminded me of a line Dave Chappelle repeated at his birthday show in DC, here's a snip from a piece on the BYU dust-up...
/snip/
But there are also some noteworthy distinctions between the visits of Dick Cheney and Michael Moore. The major issues people seemed to have with Moore (based on the hundreds of messages I received) were, in order: 1) he was too fat and unkempt, 2) he wasn't objective in his films, and 3) he was too harsh a critic of the Bush Administration and the war. In contrast, the concerns with Cheney are 1) his role in sending hundreds of thousands of young people into a tragically unnecessary war, 2) his advocation of torture as a "no-brainer," and 3) his suspect involvement in the Scooter Libby/Valerie Plame affair. Shooting someone in the face is a close fourth.
Not so, but hardly suprising. Seems the VP's personal planning is on a par with his war planning.
Just for fun, and because it reminded me of a line Dave Chappelle repeated at his birthday show in DC, here's a snip from a piece on the BYU dust-up...
/snip/
But there are also some noteworthy distinctions between the visits of Dick Cheney and Michael Moore. The major issues people seemed to have with Moore (based on the hundreds of messages I received) were, in order: 1) he was too fat and unkempt, 2) he wasn't objective in his films, and 3) he was too harsh a critic of the Bush Administration and the war. In contrast, the concerns with Cheney are 1) his role in sending hundreds of thousands of young people into a tragically unnecessary war, 2) his advocation of torture as a "no-brainer," and 3) his suspect involvement in the Scooter Libby/Valerie Plame affair. Shooting someone in the face is a close fourth.
4.18.2007
4.12.2007
2.13.2007
Get Your Money Right
I came across this honestly; web searching for my consulting gig.
I'm intrigued. My client's got money to put on financial literacy workshops, geared toward the same demographic, planned for the same time the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network's tour stops in DC. If we can pull off a partnership or tag-on to their stuff, cool.
I'm intrigued. My client's got money to put on financial literacy workshops, geared toward the same demographic, planned for the same time the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network's tour stops in DC. If we can pull off a partnership or tag-on to their stuff, cool.
1.25.2007
Barack's balancing act
And so the, ahem, race begins in earnest.
/snip/
Already, that balancing act is causing some strains. Some of Obama's longtime black supporters in Illinois are grumbling about the largely white crowd of advisers who now surround Obama as he gears up his national campaign. "Who does he represent? That is what people are worried about," said Lorenzo Martin, publisher of the Chicago Standard newspapers, a chain of black-oriented weeklies that circulate in the southern suburbs. "When you look and see who is surrounding him, you are not going to see too many brothers. What you see is the liberal left."
What it comes down to in the end is less race than money. Barack Obama can play to any audience he wants, can promise all kinds of "new politics" for a new age - but he's gonna have to raise a boatload of cash to win the Democratic nomination, to say nothing of moving through the general election. At that level, the party affiliation matters less than cash affiliation.
Black, white, whatever... the green is gonna call the shots.
/snip/
Already, that balancing act is causing some strains. Some of Obama's longtime black supporters in Illinois are grumbling about the largely white crowd of advisers who now surround Obama as he gears up his national campaign. "Who does he represent? That is what people are worried about," said Lorenzo Martin, publisher of the Chicago Standard newspapers, a chain of black-oriented weeklies that circulate in the southern suburbs. "When you look and see who is surrounding him, you are not going to see too many brothers. What you see is the liberal left."
What it comes down to in the end is less race than money. Barack Obama can play to any audience he wants, can promise all kinds of "new politics" for a new age - but he's gonna have to raise a boatload of cash to win the Democratic nomination, to say nothing of moving through the general election. At that level, the party affiliation matters less than cash affiliation.
Black, white, whatever... the green is gonna call the shots.
1.18.2007
I like Dan Froomkin
It irks me to no end to hear talk about failure and success absent the reality that we failed from the git-go.
At a book-signing/reading years ago at the now-defunct SisterSpace Books, Nikki Giovanni said, "You have to know what a fool looks like." Here are a few.
At a book-signing/reading years ago at the now-defunct SisterSpace Books, Nikki Giovanni said, "You have to know what a fool looks like." Here are a few.
1.04.2007
via MLK, Jr.
Just heard on the iPod Shuffle... an excerpt from a speech by MLK, Jr. where he quoted William Jennings Bryan
"The truth, crushed to the earth, will rise again."
I, too, shall rise. From being self-crushed.
"The truth, crushed to the earth, will rise again."
I, too, shall rise. From being self-crushed.
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