Redemption Song

Monday, bloody Monday! Did everybody get their football and junk food fix last night? I honestly don't care enough about sports to sit through an entire game of football when my Gators aren't playing, so I only tuned in during halftime. 

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What. Was. That? Believe you me, I love me some Madonna (well, at least old school Madge - "Music" and older). Who doesn't? She's the fiercest, the original "don't give a f*ck," in your face, superstar. In fact, I liked Madonna so much as a child, that I stood in line in SOUTH KOREA to buy The Immaculate Collection on cassette, because I was out of the country during its release. No joke. But last night's debacle was just that, a debacle. The material matron was doing the wobble, baby (and I don't mean the newest dance craze to hit the scene)! She almost fell a couple of times, and was totally out of breath. It honestly made me a bit uncomfortable to see her trying so hard for relevancy. I don't want to remember that Madonna. I want to remember the Madonna with the cone bras, and the hot chained up guys. Not the Madonna prancing around in too-tall-for-someone-her-age-to-be-dancing-in boots, madly flourishing gold pom-poms and screaming at me to L-U-V Madonna! Yikes. That said - her production rocked, and it was entertaining, to say the least.

Okay, let me stop harping on last night's halftime show ... Moving on (because I could probably go on forever), today is Bob Marley's birthday!

(6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981)
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He was more than just a reggae legend; he was a revolutionary.* His music, although it sounds like clever lyrics over a funky, Caribbean, ska beat, was wildly political. As the third world's first superstar musician, he used his notoriety to speak out against apartheid in Africa, and to be the voice of his people and black resistance. I think that maybe too often, people associate the memory of Bob Marley with lazy days and ganja smoke; but they neglect to honor the memory of what he fought for and believed in. People have managed to commercialize him, effectively softening his militancy, and thus, not truly honoring his legacy. In the book Reggae and Caribbean Music, author Dave Thompson addresses this issue as such:

Today's Black History Month Tribute goes to Bob Marley, the militant revolutionary, the Rastafari, the original Tuff Gong. So, Get Up, Stand Up, put your lighters up, and t'row on I Shot the Sherriff; let's give this man the props he deserves.

*He was also a bit of a philanderer, with a total of 11 children (acknowledged on the official website; there may be more). Only 3 were with his wife, Rita. Fun-filled fact of the day:  in 1972 alone, he fathered three children, who were all born within a month of each other. Bloodclot! Ya boi got around, yunno? Talk about Kinky Reggae.

It's Groundhog Day!

Happy Groundhog Day, peeps! That pesky Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow again, so it looks like Old Man Winter just can't get enough of us ... probably because it's been unseasonably warm, and he doesn't want La Niña to steal his shine. I feel it necessary to point out that since his [great-grandfather's] first prediction in 1887, Punxsutawney Phil has seen his shadow 99 times, signaling six more weeks of winter. Phil has only predicted the end of winter 16 times in history. Seems to me that maybe that is an indication that the groundhog malarkey is, well, hogwash.

Since the whole Groundhog Day thing is [possibly] just a farce (that continues, no doubt, just to keep that portly man in the top hat happy), I'm going to forget that it is whatever holiday that makes you live your day over and over again, and direct the focus back to Black History Month. It is, after all, the shortest month of the year (although this year, we get an extra day due to the leap year), so why should we have to share it with a stinking rodent that doesn't give a crap about his shadow OR winter? Let's move on.

Fun-filled fact of the day: On February 2, 1990, President De Klerk of South Africa lifted the 30-year ban on the African National Congress (ANC), the nation's leading anti-apartheid group. Additionally, he announced that the group's leader, Nelson Mandela, would be released from prison after 27 years. I know that Black History Month is an American thing, but this group - its principles, its opposition and its success, are something to be celebrated. So, I ask this of you:  today, instead of complaining about the six more [unseasonably warm and temperate] weeks of winter, let's all take a moment to be thankful for our freedom. Which is really perfect, because we all probably managed to overlook National Freedom Day yesterday! Ta-ta for now, my lovelies. Enjoy your day ... and your freedom. Peace and love!

At Last ... Miss Peaches Found Her Peace

Last Friday, January 20, legendary songstress and "Matriarch of R&B," Etta James, passed away after her battle with leukemia. She would have turned 84 today. Miss Peaches will always have a special place in my heart - I danced my first dance with my husband to her timeless classic, "At Last." That's a moment I will never forget.

Today, on her birthday, let us celebrate the life, the legend, and the longevity of Miss Etta James, whose memory will live on forever in her music.

YOU Are Possibly the Coolest Person I Know...

Hi, gorgeous! It's National Compliment Day, an unofficial national holiday, created by two imaginative New Hampshire natives Kathy Chamberlin and Debby Hoffman back in 1998. Time for a confession: I love compliments. Big ones, small ones, sincere ones, wholehearted ones, halfhearted ones, fake ones ... Who cares? I don't discriminate; any ego stroke is a good stroke, in my book. Perhaps that makes me a bit self-involved, but let's be real ... who doesn't like compliments?? Nice words make people feel good; they just do. So, do your part today. (You should actually probably try doing this every day, but let's face it, sometimes you just don't feel like being nice.) Tell somebody something that you like about them today - make someone smile. You just might get a compliment back ... in which case, you'll probably smile ... and smiling is good for the soul. See how it's all worth it? I'll lead the way:

You're good enough; you're smart enough; and doggone it, people like you!

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...if you don't care to make anyone else smile, but you still want to do something good for your soul - compliment yourself. You'll still probably smile. Just give yourself a look-see in the mirror and say, "Damn, I look good." I'll allow the vain self-indulgences today, but only because it's National Compliment Day. I'm pretty sure there aren't any rules. It's not like it's National Compliment Somebody Else Day. Until next time, my highly intelligent and strikingly good looking readers! 

Power to the People!

Today, in support of the SOPA/PIPA protest, I'm also doing a blackout. I know that this just a little ol' blog, and that I don't reach as many people as Wikipedia or Reddit; but every little bit counts. It takes a village, people! So, please take the time that you would be spending reading my blog to instead read up on the topic at hand! Do some research - and if you agree that SOPA and PIPA violate your first amendment rights, contact your local representatives, or sign the petition. Together, we can all make a difference. 

Happy Birthday, Dr. King.

Martin Luther King, Jr. is celebrated today, January 16, 2012, one day after he would have turned 83 years old. Today, many of us are off of work, enjoying the many luxuries that we often take for granted. Some have more than others: nice cars, vacation homes, private jets ... but we all have our freedom. We all have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of our own happiness. So today, let us not forget the struggle that came before us, the loooong trek to the mountaintop of civil liberty. Let us celebrate how far we as a nation have come; but also not forget how far we still have to go. Today, let us remember a man who helped to pioneer the Civil Rights Movement, and challenged our nation to lift [itself] "from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood." Happy Birthday, Dr. King - today we celebrate your memory and your vision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Excerpt of speech taken from YouTube

*If you live in Atlanta, and have not been to the MLK memorial - for shame! You should get on over there, at least just to see it. Culture, remember? Get you some! 

Weekly Rewind

It appears as though we have reached another Sunday! I love Sundays for their sheer laziness and indulgence - sleeping in late, BRUNCH (Because who doesn't love brunch ... and bloody marys or mimosas?), lounging around all day, marathons of various intelligence-reducing-reality-television delights to tickle your fancy ... what's not to love? Well, they also mean catching up on different odds and ends, taking care of last minute chores, and finishing up last-minute details before the beginning of a new work week (for my 9-to-5 readers out there). SO, get out there and really enjoy the remainder of your weekend, folks! Whether that means sitting around your house, reveling in doing absolutely nothing, or getting out and enjoying this beautiful (albeit cold) weather we're having - enjoy your Sunday! Now, on to the Weekly Rewind...

January 9 - Jay-Z and B.I.C. release "Glory"
The lyrics of this song pretty much speak for themselves. It was really nice to be made privy to some of the more personal details of Jay and Bey's struggles with conceiving. Knowing what I do now, I stand my my earlier position that it doesn't matter whether or not the rumors about Beyonce's pregnancy were true. I don't know about you, but I can't wait to see what "a pinch of Hov [and] a whole glass of B" turns out like!



January 9 - Bibbidi-bobbidi, WHO? NPR blog, The Two-Way, reported on Monday that police in Madison, Wisconsin arrested Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop, after receiving several complaints that the man was prowling around a neighborhood park. 

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*record scratch*  Yes, you read that correctly. The man, formerly known as Jeffrey Wilschke, legally changed his name last October to Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop. I can't help but laugh at this story (considering that his last arrest was for grinding marijuana in another Madison park, and no one appears to have been hurt, I think it's safe to say that he's relatively harmless). You know, like a fairy tale character.




January 12 - Not Illegal, but Not Exactly LaxIndiana mom Dynesha Lax got creative with her tough love method of raising her 14-year-old son, forcing him to stand on the side of the road wearing a cardboard sign advertising his indiscretions to passing motorists :

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..."I sell drug"? Stay in school, kids.
Well, that concludes this week's Weekly Rewind! Last week was a bit stingy on the crazy, but I've got a good feeling about what's to come this week. Y'all come back now, ya hear?