...still bringing her Baduisms
That's the artwork for the cover of Ms. Badu's 4th studio album. Erykah's follow up to 2003's World Wide Underground is finally making its approach. Her new album entitled "New AmErykah Part One (4th War)" is slated to be released February 26 of this year. (Let's hope this one makes it to the shelf unlike Maxwell's album that was rumored to drop LAST February. Maxwell...where are you?). If you missed it, she recently made an appearance on the CW's show Girlfriends where she performed a song written specifically for the show called "Vibrate On". View a clip from the show here. According to the RnB Music Blog, the track lists is as followed:
1. “Amerykahn Promise”
2. “The Healer / Hip-Hop”
3. “Me”
4. “My People”
5. “Soldier”
6. “The Cell”
7. “Twinkle”
8. “Master Teacher”
9. “That Hump”
10. “Telephone”
11. “Honey” (Bonus)
I've been listening to her track "Honey" for a minute now, but my sister put me on to this video today. Gotta pay attention, there are references in this all over the place. References to old albums, and some with specific messages/opinions stated on each. So make it big and take a look. Also, there is one specific part in here that will look EXTREMELY familiar. Opinions?
Like Erykah says, support your local music store and get her album February 26.
...the rant continues
Ladies and gentleman, allow me to direct your attention to the following images:
These are signs commonly found in your daily commute. I draw your attention to these signs because many of you appear to think that these warning signs are mere suggestions. However quite unlike the speed limit signs, the instructions printed on these are not recommendations that leave you room for variation. No. These signs let your stupid ass know that there is no more pavement in that lane to drive in. So to help keep you from driving off into the median, kicking up trash, rocks and old broken car parts in my direction, I will explain what each of these signs mean.
The first is a pictorial representation of what is about to happen. This is for my illiterate drivers and for those who don't know the English language but have somehow managed to frustrate the DMV enough to the point where they give you your license. (Don't laugh I promise I witnessed a man who could not understand what the DMV was asking, nor could he read the signs, even with the help of the translator, be given a book to study and sent back into the line to try again. I am willing to bet a years salary that that man got his license that day). What this picture says is that the right lane ends, you must merge, or get over into the other lane.
The second breaks it down even further. For those who think that image is too much like early man's caveman drawings to decipher the meaning from, they have spelled it out for you. Right Lane Ends. Putting deductive reasoning into play, your brain should send signals to tell you that because the lane you are in is ending, you must find another lane to drive in.
The third leaves no room for interpretation. It tells you what is about to happen, and what you need to do. Lane Ends, Merge Left. Now I don't know how much simpler that can get. I mean really. Aside from the hand of God coming down from the heavens to physically pick up your car and put it in the right lane, what more could you need? A whole dissertation on the sign to explain to your money ass that there is no more pavement in that lane, so get over or drive in the grass??? Is it that hard?
Even more of a reason I must, I MUST, I MUST make dollars to get a chauffeur. Or I'll probably disable myself from a stroke at the age of 30.
...tagged and actually doing it.
I was requested by another blogger to list 10 things about myself, so here it goes.
10. I'm a Virgo and the oldest.
9. I'm a nerd. I love learning, gadgets and technology.
8. One of my favorite parts of a man's body is his eyes.
7. I've played the piano since the 2nd grade and have played the violin and the flute. My next instrument to learn is the acoustic guitar.
6. I'm a night crawler. My best ideas and work gets done between the hours of 9pm and 3am.
5. My favorite part of most of my favorite songs is the end.
4. I feel like I have more in common with guys than I do with girls, but I have entirely too many female friends.
3. One of my goals in life is to succeed to the point where I can afford a chauffeur.
2. I hate curly fonts like Apple Chancery and Zapfino.
1. I am still holding strong to the belief that every person in the world CANNOT be this stupid.
...putting a whole new spin on sweet
I spent a bit of time looking to see if anyone had information about these shoes other than the bloggers, but came up empty. So the only information about these shoes is that the two icons of childhood have teamed up to create the Reebok Kool-Aid. The shoes color schemes are based on popular Kool-Aid flavors like Grape, Cherry and Strawberry (set to be released in February of this year) and Lemonade, Orange and Lemon-Lime (set to be released in April). The costs for these will be between $50 -$75, bear the Kool-Aid signature smiley, and come with scent-infused sock liners. We can all thank the NE Patriots' Lawrence Maroney for these. While it may be tempting, I must say that grown people, please do not try and rock these shoes. There are plenty other red, purple, yellow and green sneakers out there for us to buy. Let's leave these for the kiddies. See more images of these here.
...contact lens with circuits
Created by University of Washington engineers, this lens combines a flexible, biologically safe contact lens with an imprinted electronic circuit and lights. The makers of this products state that this lens would generate a superimposed image onto the world around them. Currently they say this device could potentially be used by " drivers or pilots[. They] could see a vehicle's speed projected onto the windshield. Video-game companies could use the contact lenses to completely immerse players in a virtual world without restricting their range of motion. And for communications, people on the go could surf the Internet on a midair virtual display screen that only they would be able to see." This bionic eye would be able to be removed as easily as a contact lens. Read more about this prototype here.
...what goes through the mind at 1am
Disney really is it's own "world/land". They have the whole world in one place. They have their own superstar actors and actresses. They have their own musicians. They have their own network. They have their own radio station. They have their own pop charts. Is this creepy to anyone else?
...to long to be random thoughts; to short to be anything else
Let's explore the abbreviation brb. This stands for Be Right Back. To break this down:
Be:
1. To exist in actuality
Right:
5. Immediately
10. Used as an intensive
Back:
7. In reply or return.
Thus should you depart not to return for some obscure amount of time, this phrase/abbreviation does not apply. User should find an alternate term to indicated more appropriately the approximate return time.
...an interesting thought sent via email
"How often do you let other people's nonsense change your mood? Do you let a bad driver, rude waiter, curt boss, or an insensitive employee ruin your day? The mark of a successful person is how quickly she can get back her focus on what's important. Six years ago I learned this lesson.
On a vacation I hopped in a taxi, and we took off. We were driving in the right lane when, all of a sudden, a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his breaks, skidded, and missed the other car's back end by just inches! The driver of the other car, the guy who almost caused a big accident, whipped his head around and he started yelling bad words at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy And I mean, he was friendly. So, I said, "Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!" And this is when my taxi driver told me what I now call, "The Law of the Garbage Truck." Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it. And if you let them, they'll dump it on you. When someone wants to dump on you, don't take it personally. You just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. You'll be happy you did.
I started thinking, how often do I let Garbage Trucks run right over me? And how often do I take their garbage and spread it to other people: at work, at home, on the streets?
It was that day I said, "I'm not going to do it anymore." I began to see garbage trucks. Like in the movie "The Sixth Sense," the little boy said, "I see Dead People." Well, now "I see Garbage Trucks." I see the load they're carrying. I see them coming to drop it off. And like my Taxi Driver, I don't make it a personal thing; I just smile, wave, wish them well, and I move on.
One of my favorite football players of all time, Walter Payton, did this every day on the football field. He would jump up as quickly as he hit the ground after being tackled. He never dwelled on a hit. Payton was ready to make the next play his best. Good leaders know they have to be ready for their next meeting. Good parents know that they have to be at their best for the people they care about.
The bottom line is that successful people do not let Garbage Trucks take over their day. Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so.. Love the people who treat you right. Forget about the ones who don't.
Believe that everything happens for a reason.
If you get a chance, TAKE IT!
If it changes your life, LET IT!
Nobody said it would be easy... They just promised it would be worth it!"
.....trying to figure out what to do with all these raisins
Once again we take time off from our busy schedules to lounge around the house on the day the government has set aside to recognize and celebrate the birth of one of our nations most loved activists. We paraphrase the most well known parts of his "I Have A Dream" speech. We look at society and see "how far" Black people have progressed. We marginalize his contributions and his desire for change and equality based on the few lines that the media chose to embed in our heads. And with this being an election year, we look at the young Black man currently contending to be the Democrat nominee for President, and we say the dream has been realized. (I heard that on the radio today and it really infuriated me).
I have a hard time believing that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would look at the state of society today and feel that all the things he wished for in his dreams had come to fruition. I believe that he would be glad to see the progress that has been made. But I think he would be saddened to see people not fully taking advantage of the opportunities that are out there. I think, had he not been assassinated, he would be continuously working for equality. Dr. King did not solely fight for racial equality. He fought for everyone, with hopes that all people had access to the same resources, regardless of race, creed or social standing. He was a true activist; fighting not only for racial rights, but for human rights. Though his contributions to the advancement of colored people were great and historical, we cannot deny his contributions to the advancement of society as a whole. And to only speak of one side of his fight, is to marginalize his power and his memory.
So today instead of reciting those two lines of his speech you remember, attending parades, or watching your CSI Miami marathon, get up, get out and do something. That is how you will truly honor the legacy.
....the new MacBook Air
Today Apple has debut the world's smallest notebook, the MacBook Air. This laptop is thin as your finger, weighs only 3lbs, but still carries a 13.3 inch wide screen LED display, a full back lit keyboard and a larger multi-touch track pad adapted from the iPhone. That means with the track pad alone you can pinch, swipe, or rotate to zoom in on text, advance through a photo album, or adjust an image. It works in your finder as well as on websites allowing you to zoom in and go forward and back with the touch of your fingers. Tucked away in a flip down hatch are your necessary ports: a USB 2.0 port, a headphone jack, and a micro-DVI port that supports DVI, VGA, composite, and S-video output. It comes with 2g buit in RAM and 80g hard drive with an option to upgrade to a 64GB solid-state drive. (That means it's fast and it holds a lot). And because of their lovely partnership with Intel, it comes with either a 1.6GHz or 1.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The slimmer battery also boasts up to 5 hours of wireless internet access.
Notice in the descriptions there isn't a build in optical drive (CD/DVD drive). This is because, as the name suggests, it comes with 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR built in. This will allow users to network with printers, and other computers. By setting up remote disc, your MacBook Air will have access to all the drives and peripheral equipment attached to that computer. Meaning if you need to install a program off a disc, or watch a DVD you simply insert it into your old computer and as long as remote disc is available on that machine you'll be able to run and view the disc as if it were actually attached to the notebook. They have given people the option to have a separate slimmed down external optical drive that runs solely off the power of the computer. So there's no need to connect it to an outlet. They are also boasting that you can rent movies from iTunes via wireless download. (Way to keep it in the family).
Visit the Apple website and look at the commercial for this to get the full impact on the scale of this machine. Also watch the guided tour. There are even more great things coming out of this company including their awesome G5 tower and some concept items I've stumbled across. Keep you're eyes open....it's coming.
....does it always have to be the first question?
I don't know. I guess it's because of the age my friends and I are all reaching, but it seems like every time I turn around another one bites the dust. Is preparing to take the big plunge. Tying on that ol' ball and chain. Yup. Getting married. All members from my old crew in high school are now all officially married, with the most recent one getting engaged over the holidays (congrats to her!). My former college crew all are dating. Yup the ditzy one has had a boyfriend for at least the past year. Good for her but I can't really mask my astonishment. The big one, we call her that lovingly, big homie! just got engaged. And while I think this is a piss poor idea, it's not my life. Granted they'll probably have a hard road but as long as he treats her well I'll keep my opinions to myself unless asked for. Even the super inexperienced, cynical one has someone she's semi-talking to. Good for her. All of my sorority sisters are getting married and having kids or attempting to have one with their new husbands. Great for them. Aside from my two homegirls I talk to on a regular basis (big up NY island girl and W2!), I have no single friends left. I, alas, am the single friend.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining. To be honest, if I had stayed in my last relationship I probably would have been right there. No regrets on this end for ending that one. I learned enough to realize that he was not the one for me. And I made the choice to re-enter singledom. I accept my choice. But, damn, does every catch up phone call have to start with the question "Who are you seeing now?" Or as my home boy so eloquently put it this evening, "You still clockin them hoes". (big sigh for him on that one). The answer to those questions are NO ONE and NOOO. I don't go anywhere but to work (where I work with college students sometimes younger than my baby sister the young one and grown ass gay men). I don't do the club scene anymore (either I'm the oldest chic in the club, the youngest chic in the club, or I have on way too many clothes to make an impression). Or I'm hanging with my sorors and frat and well...while I love my frat and they do make great male companions, most of our functions leave them extremely inebriated (that's drunk for those who need a dictionary) and there's never really a good enough coherent atmosphere. Plus we've know each other for so long and sometimes all to well, that sometimes we're all way to much like family. So no, I haven't met anyone. And while you're question is just to ask, do I have to be constantly reminded that I'm the single friend?? Amongst my guy and my girl friends??
Don't get me wrong. I'm not looking for "Mr. Wright" (yup I spelled it right..it's a family name ;) But damn can a sista get a date? I'm affordable (not cheap). I don't eat much these days. I like sports, video games, bowling, and movies. You know all the typical stuff. Plus I live in a city where we can really get some coffee (tea for me) or ice cream and just hang out up town or something. No frills here. Heck, we can even kick it on the real cheap on the weekends and just cool out at the house and watch the games. It's play off time and soon it'll be March Madness and I know enough about the games for you to not be concerned with this chic in your ear asking you 20 questions. Either way. A date. A phone call. A holla. No mad commitments. I know I'm a big contributer to my alone-ness. I can get out to more places, go do more things. I'm not desperate either so I know I don't put off that air of desperation, that whole "come talk to me please" either, so chill on that one too. But like Al Green said every now and then "I'm so tired of being alone".
So as a PSA for all you married people who have single friends you haven't talked to in a while. Wait like 5 sentences before you hit them with the "Who are you dating now" question. We'd much appreciate it.
...exploring the obsession
As I sit here underneath my hood dryer trying to think of a topic for which I can re-join the blogging world, it hits me. Hair. Long, medium or short all of us have our own built in preferences for what we prefer our hair to look like. Even men have their own preferences for hair as well. How many times have you heard a man include in his description for the "perfect" woman the length or texture of her hair? But why does it matter?
At this point I could go into a lengthy conversation about the European beauty aesthetic and how this has influenced all cultures' perception of beauty. I could say that many African-American women looking to process and texturize their hair are looking to achieve that aesthetic. I could also say that those who "go against the grain" and let their hair be natural are embracing their true cultural heritage. I could say all these things, but I don't personally believe it has to be that deep. I mean of course no one can deny the impact of European beauty values has on society. I mean all of the "great" works of art depict it and it's so embedded in our heads that it's hardly recognizable anymore. However I don't think that just because you decide to relax your hair you are feeding into that idealism. Nor do I think you have to be overtly socially conscious to rock a fro or dreads. And even when you do decide to go natural or wear dreads there are so many rules on the "proper" way to do so (twist, don't twist, texturize, moisturize, blah blah blah) that you're falling into more rules and ideals. (And just as far as that whole societal influences on our behavior goes, I personally don't think that we as a people will ever be able to achieve as long as we worry out fitting in or fitting out of the white man's ideals. We tend to get so wrapped up in things of that nature that we forget to focus more of our energy on the more progressive things.)
I've gone through a lot of hair styles. Long, short, medium. I've tried the extensions and the braids. I've even considered going natural. After all of this I have decided that I'd be much happier if I just cut it all of and rocked either a pixie cut or hell even a guys black ceaser. Being a darker skinned sister when I tossed out the idea of going natural I immediately got the "yes sister let those chains of oppression go!" Like the white man was really controlling my ideals with a no-lye relaxer. When I wear it short I get the looks of surprise from those who can't believe that a girl of my complexion could actually have short hair by choice. As if we can't grow our hair long. And when it's long I get so tired of the "I can't believe that's your real hair" comment. I've had guys lose their minds when I tell them I'm cutting my hair. I've had family members tell me I look like a boy with my hair short. And after all of this I've decided, I don't really give a fuck what people think. It's my hair. It's not me, but it's mine. I can do whatever I want to with it and it doesn't change who I am as a person.
Who cares about the length and texture of a girls hair so long as it's healthy and she rocks the style with pride? Wouldn't a confident clean cut woman be just as sexy as a long haired chic? I used to consider playing the game until I got a significant other or a husband. But whatever on that. If you want to be with me you're going to want me bald or long haired. I personally feel I look good either way :D
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Now playing: India Aire Ft. Akon - I Am Not My Hair (konvict Remix)
via FoxyTunes
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Quote of the Week
"You can spend minutes, hours, days, weeks, or even months over-analyzing a situation; trying to put the pieces together, justifying what could've, would've happened... or you can just leave the pieces on the floor and move the fuck on."
— Tupac Shakur
Who Am I?
- Miss_A
- I'm just a woman living in this world trying to make it. In general, what I say here is just my opinion. Maybe I've expressed something you haven't been able to put into words yourself. Maybe I've opened your mind to a new thought or idea. Maybe you've been through similar experiences as I have and can relate to my issues, struggles and irritations. True understanding cannot begin until we start talking. I just want to give us something good to talk about.