Happy Tuesday everybody! I’m feeling surprisingly well this morning. I went into ‘Cleaning-Mode’ last night. I’m talking Ninja-style…rearranging furniture and everything! Much more to do…pray for me!

Let’s go…!!

Mixed Nuts…

With Election Day fast approaching, things are starting to take shape. Both Party’s have set the date and locations for their respected conventions; Republicans in Florida and Democrats in North Carolina. The fact that both will be held in Southern states shatters the long-standing trend that those states are ‘Red.’ With President Obama winning the Southern states in 2008 says a lot about the power of the minority vote. Which leads me to Ohio (and Pennsylvania) and their elimination (and/or modification) of early voting, which ironically effects minority voters. In what is an obvious attempt to suppress these votes, Republican leaders are doing whatever they can to block people from pulling the Democratic lever in the voting booth. It’s sad and pathetic and I pray the people of both states rally together, just as they did 4 years ago and make it happen…Again!

Anyone that has been hurt on the job knows there’s nothing more frustrating than having to fight for your right. A group of men in Columbia have gone to the extreme (in my opinion). The group of about six ex-employees of General Motors has sewn their mouths shut to convey a hunger strike against the company. Yes, they have stitched, with needle and thread, their mouths shut! Their protest against GM is they were wrongfully fired and demand to be compensated for injuries they’ve suffered on the job and want to be re-hired. Their strike started August 1^st and continues as the leader stated they are prepared to die. Ummm…yea, I’m gonna leave that one alone. You can read the article here. (Warning: there’s a picture!)

Today marks the return of a veteran to the Rap game. Busta Rhymes has released his 9^th album, “Year of the Dragon” today. As the ever constant trendsetter, he is releasing it on Google Play – for FREE! Now, I don’t consider myself a Hip-Hop Junkie, but I did (and still do when I hear one) fancy a track or two of Busta. Read his brief interview here and be sure to get his latest. There are explicit and edited versions to choose from!

Bookshelf

Next on the of Top 50 titles from/by African Americans is “Coffee Will Make You Black” by April Sinclair.
I read this book when it first came out in 1995. I remember thinking “Yes! Another Black female author that can tell a story!” Set in the late 1960’s, it’s a coming of age story with a Black twist. A young girl bumping along life as a teenager complete with all the “firsts” a young girl experiences, all while learning who she is…and that is Beautiful. Enjoy!

Something to Think About…

The old saying “You are what you eat” has been proven to be true. What about what you see? Have you ever thought about the things you take in and how it affects your outlook, your mood, or character? Just as we have to be mindful of what we put into our mouths, we also need to be mindful of what we put into our minds….

 ‘Til next time!

 Quote of the day

“Philosophy is nothing but common sense in a dress suit.”  ~Author Unknown

Woo! What a weekend! I think I’m going to have to squeeze an entry in on Saturdays to keep up or just to check in. There’s so much to share…

Okay, here we go....

National:

Sunday, in what the FBI is calling a "domestic terrorist-type incident" has shaken our country. In a matter of weeks, more innocent people have lost their lives. Just as before, I will not drug on with the gory details. I’m sure you all have heard more about than you wanted to. It breaks my heart to have to say again, my prayers are with the family of the victims and those wounded. I’m going to bit my tongue…well, my fingers and not go into gun control, stiffer laws for purchasing guns, etc. you already know. What are your thoughts on gun control? (or lack thereof??)

Entertainment

Great News! Anita Baker has released a NEW single! The track is called “Lately,” with the album anticipated to be released September 25^th.  Now this, my friends is something to be excited about. I have suffered long enough with the pseudo-music that has been released of late and it does my heart good when REAL singers release something new.  We’ll keep up with Ms. Baker’s releases.

The SoNo Arts Celebration was great fun. Friday night’s kickoff party was a great way to end the week. It was so good, we went back Saturday. Oh the things you see when the sun goes down. Actually, not much in South Norwalk, but still there were some strange birds out. Save the date for next year, it is a must to support your local artists!

Olympics

Just as I predicted, the weekend’s Olympic events were awesome! There was just too much to name them all, I’ll just say Bolt - did it again! Phelps – Historic! The Williams Sisters – Remarkable! US have slipped behind China in the medal count, but it’s very close and we still have time to regain the lead! Here’s Medals count top 5: China-64 (31 Gold): US-63 (29 Gold); Russia-42; Great Britain-40; Japan-28. Go TeamUSA!

Wrap up…

As we dance into August, we are forced to accept that summer is coming to a close. With that in mind, I encourage you to get OUT and enjoy it! Stop complaining about how hot it is (helloooo…it’s summer!) Spend some time at the beach; sit in on an outdoor concert, crash a cookout! (like you haven’t done that before!)

‘Til next time!

Quote of the day

“Music is what feelings sound like.”~ Author Unknown

Our History – Month ©

Black History Month is coming to a close. I must say this had been the quietest BHM I remember. Is it me, or has the month’s celebration been muted into the background? The other day a friend of mine jokingly (not really) was channel surfing and asked “Where are all the black movies??” I laughed but silently wondered the same. Not just the movies, but where was the celebration?

I remember when I was a kid; February was on fire with pro-black activities. Just about every weekend there was some type of program, movie screening, or lecture going on and I was involved in most of them. Albeit there may have been activities going on this year and I just missed them, but still I didn’t feel the fire. There was no sense of ‘Power To The People” in there air. No dashikis boldly worn to work that dared the manager to send us home for violating the office’s dress code. I wondered if I was the one that had lost the fire.

This year, I attended a screening of Harry Belafonte’s documentary “Sing Your Song” at a local theater (I highly recommend it!) to which I was sadly the only black person in the audience of 7. I chalked it up to low advertising. Maybe not many people, our people knew about it. The same theater will be screening another feature for BHM called “Rejoice and Shout” I’m curious to see how many of us will be there.

So I pose the question, have we dropped the ball – again? Generations before us fought long and hard to have a specific time carved out for us to celebrate our heritage and what have we done with it? Have we become so self-absorbed with trying to fit into mainstream America that we have let our month become just another block of weeks on the calendar? Could it be Black History Month has lost its flare or have we lost it?

PBS aired a documentary (yes, I am a documentary buff!) called “More Than a Month.” The filmmaker, Shukree Hassan Tilghman, explores cross country on a quest to end Black History Month. Now, don’t get your knickers in a bunch! Before you judge a film by the first line of its description, it’s about the implications of stuffing our History into a month, as opposed to 360 days. 

I highly recommend you check this out and maybe we’ll all be fired up next February (Maybe…)

S.R. Paulk ©

Things I’ve Learned (A possible series) ©

Walking around carrying ‘stuff’ isn’t good for your health. I recently felt myself creeping into that place where I have trouble sleeping, staying focused, and even have trouble breathing.

I sat down in a quiet place and wrote down everything I could think of that brought on this anxiety. I tried to leave them on the paper as I thought about them because some of them were still fresh. I could still taste them. After completing the list (yes, it was a list of them) I walked away to make some coffee. I returned with my favorite mug in hand and read through the collection that had become the culprit of my restlessness. I discovered 99 % of it didn’t belong to me!

I read each item aloud and as the words slipped from my lips, the realization became clearer with each syllable. It wasn’t mine! Issues with missed doctor’s appointment, problems with old flames, mortgage companies, sibling interference, and uncooperative neighbors, none of these belonged to me. Not only did they not belong to me, but really had very little to do with me.

I had served in the capacity of a sounding board for most and had subconsciously taken on each as my own. I had been carrying them around, juggling them and even lost sleep trying to figure them out while the rightful owners went on their merry way. Well, maybe not merry but close to it. Meanwhile, I’m irritable and snippy.

Well, I’m giving it all back - ALL of it! I’ll help when I can. I’ll listen when it’s needed, but I’m not taking it with me. I’m all for helping and guiding, but I have to learn (re-learn) how to help and not to load myself up with the problems of others.

So don’t be surprised if you open your door and find a small package.

I'm Back!

I’ve been neglecting my blogging and in a sense, neglecting you. I’ve been focusing on another project that I think I’ve wrestled into a steady rhythm, so…I’m back! I’m fighting (and losing!) a cold and this is helping me take my mind off the misery of the aforementioned ailment.

There’s been so much going on since my last posting, I don’t know where to start, what to address first. In an effort to keep it as simple as possible, I’m going to start with Anniversaries. This weekend marks the anniversaries of Hurricane Katrina (5th), Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech (47th), and although it’s a different kind of anniversary, it’s Michael Jackson’s birthday (Aug. 29th)

Hurricane Katrina shed serious light on the neglect of the lower class. I’m talking 100k wattage. The sensationalism of poverty, getting the best story and footage of the worst storm in this country’s history still leaves a bad taste in our mouths. We know about the slow response of our former president. We know how he was partying up, totally oblivious to the seriousness of the flooding. We’ve seen and read about how long it took him and his aides to get to New Orleans, etc. I can go on, but why open an old wound that hasn’t quite healed.

I watched a news special highlighting the events of the flood. Men running around capturing people in the midst of their nightmare, recording children crying because they’ve been separated from their families, and zooming in on the elderly and disabled that have died on the street because of lack of medication and/or treatment. The host of the show sat in darkened studio for effect, pictures of these images flashed in the background, while he explained what he saw and what the cameraman felt as he was walking along the streets. I turned it because I couldn’t bear to watch the images again, and how that same question left the same ill-tasting bile in my throat. How could news crews get there to tape and interview, and helicopters could circle around to get footage of what was going on, but didn’t rescue these people?

I go to sleep with the hope that their off-camera actions went far above and beyond the asking. I prayed (and still pray as they continue to run the footage) that when they turn off the cameras, the microphones are disconnected; they did what they could to do something other than call back to the station to say they’ve got a great story. More on the others in separate postings…