Coffee Will Make You Black

I used to be really cool but now..I generally suck..

2008-12-17T09:33:00.003-05:00

I have not updated either of my blogs in.....forever and a sunday. I know.I've just been so 'motivated not to be motivated' if that makes any sense. I've had so much on my mind and heart lately that instead of it all spilling out onto my blog...it's kinda just been stuck in the bottom of the bottle like the last drops of maple syrup. My intentions have been nothing but good. I've sat in front of my online journals and dared myself to blog, I've gone into the office upstairs pulled out my screenplay and dared myself to write..and ...nothing. How do I get out of this funk?

I feel bad...

2008-09-09T09:01:00.004-04:00

For Jessica Simpson.

I'm watching her on GMA right now and am saddened by the fact that she's obviously she's falling apart. Not that she's ever been completely on top.She's someone who's never seemed to have found her exact niche. She tried 'pop' music and did okay but never quite snagged the golden ticket. Then, she tried acting...no need to even elaborate on that debacle. She has a shoe line and that 'dessert' line..what is it?make-up?lip gloss? something like that?..But I've never heard of anyone being trampled in line trying to pick up either of them. I mean,the best thing she ever did was to marry Nick Lachey who actually seemed to love her under-achieving butt. But she messed that up so now where does that leave her?

Well now dear ole' Jessica is trying her hand at country music. Umm.. according to what I'm hearing right now, it's not going too well. The song is boring and worse, she sounds horrible.She seems to be straining and is completely off key. It seems like everything on stage is literally falling apart right in front of her. Her mic went out for a good 15 seconds, her earrings fell off and she had to stop right in the middle of her second song twice because she couldn't hear her audio. What she was wearing looked like something I've seen my grandmother wear to afternoon tea and it looked better on grammy! Poor girl..don't get me wrong, I don't wish any ill will towards her but her album comes out tomorrow and I predict a nice,round 1,000 copies sold in the first week. Good luck Jess!

Coffee and the Recession

2008-09-02T08:32:00.004-04:00

McDonald's coffee is the bomb! I've always thought so...
In fact, if you ask me, it can rival Starbucks anyday. I love Starbucks and all but you know it's getting a bit ridiculous when you have to re-mortgage the house just to get a grande Caramel Macchiato. I mean, come on Starbucks, we're in the middle of a recession here! Give coffee lover's a break! Realize that there are other options out there and adjust your prices. Mcdonald's plain, ole', black 'cup of joe' (the way I like it) is absolutely delicious - truly one of life's simple pleasures.Sure, I still treat myself to my favorite starbucks drink every now and then but Mcdonald's coffee I can do everyday...a few times a day if I wanted. And, the best part is, it's only a dollar..

"..bada ba baa dah..I'm lovin' it!"

Excuse me while I finish off this cup...

Remember when your teacher used to make you write lines after you'd done something wrong?

2008-08-22T10:18:00.004-04:00

Sorry I was AWOL

I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise to start updating my blog again
I promise...
I promise...

Father's Day Doesn't Only apply to Straight Men.

2008-06-13T11:29:00.003-04:00

By Mike Stuckey
Senior news editor
MSNBC
updated 6:40 a.m. ET, Fri., June. 13, 2008

SEATTLE - They don’t greet you so much as they burst upon you, these three little guys with impish grins that punctuate their beautiful dark features. Here they come, a rumbling, tumbling, laughing, yelling, skipping, crying pack of naughty and nice, snips and snails and puppy dog tails and everything else that is American boyhood.
Meet the Brothers Z: 4-year-old twins Zach and Zayn, and their younger sibling Zeth, fast approaching 3. In many ways, they are typical denizens of the hilly suburban neighborhood where they have lived most of their lives. They spend their days in preschool while their parents both work in the telecom industry. The family owns an SUV and a pickup. They shop at Costco and go to church on Sundays. They work in the yard. They watch Disney movies on their big-screen TV.
But Father’s Day will be a double celebration at their house because the brothers have two daddies — Geoffery and Devin, foster parents for the boys for three years before adopting them.
“All we’re trying to do is raise three healthy boys to be participants in society,” said Geoffery, Devin’s partner for a decade.
That’s a modest description for what the county judge who finalized the adoption in December called an act of heroism. The boys, taken from substance-abusing and incarcerated biological parents, faced long odds against growing up together. Given their treatment by the birth parents, there were far more questions than answers about physical and emotional issues that might arise for them down the road.
"You are heroes in our community," Judge Mary Yu said, beaming from the bench while the boys frolicked about the courtroom, the whole family decked out in red-and-white Mickey Mouse ski sweaters. “Who’s going to assume the burden of taking care of children like this, children who possibly have been neglected or set aside in some way? … People like you, who step up. Thank you.”

Congrats!

2008-05-16T17:02:00.002-04:00

May you enjoy many more happy years together.

When White Men Get Angry (Bill O'Reilly Version)

2008-05-15T15:35:00.003-04:00

We Win in California but with a long way to go!!

2008-05-15T13:45:00.003-04:00

Calif. Supreme Court rejects gay marriage ban

BREAKING NEWS

MSNBC staff and news service reports

SAN FRANCISCO - The California Supreme Court has overturned a ban on gay marriage, paving the way for California to become the second state where gay and lesbian residents can marry.

The justices released the 4-3 decision Thursday, saying that domestic partnerships are not a good enough substitute for marriage in an opinion written by Chief Justice Ron George.

"Under these circumstances, we cannot find that retention of the traditional definition of marriage constitutes a compelling state interest," the court said in a majority decision.
"Accordingly, we conclude that to the extent the current California statutory provisions limit marriage to opposite-sex couples, these statutes are unconstitutional."

The cases were brought by the city of San Francisco, two dozen gay and lesbian couples, Equality California and another gay rights group in March 2004 after the court halted San Francisco's monthlong same-sex wedding march, which took place at Mayor Gavin Newsom's direction.

I found it!

2008-05-15T12:14:00.023-04:00

What I was working on before I went AWOL...

some of life's most essential questions...

How come Ryan Cabrera now looks like this? What was that one song he had a minute ago?...oh yeah.. "on the way down..."

Doesn't T-Pain look closer to 40 than his real age of 23?

How come extremely baggy pants worn around the knees exposing boxers and butt-cracks are considered indecent but 'men's' extremely skinny jeans, exposing their *cough* bulges are okay? eww.

What was Sonny Purdue thinking when they passed that gun law in Georgia allowing any (crazy) person the right to take a gun into any restaurant, onto the MARTA train or into a public park? Have we still learned nothing from Columbine, Virginia Tech and all the rest??

Am I the only one that cringes and immediately changes the channel whenever an R.Kelly song comes on radio or the T.V. ? Pervvvvvvvv alert!

Was anyone but me surprised that Barbara Walters would happily join all the other celebrities who try to drum up controversy to sell a book? Thought she was above that for some reason.

Why is it so hard to find one old, sick and supposedly dying man?

Who's afraid of the big, bad wolf?

Idol in 60

2008-05-15T11:36:00.005-04:00

Surprising no-one, Syesha went home last night leaving the 'two Davids' (Archuleta and Cook) to battle it out for the title next week. Who do I think should win...? Well, and this might surprise to those of you who've been keeping up with this blog, but I actually think it should be David Cook...but I want it to be David Archuleta - for more than the obvious reasons. Yes, Archuleta's talented, adorable and all. But I also think he'd fit in the best with the whole 'American Idol' theme. Lemme explain, I just can't see previous contestants like Blake Lewis, Chris Daughtry and now David Cook fitting into that clean-cut, America's sweetheart mold and I don't think they should have to try. I don't think it would work and they'd actually probably be a bit unhappy. Cook is an incredible talent who has grown throughout the competition and of course he'll get a contract from this, I just hope it'll be with someone other than the Idol folks. He'll need a label who'll allow him to be who he is ...completely. So, for that reason, Archuleta would be the best choice to take the title.

On another note I wish Syesha the absolute best. She was truly talented but was sorely underrated - especially in the shadow of the two Davids. The girl worked her butt off and really showed an incredible amount of growth. She also handled herself with so much class and dignity when she was placed in the bottom three everytime for weeks - not everyone could've handled that so well. Good luck Syesha I'm sure we'll see you on Broadway later on.

If you missed any of Tuesday or last night's show and want a quick re-cap, here it is in 60 short seconds.

This is literally, like B.Scott would say, some "Monkey-Doodle Foolishness"!!

2008-05-13T22:06:00.006-04:00

Does this Mmonkey look like Barack Obama??

The owner of Mulligan's bar in Marietta sure thinks so.

Mulligan's selling shirts with 'Curious George' picture

By CHRISTIAN BOONE

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 05/13/08

Marietta bar owner Mike Norman says the T-shirts he's peddling, featuring a look-a-like of cartoon chimp Curious George peeling a banana, with "Obama in '08" underneath, are not meant to offend.

Norman acknowledged the imagery's Jim Crow roots but said he sees nothing wrong with depicting a prominent African-American as a monkey,

We're not living in the (19)40's," he said. "Look at him . . . the hairline, the ears — he looks just like Curious George."

About a dozen prostestors rallied against the shirts Tuesday afternoon, condemning them as racist and asking Norman, longtime proprietor of Mulligan's Bar and Grill on Roswell Street, to stop selling them.

Marietta native Pam Lindley, 47, joined the protest after reading about the controversy online.

"I don't want people to think this is what Marietta is all about," she added, motioning towards the tavern. "This is what some people think the South is still like. Marietta's come a long way but I guess it's still got a little ways to go."

She said she'd like to see the city ban Norman's provocative musings regularly posted on a sign out front of the bar, which is near Marietta's downtown square. The loosely formed coalition of civil rights activists who gathered Tuesday say they will continue their campaign against Norman's "hate speech."

But his defenders are just as resolute. Mulligan's is a refuge, they say, in an otherwise hypersensitive world. Here, smoking isn't only allowed, it's expected.

"This place is a diamond in the rough," said Gene McKinley, a Woodstock engineer. "People here are genuine and honest. It's the one place I can go without having to worry if I'm offending someone."

Norman said he's been he's been fielding calls throughout the day about his T-shirts, which he began selling in late April. "One guy in New Jersey wanted me to send him 100 shirts," said Norman, 63.

He said he noted physical similarities between the Democratic frontrunner and the cartoon monkey while watching a Curious George movie with his grandchildren.

Someone — "probably a customer, I don't know" — from Arkansas sent him the shirts, Norman says. He has no plans to mass market them.

Not that's he's bowing to pressure. The Tennessee native figures he's providing a public service of sorts, reminding people they have a right to offend.

"This is my marketing tool," he said.

see the shirt here

It's Over :(

2008-05-13T21:16:00.003-04:00

I'm so in denial about my romantic weekend being over that I'm in no mood to update. :(

However, I thought I'd leave you with an artist I'm feeling a lot right now. Tell me what you think.

Listen to : Duffy with 'Warwick Avenue'. It's more of that Amy Winehouse-esque sixties girl group-ish pop. I happen to like it a lot especially when the artist has an amazing voice like amy and now Duffy. She's a 23 year old Welsh girl who's giving us what Amy cannot at the moment being strung out on drugs and what not.

Friday Treat Comes Early

2008-05-08T09:19:00.007-04:00

I'm leaving tomorrow for a romantic weekend with my lady. :) It's a surprise so I've no idea where I'm headed but I'm so excited! But since I won't be around, I've decided to dish out the 'Friday treat' on Thursday.

This week's feature : The Lovely Rihanna...

Those legs? They're insured. That haircut? Legendary. The chances that serial hit-maker Rihanna will keep churning out gold-whether in music, fashion, or film-for some time to come? Spectacular. (Elle Magazine)

So I have a slight celeb-crush. Yeah, I know she's only 20 - but heck if Mariah and Nick Cannon can do 11 years, 6 years won't between RiRi and I shouldn't make me feel like a perv right? Plus, she's a fellow island girl who's making all of us from the Caribbean extremely proud. I admire her talent (she's had ten songs debut in the top ten of the billboard charts), her personality, her ability to keep her head up and her nose clean in the industry thus far and she seems to have her head on straight. I hope it continues.

Check out this behind the scenes video of her latest Elle magazine shoot due out next month.

Stand by Archuleta

2008-05-07T13:35:00.002-04:00

I don't want to brag but .... I did pick the amazing David Archuleta out of the pack of idol wanna-bes wayyyyy back during the Hollywood audition days when he sang, Heaven by Bryan Adams.

His incredible voice stood out to me then and he's done nothing but impress me since. Last night was no exception. In fact, last night was probably my favorite performance so far. The theme was songs that had been inducted into the Rock and Roll hall of fame. Each contestant sang two of those songs but my favorite from David A. was Stand by Me by Ben E. King.

All I can say is....this young man is blessed and I think he has a bright future ahead of him in the music business whether he wins or not. But we'll find out soon enough if he did. After tonight they'll be down to the final three! Go David A. !

Rahsaan Patterson Comes Clean

2008-05-06T12:23:00.008-04:00

I was watching BET Jazz the other night and came across a familiar face. It took me a moment to place it but then I it hit me, it was Rahsaan Patterson from one of my favorite childhood T.V. shows, Kids Incorporated - all grown up. I remember he was a cute kid with an amazing voice that outshone most of the other kids. Even then I could tell he had star quality and would go on to great things.

But when the show that was responsible for launching the careers of Fergie, Mario Lopez, Shanice, Jennifer Love Hewitt and others wrapped and I never really heard much more about him, I just assumed Rahsaan had joined the ranks of those unfortunate child stars that never find work again. I never knew however that after the show he sang backup for stars like Brandy and Tevin Campbell and then went on to pursue his own career and put out an incredible four albums. Where was I? I had no idea until I saw his video, Feels Good the other night from his latest album Wine and Spirits. Good for him! He's doing his thing and seems to be enjoying life. Read his recent two page interview with BETJ where he discusses his sexual identity, struggling relationship with God, substance abuse and his 'inner demons'.

Friday Treats:"My White Girl"Crushes

2008-05-02T11:08:00.014-04:00

I only have two. Jessica Biel and Scarlett Johannson. They're absolutely delicious and looking at them right next to each other, an obvious trend is apparent; just like in my sistas, my white girl crushes must have curves plus thick lips and something I can grab...Yum. See if you can tell who's my favorite :)

Jimi Hendrix Sex Tape?

2008-05-02T09:03:00.004-04:00

What's with all the dead celebrity sex tapes being revealed? And why now? As if we don't have enough sex tapes from celebrities who haven't yet kicked the bucket? I mean are we really that short on porn featuring living, breathing people?
(P.S. - note the suggestive photo below. I dug it up myself and couldn't refuse .*wink*)LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Vivid Entertainment is releasing a sex tape allegedly starring Jimi Hendrix.The Los Angeles-based adult entertainment company said they obtained the footage of the music legend shot in a hotel room about 40 years ago from a memorabilia collector.
The footage features Hendrix engaging in various sexual acts with two women, according to a statement released by Vivid. The company said they consulted with several experts to authenticate the footage.Hendrix died of a drug overdose in 1970. Seattle-based representatives for Hendrix's estate did not want to comment about the tape.
Vivid Entertainment was also responsible for the release of celebrity sex tapes starring Kim Kardashian and Pamela Anderson.

Are you Kidding Me?

2008-04-30T00:13:00.002-04:00

(AP) She is Barbie's oldest friend, happily married and visibly pregnant with her second child — and some parents think she's a little too real for their children.

The pregnant version of Midge, which pops out a curled-up baby when her belly is opened — has been pulled from Wal-Mart shelves across the country following complaints from customers, a company spokeswoman said Tuesday.

"It was just that customers had a concern about having a pregnant doll," Wal-Mart Stores spokeswoman Cynthia Illick said.

She said the entire "Happy Family" set, which included pregnant Midge, husband Alan and 3-year-old son Ryan, was pulled from shelves of the world's largest retailer earlier this month.

"What we try to do is listen to what our customers want," Illick said. "In this case, we decided to remove the product from the shelves. I think it was a unique situation."

Messages left for representatives of the toy's maker, Mattel Inc., were not returned Tuesday.

Midge was introduced in 1963, a freckle-faced redhead and the first of a slew of friends and family members for Barbie, the blue-eyed blonde who first appeared four years earlier and has been one of the world's top-selling dolls ever since.

In Barbie-land, Midge married boy-doll Alan in 1991, and the happy couple already has a 3-year-old son, Ryan.

The pregnant Midge, who wears a tiny white wedding ring, has a detachable magnetic stomach that allows easy "delivery" of the baby.

An article on Mattel's Barbie.com Web site says the "Happy Family" dolls are designed to satisfy the desire for nurturing play by girls age 5 to 8, and can be "a wonderful prop for parents to use with their children to role-play family situations — especially in families anticipating the arrival of a new sibling."

Manager Bill Boehmer of the KB Toys store in Northeast Philadelphia's Roosevelt Mall said the doll was selling well, and he had heard no negative responses from customers.

"I've had people laugh, but I haven't had anyone say this was ridiculous or 'What are we trying to tell these kids?' or anything like that," Boehmer said.

But at KB Toys in the Gallery mall in downtown Philadelphia reaction from last-minute Christmas shoppers was negative.

"It's a bad idea. It promotes teenage pregnancy. What would an 8-year-old or 12-year-old get out of that doll baby?" asked Sabrina Fagan, 29, of Philadelphia.

Fave Fives - April Edition.

2008-04-25T10:13:00.018-04:00

It's that time of the month again. No... not that time of the month - it's time for my "fave five" where I bring you five of my most favorite things of the month - think a very low budget Oprah's favorite things.

5) Daily Candy -

My number five this month is a website called Daily Candy. It's a free daily e-mail from the front lines of fashion, food, and fun. Sign up to get the scoop on hot new restaurants, designers, secret nooks, and charming diversions in your city and beyond.

I've been receiving these tiny morsels of coolness in my email every day for years now. It's completely free and they provide you with the scoop on only the newest, coolest, fashion, gadgets, websites and everything else. You can sign up to get the events and specific happenings for your own city or you can sign up for the nationwide events and websites. I love it. How else would I have known about 'GoCakeGo', a website that allows you to order a birthday party in a box- complete with a delicious cake and colorful party favors. Or, the OhmyBod umm... personal stimulator? Think, an ipod that really satisfies (wink).

4) Gone Baby Gone -

I just saw this movie (compliments of blockbuster online) last weekend. I had 'slept on it', so to speak, when it came out in theaters last year and only added it to my blockbuster queue recently for the heck of it. I thought, "It's a film written and directed by the guy who starred in 'Gigli' -- one of the worst movies of all time-- and it stars his baby brother. How good could it be?" I didn't expect to like it, I didn't want to like it. But, the movie , as well as little brother Casey completely blew me away. Gone Baby Gone is a crime drama based on the novel by Dennis Lehane. The story begins with the disappearance of a toddler who's mother is a drug addict and a typical strung out junkie with all the trimmings. The child's aunt hires a private detective (Affleck) to assist the police in trying to find her. The twists, turns and surprises begin from there and don't stop until the credits roll. By the end you find yourself asking the questions, 'what would I have done' and, 'is the right thing always the right thing?'. It definitely got me thinking, a goal many movies aspire to but few actually accomplish. Gone Baby Gone was nominated for an Oscar and also stars Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris, Amy Ryan and Michelle Monaghan. If you've been sleeping on it like I have, rent it today! Also see :The Assasination of Jesse James also starring Casey Affleck and Brad Pitt. I predict we're going to be talking about Casey for a long time into the future. He's extremely talented.

3) Cost-Co -Don't laugh! Where I come from, a 24 hour store that sells EVERYTHING like Wal-mart is unheard of. Similarly, a whole-sale mega-store like Cost-co or Sam's club? Nope. So you cant blame me for being a little excited that I can now say I'm literally a 'card-carrying member'. It was a proud day to pose for my picture and then add my new Cost-Co membership card to my wallet. [Note: that's not my actual wallet in the picture above. My wallet has many more unnecessary receipts,credit cards I haven't used in ages, random business cards for businesses/people that I have no intention of doing business with and other meaningless crap]

Anyway, I'm loving Cost-co: the quality, the selection, the convenience of having almost everything you could ever need and want in one place and most of all the prices! Also, their eatery is a great place to get a really delicious, really cheap lunch or dinner. Yum!

2)The Cheesecake Factory's 'Blackout Cake' -

Okay, I knew The Cheesecake Factory had amazing cheesecake - my favorite is the Banana Cream; to quote the fabulous B. Scott, "Take me higher Lord!" - but I had no idea how equally amazing their other desserts were. I found out recently when my girlfriend surprised me by bringing me home a slice of their wonderful Blackout Cake. Here's what their online menu says about it. "Our Deepest, Richest, Most Fudgy Chocolate Cake Filled with Chocolate Chips and Finished with Almonds." Yeahhhhhhh that's about right, but I would've added, Fudge combined with moist cake feels like silk when they first enter your mouth, that rich, bold chocolate flavor explodes on your tongue and then you crunch on those tasty almonds and instantly you know what the food in heaven must taste like. :) To quote B. Scott once more, "...Splendiferous..absolutely di-vine".

1)Spirit and E=MC2

She's the first British solo act to have a debut album top the charts in the US. Ever since she won Pop Idol, critics have been comparing her to every great female singer of our time. But I've never been one to listen to all the hype. We all know critics can be licking your boots one minute and kicking you with their boots the next. So it wasn't until I watched Leona Lewis for myself, during her live performance on Oprah, that I was I forced to agree with them. I found myself in awe of her performance, her humility but obviously the real appeal are her pipes. The girl has a voice even more beautiful that she is.

Mariah Carey knows all too well that one of the trappings of fame is a fickle media . Not too long ago they were deeming her certifiable - now, understandably, she's the subject of their unworthy praise. She's a 'rare bird' in the industry, someone who can scrape their way up from the bottom once is amazing enough - much less twice! She's proven her undeniable talent and her clear intelligence once again and no one's calling her crazy now.

Despite the comparison between the two, Mariah Carey, the seasoned vet with the most number one singles of any American artist, and the talented new girl on the block who's already making an impressive notch for herself in a worldwide arena, their current albums are both unique and amazing to hear. I've been playing them both non-stop because they remind me of a time when music was ....well, good. Remember when you could tell the artist and their team really put time, love and dedication into their project? When every song took you on a journey to a new place and a new emotion instead of 75% of the album being dedicated to songs about picking someone up in a bar? When an album consisted of 17 tracks (without interludes) that were well worth the money? Well, if you're nostalgic for the good ole days like I was, pick up both these albums and see why they both get the coveted number one spot on my faves list.

See February's Fave Fives, See March's Fave Fives

Wonders Never Cease!

2008-04-25T09:58:00.004-04:00

NEW YORK - Three detectives were acquitted of all charges Friday in the 50-shot killing of an unarmed groom-to-be on his wedding day, a case that put the New York Police Department at the center of another dispute involving allegations of excessive firepower.

Justice Arthur Cooperman delivered the verdict in a Queens courtroom packed with spectators, including victim Sean Bell's fiancee and parents, as at least 200 people gathered outside the building.

As word of the verdict spread, many outside the courthouse began crying and yelled "No!" Some briefly jostled with police officers.
Bell, a 23-year-old black man, was killed in a hail of gunfire outside a strip club in Queens on Nov. 25, 2006 — his wedding day — as he was leaving his bachelor party with two friends.

The officers, complaining that pretrial publicity had unfairly painted them as cold-blooded killers, opted to have the judge decide the case rather than a jury.

Officers Michael Oliver, 36, and Gescard Isnora, 29, stood trial for manslaughter while Officer Marc Cooper, 40, was charged only with reckless endangerment. Two other shooters weren't charged. Oliver squeezed off 31 shots; Isnora fired 11 rounds; and Cooper shot four times.

A conviction on manslaughter could have brought up to 25 years in prison; the penalty for reckless endangerment, a misdemeanor, is a year behind bars.

Painful memories of other NYPD cases
The case brought back painful memories of other NYPD shootings, such as the 1999 shooting of Amadou Diallo — an African immigrant who was gunned down in a hail of 41 bullets by police officers who mistook his wallet for a gun. The acquittal of the officers in that case created a storm of protest, with hundreds arrested after taking to the streets in demonstration.

The mood surrounding this case has been muted by comparison, although Bell's fiancee, parents and their supporters, including the Rev. Al Sharpton, have held rallies demanding that the officers — two of whom are black — be held accountable.

The defendants, who were investigating reports of prostitution at the Kalua Cabaret, say they became alarmed when they heard Bell and his friends trade insults around the 4 a.m. closing time with another patron who appeared to be armed. In grand jury testimony, Isnora claimed that he overheard one of Bell's companions, Joseph Guzman, say, "Yo, go get my gun."

Isnora responded by trailing Bell, Guzman and Trent Benefield to Bell's car. He insisted that he ordered the men to halt and that he and other officers began shooting only after Bell bumped him with his car and slammed into an unmarked police van while trying to flee.

Guzman and Benefield both played down the dispute outside the club. They also testified that they were unaware police were watching them and that the gunfire erupted without warning.

Top Ten Reasons Gay Marriage is Wrong!

2008-04-23T14:15:00.002-04:00

1) Homosexuality is not natural. Real people always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.

2) Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay in the same way that hanging around tall people will encourage you to be tall.

3) Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.

4) Heterosexual marriage has been around a long time and hasn’t changed at all -- women are still property, blacks still aren’t supposed to marry whites.

5) Straight marriage will be less meaningful if homosexual marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Brittany Spears’ 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed!

6) Heterosexual marriages are valid because they produce children. Homosexual couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn’t be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren’t full yet, and the world needs more children.

7) Obviously gay parents will raise gay children since straight parents only raise straight children.

8) Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That’s why we have only one religion in North America.

9) Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That’s why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.

10) Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms. Just like we haven’t adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans

Our Dying World...

2008-04-22T11:00:00.003-04:00

Whenever, I think of the state of our world - the war, the famine, the poverty, the hopelessness, the crime, the pollution, the hate and all the injustice - I think of a few lines from the song, One Song by Tevin Campbell. He sings:

There's just one sun, that warms our day. The same moon and stars, light our way. This little ball, whirling in space; it's our only home, our only place.

I believe if we all thought of the world that way, as a little ball floating in a vast universe;all we have - then maybe we'd learn to love and value each other more and we'd learn to love and value our planet more as well.

Just imagine what tomorrow would bring, if we all sing, 'one song'. Happy Earth Day.

Everyday Should Be Earth Day - Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

2008-04-22T10:14:00.006-04:00

There are many simple ways to reduce the footprint you leave on the planet. Learn how to reduce your footprint in each consumption category–carbon, food, housing, and goods and services—but don’t stop there. Amplify your impact by encouraging others to follow your lead. Engage your friends and community with local and global movements for social change, or start your own movement!

REDUCE YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT

Use cleaner transport
Walk, bike, or take public transit whenever possible.
Avoid allowing your car to idle. If you’ll be waiting for more than 30 seconds, turn off the engine (except in traffic). And don’t take the drive-through—park the car and walk inside instead.
Have your vehicle serviced regularly to keep the emission control systems operating at peak efficiency. Check your car's air filter monthly, and keep the tires adequately inflated to maximize gas mileage.
Avoid short airplane trips—take a bus or train instead.
Add energy-saving features to your home
Install compact fluorescent bulbs in all your home light fixtures—but remember, compact fluorescents contain mercury, so look for low-mercury models and be sure to dispose of old bulbs safely through your local hazardous waste program.
Weatherproof your home. Make sure your walls and ceilings are insulated, and consider double-pane windows. Eliminate drafts with caulking, weather strips, and storm windows and doors.
Insulate your water heater. Even better, switch to a tankless water heater, so your water will be heated only as you use it.
Choose energy efficient appliances.
Adopt energy-saving habits
Keep thermostat relatively low in winter and ease up on the air conditioning in summer. Clean or replace dirty air conditioner filters as recommended to keep the A/C operating at peak efficiency.
Unplug your electronics when not in use. To make it easier, use a power strip. Even when turned off, items like your television, computer, and cellphone charger still sip power.
Dry your clothes outside whenever possible.
Make minimal use of power equipment when landscaping.
Defrost your refrigerator and freezer regularly.
Choose green electricity. Many utilities give you the option to purchase electricity generated by wind and solar power for a small rate surcharge.
Purchase carbon offsets to make up for the energy use you can’t eliminate.

REDUCE YOUR FOOD FOOTPRINT

Eat more local, organic, in-season foods.
Plant a garden—it doesn’t get more local than that.
Shop at your local farmer’s market or natural foods store. Look for local, in-season foods that haven’t traveled long distances to reach you.
Choose foods with less packaging to reduce waste.
Eat lower on the food chain—going meatless for just one meal a week can make a difference. Globally, it has been estimated that 18% of all greenhouse gas emissions are associated with meat consumption.

REDUCE YOUR HOUSING FOOTPRINT

Choose sustainable building materials, furnishings, and cleaning products.
Explore green design features for your building, like passive solar heating, a rainwater catchment or grey water recycling system, and recycled materials.
Choose efficient appliances, including low flow shower heads, faucets, and toilets.
Choose furnishings that are second-hand, recycled, or sustainably produced.
Plant drought tolerant plants in your garden and yard.
Use biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning products.
Adopt water-saving habits
Take shorter, less frequent showers—this not only saves water, but the energy necessary to heat it.
Don’t use the garbage disposal. Compost instead.
Run the dishwasher and the laundry machine only when full.
Wash cars rarely, or better yet, take them to a carwash. Commercial carwashes use less water per wash than home washers, and they are also required to drain used water into the sewage system, rather than storm drains, which protects aquatic life.
Avoid hosing down or power-washing your deck, walkways, or driveway.
Regularly look for and fix leaks.

REDUCE YOUR GOODS AND SERVICES FOOTPRINT

Buy less! Replace items only when you really need to.
Recycle all your paper, glass, aluminum, and plastic. Don’t forget electronics!
Compost food waste for the garden. Garbage that is not contaminated with degradable (biological) waste can be more easily recycled and sorted, and doesn't produce methane gases (a significant greenhouse gas contributor) when stored in a landfill.
Buy recycled products, particularly those labeled "post-consumer waste."

Take the Quiz and find out how big your carbon footprint is.

Oh those clever,clever Japanese!

2008-04-21T07:59:00.007-04:00

We all know how creative the Japanese are and now we can all further benefit by their ingenuity without leaving the country. The Japan Trend Shop is a website that allows the average person to order these 'anything-but-average' cool, new gadgets and inventions. There are hundreds of amazing items to choose from ranging in price from about $20 to about $5,000! I just had to share some of my faves!

Who wouldn't want this item right before a big date? Before going in for that goodnight kiss, it may be in your best interest to excuse yourself and check that breath with the Etiquette Checker.

Etiquette Checker - bad breath and alcohol test.

Wondering if your breath is as bad as you think it is? Don’t realize how bad it is because you’ve had a bit too much too drink?Now you can check BOTH the quality of your breath and how alcohol level with the Etiquette Checker from TopMan. Simply breath into the tester and get your results! Your breath is ranked good to bad from 1-6, and alcohol level in 0.5 increments.

Kiss your ordinary Piggy Bank goodbye!

This is toooo cute. It's called the FaceBank for obvious reasons. Feed it a coin and watch it actually chew and swallow it, complete with sound and a moving mouth and eyes. I may just have to order one for my unborn niece so that as soon as she's born she'll be able to start saving her pennies. It comes in a variety of colors and uses three AAA batteries.

Get ready to start your morning off with a bang! We've all wanted to throw the alarm clock against the wall at 6 am (some of us have actually given in to the urge). It's a habit that could really ruin a clock...not to mention a wall. Not with the hand grenade alarm clock though.

It's designed to be thrown. In fact, throwing it is the only way to turn it off! Very Cool.

There are many,many more interesting gadgets on the site. Check it out.

Ape Sex

2008-04-18T10:23:00.020-04:00

My girlfriend is an interesting creature. She gets her news both from CNN and PerezHilton. Her favorite TV shows consist of both smart, medical shows as well as Hannah Montana. Her favorite reading material? - Harry Potter and TIME magazine! Eccentric. But I love her anyway.

I've become a TIME lover now myself because of her but I usually don't get around to reading the articles until after she's done with them. So she's able to point me in the right direction of the most interesting and eyebrow-raising articles. The other day she turned me on to an article she said I just had to read in the latest issue. It was about Bonobo Apes .They're really fascinating creatures that make their homes in the wild of the Congo.

What makes them so interesting is not just their incredibly peaceful nature - which is far more peaceful than any other species of Apes. Apes are known for beating their females, killing their infants and other forms of torture. What's really interesting about the Bonobos is not only are they incredibly peaceful, it's the way in which they resolve their conflicts. They have sex! Wild, passionate, sensual sex like only apes can (I assume)

I'm talking ....straight sex :

Gay/Lesbian Sex: (These are two Females)

"Solo" Sex:

and even Bisexual and Group Sex:

Don't they look like they're plotting some exciting events for this young lady? If i were her I'd run as far away from these horny, little apes as possible.lol. Look at the one on top of her-he's just claimed that chick as his ''human biatch''

The article claims the Bonobos are most like humans in their looks and behavior. Check this chick out...

Ape yoga maybe? :)

The truth is we could learn a lot from them. What would happen if we... not necessarily had sex with every person we were having a bit of an issue with - but what about at least showing that person a little bit of affection, some warmth, some understanding and yeah, some love. I bet we wouldn't be fighting so many meaningless wars right now. The world would definitely be a much better place.

Hiatus Interrupted?

2008-04-17T14:14:00.005-04:00

I'm back. Or so it seems. I call this entry 'hiatus interrupted' because I'm not sure if If I'm really back for good or if this is just a brief ''peek-a-boo, I see you!''.

Where have I been? Well, I wish I could say I was off traipsing through Europe or that I was at home in the Bahamas enjoying the feeling of cool, pink sand squishing between my toes. Unfortunately, I can blame my sudden absence on a tropical excursion as much as Bush can blame his incompetence as a president on ... Mickey Mouse. The truth is, I've been preoccupied with life - the highs, the lows and the vast and undeniable middle. Lately, I've been more or less stuck between the lower portion of the middle and the higher portion of the low. Not a good place to be. Follow my analogy:

If 'high' is a toe-curling, skin tingling, hair straightening orgasm; and 'low' is a brutal series of violent kicks to the groin by a big, hairy trucker wearing steel-toed boots, then the 'middle' is like being constantly poked in the ribs by your tireless five year old cousin....over and over...and over...and over...and over...and over - it's annoyance, irritation and frustration comparable to Chinese Water Torture. Yes, the middle definitely has the ability to render a person certifiably insane.

Money (more specificially the lack of it) grad school, immigration woes, student loans... et cetera. Those issues sit on the very tip of the incredibly large iceberg of my worries -- just the tip! Of course I realize I shouldn't complain and that there are people all over the globe who'd literally kill for my issues. I try to remind myself of that fact and count my blessings as much as possible. Talk about easier said than done!

But, I'll live. Of that I'm certain. One thing I do know, thanks to my faith in God and the support of my incredible girlfriend, (neither of whom I deserve but thank goodness they love me anyway), 'trouble doesn't last always'. As cliche as that sounds, well, it's a morsel of hope worth holding on to - furthermore, it's usually true.

A song that always lifts me up in times like these because of it's really inspirational lyrics and soothing melodies...'Bridge over Troubled Water'

And with that, I'll adjourn; feeling better already.

Until Tomorrow..

A Day to Reflect on.

2008-04-04T16:54:00.003-04:00

I know we've probably all seen the speeches a thousand times. Some of us know them by heart. But, today on the 40th anniversary of Dr.Martin Luther King's death, let's take a few mins, pull up a speech (any one) off of YouTube, watch it and take some time to reflect on who the man was, what he stood for and what he would say/think today. Rest in Peace Dr.King.

'How To' of the Day:The "Pinocchio Effect"

2008-04-04T16:23:00.004-04:00

The Pinocchio effect, named after the fictional puppet-turned-boy of the same name, is a tactile illusion, an illusion that uses your sense of touch to "trick" your brain. Such illusions are remarkable because they challenge what we think we know about our perception of the world. Want to expand your nose and your mind? Try it out.

Steps:

Arrange two chairs, one right behind the other. The chairs should both be facing the same direction.

Sit in the rear chair and have a friend sit in the chair in front of you.

Blindfold yourself or keep your eyes shut throughout the exercise.

Have your friend guide one of your hands to his or her nose. It will probably be easier to use your dominant hand for this part.

Bring your other hand up to your own nose.

Tap and stroke your friend's nose. Hopefully you're good friends, as this can seem a bit weird. Randomly alternate between tapping your friend's nose and lightly stroking it, as though you're trying to communicate with Morse Code. The more random your movements, the more likely you'll feel the Pinocchio effect. Be gentle.

Tap and stroke your own nose with identical movements. As you're tapping and stroking your friend's nose, use your other hand to reproduce the taps and strokes on your own nose. Try to synchronize the movements of your hands as closely as possible.

Continue for 30 seconds to a minute. After a while, you may start to feel as though your nose is three feet long (hence the name Pinocchio effect) or that your nose is somehow no longer connected to your body. Try it a couple times if it doesn't work the first time, and make sure the movements of your two hands are as identical as possible. If it still doesn't work, don't worry: about 50% of people can feel the Pinocchio effect, and you may be one of the other 50%.

Tips:

Another variation is to tap your friend's nose as above but to have another friend tap yours (instead of you tapping your own nose).
This can be a fun way for teachers to illustrate the complexities of the mind to children.

Tomorrow is the second annual Earth Hour

2008-03-28T15:24:00.005-04:00

Please set aside one hour for the planet tomorrow (Saturday, March 29th) by turning out all your lights between the hours of eight and nine pm. Then, encourage all your friends and family to do the same. That one hour will make a difference you won't believe! Check out this video.

Still no LOGO for the Bahamas

2008-03-28T08:49:00.006-04:00

This isn't a new story by any means but as I was sitting on the couch last night watching a great program on the LOGO channel I was reminded of the fact that gays and lesbians in my own home country aren't so privileged. In a country where gays and lesbians are already so oppressed a channel like LOGO would be a kind of oasis in the middle of the desert but so far the Bahamas Christian Council (who basically run our country) still won't budge and allow the channel to be included in Cable Bahamas' line-up. How Sad.

Here's the Article

Best Days

2008-03-27T12:45:00.003-04:00

You may remember this song from Hollywood week on American Idol or if you watch the Sundance Channel they use it from time to time on promos. It has exploded recently and I understand why because Best Days makes me feel really good even on the worst days. It reminds me that life's short and right now, not in the future, not in the past but right now... these are the best days of our lives! I need that message from time to time. So here's Best Days by Graham Colton.

With everything I've ever done I'd give it all to everyone For one more day

Another night I'm waking through Another door I walk into I can't break

And it's a winding road

And it's a long way home

So don't wait For someone to tell you it's too late Cause these are the best days

There's always something tomorrow So I say let's make the best of tonight

Here comes the rest of our lives

I count the steps The distance to The time when it was me and you It's so far gone Another face, Another friend, Another place, Another end, But I'll hang on

And it's a winding road

And it's a long way home

So don't wait For someone to tell you it's too late Cause these are the best days

There's always something tomorrow So I say let's make the best of tonight Yeah, let's make the best of tonight Here comes the rest of our lives Rest of our lives

And it's a winding road It's a long way home So don't wait For someone to tell you it's too late Cause these are the best days There's always something tomorrow So I say let's make the best of it Don't wait Cause no one can tell you it's too late Cause these are the best days

There's always something tomorrow So I say let's make the best of tonight Yeah, let's make the best of tonight We'll make the best of tonight Here comes the rest of our lives

How To: "Look Gay" (for Women)

2008-03-25T12:39:00.006-04:00

Are they for real? I thought this was HILARIOUS.

From Wiki-How-To
Many lesbian and bisexual women find it hard to meet like-minded girls because looking "straight" puts them at a disadvantage. Potential suitors, unless they have an expertly honed "gaydar," which most of us don't, will in many cases assume that a girl is not into girls because she shows no outward signs of being gay and not approach her - no matter how attractive she is.
Steps:
The first step is to remember not to change who you are or completely transform your look. You must be true to yourself to feel comfortable. Confidence is the single most important step you can take to make yourself attractive to anyone.

Hang out at places where lesbians like to go. Many bars and clubs have "girls nights" where you can meet other lesbians and observe fashion and personal styling tips. Just being there will make you appear gayer and will significantly increase your chances of meeting someone special.

Join a gay dating site. This way, there will be no question as to whether you're looking to meet a girl.

If you feel comfortable with the idea, cut your hair short. A short back and sides styled into a fauxhawk is sure to get you a lot of female attention.

Many lesbians prefer to have long hair - if this is the case, make sure it looks good, but not over-styled with accessories that are too feminine. Healthy and clean is the look you're going for here.

Keep your nails short and neat. Long nails, particularly false, can make girls appear straight - so avoid this look.

If you're comfortable with everyone knowing your sexuality, wear a t-shirt with a lesbian slogan or image. These are available from shops in gay districts and many adult shops. Failing this, a shirt featuring a band that appeals to lesbians eg the Indigo Girls, Betty, the Organ etc will help and is more tasteful.

Put a rainbow sticker on your car or laptop. These are available at adult shops and online. Tip - it's unfortunate, but true, that in this day and age homophobia still exists, so if you use a company vehicle or computer, be prepared to remove a rainbow sticker if asked to do so.
Wear rainbow jewellery or have a rainbow keyring/laniard. If a lesbian is attracted to you, her instinct will tell her to look for clues that you're into girls - so an item like this, as small as it may be, will provide a huge advantage.

Wear pants rather than a dress or skirt to work. A collared shirt with a tie looks hot and definitely looks gay.

Wear flat shoes or boots. Avoid high heels. Steel-capped boots, Birkenstock sandals or Chuck Taylors are great.

Wear minimal makeup and keep your look casual. Nobody likes dirty or untidy women, so put some effort in, just keep it simple and funky, not dressy and glam.

If you wear glasses, strong-looking, dark frames are popular with lesbians. If they suit your face, these are a good choice.

Wear comfortable, cotton underwear with a masculine, wide elastic waistband. Do not put too much effort into exposing the waistband, it will show when you move and other lesbians will notice it.

The Mess of Good Friday

2008-03-21T08:30:00.004-04:00

From: Wilderness Wonderings

When you read the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ final Friday, “good” isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. In Matthew’s account, for example, we are confronted with an ugly mess: betrayal, suicidal hanging, false accusations, freeing a murderer, blind anomisity, crowd-pleasing leader, mocking, beating, scourging, shame, nakedness, blasphemy, brutal crucifixion, God-forsakenness, death. Ugliness, not beauty, adorns this account.

So why do we call it Good Friday? In short, because victorious resurrection requires death, new life blooms from decay, and beauty is known only in relation to ugliness. Good Friday is also good because we realize there is a death of death in the death of Christ (in the words of John Owen).
Despite the goodness of Good Friday, this holy day brings a soberness to our spirituality. We realize that Jesus’ way is our way: a way of suffering, betrayal, and cross-bearing. In our earthly pilgrimage, we will never rise above the mess and ugliness of this Jesus way. Resurrection is a reality worked out in the context of Good Friday. Good Friday gives us reason to be sober; Easter gives us reason to celebrate. Salvation is now but not yet. Rejoice! Be sober-minded. It’s the Jesus way.

Artist of the Day:

2008-03-19T11:01:00.004-04:00

This young lady's not only absolutely gorgeous, her pipes are reminiscent of Whitney and Mariah and trust me when I say, I don't say that lightly. It seems every new female artist on the scene these days with even the slightest amount of talent gets compared to the two greats but this young lady may actually be deserving. She is definitely someone to watch in the coming years. Don't believe me? You can always check YouTube for her 'Bleeding Love" video but we all know the true test is the live performance so here she is on Oprah.

Cop her Album 'Spirit' out now.

'Gay Discrimination' Outlawed in the Bahamas?

2008-03-18T09:02:00.001-04:00

Report calls for gay discrimination to be outlawed By ROGAN M. SMITH, Guardian Senior
Reporter, rogan@nasguard.com

A U.S. human rights report is urging The Bahamas to make it illegal to discriminate against people in employment, housing or public accommodations because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. The report, which was released last week, said that there is still no legislation to address the continuing discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people in The Bahamas. Although homosexual relations between consenting adults is legal in The Bahamas, there is no legislation to address the group's social rights. In March 2006, the Constitutional Review Commission ruled that sexual orientation did not deserve protection against discrimination. Societal discrimination against homosexuals also continues. Last September, religious organizations and individual activists opposed a request by a gay rights group for the cable monopoly to add a gay and lesbian channel to its programming, the report noted. The request triggered a backlash against the homosexual community. In the ensuing media controversy, some opponents called for the re-criminalizing of homosexual acts, and religious leaders criticized a major newspaper for giving what they considered "undue" coverage to the gay rights group.

The organizer of a gay and lesbian cruise accused authorities of harassment, after a party at a downtown club was shut down on October 7, due to alleged lewd behavior and immigration violations. However, police officials denied inappropriate conduct. The report also said that sensationalistic media reporting of reputed gay links in two high-profile murders in Nassau in November, under police investigation at year's end, reflected the atmosphere of societal intolerance. Last year, fashion noted handbag designer Harl Taylor and College of the Bahamas (COB) dean, Dr. Thaddeus McDonald were murdered in their homes. Their murderers have still not been found. The full contents of the report can be found online at http://www.state.gov under Human Rights: Annual Reports Released.http://www.thenassauguardian.com/nat...0416855343.php
__________________

March's Fave Fives!

2008-03-17T10:52:00.010-04:00

5)I heard this water by Glacéau Vitamin Water was good but I shied away from it simply because my experience with other vitamin enhanced waters hadn't been so pleasant. To me they all tasted like sour water with only a hint of a flavor somewhere at the bottom of the bottle. But, when the store around the corner had these on sale, I decided to give them a shot. I was instantly impressed; not because each bottle contains Vitamin C, B3, B5, B6, B12, and E, but because even with all that, they still taste amazing! With interesting flavors like, Jackfruit-Guava and Acai-Blueberry-Pomegranate among many others, it tastes more like juice than water. I like 'em alot.

4) Socks are socks.. no? As long as they don't have holes in them, anything will do right? Well Maybe. But, if you're looking for apair of socks that will make your feet thank you, try these Calvin Klein socks. I snagged them from my girlfriend's sock drawer (aka, a shoebox in her closet since she has no space for a sock drawer in her actual dresser-can you say, 'too many clothes?') ,one particularly chilly night when my feet were FREEZING and as soon as I slipped them on I swear I heard my 'dogs' go, 'ahhh'. Not only were they indeed 'warm and toasty', they seemed to literally hug my feet and envelope them in comfort. Now I steal...ahem..borrow them from my girlfriend as soon as they come out of the dryer.

3)I first experimented with Windows Movie Maker back in November when I decided to make a home movie in honor of my girlfriend and I's second year anniversary. Even with my limited technology skills, it came out great and was super easy to create! Recently, I've been working on another movie project and I'm still pleasantly surprised at how user-friendly movie maker is. I first tried making my second movie on my girlfriend's Mac and found myself utterly lost for a good hour. That's when I came back to my trusty PC and had my movie up and running in no time. There are a ton of cool features that are visually pleasing without being overwhelming. Now that I'm getting good at it, maybe I'll start broadcasting a video blog one day or perhaps the cat and I will make some silly vids for YouTube :)
2)Does it get any better than Häagen-Dazs Icecream? Not really. Unless you're talking about their Sticky Toffee Pudding flavor.Move over Rocky Road, it's become my all-time favorite icecream ever- and that's saying a lot. It came about as the result of Häagen-Dazs 2006 'Scoop!' contest. The creator entered it as a tribute to the English dessert, 'Sticky Toffee Pudding' that she loved so much and she won! Not only is it a very unique flavor that you won't find anywhere but Häagen-Dazs, it's so smooth and creamy too. Häagen-Dazs describes the flavor as: rich vanilla ice cream swirled with sticky toffee sauce and morsels of moist brown sugar cake.

I describe it as: delicious .

I've been reading Relevant magazine for a couple years now but every month I still find myself glued to the pages again. For the young Christian in today's world -- actually, for any young person trying to find direction as they wade through all the junk of pop culture -- it's essential. It's not like other Christian literature,(in fact they seem to shy away from using the word Christian to describe the magazine), it's fresh, smart and ...well...relevant. It was actually handed to me at a party while I was in college - imagine that. A friend of mine had been reading it and was pretty impressed so she handed it to me and told me to glance at it. Common was on the cover of that issue so I was quite interested and gave it a little more than a glance later on that week. I subscribed soon after. Relevant's mission statement is: Covering God, Life and Progressive Culture , so you're just as likely to find an interview with say, Kanye as you are to find an interview with the hottest new preacher trying to change the world. There are album, book and movie/DVD reviews as well as inspirational stories and tips about how to live a better, more fulfilling life. Peek inside the latest issue featuring Chris Martin from Coldplay as well as Bono,Ben Harper,Matisyahu,Anne Lamott,Moby,Daft Punk, MIA and more.

Celebrate me Home

2008-03-13T14:12:00.002-04:00

The old Kenny Loggins tune has been revamped by Ruben Studdard and will be used as the new 'exit' song for the ousted American Idols. The notoriety should be good for Ruben whom no-one has heard from in a while it seems. Last night after David Hernandez was booted was the first time the song was used but I absolutely love this tune - makes me cry everytime- so I'm excited to hear more of it. Too bad it will be at the 'idol's' expense. I'm sure they won't be looking forward to hearing it on Wednesday nights.

Check out Kenny Loggins sing it.

"Belly Yuck" To Keep Your Man? (Only in the Bahamas right?)

2008-03-13T09:28:00.005-04:00

By Nadine Thomas-Brown, Nassau Guardian Religion Reporter, nadine@nasguard.com

City of Praise Church pastor Arthur Duncombe drew the ire of many Christians after he brought a popular Jamaican female deejay to The Bahamas to allegedly demonstrate the dance move known as the "Belly Yuck" to his congregation.

Pastor Duncombe was a guest on Joy FM's "Joy In The Morning" show with Kevin Harris, last week, where he defended his actions, saying that teaching his congregation the "Belly Yuck" was a means of helping them to keep their husbands from being enticed away. He also said that he had contemplated bringing in Indian dancers as well as Hawaiian dancers in consecutive years to help the members, comments which spurred furious calls by members of the public to the program, who were concerned that a secular person was being brought in to teach Christians anything.

Jamaican female performer "Macka Diamond", a dance hall singer known for the popular song "Bu'n Him" was the deejay at the seminar entitled "Angels By Day, Monsters By Night" conference held for married and engaged couples of Pastor Duncombe's church on Ajax St.
Duncombe told The Nassau Guardian that the conference gave Christian women some "know how" in the battle to keep their husbands interested in them sexually, a concern he said many Christian men and women had brought before him over the course of his eight years as a pastor.

He was quick to defend his stance. He said that many Christian women were so caught up in their "Christianity" that they were neglecting their spousal duties and this was his way of trying to teach his congregation that intercourse between married couples was ordained by God, and that the very nature of how humans came into being should show that our maker had no problems with the act.

Despite the uproar in the community, members of the congregation said that the performer only spoke to the congregation, and did not dance. Joann Ferguson, 39, a Christian woman who has been married for five years attended the conference and said that she believed that it was relevant and extremely important to Christian couples. "It was enlightening, interesting and very informative."

"We have a lot of Christian marriages which are falling apart and sex is a very important part of marriage," she said, adding that while many women were Christians, many of their husbands were not and that realistically they had to, "rest the Holy Ghost down and perform the duties of a wife. You can't be too sanctifies to satisfy," she said.

As to whether Diamond was the right person to bring in to speak to the group, Ferguson said that throughout daily we take advice from people who were also in the secular world, and that adults are capable of listening, and inevitably making their own choices with the help of God. "We would save more sinners if we as Christians were more real," she said.
Ferguson said that the women and men were split in two groups for the conference, with "Macka Diamond" responsible for the women while, Pastor Robert Coakley from City Of Praise Church instructed the men.

Sheryl Christie-Smith, 49, who has been married for two years said that she found the conference educational, especially for a woman who has been in the church many years, and lost one husband, partly because of the lack of communication on sexual matters. "He was a Christian as well, [but] both of us were just too holy to commit or share our intimacy feelings with each other," she said.

With her new husband who is not saved, Christie said that she had come to realize the importance of that aspect of married life and was determined to learn all she could to keep the fires burning. "You have to keep your bedroom business, and marriage is honorable in the sight of God and the bed is undefiled," she said.

The "Belly Yuck" is the focus of a song of the same name by singer Kirkland "KB" Bodie, and one of the key elements to doing the dance is putting your back and shoulders on the ground, lifting your waist or hips and gyrating. Acknowledging that he has heard the severe negative criticisms, Duncombe says that he has also received positive comments from members of the community. This is the second such conference that Pastor Duncombe's church has put on.

However, "Joy In The Morning" host, Harris, said that it was unfortunate that the conference went ahead despite the outcry by so many people. "There is a need to address sexuality within the church and to be open and transparent about it and to help Christians who are struggling. Singles who are approaching marriage should be told within the proper confines but I was totally against the idea that we needed to have a secular reggae artist into the four walls of the church, or anywhere that the church was holding an event to explain, show or demonstrate anything as it regards the fulfillment of one's partner."

Harris also believes that Duncombe should have sought more counsel before he went ahead with the event. He also said that Duncombe now risks a double standard as it relates to the youth because the pastor could not expect the youth of his church to listen to him when he told them not to listen to [Reggae] music which he [Harris] views as inappropriate for young ears. Nevertheless, Duncombe argues that other secular people have been brought in over the years by pastors to teach Christians in other areas such as finance. A point that Harris says is invalid.

Lawmaker says gays are worse than terrorists!

2008-03-12T19:14:00.002-04:00

Last week, a secret recording emerged of a disturbing speech by Oklahoma Representative Sally Kern stating that homosexuality is a bigger threat to our nation than "terrorism or Islam." Rep. Kern has refused to apologize for her remarks.

Hateful speech by elected officials must not be tolerated – especially when hate crimes based on religion and sexual orientation are on the rise. Tell Oklahoma's Governor, Speaker of the House, and Senate President Pro Tempore to publicly condemn Rep. Kern's statements.

Do so here : HRC website . There's a petition already filled out for you. After you sign up just click send and it's that simple. To quote a newly famous slogan, "Yes We Can!!"

Talk About Hogging the Bathroom!

2008-03-12T16:31:00.003-04:00

Woman sits on boyfriend's toilet for 2 years

Girlfriend was physically stuck to the seat — her skin had grown around it.

NESS CITY, Kan. - Deputies said a woman in western Kansas sat on her boyfriend's toilet for two years, and they're investigating whether she was mistreated.
Ness County Sheriff Bryan Whipple said a man called his office last month to report that something was wrong with his girlfriend.
Whipple said it appeared the 35-year-old Ness City woman’s skin had grown around the seat. She initially refused emergency medical services but was finally convinced by responders and her boyfriend that she needed to be checked out at a hospital.

“We pried the toilet seat off with a pry bar and the seat went with her to the hospital,” Whipple said. “The hospital removed it.”
Whipple said investigators planned to present their report Wednesday to the county attorney, who will determine whether any charges should be filed against the woman's 36-year-old boyfriend.
“She was not glued. She was not tied. She was just physically stuck by her body,” Whipple said. “It is hard to imagine. ... I still have a hard time imagining it myself.”
He told investigators he brought his girlfriend food and water, and asked her every day to come out of the bathroom.
“And her reply would be, ‘Maybe tomorrow,”’ Whipple said. “According to him, she did not want to leave the bathroom.”
The boyfriend called police on Feb. 27 to report that “there was something wrong with his girlfriend,” Whipple said, adding that he never explained why it took him two years to call.
Police found the clothed woman sitting on the toilet, her sweat pants down to her mid-thigh. She was “somewhat disoriented,” and her legs looked like they had atrophied, Whipple said.
“She said that she didn’t need any help, that she was OK and did not want to leave,” he said.
She was taken to a hospital in Wichita, about 150 miles southeast of Ness City. Whipple said she has refused to cooperate with medical providers or law enforcement investigators.
Authorities said they did not know if she was mentally or physically disabled.
Police have declined to release the couple’s names, but the house where authorities say the incident happened is listed in public records as the residence of Kory McFarren. No one answered his home phone number.
The case has been the buzz in Ness City, said James Ellis, a neighbor.
“I don’t think anybody can make any sense out of it,” he said.
Ellis said he had known the woman since she was a child but that he had not seen her for at least six years.
He said she had a tough childhood after her mother died at a young age and apparently was usually kept inside the house as she grew up. At one time the woman worked for a long-term care facility, he said, but he did not know what kind of work she did there.
“It really doesn’t surprise me,” Ellis said of the bathroom incident. “What surprises me is somebody wasn’t called in a bit earlier.”

Noooooooooooo......

2008-03-11T11:19:00.004-04:00

My girlfriend and I were almost in tears last night when we heard the news: Showtime drama the L Word will not be renewed after next season. After five incredible seasons there will only be ten more episodes (there are still two left in this season) until we have to suck it up and say goodbye to these wonderful women that we've, in many ways, formed beautiful friendships with through the screen --not to mention a few crushes.

I can't believe this. I'm utterly confused and frankly a little pissed. On the one hand I realize that all good things must come to an end..yada,yada,yada and/or the show's creator and executive producer, Ilene Chaiken be trying to utilize the ole "leave on a good note" logic.But on the other hand, the show,for me, is only getting better and there are sooooo many more avenues to explore.

Oh well, I guess crying about it will do no good now I suppose. No. All we can do is enjoy the episodes we have left and hope this exceptional series will inspire more shows like it in the future. Another bright note : although the writers seemed determined to wrap the season up in eight episodes, they are welcoming viewer suggestions for storylines. They have a very good reputation for hearing fans out too as we've seen in many episodes. So all you L Word fans out there, let them know what you want to see happen with our girls!

Here are a few suggestions my girlfriend and I came up with last night:

She'd like to see Shane finally settle down -- preferably with Carmen -- so that would mean they'd have to bring Carmen back. But I think the chances of that may be slim since I heard Sarah Shahi (Carmen) didn't leave under the best circumstances -- aka, she either quit or was thrown out.

I don't care if Carmen and Shane get back together, I'd just like to see Carmen come back and have Shane grovel at her feet ..apologizing for cheating on her and then leaving her at the altar. Carmen was never given the chance to tell us how she felt after it all happened.

She'd like to see Bette and Tina together once and for all because let's face it, the back and forth is making us all dizzy.

I'd like to see a wedding on the show. It could be Bette and Tina, or Alice and Tasha or maybe something unexpected like Max and whats-his-name (Jodi's (Marlee Maitlin) translator).

So those are a few of our suggestions -- we have many more :) what can we say? we're die-hard L Word fans. I can't believe they're going away :(

Excuse me while I grab a hankie.

This Case Gets Even More Tragic

2008-03-11T10:19:00.004-04:00

Ledger's will leaves nothing to daughter
published Monday, March 10, 2008

Heath Ledger's will leaves nothing to his former girlfriend and their 2-year-old daughter because it was never updated after they became part of his life.
A copy of the three-page will, filed in Manhattan Surrogate Court, shows the 28-year-old Australian actor left everything he owned to his parents and three sisters. The document, filed in Australia in 2003, offers no hint at the size of the estate he left.
Papers filed with the will list the Brokeback Mountain star's New York City belongings, valued at $145,000.

Ledger's father, Kim, has said the family would make sure the actor's former girlfriend, actress Michelle Williams, and that their 2-year-old daughter, Matilda Rose, would be provided for, according to published reports. (AP)

Isn't Lauren London A Vision??

2008-03-07T22:57:00.001-05:00

Hmmm, but I digress before I get into trouble. I hear my girlfriend calling me.

Gay Marriage Gains Notice In State Court

2008-03-07T13:52:00.004-05:00

By ANEMONA HARTOCOLLIS
Published: March 6, 2008

On the way home from work in Rochester, Patricia Martinez stopped at a liquor store and bought a small bottle of Champagne to celebrate her marriage to another woman. The wedding took place in Canada nearly four years ago, but it wasn’t until Feb. 1 that a New York appellate court declared it valid in the state.

Photo Credit : James Rajotte for The New York Times

Patricia Martinez, top, and Lisa Ann Golden at their home outside Rochester. A state court found that their Canadian marriage entitled Ms. Golden to spousal benefits from Ms. Martinez’s job. Last week in Manhattan, a State Supreme Court justice, ruling in a divorce proceeding, recognized the Canadian marriage of two New York City women, known publicly as Beth R. and Donna M. — or Mom and Mommy to the two young children they had been raising together.

Less than two years after New York’s highest court refused to legalize gay marriage, leaving it up to a divided Legislature, courts in Rochester and Manhattan, as well as state and local officials, have begun to carry out what some say is the de facto legalization of gay marriage — and gay divorce — in New York for the price of, say, a ticket to Toronto.
Advocates for same-sex marriage say the two court decisions last month granting reciprocity in New York to gay marriages in other jurisdictions simply underline what most people would consider common sense.

“If a heterosexual couple got married in France and then came here, they would be married,” said Jeffrey Wicks, a lawyer who represented Ms. Martinez in cooperation with the New York Civil Liberties Union. “We recognize foreign marriages, just the same as we recognize Mexican divorces.” But opponents are not giving up so easily. Both rulings are being appealed, and the Alliance Defense Fund, a national organization opposed to same-sex marriage, has gone to court to challenge policy decisions by the Westchester County executive, the state comptroller and the state Civil Service Department granting benefits to gay couples married out of state. On Monday, a State Supreme Court justice in Albany upheld the Civil Service Department’s authority to recognize gay marriage, citing the Martinez decision as a precedent.

Recognition of same-sex marriage is a huge change that “should not be something that bypasses the democratic process,” said Brian Raum, senior legal counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund. “The issue is percolating up through the court system, and ultimately it’s one that the Court of Appeals is going to have to resolve so there isn’t any inconsistency,” he said.

New York has become a testing ground for gay marriage reciprocity because most other states have pre-empted it by passing Defense of Marriage Acts, which explicitly prohibit gay marriage. Only one state, Massachusetts, allows gay marriage, though the Supreme Courts of Connecticut and California are considering the issue. In New Jersey, where the Legislature has approved civil unions, the attorney general’s office has said that same-sex marriages performed in Massachusetts or in countries including Canada and the Netherlands should be called civil unions, not marriages, though both have the same rights and obligations.
Just two years ago, it seemed that gay marriage was at a dead end in New York. The state’s high court, the Court of Appeals, ruled in July 2006 that the state’s Constitution did not compel the recognition of same-sex marriage, and that it was up to the Legislature to change the traditional definition of marriage.

So far, that has not happened. A bill passed the Assembly 85 to 61 last June, but has been stalled in the Senate. Advocates say that the patchwork of laws and decisions about gay marriage across the country has put gay couples and their families in a kind of legal limbo. “Marriage law aims at providing stability to couples, but when couples don’t know whether their marriage will be recognized from one place to another, there’s a loss,” said Suzanne Goldberg, director of the Sexuality and Gender Law Clinic at Columbia Law School.
The case of Beth R. vs. Donna M. in the State Supreme Court illustrated some of the legal gray areas for a couple who were raising two children together. While the ruling validated their marriage, it actually came in the midst of a divorce proceeding. The decision was reported by The New York Post last week.

The women, who have not made their full names public but who both work in the media, met in 1999 and moved in together in 2002, the court’s decision said. Donna M. became pregnant by artificial insemination in 2003, and just before the baby was due, the couple, who live in Manhattan, went to Toronto and took out a marriage license. But they postponed the wedding because of a death in the family.

They took out a second license and were married on Feb. 14, 2004, after the birth of the first child but before the birth of a second child, also by artificial insemination.

According to the judge’s decision, the plaintiff, Beth R., coached her partner through the births of both children, cut their umbilical cords and gave the children her last name. The couple sent out birth announcements. They taught the older girl to call her biological mother Mommy, and Beth R. was Mom. They chose a nanny, and went to preschool conferences. Donna M. named Beth R. as the children’s guardian, although they were never adopted.
But last April, Donna M., the biological mother, served an eviction notice on Beth R. A week later, Beth R. filed for divorce, so she could “legally end the marriage and someday move on if she wants,” said Susan Sommer, her lawyer and senior counsel for Lambda Legal, a gay rights legal group. Beth R. wanted “equitable distribution of marital property,” according to her divorce filing, and to ensure a continuing relationship with the children, including giving them financial support, her lawyer said.

The divorce action put the defendant, Donna M., in the peculiar position of arguing that their marriage was invalid and, therefore, there could be no divorce. Her lawyer, Bettina D. Hindin, said in an interview last week that her client, who is nearly 40, had had children because her biological clock was ticking and that she had been pressured into a marriage ceremony — a “shotgun type of situation” — which she thought of as just a symbolic commitment. “You can stand in front of a rabbi or a priest, and it’s not a marriage,” Ms. Hindin said. “It’s like staging a murder. You can make it look like a murder, but it’s not necessarily a murder.”

But the State Supreme Court Justice, Laura E. Drager, disagreed, saying that New York honors marriages performed out of state unless they are specifically prohibited by law, which gay marriage is not, or “abhorrent to public policy,” as in cases of incest or polygamy.
The presumption of reciprocity is so strong that even a marriage between an uncle and his niece, which would have been forbidden in New York, was recognized in New York after it was performed in Rhode Island, she wrote in her Feb. 25 ruling.

The lawyers said that having upheld the validity of the marriage, the judge will now move to traditional questions in a divorce like grounds, custody, visitation and financial support for the children, alimony and distribution of marital property. Roberta A. Kaplan, who argued the case for gay marriage before the high court in 2006, said the Beth R. case showed that gay breakups could be just as bitter as straight ones, and needed the same legal protections. “It’s a very depressing way of looking at the world, but this stuff is most important when bad things happen — if there’s a death, if there’s a split,” Ms. Kaplan said.

In the Rochester case, the Canadian marriage between Ms. Martinez and Lisa Ann Golden was recognized by the Appellate Division of State Supreme Court in Monroe County, which ordered that Ms. Martinez’s health benefits from her job as an administrator at a community college should be extended to her spouse. Monroe County argued that the marriage violated public policy as reflected in the 2006 Court of Appeals decision, and said it would appeal.
Justice Drager cited the Rochester case as a precedent, and Ms. Sommer said that the Monroe County appellate decision is binding on lower courts throughout New York until there is a contrary ruling from another appellate court. Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo filed a supporting brief in the Rochester case, saying that reciprocity for same-sex marriage “is the declared policy of the state.”

The trend in court, Ms. Sommer contended, “just helps give an air of inevitability” to same-sex marriage. For her part, Ms. Martinez said that since the court decision, she and Ms. Golden had gone from feeling like they had checked their marriage at the border to feeling like newlyweds. “Now we feel that we are very married in New York,” she said.

Small Fry

2008-03-05T12:37:00.002-05:00

When I was a kid, I loved Max Fleischer cartoons. My two favorites were, Somewhere in Dreamland (1936) about two very poor children who go to bed one night and wake up in 'dreamland' which for them is a land with ice-cream fields,syrup rivers and cake mountains...where it rains candy all day and there are more toys than you could play with in a lifetime. I think every child, rich or poor from the beginning of civilization until now has had this dream.

My next favorite was 'Small Fry' (1939) about "Junior Catfish who skips school to hang out at the pool hall. Mama was worried he might have been caught by a fisherman instead. He returns home for dinner, then sneaks back to the pool hall for the meeting of the Big Fry Club. For his initiation, he's sent into a cave full of scary things that ultimately send him running back to mama's arms."

For some reason, 'Small Fry' crossed my mind today so I looked it up on YouTube. Of course YouTube has everything so I found it and watched it again after all these years.I was amazed. It still has a wonderful message but also elements we would never see in a cartoon of today; elements I never noticed until now: heavy tobacco usage, mention of spanking with a shoe, drug usage, and the final scene was actually really scary for me as a kid. lol.

It's funny, kids back then were so much less messed up than kids today...I guess it just goes to show...it must not be what they're watching.The problem must lie somewhere else.

Barack on Equality

2008-03-05T10:23:00.004-05:00

I copped this from another blog and I'm so happy I found it. I hadn't seen this before but I love it. This is why Obama gets my 'vote' even though I can't legally drop a ballot into a box. To say this in front of a predominantly African-American and heterosexual crowd - the man has guts. This is the kind of politician America needs.

Some are Calling it 'Critical Tuesday'

2008-03-04T15:48:00.005-05:00

By Mikhaela B. Reid

My New L Word Crush?

2008-03-04T14:45:00.013-05:00

Yeah, call me a stereotypical lesbian who's glued to the TV every Sunday night clinging to every second of the L Word - yup I'm guilty. But, I can't help it. It's not every day you see a show centered around beautiful, lesbian women that's well written, 'hot' and exciting. I love it. The only criticism I have is that, even though the cast is pretty diverse, I can't help but wish there were more african-american lesbians on there. But, for now, I take what I can get!

My girlfriend is of course in love with Shane (Kate Moennig). Who isn't right? Well, besides me - not really my type if you know what I mean.

I've always been a Bette (Jennifer Beals) fan. That whole 'vamp' hidden beneath a professional woman's exterior? So sexy.

Then Carmen (Sarah Shahi) came along and every scene she was in would cause me to break out into a cold sweat. She was way too gorgeous to be putting up with Shane's mess and I hoped they would have them break up. Be careful what you wish for right? Right after Shane ditched her at the altar, her character disappeared from the show - never to be seen again. I'm still devasted about that. She was delicious. Oh Well.

Recently, though, I've had a new L Word crush - not on a new character either- well not really. It's on Alice (Leisha Hailey). She's been a member of the cast since the very beginning but in my mind there's been something very new about her lately. I always thought of her as more of a 'homie' -- you know, the cool girl next door that you hang out with but never really get with? Then again, maybe girl next door is not the best description for me since my first crush/love and my first kiss (when I was ten) was with my 'girl next door' - literally. I could step off my driveway and into her yard..and I did... A LOT! Anyway, you get my point.

Uh-huh,Alice has really come into her own this season. Her quirky, no-nonsense personality is a turn on but more than that, is it just me or is she like ten times hotter on the whole lately? The last few episodes especially have had me doing double takes. Go Alice! I'm still a die-hard Bette fan but damn, Alice has got me on the look-out.

Yet, MORE American Idol Controversy.

2008-03-04T11:13:00.008-05:00

This season, even more than seasons in the past, seems to be seeped in the 'C' word. Not only have we learned how many contestants this season had prior record deals (something that would not have been allowed in the past), now we're learning of yet more controversy involving contestants David Hernandez and Ramiele Malubay.

(AP) "American Idol" contestant David Hernandez once entertained audiences by removing his clothes instead of singing tunes, a manager at a male strip club in Phoenix told The Associated Press. The 24-year-old finalist from Glendale, Ariz., once worked as a stripper at Dick's Cabaret, appearing fully nude and performing lap dances for the club's "mostly male" clientele, club manager Gordy Bryan said Monday. "He had the look and the type that people like, so he made pretty good money here," Bryan said. It's not clear whether a history as a stripper could disqualify Hernandez from the competition. In 2003, finalist Frenchie Davis was dismissed because of her appearance on an adult Web site; but last year, Antonella Barba remained in the competition after racy photos of her surfaced on the Internet. Fox spokeswomen Jill Hudson did not immediately return telephone calls seeking comment Monday.

According to Bryan, Hernandez steadily worked at the club for three years until September 30, 2007. "He never renewed his licensing with the state, so he hasn't been on my roster since then," Bryan said. Bryan said he was aware that Hernandez was a vocalist, but that Hernandez never sang at the club. Bryan said he now believes Hernandez stopped working at the club because of his participation in "American Idol." Hernandez has never been referred to as a stripper or former stripper during the Fox singing competition. Rumors of a stripper past _ along with photos of a scantily clad Hernandez working as a bartender at gay nightclub Burn _ were first posted last week on VoteForTheWorst.com, a site that encourages "Idol" viewers to vote for "the bad and truly entertaining contestants." "It was like moths to a flame," said VoteForTheWorst.com founder Dave Della Terza. "As soon as I posted that, we started getting 10, 20 letters every single day from people saying, 'Yeah, he's a stripper in Phoenix.'"(From CBS news)

Racy photos said to be of "American Idol" contestant Ramiele Malubay have appeared on the Web, CelebTV.com reports. The photographs show the 20-year-old Florida native grabbing a female co-worker's breast at a sushi bar in Miramar, Fla. They appeared on a fan Facebook site, CelebTV.com reports. Another photo purportedly shows Malubay with a friend's hand on her breast. The singer, who says she's influenced by Aretha Franklin and Mariah Carey, lists her favorite quote as: "If you're hated, you're doing something right." She auditioned for the program in Miami. (From FOX news)

Tyra Talks with Mike Huckabee about Homosexuality

2008-03-03T14:48:00.003-05:00

Mike Huckabee, who has previously equated homosexuality with necrophilia, pedophilia, and bestiality, while also calling it a choice,went on "Tyra" to discuss his views on homosexuality. Why "Tyra"? Perhaps because, as Tyra put it, "I love the gays and the gays love me."

Really Mike?

Aww, man! :(

2008-02-29T11:45:00.005-05:00

One of my favorites (Alexandrea) went home last night after I voted for her and everything!

I'm a bit too distraght to post now so here's a quick, 60 second video that explains it all:

And Tango Makes Three

2008-02-28T11:35:00.008-05:00

This book by Justin Richardson has been on the market for almost three years now but since it was a recent topic of discussion it on The View, with Sherry stating it would be "too much" for her three year old son Jeffrey, I thought it was worth a re-visit.

Just looking at the three ultra-cute penguins on the cover, one might never suspect that this book topped the ALA's (American Library Association) list of 'most challenged books' in 2006. In other words, it was banned big time! Why? well because the two adult penguins on the front cover, are not a male and female raising their adorable baby; they're two male penguins raising an adopted baby.

The children's book (ages 4-8) tells the touching true story of Roy and Silo, two male penguins that live at the Central Park zoo in New York City. Zookeepers were astonished to discover that not only did Roy and Silo seem to spend all their time together,they built a nest and tried to hatch an egg by sitting on a large rock they'd placed in their nest.

They exhibit what in penguin parlance is called "ecstatic behavior": That is,
they entwine their necks, they vocalize to each other, they have sex. Silo
and Roy are, to anthropomorphize a bit, gay penguins. - Dinita Smith, New
York Times. 02/07/04.

This behavior prompted zookeepers to give Roy and Silo one of two eggs that were fertilized by a mixed-gender penguin couple. Since the biological parents could not care for the extra egg anyway, the keepers thought they would see what Roy and Silo would do with it. Well, they immediately sat on it and looked after it with extreme care,taking turns sitting on it until it hatched.When it did, they feed it tenderly and looked after the little female penguin who was named Tango, just as well as a male and female penguin could.

Now, I have not read the book as yet but according to the research I've been doing, it seems like a touching story about the power of love and could also be used to teach about adoption-nothing scandalous about it! In fact, with my sister and her husband's permission, I would love to give it as a gift to my neice or nephew once he/she is born in a few months. It teaches children diversity and acceptance and helps them to understand that there are many different types of families that exist in this world and ALL of them are capable of love.

My question is, why would this book be banned if it's based on a true story about animals who did what was seemingly natural to them which was love each other and love this baby that they were put in charge of? Like Whoopi said when she responded to Sherry on the view: children are most likely not going to take away from this book that these penguins are gay; what they're gonna take from it, is that the penguin was loved and was given the chance to grow up with real parents rather than set under a lamp or something to be hatched that way.

I read one review that had the gall to say that reading this to their child would threaten the sanctity of his marriage to his wife.

My question again is ..how exactly? How could teaching your child tolerance threaten anything?

And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson: if you're not afraid of cute,"gay" penguins,I urge you to give it a read. I will.

Girls Night:Another disappointment.

2008-02-28T10:27:00.011-05:00

Just like I predicted, they did the same as the guys- picked horrible songs! I mean, it was 70's night and like Randy said, the 70's was full of great music but the girls didn't do much better in terms of finding songs that fit them and/or were interesting. That's all I have to say about that.

Here are the ladies I have my eye on DESPITE the bad song choices of last night:

Alexan-drea...Ooooh the way her name is pronounced annoys me but I really like her.She's also a local girl from Georgia and I think she's really got something but the judges don't seem to like her very much. I notice Randy,Paula and Simon (don't their names sound like they could be a group of folk singers from the 60's?) really like the idea of pigeon-holding contestants into one genre- either you're country,pop,rock...or a soul singer and when you don't choose one or the other they're none too happy. Alexandrea, however, is unique; she changes it up everytime we see her and I hope that doesn't change. I actually liked her song choice last night - She chose Chicago's 'If you leave me Now' and I thought she did a brilliant arrangement with it and sounded great but I don't know if it will be enough to keep her in the competition - especially when the judges just don't seem to 'get' her.Brooke is a sweetie.She's so pure and 'down home'-ish. I really like the simplicity of her sound.She isn't pretentious about it.She just sings.Last night she sang 'You're so vain', strumming away on a guitar and it was great! I think she'll stick around.

Even if you don't like her style of music, (I do. I love rocker chicks.They're sexy), you have to love her energy and her complete comfortability on stage. She walks out there and completely 'rocks it' like she owns the place everytime. The other contestants can learn a lot from her - the majority of them just just stand in one spot like they're afraid they'll fall off the stage. The judges usually dig her but last night they were not feeling her song choice or her look- they thought it was all a bit too over the top.

Carly's voice is breathtakingly clear and flawless. It's beautiful to me what she seems to be able to do with it. I hope she makes it to the finals because I don't think we've seen the best she has to offer. I have no idea what she sang last night but she is very talented and quite interesting to me. I don't have a whole lot to say about Asia'h except, I think she's quite talented (not to mention very easy on the eyes) and I hope she steps up her game because she has the potential to do big things but will America see that potential? Not unless she picks better songs, and performs more.

Come on ladies. Don't make me eat my words about this better one of the best seasons of Idol in a long time.

Raisins and Idols?

2008-02-27T13:01:00.006-05:00

No, there's not a new American Idol cereal on the market chock full of raisins, I'm just combining
my 'American Idol' and 'Raisin in the sun' re-cap since I didn't get to blog yesterday.
I'll start with 'A Raisin in the Sun':

You know, as excited as I was about watching it, I did with great skepticism. After all, the actors had some big shoes to fill and to have Diddy at the helm? well, let's just say, I didn't expect much. But, I'm happy to say I was pleasantly surprised. Did Diddy's performance rival Sidney's? Not even close! But, I was proud of him because I could tell he worked really hard and you have to respect that.

All the actors did an impressive job.The gorgeous Sanaa Lathan and Audra McDonald are both exceptional as Beneatha and Ruth. But for me, the star of the production was Phylicia Rashad. I must admit, although I know she's won Image Awards and has been nominated for Emmys, I wasn't very familiar with her work outside of the Cosby Show.She reallllly delivered as Mrs.Younger, the Matriarch of the family; every scene she was in captivated me.I loved her.

I'm so glad they brought this to Primetime so a whole new generation could fall in love with this story.

And something I forgot to mention in my previous post:the producer of the film,Craig Zadan is a gay man. Something else that's little known by most of us: African American playwright, Lorraine Hansbury, who wrote 'A Raisin in the Sun', and was also the first black woman to have a play brought to broadway, was a lesbian.

Boys Night Review

2008-02-27T11:31:00.022-05:00

Last night was boys night and the theme was 70's music (last week was 60's). How was it? Lemme say the word, 'underwhelmed' comes to mind for me. Yes, the performances were slightly better than last week at least, but then again that's not saying very much. These guys definitely need a course in 'song picking 101' because I just don't understand what's going through their minds.

Of course there are a few bright spots that made last night somewhat bareable.Here are my two favorites from the boys side:

How cute is he? Adorable!What is he like, 12? Aww.Cuteness aside though, the boy's voice is no joke. He can really sing! But more than that, his control is impeccable and his voice is so pure.Randy's right, he sings with a maturity that well surpasses his age. I'd be willing to bet that he listens to a lot of R&B music because if I'm not mistaken, I hear some soul emanating from his riffs and transitions. He is my clear favorite of the boys right now and even though I'm holding off on officially predicting my season 7 'winner' until we get down to the final twelve, don't be surprised if young master Archuleta's name shows up again very soon.

My girlfriend made a joke last night about there being ten 'David's' in the competition this year :)Well, she's close...there are actually three. David Hernandez is my second favorite one. From way back at the hollywood auditions, he and David Archuleta (above) have just stood out to me. They clearly have voices that are not only good enough to actually generate record sales in the future.. they seem to have that oh so important, 'it' factor about them that just grabs your attention and causes them to stand a part from the rest. Hernandez has some work to do especially if he wants to keep up with Archuleta and some of the better girls in the competition but he has shown on more than one occassion that he can take criticism and make the necessary improvements.He's definitely one to watch.

Okay, I didn't plan to do this but since we're on the subject of my favorites, let me throw in my least favorites:

Danny, I hate to do this to ya especially 'cuz I know you're a member of the family but I just have two words for you: 'Talent Deficient'.

I just have one word for you Jason: BORING!

A Raisin in the Sun

2008-02-25T15:23:00.012-05:00

By Vanessa Juarez
For those with Oscar-speech fatigue, you can catch some stellar performances in, yes, a TV movie on ABC tonight. It's called A Raisin in the Sun (read the EW review). Maybe you've heard of it — the 1959 Lorraine Hansberry play about African-American upward mobility that was remade as a Sidney Poitier film a year later and again revived on Broadway in 2004. Reprising their stage roles for the adaptation are Sean Combs, Audra McDonald, Phylicia Rashad, and Sanaa Lathan. They play the Youngers, a family trying to find their American dream while living on Chicago's South Side in the 1950s. When Lena (Rashad) finally gets the $10,000 life insurance check she's been waiting for, they have to work out how it gets spent. Walter Lee Jr. (Combs) has his heart set on starting a business, his wife Ruth (McDonald) simply wants a bigger home that doesn't creak and has a bathroom of its own, and his sister Beneatha (Lathan) wants to finish up college so she can become a doctor. Rounding out the troupe is John Stamos, who plays Mr. Linder, the neighborhood association rep who hasn't, let's just say, seen the light.

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Yes!! I've been waiting to see this for sometime now so I'm delighted it's being brought to TV. The original movie starring Ruby Dee and fellow Bahamian (woot,woot) Sidney Poitier, is still one of my favorite movies of all time. The story is really touching and I suggested to several people, in anticipation of this premiere, that they go out and rent the original. It will change your life.

As a black person in these post-modern times, with the very real possibility of a black man becoming president, this story, written so brilliantly by Lorraine Hansbury really hits hard and reminds us of from whence we came. If you haven't yet, you have to see Poitier's performance which earned him a Golden Globe nomination in 1962 (was I even a gleam in my father's eye back then to know what else was nominated? Of course not, but, still I think he should have won). Check out this scene, one of the best in the whole movie, watch the passion in every move, facial expression and gesture Sidney makes.

Whoooo, powerful!! And that Bahamian accent really came out when he got mad! :)

After seeing that again just now, I'm slightly worried about what 'Diddy' will do in the same role especially since I'm not his biggest fan. Of course, I'm sure he can't begin to compare to Sidney, I mean, who can? But to his credit, the reviews say he did a fine job. I even heard that when he started the play on broadway he had an exact replica of the set built in his home so that he could practice every day after performing in the show. Pretty impressive. I also heard he's even better in the movie than he was in the play. I guess I'll see for myself tonight tonight at 8pm. I'm very excited.

Today's 'Ain't That the Truth!'

2008-02-25T11:30:00.003-05:00

Top 12 Reasons Why Homosexuals Shouldn't Be Allowed to Marry:

1. Homosexuality is not natural, much like left handedness.

2. Heterosexual marriages are valid because they produce children. Infertile couples and old people can't legally get married because the world needs more children.

3. Obviously, gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.

4. Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage is allowed, since Britney Spears' 55-hour just-for-fun marriage was meaningful.

5. Heterosexual marriage has been around a long time and hasn't changed at all; women are property, blacks can't marry whites, and divorce is illegal.

6. Gay marriage should be decided by people, not the courts, because the majority-elected legislatures, not courts, have historically protected the rights of the minorities.

7. Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That's why we have only one religion in America.

8. Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.

9. Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.

10. Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That's why single parents are forbidden to raise children.

11. Gay marriage will change the foundation of society. Heterosexual marriage has been around for a long time, and we could never adapt to new social norms because we haven't adapted to things like cars or longer lifespans.

12. Civil unions, providing most of the same benefits as marriage with a different name are better, because a "seperate but equal" institution isalways constitutional. Seperate schools for African-Americans worked just as well as separate marriages for gays and lesbians will.

Goodbye Joanne! My heartfelt letter.

2008-02-22T08:46:00.006-05:00

Dear Joanne,

I miss you already. You know I don't care about any of those other people ousted from 'Idol' last night but you...you just didn't deserve it. Let me be honest with you, since (in my mind) we know each other personally from way back - you remember, ever since we shared that heated glance while I was shopping at Ashley Stewart with the girlfriend and you were staring down all seductive-like from that poster above the jeans rack. I thought you were gorgeous. You had everything I find physically attractive in a woman: beautiful eyes, amazing dimples punctuating a radiant smile and the curves that could make a mere mortal lesbian weak. If, my gorgeous girlfriend weren't standing right beside me possessing all those qualities plus a bunch more....who knows, maybe we could've had something Joanne..maybe. But we're still good friends so I must tell you, your rendition of 'Say a little Prayer' did not make my knees buckle. I don't know if the nerves got ya, or maybe it was a touch of that flu going around that we heard so much about. It just wasn't your best performance.

But should you have been eliminated? No way! Especially not on the first night! Afterall ,you have more talent tucked inside of one of those cute, little dimples than most of those girls could ever have! You should've stuck around until the end. This is just so unfair. You know what Joanne, I blame myself. I should've supported you more. I should've called in to vote but we both know shoula, coulda, woulda's won't do either of us any good now. What we have to do next is move on. At least we still have each other right? What do you say we get together sometime soon, you know... to talk. Same place, same time? I'll meet you over at the Jeans rack.

your faithful friend,

-E.

Ready to Recant My Idol Statement?

2008-02-21T09:22:00.012-05:00

Heck No!

I do admit that the performances weren't up to par at all these past two nights. The era for song choice was the sixties but most people just didn't seem to 'get it'. Both the guys and the girls let me down by picking horrible songs that were either boring or didn't match their ranges, or allowing their nerves to get the best of them on stage. I couldn't believe some of the songs they chose because when I think of the sixties, I think:

Sooo many great songs to choose from and people picked.. craaaaaaaap. But I still maintain that there is some great talent in this group.I just hope those who remain after tonight's cut can get their acts together.

Six Days 'til Gavin...

2008-02-21T09:02:00.005-05:00

February 27th: The Roxy, Atlanta,GA.

The Search for A Superstar Continues

2008-02-19T17:43:00.003-05:00

Despite the ratings being the lowest ever! I must say, seven seasons in and I am still a devoted American Idol fan. I understand why some people may have deserted the show though . Let's face it, the talent has gotten weaker and weaker every season but for those of you who don't know...Idol is BACK baby! I've been watching the auditions diligently and my keen eye for talent tells me that the competition this year is fierce and reminiscent of the first season! I am so excited! I know I'll be parked in front of my TV, waiting to see what this new group of young people will be bringing to the stage tonight, will you?

Saartjie 'Sarah' Bartmaan : The "Hottentot Venus" Story

2008-02-15T10:41:00.007-05:00

File This One Under Fascinating and Disturbing.

2008-02-15T08:29:00.006-05:00

To the victims of the latest university shooting:

May you rest in peace.

To the injured and the mourning families left behind:

May God give you the strength to endure the long journey ahead.

And to the rest of us watching from the sidelines of an ever-worsening world:

May God be with us all.

In Honor of Valentine's Day: Five things I'm LOVING at the moment.(Fave Fives)

2008-02-14T13:23:00.026-05:00

I plan to make the 'top five things I'm loving right now' a regular (most likely monthly) feature of this blog and I thought, 'what better day to kick off the first count-down than Valentine's Day?' So.. here we go:

Number 5: Mario's 3 Album -GO!

Mario just may be one of the most underrated artists on the music scene right now. Ever since he was 15 the young man's been churning out hits that defy his age and set him far apart from the other young men in the industry. For one thing, Mario can sing - His vocals are no joke and are definitely not studio created or enhanced; he keeps his clothes on and when he was kid his lyrics reflected that by being age appropriate. Now that he can both legally drink and vote, his latest cd 'Go' pulls no punches and displays his grown man talent. Not only does he deliver stellar vocal performances on 'Go', he wrote and produced much of the album. He deals with some really personal aspects of his life on it too, including his mom's much publicized battle with addiction. I love this cd so much I've burned several copies for the house, car and it's downloaded on to my MP3 player . I have to say, I loved his second album Turning Point a little better but 'Go' comes in a close second and I'M LOVING IT.

Number 4: Noah's Arc on DVD

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. I know I'm way behind the eight ball with this one but I'm getting caught up as quickly as I can. I don't have LOGO (yet) so I wasn't introduced to Noah's Arc until recently after reading Darian's blog. It seemed interesting so I added it to my blockbuster queue. Season 1 came in the mail and my girlfriend and I settled in to watch the first episode.For me, it was just so-so at first. I thought the characters were a bit too sterotypical and one-demensional.But then, as we kept watching I began to change my mind. The story lines really started to draw me in and not only was I pleasantly surprised that I was wrong, I begun to really fall in love with Noah,Wade,Eddie,Ricky,Chance and the rest. Fancy me, a lesbian falling in love with a bunch of men :) Noooo, it wasn't that kind of party but now I'm definitely hooked. The second season is on it's way and I can't wait.Picture me waiting patiently by the mailbox.

Number 3: - Fresh to Order Restaurant

Whenever you can combine delicious and nutritious you have a happy customer in me. Fresh to order (F2O) is a wonderful and affordable new lunch and dinner spot. They specialize in their awesome salads served with a warm and sweet croissant, but also have panini's, pork,steak,tofu and mashed potatoes.The restaurant's atmosphere is worth the trip but if you don't feel like leaving the house, they deliver as well as offer take-out. My favorite salad so far is the Club with ale-laced chicken tenders,golden raisins,crispy bacon,avocadoes,crunchy almonds and tomatoes all resting on baby greens .Yum.

Number 2: The Griddler

I love to cook and if I do say so, I'm pretty darn good at it. But, anything that can make my life easier is welcomed at anytime. I love this machine. You can make pretty much anything on it. A friend of mine won a similiar device at an office party one year and the first time I tried it I was in love. I vowed I would get one so over the holidays my girlfriend and I did our research and discovered the Griddler which makes my friend's machine look like a toy.The features on this thing are incredible. I love being able to cook my eggs,pancakes and bacon all at once for breakfast,make panini's for lunch, and then grill up chicken and veggies for dinner all on one gorgeous machine that is so good looking I keep it displayed on the counter. I'm in love.

Number 1: Blogger, Internet Phenom and Supreme Diva, B.Scott

Love Muffins Get Into This: B.Scott is So Splendiferous! I was wayyyy behind the eight-ball on this young man. I discovered him about a month ago while browsing through YouTube on one particularly boring afternoon after a long day of job hunting. Something drew me to one of his videos, I pressed play and Take me Higher Lord, I've been pressing play ever since! I was hooked and immediately proceeded to turn everyone I talked to after that day into a Love Muffin as well. His website is my new guilty pleasure and I check it several times a day..I can't help but smile when I see he's created a new video and I sometimes watch them more than once. What can I say? He's B.Scottttttttttttt. If you don't recognize all the refrences I'm making then, trust me you're, like I was, living under a rock because B.Scott has not only taken over YouTube, he's poised to take over Hollywood very soon and the buzz about him just keeps growing. What is it about him exactly? Where do I begin? He's Hilarious. He's Spiritual and being a former tiny tot for Christ myself, I'm very attracted to that. He's intelligent, Charming, Honest,Consistent (he keeps that page poppin' several times a day) but most of all - and this is the main thing that distinguishes him from the pack of celebrity bloggers/personalities - he's Positive.

My girlfriend is a big Perez fan but I've never been able to really get into him; I find him to be rather cruel at times, most times in fact. I don't necessarily judge him for that though, afterall, being a jerk seems to be popular in today's society right now. It's just not my thing. That's why stumbling across B.Scott was such a breath of fresh air. He's still honest as can be but he's not spirit-crushing, demoralizing and just plain mean to the celebrities he dishes about on a daily basis. Even when there's seemingly nothing positive to say in a situation, you better believe B.Scott will find it, even if it's just "well, at least her shoes are cute." From a Faithful Love Muffin, thank you B.Scott for being unapologetically who you are, keep up the good work and I can't wait to see what the future holds for you.

Happy Valentine's Day..

2008-02-14T09:10:00.003-05:00

Here's a song my Valentine and I love...

The Way I Am by Ingrid Michaelson

Thank you for taking me the way I am babe.

I love you....

Gavin's Back

2008-02-13T19:41:00.005-05:00

Finally, Finally, Finally... my boy's Gavin Degraw's back poised to drop another hot album and not a moment too soon. Oh how I've missed him from the radio! Here it is a whole five years after Chariot was released and I still play it constantly because it is just soooooooo good - beginning to end which we all know is rare. Check out the widget at the bottom of the page to hear his new single 'In love with a Girl.' Annnnnnnnnnd best of all, if you'll be in Atlanta area later on this month, he'll be having a really intimate concert at the Roxy Theatre on February 27th to promote the new album and of course to hit us up with some of the old songs too. Get your tickets now.

I'm Soooo excited! Yay Gavin!

I have a confession.

2008-02-13T13:43:00.009-05:00

I love Reggae.

I do. What can I say? And not just Reggae, Soca, Rake n' Scrape, Calypso, etc. Basically any and all Caribbean music. Why do I love it? Other than the fact that it sounds good, it's part of my culture. Born and raised in the Bahamas, I was exposed to this kind of music before I was exposed to my ABC's. I listened to it all the time and recited the lyrics, all the lyrics - good or bad - with ease. Back then I didn't know any better but now that I do listening to some of it makes me feel nauseous and even worse, guilty. It's no secret Reggae and many other genres of West-Indian/Caribbean music, (but Reggae in particular) spouts homophobic lyrics more than Keith Sweat's lyrics spout, "baby don't leave me, baby come back to me, baby, baby please", so as a lesbian woman, I'm left cringing through most of the songs.

In recent years I've gone through my music collection and tossed much of the really bad stuff, the stuff that really boils my blood. But, if I'm completely honest, there are many cd's I've left untouched because it's just so hard to part with music or anything that re-connects you to your culture, (minus the anti-gay lyrics of course), especially when you're living in another country far from it. So I'm left to keep hoping and praying that talented artists like Buju, Beenie, Bounty Killer, Elephant Man and the rest would wisen up and realize that their homophobic lyrics are beginning to cause them good money in cancelled concerts all over the world and just stop hating. Maybe one day.

All is not lost though , I still have a lot of great Reggae to listen to in the meantime, The King Bob, Beres Hammond, Glenn Washington, Tanya Stephens and many more.
Not only is Tanya my all time favorite Caribbean female artist, she has always been socially conscious and has spoken out against racism, violence and homophobia through her music. Her example is refreshing and I'm sure it will be followed in the future or at least spark her young, Caribbean fans to think. My favorite Tanya album is Gangsta Blues but her last album, Rebelution comes in a close second. Tanya if you're out there, it's time for another album! Rebelution is going on two years old and we miss your words of wisdom on the Reggae scene! Here's a song from Rebelution called 'Do you still care?' that emcompasses her views on racism, homophobia and hate in general.

Where Bubba Grew Up, Kept his tobacco chewed up,And when they used to hang ropes, they always kep two up,Had crosses burnin all night like the church blew up,And if you didnt look like them, they would fuck you up.

Time passed, and Bubba turned 40 years old,And all them Jack Daniels started taking a toll,Seem like Bubba was about to make a final bow,None of his friends from the clan couldnt help him now.Family gathered at his bedside, ready to sing the blues,When the doctor rushed in and said "Ive got some news!!!""The good news is, Bubba, Ive found you a liver, only bad news is, it belongs to a Nigger"

Do you still care, about the texture of his hair or the cocoa brown colour of his skin,Do you still care, do you still give a damn now you're in the predicament you're in,Do you still care, does it still mean a lot now,You're the one who's needin the help,Do you still care, do you still find it hard to love your neighbour as you love yourself now,Tell me why cant you accept me as I am,Just as I am now.

Where Bigga grew up, boys were supposed to be tough,Girls were trophies every man always kept a few of,When he was hurt and the tears would sting in his eyes,His mother said "Stop di noise, yuh a girl? real boys dont cry!"He learned in order to be a man he had to know how to fight,And had some very difinitive rules bout whats wrong or right,He never had the luxury of being able to choose,So to him for being different, there was no excuse.

Bigga was hustling on the corner, makin some cash,When he bumped into some beef that he had from the past,He watched the guns raise and the bullets fly in disbelief,As his friends all jumped in their rides,Left him in the gutter didnt care if he died,He was rescued by a car with plates that said 'Gay Pride',It would have been fatal,A shot in your head,They saved your life, though you always said "Chi-chi fi dead!!"

Now do you care, bout the clothes that they wear,Would you rather if they left you there,Do you still care what your friends wanna think if they see you hangin out with a queer,Do you still care, does it still mean a lot now, you're the one who's needin the help,Do you still care, do you still find it hard to love your neighbour as you love yourself now,Tell me why cant you accept me as I am,Just as I am now.

And thats the reason why, war cant cease,If yuh nuh look like me, me ago pop mi piece,And thats the reason why we cant get along,If yuh nuh do it my way then you doin it wrong,And thats the reason why, Iraqui babies gonna cry,And more Palestinians and Isrealies gonna die,Thats the reason why the world is in pain,We say we want peace fi reign, but a bullets again,Now tell me why cant you accept me as I am,Just the way I am now,Tell me why cant you accept me as I am,Just the way I am woah................

You..wrap it up too Ladies.

2008-02-12T10:28:00.002-05:00

Safe sex was something I didn't think about much in my whoring....ahem..excuse me, I meant in my younger days. This is a long article but definitely worth the read especially considering the new middle-school lesbian population (yeah I was shocked too) who think just because they're having sex with another female that they are safe from STD's.

The STD Words: A Sobering Look at Safer Sex for Lesbians and Bisexual WomenThe Naked Truth Article Date: 02/12/2008
By Tracey Stevens & Kathy Wunder
Kathy and I were watching the show Cashmere Mafia, which has four powerful women as main characters, including one who is a lesbian coming out. The four characters were sitting at a swank restaurant discussing Juliet Draper's husband's affair with Cilla Grey. Juliet says: "I sure as hell don't want to end up like one of those angry, drunken, WASPs in an Edward Albee play"
Zoe Burden cuts in with "Did you see the one where the husband cheated on the wife with a goat?"

To which Juliet replies "I would rather it have been a goat than Cilla Grey. At least it would have saved me the STD Screenings..."
The first thing I thought about was that it has long been speculated that Syphilis started when lonely shepherds got a bit too familiar with members of their wooly flock, but then my mind went to the fact that the character on Cashmere Mafia was actually talking about SAFER SEX!
This lead my brain to the biggest complaint I've had about many lesbian movies and popular shows like The L Word. No matter how much finger-action and lickity-splittin' goes on, you never see characters using Safer Sex practices, and many openly portray risky behaviors, like having unprotected sex with both women and men.

Take the following L Word Characters for example: Tina traipsing back into Straightdom then hightailing it to Lesboworld after seeing her boyfriend clipping his toenails in the living room; then there's bisexual Alice doing women and a man who claims HE is a lesbian; and the sweet but totally sex-addicted Shane, who got-off two sisters and THEIR MOTHER at the third sister's wedding!
Now don't get us wrong, Kathy and I LOVE The L Word, but graphic scenes of unsafe sex totally give the wrong impression, especially to newly out lesbians who think that there is no way women can catch sexually transmitted diseases from each other.

The fact is that lesbians can be infected with STDs by having unsafe sex with other lesbians, or with bisexuals who have been exposed through sex with men; sharing needles from IV drug use; piercing or tattooing without the proper sterilization techniques; having unsafe sex with men prior to realizing they are lesbian; or having unscreened artificial insemination and/or blood transfusions. Many STDs are transmitted when blood, vaginal fluids (including menstruation), breast milk, or semen from an infected person enters your body or blood-stream.

How to protect yourself: Before becoming intimate, it's up to both partners to ask each other the following question: in the past five years have you or your partner, or ex-partners, participated in unsafe behaviors listed in the previous paragraph? If so, you may want to have a general blood screening and an AIDS test. Wait 3-6 months after your last risky behavior and have a second test. Ask your health-care professional for the latest information on STDs including AIDS, and find out the best way to protect both you and your partner from a potentially deadly virus.

Handy items for safer sex: Latex gloves and Finger Cots can be purchased at most drug and medical supply stores, and you can also buy gloves in bulk at larger discount stores. These protective barriers are essential to use if either partner has a cut or sore on her finger, hand, mouth, vagina, or anus. These items are great for all kinds of activities, from clitoral stimulation to vaginal or anal penetration. Make sure to change them between vaginal and anal penetration, and also make sure your fingernails are not jagged, which can snag and cut the latex or your partner's skin. If your partner tends to 'flood with love', then stick to the full latex gloves, they are safer.

Dental dams are five-inch square pieces of latex that can be purchased at medical supply stores. Because unprotected oral sex is risky behavior, dental dams of some kind are essential. You can place the whole square over your partner's genitals, holding it yourself, or have your partner hold the top while you hold the bottom. Mark the dam with an ink pen to make sure you don't use the wrong side if you happen to put it down, and throw away your dams after one use. If you or your partner has trouble feeling stimulus through the barrier, you can apply a water-based lubricant to the genital area beneath the dental dam. Single-ply plastic wrap from the grocery store can also be used as a dental dam. Make sure it is non-porous plastic wrap, not microwavable plastic wrap. Just remember, like latex, plastic wrap can rip, so always be careful.
If you use dildos or dildo shaped vibrators, then condoms are a good thing to use. Instead of having to jump out of bed to wash shared toys, just carefully peel off the used condom and slip on a new one. Always pinch the air out of the end before rolling it on, because trapped air bubbles can cause a condom to break. You may also want to use a water-based lubricant to reduce friction, which can also cause breakage. If you are bisexual, use of lubricants with spermicidal agents can harm certain condoms.
Safe, Risky, and Unsafe Behaviors:
Safe Behavoirs include: hugging; massaging her everywhere but there; masturbation or watching her masturbate; phone sex; sharing fantasies; using vibrators or sex toys, but not sharing them without washing or changing the condom; dry kissing—no tonguing; or tribadism—rubbing your body on hers without vaginal fluids, blood, or breast milk exchanged.
Risky Behaviors include: French kissing, especially if you have a sore in your mouth or your gums bleed after brushing or flossing. Make sure to wait 30 minutes before kissing your partner if your gums bleed. Shared hand-to-genital contact with finger cots, gloves, or dental dams can be risky if a tear occurs in the latex: Oral sex while using a barrier can also be risky if the barrier moves or tears. Inserting your fist into your partner's vagina or rectum is always risky because of the pressure it puts on vaginal or intestinal tissues. Also, exchanging sex toys without washing them or using fresh condoms, any form of S&M or rough sex that involves piercing or shaving, or any sort of blood-letting are very risky behaviors.

Unsafe behaviors include: oral sex without a barrier; ingesting female fluids or ejaculate; sharing dildos or vibrators without a condom or without changing condoms in between users; licking the anal area without a dental dam or plastic wrap; fisting; any kind of unprotected sex with a man including oral, vaginal, or anal sex; sharing needles whether for drugs, piercing, or tattooing.
Drug or alcohol use prior to or during sex can impair your judgment to the point of not using safer sex practices. Passion is a wonderful thing, but not quite wonderful enough to die for. Worldwide, millions of people have perished from STDs, especially AIDS. Kathy and I personally knew over 20 people who died from AIDs, both men and women, and we know lesbians who have contracted Chlamydia, Hepatitis B, Herpes, and Genital Warts. Many STDs will stay in your body for the rest of your life, so please be safe and don't become one of the statistics.

Tracey Stevens and Kathy Wunder are the co-authors of Lesbian Sex Tips: A Guide for Anyone Who Wants to Bring Pleasure to the Woman She (Or He) Loves and How to be a Happy Lesbian: A Coming Out Guide. Their website, www.AmazingDreamsPublishing.com, provides more than 1,000 free community services for lesbian and bisexual women worldwide. Contact Tracey & Kathy at www.amazingdreamspublishing.com/contactform.html.

Ain't That the Truth!

2008-02-11T14:10:00.000-05:00

From time to time, I'll highlight something in this blog that is so insightful within itself that I have no further comment or additive but to say, "Ain't that the truth!" It doesn't necessarily have to be something particularly profound - just something that strikes a chord within me at that moment.

Here's something that struck me today, an animation I found while browsing on FaceBook. Enjoy.

My Top Ten Grammy Moments

2008-02-11T11:51:00.001-05:00

The Grammy Awards turned 50 in grand style last night with a show that dazzled and thrilled audiences with many highs and very few lows. The Grammy’s haven’t been this good in years! Before the show started my girlfriend and I were reminiscing about when as children we would count down the days ‘til the Grammy’s with great anticipation, gathering around the T.V. to watch with delight as all our favorites brought the house down. We also remarked about how, as we grew, the Grammy’s, and awards shows on the whole just got …well, stale. It’s like the powers to be in the awards show hierarchies just stopped caring and so the Grammy’s suffered. Boring performances, long, drawn out speeches from people you’d rather not hear from or who shouldn’t have won in the first place and overall yawn-dom. But, in honor of half a century in existence, last night’s stellar show really raised the bar and brought restored the former glory of the Grammy’s. I enjoyed virtually every moment of the three and a half hour show and could find very little flaws… so here are the top ten moments that made me smile.

10) Stevie Wonder Introduces Alicia Keys – Seeing Stevie always makes me smile and last night was no exception as he introduced Alicia Keys’ second musical number of the night. He’ll always be my favorite artist of all time not only because of his exceptional talent but because of his outstanding spirit. Whenever I see him he’s smiling and has this magnetic energy about him. Despite being a living legend and a twenty-five time Grammy winner himself, he’s always been one to give the younger artists their due. I’m sure Alicia was smiling behind the curtain as Stevie belted out the chorus of ‘No-One’ and of course played a little of the harmonica to go with. What a tribute.

9) Frank Sinatra – The show opened with Frank in a room full of the first Grammys back in 1958. He talked about what good music means to us and how Grammys were created to reward that. “…It’s called a Grammy. They’re voted once a year by the members of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; not for selling a million records mind you, you get ‘bread’ for that; this is for contribution to the art of recording.” I’m a sucker for stuff like that...looking back ‘from whence we came’. Always touches me. He and Alicia Keys then performed a duet afterwards that didn’t really get me going but to each his own.

8) Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis and John Foggerty – Since the general theme of the night seemed to be, ‘remembering our roots’ , it seemed only fitting to have some of the living founders of Rock and Roll perform some of their greatest hits. They were good too. The old guys still got it!

7) WOW Gospel – I love Gospel music and you just can’t get much better than Aretha Franklin who is the queen of soul but also a gospel veteran too, combined with fellow Gospel vets BeBe Winans and the Clark Sisters. Israel Houghton and his crew represented as well as Madison Bumblebee who I had never heard of until last night but they brought the horns, I mean they really brought the horns! Awesome! I have no idea who invited Trinity 5:7 to the party, seemed like they were just thrown in at the end and I could barely hear them over the powerful voices of the others, but hey, good for them.

6) Rihanna and Morris Day and the Time’s performance – I heart Rihanna, it’s no secret. The girl is gorgeous, talented and a fellow West-Indian! The fact that she keeps her nose clean in the dirty world of Hollywood makes me very proud. I hope she keeps it up. Her performance with Morris Day and the Time was one of the ones that really got me rockin’ in my seat. When they broke out the Michael, “Ma ma se Ma ma sa Ma ma cosa …” I was like, whattttttttt, those old guys still have energy and almost outshone Rihanna you could be their daughter! Very good performance.

5) The Beatles Tribute – No one can deny the enormous contribution the Beatles have made to music. Talk about still being relevant today? They are truly a band our kids and grandkids will be listening to long after we’re gone. Their tribute last night was good….it could’ve been better but good. I loved at the end when some of the members of the Across the Universe cast came out to sing ‘Let it Be’ . I think that song chokes everyone up. They did a wonderful job in the movie and a wonderful job last night.

4) Josh Groban/ Andrea Bocelli performance – ‘The Prayer’ is one of my favorite songs. I can see why it’s been re-recorded by artists of various genres, it’s so beautiful and inspirational. Andrea Bocelli does it best though. His voice is so angelic. Josh Groban sang with him and they dedicated the number to everyone we’ve lost in the music industry last year and especially to Pavorotti.

3) Kanye/Daft Punk – Kanye’s performance of ‘ Stronger’ is always one to watch. His energy is unmatched and that cockiness, although annoying off-stage, really captivates onstage. Daft Punk joined him in their first live performance of the song. They all wore glow in the dark outfits which was also pretty tight. But it was Kanye’s emotional tribute to his mom that really struck a chord. He slowed down his song ‘Mama’ and really belted it out. Can you say, Pass the tissues?

2) Beyonce and Tina – My ex-baby’s mama Beyonce really never lets me down. She’s beautiful, talented, sexy as all hell and I’m really digging her new hair…. But last night she and Tina really performed! It was so good to see Tina back on stage and besides missing one or two minor steps, she was in great form. It doesn’t seem like she’ll be ‘passing the torch’ any time soon, she’s still such an energetic performer. Wonderful!

1) Amy Winehouse – Amy’s performance via Satellite was by far the show-stopper in last night’s show and that’s saying a lot since the show was such a good one. They’d been hyping her performance all night and deliberately kept it until the very last so I was a little worried that it would be severely overrated. I think many of us were even more worried that Amy wasn’t quite ready to hit the stage again since she’s still in recovery – no one wanted to see another “Britney at the MTV Awards- like Debacle” . But Amy proved she’s no Britney. Her performances of ‘Rehab’ and ‘You know I’m no good’ killed! Sure, she wasn’t 100% the Amy we all know she could be but it’s really promising to see her on her way back. I was so proud of her and happy she took home her five Grammys. She deserved them; ‘Back to Black’ is a fierce album. Now let’s all say a prayer that the props she was showered with last night helps Amy finish cleaning up her act and get back to giving us incredible music.

So the Grammys this year pleasantly surprised me and I really enjoyed it.

*SideBar* Wouldn’t it have been nice to see Whitney perform though?

Hmm, maybe next year. Until then, we hope.

Black People, Black People, Black People...we have got to do better.

2008-02-08T12:52:00.000-05:00

I just got through with the most un-professional phone interview ever. Well, let me be fair, the sista was semi-professional when she was actually..... on the phone. She must have put me on hold a good twelve times during the course of a twenty-minute conversation! Okay maybe I'm exaggerating slightly but it really was too many times for an interview. Then she had the nerve to put me on hold - and I'm not exaggerating this time - a good ten minutes! If I didn't want the job so badly, I would've hung up because I don't even wait on the line longer than 45 seconds for my precious mother who carried me for nine months and then brought me into this cold, cruel world! I mean, I was beginning to fall asleep!
When she finally came back on the line she apologized and explained that there was an emergency she had to take care of and that was fine, I understood that but I'll be damned if she didnt put me on hold one time to say goodbye to her friend. She was like, "okay girlllllllllllllll, have a good weekend...see ya mondayyyyyyy". I never rolled my eyes so much in my entire life! While I was on hold I had a lot of time to think and I thought back to the message she left on my machine yesterday and I remembered not being able to hear her clearly because she was SNACKING!!? What the heck?

*note to self...breathe....woo-sah... woooooo-sahhhhhhhh... andddddd.... all better..

I hope this writing this entry won't jinx me...(excuse me while I knock on wood, throw some salt over my shoulder and rub my head and tummy at the same time) like I said I neeeeeeeed this job. So if you come across this entry sometime this weekend or early next week, please say a little prayer for me. I'll definitely be saying a little prayer for all you...

Enjoy this old school Aretha and have a splendid weekend.

What have I given up for 40 days of Lent?

2008-02-08T11:21:00.000-05:00

Caffeine.That means, No Coffee, No Tea, No Soda. Not so rough right? hmmm...maybe. maybe not. You know that saying, "you never miss the water 'till the well runs dry?" that's exactly how I'm feeling right now. I woke up this morning with the worst tea craving ever and I believe it was for no other reason than because I couldn't have it. This may prove a challenge. Oh well, at least I can get my coffee here.

One Punk Under God.

2008-02-07T08:16:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago I was flipping through channels looking for something to watch while I munched on my morning cereal. I came across a program on the Sundance Channel called 'One Punk under God' and the title intrigued me as much as the fact that it was a reality series did. Anyone that knows me will attest to the fact that I'm a true "reality junkie". I'm almost ashamed to admit it but it's true; I'll watch almost any reality show - call it a guilty pleasure if you will. So I sat back, pulled a throw blanket over my knees, got really comfortable and settled in to watch an episode or two of One Punk. Film crews followed Jay Bakker, you know son of Jim and the late Tammy-Faye Bakker? founders of the once incredibly successful PTL (Praise The Lord) ministries back in the 80's?The couple who were probably the most recognizable faces of Televangelism until they fell from grace after Jim's sex-scandal and then the accounting fraud that put him prison? Yeah them.

Well Jay has had his own unique ministry and his own church, 'Revolution', with branches in Charlotte, New York and here in Atlanta for years now . His ministry reaches out to the outcasts; people who've been thrown away by the traditional church. On his website and printed in bold letters on the flyers he hands out you'll find the statement, "As Christians, we're sorry for being self-righteous judgemental bastards"; Amen. Those are healing words to 'punks' like him, drug addicts, people who've given up on the church and now... gays, lesbians and transgendered people.

I watched in awe as the film crew caught Jay fighting hard with himself over the rhetoric he, and many of us, have grown up with that says being gay is a sin, an abomination and an automatic ticket to hell. Being a straight man, growing up in the pentecoastal movement and now pastoring a straight congregation, it wasn't easy for him to broach the idea to his congregants and famous family that something in his spirit was telling him it was all a lie. I could feel the tension through the screen the day he decided to tell them he would be opening his church doors to the LGBT community(by this time I'm about 5 episodes in and I'm hooked!) . I mean he was visibly sweating and you could hear a pin drop in the room. But, at the end of the sermon most of his predominately white congregation told him he had their support and that they were willing to embrace gays and lesbians in their church.

Watch what happened when he took it to a predominantly black church:

hmmm... They were all 'Amen-ing' and 'Yes Lord-ing' until the word 'gay' came out of his mouth. I gotta say, I was really embarrassed by their reaction. Especially after he said, "It’s…It’s…hard for me when people who’ve been through such persecution and been judged against …all of a sudden they don’t want freedom for anybody else". Ain't that the truth? Then he threw in an MLK quote too...stepping on even more toes. I swear black people have got to be the most hypocritical people on Earth! I wonder how many of them went home and really thought about what he said. I wonder how many of them were ashamed. Was there even one?

Thank God for Jay Bakker.

Deaths of Two Prominent Bahamian Men Still Unsolved.

2008-02-06T21:08:00.001-05:00

Famed Bahamian Designer Harl Taylor was found brutally murdered in his home in Nassau on November 18th of last year. He was rumored to have been found naked in a crime scene dripping with blood after having been stabbed multiple times.Harl was a brilliant hand-bag designer who used 'home-grown' Bahamian products such as sea-shells and straw to produce beautiful and creative designs that caught the attention of buyers around the world including American celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Naomi Campbell.

One day before Taylor's body was found, Professor Thaddeus McDonald, Dean of social and educational studies at the College of the Bahamas was also found murdered. 'Dr.Mac' as he was known by his students, was bludgeoned to death with an electric clothing iron in his home. McDonald was a well loved and respected lecturer famous for his open-door policy with his students who could call on him at any time.

These two talented and prominent men were also rumored to have been homosexuals. I use the word 'rumored' because no one's ever openly gay in the Bahamas. There, as in many other Caribbean countries, being gay is practically a crime within itself so it's no surprise police have been slow to come up with any leads in their cases. These two men are not among the first to be killed after gay rumors circulated around them - another teacher, Barrie Best was also found stabbed in his home and police officer Sgt. Kevin Williams was found shot. There are still no leads in any of these crimes. Who knows how many more murders of gay men and women have been swept under the rug or conveniently forgotten? Unfortunately, I doubt these will be the last.

Rest In Peace gentlemen.

A Day Late and a Dollar Short...

2008-02-06T11:17:00.000-05:00

The funniest thing happened. Funny Hee-Hee, not funny HaHa. You see, I promised to launch this blog on the 5th which was yesterday .But for some reason, I was thinking that yesterday was the 4th and TODAY would be the 5th ! Isn’t that funny? Well maybe not. Forgive me.
I guess I was just too caught up in all the excitement of Super Tuesday.

I have to admit. Even though I’m not an American citizen and therefore cannot vote, I find this election riveting. It’s history making and record breaking. Right about now, had I been born American, I’d say something like, ‘I’m proud to be an American’. But since I’m not, I’ll say, ‘ I’m just proud to be a …citizen of the world.’ As messed up as it is, as sick as our planet has become, we all have to be proud that we exist in a time when either a woman or an African-American man could soon be the new leader of the free world. Isn't that something?

Well, with that said…welcome to Coffee Will Make You Black. I’ll be your café host E. Because I love you, all the coffee’s on me and there are always free refills. We’ll learn more about each other as time goes on. I’m excited about that.

Coffee’s on…

The countdown is on y'all...

2008-01-30T00:19:00.000-05:00

Coming Febuary 5th...