Invisible Stop Signs

I've been having this thought and I hope that it doesn't offend. I've been trying to think of anything that can have a worse effect on a child than being sexually offended by an adult. I wasn't trying to trump it. I was just thinking, what things happen in a child's life that tests their famous resiliency. Then it occurred to me. I think, living in the constant fear of being a victim of a pedophile is worse than being a victim of a pedophile. Hear me out. Children are resilient. Amazingly resilient. They are resilient to practically any and everything that HAPPENS to them. The psychological and emotional toll that living in adamant paranoia can have on a child is too much though. You can get past something that happens, but it is impossible to move past the heavy weight of a perception when it stops your human growth, and never reveals itself. I'm not directing this to your average everyday concerned parent. Just the ones that watch the news, and To Catch A Predator, and tell their kids all about how there are evil adults waiting to attack and do terrible things to them. Those parents aren't doing their kids a favor. My daughter knows not to talk to or go with strangers. When I asked her why she shouldn't do these things, she said "Because they will take me from you and mommy." That was good enough for me. She doesn't need to know the intricate details of things that could, but odds are won't, happen to her. Innocence is becoming a rapidly vanishing resource amongst our youth and we should do our best to make sure it doesn't get depleted by our zest for awareness. Again, I believe in the resilience of children. I also believe in the mental erosion of fear. No one is immune. Not kids. Not adults. Not even Chuck Norris. Living under constant fear will turn scared children to paranoid adults. Not concerned adults, not cautious adults, but paranoid adults. A child's resiliency is confined to things that happen to them; not things that linger in their minds which may or may not be real. That's why they struggle with the Boogieman. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

My 300th Post

Well. Well. Well. 300 posts. I would've never thought that I had 300 things to type about. Somehow I did. Unfortunately, this last 300 post have been kinda darkened with what I can only categorize as haters and perpetrators. I believe that I lost several readers from it. It was apparent one day when i got a strange e-mail from someone who wanted to comment, but "didn't want involved in all that drama". I didn't help matters because I jumped in head first instead of letting people think what they think and work it out on their own. The worst part is that I ended up finding out that it was a loyal reader that I thought was a friend who started it all up. I've since, resolved all issues with that person and intend to move on. I actually considered just deleting it, but I'm glad I chose against it. Enough of that crap! My favorite topics from these past 100 have been: Rest In Peace, The Inauguration I Would've Loved To See, Blind Hypocrisy, An Elephant Never Regrets, A Cool Moment, Renigger, and Really???. This is the part I love. Now I wanna shout out the brave souls who I appreciate so much, and who make me feel sane and insane at the same time. I wanna thank all the people who have commented and left their name or a name instead of Anonymous. These fine people are: Stella, Crystal, Kelly Jo, Jade, Adria, Aimee, Jaime, Susan, Claire, Good Ole Wifey, Jermaine, James Tubman, Mizamizamoses, My Two Cents, Jessica, CoJack, J. Lucious, Tamara, Niecy Cakes, Mary, MJ Lives Under My Bed, and Wendy Lough. Thank you all. Please keep reading. I decided to post the picture of me and my mom because I also learned this year that no one has my back more than she does. NO ONE! I plan on trying for 400. I don't know if I'll make it, but I'm sure gonna try. Haters don't bother me as much anymore. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

What Hip Hop Needs.....

With the reappearance of Charles Hamilton, The Reemergence of Jay-Z, and the revelation of 50 Cent, I've been thinking about Rap music. i think I know what it needs right now.

Artists.

Really. Right now the music is full of Hustlers, Trap Stars, Gangsters, Entrepreneurs, and Business men. Not many artists. Too many cats concerned with the money, the formula, and the industry side of things. I don't even think people look at rappers as artists. I think they see most of them as thugs with a record deal waiting to get shot or got to jail. I think from now on I'm gonna only refer to them as Rap Artists. Well... the ones that are artistic, anyways. What kills me is when I hear a rapper or producer, or industry person say, "He can rap his ass off, but he can't write a song." or "What's the use of being so lyrical, if you can right a hit?" Could you imagine someone telling Van Gogh or Picasso, "You can paint your ass off, but you gotta give people something to look at." or telling Salvidor Dali, "I like what you're doing here, but when are you gonna start churning out masterpieces?" It's ridiculous. It's so bad that, when I criticize rappers or what rappers talk about, I get accused of being a hater. I know a 23 year old cat who, whenever he hears me talking about lyricists and lack of creativity, says "Can't you just enjoy the music?" Does that seem crazy to anyone else? Maybe it's just me. This is the way I see Hip Hop now: Imagine if the Rap Game was Track & Field. What if runners were being judged by how many meets they run in, how many endorsements they have, how hard they trained, and what their running gear looked like; INSTEAD OF HOW FAST THEY RUN!!! Then, when I criticize the runner for being slow, they say "Can't you just enjoy the race?" Maybe I'm just an old guy complaining. Maybe I'm the one losing touch. If you ask me there aren't many artists left: Nas, Mos Def, Kid Cudi, Kanye, Charles Hamilton, Drake, Andre 3000, The Roots. There are plenty more, but these guys personify the artistry and the culture. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?

Oleanna

First off, I want to apologize for neglecting the blog. It sucks I know. I was doing a David Mamet play called, "Oleanna". I went very well. Initially, I was strugglin with the part but I eventually pulled it together. I'm sure how many of you are familiar with Mamet's work or have actually performed it. It actually made me question whether or not i even wanted to act anymore. i thought age was just kickin my butt and my mind was going. My younger co-star had no problem with it. She had it memorized weeks before I did. I then realized my problem. I didn't get his style of writing. My theory of acting is like this: The actor gets a line like, "I love my dog." A good actor can take that line and make it into enough action, emotion, movement, and expression to warrant 10 pages of writing. In the case of Mamet, the actor get ten pages of dialogue and through his ability he is supposed to condense all that verbiage and dialogue into the phrase of, "I love my dog." It was a true test of my "chops". After pulling it off in an effective performance, I now feel confident saying I have them. Now that I am freed up on time and my stress level is considerably lowered, I'll be back to posting regularly. If any of you have read the show, Oleanna, I think you owe yourselves. For the conversation it sparks alone. It presents the idea of a Learning Hierarchy. A theory that teachers are often abusers of power and the idea of education and teaching is one of Have & Have Nots, I know & You Don't, I have the power and What I say is right & You must listen because You know nothing. It is an interesting concept. I don't believe that teachers feel this way, but I sure that this mentality exists but I've never encountered it to the extent of the character I portrayed. This show also showed me that there are several people in the world who have serious issues with teachers and school. I'm surprised by this. Do any of you have experiences that have shaped your attitudes toward school, teachers, or the education process? If so please share them. I am amazed how much of an impact that one bad teacher or one traumatic incident can have on an institution that naively put so much stock in and found so much comfort with. But that's just my opinion though, and who the hell am I?