connect the dots

Listening to "PreGame" by Sauce Money and Jay-Z got me in the zone. 2008 has been a pretty good year so far. It has been a helluva ride. A lot of cylinders have been clicking; on some straight coasting shT. A few missteps too though.

Witnessing Shorty Rock's (aka the midget) growth and evolution has been a process by which I've grown as well. My patience is continually honed as I try to better manage how to pick and choose exact phrasing for nearly every thing that comes out of mouth. Being Arlene's son does come with its share of indiscretions; the most striking of which are the diaphragm-induced muthafukas that roll off the tongue like Spanish language R's.

Something I have noticed about myself is that I tend to be fairly quiet during meetings unless I am the convener or a featured speaker on the agenda. I usually opt to be an active listener. Here and there, I'll seek clarification from a neighboring attendee. But I will chime in if I feel my viewpoint or perspective had not been voiced. And that strategy has proven fruitful in its own right.

Other things I've noticed include...

...how odd it was that the 7 of the 8 Olympic medals for Zimbabwe were won by a white woman. All while the country still reels in turmoil and infighting and economic insecurity. She has been a source of inspiration and pride and hope despite the failure of government. It is a complicated mixture of power, rule, and tradition that I will never fully be able to comprehend.

...how foolish would I be to take a vacation in Mexico. Seriously, these dudes are blasting away with the quickness. In one incident in Chihuahua, 13 people were killed as the left a party, including a toddler. That's some straight desperado ish I ain't trying to be near. I'll stick to Canada and the Caribbean, yo.

...how crazy the world works sometimes. So this Rockerfeller dudes kidnaps his daughter and bounces to Baltimore. Come ot find out, he's been a mystery man forever and has been 'getting by' literally over everyone. I read this striking piece about confidence and the part that amused me the most was how some educated brothers and sisters can be on the job hunt for months, whereas this dude copped job offers without so much as a resume.