Be sure to explore the hardcore that came before Columbus

"Preserve the herb, never kick it to the curb
Vocalize a verb and the return of the word"
-Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, "Return of the Mecca"

discover. a verb. to make known or visible. to obtain sight or knowledge of for the first time.

I had today off, yet I still had a LOT of work to do. Nevertheless, I came across some great stress relief. If you don't 'get' it, don't feel bad. No harm; no foul. If you do 'get' it, wipe the tears from your eyes and have a good week.

And regardless of whether you are working four or five days this week, make sure you always take some time for yourself to seek the real story, truth, and meaning instead of being spoon-fed some poop (as the midget would say). Stay up.

link: Uncomfortable Music

Interested in Board Service?

I have served on the board of a local community organization for the past four years. It has been an eye-opening and rewarding, yet very challenging experience. I enjoy it and have grown personally and professionally in the process. I once participated in a great program, Next Generation, that was specifically focused on recruiting, training, and placing young people of color on the boards of local schools, organizations, and companies. For any of the old Next Generation folks or my peoples in Boston looking to take their leadership to the next level, I have an opportunity for you.

My son's school has a governing board that consists of parents, teachers, and community members. I am hoping to find 1 or 2 interested community members who would be interested in joining the board. The time commitment is one meeting a month. If you are a young professional and are serious about truly stepping up to the mantle of leadership in this town, board service is a great avenue for you to truly gain some valable breadth and depth to complement your professional experience. It can truly be a mutually-beneficial networking and career development opportunity as well as a way to volunteer with focus. Holla if interested.

The world's a song, you'll get it back you just lost your verse

"Ask God when he stopping the pain
A fiend got a shoelace on his arm and he popping his vein
and the needle look dirty but I'm close to reaching thirty"
-Styles P, "Black Magic"

We still huffing and puffing over here. I've been sick for over a full week. What started out as some basic sniffles went into some straight other ish. But I think I'm almost over it. I got two tooth fillings as well so my mouth is a bit crooked because of how it changed my bite. That's been a bit disconcerting. I've been eating a little better in terms of home-cooked food and such. I even have been manning the stove a little more often lately. My scrambled egg game is hella nice. Reminds me of how I used to hold it down in middle school as the pre-teen babysitter of the family.

Work is mad-stupid-busy-crazy-hectic-fun all in one breath. I'm loving it. Cylinders are clicking. Change is happening. Moves are being made. I'm ticking off more goals on the intangible to-do list of life. I start teaching again next week. Yet, I definitely need to get prepared for that; materially and mentally. This time, it is at a church in Roxbury as opposed to a school. But I'll still be dealing with adults. We'll see how that goes.

Life is going well. I've been trying to be more healthy and focused on that front. Aside from the eggs, I've been trying to eat more fruits and nuts and cut down on my juice intake. I used to think I was doing alright, but all that sugar could catch up to me. And here I was thinking I was fly drinking all that 100% juice. Silly me. I've got a doctor and a dentist. My dentist is Black, my doctor is not. My president's about to be black, my quasi-Lambo looks blue depending on the angle. It's really black though, but I couldn't pass up an opportunity to mention some random verse in a sentence in context. Context is everything, right?

No disrespect to you, make sure your word is true

"You feel my triumph never, feel my pain I'm lying
Low in the leather Zion, the best that's ever came
The game changes like, my mind just ain't right
We 'gwan get this dough, I guess it ain't your night"
-Jay-Z, "Politics As Usual"

This is my latest letter to the editor. It concerns the race for the 2nd Suffolk State Senator District here in Massachusetts. The two opponents are incumbent, Dianne Wilkerson, and challenger, Sonia Chang-Diaz. You can do the knowledge to get the background details, but basically Wilkerson has served for eight terms, yet Chang-Diaz won the Democratic primary in September by just over 200 votes.

As a young boy, two of the most important lessons I learned from my family
were of the importance of respecting your elders and of the value in the
power of example. I have a great deal of respect for Dianne Wilkerson and
her impassioned legacy of being a champion of causes I hold dear, but
there also comes a time when the young folks need to simply say enough.

In thinking back to a certain special election a mere three years ago, I
can clearly recall the pleas for some of the candidates to step aside in
order to not dilute the votes and clear a path for victory for a candidate
with a unified community in tow. Sonia Chang-Diaz's victory in the
Democratic primary seems to me to be an identical situation and is a sign
of the changing times that were festering ever since the news media began
throwing around "New Boston" as its phrase-of-the-day.

Communities of color need fresh ideas and energy. We need more active
civic engagement by the legion of young professionals who live and work in
this city. We need more heavily contested campaigns. I am tired of seats
running unopposed as though incumbency is absolute. Is this not the great
Commonwealth, where much of this country's independence was forged
resistance to the status quo?

This is not an endorsement, but more a public challenge. Why not cheer the
persistence of Chang-Diaz to run again and mount a strong campaign. Let's
continue to encourage her peer generation to continue to reach for not
only the low-hanging fruit, but also to dream a better world than the one
in which we live. We see the gray clouds of the economy's collapse and the
bailout plan looming overhead. This region cannot grow or mature with
stubborn minds or mixed-up priorities. No politician is free from the
criticism that comes with serving in public office.

Much like personal responsibility is a root cause of the financial
breakdown, it is also a call to action that citizens and elected officials
must heed to truly be effective leaders. In a relay race, batons are meant
to change hands. Torches are supposed to be passed from one generation to
the next. There's a give-and-take that can respect all generations; with
the old guard as coach and mentor to a new breed receiving guidance and
advice on what it means to have wisdom, honor, integrity and esteem. It is
time for all of us to "wo/man up" and represent.