most of my heroes don't appear on no stamps

i wonder what it'll take to recreate public enemy's "fight the power" video? there are many events that mark specific defining moments in one's life. that video really meant a lot to me. it brought light to feelings and thoughts i had held about the world as i knew it at that point. and as comfortable as i am giving speeches, i am equally uncomfortable. i enjoy being calm as much as possible, because it helps me to collect my thoughts. some folks and even family don't take to well to such nonchalance. it's unfortunate when they take it personal, but oh well. yet i think it was this video that caused some nerve ending to flip out, causing any words that flow from my lips that have a specal meaning or connection to my life's story behind it, i get a little choked up. i can't even describe it, but it's a weird semi-tear-jerker type of voice-over that i never have full control of. Ask any of the 1000+ heads who were in Anaheim in 2003. no control whatsoever. it is what it is.

for anyone from the other 49 states, hearing that I'm from South Carolina usually is marked with an explicit indication of surprise, as though I should have either been lynched already or that it was remarkable that I spoke proper English and knew how to count (yes, count, not even calculus, son.)

but anyways. i can recall being a child and straddling the fence of love versus hate. fear and fate. looking grim circumstances in the eye, yet seeing the (cliched by now because i overuse it) beauty in the hideous. I'll readily admit that there are some things that a child should not be exposed to and so I hope I can shelter the midget as much as I can, without giving him a false reality of what the real-world really entails.

but i am proud of some of the stances i took as a little boy in light of what was going on then to which I've managed to hold on steadastly to this day. i can even recall the demands i made of my father one particular summer that he HAD to take me to the midtown Manhattan offices of the African National Congress. just because. And all the medallions and t-shirts I used to collect on Fulton and Broadway in BK. And now, many moons and movements later, I pray the midget makes similar demands of me.

so the next poem i write will read like a will. or maybe it'll be more like an epilogue. to bring closure to where i am as a person up to this point and a starting ground from here on out.

it's a long way to go when you don't know where you're going
you don't know where you're going when you're lost

fuq it. i'll make my own directions

on my spchrist ish

bringing back that low-end blogger ish. because i am apparently a little too amused by these. oh well. let's start with this roc-a-scene that got posted a while back but i overlooked until randomly checking today. and then let's hit up these videos. for the life of me, i cannot fathom why the new Crooklyn Dodgers 3 joint does not have kweli or papoose or really anybody, just not bleek. but oh well. mos def & jean grae hold things down as always.










it's all love, Gary Payton!

enough already, get over it.

with the red sox done for the year and the Patriots just coasting along without too much excitement in the backfield, it was only natural for the boston media to feast upon the Celtics as the NBA season gets ready to jumpoff. But really though. For one, there are few things I hate. Among them are sports articles about that don't actually talk about sports. You know, the one where it reads more like a crime log or police blotter as opposed to a game preview or recap. If the dude told you what he did, can we just leave it at that. I mean seriously, there are enough athletes (and coaches) out there that are wilding out, riding dirty, and just doing some plain ole dumb shT. But son gets robbed, and you wanna say let's hope he did what he said he did. Burn him at the stake, why don't you?! He's not even the bad guy on the team. Holla at Tony Allen for that.

speaking of crying wolf, the new police commissioer was quoted as saying prevention is the top priority. methinks we may have found someone with a bit of common sense up in this piece, which will be a good thing hopefully. i still think paul joyce would have been a good choice, because brinigng in an outsider does have its drawbacks. especially someon from a town and force much smaller than ours. but the truth is in the pudding. as long as he can be a stron leader with a thoughfully articulated vision and plan of action to achieve goals and prevent crime, then i'm all for it.

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore--
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Just trying to be mindful to not defer any of my dreams. Nor hinder the dreams of anyone else. Many things get put off until a later date, yet how often do we get the satisfaction of saying, "you know what? everything on my to-do list is complete. next!" how fly is that?

Is it ever really possible to take a break from life, put everything on hold, and just chillax for a bit? Aside from having a luxurious life where money ain't a thing, an extended sabbatical is sure to hurt those pockets. So imagine suspending your deepest desires for whatever reasons, and not ever being able to devote full attention to them because something always comes up. Sometimes, we can become so burdened with our troubles and daily grind that we fail to see the bigger picture. It happens in life, work, play, and home. Being mired in the details can tamper with your vision.

But even blind people can surf the web.

Dreams can be intangible or palpable; realistic or extreme; short-term or life-long. Yet they're all yours. Keep 'em close. Whether they be goals, accomplishments, fantasies, or plain ole make-believe land type stuff that you scribbled in a 4th grade workbook and kept as a keepsake. Cherish them. Do whatever you can to nurture them into existence. Especially if they are realistic or still captivate your imagination and bring a smile to your soul. Because you'll be liable to explode knowing you never truly gave it your best shot.
Langston ain't never lied.