To Be…or Not to Be? That is the Question…



I have to say that I’m disappointed in the decision by the California Legislature not to pass Proposition 8. I don’t think that the government should have a say so in who should be together. The LBGT community participates in the very being of having to be an American; by that I mean voting, paying taxes, etc., so why can’t they be with who they want to be with? It bugs me that sometimes our country can be so focused on minute things when we could be focused on that needs our total focus (unemployment…soldiers in Iraq, the economy – hello?).

When I was in high school, I had some teammates that I played sports with that have later on came out of the closet, and it didn’t make me feel different in any way towards them at all. In my opinion...there are two types of people in this world. You are either cool people or you're not cool people. That's it. If you're sometimey, then you're not cool. It's as simple as that. My mind traveled back down memory lane and I recalled some incidents (that I’ve seen & read about) that have cemented my belief that being anything other than heterosexual one of the most stressful things to be in America besides being the President (not equating the two...just making a comparison about how stressed one can be in those situations). When I first started playing sports, my father (and his side of the family) was excited…his daughter was following in a long family tradition of being an athlete. On the other hand, my mom’s family wasn’t having it. I can vividly recall an aunt admonishing me about being a lesbian…just because I dribbled a basketball. I mean, for real…why not ask me first before you make an assumption, huh? That stressed ME out at an early age, and I’m heterosexual, so I can only imagine how it could bother & stress the hell out of someone from the LBGT community.

I watched a TV show where there was a debate among some members of the lesbian/gay community – the issue being: is being gay something that you’re born with, or is it something that you choose to be? I applied it to my thinking: I didn’t choose to be heterosexual; it’s just something that was instinctive to me. But I also believe that there are some people out there that choose to be heterosexual and I think it’s the same for homosexuals as well.

I have a cousin; he’s one of the sweetest kids & he’s about 9 years old. He has what some people would consider feminine tendencies, and he talks with a feminine-like voice. When he plays video games, he plays with the female characters, when he watches cartoons, he watches things like the Powerpuff Girls instead of G.I. Joe (I know I’m dating myself here…LOL), and he loves to dance and sing; he really doesn’t care for sports or any “BOY” stuff. When he grows up, he wants to be a chef (and he’s a great cook). I don’t think he has a clue about what being gay means, but some of our family members think that he’s going to be gay when he grows up because of these characteristics, and they are beginning to treat him awkwardly because of it. It pisses me off that they do this to him. If he is exposed to this; and he does become gay, isn’t that conditioning him to be that way? Isn’t that making him gay without his consent? I guess my point here is that it should be up to that person. Whether being homosexual from birth or whether they choose to be that way…it’s up to them. That’s supposed to be the beauty of living in this country…freedom to choose without being judged for living YOUR life. Tell me what you think! I welcome all opinions, thoughts, beliefs, etc., as long as they aren’t disrespectful…

Random Thoughts that Run Through My Head...


1. When will I get a job? I want to be able to pay my bills on time and go shopping!
2. I haven't been to the club in a while...time to go out and do the Stanky Leg..haha!
3. What can I do to my hair? I'm natural now...but I'm very tempted to relax it...
4. I could just kick that woman's ass for that kidnapping hoax...time that was wasted looking for you could've been spent on somebody that really needed the help.
5. I'm not even gonna touch the fact that she blamed it to 2 or 3 black men...

6. I think it's time...to pimp my ride...LOL! (Where's X-Hibit?)
7. When is this damn recession going to be over?
8. I can admit the fact that I'm a little envious of everyone taking vacations and I can't go... :(
9. Where all the fine brothas at?
10. I really need to be in New York....

11. What's up with these wack-ass songs? If I hear Birthday Sex one more time...
12. Can folks leave my President alone and let him do his damn job?
13. Why don't people discipline their kids?
14. I wonder how my life would be different if I went to another college.
15. Can somebody please beat the Lakers?(Come on Denver...) I seriously can't stand that lame Kobe Bryant. (yeah! I said it!)

See You at the Crossroads...




Since I didn't get accepted into the New York Teaching Fellows Programs, I've been at a crossroads. Not getting into the programs has made me think...am I supposed to be a teacher? Or is that my sign to get into something else? I've always wanted to be a writer, and I truly enjoy doing it. However, I don't see myself making a that a full-time career at this point - it's something that I enjoy strictly for the fun of it. Sooo...now we're back to square one: What do I wanna be when I grow up? (I only say that phrase because I haven't figured out what I want to do just yet).

Here are my options:

- Teacher: I love working with kids and I want to help them become better people. I would like to work with kids in the inner-city because they need the most help and since I was went to school in a district that was considered to have a large low-income population. I was lucky to have some teachers & parents who cared. The downside: I'm not sure if I have the patience to deal with the kids on a long term basis; with that being said, I don't want to be a disservice to the kids.

- Doctor: I always have a love for medicine and the sciences. I also have great people and communication skills. My bachelors degree is already in Kinesiology, so I would just have some more additional science courses that would take about a year before beginning medical school. The downside...the additional 4+ years of schooling. That's it. I'm positive I can handle everything else...

- Another alternative: Physician Assistant. Again it's in the medical field, and I would be working with people. It offers a great salary ($75,000 - $84,000) and I would have to do about 2 more years of school. The downside: if I am going to do this, I might as well go to medical school.

I can't imagine doing anything else, so now you see my dilemma. What to do...so many options...

I Miss You...Old Eddie Murphy!!!

I was driving on my way to work this morning...I couldn't find my glasses and was frustrated. I knew I was going to be late...basically I knew today was going to be terrible. When I turned to the Tom Joyner Morning Show, a comedian was doing a hilarious routine...the voice sounded familiar...but I couldn't place it. The routine was SOOOO funny. It made me feel better, then it dawned on me: It's Eddie Murphy!


Here's the two clips they played this morning:






Back in the day Eddie Murphy...not Daddy Day Care Eddie Murphy...now don't get me wrong, I KNOW he is a genius...and I love all of his work (even Pluto Nash...not Meet Dave though), but I miss his movies & stand-up routines like Raw, Delirious, Trading Places, Coming to America, Boomerang, etc. Eddie...come back! I miss you! I know you gotta do stuff for the kids...But PLEASE INDULGE US GROWN FOLKS!

I'm a fan of Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, Chris Rock, etc., and they are funny...but can they really touch Eddie? Let me know what you think while you're laughing at the videos....Ciao!

I Believe That Children are the Future...



There is one thing that I am really passionate about...and that is young people. Kids are the most honest people in the world and it's so refreshing to hear their thoughts about stuff. They are usually so un-biased, and believe it or not, they are usually on the money with their observations. Most of the time, people don't give them a chance - they write them off and treat them like crap. I always fight for the underdog, that's why I'm such an advocate for kids...and the biggest reason why I wanted to be a teacher in the inner-city. But lately, I've been seeing a lot of stuff that literally wants to be sing like Marvin Gaye..."Makes me wanna holler, and throw up my hands."

After losing my job in the insurance industry, I had a hard time getting a job; but I have one as a scorer for a testing company. Basically, I score state standardized tests for the 8th grade level; when I read these papers it just depresses me. They are from all over the state, and from all different school districts. You can CLEARLY see the difference of students in rich and poor school districts...and it breaks my heart.Here's an example; one day while I was reading these essays, I noticed that there were a majority of misspelled words. Now, I know that I'm not Akilah and the Bee...but these words are basic...I wrote them down. Take a look...

conquer - concur
courage - curaj
father - faughther
obstacle - opstickal
doubt - daut
experience - expereenz
innocent - inknowsent
rely - relie

A majority of the kids are doomed. They lack the basic reading, writing & comprehension skills in order to be successful; and they are in the 8th grade...if they are struggling in 8th grade, you know it's over when they get into high school. If they can't read & write, you damn sure can't expect them to do math and other things. What is going on with them? I can't blame BET for this one...OK, I can give them some of the blame...LOL. I know it starts at home, but how do we (Educators, etc.) we fix this? What can we do to help them? What becomes of the kids?

Don't Jack my ISH!!!