Thanksgiving

Just wanted to wish all the people out there a happy thanksgiving. Hopefully you were able to spend time with your family and/or loved ones... and eat lots of good food.

~SJ

My iPod's busted

Fuck.

I think this describes it all.


And by the way, fuck Apple for that sad, yet strangely appropriate, image. For any of you who have not experienced this misfortune, yes this is what my iPod displays when I try to turn it on, along with a URL to go to... Ouch.

Hmmm, what to do now?

You can't just league jump

You can't just league jump, you gotta work your way up. This isn't little league, you don't just move on to the next league because you had a birthday... This is real life. You have to work to go from the CFL to the NFL, from the D-League to the NBA, from the minor leagues to the big leagues... Why should it be any different in real life?

I was having a conversation with my friend "Zoe" the other day, who is recently single, and she asked me "Did guys suddenly lose their balls?" She's been frustrated recently by the way she has been asked out on dates, in really lame, roundabout, scared-to-fail type of ways. Sadly I had to inform her that a lot of guys out there never had any balls to begin with (sorry all you ball-less dudes out there... Grow some). She says, "It's like I have some kinda sign that says 'If you're not in my league, please ask me out...' Please don't try, you can't just league jump" and to that I simply said... "awesome". I was simply amazed at the amount of Swagger exuded at that moment. Because you know what? She's right! As I said earlier, you have to work to get to the top, you don't just start there.

The bottom line is, there are leagues! You don't have to stay in your league, but you have to work your way up. In other words, pay your dues... or just be naturally awesome like me. Step your game up!

History...

November 4th 2008, approximately 11PM Eastern time... Barack Obama becomes the president-elect of the United States. For the first time in United States history, the President will be someone other than a White male. This is a day that many people thought would never come. This could never happen, only on TV or in the movies... But it has happened, and it will change our history forever.

Just a few hundred years ago, Africans were stolen from their homeland and forced into labor here in the Americas. Since that time, we have overcome many obstacles. From becoming freed men, earning equal wages, equal rights to education, equal opportunites for jobs and housing... Earning the right to vote. All of these things have been fought over. People cried, clawed, fought, sweated, bled, and died so that we as a people could simply be equal. And although I was around for none of these things, I now see the culmination of this work.

Growing up, adults always like to know... What do you want to be when you grow up? No matter the answer a child gives, it usually earns the response: "You can be anything you want if you try hard enough" or something similar. As a black youth, how many times have you heard that, only to think to yourself "How come there has never been a Black President?" It is a sad occurrence when you think about it... Hopes and dreams faded before they can even begin...

But today, less than 24 hours after a Black man has been elected to lead the nation, I sit here prouder to be an American than ever before. Especially as an African-American. I feel joy at the fact that in a few centuries, most of our nation has been able to overcome a deeply rooted racial divide. I feel grateful for all of the non-Black voters who were able to look past skin color and simply choose who they felt was the best candidate. I feel pride for all of the Black voters who came out and voted like never before, a privilege that, as a people, we have not used as often as we should. I somehow feel a sense of accomplishment, no doubt similar to the one felt by those who lived during the time of Rosa Parks' bus ride, or MLK's speeches. This is a historic milestone, not only for African-Americans, but for America itself.

But this accomplishment does not come without obstacles. President Obama will be inheriting a country that is in economic turmoil, a country that needs to improve it's foreign relations, and a country that should be seeking to break it's addiction to the oil that is killing our planet. This will not be an easy road ahead. President Obama will have to prove to the rest of the country, and the world, that he was in fact the right choice. He will be under more of a spotlight and under more scrutiny than any other man who has graced the Oval Office, but I believe that he is prepared for this journey.

In the words of Sam Cooke:
"It's been a long, a long time coming, but I know...
Change gonna come. Oh, yes it will"



~SJ