Saturday, August 28, 2010

Stay Tuned.



About a year ago, I wrote a paper about Hip Hop, Race and Racism. Because I was blessed enough to have been given the opportunity to do so. I remember thinking: "pfftt oh yeah this is going to be sooo easy, easy A" ... and as it turns out, it wasn't easy, but I did get the A (braaaap braaaap puuuullll uuuuuupppp!!!!)lol. It's one thing to be passionate an love hip hop, and it's another thing to write about it, and use it in an academic setting. And this is especially so in a setting as structured as the academic study of Liberal Arts. I think this paper was one of the hardest papers I've ever had to write in my 4 years of university. To put in perspective, and looking back on it, I think it's because I cared so much about it, and because it was narrowed down to be 4-5 pages double spaced, and there was sooooooooo much to say on the matter that I just froze.

Anyway, I've been debating whether or not i should post and "blog-edited-less-structured" version of it. After talking to a friend and discovering the awesomenesss of gmail-chat while at work, I decided that I am. Stay tuned.



k ... so I'm about to freestyle a little somethin' somethin'...
you ready?? ...
...
*cough*

Stay Tuned to the sound of my speed.
Watch me Still don't flip the chanel
Stay Tuned...keep refreshing your web-browser, and I'll eventually appear.
Stay tuned cuz life has got me a little caught up but I'm fighting to stay afloat and share the love and inspiration that life loves to throw at me

Stay Tuned because I want you to be inspired.
But most of all Stay Tuned because I think readers of this blog whether I know you or not, whether you comment or not, whether you send me fb friend requests or not, whether I decline them because we've never met or not. keep me posted.
keep me tuned and keep me feeling blessed.

Stay tuned and marvel and shine in amazement of this life I like to share and call Strange Fruit.

EarGasmic Loss



Tomorrow is Rock The Bells. I could've been there. As much as I wished from my deepest core to go, I could not afford it. This summer's been rough financially. Maybe next time. Now I'm in the process of moving, though this move isn't as drastic and tiring as when I moved from a province to another, it's still a bit of work, and tiring nonetheless. I can't wait till it's over!!

Random: I'm really excited for NERD's new album: Nothing that's due to release on September 7th. I smell really good work-out music :)



So after a long conversation with my sister, after I freaked out at the fact that she had a date set for her big chop. I realized I was going through the transitioning process without any real goals as to when I would just give up the relaxed ends lol. After much laughter, & off-topic rants we decided to twin it up and do our big chop on the same day! lol... April 9th 2010 is the date (I think lol). That day, we are going to be relaxer free!! I'm excited and nervous. Super excited to prove people wrong. Super excited to NOT have to burn my scalp every 3 months. Super excited to save the 100$/3 months x 4 times a year = 300/year, that could be going to my student loan or other young&foolish things like RockTheBells!!!! lol... (I'm still mourning this eargasmic loss)


[sidebar: Today, Common facebooked that he thinks he's just going to crash rock the bells in NY and go on stage, because of the golden line-up... I died.]



Hair-wise... In 2-3 years this is the length I want to achieve:


(^^my goal!^^)


(my goal!!!^^)


(^^ MopTopMaven is my Hero!&HairIdol!!!^^)

AAAAHHHH!!! k. enough.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Montreal scribbles...



A few scribbles I wrote when I was in montreal...

"Just took a short little walk by the drizzling rain, while listening to some dwele and bilal... In the search of a place to eat. Tonight I didn’t feel like some deep fried artery clogging goodness. That was all last week and 2 days ago. I’ve had enough lol. I’m in the mood for some sushi. I find a place that suits my liking, and though the sushi bar is closed, I settle for some Tum Tum soup. I’ve never tried it before.It’s deliscious! ... too bad there’s no wi-fi though... otherwise I swear I could probably be for a while" (SundayAugust22nd.2010)





Looking back at that last scribble, I remember I was really feeling the vibe of that night. and in the hopes I'll get some wi-fi, I brought my laptop, to blog all of this but I couldn't cuz I wasn't a mcgill student. After failing at figuring out my little sister's login, I end up on microsoft word typing up some words not sure if its going to be a piece or not or just more random scribbles or just words. Till this very moment I'm still questioning where the ideas, came from, I just started typing. lol. [hmmm I smell a poetry post soon!]




It rained alot. If there is one thing I wish I did before I left was I wish I got to see Montreal's fine arts museum Miles Davis exhibit. I googled it, and was so excited and pumped to check it out. Unfortunately when I got there I found out they were closed. Only to have Ian Keteku tell me how amazing it was today. :( .... if I had it my way there are a lot more things I would've done during that trip. But I'm not in control of how family is, and how people are in general... so I tried to find that balance between what I wanted to make out of the trip, and what my little sister wanted to do. Which is alright :)



Other random scribble:

" Checked out a mural that had pictures of downtown montreal, that were presented by the musée McCord. They had displays of black and white pictures of reknown places in downtown montreal. They contrasted the same place with what it looked like in the 1800s’ and in 1900’s – 2000’s . I Found it Really interesting. The only thing I remember thinking is Gentrification. Industrialisation and more gentrification. Smh. When will it end.
I also remember walking down on avenue des parcs, and wondering where aboriginals were in the city, because they are so blatantly in your face when you go to downtown Calgary, and I saw my first sighting of some... (still not as bad as Calgary though). [It's sad. That the issue is refered to as the "aboriginal problem" making it sort of like a stain that the city is trying to get rid of, without addressing the systematic issues to led to their displacement in the first place.] I saw some of them, it was the same scene of homelessness, drunkenness. Shook my head, and wondered to myself, when will it end." (MondayAugust23rd.2010)




(worked a little bit on my fall/winter wardrobe... by that I mean I got a scarf, a cardigan and free clothes from my little sister lol)



Overall highlights: Long walks around the city. Seeing Alot of people speak french. Particularly Asian ones!! lol.. it tripped me everytime. Being able to go to Cora's for breakfast and order everything in french (even though it was one of the worse breakfasts I ever had lol). Eating food then having ice cream while walking on St-Dennis. Interesting conversations/debates with my little sister. Seeing her and helping her the best way I could. :)




On a random note.. I CANNOT WAIT FOR THE FOLLOWING ALBUMS TO COME OUT:

THE FOREIGN EXCHANGE!!!




....

CEE-LO!!! (I'm not a big fan of profanity. But this song is amazing!! lol)



Bruno Mars!!!



.......

anyway.... I will NOT miss the loooong 10hr bus ride!!

Sunday, August 22, 2010

some kinda



" and so it is,
you are already one out of a million before you even take your first breath,
must be your very own personal some kinda,
so keep on...
And she will let you know daily,
i brought you in, and i will take you out,
but she won't though,
cause she herself believes that you have your very own personal some kinda,
that you can bless this world with one day and thats fa sho
how the saying goes?
mamma knows..




...if you are blessed with dance,,
and when you do it
the concrete that holds your feet slides and adjust with your every move
as though its tryna keep you afloat just to see what you gone do next..
that might be your some kinda..
keep on with your some kinda musiq, your some kinda art,
your seed might be the first president of their kind,
when he or she gets here don't give up,
nurture their some kinda.



...you may birth the next promoter of world peace-
world please,
and your lives may imitate this art that i have spoken
and keep on "
[Some kinda prelude - Dwele feat. Poppa Yo]



... I've been replaying this prelude over and over again for the past hour or so. I'm working on my some kind of art, some kind of projects, some kind of education, some kind of random adventure, some kind of stress, some kind of backbone/character, some kind of savings account, some kind of purpose, some kind of summer, some kind of love... some kind of life. and I love it. and I hate it. I'm finding a lot of hidden lessons. transparent pains and loud laughters. All in all feeling blessed amidst it all. ... I've been feeling very overwhelmed, exhausted and stressed from it lately. But Still Blessed though.



....

Son House at 1964 Newport Folk Festival from Steve Casimiro on Vimeo.



Strange Fruit, I call this Beautiful Struggle of life.
Some kinda.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

I need a moment



I wish I could play the guitar like George Benson, play the drums like Travis Barker, the scatting skills of Ella Fitzgerald, and have a deepness that combines the spirit of Lauryn Hill, Angela Davis, and every other bold-spirited people I've ever come across whether it be through books I've read at my leisure, at school, seen through my TV screen, or the screen of my laptop... real life or virtual.

I think I'd be pretty dope.
Very random. But woke up to the idea. lol.




...

Speaking of Ideas. Soooooo.... Inception.
.....
yeah. literally watched it twice, and still wrapping my head around the concept.
I would expand on it, but I've read enough posts, and heard too many talk about it, and I'm annoyed at even dedicating part of this post to Inception. But damn. lol. waaw.



....

like really I need a moment.
...


...

On another tip. New K-os mixtape.
*ipod cheers!!* ..lol... now I got Wale AND K-os! ...[what's this? do I hear Saukrates!? and Drizzy Drake!?... *squeals*]
2 great mixtapes in one week!
awesomeness.

K-Os - The Anchorman Mixtape by Some Kind of Awesome

...
Today's Positives: I think I somehow managed to memorize 'Framed Portraits!' without peaking at my iphone. I booked everything finally! Montreal in 2 weeks! and I get to see some friends&fam. It's been a while!!...It's been too long.

Negatives: I came to work unprepared today, because I didn't understand the research assignment. I was a lost mess.


....
(aaaannndd my procrastination stops here. (sigh) aiiggght back to work :( ... )

Sunday, August 8, 2010

It's a lazy afternoon



Free Track of the night!!

Exile - Love Line (feat. Blu)

I heart Blu .. and I heart Exile. So naturally you might guess that Below the Heavens was a juicy album. That has not left my ipod since I found it. :)
Sigh, I need a bigger ipod, and I need my iphone to work properly, so I can add new songs. I just had to sacrifice classic favourites like Stevie wonder, Diana Ross & the supremes out of my ipod to make room for Bilal's 1st Born Second. And trust me, it was not an easy decision.
:(
so if you're reading this, and you have an ipod to spare lol... feel free to send it my way :) ...
Can't get enough of your love bayybaayy (*insert Barry White songs*) lol









Oh yeah, I painted today. I repainted this painting/collage thing I did for a friend, because I wasn't happy with it. I realized I was compromising my art for the sake of pleasing a group of people. So I fixed it over the weekend. I still need to add a few things to it to finish it off. But it looks SOOO much better! lol... I can finally sigh of relief lol. ... I would take pictures of it, but I have no camera. And my friend is taking this with her to Italy soooo.......... I guess not.







On another tip..



Item I plan on owning soon:

-Black pencil skirt. (I'm planning on putting myself out there, and network the hell out of every opportunity I can get this year, so that I can be set by the time graduation rolls around)
- Oh and classic black pumps.
- Boots - for fall (possibly knee-high)







Item I plan on actually rocking:
- asos mini-trench
- thigh high socks
- oxfords :)
why? Because I can. Because I want to. ...Often times, I hold myself back from wanting to express myself as boldly as I feel... I'll elaborate on that on another post. But like I said before. 2010. epicness :)

Fashion





hmmm :)


[haven't done a fashion post in a while]






Fashion. I love it and I Dislike it sometimes. I love it, because to me, like art, it's a sign of the times. It's a method of expression. Sometimes its detailed and intricate, sometimes it's simple and plain. I embrace it either way.
Dislike: How you dress can make you, or break you. ...Scratch that, and go knee deep, I'd say, how you look can make you or break you.
When I say this, I'm looking beyond the clothing/consumerism. There is a certain aesthetic that society has set to be better than others. Generally speaking the lighter your skin, the straighter your hair, the thinner your built the better society sees you, the more opportunities you have everywhere you go whether it be through relationships (personal or otherwise), or through the navigation through the corporate ladder. In upfront truth: the whiter you are, the 'better'.

I found this mini-documentary that deals with the hardships of black models in the fashion industry. I find it pretty insightful. Feel free to check it out :)










...
I guess since we're on that tip... We should also address the issue of cosmetics. And my or our overconsumption of products. (Thought it was interesting)

The Story of Cosmetics








[old papi got swag!! lol.. I hope my husband has swag like that when we get older :) ]

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