five11nation's Xanga

Kick Axe

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:52:03 GMT

McDonald's Anyone?

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 16:09:50 GMT

The Box

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 14:13:08 GMT

I must confess, a few weeks ago I had an epiphany.

(Yes, I'm still capable of experiencing those every now and again).

I realized that as time passed, I'd compiled a unique collection of priceless objects, inanimate objects, unseen by the human eye over the years.

This collection cannot be measured by card collectors' "mint condition" or the like. It cannot be valued any differently by "year it first came out." And it has no aesthetic beauty like say paintings, seashells or even shoes (for the Imelda Marcos types out there).

Nope.

To say this collection is worth even a treasure full of lifetime memories is laughable when you stop and think about what it is I had acquired and possessed.

Wanna know what "my time-honored collection" is?

It's called my bitterness box.

Yes, you heard it here and you heard it from me.

Damn, I loved that box. I held it extremely close to my heart. And no one -- and I mean no one -- could touch or address the collection unless I granted authorization.

Among those collectibles...

Let's start with my father, who once punched and kicked me for trying to squeeze my ten-speed through the garage and accidentally scratched his car -- back in the day. That was probably worse than the bloody mouth he gave me when I was four after I interrupted him and his drunk buddies as they were deep in their navy conversation.

Yeah Dad, you were my first to put in da box and boy were you worth a lot early in my life.

But Mom doesn't get off scott-free either. Between telling me "I told you so" as I was getting the wind knocked out of me instead of throwing me a lifeline. Thanks for the help, Mommy Dearest. Oh, and lets not forget the quadrillion sermons of looking decent by having short hair-wearing button down or polo shirts-etc and that God honors that more than helping the poor and needy, blah-blah-blah-blah-blah. Talk about priceless.

Oh, and let me dust off this pack of self-righteous Christians over the years who proclaim that you have to speak loudly in tongues at a public eatery and market salvation through soul-winning tracts at malls to gain God's favor. Lest we forget the "high-fallutin' our excrement don't stinketh/too heavenly minded no earthly good mentality/don't do what I do do what I preach" persona. And how about the "I can treat you any way I want because I have a higher position than you and make more money than you so God likes me better" attitude.

Talk about a treasure. I think that might be my most valuable asset out of all these collectibles.

You know, there's also a place for elitist bee-yotch-es who either dumped me, stood me up, or denigrated me... esp the girl whose initials were LT who called me ugly -- and who now looks fugly herself while I've surpassed her in the marketability category. I got your ugly right here. And I guess you can be classified as mint condition.

Not sure what has greater value in my box - the mental, the emotional, the psychological, or the physical scars. Hell, if I had the time, I'd make a list and rank them in order of impact in my life.

But you know what, I'm not gonna. I mean, why bother. There were other recently acquired collectibles that I won't even mention, and you wanna know why?

Because they're no longer part of my collection.

And you know what, neither is Dad, Mom, the self-righteous losers, and da elitist bee-yotches.

You see, the other day -- in fact it was two Thursdays ago -- I walked up the mountain of my mind and soul and I imagined a cool exhilirating breeze blow through... and I virtually opened that collection box, turned it upside down, and emptied the contents, along with years and years and years of unwanted treasures that packed that container over time.

A type of fatigue had set in.

I got so tired of carrying and clutching that box around with death-grip intensity, and it exhausted me to take the time to maintain and expand that collection -- to the point that it got really nerve-wracking.

And you know what?

When I opened, emptied, and set 'em all free, I felt refreshed.

Now, I'm working one day at a time to keep myself from slipping back into that old "pack rat mentality."

It's always something, ain't it?

What da hell is wrong with our freakin' legal system?

Sat, 11 Jul 2009 02:46:26 GMT

Let me preface this post by stating that I absolutely do not condone the murder and cruelty of human beings and animals.

Point blank.

That being said, can somebody tell me how Cleveland Browns Wide Receiver Donte' Stallworth only served 24 days of an already scant 30-day jail sentence that came as a result of his killing a 59-year-old pedestrian (back in March) while under the influence of alcohol -- and additional admitted drug of choice.

While we're on the subject of football players driving while intoxicated, let's see a show of hands of people who remember St. Louis Rams Defensive End Leonard Little taking the life of a woman by striking her with his vehicle after downing one too many chugs of liquor. Care to guess how many days he served in the slammer. "I'll take '90 days', Alex." And I'd dare to say you're dead on correct.

Two well-paid professional football players driving while drunk take two human lives serving a combined total of 114 days. For those keeping score at home... that's less than four whole months.

Now let's go back into time a little bit -- not too far -- and analyze the situation of another NFL player... a former local hero, one former #7 who hails from Newport News, Virginia, started at quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons, and goes by the legal name of Michael Vick.

What did he do?

He was involved in some heinous criminal activities getting sentenced to 23 months in prison for his role in a dogfighting conspiracy that involved gambling and killing pit bulls.

Was it right for Vick to do what he did? Absolutely not -- i.e., "hell no."

Was it right that he received jail time. Most definitely yes.

But does 23 months of jail time (which is one month shy of two whole years) seem a bit much for what Vick did to pit bulls -- which lead all breeds of dogs in number of babies killed, by the way...

... as compared to a combined 114 days (less than four months of prison) that Stallworth and Little cumulatively served for hitting/killing two pedestrians as drunk drivers?

Before I answer my own question, let me ask you the reader... what do you think?

Dated, Infamous, and Entertaining

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:15:17 GMT

It's Time To Turn It Up

Sat, 23 May 2009 15:22:29 GMT

Hopped up out the bed turn my swag on
Took a look in the mirror said what's up?
Yeah, I'm getting money, oh

Hopped up out the bed turn my swag on
Took a look in the mirror said what's up?
Yeah, I'm getting money, oh

Turn my swag on
It's my time to turn it up, yeah, yeah
I put my team on, did my theme song
Now it's time to turn it up, yeah, yeah

I got a question why they hatin' on me
I got a question why they hatin' on me
I ain't did nothing to 'em but count this money
And put my team on and now my hold click stunny

Boy what's up, yeah? Boy what's up, yeah?
When I was nine years old
I put it in my head, I'ma die for this gold
Soulja Boy Tell 'Em, boy what's up?

Hopped up out the bed turn my swag on
Took a look in the mirror said what's up?
Yeah, I'm getting money, oh

Hopped up out the bed turn my swag on
Took a look in the mirror said what's up?
Yeah, I'm getting money, oh

I'm back again,
I know a lot of y'all thought I wasn't coming back, yeah, yeah
I had to prove 'em wrong
Got back in the studio came up wit another hit, yeah, yeah

I told the world my story, the world where I'm from
Souljaboyxl.com, boy what's up? Yeah, yeah

Now every time you hear me spit
Every time you hear me rhyme
Every time you see me in your state or town
Say what's up? Yeah, yeah, Soulja Boy Tell 'Em

Hopped up out the bed turn my swag on
Took a look in the mirror said what's up?
Yeah, I'm getting money, oh

Hopped up out the bed turn my swag on
Took a look in the mirror said what's up?
Yeah, I'm getting money, oh

Four on Four: The S & M Topic

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 01:38:41 GMT

Welcome to Round 2 of the inaugural Four on Four topics of commentary.

The topic of this blog entry pertains to a college research experiement linking sex to music.

Topic Two: According to a study performed by the University of Pittsburgh, some explicit song lyrics may be linked to sexual activity among teens.

Researchers compared the lyrics of music that teens listened to and their sexual behavior.

Overall, 31 percent of the teens in the study had sexual intercourse. Of the teens having sex, 44.6 percent listened to degrading lyrics. And of those teens who were less exposed to the lyrics, only 20.6 percent had sex.

A lead researcher said it is not the music itself causing sexual behavior but it does help mold the perception and is therefore a "likely" factor in sexual development.

And that leads us to this round’s perspectives from our panel of posters. Allow me to introduce you to them once more -- again, as described in their own words:

VaneDave (DAVE) - a black/latino comedian from NYC, who's been blogging here at "The X" for five and a half years.

Trunthepaige (PAIGE) - I am American, that is something I am rather grateful for, but not proud of... Because I had nothing to do with were I was born. I'm an Architectural Sales Representative, from Seattle, Washington, who's been blogging here for three years.

Lotta_Valdez (CARLOTTA) - a Mexican American student from Houston, Texas, who's been blogging here at Xanga for five years.

Franksabunch (FRANK) - a half-superhero, half-Taiwanese American physician from Honolulu, HI, who's been blogging for almost five years.

Out of courtesy to you kind readers, I will post one topic per blog entry as part of a series.

Today, I will only cover Topic #2.

Now, I ask the four of you, is there something to the aforementioned topic - or is this a crock? What say you?

VaneDave: I don't think this finding is a crock, but I so think it's unfair to put the blame on music lyrics. The music lyrics are bad, and they definitely don't help the situation, but this problem is so prevalent in many aspects of our culture, that it would be wrong to hone in on some lyrics to a song. What about television, and movies, and magazines, and the type of clothing being marketed to children. What about these skank ass moms who dress even worse than their daughters. What about the messed up dads who tell their sons to bed as many women as they can?

Trunthepaige: I make no claims to being an expert on this one. What I believe this study is showing, is that people surround themselves with other people, art, culture, and music, that makes them feel comfortable. The teens with lower moral standards, enjoy music that reflects those rather promiscuous standards. If you want to be a slut, if you idealize sluts, or long for them, you don't want to be listening to church hymns. It is not the music’s fault. The music is just a reflection of the people who enjoy it. The music may reinforce their lower moral standards, and make them feel that they are the norm. But first came the lower standards, the music came second and can not be blamed for it fans.

Lotta_Valdez: Such a crock. Most of the abstinence people I know are also very religious and do not soak up a lot of dirty pop culture anyway. Music never “made” anyone have sex.

Franksabunch: Birds of a feather will flock together, as the saying goes. That's why gangstas don't roll down the street in the 5.0 blasting Michael Bolton... and Republicans (besides me) don't listen to the Wu-Tang Clan and Rage Against the Machine. Knowing that, why would it be surprising that all the kids "sexting" with their phones also listen to Katy Perry singing about kissing a girl? People are always trying to place the blame somewhere else instead of where it belongs -- the parents and the children.

And that concludes this edition of Four on Four. Thank you dear readers for stopping by.

Please don’t forget that Round 3 is on the horizon with a topic of discussion involving the dynamics of a high-profile relationship amongst two young R&B stars of the opposite sex, whose domestic issues affect women of all races. See what our four esteemed xangans have to say about this highly serious subject.

Stay rooted, stay grounded… and stay out of trouble.

Four on Four: President Obama's Proactive Approach

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 14:45:27 GMT

I had a blogging brainstorm the other day. Yes, I am still capable of those you know – despite my non-xanga busy season.

For some odd reason, I couldn’t stop thinking of these four particular topics:

With President Barack Obama's proactive approach to improving the nation's current conditions (stimulus package, homeowner help plan, health care summit, etc), do you feel that it could lead to too much government control or do you feel that he's genuinely working to change things for the betterment of most Americans?
A college study linking sex to music
Chris Brown beating Rihanna
Personal goals in life

Well, rather than give out some tired, played out post stating my own personal viewpoints, I decided to try something different. I assembled four diverse Xangans -- whose unique styles of writing I’ve long since admired -- and I obtained their respective perspectives on the four subjects mentioned above.

Your panelists for this four-part series of entries are (as told in their own words)…

Franksabunch (FRANK) - a half-superhero, half-Taiwanese American physician from Honolulu, HI, who's been blogging for almost five years.

Lotta_Valdez (CARLOTTA) - a Mexican American student from Houston, Texas, who's been blogging here at Xanga for five years.

Trunthepaige (PAIGE) - I am American, that is something I am rather grateful for, but not proud of... Because I had nothing to do with were I was born. I'm an Architectural Sales Representative, from Seattle, Washington, who's been blogging here for three years.

VaneDave (DAVE) - a black/latino comedian from NYC, who's been blogging here at "The X" for five and a half years.

Out of courtesy to you kind readers, I will post one topic per blog entry as part of a series. Today, I will only cover Topic #1. .

Topic One: With President Barack Obama's proactive approach to improving the nation's current conditions (stimulus package, homeowner help plan, health care summit, etc), do you feel that it could lead to too much government control or do you feel that he's genuinely working to change things for the betterment of most Americans?

Franksabunch: I think people forget that socialism/communism failed. Anyone who thinks otherwise should compare the number of people who move to America from China and the former Soviet Bloc countries to the other way around. When all is said and done, you'll find that the powers that be will have their hands in all aspects of your life, and that isn't necessarily a good thing. I think Barack Obama is a very intelligent individual and talented leader, but he's still a company man, and that means big government, taxes and spending. The market will eventually equilibrate. I've worked really hard to get where I am today, and I don't particularly like seeing 45% of my money paying for the irresponsible choices of corporations and other people. Capitalism isn't perfect, but it's still the best system in the world.

Lotta_Valdez: I disagree with some parts of the stimulus package, but I like the idea as a whole. In order to build a truly strong nation, you need to provide your citizens with education, healthcare, and infrastructure. It’s time to prioritize these things again instead of letting corporations run amok.

Trunthepaige: Obama believes his ideas are very much in the national interest. Unfortunately, he is far more concerned with using the economic crises as an excuse to recreate America -- turning this nation into a European style “mommy” state. He is far more interested in that goal than actually working on the real economic issues. His first priority was not an economic fix at all. Remember, this was a banking and mortgage crisis. Those are two issues he has yet to do much about. Despite already allocating a trillion dollars to projects unrelated to the economic crisis. No, his first priorities were to initiate his more controversial and expensive socialistic ideas to grow the federal government. He seems to think you fix a problem -- caused by excessive deficits, bad laws regarding mortgages and the economic bubble this caused -- by pouring vastly more money into everything, but fixing nothing. His goal does seem to make every American dependent on the government to some extent for their basic needs. That simply is not what this country is all about. He is creating a new nation in the mold of failed European models, as opposed to fixing some problems in the most successful system ever created. In the end, it seems we will not have enough money left to fix the banking and mortgage issues. Actually, we ran out of money a long time ago. We are just running out of credit to mortgage ourselves and our children into the next century.

VaneDave: There needs to be a balance in what the government controls. Barack Obama was elected to maintain that balance. Their are situations where the government has exerted total control in the past, such as ignoring the will of the people and continuing the war in Iraq, and there are situations where the government has not exercised enough control, such as allowing sub prime lending to kill the housing and banking industries. We are in unstable times right now. It might be necessary for President Obama to be a bit more proactive than usual for at least the short term.

Thank you for taking time out of your day/night to read “Four on Four: President Obama’s Proactive Approach.”

Please be watching for the next topic as our four guest bloggers share their own personal views on S & M… err that's "Sex and Music," and what one university had to say about the relationship.

Stay rooted, stay grounded, and stay out of trouble...

Just Imagine

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 19:19:05 GMT

If you were single

And a well-known celebrity had the hots for you

But would only date you IF

You kept the dating relationship a Total Secret.

Would you agree to those terms and take da plunge?

Why or why not?

Be real now. Explain yourself. And please don't hold back.

I'm curious to know what you all think.

A Little Late Night Friday Fun

Sat, 24 Jan 2009 03:51:26 GMT