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Yeah, I have been the only Black face at so many concerts it's not even funny. Although I am currently listening mostly to African and Brazilian funk I still go back to my Hendrix & Gov't Mule . I tried very heard to turn the guilt I felt for listening to my music into a point of pride. I was not like every other Black person so take that you asshole. There wasn't a week that went by throughout my 20s when somebody didn't make some comment about not knowing Blacks liked "this kind of music" or somebody commenting that I was a wannabe. It still hurts to hear when it does happen but I am far more confident in my self and my beliefs and my opinions to be too concerned. I have gone through an evolution and continue to evolve and grow musically and personally. My musical time line is something like: Radio (talk, soul /disco)-> Jimi Hendrix & classic rock -> guitar music (every guitar player was fair game but especially metal )-> Stevie Ray Va...

Guess I'll have to stock up on my black & white stripes . Oguchi Onyewu , one of my favorite young players for US MNT , gets to try the big leagues... Onyewu to bolster Newcastle Technorati Tags: soccer , english premier league , newcastle , US Soccer , gooch , Oguchi Onyewu powered by performancing firefox

You should roam in places that are your own, that arise in accordance with your own true nature. And what is the place that is your own? It's the pasture of ardent clearness and mindfulness, where discontent and greed are put aside for the sake of the world. That is your own place, your natural range. Samyutta Nikaya

as a comment on this Shags video says... to learn more go here

OK, they are actually Crocs . I'm not much on the exotic leathers but this is funky. Thanks Palms Out Sounds .

Interesting that they share initials. Thanks to some audioblog out there, I have now heard both versions of " And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going ", the emotional linchpin of the musical. I saw the movie but not the play . I was not impressed by the movie. The stage performances were very good but the off stage stuff was weak. Everything off stage had me asking for the next stage performance...that doesn't make a good movie, which is why I am not surprised that it wasn't nominated for an Oscar . The other thing was that this reinforced my hatred for most musicals ! I can't stand those damn things. This song is a prime example. The music in so many musicals is such a bombastic mess. This is one where you can sorta compare the source material ( Motown ) with the stage/screen production and you can see that even the most emotional song in the entire production lacks the substance, the subtleties and breath of a truly emotional ballad. Part of it is that fucking ...

Dethroner is one of my favorite blogs...it's about guy things. I visit it when I need to reassure myself that I am indeed a guy. Today, thanks to a Tennessean article , they featured a staple of Nashville's food culture, hot chicken , along with hot fish, the meat' n three , biscuits and BBQ there is nothing that says Nashville more than hot chicken As Nashville as I claim to be I have never eaten hot chicken. I didn't have a high tolerance for spicy food when I was younger and then I forgot about it when so many of my friends became out-of-staters. It's constantly featured in local papers, Mayor Purcell is known for his love of hot chicken, the red stuff permeates the air in certain neighborhoods but I just don't make the effort to partake. I'll have to change that. Technorati Tags: food , hot chicken , nashville , dethroner powered by performancing firefox

You could, for a hundred years, live in a forest tending a fire, or pay a single moment's homage to one person, self-cultivated. Better than a hundred years of sacrifices would that act of homage be. Dhammapada, 8, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.

According to Buddhist psychology, most of our troubles are due to our passionate desire for, attachment to things that we misapprehend as enduring entities. The pursuit of the objects of our desire and attachment involves the use of aggression and competitiveness…These mental processes easily translate into actions, breeding belligerence. Such processes have been going on in the human mind since time immemorial, but their execution has become more effective under modern conditions. What can we do to control and regulate these “poisons”—delusion, greed and aggression? For it is these poisons that are behind almost every trouble in the world. His Holiness the Dalai Lama

You should know that so far as Buddha-nature is concerned, there is no difference between an enlightened man and an ignorant one. What makes the difference is that one realizes it, while the other is ignorant of it. The Sutra of Hui Neng

Over the last couple of weeks we lost two amazing musicians, Michael Brecker and Alice Coltrane. Michael Brecker. I liked Michael Brecker a lot. I even got to see him play. I enjoyed him immensely, very hip and very creative. JANUARY 13, 2007 - Following a two and a half year battle with MDS and then leukemia , Michael passed away. A memorial service is now being planned and details regarding the same will be posted here this coming Wednesday or Thursday. In lieu of flowers, we ask that donations be made to The Marrow Foundation's TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE FUND . Many lives have been saved as a result of those who joined the National Marrow Donor Program at donor drives on behalf of Michael---and who were perfectly matching donors for others in need. There is much work to do, and we ask you to please join us in this effort. Thank you for all of your support. Alice Coltrane was not on my radar. Since she came into John Coltrane 's band as his music moved in a direction that I ...

[Wisdom] is like a lamp, O king, which a man might introduce into a house in darkness. When the lamp had been brought in it would dispel the darkness, cause radiance to arise, and light to shine forth, and make the objects there plainly visible. Just so would wisdom in a man have such effects as were just now set forth.” Milindapanha Technorati Tags: buddhism , daily meditation powered by performancing firefox

I saw this on Metroblogging Nashville . It's been floating around for awhile but here ya go. The one thing missing from most of these is the Vera Bradley bag or the knock-off Vera Bradley bag. Mattel has announced the release of limited edition Barbie dolls for the Nashville market: Green Hills Barbie - This princess Barbie is only sold at Green Hills Mall. She comes with an assortment of Kate Spade handbags, a Lexus SUV, a longhaired foreign lap-dog named Honey, and a cookie-cutter dream house with a lawn service. Available with or without tummy tuck and face-lift. Workaholic ex-husband Ken comes with a Porsche. Bellevue Barbie - This modern-day homemaker Barbie is available with Ford Windstar mini-van and matching gym suit. She gets lost easily and has no full-time occupation or secondary education. Traffic-jamming cell phone sold separately. Can swear in English and Spanish. Available at Target. Donelson Barbie- This recently paroled Barbie comes with a 9mm handgun, bowie kn...

I've mentioned before that I struggle with huge lack of motivation and a large dose of procrastination. Last week was a bad week and started trolling the internet to find some possible insight and maybe, just maybe, some help. I found several sites and the first one, this one , ( Steve Pavlina 's Personal Development for Smart People) looks quite promising. The second paragraph lays it out pretty succinctly: ...realize and accept that you don't have to do anything you don't want to do. Even though there may be serious consequences, you are always free to choose. Wish me luck and if you've got any tips, I'll take em. Technorati Tags: procrastination , personal growth

Happy MLK Day. It's taken me a long time to understand MLK, not that I do completely but I now seem him as more than the icon of a specific place and time. To honor his memory and work we must do our best to love ourselves (at least accept ourselves) and in turn we must accept others as equal and we must WORK to correct what we see as wrong. As simple as it is it is so far from simple but we all must try. If we try we will honor all those who came before us. See more MLK

The folks over at Grist pointed me to this article at The Nation . It hits home and it might help me figure out why I do what I do. It hits home b/c I do some of the things she talks about but I quite often ask myself why I do these things. I buy the organic food and I often wonder is this doing anything. I know I am helping a small farmer when I buy food through my CSA but other than that, what difference does the rest of it make? I question myself alot. I question why I do what I do and why I don't do what I think I should (some are things that I tell myself I really want to do). It's a mind game. Most of it revolves around my lack of ability to commit. I have trouble committing to myself, to involvement and most anything else you can think of. Honestly, I am surprised I had the guts to ask Tara to marry me. I've been in this funk for a week plus revolving, as usual, around these issues. I can't seem to make myself do anything. Technorati Tags: social responsibili...

This woman (Presiding Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori ) is strengthening my support of the Episcopal Church enough, I might just wanna participate again. Diplomacy, built on a foundation of mutual respect and interest among people of good will, not more troops, can bring an end to this tragic conflict. The full text is here . The above statement is nowhere close to true. I've always thought the Episcopal Church had more sense than most. There are all sorts of other reasons why I don't go to church anymore. Technorati Tags: episcopal church , katherine jefferts schori , iraq , politics powered by performancing firefox

Well, there you have it. Becks comes to America. Woohoo! Road trip to Chicago. Technorati Tags: soccer , David Beckham , MLS powered by performancing firefox

This is a stunning commentary. Keith Olbermann's commentary on Bush plan to increase troops

When overspread by extreme vice-- like a sal tree by a vine-- you do to yourself what an enemy would wish. Dhammapada, 12, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu. Technorati Tags: buddhism , daily meditation powered by performancing firefox

What is meant by nonduality, Mahatmi? It means that light and shade, long and short, black and white, can only be experienced in relation to each other; light is not independent of shade, nor black of white. There are no opposites, only relationships. In the same way, nirvana and the ordinary world of suffering are not two things but related to each other. There is no nirvana except where the world of suffering is; there is no world of suffering apart from nirvana. For existence is not mutually exclusive. Lankavatara Sutra Technorati Tags: buddhism , daily meditation powered by performancing firefox

Each one of us has a stake in our environment. If you don't care think about your neighbor or your children. Small changes add up and here are a few small changes : Use compact fluorescent bulbs . Buy a reusable water bottle . Pull the plug on electronics and chargers. Take shorter showers . Create idle-free zones . Anywhere that accommodates a large number of vehicles are prime spots for signs requiring vehicle engines to be turned off to help cut fuel emissions and improve air quality. Buy local food products. Buy Organic Food . Bring cloth bags to the market. Put on a sweater instead of turning up the heat in your home. Use recycled paper . Keep the tires on your car adequately inflated . Buy a hybrid car . Use a Push Mower . Air Dry Your Clothes . Run your dishwasher only with a full load . Plant a Tree . Insulate Your Water Heater . Insulate and weatherize your home. Technorati Tags: social responsibility , eco-friendly , energy efficient , budget

Had we been physically in charge at that point we would have done things differently. U.S. military spokesman Major General William Caldwell told a news conference in Baghdad . So, let me get this straight. We go to Iraq to force help them set up a democracy , we get all excited b/c they have had 3 elections and now that elected gov't has done something, something lots of people wanted done, and we say things like this. That is just balls! We go in and fuck up the place, and yes, Saddam needed to be removed from power, and now we are bitching b/c of the way they do things, right or wrong, who are we to judge them. I said it when we liberated invaded that you can't force democracy, it HAS to come from the ground up. Besides, Iraq has a long history and there has always been jurisprudence within that history. That foundation is there and won't go away. If we had only elected someone else President in 2000! Oh wait, I think we did. Technorati Tags: politics , iraq ...