To be honest, I have nothing much to report today. Other than the fact that the New Orleans Saints won the game making them eligible for the Super Bowl, (WHODAT)pickings have been pretty slim; I was able to watch the Help for Haiti telethon on tv the other night and soon as I'm able, I will give a donation. I haven't been able to work much due to my client being in the hospital and not getting much to do. But not to say I haven't had nothing to do. I do; just slow. My birthday is coming next week; So, hopefully I will have something to report then. Until next time, Peace.

Quiet Ponderings on a week gone past.

This week hasn't been the greatest of weeks. Oh, it started promising, but came down to a serious fizzle. I guess the first thing was the earthquake that hit Haiti with promises of tsunamis coming that way as well as to the Bahamas. Not a great sign at all. Haiti got hit with 7.0 earthquake with aftershocks ranging in the 5.0 scale that devastated an already depressed economy. Then just as we are trying to find out that the people in Haiti are ok, and where to start sending donations, The R&B lost one of it's finest when Teddy Pendergrass died Wednesday, after struggling with colon cancer on top of his being paralyzed in 1982,slowing his career down some. We didn't want to believe it, but if there is one thing I learned from this as well as Michael Jackson's death, word of mouth and on the street goes faster than the internet, and most of the time beat the news media. On top of that, the income I got fizzled due to my client going into the hospital for pneumonia. But the good thing out of this was that I got to go to church. Yet one thing this year is teaching me is you just cannot take nothing for granted in this world. Nothing.
2010 started out good, but already, we have seen devastation and a couple of notable people such as Ebony Fashion Fair founder Eunice Johnson, music producer Willie Mitchell(who produced for Al Green) and then Teddy Pendergrass. I am hoping if this is the shape of things to come, hold on, don't get off and keep your hat on.

Haiti and Teddy Pendergrass

Before I go into this tribute any further, let me say this. Two days ago, the people of Haiti suffered tremendous losses when a 7.0 earthquake went through their island. It was further hurt when aftershocks of 5.0 hit them after the fact. Now there is talk about tsunamis; I am a person of Caribbean roots. I know for a fact that plenty of my relatives have been through Haiti at one point or another. But this is the time to be your brother's keeper, and help the people of Haiti. Wyclef Jean has started Yele Haiti which has money to help the people of Haiti directly. Now he has set up where you can dial "501501" on your cell and $5 goes on your next bill. or you can donate directly. I cannot emphasize that we need to start being our brother's keeper and dang anything Rush Limbaugh or Pat Robertson says. Help the people of Haiti!! what they went through is plain terrible. If you are a praying person, PRAY!!! if you are the type to give, don't sit here hesitating; Help the people of Haiti. I do know about the Yele Haiti cell you can do or you can go to the site and donate which I will do today and urge others as well. I will also pray for these people and if there is any other way we can send something, do it!! this isn't the time for hesitating. DO IT NOW!!! I will put up links on that at the end of the blog.
Moving along, It really hurt about the people of Haiti, but things came right back home when after I put out an appeal about Haiti on my facebook page, I see little trickles about Teddy Pendergrass. To be honest, I was about to shut down the computer because the girls went to sleep early, and I was inclined to do the same, then Sam Redd was doing a blog talk radio and he mentioned Teddy Pendergrass first on Facebook. Well, I thought he was inspired but I heard little rumblings here and there. So I went to Wikipedia and there was a brief mention. Come to find out the man had JUST died when the news came out online(reminding me of Michael Jackson again)so as a part of a music appreciation group I'm a part of, whenever someone of musical accomplishment passes, I pass the word on to them, and I went to them immediately, there was NO word there so I put out the first announcement on him there and went back looking for some proof. sadly, official news was scant about him but thank God, I was able to get to a Philadelphia news site that did have it and I passed it on. I would hate to know that I said a person died and have nothing to back it up with. Sadly in this case, I found it. My momma would say, if you want something, you'll find it. she didn't lie.
Teddy Pendergrass was one of the best soulful crooners on the planet in the late 70s and early 80s. Shoot,if his accident didn't sideline his career,there's no telling where he would have gone. If you was a sister, you went to a Teddy Pendergrass concert. women would throw their drawers at a brother. Got so, he had For Women Only concerts and took his show to the women prisons. And it's safe to say that between the time that Teddy was actively singing, you had a serious population spurt. A lot of folks born during and after that time can give Teddy some credit for being here because he surely made things happen. Sadly, in 1982, he got into a serious automobile accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. But it didn't stop Teddy not one bit. He kept on singing and performing. But I surely didn't know that he had cancer and was fighting it until now. My boyfriend said he was the High Priest of Begging. I felt that he was the Goddaddy for all them babies coming here back in the day and he gave a lot of men serious game to get the ladies. Honey, put on a Teddy Pendergrass record on in private quarters, and like they say, it was a serious wrap. Especially if they played "Close the Door", "Turn off the Lights", and "Come On Over to My Place". But before then, he was the lead singer for Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes and was front and center for such songs as "Bad Luck", "I Miss You", "Be For Real" and the anthem "Wake Up Everybody", which to me, was the wake up call then and even now. People, Teddy Pendergrass gave us some great hip and often reflective music and the best we can do is to pay tribute to him and get his music. I already have. here is a link to leave your respects
www.legacy.com
Here is some more on haiti; God Bless.
http://www.worldvision.org/worldvision/eappeal.nsf/egift-haiti-earthquake-relief?Open&campaign=113655125&cmp=KNC-113655125
www.yele.org(Wyclef Jean's organization)
www.joycemeyer.org(she has a section where you can donate for Haiti and supposedly, she is there helping out at present)
Text:90999(International Red Cross)$10
501501(Yele Haiti)$5
25383(Internal Rescue Mission)
85944(Rescue Union Mission and Medcorp International)

American Violet and other things.

With much love to my state's football team, The University of Alabama Crimson Tide(Roll Tide Roll)who made the national championship, I am here today to say some things and keep it short.
Down this way, Mardi Gras is on it's way to Mobile. Mobile, Alabama, contrary to popular belief, IS the undisputed birthplace of Mardi Gras, which is held each year since the 18th century,(shut down by wars though)will be making its way down our streets and because my client is a native and lover of it, I will probably be there with her. So hopefully, I will take pictures of the events, and post to my blog so folks can get a flavor of how things are done.
Yesterday, in spite of my limited budget, I bought a movie called American Violet. I have heard of the story that occurred in Texas originally from a 60 minutes segment on it a few years back. Never forgot it. Since then, one of the two ladies implicated in the arrests has put her story to film, and American Violet is the result. Now, as an African American, I have known and seen some things. I was close to graduating from high school in Mobile, when Michael Donald was kidnapped, tortured and finally killed in 1981 here. Matter of fact, he was a close friend of a friend of mine, distantly related to my client, who I feel is a treasure trove of all things black Mobile and he graduated the year before from Murphy High School, where I graduated from. It is only through God's grace, the timeliness of the city leaders and capture of those who perpetrated the crime that no more ugly incidents occurred here. If you can, please google Michael Donald if you don't know about him; he has an important place in history especially here in Alabama.
But moving on, back to American Violet. Imagine with me that you lived by the law. You don't do drugs, you trying to do your best, you have no problems, but along with others, you are arrested, charged with trafficking drugs to minors, and told to confess to and say you did it. Could you? would you? That is the gist of American Violet. If you want my opinion, EVERY AFRICAN AMERICAN should have a copy of this dvd. Every teacher who has a duty and sensitivity to her students should have a copy; Every momma, father, whomever who has someone young in their midst, they need this(as well as Precious too but I'm gonna leave that alone for now), they need to get a copy of this movie for their collections, WATCH IT, and DISCUSS IT too. seriously. because these things do happen. and as long as there's a black and white, it's gonna be there. Then again, I think I'm gonna put out a film and or book list that each of us should have. seriously. We need to be educated, we need to be informed but most of all, we need to KNOW.
American Violet. Check it out and see it for yourselves. Perhaps, I'll do something on Michael Donald. But I tell you what. Ravi Howard, wrote a fictional account on the incident, Like Trees Walking. check that out for yourself. I'm going to cut this short. Be blessed and have a good day.

Remembering a Legend and supporting your man

Happy New Year's All!!
I wanted to go to church to bring in 2010; sadly, because of my not having a car, I wasn't able to go but brought in the year quietly amid a lot of guns shooting. another reason for not going out is that too many folks start shooting as well. so, I believe I want to start a tradition for ladies at New Years where we have a New Years night to bring in on our own. I believe I'm going to start that. We'll see.
I was remarking on how it was nice to know that no one has passed this year and all, but sadly that wasn't the case at all. I was doing some looking on Essence and an item on Ebony co founder Eunice Johnson caught my eye. all of a sudden, I felt sad. I didn't see the whole headline so I went on Ebony Jet's website to confirm and indeed, it did confirm her passing. So, knowing that the word didn't get around, I put up on my Twitter and Facebook pages that she passed and left a word of condolences on Ebony's Facebook page. I even erased my former blurb on Facebook because I remembered she was a native of Selma, Alabama, and had to give credit where credit is due. She was 93;
While it is sad to see someone so accomplished die, one can also feel glad that while she lived, she did many notable things, it is also a fact of life that there is an end of the road. So I want to mention the accomplishments of this woman as well as her husband. Granted, they were part of another era where if you struck out on something, you made it happen to the best of your ability. Now, I am sure Mrs Johnson could have pooh poohed Mr Johnson and told him NOT to start no magazine catering to African Americans. Not to go to his boss, Mr Harry Pace of the Supreme Life Insurance Company and asked for the names of his insurers so they can be part of this new endeavor. Yet, she stuck by her husband and with the help of his mother's love and furniture, which he borrowed $500 against, he started the Negro Digest in 1942. His wife and mother was his staff when he first started and with the first set of subscriptions and help, he was able to have a legacy that is still alive today. Now, I say that to say this. I hear women talk about having someone in their life. all well and good. But how can you say that you won't support him in an endeavor you think a total waste of time. I just finished Zane's latest, "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and the hero in the book started an online dating service for brothers that the wife felt was a total waste of time. When he got injured and he started another online dating service for those with disabilities, she got even more vocal that she dogged him out further and had an affair with someone else. He ended up leaving her and eventually got with a woman more supportive of his endeavors. I say that to say this. If you want someone, you have to love them; if they have kids, love them too. don't holler you love someone and then you take his kids with your kids somewhere, and you want to give to your kids and not to his and those kids see that and feel bad. To me, that is not good at all; My mother met my father with two kids, my eldest brother and sister, Alvin and Agnes. When my father decided to buy us encyclopedias, and they cost too, he bought TWO sets. one for my brother and I, as well as one for my brother and sister since they lived with their mother. When he got a hold of some books noting the accomplishments of African Americans from the time they got to these shores until present time, he got TWO sets. I am proud to say that the books are still in our possessions to this day. My siblings and I loved them books and my eldest sister who is no longer living, adored them. When they bought clothes, she bought clothes for them too. If we went out as a family, they went too. Wasn't nothing hidden from them. My mother even remarked that when she took my youngest brother George to Dominica so that they could help with his asthma, she wanted to take my eldest brother Alvin too but felt his mom would object. with all that said, you get my point. You support your man and his things and vice versa. Now that don't mean if he do something illegal, go along. No hit the road, and let me mention two more names. Barack and Michelle. It is no secret that she supported this man. To be honest, when she met him, she was his superior at work. She could have said the man ain't nothing but a scrub, and she wasn't paying him any attention like that, but sometimes you dig a little deeper and see the good and go with that. Now, this lady made very good money on her own. Personally as a woman, I feel for her because I feel a woman should have her own nest egg married or not. Yet in spite of that, she is the First Lady of the USA. So my point, support your man.
Now Mrs Johnson could have told Mr Johnson not to do this. But thank God she didn't because Ebony and Jet has been a part of African American homes for over half a century. I don't think there is an African American that hasn't been touched by Ebony. And let me go further. After Ebony was established and she saw that there was no one celebrating the beauty of the black woman, she went to Paris and Italy and established relations with haute couture designers and got them to sell her their clothes and the Ebony Fashion Fair, which is still in existence was born. I was proud to have gone to one show while stationed in Delaware. Check out Ebony and Jet's webpage www.ebonyjet.com to leave your condolences. as well as EbonyJet's facebook page and check back in time with www.legacy.com which will put up a guest book for those who wish to leave word for the family there as well. Be blessed and do something great in this new year. If you have a mate who is trying to make a go of something, support him; If your man and you have a mate likewise, support her too. Peace.