Kanye West: Late Registration

I anxiously picked up Kanye West’s sophomore album “Late Registration” today & was hoping to get a LE but Circuit City did not have any. I am a pretty big Kanye fan because of his non flash persona vs. his contemporaries, and the way he pokes fun at black people with lyrical wit. The CD is weighing in with 21 tracks of which 5 are needless school based humor skits . Late Registration has a whole range of colabos’ including Brandy, Paul Wall, Jamie Foxx, The Game, Jay Z…

The biggest surprise on the album was “My Way Home” ft. Common rapping to a sample of Gil Scott Heron’s “Home Is Where the Hatred Is“ (one of my favorite songs) & “Drive Slow” which has the chopped & screwed effect ft. Paul Wall from SwishaHouse. My favorite cuts are:

• We Major
  
• Addiction
  
• Drive Slow
  
• Bring Me Down
  
• Diamonds From Sierra Leone (of course)
• My Way Home
  
• Roses

The only thing I think missing from this album is “Wow” which was mentioned on The College Drop Out’s “Last Call”. I will hold out until the next album on this cut. "So I played... actually it's a song that you'll never hear, but maybe I might use it. So, it's called 'Wow.' "I go to Jacob with 25 thou, you go with 25 hundred, wow I got eleven plaques on my walls right now You got your first gold single, damn, nigga, wow."

Late Registration is definitely a different album from The College Drop Out which earned Kanye 2 Grammy’s in 04’ for the Best Rap album & Best Rap Song for “Jesus Walks”. The College Dropout also earned double Platinum honors, the highest certified debut by a male artist in 2004 according to the RIAA. Kanye mentioned previously that his horrific 02’ car crash was the force behind his phenomenal success.

In the news yesterday, Kanye filed a 1.3 million lawsuit accusing Chicago DJ Eric "E-Smoove" Miller of possessing 10 unreleased songs that West produced before he was 18. The 20-page lawsuit alleges E-Smoove improperly tried to distribute some of those master recordings earlier this year & that he forged rapper's signature on contract. Link to full story.

In other interesting Kanye West news that I found on CTV; Rapper Kanye West calls for end to gay bashing on. Kanye West says "gay" has become an antonym to hip hop and that it needs to be stopped. Kanye discussed hip-hop and homosexuality while talking about "Hey Mama," during a MTV special." He went on to say when he was young, people would call him a "mama's boy." "And what happened was, it made me kind of homophobic, 'cause it's like I would go back and question myself." Link to full story.

Once You Go White

Lil’ Kim has now joined the ranks of Michael Jackson in my books with this color washing. Once considered hip-hops bad girl, she is showing that she is really a sell out. The image to the left is on the Lil’kimzone as a promo shot for Kim's new album Naked Truth, which is scheduled for release 09/13/05. Coincidentally, Kim is scheduled to be sent to the slammer on my birthday 09/19/05 for a year and a day after being found guilty of perjury during Grand Jury Testimony. This is on top of a 50K fine & 3 years probation!

I thought the old Kim was hot in a ghetto, raunchy, & nasty way but I can't get with this enhanced version of Michael Jackson. After watching several episodes of the ridiculous reality TV show Growing up Gotti with Suite Suzy this weekend, Suzy has deduced that Kim's new Faux European look is part of her obsession with Kim Gotti & the "MAFIA" lifestyle. Kim sings a poor rendition of Nancy Sinatra's song "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'". Kim's visions of MAFIA & Gansta style has come full circle with her impending imprisonment. I wonder if she is going to be saying I pus@% tonight on once the lights go off on 09/19.

On a positive note 08/10/05 Kim won her court battle over former Junior M.A.F.I.A member Lil’’ Cease in regards to a civil suit. The case was over unauthorized DVD, The Chronicles of Junior M.A.F.I.A. Part II: Reloaded, which featured Kim & allegedly resorted to false advertisement and endorsements by using her name, image and likeness, reported (AP). Kim left Junior M.A.F.I.A in 2001.

Cocktails

Yesterday called for an after work affair to shake of an intense week. To ccommence the weekend, I had cocktails at Agave with "Cousin Dee". Agave is mos def a good spot to start off a Friday night with their inexpensive happy hour menu which includes Enchiladas, Shrimp Cocktail, & a delicious Queso Fundido. Well after I had 4 Margaritas, lots of shit talkin'&..., we headed to the Festival of India @ Hart Plaza with my expectations up on what I would see.

Once we arrived downtown after creating a parking spot, we discovered that this was the wackest festival ever. There was on like 8 people there & we were 2 of them, the only thing good there was the breeze coming off of the Detroit River. We left ASAP & then happened upon a fashion show @ Campus Martius & I created another parking space, this time in a turning lane. Our theory on parking in Detroit is, the cops are too busy chasing people to be worried about someone who has been double parked for 2 hours.

I am still not sure who the MC was for this event but he was wack as hell & so were his back up wanna bee Destiny's Child dancers. The great thing about this event thought was that it was a fundraiser for the DIA & Detroit Mayoral candidate Freeman Hendrix came out to welcome the crowd, I was just happy that it was not Kwamé! After a short stay we bounced & parted way. Before I went home I stopped & Union Street Saloon to pick up dinner for Suite Suzy.

When I called in my order for pick up & gave my name (Bygbaby), she (Cimbery) was like who &again I said Bygbaby & even spelled it out. Anyway when I arrived, I announced that I was there to pick up my order & he (Jack) was like its Bygbaby, which made me laugh. We talked a bit about Bygbaby referred them to my site for more information (it's all about networking). Suit Suzy & I eat @ Unions quite often to get out favorite salad (Dragon's Eggs) & Entree (Salmon Tortellini). Anyway today I saw that Jack & Cimbery signed my guest book, thanks guys.

I made it home with no DUI.... Just Kidding

The Little Things In...

Today was an off the hook day @ work, so to decompress I chilled out on my garden to collect what was left of my thoughts & I saw the most awesome site & @ the right time. I had 3 huge Monarch Butterflies dancing around my Butterfly Bush. I have not seen many butterflies this summer other than the small Cabbage White Butterflies. God produces miracles at the right time. Last year I remember very few butterflies, but I get Humming Birds all the time in particular the Broad Billed Hummingbird , Green Violet-ear Humming Bird, & the Rufous Hummingbird. Last year I even attracted a really interesting Humming Bird Moth. Let me stop here, I am getting off topic!

LaToyia Figueroa Found But...

Sad, but true & greatly expected LaToyia Figueroa was found dead 5 miles from her home. Here is the story reported by BAW. Now we can concentrate fully on poor little Natalee Holloway full time.

By: Monica Lewis, BlackAmericaWeb.com

From their first conversation, Philadelphia radio personality Golden Girl was immediately suspicious of the young man who called her show to deny any involvement in the disappearance of his pregnant ex-girlfriend.

So when news broke of Steven Poaches’ arrest in the death of LaToyia Figueroa Saturday, Golden Girl, an on-air personality with WUSL-FM, told BlackAmericaWeb.com that she “wasn’t surprised at all.”

“I just kind of knew it all along. I mean, even though I couldn’t say it [publicly], from the time he called me, that was my conclusion,” said Golden Girl, who became involved in the investigation of Figueroa’s disappearance after Poaches, 25, frequently called her late-night talk show to discuss the case and address, on air, the accusations that some were making against him.

The decomposed body of Figueroa, five-months pregnant and already the mother of a seven-year-old girl when she was last seen on July 18, was found Saturday in a wooded area in Chester, a small town roughly 15 miles south of Philadelphia. Poaches is now charged with the murders of Figueroa and her fetus. Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham said Poaches may face additional charges pending further investigation....

Link to full BAW Story
Previous Blog Entry

Bad Ass @ 5 & Handcuffs

When I 1st heard about this story in the spring I felt sorry for the little girl & I still do because I believed she was failed by the school & her mother. At 5 this was pretty dramatic/traumatic but something needed to be done to control the girl. From what I read there was just no consoling her whatsoever, her mother was not reachable & also gave the school strict instructions not to discipline her child. After I got these small details, I was like what kind of ghetto mess is this & seeing how that girl just really cut up, I think I would have shoot her with a tranquilizer then handcuffed her ass. If you are old enough & bad enough to hit well then...

I though the police acted appropriately, she what were they supposed to do in this case give her a hug & tell here it was going to be alright. I know that some educators & psych professionals think someone should have done all that but how can you really control this, I just know she could not make it in my home.

I never thought of this incident as being racially motivated, like others. Every incident that involves the police is not racially motivated come on people (well she was shakled like a slave). The mother is getting paid off of this; she recently sold her story to the tabloids & is in the process of suing (Shocker!).

A few weeks ago, a Florida judge stated that the cops that did the handcuffing acted with bad judgment but did not make any violations to the child or any laws etc. And now it is prohibited to cuff any bastards under 8 unless a supervising office is present.

Link to CNN Story


Cowrie Shells: Not Just Shallow Décor

At this summers 2005 Detroit Taste Fest I bought an awesome Tiger Cowrie Shell Necklace for only 20 bucks. I put it on immediately & receive complements on it until I had left the event. I was thinking to myself, is it really that nice, yes it is. It is have as hell weighing at least 3.5 lbs with 17 shells measuring approximately 1.5 inches each. I always liked Cowrie shells but & wanted a necklace but could not find one that was me until... Since I have had this necklace I have been threatened for it (as a joke), offered money but nothjing too tempting. As a matter oif fact a guy offered me 10 buck for it like I was a desperate crack head hard up for money (HELLOOOO!)

I see people all the time with locks using the smaller more common Money Cowrie shells as hair adornments, but never figured out what it was all about etc. The same can be said for the more earthy type Afro American who may be spotted with shell chokers, earrings, bracelets etc. Well now that I own my own shells I figured that I would educate myself on what they are about so that I am informed & can share the knowledge no matter how useless it is.

Cowrie shells are really shells of gastropods aka snails/mollusks, which come from Islands in the Indian Ocean (but are found all over the world non-African) & along the coast Indian Ocean Coast of Africa. Many shells varieties were used as currency & are still were being used is areas is Africa like Nigeria within the 20th century but this practice dates back as far as Ancient Egypt. The Egyptians considered them to be magical agents and also used them as currency in foreign exchange transactions. Millions of them in the tombs of the Pharaohs during Archeological digs in the past.

Colors range from white to black and in a variety of sizes. Cowrie shells are synonymous symbol for, the Caribbean & Afro America, these small white shells have become an easy multicultural & ethic fashion statement.

Family Times: Detroit African World Festival

The Detroit African World Festival was this weekend & I took the family out to partake in this wonderful event. The African World Festival is the has the most anticipation out of all of the summer ethnic festival, starting Friday 08/19 & ending Sun 08/21 there is an expected 1.5 million visitors that will pound the pavement at Hart plaza looking for shea butter, African food, clothing, bootleg: purses, DVD's CD's and everything in between. The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History will be presenting its 23rd Annual African World Festival, which happens to be the largest educational outreach program presented by the museum. The specific focus on this year’s festival is on the African Diaspora, which was expressed by a great open market place, drumming, musical performances, spoken word, food & various displays of local & international artistry.

1pm Saturday, but that never happened as we arrived at 430pm (don't ask), luckily we were able to find a good parking spot by Campus Martius. Walking downtown on Woodward was a refreshing experience because about 15 years ago when I caught the DOT, Woodward was not the place to be if you wanted to make if home without being accosted by vagrants or puck bitches trying to jack someone (I was jacked waiting on the Fenkell # 18). The open Campus Martius plaza, new restaurants, & building restoration all show that Downtown is/will be the place to be, especially with the Superbowl coming.

As we got closer & to Hart Plaza, a panhandler asked me for money & I went off just a little. I do not give money to street-beggers at all, for all I know that can be better off than me. Shit! Furthermore, I told him that I was married & had 3 kids and asked what made him think that I had some money, then asked him to give me some of what he had. I may have went overboard but damn!!! Crossing Jefferson, I was almost overwhelmed by the ubiquitous festive environment where there was a myriad of stimulating sites, sounds & smells that. Music was blaring in all directions; the air was thick with incense, shea butter, essential/imposter oils, food & a little African funk or just plain Negro stank.

My one goal this summer was to find the perfect Dashiki & I did @ only 20 bucks from the Touray Kunda Enterprises booth. Luckily I found out that they have a store on the west side of Detroit that I can visit. I also wanted to pick up a Fly Whisk, & almost bought one but the hair was too filthy, so I am still on the hunt for one (whatever). People were everywhere but I was able to run into a few people that I know most notably Poets Blair, Karega & Cha Cha from 102.7, which whom I happened to meet the night before @ a party of a mutual friend, unbeknownst to me, she was one of the hottest DJ's in Detroit, and ironically I ran into a former Mackenzie HS classmate. One of the best booths was from Everette's Cornrows which had several good things going on including live demonstrations, merchandise & hair education.

Suite Suzy I did more people watching than anything else (a personal favorite activity). The most memorable thing we saw was this Dancing crackhead who had on a dirty blue jean Pussy Suite & very loose sweater tube top. She was making many crackhead moves as he danced to African Drumming that drew quite a large crowd. Oh wait there was also another crackhead that has on a corduroy overall & sweatshirt, but OK it was above 80°.

As a former Detroiter I had been to the AWF before but this year I was fully able to comprehend & full appreciate my surroundings. Now that I am more consciously aware & self understood these types of events have a weird spritual meaing to me, which also includes a desire to learn more on my people all over the world & embracing their life experiences as my own.

C-my photo slide show

I Need an Upgrade: Macromedia Studio V.8 Coming

This is very exciting news in the world of web development an updated version of the Macromedia Studio, which is scheduled for release mid September 05' (fingers crossed). As always stand alone components are available for those who do not want to drop 999 US for the full Studio or 399 US. The stand alone components will range from 149 US – 699 US.

I for one must have it all & am excited about the new features in DreamWeaver 8 which will include:

• Zoom
• Code collapse
• Workspace layouts
• Background file transfer
• Centralized access to re-usable code snippets
• Integratable Flash Video
• CSS layout visualization
• XML Editing and Validation

Flash Pro 8 will now also feature:

• Graphic filters (blur, drop shadow, bevel, and glow)
• Blend Modes
• Gradient control
• FlashType - clear, high-quality font rendering engine
• Video import workflow
• SWF Metadata

Since I work for the University of Michigan, I am really looking forward to the educational purchase price of 299 US (WOW!!!) In Macromedia’s August 8 05’ press release they stated, ”Our beta testers worldwide agree: this release will fundamentally change the way people think about the creation and delivery of digital content.”, & “The addition of Contribute and FlashPaper allows designers and developers a streamlined approach to maintaining web content, making the upkeep of sites created with the suite even more cost effective. Studio 8 also includes groundbreaking new video encoding tools, which give customers an easier method for creating and publishing high-quality interactive video for truly memorable online experiences.”

Only a few more weeks & it will be on & popping.

Ski Oakenfull: Rising Son

If you are a real fan on the UK Jazz band Incognito, then I you gotta know who Ski Oakenfull is & what he is about. Ski has been a keyboardist with Incognito and has produced for other artist a well as releasing his own solo album in 2000 and a master remixer for a myriad of other artists. In July 05' Ski released his sophomore album Rising Son which is scheduled to be released in the US Aug 23, 05, but I was lucky enough to find a copy on eBay last week (E-commerce Power). I had never heard any of his music but had got some good reviews from the Incognito message board.

Rising Son has much to offer fans of house | techno | ambient | electronica music with a wide rang of vocal talent & tempo. I got it 2 days ago & I have listened to it like 20 times already. My favorite tracks are: (click for sound snippets)

• Let Me Be
• Hang On
• Zodiac
• A State of Grace
• Let Me Be

Rising Son features vocals by Detroiter Amp Fiddler whose distinctive raw voice makes you really feel the music on 2 tracks. I am not familiar with the other talent on this release, but it is all good. The one track that I kind of hate is Space Gun, it is too gloomy for me & actually helped me fall asleep, when I was trying to stay awake.

Definitely a good by especially for Let it Ride, I find Let Me By to be funny especially when Amp says “If you want to be my baby & not my baby's mama, let me be myself".

Ski seems to have some type of obsession with Japan, so I have to figure that one out. Wait so does Maysa Leak & Incognito, what am I missing? I have been to Japan, it was nice but...

Link to Ski's site

Sean Combs/Puff Daddy whoever: Get it Together

Puff Daddy (for those of us who keep it real) has decided to change his name again to just Diddy. Puffy in a schizophrenic rant said "'P' was getting in between us (referring to himself)." I really don't give a shit, I will still continue to call him, Puffy, it sounds better.

When I think of diddy, I think of genitalia, because we called out wee wee's/penis' diddies when I was a kid (way back when), vaginas were woo woo's. Puff is trying to reinventing his character for the new offering to something a little eccentric and different, what the hell does that mean??? He changed his name to P Diddy in March of 2001.

BAW reported earlier this month that Puff is being sued for a federal patent infringement. The lawsuit was filed alleging that a phrase used by Diddy's clothing line ("It's A Lifestyle" in 2002) was too similar to a saying that had been patented for another clothing line.

"Sometimes people say I'm cocky and arrogant, but that comes with it." - Puff Daddy, 1997.

Bad Boy Records
Puff On MTV

Sam: One Ugly Mutha

Watching Conan O'Brien, I saw this ugly mutha fuckin' dog & I threw up in my mouth (just a little bit). This is a 14-year-old pedigreed Chinese Crested that recently won the Sonoma-Marin Fair contest for the third consecutive time. This thing was so hit up I could not imagine it walking around my house, let alone picking it up or petting for affection.

Sam is basically hairless with doo-doo brown skin is covered with freckles, his blind eyes are gross & he should be considered for an ocular implant. The teeth are a whole notha' story: to sum up, he looks like a cracked out space rat. Here is a larger image

If You Like Drama: Saturn of Ann Arbor

I got a new 05' Saturn VUE (my 2nd VUE) last month from Saturn of Ann Arbor, MI. This purchase was made with some reluctance because Suite Suzy & I hate Saturn A2 in general because there is always some GHETTO drama jumping off. When taking my 1st VUE in for service, there was more often then not this stupid bastard checking me in & pissing me off with his poor communication skills, lack of general knowledge, and filthy hands (I hate filthy hands) “Bill” shall remain nameless. There was always a long ass wait for an oil change, when I would to get service for performance issues etc they did not believe me so I would come back a few times before I got any resolution.

The line was drawn when the started to screw over Suite Suzy with her VUE. She reported several times that there was some weird shaking and noise when she turned corners etc, but when she took it to Saturn A2, they could never repeat the issue & sent her packing. When we said fuck it, & she decided to call Saturn HQ's and winded up getting a free 75K warranty, shortly thereafter there was a recall for the very issue she had been complaining about for weeks on end. During this time we both started to go to Saturn of Plymouth, MI, which was inconvenient because of the distance, but the service on all levels was great. Then we started to get calls from Saturn A2 begging us to come back to give them a try, they had revamped their service dept & offered a free oil change for all of the trouble. We did and there is/was less drama but the bad taste was in our mouths already.

With all this said, why would I lengthen the relationship by purchasing another vehicle from them? Well they have a good sales staff, I got a great deal, & it’s a minority owned business, which does not mean anything if the do not have a total package of good sales, service & overall customer service. Since I got my new VUE I had a episode of drama when going to get my fill up of gas (my purchased allowed me to get 115 gallons of free gas from Saturn A2) & I was denied a fill up because I did not have a fill up card. After going back & forth with this fat MoFo used car sales manager bastard I left with no gas & my gas light on. With gas prices over 1.57, I was really mad that I had to come out of my pocket

OK now that I am/was mad all over again, I had to decide if I wanted to call HQ to file a complaint or just say fuck it! I decided to call Jill (my awesome sales person) to let her know what jumped off & she immediately did some problem solving & made me feel better. I went today to get a fill up & found out that my little gas fiasco was a water cooler topic this week because of past drama & the management staff knew that I would lodge a complaint at the drop of a dime, I was quite amused by that & laughed.

My bad for being a fool twice or maybe…

Lice Sucks

I was debating on posting this because I thought it was too embarrassing, but I guess life happens, why be shamed. When you gots’ kids anything can jump off.

Weeks ago my daughter had an itchy scalp for about a week +, so we got her some Head & Shoulders shampoo from a Dermatologist. For a few days she was fine, and then it started all over again. A week or so later the whole family started itching so we thought it could be anything but never lice. When culprit was revealed we were shocked to discover LICE! We all went to our PCP & was told that the itching was a heat related skin reaction, after our scalps were check and nothing found. We then washed all of the bed linens just in case.

Last week my wife noticed bugs in her hair after washing it & on the towel. She then checked the kids & found the culprit of all the itching drama, it was lice (YUK!) & SURPRISE NIGAAZZZ!!! After the discovery was made she hit the pharmacy to get treatment for the family. Ironically, all of this was going on as I was getting my Brotherlocks tightened so I informed my consultant immediately and she checked my scalp & saw no creepy crawlers then she proceeded to earn her money. When I got home I had my wife check me again & still nothing.

I went online & found the following sites that had a specific reference to lice & African Americans/Blacks whatever:

• Headlice.org
• About.com
• University of California
• Find Articles.com
• Emedicine.com
• Doityouself.com

My wife (Suite Suzy) has wavy-straight hair (mixed/multi-racial), my daughter (Olivia) has very straight-tight curly hair & my little sister (Sade) has nappy hair in 2 strand twist, yet all infected. Although I found no live lice, I gave myself a treatment in case I may have had eggs. Everyone is now itch free, but we still cannot figure or determine where it all started.

Today we did a follow up lice treatment I definitely saw a decrease in the parasites so things are looking good. My story basically dispels the urban legend/myth that Black peeples don’t get no lice. Black Americans get 1% of all annual lice cases. Brazilian & African Blacks are far more likely to get lice infections (I forgot where I read this). Just wanted to share this experience & information.

Peace

The Georgia Aquarium: World's Largest Aquarium

I heard this story on the way home yesterday on NPR about the new The Georgia Aquarium, a 200 million dollar gift to the city of Atlanta from Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus. The aquarium will host 100K animals representing 500 species in 5 million gallons of water. There are expectations that the aquarium will attract approximately 2 million people per year and create 200 new jobs.

Located in ATL's contested "Tourist Triangle" there is already controversy with ALT's residents & homeless population because the city counsel passed a new ordinance banning panhandling in the area of the aquarium, World of Coca-Cola, CNN Center, Centennial Olympic Park, etc. The ordinance was probably passed on the insistence of business leaders who wanted a more sexy/appealing tourist Mecca/destination.

I have already made plans in my mind to visit with the family next summer, hopefully while there I will not be harassed or have or see any homeless drama.

Link to NPR Story

Ahhh Belize!

Over the weekend I attended the Detroit Caribbean International Festival for the first time, in particular the Carnival Parade on Saturday. The kids & I went as part of our cultural exploration & we had a great time. The parade was a beautiful explosion of color, site & sound & I think I was more excited than the kids as they scrambled to catch beads and candy.

As the parade marched on, I saw many Caribbean nations that I am familiar with i.e. Cuba, Jamaica, Trinidad, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Bahamas etc. Oh wait, did I mention Belize! When I saw the Belizean's I was thinking that there are no black people in Belize, it's a Hispanic South American nation. Obviously I was wrong because here they are in the flesh, Black Belizean's in all of their splendor. As a matter of fact one approached me & as she got closer we hugged each other with excitement. It was Alecia from work, my new special Afro Belizean Friend.

Alecia put me up on some quick knowledge about the people of Belize. She stated that most people think the people there are Hispanic, but it could not be further from the truth. While almost half of the Belizean people are Hispanic, there are many other Ethnic Groups. To illustrate the diversity of the people, Alicia told me that she had a cousin that looks like Gloria Estefan, Belize is a Heinz 57!

Overall the parade was a wonderful & enriching experience. I plan on check it out annually, Hopefully I can actually go to the Caribbean soon, but with 3 kids I will not hold my breath for too long. With all of these nations being represented I saw many common themes: pride, respect, color, & diversity. Actually this parade & festival is a great example of the African Diaspora - (What is the African Diaspora? The dispersion of Africans during and after the trans-Atlantic slave trade and others enrout to India as slaves and source of labor.)

I am having the kids complete journals this summer & especially for events that we attend, I cannot wait to see what they have to say on parade about this, with words & illustration.

Some Quick Belizean Facts:

• Belize lies on the eastern coastline of Central America, bordered on the north by Mexico, on the west and south by Guatemala, and on the east by the Caribbean Sea.
• Belize's mainland is approximately 180 miles long and up to 68 miles wide. Belize also consists of over 200 cayes (islands).
• Belize weather is characterized by two seasons: a rainy and a dry season.
• The name Belize is traditionally said to be from the Spanish pronunciation of Wallace, the name of the pirate who created the first settlement in Belize in 1638. Another possibility is that the name is from the Maya word belix, meaning "muddy water", applied to the Belize River.
• Independent nation since 1981, member of British Commonwealth of Nations.
• Most Belizeans are of multiracial and multiethnic descent, the population of Belize is approximately 280,000. There is a great deal of ethnic diversity among Belizeans, who include Hispanic, Creoles (African-European), Mestizo (Spanish-Indian), Mennonite, Garifuna (African-Indian), Mayan, Anglo-European, Middle Eastern and Asian. The largest single group is Hispanic.
• Languages: English (official), Spanish, Mayan, Garifuna (Carib), Creole

Link to Belize

Crying While Eating

I saw the owners of this site on Jay Leno 8/10/05 & thought their idea was funny as hell. I need to submit a video myself.

Link

There is also a NPR story from one of the creators (Daniel Engber) of Crying While Eating. Pretty Interesting!

Link

@The Movies Hustle & Flow

OK I broke down & saw Hustle & Flow against my better judgment, as a matter of fact I saw the bootleg. The movie is actually good, but not as good as my friends were saying.

I would watch it again, but maybe only with a buzzzzz! toward the end it started to become stereotypical, but hey it is a Black movie, what was I expecting.?. Check out the trailer

Signed, Sealed & Over for the Dave Chappelle show

Chappelle's Show' is over, man. Done," comic Charlie Murphy told TV Guide. "It took me a long time to be able to say those words, but I can say it pretty easy now, because it's the truth."

Chappelle's sudden "spiritual retreat" to South Africa on the eve of his show's third season has left the series in limbo since May. About half of a new season had been filmed before Chappelle left, Murphy said.

Link

I think if Dave kept his ass at home until the hiatus he would have been OK but maybe the Brotha has issues. I wish I good just bounce to Africa like that, I need it. Actually a trip to Trinidad would be just as good. I have a bottle of Rum Punch calling my name there.

Fewer Blacks Enlisting in the Army

I heard this story on NPR recently & though it was on point. I would never put my life on the line for America, it's not worth it. Too many Black people have died for the unjust causes of war etc on the home front & abroad. It's like you are treated like shit as a citizen & denied basic respect in some cases but they want you (The Man | Government) want you to lay your life down, for wack wages. After I saw Fahrenheit 911 I knew I felt even better on my position with the military. It's obvious that minorities are targeted (maybe a better alternative than...) with the promise of a bright future & school etc., but what difference does that all make if you wind up dead in the Middle East after only being there for 3 days.

NPR Story: The number of black Army recruits has dropped since 2001, according to reports. The proportion of black Americans in the Army is now roughly equal to the proportion of blacks in the general U.S. population. Michele Norris talks with Richard Whittle of the Dallas Morning News.

Link