Time for a little R&R!

I am taking a few days off from blogging and from work. I'm getting out of town to visit a friend. I like to travel during the middle of the week to avoid crowds (it's an agoraphobic thing). One of the best things about this little mini vacation is I'm going by train! Yippee! I love the train. It's so relaxing.

I'm all ready, I have my brand new little camera. It's a tiny little Vivitar digital camera. I got it for $10 dollars! I hope it actually works. If it does I'll post a few pics of my trip when I get back. I have a slew of new playlists downloaded to my ipod and I have as they say my travelling shoes!

In the interim I have decided to re-post some things from my early days as a blogger (like that was so long ago). I hope that you will take some time and read some of my early posts and if you are so inclined, please leave a comment.

Have a good week and I will be back on Saturday.

Just click on the links below

Is The U.S. Army Covering Up The Murder Of PFC. LaVena Johnson?

A Moment Of Reflection

Mitt, I have a question...

I Love Radio

They Say...I Say (an original poem by Mes Deux Cents)

Video Vixens and Harajuku Girls

Labor Day

What I'm Listening To This Week...Travelling Music!

Aaliyah - Try Again
Leela James - My Joy
Maze - Before I Let Go
Tom Petty - Breakdown
Amy winehouse - Love Is A Losing Game
Aretha Franklin - Spanish Harlem
Creedence Clearwater Revival - Green River
The fugees - No Woman, No Cry
Lenny Kravitz - Are You Gonna Go My Way
Kraftwerk - Trans Europe Express
The Mamas & The Pappas - California Dreamin'
Sade - Maureen
The Police - One World (Not Three)
Enya - Urinoco Flow
Dave Bruebeck - Take Five
Jimi Hendrix - Little Wing
Rhianna - Umbrella
Steve Forbert - Romeo's Tune
Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock - It Takes Two
Joan Armatrading - Cool Blue Stole My Heart
Simon & Garfunkel - The Boxer
John Coltrane - Naima
Natalie Cole and Diana Krall - Better Than Anything
Squeeze - Pulling Mussels From A Shell
Corinne Bailey Rae - Choux Pastry Heart
Led Zeppelin - Communication Breakdown
Meshell Ndegeochello - Michelle Johnson
Change - The Glow Of Love
Alice Smith - Gary Song
Les Nubians - El Son reggae
Natalie Merchant - Carnival
M.I.A Arular - Sunshowers

Toledo at Night

(click on image for a larger view)

Sur la Beauté

(Fashion model Liya Kebede)

I love beautiful things. I love beautiful people, beautiful music, beautiful places, beautiful clothes, if it's beautiful I like it. Recently something made me wonder if my love of beauty has made or is making me shallow. My initial answer would be no but after further thought I would have to answer maybe.

As I look back I can see that there have been times when I have passed on opportunities to know people or experience places because I didn't deem them beautiful or attractive. That is a hard pill to swallow about myself. I wonder why I value beauty so much? Is it purely the aesthetic pleasure that beauty brings? Or might there be more complicated and insidious reasons?

If a complete stranger walks up to me my reaction will be based on their attractiveness. I think that would be a subconscious reaction. Isn't that normal? Don't we all have those kinds of reactions? Don't babies respond positively to beautiful faces?

Author Malcolm Gladwell talks about this in his book Blink: The Power Of Thinking Without Thinking. As the title suggests Gladwell examines decisions we make in the blink of an eye. If we examine those types of decisions, what will it say about us? That we favor certain things simply based on appearance? If a neighborhood looks bad and our first instinct is to avoid it, isn't that a smart choice? But what have we missed out on because of that snap judgement?

Other implications are more serious. Such as snap judgements based on race.

What If a paramedic or a doctor makes a snap judgement about the person being treated based on appearance? What if a police officer makes a decision based on a persons appearance, while having her gun drawn? In those cases a decision made in the blink of an eye may mean life or death.

This topic jumped into my head because on a recent morning I decided to watch a Sade concert DVD. As I watched it I thought how amazingly beautiful Sade is. And then for some reason I wondered if I would be such a big Sade fan if she were average looking. And an extension of that, would she be as popular as she is if it were not for her beauty? I'm not sure if initially I would have been as open to Sade's unique singing style had I not admired her beauty. So does that make me shallow? I want to find a reason to say no but it might.

Would Tracy Chapman be a bigger star if society thought of her as beautiful? Is the only reason I live in northern California because of it's beauty? Have I chosen my friends based on beauty? Did I buy my PC based on appearance? I didn't even know my PC burned Cd's until I got it home.

This is not easy to think about, I don't want to think of myself as being shallow. I want to blame the society I live in that promotes beauty above all else. I want to say that I am only a product of my environment. But whatever the reason, if I'm making this assessment then I ought to make changes.

I need to look deeper, judge less quickly and be more open to other kinds of beauty. The kinds of beauty that are not necessarily apparent at first glance.

This is as they say, a teachable moment. I have the information and now I simply need to apply it.

Link-O-Rama

Click on the links below!

Michelle Singletary: Though studies show racial differences, the message is clear that investing is important

NPR: Song Links Saggy Pants to Being Gay

Guardian Unlimited: We all have one drop

Stanley Crouch: Anti-violence campaign shoots at the heart of the problem

Rev. Irene Monroe: Obama the vote-whore with ‘ex-gay’ at his side



Photo Attribution: Gianni D.

What I'm Listening To Today...Mo' Better Blues Soundtrack

Burj Al-Arab Hotel at Night

A Week Of Positive Blogging!

Ehav Ever of the blog Hochmah and Musar is organizing A Week Of Positive Blogging. I think there is a lot of focus on whats wrong in the world so this is a great oppourtunity to focus on whats right with the world! A lot of bloggers are already on board. I think this is going to be fun!

Would you like to take part? If so or if you want to know more follow the link below to Ehav's blog.

Link: Hochmah and Musar


Logo Design by Ehav Ever

Bell'Italia!

Photo Attribution: (bottom to top) Vanvos, Mor, Seba, Juan Illoo, M. Agall

What I'm Listening To Today...Ben Harper

Seattle at Night

Hello...is anybody home?

Do you come across abandoned blogs? I'm not talking about the ones that people set up just to have a blogger account to comment. I'm talking about blogs that have lots of posts and then they just stop. You start reading a post and then look at the date and think what the ....! I find them all the time. It's so strange. The posts just stop! kaput!

It's like finding an abandoned house with a hot dinner still on the table and music playing on the stereo. I always wonder what happened. Was there some sort of tragic event? A broken heart? Carpal tunnel? What would happen to make someone just stop blogging with no explanation? These aren't situations where someone is just taking a few weeks off. I'm talking about finding a blog that hasn't been touched in months or a year or more.

Some of the blogs are really interesting too. I've seen abandoned blogs with very well thought out posts on intriguing topics. One would think that at least there would be a goodbye post. An explanation as to why the blogger has decided to give it up.

It's weird and a little sad and always makes me curious when I see a blog abandoned.

Photo Attribution: Tonya Poole

¡Cuba Libre!

Photo Attribution: (top to bottom) Blogmulo, Brynjar Vik, Rudi Heim, Leo Regnier, Sindala

Recommended Viewing...Sideways

This is one of my favorite films. I really like coming of age films and this is a unique coming of age film . Usually coming of age films focus on teens but this film focus' on two adults. One a wine lover with a serious broken heart (among other problems) and the other, a has been actor who wants to have a little fun before his impending marriage. Another thing I love are the locations which are in northern California's wine country. This is a fun little film that will make you laugh and maybe bring a tear to your eye as well. I highly recommend it!

What I'm Listening To Today...Les Nubians

Sunset in Scotland

On Commenting...

I have over the last few months become very fond of commenting on blogs. I like the interaction between blogger and commenter. It's nice to leave a comment and then to go back hours later and find a response from the blogger. It's also nice to acknowledge someones post. I have seen quite a few posts that not only deserve a comment but a standing ovation.

There are bloggers who do copious research and bloggers who bare their souls. Those I think are the bloggers who are the definition of blogging. I like to comment when I see that someone has done a lot of work either literally or emotionally for a post. I am continually amazed at the depth of thought that bloggers put into their blogs.

I sometimes read a post and it's so thought provoking that I have to come back hours or a day later to comment. Some posts require by their excellence a certain level of thought be put into the comments.

On some blogs the comments section is a forum and a community of it's own. Some comments sections are almost a clique. I feel that everyone knows each other, if only from commenting, and am too intimidated to leave a comment.

There is only one thing I don't like about commenting. That is when I put a lot of thought into a comment and the blogger doesn't respond. I really hate that. I know that some comments are more rhetorical and don't really require any sort of feedback. But I'm talking about the comments that are communicative, one's that I may even pose a question or offer a theory regarding the post. So a non-response sometimes feels like the blogger is saying your comment made no sense or does not matter. Lately though I have been trying to notice if the blogger just generally does not respond and find that some bloggers for what ever reason don't comment on their own blog. My unrequited comments still hurt my feelings though (sniff sniff), but I'll be okay.

I've only had one blogger be rude and she was really young and her rudeness was more sarcasm. I think she was trying to impress her usual commenters. Anyway once was all it took, I haven't been back to her blog.

I have only recently begun to post comments that are in opposition to the post. I use to just disagree in silence, but on re-thinking, I realized that sometimes disagreeing is apart of the blogging process. And some of the most enjoyable comments I've read have been in opposition of the bloggers point of view. if I do happen to leave a comment that disagrees, I try to be as positive as possible in the process. Sometimes it's informative to disagree. I've had bloggers respond to my comment and compel me to see a different point of view.

Commenting or reading comments is also a great way of finding interesting blogs. If someone leaves a comment that stands out I generally check their blog and more times than not I find an interesting blog. Which has also made me aware that when I'm out in the blogisphere making comments that others are doing the same, so I have to represent my blog well by leaving coherent comments (with as few typos and misspellings as possible).

All in all commenting is a activity in and of itself. I think one could occupy one's self for endless hours commenting. And I've noticed that there are a lot of people who don't have blogs that comment. So it seems that people other than me really enjoy the process.

All I can really hope for is that a comment or two of mine have had a positive effect on a blogger or someone else reading it. I know that I have read quite a few comments from others that have had a positive effect on me.

The Blog Report

Here are a few interesting blogs I've found. I hope you enjoy them!

(Just click on the links)

BoringBlackChick

What Tami Said

Dustin's Thoughts

A Day In The Life Of...

Foto Art Friday #2

What I'm Going To Be Listening To... On November 13th!

Vacation anyone?

Photo Attribution: Muha

Up, Up and Away, Airbus A380 Takes off!

Growing up near New York's LaGuardia airport I developed a fondness for airplanes. My friends and I would sometimes go down by the Flushing bay and watch the planes taking off and landing. Later I worked for a couple of airlines at LaGuardia. One of the Airlines I worked for offered to pay part of the cost for those who wanted to take flying lessons so I took advantage and took a few lessons in Norfolk Virgina.

So I'm very happy to see the new Airbus A380 take to the sky's today in it's first commercial flight for Singapore Airlines. The first flight went from from Singapore to Sydney Australia with 455 passengers on board and took 7 1/2 hours.

Go A380!

Link-O-Rama

click on the links below and enjoy!

Earl Ofari Hutchinson: Why Barack Won't Dump McClurkin

John Ridley: Donnie McClurkin and Perfecting Gays

Sandra Rose: Halle Berry said what?

Chloe Hilliard: Scientologists Invade Harlem!

EurWeb.com: SEXUAL, PHYSICAL ABUSE ALLEGATIONS AT OPRAH'S SCHOOL

NPR's News and Notes: Bloggers' Roundtable: Obama/McClurkin feat. Gina McCauley of What About Our Daughters.

Bloggers' Roundtable: Part 2

Hochmah and Musar: A Week of positive blogging

San Diego's New Homeless Turn Away The Homeless

As a Californian I have been keeping track of the wildfires burning all over the bottom third of the state. The news coverage from my local area t.v. stations has been wall to wall. I was sad to hear this morning that as many as 1500 homes had been destroyed. And that some of the fires may have been set by arsonists.

Earlier in the week I heard a few things that bothered me when people being interviewed at San Diego's Qualcomm stadium (where 15,000 evacuees are being housed) tried to make comparisons between the organized scene there and the chaos that was reported after hurricane Katrina in the New Orleans Super Dome. The overtones of the comparison seemed racist.

But this morning I heard something even more disturbing. As one of my local t.v. stations was doing a report from San Diego's Qualcomm stadium and a person being interviewed said that they had been having problems with homeless people coming to the stadium and trying to get in. I could not believe my ears. I thought did he really just say that? The volunteer went on to say that the police had gotten involved and that they had decided to Begin to screen people and hand out wristbands to keep the Homeless out.

I must say that if this is truly the case I am totally and completely outraged. During a time of crisis, when as many as 15,000 people becoming at least temporally homeless, these people are turning homeless people away. I suppose that you have to be a certain type of homeless to get food and shelter in San Diego. Apparently they will begin to make people prove which kind of homeless they are when someone arrives for help at the stadium. I certainly hope none of the rich and affluent San Diegans who have lost their home also lost their identification as well. Because they might be deemed just a regular homeless person as opposed to a victim of the fires and be turned away.

The callousness of my fellow Americans never ceases to amaze me.

What I'm Listening To Today...

This San Francisco bay area singer has been bubbling under for a few years now. This is an amazing Cd and she is an amazing singer! Give her a listen on Amazon or itunes.

Boston at 4:45 A.M.

Tales from the bus...Global warming is a scam!

If you've been reading this blog for a bit you may know that I commute by public transportation, which is a fancy way of saying I take the bus to work. While on my daily trips I hear and see very interesting things. So I thought once in a while I would share.

Yesterday morning I boarded the bus to find no seats in the front of the bus. I really hate sitting in the back of the bus, partly because nothing good ever happens in the back of buses and partly as an acknowledgement to those who came before me that were forced to sit at the back of the bus.

Anyway I was left with the choice of standing and holding on to the posts or sitting in the back. Before I go on I must explain that I'm a bit of a germaphobe (understatement). So holding on to the posts on public buses is a horrifying experience for me. The whole time I'm thinking of the hundreds if not thousands of non-hand washers that have touched the posts. I'm thinking bacteria and other assorted germs passing from some persons hand to my well and often washed hands. (I carry pre-moistened anti-bacterial tissues.)

So, the back of the bus it was.

As I sat down I realized I landed in the middle of a very loud conversation between two men. One of the men was older, in his sixties and the second I think may have been in his early thirties. Apparently the conversation was on pause while the bus stopped to pick up unsuspecting riders like myself. The resumption of the conversation went like this;

Older guy, "Whether you know it or not global warming is a scam! It's a scam I tell ya!"

Younger Guy, "oh yeah, how's that?"

Older Guy, "All those fancy scientists are making a fortune off of this global warming stuff."

Younger Guy, "how do they make money on global warming?"

Older Guy, "Selling solar power and electric lawn mowers and makin' everybody buy those new fancy light bulbs, that's how! It's nothing but a scam!"
Younger Guy, "Oh, okay."

Apparently the younger guy realized this was not a common sense kind of conversation and tried to back out of it. That's when the older man moved on to other conspiracy theories. He of course touched on the 9/11 conspiracy, that's number one on the conspiracy theorists hit parade. Then he mentioned how he thought Starbucks put something in their coffee to get people hooked. He figured this had to be since he'd had Starbucks coffee and to him it tasted like burnt mud. (I kind of agree about the burnt mud taste). At this point the younger guy started laughing and said that yes they put something in their coffee, caffeine!

This was the gist of the conversation that went on until old guy pulled the Cord and got up to get off the bus. As he made his way to the door he continued to mumble something about there being something in Wonder bread too.

To be loved is to be known

"We all censor ourselves to some degree out of fear of being rejected. If people don't really know us, however, they can't really love us. I figure if I express my true thoughts and feelings and someone rejects me for it, I've been set free to connect with people who can love and appreciate me for who I really am"– Anahata

I found this quote at the wonderful blog EAT-MANGOES-NEKKID. This really struck me because we do censor ourselves in order to fit in or be liked. And as the quote says, if we do censor then people really won't know us. So if we are to find true love we have to be brave enough to be our true selves. Otherwise we go through life never being loved because we were never truly known.

What I'm Listening To Today...

Luther Vandross - Your Secret Love
Amy Winehouse - Love Is A Losing Game
Goapele - Closer
Bob Marley - Redemption Song
Lily Allen - Smile
The Police - One World (Not Three)
Aretha Franklin - Day Dreaming
Meshell Ndegeocello - Michelle Johnson
Dave Matthews Band - What Would You Say
Lisa McClendon - Has Anybody Seen Love
Art Tatum - Willow Weep For Me
Jr. Walker and The All-Stars - Shotgun
Rihanna - Unfaithful

If being cute is a crime, then go ahead and cuff me!

Link-O-Rama

(just click on the links below)

Cynthia Tucker: THUG CULTURE IS A CANCER DESTROYING BLACK AMERICA

AllAfrica.com: Black is Still Beautiful, Ladies!

Earl Ofari Hutchinson: Obama Should Repudiate and Cancel His Gay Bash Tour, and Do It Now

AP: The end for Easy Rawlins?

Reuters: Sexy rap videos suspected to be damaging to young girls

LA Times: Blogger goes into 'the fields'

JOHN McWHORTER : Walking Away From Hate

What I'm Listening To Today

Q1 Review or Don't quit your day job!

I have been blogging for almost exactly three months. So I thought that this would be a good time for some feedback.

So since the thing I love most about blogging is the interaction I am asking you, that's right YOU, to give me constructive criticism. I would really appreciate if the readers of Mes Deux Cents would take a few moments to leave a comment or two about the blog. It doesn't matter if you have never left a comment before or you regularly leave comments.

Please be honest, don't hold back. If you feel the need log on anonymously and let me have it! Go for it!

I am sort of at a crossroad. I am unsure of the direction to take my blog. Over the last three months I have talked about a range of subjects. I have written about current events, news of interest to African American women, general news, a bit on sports, some of my original poetry, lots of stuff on music, a whole lot of photos and a host of other things. In fact I've posted on so many different things that I'm unsure of my blogs' personality.

So help me, give me a critique. Please be honest and tell me what you like and what you could do without. And know that I will take your comments in the spirit that they are given.

Thanks in advance for your help. I look forward to hearing what you have to say!

Who will the (corporate) media select as the next U.S. President?

The media is once again picking 'our' presidential candidates. Remember during the 2004 presidential election when the media showed the video of then candidate Former Vermont Governor Howard Dean (above). The one of him seemingly screaming like a madman. Well as I hope you know it was not really the case. The microphone he was using was a mic that did not pick up the sound in the room other than his voice. So the mic did not get the screaming crowd that he was trying to be heard over. The media didn't report it like that and many think that helped to derail his candidacy.

So now as we get ready to select the nominees for the 2008 presidential election the media is once again selecting for us. And unfortunately we are letting it happen. This is not independent media, it's corporate media. They have an agenda. The companies that own these media news outlets are very diversified and have their hands in all sorts of business. So is it far fetched to think that they might have an interest in who becomes the President of the United States?

I'm not a conspiracy theorist and I don't think this is a conspiracy. However I do believe that in back rooms at individual media outlets, the corporate heads are talking with the media heads and letting them know in no uncertain terms who would be an acceptable nominee and who would not.

This is why the consolidation of media allowed by the Telecommunications Act Of 1996 was a terrible thing for democracy. We now have too few voices and points of view delivering our news. And we very rarely take into consideration the motives of news outlets (with the exception of Fox News).

And once again the media/ FCC is making a push to have the FCC allow for more consolidation. Very quietly the republican controlled FCC is looking to relax media ownership rules once again.

In 2003 the FCC tried to change restrictions of media ownership to allow the same entity to own a broadcast outlet and a newspaper in the same market, which is not currently allowed.

In certain markets, smaller ones especially, that could have meant that one media company would've dominated the news coverage in that market. That obviously would not have been a good thing.

The public reaction and protests put the kibosh on the plan then, but the FCC is at it again.

The new FCC chairman Kevin Martin is trying to ease those restrictions by the end of 2007. In the next couple of months there will be a few public hearings on this. And the FCC is trying to keep those meetings as low key as possible.

Is there any doubt that corporate media will help by either not covering the process or giving it a low profile?

So as we continue down the campaign path to the 2008 Presidential election, keep in mind that the information you get about who is a viable candidate and who is not, does not come from sources with no interest in the outcome. And if the FCC has its way there will be fewer voices deciding for us who our presidential nominees will be than ever before.

More on the proposed FCC media ownership changes

NPR: FCC May Change Media Rules

The Wall Street Journal: FCC Moves on Ownership

What I'm Listening To Today...

Mid pleasures and palaces though we may roam, be it ever so humble, there's no place like home

Photo Attribution: (bottom to top) James Neely, Scott Haefner, Unknown, Lulu Bird

On Happiness...

It seems that there are a lot of people chasing happiness these days. It’s almost as if someone has made us a promise that happiness is a birth right. We do all sorts of things in the pursuit of happiness. We buy things, we take ‘prescribed’ drugs, we take trips, we move, you name it we do it trying to find this elusive thing called happiness.

I think we are aiming for the wrong emotion. Happiness is an extreme emotion. It's the opposite of sadness which is also an extreme emotion. So what's left then? How about contentment.

I don't think, even though we are led to believe, that happiness can be a constant. We can experience hours of happiness, days or even months of it. But it will always come to an end. And well it should, it would be rather exhausting being happy 24/7.

The same goes for sadness, although it's possible to maintain sadness for much longer periods of time than happiness. And without much effort.

But right in between happiness and sadness is an overlooked emotion. And that is contentment. I think of contentment as a state of acceptance. I don't mean that in order to be content that we have to simply except whatever is going on in our lives. I mean that we accept that everything is as it is for a reason. We don't often do that. Usually we kick and scream until things are the way we perceive they should be.

I am able to find contentment doing very simple things. I find it reading a good book, listening to great music, seeing a great film or sitting on my back porch just before dawn. And that is one of the interesting things to me, it's the simplest endeavours that lead to contentment for me rather than the grandiose things.

If your day is bad try knowing that a bad day provides contrast which allows us to enjoy a good or even a great day. That kind of simple acceptance I think can lead to contentment.

Recommended Viewing...3 A.M.

Danny Glover and Pam Grier star in this (2001) film about the lives of NYC cabbies and a serial killer on the lose. There are a lot of intertwining plots and twists. Also look for Michelle Rodriguez in her usual badgirl persona. Sarita Choudhury also stars. This film is off the beaten path and I highly recommend it!