His Point of View

J is for Junkie [Full Length] from Greedmont Park on Vimeo.

This video reminds me of so many things… the J’s (Junkies) in my family, Sun Valley Apartments in the 1980′s, the neighborhood I lived in during my college years, the grown men who I have seen “entertaining”(singing, dancing, etc.) dope boys hoping to score their next hit, the mechanic who rebuilt my car’s engine for about $100, that dude who tried to sell me a washer and dryer for $50, the lady who used to go door to door trying to sell used shoes for a couple dollars, the kid I went to high school with that I saw strung out… before we (I) graduated, the fights I witnessed over debts, that time my neighbors ran off someone who broke into my house in the middle of the night, the night I had $15,000 in my hands to “hold” for someone while they went to “take care of some business”, that time a friend of mine sat up all night dressed in black waiting for someone, the stories I was told about Techwood Homes, when the stories were verified by an independent third party years later, the police raid while i was sleeping, the cars, the bikes, the women, the strip clubs, the block parties,the food, the night clubs, the back woods car races for $20,000 a race,  the little shabby pickup truck that used to signal the end for the dealers who foolishly tried to make that sale to a stranger, that time I saw the police pull that guy through his car window in the parking lot of Albertson’s, my professor’s son who used to come to the hood to get his “party supplies”, the (Caucasian) state capital employees who used to come to the hood to score hits, The J who cut my grass for a bottle of white wine, then walked around the neighborhood drunk the rest of the day, the pictures of semi-nude women sent to dudes in jail, the homie who got 9 years (for conspiracy to distribute), the homie who got 25 to life(for a fistfight which happened to be his 3rd strike), the homie who was still on the run last I heard, the homie who was killed, the first time I saw someone whipping the work, the homie who got 2nd-3rd degree burns when the pyrex pot broke while he was cooking, the time the two guys were hiding behind trees at night waiting for someone, the guy in the neighborhood who was up in the tree with a video camera wearing camouflage…LoL, the time I was told to ride in the other car, the time in the restaurant when we didn’t have to pay, the time in the strip club when everybody had a good time, but none of the girls were paid in cash, the decision I made that allows me to have the career I have today, the other stuff that I can’t write on this blog…(and don’t ask about it)

I have never sold or used crack or any form of cocaine, but it has definitely affected my life in many ways.

Watch this video, spread the link… help get some exposure for this young videographer, so that he can bring us more food for thought.

If you know me well, you know that there are a few things that I really enjoy consuming: fine chocolate, fine cheese, good wine, and excellent beer. My birthday was yesterday, and I can say that this entire weekend was dedicated to enjoying all four items listed above. I picked up four 8 oz. cheese slices this week and I have stared on two of them, Drunken Goat and Chimay Grand Cru. (continue reading…)

The next product up is Ty.  Which is a neat little wireless personal loss prevention device that alerts you when separated from something you value, such as your wallet, iPad, or your purse.  This only works assuming that your cellular phone is not attached or inside of the item you value.  The two problems I have with this product are #1 smart phone battery life is terrible, therefore I try to keep as many services turned off as I possibly can (i.e. bluetooth & wifi).   Problem #2 I need the tagging device to be small enough to be hidden or installed inside the body of my electronics, such as my digital camera or HD video camera.  Along those same lines comes the power issue, I am pretty sure the Ty tag requires power since it is a wireless device, if I do figure out how to hide it inside my device, it would be a pain to take it out and change the battery or to turn the tag off/on.  This product is still great as it is, but for me to really take advantage of it, at least one of the two problems I identified has to be overcome.  Perhaps Ty needs to work with manufacturers such as Nikon and Canon to integrate their product into digital device bodies.

Check out their site, by clicking here after you check out my video or enter this into your browser http://www.tytogether.com/

When I first saw this I thought it was a gimmick, but after watching the video, I think I need a stack of these to send to my friends around the world (and the US).  That is if they ever decide to sell these units to the public… but even if they don’t its a great project.  I do wish that the cameras were available without purchasing film, I would be willing to pay a for the cost of the postcard and postage even if it is sent to a person I don’t know.  How cool would it be to have a collection of images that are shared only between you and another person on the other side of the world… its nice to step back into the non-digital world every now and then.  Thanks Fuji film… now just fix the part about buying film to participate.

Read and watch the video at Gizmodo.com by clicking here

This week I was able to attend a performance of  the one man play “Thurgood” starring Laurence Fishburne.  This was a magnificent performance.  I often had to remind myself that Fishburne was only playing a role.  The play is near the end of its run at the Kennedy Center in DC, and unfortunately its sold out for the remaining performances. If you can I would advise you to go to make sure you see this show when and if it comes to a theatre near you.  I did not know until I began doing a little research for this post, that this play has been on going on and off broadway since 2006, when the role was performed by James Earl Jones.  I only wisht that I would have known about the show so that I could have seen what Jones brought to the role.

As can be expected the play details many of the highlights of the life of former US Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.  The performance focuses on his early years as a budding attorney, and his fight to win Brown vs. The Board of Education, as well as a few other cases that were crucial to the civil rights movement of the mid 1900′s.  Surprisingly there was quite a bit of humor which I did no expect, it just goes to show that there is a human side to everyone, no matter what their public image may be.  The was much I did not know about Thurgood Marshall, and I now have a desire to do more research into the life of America’s first African American Solicitor General and Supreme Court Justice.  I hope that the 90 minute show continues to shine a light on a man who did so much to change America.

***Update*** Gil Scott is performing in DC June 17-20, 2010 at The Blues Alley***

‘I’m New Here’ is the title of Gil Scott Heron’s latest album/CD.  If you don’t recognize the name Gil Scott Heron, you need to get familiar… Once you do some research I am sure you will find a poem or two created by him, that you have heard of.  His latest work of poetry is an excellent combination of music and spoken word poetry.  I can relate to so much of what he speaks of, and I do not doubt that you will relate to something on this CD as well.  Gil Scott Heron was fairly popular a few decades ago, and many people who were fans of his, unfortunately are not even aware that he has released a new work.  To whomever is responsible for promoting this album…please get on the ball, there are many fans out there who would surely make a purchase if they were made aware of this album’s release.

You can go to his website to hear the album now, while you are there read some of the press about him so that you can get familiar right quick… And you can order the CD from BestBuy.com, good luck attempting to find a copy of the CD locally.

Oh yeah my favorite tracks are ‘running’, ‘me and the devil’, and ‘On coming from a broken home’.

I am not a person who runs out to buy the latest hot scents, I typically purchase the same four or five colognes until they are no longer available.  During my trip to Las Vegas this past weekend I wandered into the Tom Ford store and I found three new favorites.   Tom Ford’s Black Orchid is the scent that I am referring to, and I like it even more each time I wear it. (continue reading…)

Air Mouse is the latest reason I have found to fall in love with my iPhone again.  This app allows you to use your iPhone as a mouse & presentation pointer for your desktop/laptop/Mac.  All you need is a wifi connection and a free down loadable application to install on your desktop/laptop.   Your PC/Mac can be connected via a wired or wireless connection as long as it is connected to the same network that your  iPhone is connected to via wifi.  I find this app particularly useful since I don’t like to sit at a desk while using my PC, so now I can sit back and use my PC across the room or from my comfy chair as long as I can see the monitor(a large monitor comes in handy).  The app even allows you to use your iPhone as a fully functional keyboard, really you have full control of your PC from your iPhone.  In fact i am typing this blog post on my iPhone while sitting back in a nice comfortable chair away from my desk.  I think this is a must have for entrepreneurs or people constantly on the go who want to minimize the number of devices in their equipment bag.  The app only costs $1.99 at the itunes store so give it a try.  See the vendor’s site by clicking here.

Sooooo, about 15 years ago I stopped eating pork, and maybe 5 years ago I stopped eating beef.  As a result I avoid products which contain gelatin, as most gelatin is rendered from the remains of cattle or swine.  To make a long story short, I have had to give up gummy bears and gummy worms. Well I was in Toys R Us yesterday and I found organic, vegetarian gummy bears and worms… even the sour kind.  If you are interested they are “Surf Sweets” by Santa Cruz Nutritionals for only $.98 for a 2.75 oz. package. And best of all they taste great, they even taste better than I remember…. Now if only then made a vegetarian Jell-O substitute…

FYI: Surf Sweets products are all gluten-free and casein-free

http://www.surfsweets.com/ OR  www.SantaCruzNutritionals.com It has been brought to my attention that Surf Sweets is no longer a part of Santa Cruz Nutritionals, although both companies appear to sell similar organic candies.

As many of you know, I took a trip to Cape Town, South Africa in March, 2009.  If you don’t know, South Africa was under a system of legalized racism called Apartheid until 1994.  Apartheid ended just 15 short years before my visit, and it was clear to me that the racism is still alive and well in South Africa ( I can only speak of Cape Town and its surrounding region, as this was the only metropolitan area I visited during my stay.  Please see my previous post regarding my interactions which some of the citizens of South Africa here)  I saw that darker colored people held very few client facing jobs (such as waiters, hostesses, cashiers, etc).  I saw that coloured people drove nice cars, while most of the black people walked or took public transportation, I experienced hesitation to serve me in retail establishments until the shop keepers realized that I was not a local black or coloured person.  I won’t even mention the German owned book store which featured writings by Adolf Hitler and other Nazi (continue reading…)