If it Ain't One Thing.......

Peace Y'all,

It's been about 3 weeks since I posted something here, which I consider a long time for a "wordy little birdy" like me(lol)! In the meantime, I thank God that my cold is pretty much gone.

Initially I had intended to take the first weekend in March as a break, to give my body a chance to heal. I'm glad I did, for that weekend the flu bug swept through Dallas, affecting loved ones and co-employees alike. That Saturday I could do nothing but lay in the bed. My body was sore and aching, I could not eat anything.

Then the following Sunday and Monday I got a surprise when I found out that many of my co-workers suffered from the flu, and we spent those two days doing 3 times the amount of work.

Now I am fine, still coughing a little, but it's a lot better than before, which means I can get back on the scene. It was very frustrating these past three weeks, but glimmers of light always seem to come through. My Iseecolor friend Shannon Grissom has invited my on her social network entitled Give Your Walls Some Soul. She is a very talented sister in the arts, and she thought so much of my work she sent me a personal invite. In it are fellow artists from all walks of life who are very talented and we are beginning to rub elbows.

I also have invites for Facebook, which I am seriously looking into also. Looks like Twitter will be suffering severely, but to be honest with you, Twitter does not seem to be my cup of tea, so to speak. Mini blogs are great, but it seems like most people are out to collect followers.

Anyway, stay tuned.....Great to be back!!!!!

Take care.

A Little Sumthin' Diff'rent

Peace Y'all,

My health is deteriorating again, but you've heard that song before right? Some of us never learn when to sit down!(lol)

It's 9:26am, and I'm trying this again. I posted this blog last night, but somehow, someway it disappeared. Anyway it is a beautiful poem about overcoming adversity in life. I try not overburden my friends with some people call "Doom and Gloom" although it is essential to remind people about the life we are living, and the society we are living in. It's great to hear any type of consolation and encouragement from people, and part of the Quwwa Project is to accept contributions from any positive and truthful source. I told you I was an information addict, and I will stop by anybody's site and pick from the smorgasbord of information. Just ask Wild Peach, Freely Speaking and others.

It is a poem entitled The Monkey Wrench, and the sister who was very kind to allow me to JACK- I'm sorry, I mean reprint this has a website and a blog entitled Yarncoture. It is copywritten so any requests to reprint this should be directed to her blog.

http://www.yarncoture.blogspot.com/


Reprinted by permission, Courtesy of Yarncoture.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

The MoNkEy WrenCH (poetry from the soul...)
I want to hip you all up to this thing called the monkey wrench;
No one knows what it looks like or when it will hit but
when it hits you just get sick.
Your stomach is churning and turning and your soul is yearning for relief.
The gears in your mind are crashing and clacking while the monkey wrench continues to jam them...
You say to yourself "how could this be?? how could this happen to me??..ME!!!"

But you see, the monkey wrench has a plan to win;
to defeat you...it will treat you like a fool: you know, the fool that everyone thinks that you are...
By far, you are no fool and also have a plan.
Never fall in the same hole twice...it has been said!
If you let the monkey wrench's power overtake you, you'll be dead..
Your heart will cry in grief and your soul will scream for mercy over the monkey wrench's controversy and your mind will be spent.
What?? My plan, you ask? It is quite simple you see..

Patience is the key, you see..
In order for the monkey wrench's plan to work it must enrage you,
enough to make you act like a lion that's been locked up in a cage with no meat.
You see, you must stay calm...cool as a cucumber....don't let 'em see you sweat.
Always have a back-up plan, a frozen dinner waiting in the freezer, an extra change of clothes or whatever! Just prepare yourself for the monkey wrench's arrival...it's not fear, it's just survival!
Don't act like the lion in the cage; when let loose it devours everything in sight.
Believe me when I tell you, I understand your plight.
FIGHT with intelligence..FIGHT with strong character...FIGHT with dignity...
Only the posessor of these qualities will defeat the monkey wrench, you see...
Victory is yours and YES you have defeated it and only the foolish will flee and succumb to the monkey wrench's power. But it will be back! It will continue to test Man until the HOUR...

...until the next time...

~Yarn~

Ever Felt This Way???

Peace Yo,

It's 6:07p and I am tired and sapped to say the least. Life keeps giving some serious tests, and every once in a while, you just need to sit down and try to take it all in.

This week I found out that one of my cousins died in a horrendous death, he died in an abandoned house that burned down last week. His story represents the meaning behind Lifestyles of the Ignored. What's more maddening is that he was ignored by his own family members. That is until last week.

His mother and siblings lived probably 15 minutes away from an abandoned home. How can so called "loved ones" allow this to happen?

I remember seeing a similar incident on the news where a homeless man died on the streets. The family did not live too far and frankly no one cared.

Lifestyles of the Ignored does not only strike at the society as a whole, but on the inside of the family as well because most of society's problems start with the family. We teach traditions, ideas, cultures and so forth, and when one does not follow the pattern, they find themselves thrown out of the inner circle. People become "ashamed" of them, and fail to offer assistance at the least. But as soon as the person dies, we all cry(well some of us do) as if we cared. Get real

Anyway here is a posting of one of my pieces. Take care everyone.

ROCK BOTTOM...

Ever felt this way, like you're on a journey, and things are just not going the way you would hope or wished they would?

The origin of this picture comes from a newspaper article, in which a man was convicted of raping a woman, which he did not commit. He was sentenced to several years in jail simply because a woman pointed him out in the photo lineup the police displayed. Just like that, huh. Somebody can point you out, and with the right lawyers, you're in the pokie.

Now the man is out of prison, but he is homeless. He collects crushed cans for his food money. There's more to the story than this, but I wanted to focus on this part of the story. There were questionable decisions made on his part after he was freed, but I want to focus on the aspect of road blocks or injustices that we go through. Sometimes we talk amongst each other about people who are down and out, and all it takes is one person to conjure a negative story, and the whole vibe changes. For example, I can talk about the homeless to a group of people, and all it takes is one person to talk about a bad experience with some street people, and the whole vibe gets lost. People start saying "Yeah, that happened to me too" , and before you know it we are right back at square one, which is actually nowhere.

Because in this society, we are taught to kick a man when he's down. It's the easiest thing to do. It's a heck of a lot easier than knocking a man down, especially when the one who needs to be knocked down is the person in the wrong. And we are also taught that a man who is down is a man who is in weakness. But that may only be temporary.

Most of my pictures will deal with people who are oppressed and down and out people from all walks of life. The darker skin pictures are indicative of the struggles that we go through in particular, and the fleshtones will indicate a more universal message. I have spoken and/or written to people of different nationalities, and we share a similar issue, but the problem is most of us are so absorbed in "our own" struggle, we don't see the strength we could possibly possess as one human family. Our struggle as people of color is unique, but it's not like we're the only ones going through oppression, therefore when I use fleshtones it is to symbolise the basic human struggle.

My pictures may also touch a lot of people the wrong way, but isn't art supposed to challenge anyway? Make ya jump out that comfort zone? Or is it all about the pretty stuff?

Take care y'all

TAG!!!!(I'm It!!!!)

Peace everybody,

It's 6:44p and I just came from work with another episode of the uncontrollable coughing. This is the end of the work week for me, and I plan to spend the remainder of the week in bed. But I wouldn't feel right at all without doing something for my friends out there in cyberspace. People have taken time out of their lives to look at lil' ol' me and listen to my rants. While I'm talking about rights, my guests have rights over me too, ya know. So let's do justice.

OK, I've been tagged by Beholden here, which means there are 7 things I must mention about myself, and in the process tag 7 others to do the same, so here I go. If you find yourself sleepy after the first 2, I take full responsibility(lol)

1. I am an information addict, which means when I want to express myself in blogs, art or what have you, I feel I have to back it up with a truckload of facts and information. Documents, documentaries, radio, I love it all!!!! I don't read books, I eat them!!!!Lately I have been abstaining from the bookshelf, but thank God for audiobooks, I have about 3 sets in my vehicle right now!!!

2. I am allergic to salespeople. Nothing personal, I know you're doing your job, but I can't stand salespeople walking up to me asking me if everything's ok. I have had so many bad experiences with salespeople trying to bait and switch me, now when I see a salesperson, I literally runaway. They usually come up to me and offer something and they will not quit. Anything for a sale. I am a CSR myself, but I've worked in places where we were told to use "soft skills" to sell something, although we worked in a helpdesk. Go figure. It's kinda like a car insurance agency trying to sell you motor oil.

3. I have this strange jones for Blue Bell Fudge Brownie Nut Ice Cream. I like other kinds, but this one here is too addictive. I have been known to eat 3/4 of a half gallon in one sitting, which presents two problems, which I won't begin to mention(lol)

4. In the early to mid-eighties I was a serious DEVO nut! Well what's wrong with that? A lot when you live in the hood!!!!

5. My ardent desire is to hit some of the poorest neighborhoods in the world and soak up the atmosphere and put their stories on canvas. Places like Jamaica and Egypt, where the economy is based on swaying tourists, while local farmers cannot even sell their own produce, due to the oppressive International Monetary Fund and World Bank ventures. Look at a documentary called Life and Debt, and you will see what I mean.

6. Although my art may not show depictions of this, I am actually Klutz Deluxe. I have scars on both hands, and two toenails that were removed to show the proof. Note to Self: No matter how bad you wanna roller skate, wearing skates 3 sizes smaller than your actual shoe size is not a smart move!!!!(Don't ask why, OK? I was young at the time)

7. I am a very goofy person, who laughs at his own jokes, hey somebody gotta get the ball rolling...I say this because I know my pictures show otherwise, but that's something I take seriously, and maybe one day those people can smile like me. I hope I can contribute to the cause.

Well, I have to get in the bed now, but I will tag 7 people soon. Thanks Beholden, I truly treasured the opportunity. Take care y'all.