More than a game

This evening I had the pleasure of viewing a screening of the soon to be released film titled "More Than A Game".

The film follows a group of young men along a journey where they use the game of basketball as a tool to bond with one another, to put their city/state on the map, and to follow through a predetermined goal.

"More Than A Game" is a documentary of the St Vincent St Mary's High School basketball team's Fab Five, which included Lebron James. In my own personal opinion this was the basketball version of the pact on screen and in real life. They all may not have become basketball players in the end but brotherhood bond was molded in the hot couldron of Akron, OH.

The same can be said for many sports-- "it's more than a game"--but here four young men and a coached proved the old adage: "it takes a village to raise a child."

I recommend this for any and everyone. a step up for Lebron over Kobe in Spike Lee's "Kobe Doin' Work". A must see.

I love basketball. Why? Simply because it's more than a game.

When Keeping It Real Goes Wrong...

To use the term correctly as it pertains to the attached video: "When Making It Rain Goes Wrong"!



SMH...This is a dam shame. If I had a list of things I will do once (i.e. I have done this already) and will never do again, throwing money at strippers in the club will be Top Three on that list. I can't recall if I gave the story in a prior post, but I went for my twenty-fourth birthday. An older cousin gave me a wad of cash along with the rundown of the "do's and dont's" with additional strip club etiquette...LOL...I felt like I was giving away my mortage without my wife's knowledge; like I was gambling money that was for my son's/daughter's tution...You get the point. It just felt wrong. I'm good, though. This is what happens when you give ignorant people money. They have too much and don't know what to do with it all. But if the porn industry is at full throttle why shouldn't the stripping industry be thriving? (Disclaimer: FiGZ supports neither of these two industries financially) Making it rain is never a good thing in any environment. People will always go crazy and worry most about picking it up.

"They should've never gave you n****s money!" - Rick James/Dave Chapelle (The Chapelle Show)

(Note: I'm a frequent reader of MissInfo and I have to give her props for having this on her blog, which in turn sparked my interest in writing this post)

100 years of NAACP

Also, if you haven't heard already the NAACP has recently taken up an Environmental Initiative. Finally...LOL...enjoy the full length speech that Obama gave recognizing their milestone.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

"If White-Americans have a cold then African-Americans have the flu!"~ Pres. Obama

"...No one has written your destiny for you. Your destiny is in your hand." ~Pres. Obama = "...I am the master of my fate. I am the master of my soul." - Invictus

"The Government isn't your mother. The Government is not your father. Bill Cosby says, 'The Government does not love you.' We've got to take it upon ourselves; it is incumbent upon us. To look upon ourselves. What can we do as people to make things better."
-Michelle Bernard, MSNBC

EXPERIMENT: "No Liquor For A Year"

Before I turned twenty-five I made a pact with myself that I would abstain from drinking liquor (or beer) the day after my birthday FOR GOOD. "For good" has now recently turned into an experiment. I know, I know. I'm slowly pushing the boundaries I had previously set, but in retrospect the reasoning I first made this decision with was as follows: in the near future I was trying to accomplish things physically and was aware that drinking on the weekends would hamper my results. It's a proven fact. I'm always looking for ways to cleanse my body as well. When I start tackling a few of these accomplishments I will post them on my blog.

So, it started July 6th (disclaimer: I had to enjoy my birthday WEEKEND; don't judge me) and we'll see how it ends up in 2010. I am allowed to drink wine, though; but absolutely NO distilled beverages (or beer) at all. If you see me giving in to temptation make sure that I stay on course and do not veer of the path I have set for myself. I am always up for a good challenge and am pretty good at staying the course (e.g. I was vegan for 3 years. At the beginning when I made that decision I stopped eating all meat and dairy the next day. That's how I roll.) no matter what temptation is thrown my way.

Quarter Century (7.3.09)

I had so much on my mind the week of my birthday, and had been mulling over the thought of expressing myself in my blog. Here I am twenty-five years of age; becoming wiser, gaining more knowledge, and learning my place within this world.

First, I am truly blessed to have reached this age, because my older brother (God rest his soul) died at the tender age of twenty-two due to a fatal car accident in Virginia (1996). I thank God everyday for keeping me safe from harm; as well as from a majority of the ills of this world. I just hope and pray that I can live strong well beyond the years of those that came before me (my goal is 100+..."Lord willing").

Second, I had a wonderful birthday "weekend". I had Friday off, so I was off in South Hampton for three days. What a wonderful experience. It definitely helped me decide the way I wish to live in the future. To have a place where you can come and relax, right next to the beach...(sigh)...you could never wake up and feel grouchy, grumpy or disappointed. The view is gorgeous and the seclusion is food for the soul. If I had a beach house I would make sure my kids had the keys and could come whenever they please.

It is amazing how time passes by so quickly, but you just have to enjoy each and every day that you live. I'm trying to maintain my physical, mental and spiritual health. Maintaining all of these isn't easy, but you're continuously learn new things as you go along your journey.

I'm still working at Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center. I will have been here for two years February 2010. My future goals including: (1) obtaining my MS, PhD in Genetics; and (2) being published in a scientific journal within five years. Easily attainable, but I just have to continue to be on my grind. I'm just blessed to have made it this far; no regrets.

What Michael Meant to Me

What Michael Jackson meant to me...

...To me he was greatest musical entertainer to ever walk this Earth. He had women faint and pass out at concerts; taken out on stretches and inserted into ambulances. He was a little dorky mixed with a little bit of cool. He understood everything that he wrote and felt it that much more when he sang it. His moves should be copy-written and never to be used again, unless in remembrance. I remember playing the MoonWalker Sega Game and using his moves to save young girls and Bubbles. The MoonWalker movie was in my possession, but not before The Wiz had stole my heart. I played that movie non-stop. That was my sugar-honey-ice-tea when I was but a young boy. Words can't describe, but we definitely lost a gem. We were all consumers of his products/gifts/talents that he shared unequivocally. He meant so much to me during my younger years and when I became older it hurt to see his physical transformation with my own, mature eyes. It took me some time to really believe he's been gone and to even think about writing this post. Luckily in the years to come there will be plenty of unreleased material, followed by footage from his last days. He will forever be remembered, but the biggest question is, "who will take his crown and reign as the greatest entertainer of our time"?

In closing, the IllDoctrine explained Michael Jackson's life and the celebration of it in his passing [in particular on 125th Street, Harlem NY] so eloquently that I had to embed this video in this post. Watch it a couple of times to fully grasp it:



Did He mean anything to you?

FiGZ goes mobile

My first post via BlackBerry...

...Very random sighting yesterday for me. I was in the barbershop on 116th street and right next to me in a nearby chair also getting a haircut was Samuel Eto. He is a multimillionaire futbol [soccer] player for Barcelona.

The barbers were so excited; trying to get as many pictures as they could. The reached the point where Eto said it was enough. He was polite and very quiet. This was reminscent of "Coming to America" when Hakeem (Eddie murphy) met a few countrymen at the Knicks basketball game...LOL!