Lost and Found is the most recent project I am working on! It is in the very early stages of development and research. The project evolved from my travels to Berlin and having the chance to meet, wine and dine with Africans from all over the continent. The myth in the States is that Africans don't care to associate themselves with African Americans and prefer us to not refer to ourselves as Africans. You should know what coming next from the key word: MYTH!
So, I am currently gathering poems, songs, quotes, pictures, films, etc. that will be useful to this topic or subject matter of African Americans identity.
More info soon on why "Lost and Found" but until then please enjoy this performance by the lovely Smokey Robison about being Black in America ♥
My dedication to you...
"Perhaps all the questions we ask of love, to measure, test, probe, and save it, have the additional effect of cutting it short. Perhaps the reason we are unable to love is that we yearn to be loved, that is, we demand something (love) from our partner instead of delivering ourselves up to him demand-free and asking for nothing but his company."
The terribly inconvenient fact is that, without you around, everything slides back to how it was before. It can’t do otherwise. And I have to say, books haven’t helped much with all this. Because whenever you read anything about love, whenever anyone tries to define it, there’s always a state or an abstract noun, and I try to think of it like that. But actually, love is… Well, it’s just you. And when you go, it’s gone. Nothing abstract about it.
- Juliet, Naked, Nick Hornby
You light my fire!
Wait, I might die. Well, you could be the death of me ♥
W. S
"An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet,
regardless of time, place, or circumstance.
The thread may stretch or tangle,
but it will never break."
-Red String of Fate
"I can’t think of any greater happiness than to be with you all the time, without interruption, endlessly, even though I feel that here in this world there’s no undisturbed place for our love, neither in the village nor anywhere else; and I dream of a grave, deep and narrow, where we could clasp each other in our arms as with clamps, and I would hide my face in you and you would hide your face in me, and nobody would ever see us any more."
-Franz Kafka, The Castle
The terribly inconvenient fact is that, without you around, everything slides back to how it was before. It can’t do otherwise. And I have to say, books haven’t helped much with all this. Because whenever you read anything about love, whenever anyone tries to define it, there’s always a state or an abstract noun, and I try to think of it like that. But actually, love is… Well, it’s just you. And when you go, it’s gone. Nothing abstract about it.
- Juliet, Naked, Nick Hornby
You light my fire!
Wait, I might die. Well, you could be the death of me ♥
W. S
"An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet,
regardless of time, place, or circumstance.
The thread may stretch or tangle,
but it will never break."
-Red String of Fate
"I can’t think of any greater happiness than to be with you all the time, without interruption, endlessly, even though I feel that here in this world there’s no undisturbed place for our love, neither in the village nor anywhere else; and I dream of a grave, deep and narrow, where we could clasp each other in our arms as with clamps, and I would hide my face in you and you would hide your face in me, and nobody would ever see us any more."
-Franz Kafka, The Castle
Lets have this conversation! Why is it hard for successful black women to find a man?
I don't neccessarily agree with the topic because I feel that it is almost to general to make such a huge assumption but I do love some of the points people are making.
I have met black men that just choose to not associate themselves with black women for whatever reason, that is what makes me angry. From one bad experience you exclude a whole race from your dating realm! And even more important, YOUR race!
However, Im not sure if a conversation like this is what is needed but just a restoration in identity for black culture because as we, the world, begin to shift in gender roles, I assume all races are beginning to question the sudden growth in more single women as they began to venture out and do they own thing.
Women all over the world are becoming more independent, which is of course good for us because now more opportunities are opening up and women faces are being seen in positions that are usually male dominated. However, the problem, at least to me, is that men are having a harder time accepting this because it is such a huge paradigm shift when looking back at gender roles in history. So, the question I'm asking is it less about the race and more about the gender?
I mean look at the growth within the homosexual population. Both men and women are exploring because they no longer need each other to fulfill certain desires and needs because, for the most part, we can all do it now!
LEGGGGGOOOO!,
The Artist
New Toys!
I take what I do serious. The last few months have been challenging yet creatively satisfying! I am ready to conquer the world with my new babies ♥
The Artist @ work!
I had the wonderful opportunity to assist photographer/artist James Gregory Atkinson on set. It was a beautiful experience and I can't wait to see the finish!
Berlin, Germany 2010
Shot on super 8! Check out more of his work @ jamesgregoryatkinson.blogspot.com
Berlin, Germany 2010
Shot on super 8! Check out more of his work @ jamesgregoryatkinson.blogspot.com
Still counting...
My first film shoot! This piece is called Still Counting. Produced and Directed by your very own, The Artist. The version you are seeing is the first edited print without color correction and sound. The sound is a poem I wrote about my father called till counting and you hear a little girl counting 1 mississippi, 2 mississippi in the background. The shoot was fun. Hand edited, cut and sliced all the parts myself. Enjoy!
The final looks sooooo goood! Unfortunately, I dont have a digital print of the final...I finished on film :)
The final looks sooooo goood! Unfortunately, I dont have a digital print of the final...I finished on film :)
Sooo...
The cable network synonymous with "Flavor of Love" and its sleazy spin-offs is trading trampiness for fabulousness with a new slate of series starring seemingly well-adjusted rich and famous black Americans. VH1 executive vice president Jeff Olde admits that the shift from oh-no-they-didn't fare to more mature material is totally intentional.
"We constantly have to evolve and tell our audience different stories," he says. "I love that we've been able to get more diverse with our audience by — in large part — attracting African-American women to the network. We got them in the door with some shows, and now I'm excited about where we're going and how we're telling them different kinds of stories."
With an April 11 debut, "What Chilli Wants" will be partnered on Sundays with "Brandy & Ray J: A Family Business," focusing on sibling R&B singers Ray J and Brandy Norwood as they attempt to relaunch their music careers, and "Basketball Wives," starring Shaquille O'Neal's ex-wife, Shaunie O'Neal, and five other women with romantic links to basketball players.
For the notoriously trashy VH1, it's not reality as usual. While cat fights will flare up with the "Basketball Wives" and Chilli promises a tiff with her sassy matchmaker on "What Chilli Wants," these new shows certainly aren't selling buzzworthy moments akin to "Flavor of Love" contestants spiting on each other or suddenly defecating on the floor.
"I watched 'Flavor of Love' myself," attests Chilli. "It was definitely one of the shows I thought was interesting, but it made sense for Flav to do it just that way. For me, I wanted to do my show in a way that I would be comfortable with, and I was very happy that VH1 was on the same page with me. They did have a formula that has been working for them."
Olde dismisses any past criticisms of "Flavor of Love" and its offspring, mostly produced by 51 Minds Entertainment, by calling the franchise ignited by black rapper Flavor Flav and his multiracial harem "big fun romantic comedies." (Olde confirms that "I Love Money 3," featuring murder suspect and suicide victim Ryan Jenkins, as well as the Jenkins-free "I Love Money 4" won't air.)
Instead of lewd antics from "Flavor of Love" standout Tiffany "New York" Pollard or that toxic spill of "Charm School" women, the network is now interested in transformative experiences from celebrities, such as third season "American Idol" winner Fantasia Barrino or rapper Sandy "Pepa" Denton from Salt-N-Pepa. The evolution is already proving successful.
Premieres earlier this year of "Fantasia for Real" and "Let's Talk About Pep" topped that same week's third season debut of "Celebrity Rehab" and episodes of the seedy dating shows "For the Love of Ray J" and "Frank the Entertainer in a Basement Affair," which starred "I Love New York" reject Frank Maresca searching for love from his parent's basement.
"The new VH1 shows offer a different take on the black reality TV star," says Imani Perry, a professor at Princeton University's Center for African American Studies. "These are images of wealthy black families. These shows may potentially be less stereotypic because they present a different, higher status black image."
Bill Graff, an analyst for cable media analysis firm CableU, says the strategy isn't a surefire winner. While the new shows are targeted to an underserved audience, they require more of an investment from viewers, especially if they don't care about the personal lives of such B-list celebrities as Chilli and Brandy, or any of those "Basketball Wives."
"It's a little bit more of a leap for VH1 viewers than 'Flavor of Love,' 'Rock of Love' and the other shows," says Graff. "Anyone who watches VH1 definitely knows and is entertained by Flavor Flav and New York. Anyone who is familiar with hip-hop from the past 25 years knows Pepa from Salt-N-Pepa, but they may not necessarily care about her love life."
It's not as if VH1 is becoming BET, whose own affluent African-American docu-soap "Baldwin Hills" has been around for three seasons. The majority of VH1 series, such as "Celebrity Fit Club," "Sober House" and "Tough Love Couples," feature multiracial casts, as do mainstream network reality shows such as "The Amazing Race," "Survivor" and "American Idol." However, the new trio of shows with predominantly black stars will be scheduled together on Sundays.
"It's strange, because it almost feels like a different type of segregation," says actor-comedian Victor Varnado, who directed and starred with other black comedians in "The Awkward Comedy Show," Comedy Central's offbeat comedy special debuting April 9. "It's like this is where the black people can watch their black programming on this night."
VH1's Olde, however, notes that while the network's black-centric shows are most popular with African-American women, they attract viewers of all ethnicities and backgrounds. The popularity of Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" proved that a reality show featuring a mostly black cast can cross ethnic lines and become a cultural phenomenon.
That doesn't mean this glitzy new breed is free of the stereotypes that have long plagued cable reality TV shows. Critics point to the continued inclusion of such black stereotypes as the gold-digging woman, the hypersexual and irresponsible man, and cast members prone to raging behavior and violence as a way to gratify viewers' voyeuristic desires.
"The choices that are made by producers, editors and performers in unscripted television to satisfy these audience desires are deliberate," says Princeton University's Perry. "We think we are getting something real, but what we are getting is an effort to satisfy our curiosity and feed our assumptions."
"We constantly have to evolve and tell our audience different stories," he says. "I love that we've been able to get more diverse with our audience by — in large part — attracting African-American women to the network. We got them in the door with some shows, and now I'm excited about where we're going and how we're telling them different kinds of stories."
With an April 11 debut, "What Chilli Wants" will be partnered on Sundays with "Brandy & Ray J: A Family Business," focusing on sibling R&B singers Ray J and Brandy Norwood as they attempt to relaunch their music careers, and "Basketball Wives," starring Shaquille O'Neal's ex-wife, Shaunie O'Neal, and five other women with romantic links to basketball players.
For the notoriously trashy VH1, it's not reality as usual. While cat fights will flare up with the "Basketball Wives" and Chilli promises a tiff with her sassy matchmaker on "What Chilli Wants," these new shows certainly aren't selling buzzworthy moments akin to "Flavor of Love" contestants spiting on each other or suddenly defecating on the floor.
"I watched 'Flavor of Love' myself," attests Chilli. "It was definitely one of the shows I thought was interesting, but it made sense for Flav to do it just that way. For me, I wanted to do my show in a way that I would be comfortable with, and I was very happy that VH1 was on the same page with me. They did have a formula that has been working for them."
Olde dismisses any past criticisms of "Flavor of Love" and its offspring, mostly produced by 51 Minds Entertainment, by calling the franchise ignited by black rapper Flavor Flav and his multiracial harem "big fun romantic comedies." (Olde confirms that "I Love Money 3," featuring murder suspect and suicide victim Ryan Jenkins, as well as the Jenkins-free "I Love Money 4" won't air.)
Instead of lewd antics from "Flavor of Love" standout Tiffany "New York" Pollard or that toxic spill of "Charm School" women, the network is now interested in transformative experiences from celebrities, such as third season "American Idol" winner Fantasia Barrino or rapper Sandy "Pepa" Denton from Salt-N-Pepa. The evolution is already proving successful.
Premieres earlier this year of "Fantasia for Real" and "Let's Talk About Pep" topped that same week's third season debut of "Celebrity Rehab" and episodes of the seedy dating shows "For the Love of Ray J" and "Frank the Entertainer in a Basement Affair," which starred "I Love New York" reject Frank Maresca searching for love from his parent's basement.
"The new VH1 shows offer a different take on the black reality TV star," says Imani Perry, a professor at Princeton University's Center for African American Studies. "These are images of wealthy black families. These shows may potentially be less stereotypic because they present a different, higher status black image."
Bill Graff, an analyst for cable media analysis firm CableU, says the strategy isn't a surefire winner. While the new shows are targeted to an underserved audience, they require more of an investment from viewers, especially if they don't care about the personal lives of such B-list celebrities as Chilli and Brandy, or any of those "Basketball Wives."
"It's a little bit more of a leap for VH1 viewers than 'Flavor of Love,' 'Rock of Love' and the other shows," says Graff. "Anyone who watches VH1 definitely knows and is entertained by Flavor Flav and New York. Anyone who is familiar with hip-hop from the past 25 years knows Pepa from Salt-N-Pepa, but they may not necessarily care about her love life."
It's not as if VH1 is becoming BET, whose own affluent African-American docu-soap "Baldwin Hills" has been around for three seasons. The majority of VH1 series, such as "Celebrity Fit Club," "Sober House" and "Tough Love Couples," feature multiracial casts, as do mainstream network reality shows such as "The Amazing Race," "Survivor" and "American Idol." However, the new trio of shows with predominantly black stars will be scheduled together on Sundays.
"It's strange, because it almost feels like a different type of segregation," says actor-comedian Victor Varnado, who directed and starred with other black comedians in "The Awkward Comedy Show," Comedy Central's offbeat comedy special debuting April 9. "It's like this is where the black people can watch their black programming on this night."
VH1's Olde, however, notes that while the network's black-centric shows are most popular with African-American women, they attract viewers of all ethnicities and backgrounds. The popularity of Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" proved that a reality show featuring a mostly black cast can cross ethnic lines and become a cultural phenomenon.
That doesn't mean this glitzy new breed is free of the stereotypes that have long plagued cable reality TV shows. Critics point to the continued inclusion of such black stereotypes as the gold-digging woman, the hypersexual and irresponsible man, and cast members prone to raging behavior and violence as a way to gratify viewers' voyeuristic desires.
"The choices that are made by producers, editors and performers in unscripted television to satisfy these audience desires are deliberate," says Princeton University's Perry. "We think we are getting something real, but what we are getting is an effort to satisfy our curiosity and feed our assumptions."
This makes me happy! How about u?
March yields first solid growth in jobs since recession...
However, the biggest burst in hiring in three years wasn't enough to lower the jobless rate, which held at 9.7%, the Labor Department reports. Economists still see a slow recovery in the labor market.
Reporting from Washington - The American economy added 162,000 new payroll jobs in March, the Labor Department said Friday, marking the first sign of substantial job growth since the Great Recession and the largest one-month increase in three years.
The job gains, however, weren't strong enough to bring down the unemployment rate, which remained at 9.7% in March for the third month in a row. And economists remained cautious, saying they expected the labor market recovery to be slow.
A chunk of the job increases in March, or 48,000 positions, came from the hiring of temporary workers by the Census Bureau. But the private sector generated 123,000 jobs last month, more than what many analysts were projecting.
Manufacturing payrolls expanded for the third month in a row, and the harbinger temporary-help industry added another 40,000 workers in March. Financial services and the information industry lost jobs, but healthcare, education, retailers and the leisure industry all added to their payrolls.
"It's the first month of really solid growth," said Bart van Ark, chief economist at the Conference Board, a business-membership and research organization in New York. "We see the job gains spreading across the economy."
Adding to the positive news, the government also revised upward the count of the nation's payrolls for the first two months of the year. It said the economy created 14,000 jobs in January instead of losing 26,000 as previously reported. And the losses in February were shaved by more than half, to 14,000.
Babara and Belinda the Builder
So everyone, me and my roomie is having a ball! You can call us Barbara and Belinda the Builder! lol! We pre-gamed to prepare us for our adventure to purchase furniture for "our" apartment. Yes!!! The girls stepped out! We went to a club called The Box at the Beach. Started with a red bull and ole grandpa liquor finally found the spot about time we finished our glasses because here drinking is allowed on the streets. Got to the spot, of course we were beautiful and we shut it DOWN. Drinks everywhere, handsome men and beautiful women, you know how that goes. When we left the sun was rising and were ready for part 2. Lets not forget we had the football team escorting us. We got it in!
The next couple days consisted of us getting lost in Berlin, loading and unloading of new furniture and putting it together. Late night girl talks and green lemon Becks (cause we classy, lol) and the crazy cat, Milou, jumping out of windows.
Well everyone, we successfully built everything on our rooms and we need to celebrate. We stepping out tonite. Shutting it DOWN! Ask in anyone in these clubs who stay on the dance floor the WHOLE night getting it in. Enjoying life. Jackie my darling, are you ready for the night? I already got us one ready, until then I found the paperwork I have been looking for for days. (Is that grammatically correct?) So, I have errands to tend to before I prepare for the night. Pictures coming soon.
Oh, the roomie is about her business though. She wakes up everyday and go to work Sunday-Sunday and is surviving in Berlin as a independent woman. She is an event manager at a restaurant in this famous art building and she brought info about the African Film Festival. Lets get get get it!
The Artist is out and missing yall like crazy! :)
The next couple days consisted of us getting lost in Berlin, loading and unloading of new furniture and putting it together. Late night girl talks and green lemon Becks (cause we classy, lol) and the crazy cat, Milou, jumping out of windows.
Well everyone, we successfully built everything on our rooms and we need to celebrate. We stepping out tonite. Shutting it DOWN! Ask in anyone in these clubs who stay on the dance floor the WHOLE night getting it in. Enjoying life. Jackie my darling, are you ready for the night? I already got us one ready, until then I found the paperwork I have been looking for for days. (Is that grammatically correct?) So, I have errands to tend to before I prepare for the night. Pictures coming soon.
Oh, the roomie is about her business though. She wakes up everyday and go to work Sunday-Sunday and is surviving in Berlin as a independent woman. She is an event manager at a restaurant in this famous art building and she brought info about the African Film Festival. Lets get get get it!
The Artist is out and missing yall like crazy! :)