dollar store dime

We have to give President Obama a little while to take care of our imploding economy. Although he gives great speeches, is telegenic and mad charismatic old dude can't do everything alone. He isn't Dumbledore and the U.S isn't Hogwarts.

I'm doing my part to ignite the economy - I'm still shopping, but I'm paring down the purchases. I've gone from a weekly grocery bill of about $65 to about $50 by buying off brand. Foodtown brand is just as good, peep the ingredients list and it'll be exactly the same as Kraft, Tropicana, General Mills. Most of my cereal now comes out of a bag, but Honey Nut Scooters tastes just like Cheerios.

I almost forgot how amazing the local 99 cent store is; and Bed-Stuy has myriad to choose from. Just walk down Nostrand or Fulton Avenues and you have many different discount stores to choose from, some with questionable food items, others with stuff that's clearly hot off the truck.

All I know is that your sis will be stolling down with the granny shopping cart in and out of the dollar stores looking for some fresh deals. Keep cutting those coupons ya'll.

A Time Such as This

Let it sink it. It's all really real.
Godspeed Mr.President. And now, the real work begins.

Optimisitc

Does any other song capture this moment better than Optimistic by Sounds of Blackness?
No, not really.
at a close second is, "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now"

on the eve of history

I just got back from D.C and although I won't be in the District the day Barack Obama puts his hand on the Lincoln Bible and takes his oath of office next to Michelle in front of the nation and the world.
On this MLK Day, lets revisit my favorite Obama speech, one which calls fathers not to abscond their duties and hold down their homes. Lets hold down the homefront, with families working together for our national good while he makes it happen in our government. He can't do it alone, we have do our job as well.

first world problems

As I packed up to leave work on Friday, I noticed my ipod was missing. Like most people, I cannot be expected to get through the day in a productive, healthy and happy manner without my mp3 player. So, after frantically tearing up the classroom I gave up the ghost and mourned the loss of my beloved, sleek, black, ipod (May 2008-January 2009).
The first joint I bought was during my freshman year and it lasted for my entire undergrad days. The warranty saw me through 4 ipods. I never missed a beat and I never had to listen to the sounds of the street, wack men spitting game, or subway station arguments. Instead, I was ensconced in the sounds of my own choosing. And it was good.

So, the loss of my ipod was devastating - materially, I was out of a $300+ investment. Emotionally, though I felt really betrayed that one of the kids at my school might have stolen my ipod. I realized my ipod was lost at about 3:30. At about 4:00, I was trying to figure out the fastest way to the Apple store downtown.

Even in the midst of a recession that's more like a throwback to 1933, I was able to immediately purchase another music player. Being on my Suze Orman steez has paid off, since I usually have a little extra left over for emergencies. However, my "emergencies" aren't like the ones that drove my grandparents to leave their homes in the beautiful Caribbean, like grinding poverty, few educational opportunities, and poverty. Some of my most recent "emergencies" have been: an unplayable Netflix dvd, my stolen ipod, running out of milk, forgetting free movie passes at home.

Did my ancestors hope that there would be a day, when their great-great-great granddaughter wouldn't be faced with problems like hunger decent housing and health care but with a tricky dvd player and a long commute? Probably not. But I am thankful that my problems are little more than marginal annoyances, disappointments and inconveniences when put into perspective. While we privileged children of the first world do have many issues that we deal with on the daily, I'd much rather stick with them rather than swapping them for those faced by our brothers and sisters in the developing world (or even of those folks in the South Bronx).

At least I was able to get a new ipod, even if it was a nano. These are tough economic times after all.

guilty pleasures

"My Dougie" by Lil Will may not be the most positive joint out there, a definitive guilty pleasure meant to be snapped to in the comfort of your apt with friends.

too Amherst

"Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" by Vampire Weekend sums up Amherst College in 3 mins and 46 seconds.
The cultural appropriation, preppiness, New England vibes, sunny exterior, percociousness and lowkey (if slightly apologetic) love takes me back to my undergrad days.

Straight out the DMV

your girl will be making it down to DC for the Inauguration in a few weeks. So in prepation lets step to the go-go inspired beats of Wale. Just warm-up till the party on the White House lawn

Resolved

Back for the New Year!
I've been lurking low for the past few weeks - teaching, grad school, trying to get a handle on life. And this poor lil blog got caught up in the shuffle. Allow me to atone and start the new year right. And in that spirit, lets get these new years resolutions together...

Lets be real though, who ever really follows through with those? I mean we all want to join a gym/exercise more, stress less, meditate more, etc... But by the time February rolls around, all those well intentioned resolutions fall by the wayside. Resolutions should be things that are resonable, doable and will put a kool-aide smile on your face.

Here are mine:
book MAD trips, and get more stamps in my passport. Possible contenders include - Puerto Rico, Trinidad, Amsterdam, Martinique.
Get another tattoo (those joints are crazy addictive)
do more leisure reading
sleep
cook for myself more
write more


all doable and guaranteed to make your favorite sis happy.