You are not a label

April 2, 2012

I don’t mind labels. I actually like them. A label is just a sticker. It can be removed. It can be moved around. It can stay on indefinitely. Labels and categories are only measures of identification. They make things easier to sort through, to know what might occur. A label is not a scarlet letter branded into your flesh, an Auschwitz tattoo pricked into your arm. People get riled up, proclaiming, “I hate labels!” or… Read more of: You are not a label

Post-Racial America? Ha!

March 29, 2012

Post-Racial America? Ha! I can’t help but scoff at the notion of this term whenever it’s uttered. We live in a post-racial America in the same vein that god exists: it makes for a cool story, bro—something soothing yet entertaining enough to tell the kids while tucking them in; a story of hope, possible triumph, leaving them with a smile and no ill-thoughts brewing nightmares. But it’s all a fallacy, a charade, smoke & mirrors—as… Read more of: Post-Racial America? Ha!

disambiguation: black is a color; Black is culture, history, music

March 27, 2012

I’ve been sitting on this piece for quite some time. It’s witnessed two Black History Months pass by, actually. After the resurgence of racial upheaval and tensions (e.g. Trayvon Martin), racist ideologies and commentary spewed forth, tipped over by yesterday’s Gawker post regarding the outrage of the Hunger Games’ casting of Black folks for—get this—Black characters, a piece indicative of a large slice of mainstream America, its pop culture and racist attitudes, i figured it… Read more of: disambiguation: black is a color; Black is culture, history, music

stream of consciousness #0015: inspiration is random on-purpose

February 11, 2012

Inspired by words from another who’ve i’ve never met physically—an online comraderie twittering—writing about a muse never encountered by either of us for she passed away years prior, this is a piece about the purpose of inspiration coming at us sideways in the dark holding a flashlight for the gloomy eyes to see hope. Hopeful for enlightenment, we grope, not quite blind yet possessing almost atrophied optics, around murky caverns searching for an outlet. Almost… Read more of: stream of consciousness #0015: inspiration is random on-purpose

Built my Online Bookshelf Surrounded by Physical Books

February 4, 2012

Several times over the past couple of years, i decided to migrate … well, more like copy … my physical books to the digital realm while sitting in the library. That is to say, i haven’t purchased or found a free way to have digital copies of the books—only a catalogue. Man, i should’ve just said that from jump. Anyway…I like instant access to knowledge, to lists—which is probably why i love the Interwebs so… Read more of: Built my Online Bookshelf Surrounded by Physical Books

Autodidacticism, hello friend.

December 23, 2011

People ask questions but rarely seek answers. There’s a timidity when it comes to knowledge. Fear not, it won’t bite. Seeking own knowledge—the path of autodidacticism—will thaw the frozen ascetic within, inflamming a mental tazmanian devil, ready to devour tomes and submerge itself in the wells of experiences. Moving nomadically, each new desire allowed to grow to adolescence, forming relationship after relationship, long-lasting, of course, but some ephemeral, is both the good and bad. Ask… Read more of: Autodidacticism, hello friend.

the Proust questionnaire

January 16, 2011

Thursday, while still awake at 3am with my sleep routine out of wack from the mid-week snow day, and excited from finishing the design for version 3.0 of Mental Ephemera, i came across an interesting post at Apricot Tea, the proust questionnaire in my words. I’d never heard of Proust, but i’ve an affinity for questionnaires and love to learn of and about new people, so the title piqued my interest. As it turns out,… Read more of: the Proust questionnaire

the Oxford English Dictionary is dead—long live the Oxford English Dictionary

December 31, 2010

I love words. Without shuddering from the dreaded “labeling,” i am a logo- and bibliophile. So when i heard the news, as reported by the NY Times and the Huffington Post, that there would be an imminent dem…transitioning of the Oxford English Dictionary from print and online versions to only the latter, i was immediately disheartened and worried. I should rewind first. Earlier this year, i came across the leather-bound version of the 20-volume set of… Read more of: the Oxford English Dictionary is dead—long live the Oxford English Dictionary

darling Nikki (Giovanni): your transparency should be lauded

November 27, 2010

When encountering an artist’s work for the first time, especially one who’s lauded doubly for her writing ability and Civil Rights activism (and the coupling of both), it’s dismaying when the work is underwhelming. With Sacred Cows…And Other Edibles, that surely is not the case. In fact, i don’t believe the work of Nikki Giovanni, or at least this collection of poetic and autobiographical prose, is given its deserved attention today. Even in an age… Read more of: darling Nikki (Giovanni): your transparency should be lauded