The Wedding Post

So on October 20th I got married. To be perfectly honest with you I don't feel different. It does feel strange to look at my left ring finger and see my wedding band but outside of that not much has changed yet.

The ceremony was perfect. We started a half hour late because the zipper on my wife's dress came off and had to be sown back on. I know women reading this will be like "WHAT!?". Yes it's true the zipper came off the dress at 6:15pm. Anyway the ceremony was a dual denominational ceremony, (Jewish and Christian). Most of our guests didn't know what to make of it.

I started this post out saying that the ceremony was perfect. But to be honest there was something that kinda put a stain on it. My mother.

Now I know what y'all are saying, Doc aren't you being a little harsh. Well...No I'm not. See my mother attempted to sing along with our rabbi. It really was annoying. Little did I know this was only of the beginning. See when I look back on my wedding I don't think I'm going to remember all the good things that happened. I fear that I will remember all the negative things that took place. For example, my mother bursting into the kitchen to demand that her table get served first, my mother yelling at my best man, people fighting to get a chair and table, family that decided to invite themselves at the last minute only to give $50 as a gift, my mother commandeering the microphone and telling everyone my full name (something I usually keep hidden).

Before I go any further I want to say that there were a lot of positive things that happened at my wedding. But because of the type of person I am, I will remember the negative things before the positive, (yes I am seeking help for this). The overall experience of getting married is one of the most surreal moments of my life. The reception was a blur. A fun blur but a blur nonetheless.

The wife was unable to move because so many people wanted to say hi and take a picture with her, she looked beautiful and elegant. On the other hand I was able to move around and meet and greet people. I didn't stop moving until the after party. Oh yes there was an after party. Frankly that was the best part of the evening aside from the ceremony. I just wish we took more food home with us.

I am still dealing with my feelings on what my mother did. Not only was it embarrassing but it was uncalled for. I've always been able to forgive her for her outbursts but this time I find it really hard to forgive her. I keep asking myself "Am I a bad person for feeling this way?"

I got issues.....

So where do I begin.....Let's start with OJ. This guy should have moved out of the country as soon as he got acquitted 12 years ago. I'm just amazed that this guy is still around. And the messed up part is HE JUST GOT OUT ON BAIL. And guess who was there....Marcia Clark. For those of you who don't know Marcia Clark was one of the district attorneys who assigned to the OJ murder trial. Talk about grudges....Seriously doesn't this woman have anything else better to do than to follow the Juice around. I bet she was just WAITING for the day that he'd fuck up. OJ is gonna go to jail this time and if that's what we need in order for Barack Obama to have a chance at becoming president then so be it.

And while we're on the topic of Barack Obama....What the hell is wrong with Jesse Jackson???? I thought he endorsed Barack Obama, so what's with this whole Obama needs to stop acting white bit??? Of course he's back tracked (in record time), but the story is already out there. Now how did this all get started??? Well, Jesse has a new cause y'all...Some of you may have heard of the Jena 6. The NY Times wrote an interesting article about this case click here for the link to the story. Apparently Jesse seems to think that Obama needs to speak up about his case and make it a campaign issue.

To quote Dennis Miller but I don't mean to get off on a rant here but.....Who the fuck is Jesse Jackson to tell Barack Obama what he should talk about. Yes the case of the Jena 6 is a civil rights atrocity, and yes this is a case that deserves national attention. That being said Barack Obama does not need to make this case a CAMPAIGN ISSUE. It's enough that he's finally convinced White America that he can be taken seriously and he's actually got a chance. And for the record Obama made a statement Friday after one of the teen's charges was thrown out, saying, "I am pleased that the Louisiana state appeals court recognized that the aggravated battery charge brought in this case was inappropriate."
"I hope that today's decision will lead the prosecutor to reconsider the excessive charges brought against all the teenagers in this case," he added. "And I hope that the judicial process will move deliberately to ensure that all of the defendants will receive a fair trial and equal justice under the law."

Where's Hillary's statement? Why isn't Jesse asking for that? See the problem is that Jesse wants Obama to fall into the trap of running as the black candidate and Obama ain't having it. And for the record Obama's camp is right, that was the problem when Jesse ran in '84 and in '88. If he's to win the nomination he has to run as the candidate that just happens to be black and not the black candidate. That's the problem with some of our leaders they're like crabs in a barrel. Shame on Jesse for using this case to suck Obama into a racial quagmire. Please don't get me wrong the Jena 6 case is a very important case but it not not worthy of being something that should come up as a topic of discussion during a presidential campaign. There are more broader topics like Health Care, the war in Iraq and Education, that must be discussed first before we go into how small towns in America are still backward and racist. Yeah I said it. If you think Jena, LA is the only town in America that has a problem like this you're sadly mistaken.

And on a totally unrelated note....I just want to give a big shout out to Dan Rather. Get yo money playa.

Blog from a treo.

I'm in a dinner waiting for my check and I realize that this is the first time I've had a moment to myself. My days are numbered. 10-20-07 is the big day. Every thing will change for me. I'm forced to ask myself. Are you ready kid, are ya?

Smear.

This, pisses me off. What does that have to do with what happened last year November? I can see if Sean Bell was found with a gun in his car but they didn't find one. This is the kind of thing that distracts people from the real issue at hand. A innocent man gets shot dead, and what comes out in the press? Oh he may have shot some one in the past. Let's say he did shoot someone in the past. What does that incident have to do with what the cops did? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. At the time of the shooting the cops didn't know Sean Bell had any priors. And if they say that they did they are LYING.

I don't think that Sean Bell was a saint. I don't think he was some martyr for police brutality. All I know is that he was a human being. And he was killed for nothing. Why is it that whenever a black man gets killed by the cops the victims past comes in to question? Why can't the cops just take responsibility for their actions? There were FIVE cops on the scene but only THREE are in court and out of those THREE, ONE is going to probably end up in jail?

What kind of country are we living in, where the we blame the victim for getting shot? Seriously this is bullshit.

Oscars 2007 Part II: The winners

And now the winners...

Best Picture: The Departed: I really can't believe this won best picture. I still say the original is better

Best Director: Martin Scorsese for The Departed: Just think after all those years of making Italian mob movies he wins an Oscar for making a movie about Irish gangsters. The cherry on top of the cake was Lucas, Spielberg and Coppola presenting it to him.

Best Actor: Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland: He gave one of the best speeches in the history of the Oscars. I love the fact that a humble genuine nice guy won. Sorry Peter O'Toole.

Best Actress: Helen Mirren for The Queen: Did I call it or what? I knew she was gonna win.

Best Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin for Little Miss Sunshine: Glad to see Arkin win. I wonder if Peter O'Toole tried to jack him for his Oscar at the after party.

Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls: Just goes to show you; you can lose on American Idol and go on to win an Oscar. Good for her.

Best Original screenplay: Michael Arndt for Little Miss Sunshine: A smart witty and funny movie, won an Oscar. What is this world coming to?

Best Adapted screenplay: William Monahan for The Departed: He didn't thank one Chinese person. I mean seriously that's just bad form in my book.

Black Greeks Part 2

I know I've been slackin'. In part one I presented a brief outline of the nine black Greek letter organizations. In part two we will get into pledging, elitism, and why would I want to join a black Greek letter organization.

Pledging: Pledging is the period of time in where the recruit (the pledge) goes through a series of challenges which eventually lead to initiation in to the group. Hazing is the ritualistic harassment, abuse, or persecution of prospective members of a group as a means of initiation. Hazing is something that has become a huge problem among black fraternities and sororities. There have been numerous deaths as a result of initiates being hazed. When ritual reaches the point where it endangers the life and limb of an individual, it needs to be discontinued. The pledge process is not about beating someone down. It’s not about degrading someone just so you can feel good about yourself. Basically you don’t put a person online to drop (make them quit) them. So then what is the process about? The answer is simple it is meant for: team building, leadership experience, organizational skills, time management, and learning the history of said organization. It is a shame that people have lost sight of that over the years.

Elitism: This always seems to come up in one of these conversations. Please someone help me out here, because I’ve never been able to put my finger on what people mean by that. I’ve always assumed that these organizations are highly selective and thereby exclusive to people who qualify for membership. There has been a history of these organizations being HIGHLY selective, whether it was expressed through excluding people based on degree of skin tone, or socio-economic back ground. That being said in my humble opinion I think the days of the brown paper bag test are over. Frankly this wasn’t my experience. Most of the Alphas in my chapter come from similar backgrounds. Most of us grew up working class. The one thing I respected about the Alphas on my campus before I pledged was that they were some of the most REAL brothers on campus. Now this varies from chapter to chapter and organization to organization but in my case I was lucky enough to be in the company of some of men of true integrity and intelligence.

Why would I want to join a Black Greek letter organization?
Now this is the big question. Many people join just so they can wear a t-shirt and go to parties, others join because they are legacies and it’s expected of them, then there are others that really want to do some good and see this as a step in the right direction. It all depends on what kind of person you are.

Black Greeks Part 1

*Note to all my white readers. Some of you are not going to understand this whole black greek thing some of you are going to sit there and scratching your head all the while saying "Why is he talking about fraternities and sororities? That crap is for college kids." Well my melanin challenged friend black greek life does not end upon graduation for some of us. Some of us choose continue serving our community through being active in a graduate chapter (speaking of which I gotta pay my dues)....Any who please just sit back and read and maybe ya might learn something.

*Please note that the links will not lead you to the fraternity or the sorority site but instead it will lead you to their Wikipedia site. If you are interested in learning more about these fraternities and sororities you can click on the links provided on the their respective Wikipedia site.

A couple of months ago I opened my big fat mouth while visiting the After Party and said I would do a post about black greeks. Well I was given a deadline and my time is up so here goes. Please keep in mind that I am not going to get into a deep history debate. Basically what I'm going to do is give you founding dates (in chronological order) and prominent members. Feel free to click on the hyperlink to their respective sites.

Let's start with the first of all black greeks Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated. A Phi A is the first national intercollegiate fraternity established by African Americans. Founded on December 4, 1906, on the campus of Cornell University. The Prominent members of this fraternity are a various who's who of Black intelligentsia. Martin Luther King, Cornel West, Thurgood Marshall, Jeese Owens, Congressman Charles B. Rangel, and Paul Robeson; I could go on but you get the idea. This fraternity is very near and dear to my heart because well if you haven't guessed by now I am also a member. Now I could big up my frat all day but that is for another time.

Next up are my sisters the lovely ladies of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. AKA was formed in January 15, 1908 at Howard University, it is America's first Greek-letter organization established by Black college women. Prominent members include Maya Angelou, Diahann Carroll, Ella Fitzgerald, Alicia Keys, Coretta Scott King, Jada Pinkett Smith, Toni Morrison, and Alice Walker. Well you get the idea.

Next up are the gentlemen of the crimson and cream the brothers of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated. Kappa Alpha Psi is the second oldest collegiate Greek-letter fraternity with a predominantly African American membership, founded January 5, 1911 at Indiana University. Here is a short list of members of note: Arthur Ashe, Calvin O. Butts, Bill Russell, John Singleton, Tavis Smiley, C. Vernon Mason, Johnnie Cochran, Percy Sutton, Stan Lathan, and Congressman John Conyers.

Next up are the brothers of Omega Psi Phi also known as the Ques. Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated was founded on Friday, November 17, 1911, at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Prominent members include Bill Cosby, Alonzo Mourning, Carter G. Woodson (black historian), Vernon Jordan, Jr., Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'Neal, Ozzie Newsome, Jesse Jackson, Charlie Ward and the great poet Langston Hughes.

Next up we have Professor Angry's sisters the lovely ladies of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. Delta Sigma Theta was founded at Howard University January 13, 1913. Let me drop some names for you: Octavia E. Butler, Carol Moseley Braun, Poet Nikki Giovanni, Fannie Lou Hamer, Shirley Chisholm, Ruby Dee, Roberta Flack, Aretha Franklin, Cicely Tyson, Lena Horne, and the late great Betty Shabazz.

Now we move along to the fourth fraternity, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Phi Beta Sigma was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C., January 9, 1914. Here's a short list of famous members, A. Philip Randolph, Willis Reed, Jerry Rice, David Ruffin, Emmitt Smith, Eddie Kendricks, Huey P. Newton, Kwame Nkrumah, Benjamin Chavis Muhammad, writer James Weldon Johnson, Blair Underwood, Morris Chestnut, and George Washington Carver.

Moving right along we have their sisters of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. Zeta Phi Beta Inc. was founded January 16, 1920, on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. Famous memebers Jayne Kennedy, Zora Neale Hurston, Dionne Warwick, Sarah Vaughan, Minnie Riperton, Esther Rolle, and Melba Moore to name a few.

Next up we have the ladies of Sigma Gamma Rho. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated was founded on November 12, 1922 by seven educators in Indianapolis, Indiana. The group became an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter was granted to Alpha chapter at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Here are some notable members: Hattie McDaniel, MC Lyte, Marilyn McCoo, Victoria Rowell and Lindy Boggs

Last but surely not least we have the brothers of Iota Phi Theta. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated was founded on September 19, 1963 at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. Here's a short list of prominent members: Bobby Rush (former Black Panther turned US Congressman), Terrence "T.C." Carson, Kirby Wilson and Earl King.

In part two we will get into pledging, elitism, and why would I want to join a black greek letter organization.

Oscars 2007 Part I: The nominees

Yes it's that time of year again. So here are the nominees.

Best Picture:

Babel – Another interconnecting story with interesting characters.
The Departed– This is a remake of a Hong Kong classic Infernal Affairs.
Letters from Iwo Jima – This is the flipside to Flags of Our Fathers.
Little Miss Sunshine - The little indy movie that could. Comedies don’t normally get nominated so I’m kinda pulling for this one.
The Queen – Really spectacular. This is one of the best movies of the year.

Best Director:

Alejandro González Iñárritu for Babel – Who is this guy?
Martin Scorsese for The Departed – Oh give it to him already.
Clint Eastwood for Letters from Iwo Jima – NO EASTWOOD NOT THIS YEAR DAMNIT! Damn you EASTWOOD!
Stephen Frears for The Queen, – He did a really but it's Scorsese’s year.
Paul Greengrass for United 93 – It must’ve been real hard to direct this movie. But I don’t think it’s his year.

Best Actor:

Leonardo DiCaprio for Blood Diamond – Sorry I’m not feeling him this time around.
Ryan Gosling for Half Nelson – Hmm Gosling’s playing a recovering drug addict. Ok next.
Peter O’Toole for Venus – He’s playing an old English actor. Damn what a stretch.
Will Smith for The Pursuit of Happiness – This is his second nomination. Maybe he might get it this time around.
Forest Whitaker for The Last King of Scotland – He had to get extra dark to play this role. And I ain't talking about his personality. They did a good make up job on him.

Best Actress:

Penélope Cruz for Volver – Why does she look like a moth?
Judi Dench for Notes on a Scandal – I think they do her make up better when she does the Bond movies.
Helen Mirren for The Queen – She just nailed this role so I don’t see her losing to anyone.
Meryl Streep for The Devil Wears Prada – I can’t believe she got nominated for a comedy.
Kate Winslet for Little Children – This role gave me a new respect for Winslet but, didn’t she win for that movie about that boat hitting that iceberg.

Best Supporting Actor:

Alan Arkin for Little Miss Sunshine – Arkin plays a grandfather that shoots H and ODs on a road trip. Yeah he should win.
Jackie Earle Haley for Little Chidren – Wasn’t this guy in the Bad New Bears?
Djimon Hounsou for Blood Diamond – Did he get to hold a gun at least once in this movie?
Eddie Murphy for Dreamgirls - Glad to see him nominated. I really hope he wins.
Mark Wahlberg for The Departed – Wahlberg plays an asshole in this movie. Yep I’m sure it was a stretch.

Best Supporting Actress:

Adriana Barraza for Babel – Never heard of her.
Cate Blanchett for Notes on a Scandal – Wasn’t she nominated last year?
Abigail Breslin for Little Miss Sunshine – Too young in my opinion.
Jennifer Hudson for Dreamgirls – Wasn’t she on American Idol? She didn’t win on that what makes her think she can win here?
Rinko Kikuchi for Babel – I know her as well as I know Adriana Barraza.

Best Original screenplay:

Guillermo Arriaga for Babel – Haven’t seen it.
Iris Yamashita and Paul Haggis for Letters from Iwo Jima – Ahh it's the The return of Haggis.
Michael Arndt for Little Miss Sunshine – A smart witty and funny movie. It doesn't stand a chance.
Guillermo del Toro for Pan's Labyrinth – I didn’t see it.
Peter Morgan for The Queen - I saw it and liked it.

Best Adapted screenplay:

Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Peter Baynham, and Dan Mazer for Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan – You mean to tell me this movie had FOUR writers? I thought most of that sh*t was improve.

Alfonso Cuarón & Timothy J. Sexton and David Arata and Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby for Children of Men – One of the most Kubrickian movies I’ve seen in a long time.

William Monahan for The Departed – The guy who adapted this screenplay has also written Kingdom of Heaven and we all know how good that was.

Todd Field & Tom Perrotta for Little Children – You might remember them from a movie called In the Bedroom.

Patrick Marber for Notes on a Scandal – This is his first nomination. From what I found he used to write for Steve Coogan’s old Alan Partridge show. Well I guess he can’t be all bad.

Most Anticipated Movies for 2007

Well it's that time of year again where I give my list of most anticipated movies for this year. Looks like this is the year for sequels.

Ghost Rider - Nicholas Cage plays stunt motorcyclist Johnny Blaze who gives up his soul to protect the ones he loves, based on the Marvel Comic release date: February 16, 2007

The Kingdom - Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Chris Cooper, and Jason Bateman star in this thriller set in the Middle-East. Directed by Peter Berg. Release date: April 20, 2007 .

Spider-Man 3 - Sandman, Green Goblin, and Venom battle Spidey in the thrid installment of this Marvel franchise. Release date: May 4, 2007

28 Weeks Later - This is the sequel to the 2002 film 28 Days later. Release date: May 11, 2007

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End - This is the follow-up to the record-breaking smash 2006 hit "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. Release date: May 25, 2007.

Ocean's 13 - I'm guessing there is some kind of heist involved in this one. The best thing about this movie is no Julia Roberts. Release date: June 8, 2007.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - The first family of Marvel returns to battle the Silver Surfer. Release date: June 15, 2007

Transformers - Michael Bay finally brings a live action Transformers movie to the big screen. Release date: July 4, 2007.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - This is the fifth installment in the series. And it just keeps getting darker. Voldemort has returned and no one believes Harry. Release date: July 13, 2007

The Bourne Ultimatum - Matt Damon returns as Jason Bourne in the thrid installment of this series. Release Date: August 3, 2007.

So there you have it folks my list of most anticipated movies of 2007. This is what they in the industry call a tentpole year. Honorable mentions: Frank Miller's 300, Hannibal Rising, Reno 911!: Miami, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Zodiac, TMNT, Live Free or Die Hard, The Simpsons Movie, Rush Hour 3, The Invasion, American Gangster, I Am Legend.

Made some changes

I've made some changes. I'm Still updating. So please forgive me if your link isn't there.