Back to the Business of Blogging

I started this blog to talk about music and what it means to me. How music has impacted my life for so many years and how it continues to be the driving force for my inspiration. I found out that blogging is a commitment and a responsibility that I have taken lightly.

It's not that I am lazy, or don't have anything to say, it's just I have so many other writing commitments that my writing for this blog has taken a back seat. Well enough of the excuses and lets get back to the business of writing.

I think I will open up my topics not to no longer talk about music, but expand and talk about other subjects like sports, work, family maybe a little politics if the right issue warrants a discussion from me. I realize that my audience was based on people that I told about this blog, and the other people (all 3 of them) are random web surfers.

I don't know if my writing will stimulate or even interest people out there, but who knows? I want to use this forum to improve my writing and hopefully receive some feedback for my efforts. I will do all that I can to be consistant and post weekly, I will try at least. There is a lot going on in the world today, and sometimes I just don't have the time or energy to keep up with blogging. I think I am a lot like everybody out there, trying to do so many things with just so few hours to get it all done.

2009 Starting Fresh

2008 was one hell of a year, the election of Barack Obama perhaps the biggest story for the year if not for the ages. The election of this man, coveted a two year span, starting with his candidacy as an outsider with a the odds stacked against him to win the Democratic nomination. He ran a flawless campaign energizing the youth of this country and eliminated the boundaries of the so called blue and red states that characterized the election of George Bush in the last presidential election.

This historical event has lifted the spirits of so many non believers who have lost faith in our government and the election process. A revived feeling of renewed hope has taken place in our country and the election of Barack Obama is the driving catalyst for this change. The decision to target the young people of America was perhaps his best strategy. The overwhelming numbers of young people of all races that were behind this man eliminated the racial barriers that their parents either help created or forced to succumbed to in the past.

This is a great time for our nation, we are moving in the right direction to restructure our position in the global community. Our domestic problems are deep and complicated, and it will involve more thought and planning before we see light at the end of the tunnel. The thought of the matter lies within the leadership at the top to find the right talent with the intelligence to put together a strategy to see our way out of this problem, That is where leadership has to be apparent, and the ability to put this team together is one of Barack Obama's strongest trait.

I have faith in his ability to lead and make the right decision. It won't be an easy task, and I don't expect miracles. What I do expect is his ability to make wise decisions based on what will be good for all Americans, and that he stays true to his roots and by that I mean, that he was never a rich man and should understand the way of those who are not part of the privileged class. Let's hope and pray for this man, he is certainly going to need all the help he can get.

It's a New Day

Since my last posting, a historic event had occurred and I would do this blog a disservice by not taking the time to express my joy and happiness that Barack Obama has been elected president. Watching his first speech in Chicago after receiving the required electoral votes to win, brought tears to my eyes. Watching this man with his beautiful family made me feel so proud, so strong, so empowered.

I hope that the younger generation absorbed a sense of belonging and can now believe that they too have a voice in the political process and have a clear understanding that cannot take these freedoms for granted. I thought about my Dad who is 81 and believed that a black man will never become president during his lifetime. I myself felt that I would never see a black man as president, and to actually see this piece of history unfold right in front of my eyes is still hard to fathom.

I always knew Barack Obama was the best candidate for the job, but I never thought America would embrace him as president. I am glad I was wrong and I stand firmly behind my president as he leads our nation through these difficult times. His leadership and intelligence will help this country return to a nation that is respected and admired by other nations. His leadership will allow for more communication between waring factions that never thought America would listen to their issues. I can't be that naive to believe Barack Obama will heal all wounds and solve every problem, but I know his approach and mental stability will at least allow for decisions that will be made from a view point of intelligence rather than from might.

For the Love of Money

I ride the New York City subways everyday, and during my commute, I see the faces of people dealing with the struggles of the current economic crisis. The look on their faces display a certain sadness that I haven't seen since the days after 9/11. I see some people escape the melancholy and find peace by plugging in to their IPods. What they are listening to I would imagine is some music that is probably easy listening, and not so much hard driving beats. That desire to dance and party are usually geared towards times of prosperity and when the dollars flow. These days and times people have to hold on to every dollar they can, as the price to eat and to gas up your car costs so much more nowadays.

I have heard some many rap lyrics that revolve around money and possessions that I wonder how a person today could ever imagine having a such a luxurious life style with times being so hard. Maybe the message is to keep hope alive and continue to pour money into the economy by buying all of these lavish items.

I think even the young people understand that times are hard, by either getting the message from their parents or seeing how little their money goes these days. Maybe the desire to hear the soft lyrics of a love song my excite them since the life style of the rich and famous for now is a distant image.

She Don't Love You Anymore

I heard a song the other day by Heather Headley called "the letter" from her debut album "In my mind." I know I have listened to this album many times, and this song must have played many times in the past, but for some reason when the song popped up during a random search I could not help myself listening to it over and over again.

The song is about a woman writing a letter to a now former lover, expressing her feelings about their dissolved relationship. The song clearly indicates that the woman is deeply hurt by the man's indiscretions. She really would like to say how she feels about him to his face, but she really can't stand the sight of this man.

Apparently she has regrouped and has freed herself from the love and tells him in the letter that he is free to see who he wants to see, because it won't be her she knows she could do better. This is forever, it's a shame you have to read it in a letter I am gone forever.

Many songs have been written about breakups, but for some reason, this song really left me with a strong impression of the hurt a woman goes through when her heart is broken. I have had my heart broken before, but as a man it was always at least for me a time to reflect on what went wrong and to pick up the pieces of your broken heart put them back together as quickly as you can and get back in the game.

A man's hurt cannot be seen, no matter how silly this decision may be, a man cannot linger on feelings that are no longer mutual. Eventually you get it together and you move on, but after listening to this song I really felt the hurt that a woman goes through when a man does her wrong. Because men camouflages their feelings so well, some men believe that the woman has those same capabilities and when the relationship comes to and end, men at times don't realize what a woman goes through to cleanse her soul and eliminate forget about the man that hurt her so bad.

I thought I was a worldly man, someone who knows so much, but listening to this song was a real learning experience in understanding the nuances of a woman.