Tackling the "Accidental Racist"

Alright. I'm going to be completely frank when I say this: I enjoy country music. I do. It's a recent thing that happened when I moved to the Panhandle. I'd also like to add that this song is a very good representation of everything this area represents to me - don't let our sandy white beaches fool you! While spring break and summer vacation bring my dearly beloved northerners to this area, the vast majority of the people who live here are alllllll about southern pride.

If you haven't heard the song, you can listen to it here.

Now I can tell you that if Brad Paisley had done this song by himself...it would be a hit. IT WOULD. Country music has a reputation of saying whatever it wants just as brashly as rap or R&B, but they do it in a way that makes their listeners smile. While Miguel might sing "How Many Drinks" in his song, Joe Nichols will put it - jokingly of course - as "Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off," you see what I mean? It's all the same, they're just better at making it sound nice and not predatory.

The basic thing to remember with country music is that these musicians get away with a lot. I mean...have you heard Jason Aldean rap? It's painful...but once he starts to sing, I can forgive his completely idiotic decision to even attempt to rap.

So...about this song.

This is not the first song to tackle "southern pride" realistically, if Paisley had set out to just make the contemporary southern white man's anthem, this would be it. You would hear guys in cowboy boots and ten gallon hats telling their black friends that "Paisley gets them," more likely than not. How do I know that? Because while everyone that I'm friends with in the black community is up in arms, I've heard quite a few people that are actually happy to hear it right in Bay County.

Paisley takes an incredibly huge topic and boils it down into a song that, without LL Cool J, would probably just be background music...but then he added LL Cool J to the mix...and that is where the problem started.

Whether it's LL's terrible rapping or his off the cuff "adlibs" and rap lyrics, the song, already destined to make plenty of people cringe, goes on a downward spiral and doesn't stop.

I want you to get paid but be a slave I never could
Feel like a new fangled Django, dodging invisible white hoods 

RIP Robert E. Lee but I've gotta thank Abraham Lincoln for freeing me, know what I mean 

If you don't judge my do-rag, I won't judge your red flag.
If you don't judge my gold chains, I'll forget the iron chains.

There aren't words that I could use to describe just how...I literally, I can't come up with words to describe how I feel about LL Cool J's participation in this. It's a situation where, I'm at the intersection of complete-and-utter-shock and absolute confusion.

WHO TOLD YOU THIS WAS A GOOD MOVE LL?
WHO LIED TO YOU AND HATES YOU SO MUCH?

Whether its just the fact that he's a terrible rapper or the way he took something so big and turned it into...I don't even know what to call it. All I can say is the minute I heard him start talking, I wanted it to end. It being, the song, his career, his participation in music as a whole, his acting career too...I don't understand. To take something this big and trivialize it, make it into a punchline...I'm lost.

Is Paisley to blame? Of course he is...it's his song, but that's country music for you - they're out here telling stories and whatnot and that's just how they work...but this new operation with all this hip-hop coming into play is not working. I'm not sure if it ever will, but if this is a sign of the times to come, I'm not pleased. The thing is, Paisley is speaking how he feels: if I were to tell you how many times I've had the conversation with someone from my church or in the community about the "red flag" and what it represents to them, I'm sure my black friends would recoil in horror, the same way I did when I used to see it plastered to back of pickup trucks in high school.

This is nothing new.

While it represents one thing to me, it represents something very different to them and while we will probably never see eye to eye on this, whatever Paisley and LL were trying to cook up to start the conversation was a bad move.

What do you think of "Accidental Racist" - am I being too critical?

Hump day happiness

Welcome to Wednesday! One of the best days of the week, if only because it reminds you that you're halfway through it, haha. I'm loving what I did last week on Wednesday, taking a breather, so let's get to it!

This week has been such an odd one with my schedule being all weird, but hey - I've got plenty to smile about and as my grandfather always says when I ask how he's doing: "I could complain, but what's the point of that?"

For now, here are the things bringing some major joy into my life right now.

1. If you follow me on Instagram, then you've seen this little beauty of mine! Yesterday I got my Crosley USB turntable and as excited as I was to get it, it also came with a twinge of disappointment since the needle was broken. Thankfully, Crosley has nice customer service and blahblahblah so I will be listening to that lovely record next week! Until then, I'll just bask in the wonderfulness of having the record player and a couple good things to look forward to next week.

2. This kinda ties in with the first one - I mean, duh - but Donna Summer was everything and a half. I'm so excited to finally be able to play this and after getting off the phone with my grandmother, I should be able to snag a few more awesome records for myself sooner than later.

3. Okay. This CD isn't new...but I recently got addicted to Two Door Cinema Club and Tourist History is honestly summer in audio form for me. I'm not even playing. I won't say how many times I've listened to this or how loud...but it would suffice to say that I'm sure my neighbors want to hit me. And I'm okay with that.

4. Look at that sunset. No seriously. Whenever my week is going sour, the best thing to do is just look at the sky because things like this blow my mind every time. The colors are just...I can't even tell you how happy I was to just snag this with my iPhone. I smile just looking at it.

5. Everyone has their favorite apps on the iPhone and personally, Solar is my favorite weather app because it's just so pretty. Really, it's all about aesthetics with this and just having it on my phone takes me to a calm place. Doesn't hurt that I got it for free either - normally it's paid! - so check it out if you're tired of the same ol' same weather apps.

6. On a limb I tried this Sambazon acai with blueberry and pomegranate. Umm, HELLO JOY. I need to grab more of this stuff so I can use it in my smoothies. I was sick the latter part of last week and I'm not saying this had anything to do with it, but I'm sure this combined with Mucinex and OJ certainly helped my cause since the workplace wasn't letting me have any extra days off!

So there you have it, my happy hump day! What's bringing smiles to your face this week? Share the joy! ;)

#Redbox52: The problem with feelings

Ahhh! Happy Monday! I hope that everyone's week is going well. Normally, Monday is my day off, but now that we have a couple people that have moved on to new television stations (one to Fort Myers, the other to Orlando - gonna miss 'em so much!) things have gotten a bit shaken up. Not to worry though, I'm working better than ever and happier in the past few weeks than I've been in a long time.

So, onto this week's #Redbox52, Killing The Softly:

First thoughts: good movie - a taaaad bit violent, but since I don't mind violence, it's alright by me. I can definitely say the best thing about this movie is the intentional use of news footage from the financial crisis of 2008 - it was literally brilliant. 

Or maybe I'm so used to movies just doing their own thing that when I see something done well, it just blows me away.

Anyway, it was a lot of fun to watch. The clips that were used were always placed against a scene that directly related to what was being said, I love that.

There was a lot of interesting dialogue in the movie and for some people that was a setback, but there were a few interactions that really got me going, one in particular was between Driver (Richard Jenkins) who works with the mafia as a middle man of sorts and Jackie Cogan (Brad Pitt) who is a hitman.

They're discussing a hit that needs to be made and Cogan goes into why he doesn't want to hit a particular target and gives a better understanding of the title of the movie.

"I like to kill them softly, from a distance, not close enough for feelings. Don't like feelings. Don't want to think about them."

It caught me off guard a bit once I understood what killing someone "softly" actually meant. After thinking it over, it brought to mind various interactions I had in the past with people on social networks, from Tumblr to Twitter, one of the great things was that you're able to make a connection with people, getting a glimpse into whatever parts of their life they're willing to expose.

The downside, of course, is that depending on what you put out there, you also are opening yourself up to a lot of criticism. In fact, I would go off on a limb and say that most interactions online whether it's commentary on a show or on an event happening in someone's life, what a celebrity is wearing or something happening in the news, since we don't directly know the people we can say whatever we want to, often without feeling any sort of remorse.

As someone who works in the news industry, one of my biggest fears is that one day, I will stop being able to relate to people, that I will eventually get desensitized to it all. Just yesterday I did a story about a 7-year-old who was mauled by 2 pitbull mix breeds that died and another story on a 90-year-old man who was murdered. A former coworker of mine once told me that one of the things that haunts him is the fact that when he would drive around town, the first thing he would remember is the stories he had done.

I drove around town a few weeks ago and realized, I was the same way. On one corner, a homeless person was found dead, on another, a manhunt for a robber that had guns and was taken down by dogs. It breaks my heart a little bit to think about how in just a matter of 1 year, I covered 3 or 4 stories about teenagers dying behind the wheel, far too many memorial services for young people who hadn't even gotten a chance to get to college, to live their lives to what we considered a full extent.

It hurts. On one hand, as a reporter, I don't want to relate, I don't want to have feelings about my stories because God knows they would haunt me...but on the other, to not have some sort of feeling about it all would make me less than a human. I don't know how reporters in the field, covering wars, genocide, sex slavery - it's one thing to do a long form documentary on it, but in news, it's often that you cover something for a day or two and then it's on to the next thing, no follow up, no seeing how things go later in life. It's a hard balance because if we stayed on one thing too long, the sad truth, is that most people wouldn't care...and I think that's probably what hurts the most.

#6wordpoems: there is beauty in being succinct

Last night, writer/poet/rapper/producer/teacher/amaze-balls-man (my personal opinion) Rafael Casal issued a challenge to his followers on Twitter and friends on Facebook and Instagram.

Write a 6 word poem.

Some people wrote phrases, made jokes, others really got to the heart of things. I decided I wanted to contribute as well.

"I am where He wants me." That was my 6 word poem and as I hit send it struck me how meaningful that phrase was to my life because it wasn't just a few words that made a good little poem, but it was a mentality that would be able to hold me afloat until it's time to move on to the next thing.

I am where He wants me.

The first time I heard the phrase was from my grandfather, it stuck with me. The idea that while I may not be completely happy with where I am, there was a reason that I wasn't moving, there was something I was supposed to be getting out of this. 

Graduating from college and not getting a job that I wanted for 9 months was a struggle for me. I debated quitting, going back into retail, or switching from a position in front of the camera to one behind it - and truthfully there was nothing wrong with any of those options had I ended up going with them, but there was a reason that I had to take some time to get to where I wanted while some of my friends seemed to get scooped up into their dream jobs much faster than I ever dreamed.

I am where He wants me.

It's a hard phrase to really live out sometimes. It's something I've gotten into the habit of saying whenever I get anxious about where I am or start to feel some pangs of jealousy that I'm not at my next thing yet. I've always been a bit preoccupied with my future and this phrase forces me to stop trying to envision what it is to come and focus on where I am now.

One of my close friends and I were having a conversation recently and he brought up being unhappy at his job - however, he wasn't unhappy because the job itself was bad, he was unhappy because of the attitude of his coworkers and management:

It's so metric driven and everyone is working for the next role, not to make sure the role they are in now is self-sustaining.

It was an interesting observation in a field that was completely the opposite of my own though we faced the same problems. It made me wonder what would happen if everyone stopped and made the decision to be the best at their current position, understanding that once they mastered it, they would have the ability to move on to something new, but in that moment, in that day, in that month, in that year - focus on doing the best they possibly could with what they had right then.

It really was a way of mastering the phrase in my work place. Now, I'm learning - slowly but surely - to live out this 6 word poem in every part of my life.

What are some 6 word poems, or really any phrases, that you found are good to live by? Leave 'em here!

Taking a breather

There are many topics that I would like to approach today, good and bad. From the 10 and 11 year old that planned to murder and rape a classmate to the Maverick's owner saying he would consider putting Brittney Griner on his team to even the most basic subject matter, like why I can't stand self-proclaimed "nice" guys.

Those will be discussed later...because today I need to breathe. Today, I would like to relax and pretend there aren't so many bad things happening, pretend that this accomplishment doesn't come on the heels of so much criticism of a young lady who is incredibly talented, and pretend that guys that are nice don't actually act nice to get things they don't deserve in return.

Today, I'm taking a selfish moment to be happy about a small investment I made that has given me peace, a new way to look at things, and a new appreciation of time and priorities.

Bella, sweet, sweet, lovely, Bella.

Bella is a Canon AE-1 that I got last week at a random garage sale type deal that was held in the building we've been having church. For $20 I got the camera body + 3 lens + 3 filters + a nifty bag + an attachable flash.

TWENTY DOLLARS. And it ALL works.

After blowing through my first roll of film, I realized that this camera taught me a very important lesson that digital photography made easy to forget: capture memorable moments. It seems dumb, but with a digital camera you have a million chances to get the right shot, to pick it apart and try again over and over and over, with a film camera, you don't have that same chance.

It's funny, with 24 exposures, it's like being given a full day and you have only those 24 hours to fill with whatever it is, but once that time is up - it's done. I don't know, sometimes it's the little random things like that that really rattle you, make you take the time to really take your time. 

All that being said, I hope you have a productive day...that you're able to see past all the bad in the world and try to contribute some good rather then simply focusing on your own good...because the world can always use some more of that.

#Redbox 52: Marry for love?

There are few things that are good about being sick...but if I had to pick one, it is being forced (for the most part) to stay home and stay warm and do what you like. For me, that has included, eating healthy, reading books, taking baths, and watching movies.

Today's Redbox 52 takes a strong look at love and marriage and fidelity and forgiveness.

Anna Karenina looks at several different types of love, dutiful love, forbidden love, maternal love, enduring love, and, of course, romantic love. Sadly, only two of these loves comes out a true winner in the end, and that's romantic love combined with enduring love, but boy oh boy, watching it all play out before your eyes sure is beautiful.

If there was one thing this movie made me think about, it was the reasons we choose to get married.

When I was younger, a family member told me marrying for love was foolish because love can fade when certain things change and that the smart thing to do was to marry someone you could work with. As unromantic as that sounds, I understand what they meant. Too often we see people rushing to jump the broom because they're severely infatuated with someone, they don't necessarily know them and they have a bunch of qualities that aren't that great, but they're in "love" so they get married.

While I see marriages that start like that usually end in unhappiness, I still believe in marrying for love as long as the love is also matched with common goals and the desire to make the relationship work.

In Anna Karenina we see several couples, many have married as a way to move up in their social status or simply to maintain it. For most, the marriages are loveless aside from their children. You see affairs as characters go in and out to try and fill a void they had hoped to have managed through their union. With Anna's character, she is content in her marriage, though she knows she did not marry for love, however her husband is noble and kind, with a good head on his shoulders and a career that can sustain the both of them, for most, the ideal man to marry.

However, she soon finds herself caught in a different type of situation, a love that starts with an obsession and then grows to an addiction, and as most addictions go, it ends badly. In the movie, the topic of infidelity comes up several times, but my favorite quote is from a man who believes desperately in true, virtuous love.

"An impure love is not love to me. To admire another man's wife is a pleasant thing, but sensual desires indulged for its own sake is greed, a kind of gluttony, and a misuse of something sacred, which is given to us so that we may choose the one person with whom to fulfill our humanness."

As I said, I believe in marrying for love. I'm a staunch believer in romantic love, true love; I believe it comes with time and with work, but that two people, committed to growing together can make it work. That is why romantic + enduring love will always come out a winner, whether in fiction or in our day to day lives...call me crazy but I believe it.

If you've watched the movie, or read the book - which I plan to do - tell me what you think! And when it comes to love, what are the things that you believe make it work? Would you marry for love or are other factors more important?

The beauty of a new view

I have been fortunate to work with a bunch of crazy talented people in my day, but one of the most awesome individuals that I've run across is Shannon Boodram.

A couple years ago, I interned under Shannon and her friend Andrea on their shared website. The experience was great and to this day, I'm grateful that I got the chance to work with both of them, but because I was on my way to becoming a reporter, I wanted to focus on writing, so I worked hard to establish a bond with her.

I was reading her blog and she posted something I really tacked on to that also matched with my last blog on the journey into adulthood.

"I am a firm believer that in today’s day and age too many people believe that pursuing their dreams and patience are opposites. On the contraire it’s called common sense. If you want to be an actor but you have no money, no connections, no support and no stability maybe now isn’t the best time for your dreams. What you need is to do your due preparation to give yourself a fighting chance at eventually pursuing your dreams." (Reinvent Your Wheels) 

Reading that was automatically easy to identify with because I felt like it was the path that I had taken since beginning my career in television as a production assistant in Philadelphia. I used my 9 months between graduating and getting my first reporting job to build connections, work on my reel, and try to soak up as much as I possibly could so that when the time came to make this big transition, I could.

My generation is one that has big dreams. Many of us have these ideas in our head for what we want to do with our lives, but we simply haven't sat down to plan in a realistic manner, so when things come crashing down we get frustrated. Even worse sometimes is when things magically begin to fall into place prematurely, because nothing hurts more than investing so much in something just to have it fail miserably because you weren't ready.

I have had quite a few ups and downs in my current job, but reading her blog reminded me of the ups and downs at my old job. Though they weren't as numerous, I also have to take into account that I was a part-time employee, simply eager to get my foot in the door - now I'm in the big leagues, but I'm paying my dues to get where I want to be, so it's not that I'm doing anything wrong, I'm simply preparing for my future and if things keep progressing as they have when I put my hard work into it, then I have a lot to look forward to in the next year, so here's to going hard with what I got and making the most of every situation! It reminds me of one of my favorite Latin proverbs: Amat victoria curam - which means literally, victory loves carefulness, but as one of my adored movies puts it, victory loves preparation.

What are some changes you plan to make to achieve to your next big goal?