Funding and Support from the People

Yo! Respect to the Blue Scholars for this project called Cinemetropolis. In their effort to release their new record in true independent fashion, "No record label. No marketing and distribution deal. No middlemen. No bullsh*t," the Blue Scholars signed their record to the people enlisting the support of fans through the medium of Kickstarter. Depending on the amount invested, backers were promised advanced digital copies of the album, an actual cd copy, vinyl record, etc.

What I love about the project to sign to the people is that it gives the consumer the opportunity to give what we can and/or value the work and contributions of the Blues Scholars for what we think it's worth. So, if we feel the quality of their work (based on past experience) is worth more than a $12 cd, then we can give $50 instead. Sure, there's compensation, but there's absolutely an opportunity for choice and some self determination through this model.

And does it work? Hell yeah, it works. Out of a fundraising goal of $25,000, the Blue Scholars made more than $60,000 off the project. It's a testament to their artistry, intelligence and loyal fan base. Definitely a great teaching and learning experience from the Blue Scholars...as usual.

He Won't Go

Amazing song off Adele's new record

Power Can Be...

From a book on deck called Ghostly Matters: Haunting and the Sociological Imagination, by Avery Gordon, this first paragraph is bomb:

"...the power relations that characterize any historically embedded society are never as transparently clear as the names we give to them imply. Power can be invisible, it can be fantastic, it can be dull and routine. It can be obvious it can reach you by the baton of the police, it can speak the language of your thoughts and desires. It can feel like remote control, it can exhilarate like liberation, it can travel through time, and it can drown you in the present. It is dense and superficial, it can cause bodily injury, and it can harm you without seeming ever to touch you. It is systematic and it is particularistic and it is often both at the same time. It causes dream to live and dreams to die. We can and must call it by recognizable names, but so too we need to remember that power arrives in forms that can range from blatant white supremacay and state terror to 'furniture without memories.'"

Rediscovering New York: Palisades Parkway Sunocos

Everybody who takes the Palisades Parkway to and from the city stops at the Sunocos right next to the GW Bridge. This evening when I stopped for gas, I saw the most bittersweet sight at the gas station -all these older brown men pumping gas for folks while laughing and joking with one another in their neon yellow Sunoco jackets. Lots of them were Latino, West Indian or West African and while it was somewhat sad to see these older men pumping gas in the cold weather, it was just a heartwarming sight to see their laughing and joyful camaraderie. The folks always make something out of nothing. Always.

Unclench, Unwind, Breath Deep

Since arriving in New York, I've tried (not always successfully) to maintain the calm, relaxed state of being that I constantly found myself in in the Philippines. I was rarely wound too tight while I was there. Admittedly, much of this is because I was not working and did not have to surround myself by other people or live up to other people's expectations but my own. As my time in New York has gone on, I've found myself clenched tight more often than I would like and my forehead in my wrinkle inducing frown. Today, I realized that if I didn't consciously address the clench, I'd make it a habit. I'd make it part of my everyday.

Don't get me wrong. I love New York. I am sooooo happy here, but there's no denying the reality of the New York rush -folks speed on the freeway, people push on the subway and rush by on the sidewalk passing hundreds of people and looking into the eyes of none.

So for all those moments when I find myself burrowed deep in the negativity of the culture of the GRIND, I'm just gonna UNCLENCH, UNWIND and BREATH DEEP. If you're lucky, I might even add a smile to that.