Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Tea & Crackers


Witch Doctor ObamaSo the NAACP, an organization that seems increasingly more irrelevant as time goes by, came out to condemn the racist elements within the various loosely organized groups commonly known as Tea Parties which espouse so-called conservative values like free markets, limited government, and lower taxes. The resolution was motivated by Tea Partiers who were protesting the passage of the Health Care bill allegedly shouting “nigger!” at some black congressmen as they walked into the Capitol Building to vote on the legislation, not to mention some of the blatantly racist signs displayed about Obama and the stream of White Supremacists which have recently joined the ranks of Tea Partiers, or my term of preference, teabaggers.

Mind you, all the NAACP was asking for, which won’t be ratified until its October meetings, was essentially for the teabaggers to check themselves before they wreck themselves. But the way the teabaggers and their supporters reacted, you would have thought the NAACP just came out and called them all lying racist shitbags. I mean, they are, mostly, but I’m saying that, not the NAACP.

Even Queen of the teabaggers, Sarah Palin came out...

(Read the whole story on From the Bottom Up on The Urban Twist.)

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Fire in the Hole

I‘m officially employed, again. Good thing, too. Shit started looking little dark down here at the bottom. The power cord for my laptop got fried, and I was afraid I might have to go on a fast in order to afford to replace it. But no. Just in the nick of time I find myself slinging cellies, again.
So if you happen to live in the Baltimore metro area and you’re in the market for a new phone come check me out at the Go Wireless in Homewood, on St Paul St, a block from Johns Hopkins University.

Don’t roll your eyes at me. If you all clicked on a couple of those ads you’re ignoring, maybe I wouldn’t have to hustle my wares in my column. So I think I’m entitled to a little personal advertising here. While I’m at it, I might as well let you know that I’m the newest Vice President of the Maryland Writers Association, too. Things are looking up!

At least I’m working. A lot of folx still ain’t. About 26 million, as a matter of fact. About 2.5 million of them wont be receiving unemployment benefits by the end of this week.

Read the whole story on From the Bottom Up on The Urban Twist.

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Wilt














Wilt

I can still vividly recall
that smell that smiled
at me in the hall,
as I wandered past
your door.
Maybe it was the shelves full
of overpriced perfume,
but I’d bet it was just you,
in full bloom,
the long spiral petals
of your hair
gold leafed brown to match
your stare;
I didn’t dare
linger,
long.

Instead I climbed
the stairs,
to the balcony,
from where
I could watch you
from above
& pretend we were
in love.
You looked even better
from that height,
where I could stay
just out of sight
& make believe I’d written
silly poems
just for you.

Even then I knew
I’d spend my days
in your company.
What I didn’t know,
what I couldn’t see,
was how exactly it would all go,
that I’d waste a decade
chasing dreams,
the recurring nightmare
of my life in memes
& all that time,
freedom
was always only
a whisper
away.

So now the make believe
is done,
pretending’s over,
fantasies spun.
Instead of settling
we have won,
although the bloom
is all but consumed;
& we are left
slowly wilting
in the sun;
but we shine
& the aroma’s stronger
now—potpourri &
vintage
wine.

We climb together now—
the balcony is closed
but the curtains of our stage
are just now opening wide,
as we perform in repose;
& who knows
how long it’ll take
before we wilt away.
I won’t even allow
my mind to wander there,
anymore.
Instead, I’ll bask
in the glow
of the love that would grow
from a passing scent as I walked
past your door.