| | Jul. 8th, 2009 @ 11:51 am |
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I really believed I wasn't going to get sucked into this. I really did. I aspired to such a lofty goal. And I failed. Yesterday, the day of the memorial, I sat at a tv with my roommates late in evening and there was the coverage and it just took 2 seconds of Michael slide shows to suck me in. The thing is that the images evoke strong feelings for me, more the than words anyone was saying, more than the staging of his family, more than the mushy rendition of "We are the world". His death, backdrop as it may be, has still been a part of the last two weeks of my life in a subtle but substantial way. So, I went and got some images that felt like nice remembrances for me. I don't feel there is any more that is appropriate to say, real people who really knew him have appropriate grief that they deserve to hold as their own and me talking about my experience of his music, or his face, or his legacy seems diminutive in the context of true mourning. So, here is my little picture homage and my confession that yesterday's events were personally painful to watch. And, with a deep brief, I will go back to my own real life and let that family engage their own in privacy, peace, and proprietorship.
Hmmm, I see know that setting 'friends' as the default on my journal now means I can't post any public posts. That seems stupid...
Hmmm, now I see that lj has changed its mind and that is no longer true...
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| | Sep. 22nd, 2007 @ 08:13 am |
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Hugh Laurie was on Jay Leno lwe6 night and it was creepy because he looks just like House (as in, they don't put very much make-up on him it would seem, same bags under the eyes and everything) but this crazy English accent was coming out. I have known for a long time that he is British but I have never heard him so it is easy to ignore/forget that fact. But that voice... surreal. He is also in a band! |
| | Sep. 17th, 2007 @ 10:59 pm |
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I am feeling just really beat down by my life. I feel manipulated, deceived, ignored, unsupported, and incompetent. And, I don't really want to talk about it. Instead, I will post below the body of an email I wrote to a bunch of people about the Jena Six, which I had not heard about until this morning. I hope you will join us!
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This morning I had a conversation with my mother and one of the things that came up was the Jena Six, a group of Black boys I had never heard. Basically, the story goes that their high school in Jena Louisiana has a tree that only White students are supposed to sit under. When one black student complained, he was told by administrators that he could sit wherever he wanted. But then, as the boys organized a sit in, the next day nooses ended up hanging from the tree's branches. Additionally, apparently the boys who committed this act were initially expelled, which the superintendent overturned and when the DA came to speak to the school, supposedly he looked at the boys and told them that the school doesn't want any trouble and they need to be careful because he can take away their lives with the stroke of a pen. All of this escalates and, in my mind, gets very confusing, but involves such incidents as a White man pulling a gun on three black boys who get the gun away from him without a shot being fired, but then are all charged with robbery or a weapon while the man does not get any charges. Anyway, the real issue here is that after the school gets torched by unknown parties (this seems to be an uncontested fact by everyone who has reported on this issue) some White kids beat up some Black kids and then racially taunt them. A couple of days after this, six Black boys, known now as the Jena Six, assaulted a White boy. The boy went to the hospital, was released the same day, and went to a social function that evening, apparently unscathed (though some mainstream media is claiming that he was "severely beaten" though their pictures show him walking calm and collected with his family. In the end, those six boys were arrested and charged with attempted second degree murder and conspiracy (though he was ultimately convicted of aggravated assault and conspiracy). The first was convicted, after being held in jail without bail for several months, and was scheduled to stand for sentencing of 22 years this Thursday, September 20 but the conspiracy charge has apparently been overturned by a higher court because the boys were charged as adults. At this point, things get a bit hazy as far as I am concerned and so I'll stop because I am not really an expert on any of this, but I have just been trying to collect research from the internet as far I am able. I will say, though, that the jury was all white, as was the judge. The DA was on the same school board as the superintendent, as was the court appointed lawyer (though he was black). And, as mentioned above, the student already convicted was held in jail for several months without bail or trial. All of this is, too, is uncontested.
The situation perplexes me and I have to admit I find myself thinking, "surely this is blown out of proportion. I mean, this couldn't really have happened, and perhaps the alternative media is just trying to make a racial claim where there is very little." It startles me to think that outside of my experience of racism, which has been kind of a nuisance and self-esteem knocking but not such much an issue of danger to my safety as a citizen, I am so resistant to think that this could actually be going on down there. It further startles me that I have been in the dark about it. But, the reality is that something has happened down there that involves teenagers being tried adults for attempted murder and the tree does exist, and I am very confused about why none of this was on the mainstream radio or tv news with any urgency. So, I am writing to you all because people are making Sept 20th a big deal. Many groups are going down there but they are asking that those who can't consider wearing ALL BLACK on the 20th. Additionally, there is an online petition that can be signed, and asks for very little identifying information (name and email, which you can block from public record). I have signed the petition (which justs asks for a Civil Rights investigation) and plan to wear black and hope some of you will consider joining me.
However, I will say, that I don't think any such actions should be taken on my word alone. I think the case is confusing since there has not been a lot of coverage. But, I do believe enough has been corroborated to merit investigation. Plus, I am amazed at the coverage some other things (like Michael Vick and those dogs) have gotten while this has gone silent. All this, in my mind is enough for protest. To help you make up your own mind, I have included some links below, plus you can just google the whole thing. But please think about it. For those of you who go to school with me, I send this out because we have been so active in thinking about immigration and the war and all of that, but this is something at home that we could be vocal about with very little intrusion to our lives, if it is something we believe in. |
| | Sep. 17th, 2007 @ 09:55 am |
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I just want to say that I want to have Ellen's babies. Like, seriously. Ellen Degeneres has full license and ownership to my babies. I know I have said the same about Ludacris and many others. But, that was folly and bullshit. Ellen, when you're ready, I'm waiting.
Here is a link to some video footage!
Any are good but the social experiment is really funny and so is her bit about the Emmy....
Ha! |
| Uh, OK | Aug. 29th, 2007 @ 09:09 pm |
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He was a cowboy, mister, and he loved the land. He loved it so much, he made a woman out of dirt, and married her, but when he kissed her, she disintegrated. Later, at the funeral, when the preacher said "dust to dust", some people laughed, and the cowboy shot them. At his hanging, he told the others, "I'll be waiting for you in Heaven, with a gun."
– Jack Handey |
| Foolish unprotected teaser post | Aug. 28th, 2007 @ 12:27 pm |
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Maybe in order to understand mankind, we have to look at the word itself, "mankind". Basically it's made up of two separate words, "mank" and "ind". What do these words mean? It's a mystery, and that's why so is mankind.
– Jack Handey
Hey I may be strange taken out of context but this dude is strange all the time. |
| The End | Aug. 10th, 2007 @ 06:14 pm |
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Hello!
This used to be a public journal. Now it is almost exclusively friends only. That is because I felt like people were not commenting or becoming as involved as I might like for the level of sharing herein. If you would like to be friended, please read my info page, so you know a bit about me and what I might be writing about and if that is a discussion you think you might want to be a part of, or learn more about, or a journey you think you might want to share with me, then comment and say hello. I will probably read your journal for a few days and then friend you so be patient. In the meantime, in enjoy the random tidbits I occasionally post uncensored.
Peace,
Jiffyschnapps |
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