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Well, it finally came to pass. What folks being interviewed on the evening news lament about when describing whatever calamity they always figured happened to someone else had suddenly happened to them, has happened to me. .It all started on Memorial Day at a family cook-out. There I sat gnawing on a barbequed rib, licking my lips to savor the sauce when I was joined by my oldest granddaughter, the one I had christened my "golden girl" because she was so smart, accomplished, and pretty. A mischievous grin creased her face as she plopped down and promptly informed that she had something to tell me. Before I could wonder what, she made her 2-word announcement, "I'm gay!" I continued to chew but the meat wasn't going down as her whole life passed before me, including the red flags I'd chosen to ignore. "I've told every body else", she went on, "and now it's your turn." I considered talking with my mouth full so she couldn't understand what I felt like saying. But I kept my composure, reminding myself how liberal I always lied about being when it came to homosexuality, while giving lip service to my "live and let live" philosophy during arguments with the religious nay sayers who had driven me into the gay camp with their sanctimonious prating, and playing of the abomination card. "Well, I still love you," was all I managed say as I tried to blot out the visuals that began to flash in my mind inspired by my other favorite line of defense against homophobes. "What goes on behind closed doors between consenting adults is nobody else's business." EU. Months later, same scenario, different holiday, gathered around a card table munching on a barbequed hot link, trying to ignore the familiar grin my granddaughter was flashing, as my 2 daughters exchanged wary glances. "She's not my husband, she's my wife," my granddaughter explained during the Q&A period following her announcement that she and her partner had gotten married. How could you call someone who wears combat boots, vests, and pants that sag a "wife" was all I wanted to know. Not swayed by the long dread locks said wife sported, I shrugged, glad the she was not among those present since my son's sullen disgust would've proved awkward. (So much for his theory that his daughter's affair was just a phase.) At least her out-of-state mother was accepting. Indifference was the reaction of her cousins and brother.. And then it was Labor Day Little did I know how significant that word would be as the usual crowd gathered to bid summer good bye and chow down on whatever was smoking on the grill. "We got a friend to be a sperm donor," was my granddaughter's explanation for her pregnancy. "Did you by any chance enjoy making the baby?" I asked vicariously, following the news that the semen squirter was a good looking college graduate. A sly smirk was the answer. "He wanted to stay all night," she confessed. With that being the case, I was puzzled as to why then the attraction to women. And a butch one in particular. My granddaughter, however, was having none of my interrogation. She reminded me that she was an adult who didn't have to justify her choices in life. And she's right. Tonight is New Year's Eve and everybody has different parties to go to. No family gathering, - thank goodness. I'm staying home and when the shooting starts, I'll guzzle some Champagne and contemplate what 2016 will hold. This I know. Hardly a day will pass without an occasion to give pause and absorb the closure provided by the "it is, what it is" adage. C'est la Vie.

LOL. Well, Troy, I tell people all the time who want to excuse my maliciousness, insisting that I am really a sweet person. Not so. My children say I'm passive aggressive. I am and always have considered myself a skeptic polemicist. I like to argue especially with other know-it-alls and I am aware that when challenging other people's arguments I often include personal insults in my repertoire because I am very good at being catty. I have further observed that indifference trumps indignation, having learned how counter-productive the ego can be. I am, however, nice to people I like. And my favorites are laid back folks who don't take themselves too seriously because these are invariably the type who have the most going for themselves and are secure enough to let you find this out for yourself. A good sense of humor, particularly one that encompasses wry wit usually wins me over. Some people I just like because I get good vibes from them. Like you and Chris who I can disagree with but still appreciate because you're both cool and smart Not the case with the frothing, uptight, Sister Sara. Her mercurial personality was off-putting from the start and her supreme self-confidence unwarranted. (I'd be interested in the name of her published book which was undoubtedly a best-seller. Not.) Plus, her cherry-picking responses were ploys to void valid points by omitting them while trying to reinforce her own questionable opinions. Most revealing was the need to reassure herself that saying something made it so, as demonstrated by her frenetic eagerness to tell me that she had "cleaned by clock" when - I don't even own a clock; or a watch either. I tell time by lookin at a sundial. I knew I had Sorry Sara when she played the age card. That's always the last resort of people who have run out of retorts and panicked. I actually found her kind of pathetic because she was so transparent in her aggressive attempts to hide the inner fragility that kept her on the defense. Good thing she has taken her leave from this board because reading this might ignite THE WRATH OF SARA!!

Because of the pivotal year during which I was born, I have been fortunate enough to have witnessed a very interesting period in America's evolution. And seen through my eyes has made it even more compelling because although i was black, i was surrounded by whiteness and this gave me a dual perspective. I don't have a degree in history. I have lived history, being a part of the back story that never got recorded in books. People are always telling me I should write a memoir and I think about doing it but I am, for want of a better word, lazy. My Muse needs to energize me because my urge to write comes and goes and suffers from dry spells. I have considered dictating my recollections into this device called a "dragon" which transforms spoken words into typed text. That way I could get it all down, and then go back and edit the draft the dragon would produce. I do know that if I decide to take on this project, I'd better hurry up because time is running out... BTW, Happy New Year. And whatever happened to feature that allowed you to upload pictures? i wanted to post a greeting card on this site.

I agree 100 percent Troy. I tried to tell someone this on Facebook, but they decided it was worth it to drive traffic to the video and increase engagement. I think if your goal is to just have the video seen and shared then it makes sense to use Facebook because they autostart the video and they give preference to content generated on Facebook. BUT you don't earn anything. I did a video recently where I responded to this dude who asked if it was worth using Youtube and I said yes because if I earn 60 cents on a video that's money that I couldn't have made any where else. On the fake shoes... yep that was through Amazon. I've seen it all on Amazon and I've had so many random things happen that nothing surprises me anymore. I had a lawyer return a pair of shoes worn. I used to refund without even opening the boxes, but that return taught me my lesson. You can't trust anyone when it comes to you money in eCommerce. I am going to donate the fakes, but man it was irritating as hell for that to happen. I have some serious stories to tell about this sneaker game though... maybe I'll put in a book one day. Oh, the fake shoe return... Imagine if I used Amazon FBA! The package would have come back and an Amazon person may not have known the difference and then they would have sold the shoe again which would have led to the loss of my online shop due to fraud. It's a cold world in the online arena.

That's two in a row for Spike when it comes to his films about and for Black America. He is getting big money for movies like Inside Man a few years back, but with the Kickstarter film failing, and now this film by Amazon failing it seems to me that Spike will keep his real talents for the NBA 2K video game series which pays very well and for films backed by deeper pockets (not saying Amazon is not a deep pocket) but I guess I mean more mainstream stuff.

From 1995 to 2011 I taught in the San Diego, Memphis, and Ashland Mississippi. I did this to the detriment of my family because I felt that I owed my people for helping me to become educated. I was also a computer tech and I had every right to just work for a company that paid me well. Add on to this I coached basketball in an area that was home to both Crips and Bloods and some of my students had to live with me in order to graduate. All of this on a salary that was right at 30K in San Diego where the poverty line was 75K. We were on welfare and wic as a family while I was an educator. I left there and came to Memphis where I took what I learned and taught an HBCU. In 2004 I started a website called Center Court Basketball. From 2004 to 2009-10 and part of 11 I sent, by myself over 100 players to college on basketball scholarships. Many of those kids came from New Orleans and luckily I sent them off to college right before Hurricane Katrina hit. During this same time I used my CBP website to help launch the websites of Memphis' own Loretta McNary, a sister. I developed her website and her L logo. At the same time that I did this I also helped a Black Veteran named Terry Johnson launch THe Champions Within which catered to schools through mentoring. I also mentored at several schools through out the Memphis area. When I left the Black college I went to a charter school that worked with struggling students. During my time there the students shot two short films, and created two books. 1 of poetry and the other a book of essays on improving society for the next generation of Black leaders. From that group of kids one student won the ACT SO Competition which led to a schollie to TSU. This is even half of what I did there. Through my CBP Publishing company I published the book the History of the Black Soldier by Colonel Tobbie Ingram, he was one of the highest decorated Black soldiers during the Korean and Vietnam war. When I began ARCH my footwear company I made a shoe that I donated every pair to Laura's House abused women's shelter. I also started a scholarship fund that I fund out of my own pocket for my PG who was murdered in San Diego, and I named one of my shoes for him in my brand ARCH. This scholarship is still available. In the past year or so here are all of the websites that I built and all of the business I helped to start, without charging any of these people. I did it because as a person who struggled I know what it's like to not have help. 901 Prep Scoop: www.901prepscoop.com Chuck Lawson is now recognized as one of the best minds in basketball for the Memphis Area. While running a basketball network, I helped Chuck to get his 901 Prepscoop brand off the ground. I eventually taught Chuck how to run his website on his own and as his content developed his site earned him a position with national prep hoops powerhouse website Dunk Dog. City University School: Setup the original website for City University School and gave them a platform that allowed them to layout a similar setup on their current website. The Champions Within with Terry Johnson: http://www.championswithin.com/ I assisted Terry in creating his website and held a semester long workshop to make sure he had the skills needed to operate his site. Utilizing his basic site Terry has become one of the primary Character Education provider’s in the region and is expanding to the nation. The Loretta McNary Show: Memphis’ own Oprah began her journey almost ten years ago. She has moved on to establish a bigger brand since I initially worked with her on her original website where I developed her “L” logo. She now works with someone else, but my original logo and work is still a heavy presence on her website. Heros Footwear/Neimaj: As the original designer of the Neimaj website, I assisted Jamien Sills over the years in developing his brand. As he grew he took over development of his website. In 2012 however, through my company ARCH I helped Jamien to earn 25000 dollars from the Miller Coors Urban Entrepreneur Program. Utilizing my offshore production I was able to help Jamien make shoes for Mississippi State University and for the Miller Coors contest. My work also allowed for the development of his first athletic shoe the O1. This was a fantastic accomplishment. Brooklyn Ajays: www.brooklynajays.com Brooklyn Ajays is one of the best sneaker companies in the country. Selling hard to find kicks that sneaker lovers are searching for is their claim to fame. Over the past few years ARCH has been instrumental in helping this company attain inventory and stay competitive in the sneaker world. Swiftizm: The California Emcee needed a website that would allow him to control the downloads of his music and keep track of how many times the music was downloaded. He bought One Hour To Wealth and 30 Day when it released, purchased hosting and his domain and during his 60 minute session, I built this website. www.swiftizm.com. Brandon Meeks Music: The Indianapolis Bass player who is also in the group Native Sun, bought One Hour To Wealth. Said he didn’t have the time although he understood everything in the book, to launch his own site. After a few e-mails I told him to book his session. I realized that he didn’t have the money to pay for his domain. Instead of telling him to write me when he bought his domain, I had a discount for a domain and hosting and purchased it for him. I built the website. He was more comfortable with Squarespace as his CMS and he utilized that. He is now rolling along posting and sharing information with his followers.www.brandonmeeksmusic.com Add on to this I created a small biz curriculim for a local school in Memphis and did an in class workshop that taught the students how to start a business without any money. The students ended up making 800 dollars from the class on their own. I funded the development of a startup PR company of a student who was a felon that I taught at a college. I recently helped a lady start a company that makes period panties for women who can't afford to buy feminine products. All the while that I did all of this (which is all verifiable and you can find every person I mention and write them) I ran my own businesses and pulled my family out of bankruptcy. The books that I wrote, 1 Hour To Wealth give all of keys I used to do this (http://www.cbpublish.com/25-keys-points-to-stay-motivated-in-small-business-intro/) Book 2 The 30 Day Project continues this philosophy and is about learning to be still and meditate (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qZgvh49IUo) and the final book F--k Speeches & Inspiration (http://amzn.to/1NS7KKL) tells people how to start a business without having any money. Now you said I insulted Kemetic principles. That's a lie because I listed a brother who is using these philosophies in a positive and uplifting way. I asked you over and over to give your evidence of how it has been successful because you started this thing off with a diss. You asked what I'm doing. Everyday I spend time giving as much help and assistance as I can to jumpstart business. I can post to you Facebook inbox messages, but I will do you one better and give you a link to a Q& A from one of these people I shot for my web show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lSvbeSw8xA At no time did I diss you or dog your religion. Not once. I simply asked you to explain things and you didn't. I then used your 42 rules to show you where you failed your own religion. You being pissed at me is a reflection of you, not me. As I said, look in the mirror.

Cynique is right in her statement. What I need to understand is why the attachment to Kemet and not Yoruba, Ibo, Ibibio, Ghana, Ivory Coast? I have to think that it's because it's not as pretty and clean. In regard to not going very far, I wouldn't ever say that to someone that I don't know. I'm pretty well versed in a lot of things, I simply choose not to attach my lineage to Kemet/Egypt or East Africa since I know that my family tree extends to West Africa. In my opinion knowledge is the key to confidence and it is far more important for me to understand things I admire and things that make me money. Culture is something I admire and it covers literature, art, and music. I also admire sports and sneakers. Because I dig these things I learn about them. They inform my thoughts and opinions and whether they make me money or not, I dig them. Now, the knowledge I have on money to me has helped me to accomplish more than I did at any time in my life. Knowledge allows me to earn. If I could earn based on Kemetic principles then I would focus more on it, but it doesn't earn me anything so it is simply something I like to study and talk about from time to time. I just don't understand and I can never get an answer when I ask Hoteps why they don't have the same amount of love for Nommo knowledge and culture. Why are we so caught up on East Africa to prove our self worth as Blacks?