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Got this one last night! I forgot. The photographer owns this copyright. I removed it from my YouTube channel.

Thank you! That is one of the most classic and fabulous wedding celebrations that I have ever seen! Oh My Gosh! I don't know how many times I have watched this. @Mel Hopkins I can't imagine how happy you must feel! Your daughter and her husband are so incredibly beautiful. Again, you look amazing. LOL! Okay... @Pioneer1 Come on! But you are right on one count, that wedding look like a movie; As if it was straight out of Hollywood.

"He who knows not, and knows not that he knows not, is a fool."

Man, what's the world coming to....... He allegedly died from Pancreatic Cancer, which is said to be very painful. I hope our brother is resting in peace and is free from his suffering. I remember Brown Sugar. And when I hear, for some reason I also think of Domino's "Sweet Potato Pie"....lol. Most of the ladies remember D'Angelo's "How Does It Feel" video when he came on nearly naked grinning and licking his lips and shit, lol.

Michael Archer aka D'Angelo was the pioneer of Neo-Soul music. His Brown Sugar record turned R&B upside-down back in 1995. His live performances were straight fire. D'Angelo was extremely gifted and talented. He leaves behind a body of musical work that will stand the tests of time. Thanks for the musicianship and music. RIP Mr. Michael Archer aka D'Angelo.

@aka Contrarian yeah I've been swamped the last few weeks. I even spent a day on Captial Hill working with lobbyists to reduce credit card swipe fees -- fascinating exercise. I missed an opportunity to connect with my man @ProfD but we will catch up. @Delano I know I owe you a response. To make matter worse all my passwords were deleted from my password manger software --twice so I could not log into anything. It is a pain to login into many systems with a password... I can't even login to the admin console here it has been at least a month since I have approved a new account. I also have 2,200 unread emails in my inbox. I there is a better than even money chance that I will delete everything without reading it and change my email address.

Yeah, I've heard of your in-law: https://aalbc.com/authors/Frank+London+Brown. A collection of his short stories was published a couple of years ago (I see I need to add a couple more of his books). Lives are complex individually and collectively. Thanks for sharing your joy with us @Mel Hopkins. You are truly blessed to have the life you have had and to see your daughter celebrate her nuptials on such a grand scale! Being perhaps the only person on Earth who has had the pleasure of meeting both @aka Contrarian and Mel's mom in the flesh. I think the two would get on quite well @Mel Hopkins. What do you think? Peace & Love.

I am finding words and numbers allow me to access the unconscious mind of the Querent and for myself i use omens and clock time Yes just be open and don't have set beliefs or feelings. Just allow the information to speak to you. One of the ways is to just doodle or write down the words that pop into your mind.

This is all so fascinating! So, you say that this was deliberate!? They deliberately misinterpreted the Fifth element!? I have never heard of 'the Fifth Element' but although a lot of what was explained was complex for me, I now am happy to say that I could follow some of the idea of what was addressed. I found it very interesting to hear how electricity and gravity, light, etc. was measured and how all of this relates to space! This topic seems to go along with the science about comets and how they travel through space and how scientist are able to know exactly when comets come their closest to the sun and earth, etc. This is mind blowing for me. Even though, I think that the Harvard expert is a little far fetched on his beliefs about this interstellar comet, I respect his brilliance nonetheless. More importantly, I find it amazing in how the ancient Egyptians defined the Fifth Element. I don't know why, but when I was watching the video about this, I for some strange reason, thought about the ancient American Indians and their 'Dream Catchers' and also, I thought about 'dot matrix'. Even though Space Science is intimidating for me, I am still intrigued and love a little bit that I can understand. Thank you for posting this! I think that you are extremely intelligent! When I think about you addressing these topics, it makes me want to go get that movie about the brilliant woman of Color that had something to do with NASA! I haven't seen that movie yet, but I have been trying to slow down so that I can watch it! Girl, you are too smart! @Mel Hopkins And so is your twin! @Delano He is way over my head and I just don't know how to comment on his threads, but I love to read him though.

That harvest moon which recently loomed on the horizon, appearing like clock work every year in October, is as wonderous as our resident bee hive. Here it is overlooking the mall parking lot near me. Who's running this show???

Thank you! The happy couple is so creative! My son-in-law even came up with the idea for a hotel flag - They designed it, got it made, and the hotel staff even put it up in front of the hotel!

Where is our fearless leader? Still waiting for Troy to show up?

I love this performance. Maxwell was supposed to battle D'Angelo in Verzus, but he didn't show up. D'Angelo went on and did that damn thing anyway. Then H.E.R. showed up to do this duet - and it was heaven. Thank you, D'Angelo, for sharing your beautiful talent! May beautiful music follow you as you continue your journey. D’Angelo, Grammy-winning R&B singer, dies at 51 | AP News

I'm not a dermatologist by any stretch of the imagination. i believe using the right products probably helps. Correct. As soon as I saw my hair getting thin, I became my own barber permanently.

You don’t need the with bald heads part. lol! The worst are those brothers rockin the dread locks with the George Jefferson hairline, I was always on the lazy side when it came to my hair so cutting it off works for me. I can’t be bothered to shave every day though. Once or twice a week generally is enough and about all I can muster.

Only in America ...do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front. Only in America .....do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries, and a diet coke. Only in America .....do banks leave vault doors open and then chain the pens to the counters. Only in America .....do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage. Only in America ......do we buy hot dogs in packages of ten and buns in packages of eight. Only in America ......do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering. EVER WONDER.... Why the sun lightens our hair, but darkens our skin? Why can't women put on mascara with their mouth closed? Why don't you ever see the headline 'Psychic Wins Lottery'? Why is 'abbreviated' such a long word? Why is it that doctors call what they do 'practice'? Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavor, and dishwashing liquid made with real lemons? Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker? Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour? Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food? Why didn't Noah swat those two mosquitoes? Why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections? You know that indestructible black box that is used on airplanes? Why don't they make the whole plane out of that stuff?! Why don't sheep shrink when it rains? Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress? If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport, the terminal? Author Unknown

Powerful observation, Brotha ProfD! Many women in the industry feel the same way - but again, look who runs the industry. I wonder how the music industry would look if people from the African diaspora were at the top?

In no time like, never.

I have been listening to Charade the live versions https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IRCLjK5OWjU So him on the Vodou tour.

@TroyYes, they had a reality show a while back. After pioneer kicked "ther" to the curb, ther gave up on black men and got married a coupla years ago to a salacious lookin white guy.

The lobbyists wanted "real people" to tell their stories. There were a bunch of booksellers from across the country who participated. I rolled with folks lobbying for Racetrac and Wawa. Did you know credit card sipe fees was their second largest expense behind salaries? The margins for their operations are less 3 to 4%. MasterCard and Visa have margins of 50% enjoying an effective monopoly and a much larger war chest to keep politicians in their pockets. I used to complain about the government about allowing Google and Meta to run rough shod over the internet and our people. But they get away with it because they have greedy politicians in their pocket. Trump has exploited this to the hilt. This system is broken. I'm not even sure if it is repairable. You need legislators who are unbought and unbossed. We are grasping for straws in desperation first Obama, then Trump. Now the 33-year-old Muslim socialist in NYC has won the democratic nomination for mayor.

EXACTLY! Ex-military, Trump supporter ... obviously biased by my Florida environ LOL! Yeah, they have you believing the is one race and respecting woman as equals in no time. LOL! Knowing @Pioneer1 he's found unspeakable use of her unique attribute. Seriously, is she/they an actual living human being?! I'm surprised no one has made a reality TV show of her/them or at least a documentary.

@Pioneer1 Since I have no idea what you look like THAT would be an interesting photo. In my mind's eye I see you as a bow-tied, bean pie slinging' brother. Other times I see you as a domestic beer-drinking blue-collar guy- with a decent job at "the plant." Perhaps you are both or neither... There were a couple of people who posted here years ago Zane and Thumper. Neither came close to what I thought they would be like in person. I suspect Pioneer would be the same. @Mel Hopkins invite him to GA so that we can see what he looks like

Da Bears are tracking in the right direction under new Head Coach Ben Johnson. As QB Caleb Williams continues growing in terms of making his reads faster and improving his throwing accuracy, the offense will improve. HC Johnson really needs to rely on the running game until the offense becomes more explosive in the passing game. Da Bears defense is pretty solid. They just need to minimize their penalties. Those mistakes give opposing offenses better field position and scoring opportunities. Upcoming Bears opponents are Saints, Ravens, Bengals and Giants. All winnable games.

@ProfDWell, after all of their last minute losses last season, DA BEARS have finally started to get a few breaks. ChiTown is happy!

Da Bears won. Bye week didn't hurt your team. Too many mistakes definitely led the Commanders to losing the game. Congrats to Da Bears on the win.

@TroyGlad you finally showed up! You been MIA. Leave it to you to smooth things over. I never thought about Mel's mom and me bonding, but that makes sense. (We come from a generation when people were more discreet, - and didn't make fools of themselves when trying to defend their indiscretion.) But, in pioneer's case, we to have to consider the source.

OMG Troy, Yes! They would have a blast together! Seriously, fireworks, laughter, and partying! Thank you!

You have to be delusional TO A CERTAIN DEGREE in order to really achieve Success in this world. You can't be too stuck in the current "here and now" or focus only on what you THINK is likely or probable. You have to be a dreamer and dream big and actually believe those dreams can and will be accomplished. This is important for intelligent and righteous Black people to understand and accept.

Got it the 1st few times. Regardless of internal issues, Haiti and Ireland are still independent countries. Whether it is comfort or anger, my point is those Black folks don't appear to be willing to change their condition. I'm not suggesting or equating comfort with happiness. Maintaining status quo is a form of complacency. Read you clearly there. I even adopted your suggestion of Black tribes. Your suggestion of tribes clicked because I already have it. My dialog here at AALBC is not a recruiting effortt nor a desire to change how anyone else thinks. Just sharing my opinion, view, perspective on topics that come up. Unfortunately, I do not hold my tongue or restrain my typing fingers when I have something to say which is usually about everything. Silence is not an option for me.

Violence is a path to freedom and power. Those who want it badly enough will do what they have to do. I'm not referring to the barbaric violence colonizers used...committing genocide, raping and pillaging others for their land and bodies. Violence as a form of self-defense is absolutely necessary when diplomacy fails. Several forms of post traumatic stress disorder PTSD) to include cognitive dissonance seems to have been passed along and ingrained in the psyche of the descendants of slaves. Most of that work is labor dependent on white folks...paid slavery. The unwillingness to use violence in order to secure freedom and power suggests that Black folks have found a comfortable place within the system of racism white supremacy.

I don't know what all is going on in the personal conflicts here. I tend to not find that stuff interesting. This "inferiority" issue is deeply psychological. When I was 5 yrs old I was sitting at the kitchen table while my mother was doing my sister's hair with an ironing comb. I was staring at the comb on the stove thinking, "Damn that thing must be HOT!" My mother picked it up with a pot holder to use on her hair. Zzoooooom...! I was gone! Out of the kitchen. That shit is CraZy! I had two older sisters, 4 and 5 years older than me. With different complexions. I began thinking that Black females had an inferiority complex about beauty before I graduated from grammar school. But we are born into this White dominant culture. The Paleface talk about this Stockholm Syndrome. That was because of some hostage incident in Sweden. How much of a Stockholm Syndrome do Black Americans have resulting from centuries of failing to cope with this bullshit. I started reading science fiction at 9. Of course almost all of it written by White men. So any female characters were disproportionately blonde haired and blue eyed. But I ended up learning quite a bit of science because of those books and began to notice most White people in the Real World are not to smart. Then there is the "Acting White" syndrome. .

You misunderstood me. I know it's inappropriate for others to ask personal information. BUT It happens to me so often that I just answer the question to set the record straight. This way, I feel that no one can claim I've misled them, or they can claim ignorance. But I agree with @aka Contrarian . I'll wait for someone to share their information with me. If they choose not to share, it is their right. I won't ask. For example, we've engaged in conversation on this board for the past 15 years, but have I ever asked you to share a photo, describe yourself, tell me where you live, what you do for a living, if you're poor, wealthy, married, single, white, Latino, First Nation, or Black? Nope, because I respect your position to remain anonymous. Hell, I don't even know your name! Stiil, I answered you because of who you are and how you present yourself. By the way, my ex and I used to wear a lot of plaid shirts for a while . His hair is now gray, but he's a straight, Nordic-type, blonde-haired, blue-eyed man, standing at 6 feet 2 inches.

That's the same thing that happened to me. The information comes from your DNA! You know what you know! I believe with all my heart that we have all the information, but we're afraid to know how we know, so we dismiss it. But try this -(don't believe everything you think. just let the thoughts flow.) For example, for the life of me, I couldn't figure out how my grandpups understood what I was saying. Or any other non-human species for that matter, but today, I watched my grandpup Scott nose wiggle while I was speaking to him -- and do you know that little furbaby sniffs to understand my message? He can smell me, tell what I mean, and actually acts on it. So, there is intelligence in "knowing." through all our senses! Most of the time, I feel the message or I put my finger on the answer. I'm not special! We can all do this! Trust what you're feeling and be fluid with iit. The last part means to let the information flow in and out - don't be wedded to it. Just use it as you would when reporting a story. Don't fear correcting yourself later - information is fluid. The more open you are open to letting the information flow, the more the answers you need will come, and as they come, you can build on them and build your knowledge in any discipline.

Mel What's inappropriate is another person telling YOU how YOU should react to or feel about.

@Mel HopkinsSo, in addition to all the Joy and beauty captured on the creative video, thanks to the nosy maliciousness of the bigot who repeatedly expresses disapproval of white guys and the black women who marry them, we now know that the father of your lovely daughters who you "got with" is not a big nosed Jew nor an Italian nor an average WASP in a plaid shirt! Excuse me if I thought pioneer's cross examination of you was in poor taste.

Yes, it seems that if they did, in ancient times and maybe even now, they were severely punished even martyred. And even though the early American Colonizers came over here with their religion, they eventually repeated this same behavior whereby, they began to leave God out of science and try to offer Scientific Explanations from their own perspective.

@aka Contrarian, your neighborhood has become quite the show between the bee hive/cocoon and harvest moon shining like a mini-sun to ICE raids, National Guard and protests not too far away.

Yes! This is what I was thinking. I don't believe it is their fault. Still, when they combined esotericism and science into their study, the establishment (Catholicism) made the natural philosophers stay in their lane or face execution. Therefore, the scientists (natural philosophers) were unable to reference God or Spirituality in their work. It is impossible to leave God out of science - but they were forced to do so. 0/T (off-topic) In fact, they deliberately misinterpreted the Aether (the fifth element), as evidenced by the Michelson-Morley experiment; they were ridiculed and chastised if they ever mentioned the element again. The Ancient Africans knew the fifth element existed. They called it the "Net" (Consciousness - THE Omnipotent, Omnipresence, Omniscient, i.e., THE ALL in The All), and they also knew how to work within consciousness to guide their lives. Today, we've returned to the concept of consciousness, and many researchers are realizing that it isn't connected to the brain, but rather exists all around us.

How rude and insulting can you get?

The tranquility synonymous with Buddhism and stoicness , is my goal as I await my time to leave.

Sista @Mel Hopkins, thanks for sharing the video. Beautiful couple and ceremony and display of Black excellence.

Beyond dreaming about what it takes to be successful, one must have plans and goals and take action every moment of being awake in order to accomplish it. As the religious folks say "faith without works is dead", the same thing applies to success. Some folks find success through luck. Others gain success through inheritance. Somebody else put in the work. Most success is gained through hard work, determination, larceny and sometimes violence. There is a lot of truth to the fact that one can accomplish anything if they put their 1) mind to it and 2) work to make happen. Those who are unsuccessful did now want it badly and/or work hard enough.

I think that is unconsciously what I practice at this stage of my life. I've literally divested myself of everything but the clothes on my back, so I have no indebtedness. I do insist on helping my daughter out with utilities but I don't have to. She and I lead separate lives as do all my immediate family members. I have no extended family. I've never had the wanderlust, so I am content to stay put, and all activity is by choice. I've always valued my solititude which I now have plenty of. I am good company for myself, but reminiscence is my frequent and cherished companion. So, in the midst of not only what's going on in Chicago but also on a smaller scale, what's going on in the small town where I live, not to mention a whole country in the grip of Trumpism, here I am, - a spectator! And I'm only that when I choose to observe. I am, in my own peculiar way, a free spirit! Who knew??

I haven't seen it but reads like the Super Moon dropped down and got its eagle on over your backyard.

Did y'all see the big lightbulb, aka "The moon", early this morning? It lit up my entire backyard like someone forgot to turn off the lights!

Well, pioneer (who can't beget a family) has checked in and done his thing. The same ol, same ol. The usual comments with sexual innuendo and, of course, the stock photos of people who have nothing to do with who he's talking about. Sorry, but I only give his attempt one star.* He voided the scenario he came up with in his first attempt at being funny. @Mel be sure to check out Chevdov's comments that were posted at the same time I posted this.

Hey Fam! I shared my heartbreak with all of you; now here is my joy! Mom, my twin daughters' father, my oldest daughter, Cheyenne's (my daughter who passed away) childhood bestie, is in the family photo with us. I love her so much, and me sitting next to my oldest twin daughter! My daughter married the love of her life in August, and we all got to share in their transformative weekend celebration. Here's me getting ready for the wedding and checking my rearview . Yes, this is a very current photo!! And that's my gorgeous mom!!! Yep, she's in her 80s!!!

Pioneer even a cursory knowledge of American history tells you that race in America was about ancestry. This is a country where white men would rape their enslaved women then enslave their own children. It didn’t matter what they looked like. They were all treated as black. The whole notion of passing wouldn’t even be necessary, but in this country passing as a thing because again it being black is not about what you look like You heard of the man, Walter White he ran the NAACP for years. he is what you would call a White man but he was accepted in the black community as Black. He did have African ancestry. I think it was a grandmother or something. The way you choose to group people is at odds with the way they were grouped in this country for most of its existence. The concept of race needs to be put in the dust bin of history. The reality racism really is on its way out despite the media fixation on a relative handful of wing nuts