Nobody runs to lose...

I do not know about you, but I think I am finally exhausted by this extended presidential race. The way I feel now, if the election was held tomorrow, I probably would not vote. I am sure that will change though.

Because of cable TV and this 24 hour news cycle, in which every fart by the candidates gets coverage, the campaigns are starting to resemble a fight between 4 and 8 year olds (8 because McCain is almost twice as old), each complaining to mom about the other. McCain accuses Obama of flip-flopping…Obama, accuses McCain of pandering.
Isn’t it funny to hear them both claim that the other is a “politician”? It is like watching two mud wrestlers argue about who’s dirtier!

Maybe we started ideallistically, well at least I did. Barrack Obama did seem to be this agent of change that a lot of us wanted to believe in, and he still may win and do an admirable job. However, I think it is unrealistic to think that he will go into the temple, turn over the tables, and kick out the thieves. It is not going to happen. He is not going to totally change Washington! The establishment has worked hard for a couple hundred years to streamline our choices, so that in the Democrats and Republicans we think that we have a real choice…Except that we don’t.

Obama, is definitely still more progressive than McCain but be clear, they are all politicians.

Politics: use of intrigue or strategy in obtaining any position of power or control.

So when you hear “Obama changes his mind on finance reform”, or “McCain flip-flops on Immigration” remember its still only politics. They are just doing what politicians do.

Chicks Dig Yankee Stadium

I've discovered the perfect formula! Check this out! I am a hopeless sports fan thanks to my grandfather, who got me involved in baseball and football very early in life. Sports have become part of my genetic make-up. They have had an impact on me from the way I relate to my fellow man (how many times have you heard grown men discuss serious topics only using sports analogies?) to my education (in 4th grade I was the fastest to learn my "7 time tables" because of football scoring). This is not unique to American men either. A lot of my European, Asian, Latin American and African friends have had their lives shaped by Soccer/Futbol. A mistake we (both sexes) make in dating is to try to change our mate. I have had girls try to extract the love of sports from my DNA, only to fail miserably. I have also tried to make girls love sports, which they have sometimes pretended to do because they intended to gain concessions from me later on. I knew the interest was not genuine.
I decided to surprise my girlfriend, who hates sports all together, and take her to a Yankee game. My buddy Erik acquired two tickets to a game and passed them on to me. I called her at work and told her not to make any plans, "I have a surprise for you after work". She also hates surprises, so the rest of the afternoon consisted of her asking me for hints!

Her: Is it a gallery?

Me: there is a gallery there...

Her: Is it a Fashion show?

Me: well, there is fashion for men, women and children there.

Her: Is it Historical?

Me: There is a lot of history there and it will all be gone after this year! (This is the last year the yanks will be playing in the house that Babe Ruth built.)

Her: Is it a film?

Me: They have this giant Hi-Def screen! Really, I am not lying!

When we got off the train at 161st st, the awesome spectacle of the Stadium was undeniable. Even to someone who has never liked sports. I could feel the anxiety coursing through her as we made our way into the game. It had began to rain so we had some time to get some snacks and drinks and leisurely began to walk through the hallowed corridors. We finally sat down and she enjoyed her first Yankee game, clapping when prompted and cheering for A-rod, who delivered with the game winning Homerun!
I explained some of the history of the building (built in the 1920's refurbished is the 70's) and then we went across the street to examine the New Yankee Stadium that will open next year.
It worked wonderfully, No matter what they say fellas, no woman can resist the excitement generated by a game winning A-Rod home run in Yankee Stadium.

! If your girl can, I don't envy you!

Carmina Soul returns for the summer

Over the past three summers, Chris Annibell's Afrokinetic brand has quietly but successfully built a wonderfully cool and easy party where you can really let go and dance (even by yourself, if you wish). The infectious afro-beat, afro-latin and soul grooves accompanied by live percussion are perfect for a warm Saturday night in Brooklyn.

http://afrokinetic.com/

Saturdays!

Now that the weather has broken, Saturday afternoons are full of opportunity in the city. Last Saturday, we enjoyed the Murakami exhibit at the Brooklyn museum. This is a must see! This Japanese artist's work spans almost all genres from fine art and illustration to fashion design.

Another fun idea, is the water taxi. Catch it in DUMBO and take it to the Water Taxi Beach. Lay down your beach towel, take in a hotdog, toss around a frisbee or take a nap till late afternoon. The sunsets over midtown are spectacular. If you have the energy to stick around the beach after dark, the music and dancing rivals the "Zion" scene in the second Matrix movie. I love NYC summers.

for water-taxi beach info: http://www.watertaxibeach.com/

for brooklyn museum info: http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/murakami/?gclid=COfh-P3U_pMCFRYLIgodnEJwWQ

the great debate-

I am going to tread very lightly on this next topic because some people may have some very strong feelings. I will also be very careful not to generalize by only offering my opinions based on my own limited experiences. I can’t speak for everyone! However, I guarantee there will be someone who can relate…

When you really sit down and think about, (and you have probably only done this in the shower or on a long drive in which you were bored out of your mind) there are some real differences in the way men and women argue.
Let me first examine the male psyche. Most of the guys I know are logical, linear thinking fellows. No matter where they are from, and no matter who they are in a debate with, they seem to enter into the situation the same way you would enter a boxing match. In the sport of boxing, there are rules that the opponents both agree to abide by. There are no low blows, no hitting behind the head and no hitting after the bell to name a few. Both fighters proceed with a kind of order that make boxing the “sweet science”. Everything just seems to makes sense. Now every now and then, you get a crazy opponent trying to bite off your ear or throwing a stool at you. Yeah that happens, usually with that drunken guy at the club. Sometimes you may even get a third party putting their 2 cents in, which may lead to the opponents unifying to attack the intruder. Remember how Fan Man, or whoever he was, got beat down after parachuting into the ring during an Evander Holyfield fight back in 1993? You should never interfere with two guys settling an issue. It just ain’t smart.
For the most part, unless there are some chemical imbalances, guys generally play by the rules.

Now from my experiences, when the fight pits members of the opposite sex together, the dynamics change drastically! Now there is the guy who still thinks he’s coming to the ring for a boxing match with all the parameters of the sport but to his surprise, his opponent did not come to the ring to box! She came to the ring with the intent to win a WWE wrestling match! Moreover, she’s going to win at all costs. There are no rules against third parties in wrestling (well, there is…but you know). She came to the ring with her manager, Mr. Fuji. When the bell rings, the guy comes out to throw a jab and is surprised by a kick to the groin! "WHAT THE??", he thinks. He has to adapt, but he doesn’t know how!! This just is not logical to him. By the time he regains his bearings and starts to gain the upper hand, her manager Mr. Fuji, throws a metal chair into the ring. He is baffled by the fact that she uses it as a weapon! This analogy is based on my experiences only. However, it does not reflect any experiences I have had with the women I have dated ;)…Now, back to the fight! The poor fella is handicapped because none of this new style of fighting makes any sense to him. He keeps boxing in the hopes that his disciplined skills will bring him victory but he does not notice as she reaches into her leotard and slips her fingers into a brass knuckle.
When he wakes up, he realizes that the ref has just disqualified her for using a foreign object. Luckily, he retains his belt! But she doesn’t care. In her eyes, the fight isn’t over. The guy has to pay! Mr. Fuji jumps in the ring and they both begin stomping the poor guy, while the referee’s efforts to stop the match are futile. They smash him repeatedly with the steel chair. Finally, they stop only because the next match has to begin after the commercial break.

That’s how I see it. Sometimes it just seems as if men and women just play by a different set of rules.

Part2: Near Death...

Part2:

So, I guess now I can clarify my below position.
About a year ago, a small bump appeared on my back. It could have been there longer. It’s been there so long that my previous girlfriend noticed it. However, it was my current sweetheart that persuaded me to schedule an appointment with the dermatologist. I reluctantly obeyed her wishes. The small bump had grown and had all the markings of Melanoma. Because of my ethnicity, I had believed myself to be immune to skin cancer. I don’t need no stinkin’ SPF 30!!! Let me tell you, my beliefs were erroneous! Skin cancer can strike anyone! And even though cases in darker skinned people are more rare than in whites, statistics say that blacks are more likely to die of skin cancer than whites, This could be because of a lack of information and because we don’t seek the same early treatment.

Well, I went to the doctor yesterday and waited for about an hour in the waiting room reading old car and travel magazines. Finally, the medical assistant called me into an examination room and we briefly discussed my reasons for coming in. After she jotted a few things down on my chart she told me to hold tight and the doctor would be right in.

It’s funny, the things that go through your mind as you sit waiting in a cold room. I didn’t want to move too much because the paper that lined the table would make a loud crackle and I didn’t want to make the nurses think I was rummaging around the room. So I tried to sit still. But for some reason, I had the urge to take a Q-tip out of the jar on the sink. I didn’t have the nerve to get up. so I just sat there and stared at the Q-tips like a dog who covets something off of his masters plate but knows better.

After about 12 minutes or so, Dr. Nichols comes in to examine me. She looks closely at the mole, looks at the chart again and then proceeded to tell me not to worry.
She says don’t worry it’s not Cancer. At that moment, I felt a relief that had so far escaped me during my lifetime. Never had I been so worried about my mortality, not because of health reasons anyway.
As it turns out, the mole is the result of an infected bug bite. I have no idea when or where it happened. I worried if it was some bug I encountered in Thailand or the rain forests in Costa Rica. In any case the only way to remove it would be surgery since it had grown inward pretty deeply. I figured it didn’t really bother me now that I knew what it was so it could stay and hangout for a while. And it would be a constant reminder, that yeah, protect your skin dude! You can get Skin Cancer too!

Near Death Experiences

How many times has the adrenaline peaked, the synapses fired at an accelerated rate and you could actually hear your heart beat? If you've escaped this sensation so far, good for you. Although I assure you, one day you most certainly will know what I mean. The best you can do is hope the first time is not your last.

I've had more than my share of these experiences. They never last more than a few seconds but they can take years off of your life, given you even survive. When I was a teen, I fell off a waterfall. My cousins Sean and James fished me out of the drink. Then there were the five or so serious car wrecks I've been in. The most serious of which occurred in Jamaica. I still can't believe Nasan and myself even walked away from that one. Not to mention the time I woke up jailed in Bangkok at no fault of my own (wrong place at wrong time). I was sick for about a month after that ordeal. I just recently came clean and told my mother about that one. She's always wondered aloud how have I managed to live this long.

I haven't shied away from placing myself in some unhealthy situations but what I'm deathly afraid of is going to the doctor. Many guys my age(30+) are. I can understand why. Every little bump, cough or sharp pain can be something potentially serious. I just made an appointment for Tuesday and I'm Pooping bricks. I'm sure I'll be ok but you never know...