Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all! Well, I am thankful that I made it this far. I have a new attitude for my personal life. Since developing high blood pressure

I am still very greatful for my life and what I have. I am now fully committed to getting in shape and toning up my body. This is crucial for me, as well as for so many other African Americans because high blood pressure runs in our families. So with that said, I wish everybody the best in the rest of the year 2008! I cannot wait to post stories for this year! BYE BYE!

Well, I think that in addition to stereotypes, we have to deal with corruption in the government of the United States. Now I was not raised to hate anybody, but that does not mean that I should not speak out against this man! He, his father, his brother the former governor of Florida, and many more before him have destroyed the very idea of an American dream,and they have sucked the liberty from our very lives! Remember, since 1619, people of European descent came to the Americas and used "Manifest Destiny" to conquer a territory that did not belong to them. This was at the expense of African and Native American peoples being enslaved or killed(completely wiped off of the face of the planet). Now ask yourself "MY FELLOW AMERICANS"-Is this abbreviated history lesson that I just gave you a reflection of what is happening today? You think about it, and do some extra research to learn more about what I am talking about. That is, if you even care about what I am talking about!

The future looks somewhat cloudy: but thanks be to God!

Well, I predict that black people will still be stereotyped in 2008 and in the years to come! I do not mean to be a person of disbelief, but when it comes to this, it is different! The people must change for this to come to an end!

Also, The Middle East is in turmoil! This is evident because of the recent assassination of Benazir Buhtto. Sad, but true, another person who was fighting for freedom was taken out! This region of the world has had soooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much violence and war since Biblical times. I will put it like a friend of mine told me-"They been fighting over there since Jesus left and they gonna be fighting until he comes back!"

The year 2007 is almost over!: A reflection.

Well, the year 2007 is almost over! It is very hard for me to believe that it will come to an end in only 10 days. I know one thing: this year has been a very interesting one. My life has been challenged in many ways ranging from my very long and exhausting summer to schoolwork to everyday college life over the last year.
My journey into adulthood got deeper as I worked in my hometown for the summer. I worked at Rayonier Performance Fibers Fernandina Mill as temporary summer help for the company's department of central maintenance. This was truly a life changing experience because I met new people and developed a special bond with those who I came into contact with while working there. Also, I was glad to honor my grandfather by working at this company because he worked there at the same place for over 40 years! I also honored my father because he worked at the same place for about two years before he became a teacher at Fernandina Beach High School. At this present time, my father's brother works there now, and it was nice to see him there at different times to briefly talk with him on the job. There were also many men out there who looked after me(namely the black men), and that felt good to have veterans of the company help me along the way. One thing that intrigued me was the fact that so many of the employees at Rayonier knew who I was because of my grandfather and the rest of my family. I kept in mind that many of the people that I met for the first time out there had already been acquainted with my family. This job was not bad overall, but I hate waking up early in the morning, and that is what I had to do for the whole summer. In addition, my co-worker was CRAZY! He was a college student as well who was working for the summer at Rayonier. Working with him was a test of faith in and of itself! I can honestly say that it was God that helped me to stay sane while working with him. That guy is a complex character. Believe me: if you had to work with him for a certain amount of time, you would understand where I am coming from! I can still remember the last day at that job this summer as I started to get emotional. As I left the gates of Rayonier I shed a few tears because of the whole experience of being out there on the job. I had never worked in a blue-collar setting in my life, and I learned so much about life being there. There were many times where I felt like quitting the job, but I stayed until the end! To this day I may consider going back to work at Rayonier for another summer as I finish my higher education at Florida A&M University.
One thing that has really turned the tables for my life was my Advanced Composition class at FAMU. That class is the very reason as to why this blog exists! I enjoyed being in the class because I learned so much. I am grateful for being taught by Dr. West-White and for the interesting lessons that she gave to me and the rest of my classmates. I was soooooooooooooooo happy when I found out my grade for her class. I worked very hard to earn an A out of her class, especially when I discovered that I was making high grades on different papers. Through the long, sleepless nights and the sickness that I caught, I achieved what I was chasing for that class!
The most monumental event that happened to me this year was turning 21 on November 20. I just could not believe that I made it to that age in my life. It was nice to be able to come home that week to see my family since that was the same week as Thanksgiving break. Overall I have been doing pretty well while this year has been concluding except for this cold that I developed at the beginning of November.
The one thing that I have been put to the test with this year is my health. I now have full-blown high blood pressure! Yes ladies and gentlemen, I have high blood pressure! Unfortunate: Yes, but will it stop me: NO! There is a lot that I am trying to do and that I must still do to get this out of my system, literally! All in all, I am very thankful to have experienced what I have in this year 2007! I pray that the Creator will allow me to see the new year!

The American Media

American media is completely messed up! I do not like to watch too much of the news on CNN and especially not Fox News! At the end of the day I realized that most of the media is run as a business, and media outlets do not care about the truth of certain issues. All they want is to have high ratings from the American public turning their televisions on and watching their programs. That thought occurs to me as I watch the news. Most of the time I wonder about how they have managed to get a chance at reporting on different stories, and I always wonder about how much of what they are saying is true. This does not leave everyday people out of the equation to inform themselves about what is true on the news. Now, just because people watch the news that does not make them stupid, but they may still be ignorant of the story and what the story is all about. So much of what is reported is only negative and degrading, especially when it comes to African Americans. That is why I study the facts about the subject that is being covered on the news or written in newspapers. So many journalists and newscasters get away with reporting false information on a variety of subjects just so that they can get their paycheck. It is funny to me how political cartoonists are the ones who seem to give the most truth in their publications. Maybe they can get away with that because most people ignore the cartoons. In addition to the lies that are printed and reported in the media, a negative story on African Americans being broad casted daily. I feel that the only way to change that is for African Americans to have their own media outlets that showcase the whole story of what is going on in our community. BET does not count in my view because that station is owned by Viacom. Since the probability of a black-owned media conglomerate coming into existence is slim, the only thing that a person can do is inform themselves about the issues at hand to understand what really goes on in the world. Personally, I hate the corruption of the media in America, and that is why I love the movie V for Vendetta. It directly addresses this issue of the news media as it relates to any place in the world. Maybe V has invaded my mind when it comes to Fox News, but I will always "remember the 5th day of November"!

Spending Habits

Spending habits are only controlled by the individual who spends the money. This discussion was very interesting to me because of the points that came up as a part of the discussion in class. I think it is very funny how African Americans are the biggest consumers and the smallest savers. To me it is sad how we will spend so much money on things that depreciate in value. I can speak from personal experience on spending habits because of my family. My mother loves to buy little things that she considers to be little treasures. I can remember growing up that her spending habits were the basis of the many arguments between her and my father. But over he years I was able to see what my father was trying to tell me about money. He even told me about how money was a determining factor that almost made my parents divorce. I told myself that I did not want to end up in the same position as my parents had when it came to finances. That is why I try to spend the smallest amount of money possible without going over my budget. I think that it is best for me to try and save as much money as possible so that I do not go around broke! My father always taught me that money does not grow on trees, and to this day I can see the importance of understanding that statement.

I Love Video Games!

Video games are one of the greatest forms of entertainment that I have come into contact with since my childhood. I can even enjoy video games as an adult. Since I was a child, I could remember how I would love to play video games for many hours at a time. They used to help me relieve stress by allowing me to go into a virtual world that expanded my imagination. As I got older I enjoyed playing games that were violent, but I knew that violence as a casual activity was wrong. For some reason I had an understanding of what was real and what was fantasy. Yet there are those who have obviously not been taught the difference between the two and that causes many terrible things to happen. This is the response that you get from certain individuals who try and make a claim saying that children are influenced by violent video games to kill and hurt others. I even saw a report myself on 60 Minutes a few years ago where parents tried to blame violence on the Grand Theft Auto video game series by saying that a certain individual who killed people was inspired by the types of crimes that are committed in the game. To me a company that makes video games is not responsible for killings that occur. To me that is not a legitimate excuse for violence. For one thing, video games have ratings, and children under 17 are not supposed to play with games that are rated M for Mature. If children who are under 17 play those kind of games then the parents need to be aware of what their children are playing. I myself played with video games that had graphic horror violence and blood and gore before I was 17. My parents knew that I played with these games, and to this day I have never gotten into a physical altercation that escalated to violent actions being committed. If there is anything negative about video games is that they are addictive and can cause a child to lose focus on what they must do for school. I do not think that video games lead to obesity. If a child who is obese plays with video games they need to have a time to go outside and play for exercise. Regardless of what people with children have to deal with because of video games, I will always love to play a good video game just to have some fun and relax from a tiring day!