I’ve been seeing this rumor all over the net. Apparently the remix to Jay-Z’s hit song with Alicia Keys Empire State of Mind will feature Nas his one time enemy and 50 Cent.

If you haven’t heard the song yet check it out. 

A remix featuring a collaboration between the three men would obviously mean the reported feud between Jay-Z and Nas is over and that the two popular artistes have been able to put their issues behind them and move on.

I guess they’ve realized too many people, too many black men, have died and continue to die over stupid s%*& we don’t need to add two more to the list.

The city of Houston, Texas will now be led by an openly gay woman Annise Parker.

Parker, who has served as the city’s controller for the past six years, defeated Gene Locke a former city attorney in Saturday’s run off election for mayor.

I’m so tempted to say it..oh what the hell..You go girl! lol

“Well behaved women rarely make history.” ~Marilyn Monroe

You got that right!

So the police got Richard Heene to come in and were able to (wink, wink) get a confession from him by telling him they wanted to return his aircraft and tie up some loose ends with a few questions..lol

And dude fell for it!

Amazing!

Most husbands wouldn’t spend five minutes looking for the tv remote but this one searched the deepest ocean to find his wedding ring.

Well, it wasn’t the deepest ocean but Wellington Harbour in New Zealand might seem like the deepest ocean on the planet when you’re looking for an object the diameter of a penny. And the fact that a man would spend so much time searching for something without asking his wife “Where is it?” well that’s a miracle in itself! My god his wife is a lucky woman!

Anyway, after finding his wedding ring at the bottom of the harbour Ecologist Aleki Taumoepeau has more than earned lifetime control of the tv remote along with some other lifelong marriage benefits..lol

I needed something to take my mind off the fact that Democrats and President Obama have already blown the 2010 elections by messing up health care refrom.

So I started fooling around on You Tube. After watching numerous kitten videos and ridiculous spoofs of back in the day cartoon shows, I came across this wicked track Spinnin’ by British Emcee Speech Debelle. 

And what a distraction she proved to be! Not only am I lovin’ her name-Speech Debelle, I’m feelin’ her music and I can relate just a tiny bit to the lyrics and her story. And that’s saying a lot these days..ain’t it? lol

 Anyway, Speech Debelle just released her debut album, appropriately titled Speech Therapy. I haven’t heard a female emcee this good in years!  Granted, Debelle is no Lauryn Hill but you don’t have to listen too closely to hear Hill’s influence on the South London rapper.

Anyway, check her out and let me know what you think?

 Just showing my British peeps some love…

In his new documentary Good Hair, out in October, Chris Rock and a bunch of Black celebrities attempt to explain the meaning of ‘good hair’ (to some in the Black community the straighter your hair the better your hair, hence the term good hair) and to highlight the billion dollar black hair care industry.

After a question posed to him by his daughter, Rock turns the camera on black women and the many different techniques we use to enhance or complement our looks whether it be weaves, wigs or extensions. And in a very funny but extremely revealing way, he highlights the constant conflict many Black women face with their natural hair.

For obvious historical reasons, Black womens’ self-image struggles have been more public and visible. However, beauty complexes are varied, culturally and ethnically specific and no race can claim to fully accept women as they are. Many Black women struggle to accept their hair,  White women are at war with their bodies and many Asian and Hispanic women are continuously fighting the melanin in their skin. 

So while I agree with the documentary’s underlying premise, from the various clips I’ve seen I have to say that Rock has forgotten to highlight one major element in his documentary, hair extensions have never been a Black girl thing -it’s a woman thing and in some periods of history it’s been a guy thing too!  

Just think about your favorite female celebrity for a moment Black, White or Asian. I’m pretty certain she has rocked hair extensions or worn something ‘not natural’ in her life in order to enhance her look and appeal. And she’s not the only one. Almost every female celebrity in the world has at one time or another used hair extensions regardless of their ethnicity even if they don’t admit it.

And this is where we Black women have excelled. Black women and men through talent, ingenuity and in some cases necessity have been able to provide specific looks to other Black women and men for a tenth of the cost. 

And as it became more mainstream to rock a celeb look and to change your hairstyle monthly, women from other races have once again decided to embrace what we black women have been doing for decades. And not only has it become socially and culturally acceptable to wear hair extensions, you can buy them almost anywhere too! So now, any woman that wants a specific hairstyle can achieve the look almost instantaneously.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gone to my stylist over the past ten years and seen a White girl sitting in the chair next to me getting a weave or braids. Or have visited my local beauty supplier and seen Hispanic and Asian women shopping for wigs and extensions. During my last visit to my stylist, guess who was sitting next to me getting his hair braided? A blond haired, White kid about 12 years old and his mother was the one who brought him!  

Highlighting the trials and tribulations of  some Black women and their hair battles does have some comedic value, I wouldn’t lie (have you ever seen a woman wearing this hairstyle?)  BUT in the end I hope we understand that women of every race and every age struggle with self-acceptance and Black women are no exception.

Bill Clinton showed the world today that he’s still got it!

Former President Bill Clinton may have lost a bit of his mojo over the years but today he proved that he’s still got some of that orginal Clinton magic left in the tank.

Today, Clinton was able to obtain a special pardon, freeing two American journalists, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, imprisoned in the totalitarian state of North Korea for the past five months.

It’s  good to know and TO SEE that the former president is not only out there working for Democrats but also on behalf of the American people.

Well done Mr. President!

And I’m quite sure the White House welcomes this ‘aren’t we awesome’ distraction from their health care reform agenda. 

Former President Bill Clinton is in North Korea today working to secure the release of two American journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee.

Speaking on MSNBC earlier today, Senior  Obama advisor and political truth teller David Axelrod said that Clintons’ trip was a  ’private humanitarian mission’. And while the White House is publicly tip-toeing around the trip releasing few significant details you know that Clinton has the full blessing of the White House.

What an awesome and high profile way to use the former president?  

While Clinton may not always say and do the right things at home, abroad Bill Clinton exemplifies all that is great about America. And while his reputation may have dimmed just a bit due to some negative campaigning on behalf of his wife during the 2008 Democratic primary, the ex-president is still a widely respected and adored global leader. And you better believe when you’re negotiating with a ‘personality’ reportedly as big as Kim Jong-il’s those two characteristics will go a long way in ultimately securing the release/pardon for these two women and who knows what else could emerge from this trip?

***UPDATE***..MSNBC is reporting that North Korean media is reporting that the two women have been granted a special pardon.

No doubt, things are bad out there. Obama is trying his best but to be honest it doesn’t seem to be working.

But I don’t care how bad things are with me, I would have to be so damn desperate (dying of thirst and my legs shot off) and without any hope of reaching a lake or fresh water river before I drank MOP SODA.

I’m sure you’ve seen the smart mop ad. It’s the one where this guy, pitchman Anthony Sullivan, squeezes spilled soda from a mop into a glass as he explains how awesome this ’smart mop’ is and tries to convince you that times are so tough we can’t afford to waste even one glass of spilt soda.

I don’t know where the marketing and advertising people came up with that concept but it sucks because most people I know, even the ones hurting for money, are not going to drink soda squeezed from a mop!

 What were the ad people thinking? Using that as a reason to buy the smart mop is not smart-it’s simply disgusting.